Late that night, as everyone started to wind down for the night, Sam Wilson opened up the side door just enough for Clint to slip through with his bow and quiver, dodging the flood lights and the guards doing their rounds. Wordlessly, Sam guided him to an empty room not far away, using his keycard to open the door. Only when they were sure they were alone did Clint finally speak.

"Alright, I'm in," he sighed, putting his quiver back across his back. "Nat, Wanda, you guys hear me?"

"Loud and clear," Natasha replied. "Sam, what's going on?"

"Okay, so, I know where they're keeping most of the civilians, and I know that the doc's got at least seven kids...I mean, working with isn't the right word, but they're assisting him with his work. They don't stay with the rest of them. I don't know where Cap is, and I don't know for sure where Tony is, but I think he's on the main floor. Either that, or the basement. Guards rotate positions every hour. Not sure how many of them there are, but there are a lot. From what I can tell, there's really no easy way in, either; not for the kind of manpower we're going to need to get everyone out."

"What about an easy way for Steve to get out?" Natasha asked.

"Steve will not leave without them," Clint dismissed the idea immediately. "Guys, I hate to say it, but...we might not have the numbers to deal with this."

"We'll figure it out," Wanda spoke up. "Until then, we have to find Steve."

"I'm with Clint, guys," Sam admitted grudgingly. "This place is huge, and I'm not sure we can get all the civilians out, plus Steve in the condition he's in. Not to mention the fact that Tony's not exactly ready to go."

"One problem at a time, guys," Natasha scolded. "Clint, take a look around, see if you can't get me patched into their security systems. Sam, keep blending in, and keep an eye on those civilians; we'll keep you updated."

"On it," Clint replied dutifully.

"I found you an extra keycard," Sam reported, handing the plastic rectangle to his friend, who took it gratefully. "Good luck."

Clint nodded at him, and then Sam left the room first, making sure the coast was clear before motioning for Clint to follow. He silently reminded his colleague to avoid the cameras, and then the two of them went their separate ways.

Meanwhile, Tony was hard at work in the lab, torn between not wanting to do anything to help Lobo and not wanting to let those two apparent test subjects die. He could hear everything his colleagues were discussing, but he couldn't say a word to help them, which was frustrating to say the least. With a soft groan, Tony tossed aside the file of test results he'd been reading and rubbed his eyes wearily. It was getting late, and the lab had nearly emptied of workers, most of them retiring for the night, except for John and Devon, who were both running tests and watching him closely. As Tony let his face rest in his hands, giving his tired eyes a break, the doors behind him opened, and Lobo walked in. Tony turned in his seat to look at him, then turned back to his files, at least attempting to look busy. Lobo smirked and looked over at John and Devon, asking them without words to give him a minute. The two scientists obediently left the lab.

Tony tried not to react as he heard Lobo walk over to his table. The doctor pulled up a stool on Tony's right and sat down, looking at him with a smile. After a moment, Tony closed the file and turned to face his captor.

"What?" he demanded finally, tired of the silence.

"How's it coming, Stark?" Lobo asked, sounding amused. Tony noticed the file folder in Lobo's hand, and his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Fine," he answered after a moment. "I'm getting caught up on what's been done so far."

"Good," Lobo approved. The two lapsed into silence again until Tony couldn't take it anymore.

"What exactly do you want?" he asked irritably.

Lobo smirked at him. "First things first," he tapped his ear knowingly, and Tony froze. Lobo's smirk became a smile as he motioned for Tony to hand over the earwig in his ear. The hero hesitated as he glanced over at the TV screen displaying Steve's image before doing as he was told, removing the earwig and handing it to his captor. Wordlessly, Lobo grabbed a beaker and a bottle of acid, poured some acid into the beaker, and dropped the device into beaker, destroying the only link Tony had to his friends both in the compound and outside. A muscle in Tony's jaw twitched as he stared at it, until he shifted his eyes back to Lobo, hatred in his gaze.

"How long did you know?" he asked after a moment.

"Since I saw you on camera with Captain Rogers," Lobo laughed quietly. "I wanted a little time to find your signal; I'm now scanning the whole compound for similar transmissions, so whatever buddies you brought with you will be found soon enough."

Tony was quiet, contemplating just shooting Lobo in the face with the repulsor hidden in his watch. Ultimately, he decided against it, but the temptation was growing stronger with every passing second of staring at Lobo's smug expression.

"So what is it you want, Doc?" inquired Tony after taking a breath to calm himself. "Why'd you come all the way down here? I know it wasn't just to break my toys, so what is it?"

"I'm unimpressed with your work thus far," Lobo told him. "Mostly because it's nonexistent."

"I've been here for a few hours, max, and there's a lot to catch up on," Tony argued defensively. "Even I can't just walk in and be an expert on a project I know nothing about."

"Still, I thought some motivation was in order," Lobo smiled again, that crooked, toothy smile that made Tony's skin crawl, as he held up the folder in his hand. "Now, for whatever reason, you're not quite as receptive to the idea of protecting Captain Rogers as I thought you would be. Maybe it's because you know I won't kill him, and you think he can handle whatever pain I throw at him if it buys you enough time to do whatever it is you plan to do. But tell me, Mr. Stark...does the name Peter Parker mean anything to you?"

Tony didn't let anything show on his face as he shook his head. "No," he denied. "Can't say it does."

"Really?" Lobo raised one eyebrow at him. "That's odd. Why, then, did you go see Mr. Parker shortly before your showdown with Captain Rogers in Germany, at which time a previously unknown element joined your team: Spider-Man."

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about," Tony was surprisingly convincing in spite of the disturbing amount of knowledge Lobo seemed to have about, one, his movements and whereabouts, and two, the young teenager Tony had—perhaps foolishly—recruited.

Lobo looked amused, and tossed the file down on the table, opening it up to reveal surveillance photos of Peter, as well as a couple pictures of Spider-Man.

"Peter Parker," Lobo sighed. "Fifteen years old. Crazy smart. Attends the Midtown School of Science and Technology. And he just so happens to disappear from classes and clubs just before Spider-Man is spotted not too far away. I know all about him, Mr. Stark. I know where he sleeps. I know who is friends are. I know that he doesn't actually have an internship at Stark Industries, despite what he tells everyone. I know his friends, his route to school, his teachers, his crush, his aunt, everything. And I will destroy him if you don't give me what I want."

Tony was speechless, his stomach tying up in knots, even as he kept his poker face. Lobo took his silence as apathy and shrugged.

"Well, if that's not enough, we could always look away from the Avengers and look at you and your friends, like Happy and Pepper and Rhodes. Granted, Rhodes is an Avenger, but he's pretty vulnerable right now, isn't he? After what happened in Germany, I mean. I've been watching you and Captain Rogers for years, Mr. Stark; I know everything about you both, and about the people you care about. In fact, I know where they are right now. Peter was supposed to be in bed; he has a math test tomorrow. However, he's taking care of a couple muggers a couple blocks from his apartment. Rhodes can't sleep again, so he's trying to walk around his room a little bit, get those legs working hard. With assistance, of course; he can't do it alone yet. So far, so good; he hasn't fallen yet. Progress. And as for Pepper, well—"

"Stop," Tony cut him off. "I get it."

"Good," Lobo grinned, seeming pleased. "The friends you may have brought with you into this compound are going to die, Mr. Stark; I'm not going to catch them when I find them. There's nothing you can do to prevent that."

At this, Tony's anger and frustration boiled over, and he stood up quickly from the stool he sat on, starting to lunge for Lobo, only stopping when Lobo pulled the electric baton from his belt again, flicking it on in a second. Tony stood frozen in place, looking down at the baton's electricity dancing between the prongs on the end, just an inch from his chest.

"Careful," Lobo warned. "I have this amped up to Captain Rogers' level. I know you've had some heart problems in the past, Mr. Stark, but get in the way of this, and it may just stop altogether. Now, sit down."

Tony hesitated, his eyes shooting daggers at his captor, but eventually did as he was told, sitting back down atop the metal stool. Lobo smiled at him victoriously.

"Now, as I was saying," he continued. "I'm going to kill the friends you've brought into my compound today; there's no avoiding that. But just remember: I can make it a whole lot worse, even if I never lay a finger on Captain Rogers. I am too close to what I've been working for years to achieve to let you screw it up. So you either do your part, or I tear your whole world down. Do we understand each other?"

Tony begrudgingly nodded, anger, hatred, and frustration radiating off of him as he clenched his fists tightly, his jaw set. Lobo chuckled, amused, and picked up the file containing the photos of Peter. The doctor stood up, heading for the door.

"Oh, and don't worry, Mr. Stark," he called over his shoulder. "As long as you behave yourself, young Mr. Parker's secret is safe with me."

Tony didn't reply, still steaming and beyond worried. When he was alone, he looked at the earpiece submerged in the acid in the beaker in front of him, feeling his stomach tighten. He needed to find a way to warn the others about their earpieces, that their communication would tip off Lobo to where they were, and he needed to do it fast, or Clint and Sam were done for. The only question at that point was how.

Hi all. It's been a while. Haven't been too motivated to write this one, to be honest, but I can't sleep and I'm in a Marvel mood, so please, don't forget to leave your comments and feedback, and as always, thank you for reading.