All comes tumbling down.

[notaparker]

This place doesn't need people with superpowers? Uh huh. Someone sold me a bill of goods on that one, because here I am, resident of this island for under a month, and I'm climbing a water tower as fast as I can, a device that extracts energy from an artificial region of subspace-time flung over my back so I can try to stop a space station from

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[daretodo]

One of the lessons you have to learn in my line of business is how to let things go. You can't control everything, and try as you might, you can't save everyone. Sometimes, you just have to trust that the professionals will do their job. Sometimes, you have to trust you won't be needed. Tony flew us over to the second island to check out the damage, see if the others are all right, but while there were plenty of injuries to go around, some more severe than others, it was clear enough that we weren't needed, that other people had it under control. We made our contribution high up in the sky, but on the ground, there are doctors, soldiers, officials. People far more qualified than us to tend to the wounded, and ferry them to the mainland. The last thing anyone needs right now are two other guys barking orders, so I asked him to fly me back, drop me off at the house so I can change into my civvies. Finding Mary Jane is my number one priority, but traipsing across the Island in my new Spidey outfit in broad daylight, looking for Peter

[un_gloved]

Rogue had been crossing the boardwalk at a run, path perpendicular to Peter's, so when they collided, she went sprawling onto the wood with an "Uff!"

She landed hard and rolled a few feet, and the only clear thought she had was I better not have any splinters.

[daretodo]

I've been bemoaning my lack of spider-sense all day, finally got to a place where I'd accepted I don't have it anymore, so I better deal with it, but times like these, I'm tellin' ya, it'd really come in handy. The impact sends me back, but through sheer force of will alone do I come out of a roll on all fours. My arms shake as I push myself up to standing, though I sway almost immediately, head spinning as I draw in air with a desperateness that implies suffocation. Three thoughts run concurrently through my head: I've got to find Mary Jane, who the hell did I just hit, and today's refrain, I don't have time for this.

The familiar shock of white hair against brown clues me into my assailant's identity. Fighting off the impulse to just keep on running, I stagger towards Rogue, offering her a hand up. Even if she's fine, we already left one person behind today. I couldn't live with myself if I just left her here without checking.

"Sorry," I huff out. Realizing that she was probably running for a reason, I add, "Who're you looking

[un_gloved]

She took the hand and pulled herself up, hissing out a soft breath as she caught sight of an unsightly scrape along her bicep.

"Who d'we know lives on the north side o'th'island 'n willfully disregards piddly li'l things like evacuation warnin's or anythin' else related to dangerous situations. Ow." She rubbed her head.

"Pete, you look like you're gonna pass out. Or sound like it. Kinda both."

[spirited_hero]

[polly_okeefe]

The un-evacuation was just as busy, in some ways, as the evacuation. The long shuttles between the caves and the Children's Office occupy me for over an hour, and in a way it's a blessing, as I don't have time to think about what happened on the Space Station, if everybody got out, though of course that was all that i thought about.

Then, finally, once things were squared enough away that I could step outside, I headed for the Compound entrance. From there, I might go home for a good cry.

That's when I see him.

In that moment, he's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. He's Zell, and he's alive.

For a moment, I stand, staring dumbfounded. Then, my legs moving of their own accord, I bolt down the corridor and fly straight into his arms.

[spirited_hero]

[polly_okeefe]

I laughed. It was either that, or crying. "'Sup', yeah," I said, and I kissed him, hard, right there at the Compound entrance.

[lt_blade]

For once, Sonya was glad to say that she'd come out of all of this with only a few bruises and exhaustion that came from getting off of adrenaline.

She stepped off the fairy and headed back to her hut, being glad that they had some food there because it meant she didn't have to go to the compound to eat and could go right to her hut for a shower and then sleep. Scorpion was probably going to kill her, after what happened, but he could do that after she's showered and grabbed something to eat.

ooc: open to anyone, catch her either on the beach or on the path

[notawastedlife]

Life had been easier when he'd let other people sort out his priorities instead, because then he could ignore them. Taking a break might have been nice. Movies about superheroes always skipped from the heroic save to the medals, there was always the implication they got to sit down somewhere in-between.

A stiff drink would also have been welcome, except in the sense that it wasn't. Maybe staying busy was the ticket.

After checking on the second island, a head count establishing that all of the others had gotten off safely -- which still left the count one short of what it should have been -- and humoring Peter's secret identity silliness, he'd moved down the list and gone underwater, long enough to establish that there wasn't neurotoxin leaking into the sea, and that the impact had cracked the shell of the space station and flooded it.

More critically, drowning did render the cyborgs inoperable.

This established, he walked back out of the sea, trying to determine what else needed to be done.

[wildlyconflictd]

If you needed a sign that all was not as it should be, the sight of Pepper Potts outdoors and not simply out of heels but completely shoeless was likely a good indicator. The size seven Jimmy Choos she'd been wearing in the Compound had been abandoned in the general vicinity of the hot springs after the all-clear had been called, as there just wasn't time to try and find footwear more practical for running through the jungle. Barefoot, she'd pushed past the crush of bodies filling the caves and had sprinted down the boardwalk, although she hardly had any idea of where she was going.

Checking the house was an idea that came to her surprisingly late, but she had been barely off the main pathway when Tony had emerged from the sea like some kind of mechanical Botticelli painting. Initially she'd skidded to a halt, thinking briefly that she was finally, truly, losing her mind, but was moving again quickly enough, spraying up sand as she ran full pelt over the dunes.

[notawastedlife]

For a moment, Tony thought the suit wasn't as clear from AI infection as he thought it was, because his displays were showing him a shoeless Pepper Potts pelting towards him across the sand.

He raised the visor. She was still there, to the naked eye, so that was...

Actually, that was a pleasant experience, she was alive, he was alive and mostly well, certainly entirely so physically, he'd take this one.

He held up a hand in greeting and waited for her to reach him.

[wildlyconflictd]

As it turned out, hugging was more than a little awkward with the suit between them, and quickly shifted into a sort of glorified pawing on Pepper's part, although the entire metal man experience was still frustrating.

"Are you alright?" she panted, and her hands hastily darted from Tony's torso to face to shoulders as if she could somehow better tell if he was hurt if she laid hands on him, even like this. "What is this? Where did this come from?" she asked in a rush, not allowing Tony time to reply before continuing. "We have to get you out of this, right now."

When she paused, there was a tremble in her fingers where they rested against the suit, flyaway hair skimming over her flushed cheeks.

"Are you alright?" she repeated, slower this time, her eyes meeting his.

[poison_lipstick]

Saffron finally regained consciousness as they boarded the boat to head back over to the main island, and she spent the trip clawing her way out of her disorientation, curled up in Lex's arms and struggling to breathe through the searing pain in her side and her head.

Once they reached the shore, she was thinking clearly, at least, but that had only made way for the pain to be felt more sharply. Breathing was still a chore, to put it very lightly. Saffron tried to stay as still as possible, trusting Lex to get her to the clinic.

[Locked to Lex and Xander.]

[capable_of]

Many people had to try to take Helen away from Lex after he'd exited the portal at full speed but besides having someone look her over to make sure she'd make it back to the main island, he'd held on to her. She'd saved his life and Lex was going to repay her by making sure she got help as soon as possible.

Seeing she was more awake, Lex waited while others got off the boat, giving Helen more time before he started moving again. "Hey. You still with me?"

[poison_lipstick]

She swallowed and immediately regretted it, unable to hide the grimace of pain that passed over her face. Saffron nodded, her breathing ragged, and managed to tilt her head back a little so she could look up at Lex.

[capable_of]

When he saw her look up, Lex did his best to smile, even if it was strained around the edges. "Almost there Helen. Just hang in there." He carefully held her closer, continuous hoping that she'd make it till they got to the clinic. If she died because she'd saved him, he would never forgive himself.

When the crowd exiting finally cleared a bit, Lex carefully stood up and made his way off the boat onto the dock.