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Repairing the America is, Peter Parker thinks, a decidedly stupid idea. This is what VIs were for, anyway, and why aren’t they running droids like those old Star Wars movies that are occasionally played on late night Citadel TV? It’s boring outside the ship, especially when the landscape consists of metal, metal, and more metal. He can barely even see the stars from this angle, which Peter thinks might have been the whole reason for people going up into space in the first place, but whatever, it’s just going to be lost on him. He’s just the rookie, both on this ship and in SHIELD’s ranks, and Fury has already threatened him once or twice or eight times about watching himself around the big boys. Peter doesn’t think that’s very fair because his teammates all graduated together even if they were already part of SHIELD, and suspects Fury just likes to pick on him.
And anyway, Commander Rogers says he’s really one of the only ones that can get these repairs done as well as they should be. Peter didn’t mention that Officer Engineer Adams could probably do them better, because the man is like fifty and would probably break his hip trying to maneuver out here. It has nothing to do with Peter’s eagerness to please his new Commander in any way, shape, or form. Steve Rogers is only one of Peter’s biggest heroes, so he’s not just going to let compliments from the man filter his life.
Nope.
“If you’re done over there, I could use some help.”
Peter whips his head around, forgetting that it will eventually rotate the rest of his body with the force, and looks at Luke Cage hovering nearby with an open panel that looks like it’s barely been touched. Luke is almost as good at this as Peter, but he’s not nearly as nimble in his heavy armor suit. Peter’s suit is designed for this kind of movement. He’s developed it himself for instances like this (and for easy moving quickly in combat since Peter has always been more of a marksman than a meleer, but they haven’t gotten to see much of that), and Luke’s is really just combat armor. Peter chalks it up to a win and tallies it in the column of reasons he should get to do more fun things.
Peter pulls up to Luke, ignoring the other boy’s glare, and gets himself comfortable between the two rafters protecting this collection of wires.
“Hey, sexy,” Peter calls to the man beside him, a smirk on his face even though Luke can’t see it, “Is that circuitry in your suit or are you just happy to see me?”
Luke lets out a self-suffering sigh and grips the wrench in his hand like a lifeline. Peter suspects he’d rather be chucking it at his head, but they can’t afford to lose any more tools out here. Adams already told them they weren’t getting another soldering gun, even if that one time had been an accident.
“It’s a little crowded in this panel, I can’t get my hands in far enough,” Luke finally confesses, and he pointedly ignores the depraved stare Peter gives him, “If you could take over here, I could try on the next one.”
Peter nods, because this is definitely something to gloat about, and moves to take Luke’s place at the panel. Luke offers a thanks like he’s not super annoyed at Peter, and Peter takes the opportunity to watch his suit as it putters off towards one of the other consoles they’re having to upgrade today.
He’s just putting the panel back on the last circuit board when something rattles the entire ship in front of him. Peter pulls back and looks around, startled but alert, because out here in space a little movement could mean anything. Peter has long since learned not to associate sounds with the goings on around him mostly because here in space there are no sounds besides the chatter you make on your comms, and even when there is noise it’s almost never identifiable because everything these days sounds like a laser or an explosion or another gun fight. Peter sort of blames the geth for that one, but he knows that’s not really fair. There’s always war in the galaxy; that’s why organizations like SHIELD and the Systems Alliance exist, and now why he has a job.
What he sees when he successfully finds the source of the vibrations is the remains of a missle shot slowly fading against the hull maybe two hundred meters away, dying against the empty space air. The hull is unbreached – good, Peter is pretty certain it has hit right where the sleeping quarters are – but the ship’s paint is cracking and the scorch marks cover a huge area. He’s grateful for the shields, don’t get him wrong, but there is nothing less pleasurable than having to clean the ruined side of a ship.
“Get down!” Luke suddenly shouts, and Peter is pushed farther down the outside of the ship when another missles lands on the America not fifty feet from them. Peter didn’t even think to scramble with his own suit, so caught up in trying to twist around to see the source and the damage that he’s forgotten to activate thrusters or really to start moving at all. But he’s being propelled by the force of Luke’s space suit towards the door that suddenly seems much farther away. Peter chances a glance behind them to see if he can figure out where the shots are coming from, but it is not difficult: a geth fighter has suddenly materialized out of its warp at a distance Peter couldn’t even begin to guess. The ship is huge and menacing, almost looming over the America in a way that reminds Peter of the bullies he had to deal with back in the academy. You know, before he’d gathered the familiar entourage he was still travelling with and Luke was picking all his battles for him.
Peter’s direction changes as he comes back to reality, and he realizes Luke is trying to push him in the door. Peter activates his own thrusters to help, because they don’t have much time to get in the airlock. The America can almost definitely outrun the dreadnaught that has managed to take them by surprise, but it has to have its crewonboard in order to do so.
Luke’s thrusters point him to the controls and he activates the closing door. It zips shut and almost immediately the ships forces stimulate gravity and Peter is standing on the ground. It’s only then that they realize the Commander is calling to them through the intercom, but Luke is already there.
“We’re in, Commander Rogers, ship is clear from down here,” Luke practically shouts into the speakers set up by the door, and Peter takes this time to begin removing the faceplate of his air helmet. Luke’s voice is still distorted by the intercoms on his suit, whose helmet he removes as their Commander issues an affirmative. Warnings for the hyper drive begin to sound throughout the airlock, and both men decide to relocate themselves in preparation for movement.
It's only once the warp begins that Peter and Luke are able to begin thinking again instead of just reacting, and as much time for Luke to rush to Peter and grip his face tight with both hands.
“I was on the other side of the ship,” Luke mutters, looking down at Peter’s suit for damage and taking a deep breath when he finds none. “I saw the explosion, and then you were just sitting there – “
“Hey, hey,” Peter interrupts, trying to find an easy tone despite the sudden hitch in his voice, “I was just startled. Not every day you get to see the fight from the outside, right?” He lets out a nervous chuckle, but Luke is not having any of it.
“Your suit’s not built to be bulletproof,” Luke chides, “Your suit is meant to move. You’re barely a soldier when you’re wearing that, Peter, you’re not meant to be handling heavy artillery and definitely not meant to be handling ship fire. You should have been moving as soon as you saw the first round.” The taller boy pulls away, letting his hands brush Peter’s cheeks as he does so, and he begins walking back towards the bridge. Peter knows this is a sign that there is no room for argument, but Peter has never been one to take hints very well. He rushes to catch up to Luke, hooking the breather mask onto its belt as he rushes down the hall.
Luke is fast even despite his bulky armor, and Peter almost has to run to keep up. “I’m sorry,” he apologizes, “I was just caught up. Wasn’t thinking about the danger or the – wasn’t thinking at all, really. It won’t happen again.” And he means it, mostly, because for some reason he’s always been the leader of their mini crew and he knows what he means to the others: it’s exactly what Danny and Ava and Sam mean to him. He knows what he means to Luke, too, because he can feel it everytime the other boy holds him, talks to him, fights beside him.
Luke finally gives a small chuckle and shoves Peter’s shoulder so that his lanky frame bounces off the wall with a startled yelp. Peter only hits because once again, he isn’t really paying attention to his surroundings, but it doesn’t matter because Luke is smiling and if he believes Peter he might just let Peter step outside the ship somewhere other than the Citadel again.
“Just… don’t tell Ava how close you were,” Luke finally responds, “Or she’ll have both of our hides. And she’d probably tell the Commander.”
Peter agrees enthusiastically.