Chapter 1
It wasn’t a light drizzle that hit the windows of the house far from the city. In fact, Pepper wouldn’t call it a drizzle at all. It was harsh, pounding rain that hit the window. Her eyes traced the tracks that were left by the rain before flicking over to her daughter that lay peacefully on the couch.
The two had been up for hours. It was a night where they could feel the absence of their loved one more harshly than before. Most days, they could go through their days without so much as a stray tear. Other days, they sat together in bed or on the couch and flipped through the scrapbook that sat on the table. Pepper would trace the outline of Tony’s face softly, whispering to her daughter about the man, telling her stories of a time before she was born.
That’s what they had done tonight. Pepper stroked her daughter’s hair and smiled softly at the sleeping figure. She couldn’t bring herself to wake her or to move her. Pepper stood for a moment though, just to grab some blankets. She had just closed the closet door when a flash caught her eye.
It wasn’t lightning. She knew what lightning looked like. She crossed the room slowly, peering through the rain-streaked windows. She hummed softly and shook her head.
“Just my imagination.” She said softly, going to turn away. She was stopped short by another flash, though this time it stayed. Pepper watched for a moment. She couldn’t see much, but what she did see startled her.
Something akin to a portal opened in the sky and Pepper gasped loudly, covering her mouth after the sound slipped out. A loud boom shook the house and Pepper could hear Morgan waking, asking what was going on.
“Stay there Morgan.” Pepper ushered out, her arm thrown behind her and her hand splayed out, hoping the child would listen to her. The portal opened above the ground and Pepper squinted as something fell from it. It landed heavily on the ground, and Pepper watched as the thing tried to push up. It didn’t succeed as it fell back down. “Stay there.” Pepper repeats, this time going to the door and opening it up.
She had been so caught up in watching the events take place that she hadn’t noticed the rain had stopped. She stepped carefully out of the home, onto the porch and down the stairs. She gripped the baseball bat that had been lying on the ground tightly. Her bare feet propelled her forward. She paid no mind to the mud that started to gather on the soles of her feet.
The closer she got, the more she saw. The thing that fell looked like a person. They were mumbling to themselves and twitching slightly on the ground. Upon further inspection, Pepper noticed it was a man. She poked him lightly with the bat, but the man did nothing but groan. Pepper swallowed harshly and used the bat to turn the man over.
The bat fell to the ground with a wet plop. Pepper covered her face with her hands and tears filled her eyes as she took in the man on the ground.
“Tony?”
