Chapter 21: Information ExtractionNotes:All rights go to Marvel
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextSkye's POV
"Why are you doing this?" I heard Jemma from the entrance of my pod. I sigh and pull my t-shirt all the way down, looking through my clothes for another jacket to wear on top.
"Jemma…" I trail off with a slightly annoyed tone leaking in my voice. Ever since I laid out the plan and Coulson approved of it she has been anything but supportive.
When I keep looking and don't say anything else she resumes. "You don't have to. I am sure if we bring him in we can learn where he leaked the information to. You don't even know if your cover is still intact. It can't be too hard to—"
"Jemma" I interrupt her before she rambles away. We didn't have the time and at that moment I didn't have the patience to deal with this. "We are doing this. I am doing this. It's our best option, okay? Why are you fighting with me on this?" I question. I turn around, jacket in hand, and step closer to the scientist. I look at her and see something that I can't quite place in her eyes. "What's wrong?" I speak gently and my hand lands on her shoulder, rubbing the area.
"It-It's just that…" she lets out a sigh and shakes her head. Brushing my hand off her she takes a step back. "I'll see you when you get back". She makes a move to leave but I won't let her.
I don't grab her this time, just whisper her name softly and it's enough to make her stop. "Please, I don't like this. Talk to me?" It came out as a question. "You know you can tell me anything" this did not though, it was a statement that both of us knew was true. "I don't like having to go, knowing that something about this mission bothers you". May's voice came through the speakers, telling us that we need to prepare for landing. "Please, Jemma?"
She takes a step back and tries to smile, but she never was a good liar. "I'll see you later Skye," she said and with that, she headed down to her lab.
I let out a frustrated breath. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't think of any reason why Jemma would be acting this way and it was throwing me off way more than I liked to admit. I strapped myself down to one of the sofas. I couldn't think of that now, I had to prioritise the mission. But I would get to the bottom of this.
I have already sent a text to Miles, I found the phone number he's currently using by actually hacking in his phone. We had lost contact after I blew up my cover after all and if I actually still had his number, which he changed quickly after I joined the Bus' team, I would have already handed it over.
I was waiting for him in the apartment that I had found he lived in at the moment in Austin and waited for him to 'escape' my team and come back here.
I was not disappointed soon after when Miles rushed in the room, slightly out of breath and locking the door behind him, franticly putting his keys in the keyhole.
"Are you sure they're not following you?" I spoke and he sharply turned to look in my direction, alarmed.
When he realised that it was just me his shoulders relaxed and he shook his head to clear his mind before nodding. "Yeah. Had to pull all the stops, though. Thanks for the text. How did you get in here?" I looked at him with irritation. "Wait, are you mad?"
"Are you kidding me right now?" I asked back. "I can't believe you! Why the hell would you hack S.H.I.E.L.D.?" I asked throwing my hands in the air for emphasis.
"Wait a second. What?" He looked completely perplexed. "'Good to see you, too, Miles'. I released those files to the world, where they belong. 'Cause that's what we do, Jane," he said as if it was the most obvious thing on the world.
"You don't do that when we are being hunted by them for weeks!" I bite back. "Why would you take such a risk?"
"Seriously? You disappear off the face of the Earth for a month and a half now, right before S.H.I.E.L.D. starts hunting us all, knowing locations and names and you dare ask me that? Why do you care? The fact that they try to corner us doesn't mean that we stop revealing secrets to the world!" He was getting more and more worked up as he spoke. The distance between us slowly lessening as he started walking towards me. "And now that I think of it, why did you come here now? Are you working for them? Did you sell us out?" He was slightly smarter than I had given him credit.
But that wouldn't matter. "You have to be joking. I was hiding, you dumbass! You think they have not been hunting me as well? One of my hacks picked up on their new information on Rising Tide and before I even got the chance to get to you they were hacking me back. I had to go dark or get caught, so excuse me if I choose the former!" I screamed at his face. Then my eyes softened. "I tried to keep tabs on as many people as I could, but you were always my priority and when I saw that your name popped up in one of their searches I tried my best to make sure you had the heads-up" I saw a smirk forming on his face. "why are you looking at me like that?"
The tips of his lips only upped further as he brushed some hair behind my ear. "Did you just call me 'dumbass'?"
"Stop smiling. I'm serious and still pretty annoyed that you would take such a risk" I said but made it look like I couldn't hold back a smile.
"Sure you are," he said. When I gave him an eye roll he laughed. "I'm sorry, I can't help it. I've been missing you like crazy" he bent down and our lips connected briefly before parting away.
I let a giggle escape. "I've missed you too, Miles" and with that I grabbed his t-shirt neck and pulled down, meeting him halfway in a more heated kiss. Just as it started getting more heated in the room, the door bust open and May with Coulson walked in, guns in hands and aimed at us. "Shit," I said and made a move to get out from the widow only for May to catch up with me and grab my arm and press the gun on my side. "Don't even think about it," she said in a low, warning tone.
Miles, who had still to move waited until Coulson got behind him and cuffed him. May did the same to me. "You said that you lost them," I told him, sounding irritated.
"That's enough for now" Coulson nodded at May and then a black bag was thrown over my head. As May led me out of the room, I heard Coulson speak once more. "We'll take them in separately. You take her and I got this guy over here. I'll go on ahead"
When the sound of their steps disappeared and my vibrations had confirmed that their car had driven off I got myself free from the shackles and handed them to May before taking the bag off my head. "I guess that went well," I said as I rubbed my wrists.
May rolled her eyes at me and then moved towards the study area of the house. "Take what you need, we should get out of here soon" she spoke as she looked for a laptop. I shook my head and moved in the opposite direction, towards a large bookcase that Miles had. I reached down and, after saving some books away, I started looking under the shelves. "What are you doing?" I heard May as she came back into the room.
"Just, give me a second. And… ah! Here we go" I said in triumph as my fingers brushed an area with a different texture than the bookcase's wood. I took the laptop that was saved there in a thin, secret drawer, along with some hard drives that were also placed in that space.
"How did you—?"
"I scanned the whole room when I walked in and there was something slightly off with this bookcase," I said as if it was the most obvious thing. "Plus, as I said, I have worked with Miles a lot… closely. I know him, I know his little tricks".
I walked ahead of May to the car parked outside and we soon found ourselves in silence as we drove back to the Bus. I had Miles' computer on my lap all the way there. I used a USB stick that I carried most of the time with me, uploading T.A.D.A.S.H.I. and with his help, it was pretty easy to get the files and the information that I was looking for.
"I never asked" I heard May said as I kept typing. "Who's your digital assistant?"
I didn't diminish the speed with which my fingers were flying over the keyboard as I answered. "It's Stark's present. He's a User Interface that he made me after New York. He knew I would have to go on a mission at some point. So he used a similar algorithm to that of J.A.R.V.I.S., only Tee is exclusively mine and he doesn't have access to him unless I grant it, or if his protocols are over-ridden because of an emergency"
"Jarvis?" she asked and only then did I realise that not a lot of people actually knew of his A.I.
I mentally slapped myself in the face but it manifested as a simple head shake. "Another time" I replied as I saw the Bus closing in. I closed the laptop after transferring all the files that needed to be transferred in another USB, which I handed to May as soon as we parked. "Give this to Ward, should be enough to make him talk". May in return nodded and when we exited the vehicle she cuffed me again and, once more, threw the bag over my head.
I had the mental image of the Bus integrated into my brain by that time, so despite May guiding me to the Cage where Miles was being held. As soon as the door opened, I was roughly thrown to the chair, one of my hands was uncuffed so the cuff's chain went around a pipe connected to the table and then my free hand was once again restricted, May actually tightening it more so than before. "Hey, watch it!" I yelled at her just as she took the bag off my head and then she left the room, violently shutting the door behind her just for a more dramatic effect.
I shook my hands as if to test the cuffs and the metal hurt my wrist, where May had tightened it. I intentionally took a sharp breath and Miles was once more alert. "Hey, hey. Take it easy" he said and placed his hands on mine. He was in the same predicament as I was, so our hands were really close to one another. "Don't hurt yourself," he said and gently rubbed the red area around my wrist.
I let out a sigh. "I'm glad they didn't do anything to you. When they took us separately I didn't know what to think" I wrapped my fingers around his.
He smiled at that. "Don't worry, they didn't do anything. Other than deny me my basic rights!", he tilted his head and yelled in the empty room, clearly aware of the cameras and microphones. "I guess due process isn't really S.H.I.E.L.D. protocol". He turned to look back at me. "How are you doing? They took their sweet time bringing you, are you okay? Did they do anything to you?", concern was leaking into his voice.
"Don't worry" I replied, squeezing our holdings hands. "Other than the rough treatment all they did was ask me questions"
"Questions?", that seemed to interest him.
"Yeah. They kept asking me who you sold the information to" I could feel him tense, his heart rate picking up a bit but I didn't comment. "I kept telling them that that's not who we are, that we don't sell information only give it back to the public" I smiled at him and he tried to mimic it to the best of his ability. "They wouldn't believe me but I know you. And I know how important information freedom is to the both of us" I moved forward and he did the same as I pecked him on the lips. "Though I'm still fucking furious with you," I said as I sat back down and released my grip to his hands. If I could fold my hands over my chest I would. "I was doing just fine and then I risked my neck for you and I got caught" I huffed.
"Hey, hey" he tried, his hands opening as wide as the cuffs would allow. "I really thought I lost them! They shouldn't have been able to follow after I lost them on the highway. They must have had a second team keeping track of me"
"Like that's making it any better. At least they shouldn't be able to hold us in here for long, someone's gonna come in sooner than later. And since the only thing we've done is supply for the public it can't be too bad, can it?" I asked, hope sparkling in my eyes.
And… he bought it. "Of course"
It was at least half an hour until Ward marched in the room. To let us, or more specifically Miles, sweat for a bit.
A file was dropped on the table and Ward stared at Miles, arms folded over his chest. "She's been defending you, saying you're a straight-up guy". His eyes travelled to the file and then back to Miles' face. "So I'm going to give you a chance. Do you want to tell her, or should I?"
Miles' whole demeanour went in defence. "I don't have to listen to you—"
"There goes your chance" Ward didn't even let him finish as he grabbed the folder and opened it, taking out one check after the other and slowly placing them on the metal surface. "Your boyfriend here made a few deposits in the days following the leak. All said… it's about a million dollars"
I looked at the evidence in front of me with my mouth hanging open. "What?"
"I can explain—" Miles was quick to say but this time I was the one to interrupt him.
"Did you sale information?" When I saw that he wasn't going to reply I yelled at him. "Miles?! Yes or no? Did you?" I pressed and he caved.
"Yes. Yes, but—"
"Oh, you're so dead!" I stood up the chair toppling on the floor behind me. "What the hell were you thinking? And to think I came out of hiding for you!"
"It was a million-dollar" he tried to amend and make me see logic. "A million dollars" he repeated whispering. "It could change my life… our lives. I was gonna look for you and we could finally live as we deserve. And that woman was harmless. I looked into it" he stated with confidence.
"Are you kidding me? No one with good intentions pays that kind of money for information! Did you even think about that?!" Ward righted my chair up and made me sit, seeing that my character was getting pretty upset.
"Of course I did!" Miles yelled back. "I would never have done it if I thought—"
"Who is this woman you're referring to?" It was time to get some answers and Ward's question was a great way to start getting them.
"A fan of the Rising Tide, some rich girl in a flower dress. She knew all about me, said I had a gift. She thought people like us deserve more" I made a quiet comment about how much more he deserves but he ignored it. "She pointed me to a Chinese SHIELD feed wanted me to crack it." He lifted his shoulders nonchalantly.
I rolled my eyes at that. "You thought that was harmless?"
"I checked the data stream. It didn't seem like anything you and I hadn't already put out there, Jane. And I traced the account where the money came from to make sure it wasn't some evil corporation. It was just an eco-research lab. Otherwise, I would never—"
"Ecological research?" Ward picked up to it and asked.
"Yeah, insects, some study with centipedes what's more harmless than that?" He said as if it was the most harmless thing on the planet. And normally it would be, had it actually be the insect.
Silence engulfed the room as he finished his sentence and I moved back to my chair. "I need to look into that and I think we are finished here," I said and looked at Ward, lifting my hands as an indication of what to do. He took the cuff keys off his belt and released me. I rubbed my wrists.
"What the hell is happening?" Miles asked.
"The location of the research lab is in the laptop you brought back, we are already on our way there. Skye. Agent Kwan will meet us there, we need to come up with an action plan" he said and left the room.
"Skye? What is going on here Jane?" Miles asked, still not catching up.
I let out a breath and turned around to look at him. "What is happening is that you've been played and you're gonna sit tight until we try to fix your stupid mistake" I was about to close the door behind me as I left the room. "By the way, you're a terrible kisser," I said and then made my way to the debriefing room.
Notes:Sorry for missing yesterday, I was a bit under the weather. But as promised, you get 2 chapters today! Just wait a few more minutes for the second one and it will be up shortly :)
Chapter 22: It's Going DownNotes:
All rights go to Marvel
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Jemma's POV
From when Skye had left for the undercover mission and up to this point we hadn't directly spoken to each other. She was too… preoccupied with Miles before and now we had just finished laying out the plan for when we landed in Hong Kong. We were only half an hour out, and then we wouldn't be able to talk any time soon because the moment the Bus touches the airfield she is part of the strike team that will go to bring Chan Ho Yin back.
"You're avoiding me," I said, hands folded over my chest as I watched her change her clothes for the second time the same day.
She didn't even try to hide her scoff. "Am I now?", she replied with her own question as she lifted her shirt over her head leaving her only in her sports bra and tight black leggings. Having shared a room for a while in the Academy and then when she was first being trained after the years apart, that sight was nothing I wasn't used to. That didn't mean I didn't admire her physic any less than I had the previous years.
She threw the more colourful t-shirt that she was wearing to the side of the room with more force than I expected and I couldn't help but look at Skye. Really look at her. Her shoulders a bit slumped as she gripped the back of her chair so hard that her knuckles were white and I was sure that if she applied a bit more force, or her powers in any way, it would break. Her breathing was ever so slightly faster than it normally was, but for Skye that was out of character.
I opened my mouth to say something as I was about to take a step closer, but my jaw closed shut and I stilled when she lifted her hand. "Look, I genuinely don't know what your problem is. You're the one who has been avoiding me ever since I suggested the plan of me going undercover. And ever since I came out of the Cage you haven't as much as spared me a look" she shook her head as she pulled down a new black shirt. "Actually no, that's a lie. I know you were looking at me, I saw you…" and the way she said it let me know it was through her vibrations, "…but every time I turned your way you looked away"
I couldn't say she was wrong. I had been the one who would turn my gaze elsewhere, but she didn't make a move to talk to me specifically! It wasn't like it was entirely my fault. I was not avoiding her per se, I was just not seeking her.
"I still don't know what the big deal was with the mission" she confessed, her voice remaining low. This conversation was clearly just for my ears. "So no, I haven't been 'avoiding' you as you so delicately said. I have been giving you space to sort out whatever it is you need to sort out because this mission is not finished yet and we have more pressing matters at hand".
I saw her take out a black case where she put her thumb to be scanned at a mini screen, and when she got the green light she slightly vibrated the whole thing before it was unlocked. The black gauntlets I was very familiar with were taken out and securely placed in her backpack. When she turned around she saw me still staring at her back. We both knew what, even her thinking to take the gauntlets with her meant. Especially given that she was not supposed to reveal herself. Not that she wanted to.
She sighed as she tidied the room back to how it was before exiting and waiting for me to do the same. The worry must have been written clear as day on my face because her features softened and the annoyed vibe that she had before dispersed into thin air.
She gently brought me close to her as her arms wrapped around my back. "I really want us to talk about what's happening when I get back. Please?" She asked just as gently when my arms recuperated the action.
"Of course," I said as May's voice came through the speakers letting us know to prepare for landing. Together we moved to the sofas where we strapped in and waited. Our arms were still linked my thumb rubbing the back of her hand, not willing to let go just yet. "Promise me to be careful?"
"When am I not careful?" She resorted with her signature smile.
I left a small laugh escape my lips at her answer. Lifting one brow I turned to look at her, "Do you, honestly, want me to answer that?"
Skye's POV
I was pleasantly surprised when Ward didn't argue too much about being the one to oversee Miles in the Bus and let May, Coulson and I handle the fieldwork. As soon as the plane had touched down, the three of us had taken one of the unmarked SUV's and headed to the Centipede Base.
There we were joined by agent Kwan and more S.H.I.E.L.D. agents from the Hong Kong base. "Building has five floors. The first four are research. Fifth is listed as maintenance but uses most of the building's energy" Coulson explained as soon as the team to infiltrate the building was assembled.
"Either they're guarding the world's largest vacuum…" Kwan said only for Coulson to finish, "…or that's where Chan's being held" he pointed to the rest of the agents that were divided into two teams. "Send you 'B' and 'C' teams through the tunnels to secure the lowest floors. Warn them that the Centipede's serum is highly explosive" he explained and Kwan did just that.
He looked at me and then back at Coulson. "Understood. Where do we go in?"
Coulson actually smiled at that. "The three of us are going in through the roof" he then turned to me. "You know where the servers are?" He questioned.
I nodded. "I've seen the schematics for the buildings. They're on the lowest floor. All I need to do is put this bad boy in and I'll have remote access" I said as I got a USB out of my pocket. "I will meet you as soon as I can after that"
And with that, I left. I was glad for once that Coulson didn't question whether I could make it. I had made the point that if I went in alone I would work so much faster and much stealthier than if I had another agent with me. And with May backing me up, especially after she learned that I was also trained by Natasha, was the only reason why he let his 'two agents/buddy system' rule slide.
Though, to be honest, I had lied a little bit about some part of the mission.
The stealth part.
That was what was going through my head as I made my way to the server room as one guard after the other headed my way. The alarm had gone off not too long after May and Coulson went in. The facility soon going into lockdown. "Status update" I heard May in my com.
"Give me a minute and we're good to go," I said as I dealt with the final guard and plugged the USB into the server. I activated T.A.D.A.S.H.I. immediately and let him send everything from the base in a remote hard drive that I had on my person while he also took down the lockdown protocols. "You're good to go," I said as I started making my way to the top floor. I was still controlling Tee from my phone, but he didn't need much help. He had his instructions and I was confident he would not disappoint. "How are you doing up there?" I asked as I was running up the stairs.
"Agent Kwan is dead and Chan has to be brought down" Coulson immediately replied. "The tranquilliser did nothing to him and it was his last chance"
He said in my comms just as I exited the door that the stairs had led me to. I heard someone yell. I was about to turn around the corner where the yelling had just come from to try and see what happened. That's when I bumped into Coulson and May, who was holding a syringe in her hand. I don't even need to ask what the plan is before Coulson starts explaining it. "From what I understand this is an extreme dose that boosts his powers. Plan's to inject him and then, with the help of Miles, shut the building down and redirect his flames through the venting system out of the building and onto the sky"
"With all due respect, sir" I started as soon as he finished. "I don't trust Miles at the moment. He is a wild card and despite the remote access to the building's computers, I wouldn't give him the access. Yes—" I continued when I saw he was about to argue, "—Ward is on the Bus so he wouldn't try anything funny, but it's still too much of a risk"
He contemplated what I said for a solid two seconds. "What do you suggest we do?"
I took a deep breath, knowing that was I was about to say wouldn't be something he would agree easily to. "You and agent May get out of here. I take the serum and postpone him enough for him to explode. The building will probably come down, and there's nothing we can do to save it. But this way all the research they have here will be destroyed and they won't be able to use it. I have already transferred enough files for us to have a lead on Centipede"
"But how are you gonna get out?" May was the one to question my plan while Coulson was still staring at me with a sceptical look on.
I took my phone out to show them the schematics map of the building. "I already know everything there's to know about this building. I have found a route that I can use to get out before he explodes. I will just need to delay him enough so that the two of you and the rest of the agents get out of the building before I insert the serum. I'm guessing it will be affecting him quickly?"
I saw that Coulson was about to argue, but fire was shot from the corridor next to us and we all felt the heat. "We will meet you outside," Coulson said and took the syringe from May to hand it to me.
I nodded, greatly appreciating the newfound trust that he seemed to show me during this mission.
The two of them left me behind and I quickly took the gauntlets out of my bag and wore them. I let my powers flow from my centre, up to my shoulders and down my hands. I let a small smile appear on my face at the familiar buzz and the lack of constant worry I had on the back of my mind about anyone finding out about my abilities.
My mind map picked up on Chan closing in and just as he was about to turn around the corner and send a fireball in my direction, I ducked under his attack and quickly found myself on the other end of the corridor.
"You don't have to do this Chan," I said in Mandarin. Confident that the only other person from the team that could understand me was May. "S.H.I.E.L.D. can help you, there's no reason for you to go down like that"
Chan smirked at that, his hands coming to his sides, the flames on them disappearing momentarily. It seemed that he was no longer immune to his powers if the fresh burn marks on his arms were any indication. "Chan is dead. I told so to the other agents as well. I am Scorch now"
In an instant he shot his arm out and fire generated from his fingers, travelling in my direction at a rapid speed. Expecting him to do so, I immediately lifted my hands up and created a vibrational shield that blocked the fire's way. Surprised by that, Scorch stopped his attack.
I gently started manipulating the vibrations around the building's foundations, all the way underground and started tearing them apart. Not too fast, just fast enough. "Who are you?" Scorch asked me.
"I am like you, gifted" I replied still not speaking English. "I have learned to control my power. And I am using it for good, to help people"
"Skye, we're out" Coulson's voice rang in my ear.
I started destroying the building from the inside out at a more rapid pace. "Let me help you," I told Chan as I took a small step closer to him. "There are other people like you, like us out there. If you let me bring you in, we can help you"
The thoughtful expression that he had on disappeared as soon as I suggested to bring him in. Not that I expected anything else. "Never!" He all but screamed at me as he unleashed his power once again.
But that didn't matter in the least.
I had closed in enough to be able to side-step his attack and inject the dose in his neck. He instantly fell on his knees and started losing the small control he had over his powers as they grew and grew extremely fast.
I lifted my hand and blasted a hole to the back of the building, opposite to where Coulson and May would have come out of. Just to make sure that I was safe from prying eyes. Just before I jumped off the fifth floor, I sent a vibrational wave throughout the whole construction, making the already weak foundations collapse onto each other and the building started to come down.
Oh yeah, because the path that I had planned from the schematics didn't actually exist… but don't tell Coulson.
I felt like what I guessed Tony felt when he flew in his suit before gravity took precedent and I started falling. I directed some quakes to leave from the pass of my hand and my feet, slowing my descent ever so slowly. If I were to resemble something, or someone, I think it would be what Tony would look like the first time he tried to elevate. The only difference is that I was falling and trying to slow down instead of slowly lifting myself. I had yet to master the art of being able to use my quakes to levitate myself, and my lack of training with my powers lately didn't help. But it was enough for me to slow down ever so slightly so that my landing was a bit smoother than it would otherwise be. Don't get me wrong, I still created a crate, but a much smaller one and I didn't need to absorb as many vibrations from my landing.
But the amount I did absorb I redirected to the building, which was already halfway on its way to being grounded. That was when Chan finally exploded on the top floor and debris started falling all over. If there wasn't the explosion, I would have been able to control where the building would collapse, without much destruction to the surrounding area. But this case was different.
I created a dome around myself as I was standing too close to the building and I had to protect myself. So I waited until there would be nothing new falling to my head and then with a small vibrational push outwards I unburied myself.
I climbed off the ruins and started making my way around the debris, towards the other agents. "I am good, on my way to you guys," I said on my comm. With so many things happening around at the same time, I had solely focused on making it out of there alive without anyone seeing me and I had zoned out from the voices in my ear, asking me if I was okay.
"Thank God" Coulson's voice was heard just as May let a breath that she must have been holding for a while. "Meet you up front? Will you be able to get there?"
"Sure thing boss" I replied and continued my way.
Raina's POV
I had managed to leave the building and was on my way to another Centipede Base. We were quite spread out after all.
I was quite far from the base, the car that I was in moving quickly away from the collapsing building behind us. My eyes were still trained on the old Base when I saw someone jump off the back of the top floor. Part of the building fell directly on top of that person, but somehow that part was soon lifted off the ground and a figure walked away and towards the rest of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. How peculiar… That was a very interesting development.
I could feel the smile spread over my face as I turned to look back ahead to the convoy of cars. A very interesting development indeed.
Notes:So, stuff happened in this one.
Yes, I went a different way from the series. Everything happened for a reason, trust me. Rain is... well, Raina.
As for Jemma, I just couldn't pass the opportunity provided by this op ^^
Chapter 23: Talks InterruptedNotes:
All rights go to Marvel
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Skye's POV
After reuniting with Coulson and May, we went straight back to the Bus, where the others were waiting for us. As soon as we stepped onto the hangar, Jemma rushed us into the med-bay in order to make sure that we were all alright.
She first cleared the other two agents, who left to go to the briefing area in order to bring Ward and Fitz up to speed on what had happened. Miles was still locked in the Cage, my mental map told me as much.
My mind had drifted off to what the other people were doing on board and I hadn't realised the silence that had stretched in the room. "Don't do anything like that ever again" Jemma's whisper brought me out of my head and back to the place I was currently in. She was still looking away from me, as she fiddled with something in her hands, trying to find the stitches that she would need to close a cut that I got on my forehead. I hadn't even realised that it was bleeding until she mentioned it. "You don't just jump off a building like that" she continued as she turned around and closed in to disinfect the cut.
"I didn't—" I started but she pressured the cut more than necessary, making me hiss.
Her pointed look was enough to shut me up. "No one saw if that's what you're wondering. At least I don't think they did. But I know you too well to understand what you plan to do. Please don't lie to me". She paused once more before starting to stitch up the wound. "You know agent Coulson and agent May would have worked it out if Miles helped. Ward was here to keep an eye on him. Nothing would have happened" she reasoned.
I searched her eyes as she worked. "You don't know that. I had just betrayed Miles. And thought Ward was here, as you mentioned, you don't know what he could have done had he had access to a computer". As soon as she stopped working on my forehead I took her hand in mind. "I couldn't let anything happen to you" I honestly said, my voice coming out only as a whisper. I could tell that there was more she wanted to say, but the mission hadn't really finished yet. "Tell you what, as soon as we get debriefed and Miles is dealt with, we will have that talk that you owe me, okay?"
The small upper title of the corner of her lips was enough of an answer and I smiled back, getting off the table that I was sitting on top of, and made my way upstairs.
When Jemma and I stepped into the room where the others were, we listened to Coulson explaining what happened from his and May's point of view after we parted and infiltrated the building. After that finished he turned to me. "Skye, where are we with the files? Did you manage to get anything?"
All eyes turned on me as I walked around the table and placed a hard drive on top of it. "The files were transferred remotely here. I wasn't there for the whole transfer so I can't know for sure how many files were successfully transferred before the building collapsed. I also need to have a look at them before telling you anything for sure, just to make sure that they haven't placed any nasty virus and try to hack us back. As soon as I have the files secured and open I will transfer everything to you" I said looking at Coulson. "I'm gonna use my personal laptop just so that it isn't in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s serves just in case". I looked over at May and she seemed to understand.
Of course, I had gotten most, if not all, files from there, I have full and utter trust in Tee. I just needed to check the files and see which ones could be shared with the team and which ones withheld too much valuable information. An update with the pirate was gonna happen sooner rather than later.
Ward nodded from his corner. "Good. Even if it's not too much it can give us a fix on Centipede". Despite speaking aloud, it seemed more like he was talking to himself.
"Yes," Coulson agreed. Looking around the room until his eyes fell on me again. "Even the smallest information can be very helpful. See what you can save, the more the better". I took that as a cue that we had finished the talk about the files and took the hard drive off the table. "Now" he exclaimed and clapped his hands. "We need to decide what we will do with Miles".
"Sir?" Jemma asked and he turned to look at her.
"Yes, Simmons?"
She cleared her throat at the sudden attention. She looked almost like she didn't mean to have spoken out. "I mean, doesn't S.H.I.E.L.D. already have procedures and protocols for almost every possible scenario? What is there for us to decide?", she asked.
"Well, he hacked into S.H.I.E.L.D. So what we would normally do is send him to the Fridge. But…"
"You want to keep him monitored" May cut in. "Keep tabs on him and hope he can lead us to other members of the Rising Tide and, maybe, even Centipede"
"Exactly" Coulson replied with a smile wide on his face. "The only problem is that he isn't like any other person we had to monitor. He's a hacker, and a good one at that. We need to find a way to restrain his access to electronic devices".
I could feel the smirk spread on my face. Oh, how I would enjoy this. "Sir, if I may?"
It was Miles and me in the hangar, as it was lowered down in the airfield that we would take off from. "You have two choices. Either put on what's in this box, or we put you in a slightly bigger one" I told him as I extended the case.
It was a no brainer for him, of course, and he took out the bracelet and put it on. The sound of it clicking shut was really satisfying. "You gonna give me a hint? What's it do?"
"Whatever we tell it to do. I'd avoid any unlawful activity if I were you. Oh, and I think you might need to buy a book or something that doesn't run on electricity. I don't think that electronic devices are gonna be your friends for a while"
He sighed but didn't do anything else about it other than lower his hand. He didn't say anything for a while but didn't leave either. I knew he wanted to ask something and soon did so. "Was any of it real?"
I took a moment to look like I was considering it. But then just shook my head. "Nope," I said, popping the 'p' emphatically. "None of it"
He looked at me in the eyes, as if trying to understand if I was lying. Like that would help him if I were. "You're not who you used to be"
"Ah! Correction" I exclaimed. "I'm not who you thought I was," I said and took a step back, singling that this conversation was practically finished. "Oh, and by the way. Agent Kwan's family thanks you for the anonymous donation" I pointed to the airfield for him to leave.
He let out a breath and shook his head at my last sentence. He made a move to leave but stopped after a couple of steps. "Cool, but we're still in Honk Kong" he turned to look at me.
"Yep"
"But I live in Austin, Texas" he tried to clarify.
"I know" I smugly smiled. "Have a good one Miles"
When we left from Honk Kong it was in the middle of the night so as it was expected, and especially after such a mission, people have gone to their respective bunks so as to recharge their batteries. Not me though. While I was in my bunk, I had my computer open and I was going through the files that I had managed to get from the Centipede facility.
My eyes were travelling all over the screen as I was speed reading all the information to see what I could allow Coulson to see. I only briefly looked outside of the small window in my room to see the sun start to rise. So absorbed I was in what I was doing that I didn't notice someone had come up to my door until a light knock startled me.
I looked at the door as if I could see through the metal while focusing my vibrations. "Jemma?" I asked no one in particular and after shutting my laptop I went to unlock said door. "Hey," I said quietly as soon as she was standing in front of me. "What are you doing up so early? Did something happen?"
"Uhh- no, nothin- everything's fine" she kind of rushed out.
"Okay?" I was a little bit lost. Not just by her sudden appearance, but also by the way she answered. For all the years I've known her she has always been very put-together and proper. At this moment, however, she was almost fidgety. "Was there something you wanted?" I asked, not sure what was going on.
Her eyes snapped from the ground, where she was looking all this time, to my face. Then her gaze travelled inside my bunk, possibly at the shut laptop and then back to me. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't realise you were busy. I mean, of course, you were, why else would you be awake so early?", she quietly laughed at that, making me frown. "I'm sorry, I'll leave you to it" she made a move to step away but I didn't let her, my hand gently gripping her wrist.
"I wasn't really. I mean, I was doing work, but I should probably take a break" I released her hand and shut the door behind me, locking it while doing so. "Join me for some tea?"
We started walking towards the kitchen when she spoke again. "But you don't like tea" she seemed to almost talk to herself.
I smiled and motioned for her to take a seat at the island, while I prepared everything. "No, but you do," I said as if it was obvious. "I'm just gonna have some hot chocolate".
I made the tea first and slid the mug to Jemma. We both stayed quiet while I was making the second drink and for a while after it was prepared and we were just sitting there. "Couldn't sleep?" I spoke after a while, breaking the silence.
Jemma took a while to answer. "No, not really".
"Hmm" I took a sip, looking at her. "Something on your mind?" When she still didn't say anything I resumed talking. "You know, when we said that we would talk I meant it. It was just really late and I thought that you'd prefer to talk tomorrow. Or more like, today. You know what I mean"
That drew a small genuine laughter from her and it made me happy. I gave myself a mental pat on the back. She opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by another voice.
"Oh, good. You're both awake. We were just called in for another mission, briefing in 10" May said from the kitchen entrance and then left, probably to wake the others. The door knocks that echoed through the Bus were enough to verify my suspicions.
I turned back to Jemma and saw that she had taken both mugs and placed them in the sink. As she made a move to leave she placed a hand on my shoulder and gently smiled. "Raincheck?"
I smiled back. "Of course"
She left and I still stayed there for a while until I picked up another presence behind me. I didn't even need to look to see that it was May. But when I did, she had an unreadable expression on her face, not that that was uncommon or anything. I sighed. "What?"
"Nothing" she shrugged. "You gonna stay here all day or grace us with your presence in the briefing room?" She, ever so slightly, lifted her eyebrow.
"I'm coming, I'm coming," I said as I got up. "You know, Mel, I preferred it when you didn't say anything" I passed her and she followed.
"Oh please, you missed it". It wasn't even a challenge.
"Yeah, I missed it" I verified. "What the hell happened to call us in? We are always supposed to get a day off after every mission. You know, to fill paperwork and stuff"
"That's what the briefing's for, Skye. We're heading to Pennsylvania"
Notes:Don't think I have anything to say for this one. I hope you all enjoyed it and thanks for the support!
Chapter 24: FZZTNotes:
All rights go to Marvel
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Skye's POV
We were still a few hours out of our destination and we were all doing our thing until we reached the camping site. More specifically, Coulson was getting a physical with Jemma, while Fitz was adjusting the Night-Night pistol with Ward while I was still going through files on my laptop. May, of course, was in her sanctuary.
I watched as Ward picked up the gun and pointed it sharply up front. I was really restraining myself to not laugh at him. He then shook his head and placed it back on the table in the Lab. "Sorry, Fitz. It's close, but just not right"
Fitz, perplexed, took it back in his hands and started fidgeting with it. "Really? 'Cause agent Coulson had no problems" he thoughts out loud.
"It's an ounce too heavy" Wards words came out and I couldn't surpass my laughter any longer. He turned in my direction with a challenging look written all over his face. "Something you wanna say?"
I stared right back at him, my expression saying 'Really now?', without having to actually speak. I stood up and Fitz quickly gave me the gun. I felt it in my hands before lifting, pointing it straight at Ward. "Why do you want him to lose the ounce? Feels perfectly fine to me" I supplied as I handed the gun back to the scientist.
"Come on, Skye. You know the importance of weight. It can be the difference between success and failure. When you're on a rooftop with a 15-mile-an-hour wind, your target is 500 yards away—"
"You will have a rifle" I stopped him. "Admit it, he's done some sick work on that pistol"
He looked at me dead in the eye before scoffing. "Whatever" and with that, he left.
I went back to my computer shaking my head as Fitz starting talking to himself. "'Lose the ounce'. Good one" he paused for a second before continuing with a heavier voice, trying to sound like Ward. "I'm agent Grant Ward and I can shoot the legs of a flea from 500 yards, as long as it's not windy"
"Good one," I said in between giggling.
At that point, the door opened and Jemma walked in, clearly having finished with Coulson's physical. "So, Ward was here? Let me guess… the Night-Night pistol again?"
"Oh, oh yeah," Fitz said as he went around to stand next to her as she shorted out some documents. "And guess what… he said it was off by an ounce"
Jemma scoffed at that, the whole interaction seeming obvious to her. "Of course he did" and then she proceeded into making her own impersonation of Ward "I'm agent Grant Ward, and I could rapture your spleen with my pinky… blindfolded!"
The whole lab erupted into fits of laughter as each of us returned to what we were doing before.
We gathered Adam Cross' floating body after Jemma went to check out the exit wound on his forehead and he dropped to the floor. And so within a few hours, we were back on the Bus trying to solve yet another case.
I was in the briefing room, working on the computer in a background check on our victim and everything we could find out about him and what could have possibly caused him to die in such a way. "Good, you're here," I said as Coulson and Ward walked in. "I have the information on our guy" twisted his image so that it was facing the two of them. "Adam Cross… single, no kids, originally from Wrigley, Pennsylvania, not far from here"
"Been there" Coulson interrupted. "They have a very nice little strawberry festival in spring," he said as if it was obvious. "Occupation?"
"Phys-ed teacher at the local high school and Varsity baseball coach and troop leader and volunteer firefighter" I listed one thing after the other. "This guy makes Captain America look like 'the dude'". I internally smiled at that, having met Steve and all.
"What about a criminal record?", Ward kinda cut in abruptly, clearly still slightly upset about what happened that morning. "A restraining order, something that might give us a suspect?"
I shook my head. "Nada… not even a parking ticket. I skimmed all of his posts, anyone linked to his pages, hoping for a crazy ex or a superpowered stalker, and he's clean. There's nothing" I cleared the screen on the table from all info. "I can keep looking, we must be missing something. But I'm not sure I can find something on him that can help"
"Do what you can" Coulson supplied before heading off, probably to see if FitzSimmons had any better luck.
I resumed typing on the screen hoping that Ward would leave, but he lingered. I could tell that he was looking at me. I let out a heavy sigh, not diminishing the rate with which I was working. "Something on my face, Ward?" As he stayed quiet and didn't say anything I tried to ignore him but his silent presence was annoying me. It could be the staring or it could be the lack of sleep from the previous night, either is equally possible reasons. "Don't you have someplace you need to be? Someone else to stare?"
That seemed to do something if the increase of the tapping of his leg on the floor was any indication. "Why did you have to defy me this morning?"
I paused at that and closed my eyes, gathering as much patience as I could. "Am I supposed not to, when you say stuff like that? You know me, I can't help myself" I resumed my work. "And we both know that that pistol was fine as it was"
"Look," he said and leaned a bit on the table. "That's not the point. I know the pistol was fine, you think I don't? But the point of it was for it to work on loosing up a bit". That made me stop and turn to him, an eyebrow lifted indicating my question. Which he took as an invitation to continue and so he did. "They think they are subtle, they're not. And you know I'm not good with… people". Well, that was an understatement. "It's my way of trying okay? After all" he cleared his throat, "I am agent Grant Ward. And I prefer to work alone," he said in an imitation of Jemma's and Fitz's impersonation of him.
I found myself smiling. "Actually that's not quite it. It's a bit more nasally than that" I couldn't help but give my input. He smiled along with me. "But I understand your point and I will try, okay? But if you start pulling my leg I won't hold back" I said as we seemed to reach an understanding.
He was about to say something but an alarm went off and, after exchanging a brief look, we both run to the cargo hold and towards the Lab. "What's going on?" I asked before we even reached the floor.
"Satellite's picking up another electrostatic event, not 20 kilometres from here," Fitz said in a hurry.
Before he even finished his sentence May and Coulson was out of the Lab and running towards one of the unidentified vehicles. "Go," I told Ward. "I'm gonna stay here with the guys and work from the computer". With a nod, he went to join the other two agents and they quickly speed out of the Bus.
We quickly directed Coulson and the others to a pretty remote farm when the electrostatic seemed to pulse and then disappear altogether. Nothing left to signal that it was ever there. By then I was going through the farm's owner information and something very interesting came up. Coulson and May were with the floating body of the owner, while Ward had gone to scan the perimeter. But when he came back and there was no indication that anyone had left the farm the team leader called me in. "Skye, we need real-time SAT surveillance on this area right now" his voice echoed in the room from the speakers linked to the comms that they had.
"Hang on," I said as I typed and looked at the picture of Adam Cross with our newest victim. "I think I found something you might want to see first. Sending it over now. The guy who owns the farm's name is Frank Whalen. He's a volunteer firefighter as the same station house as Adam Cross"
Ward's voice came next. "Our two victims knew each other".
"Yup," I said as I was looking at the information in front of me, gulping as I kept on reading. "They were both correspondents when the aliens crashed New York".
"Two victims from the same firehouse found in the same weird way" Ward continued.
"We're looking either at a crazy ass coincidence or possibly for someone who holds a grudge to this team". I was looking at the SAT surveillance of the area but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was like the only people that went there recently were us. "I don't see anything showing that someone else was on the farm other than you guys. I suggest that FitzSimmons and I come to collect the body and the three of you come back here so that we can regroup?" Halfway through what I was saying I realised it sounded a little bit like an order and turned it into a question at the last minute.
"Sounds good," Coulson said and I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding.
By the time that we went to pick up the body and then came back to the Bus, the sun had already set. As soon as we drove in, the other three drove out once more to go to hopefully get to the rest of the firefighters before it was too late. The fear of an alien weapon growing larger by the minute.
"What are you looking for?" I asked Jemma as she was inspecting the forehead wound of Frank Whalen.
"A scented candle" Fitz grumbled from somewhere in the side. His distaste for dead things in the lab clear.
"Not you"
Jemma, still focused on what she was doing, answers quietly. "This wound… something doesn't quite make sense. Initially, I thought these were entry wounds, as if from a gunshot. But they're not… they're exit wounds"
That seemed to be enough to make Fitz forget the 'dead body' part for a bit as he closed in. "What if this weapon overloaded the brain past the threshold of its electrical capacity, causing it to discharge, like an E.M.P.?"
"You're assuming we're dealing with an external source" Jemma shook her head and then looked up to both of us. "I'm saying it was something from inside him"
At that point, I heard a notification going off and turned around to the tablet to see another electrostatic storm occurring. "Something's happening, the satellite is picking up another reading. It's coming from the firehouse" I looked up to the two scientists and immediately we turned our side of the comms on to let the others know what was going on.
May and Ward had been looking at the station house to find the weapon and soon after we called it in, May spoke up and used her phone camera for the live feed. "Coulson, I found it. It's a Chitauri helmet. FitzSimmons, are you seeing this?" And just like that, the video that May was taking opened on the large screen of the lab and we all saw the alien helmet.
Looking at it, I was briefly transported back to the Battle of New York. I lost myself in the memory of the raging battle before Fitz's yell brought me back to the Bus. "Sir, you have to get out of there now! He's going to explode!" He continued to yell and looking at the screen, I realised that the firehouse was evacuated and only Coulson and the other guy that cleaned up the helmet, Tony Diaz, were left inside. The latter would die any minute now.
Coulson's voice came in through the speakers, but he was not reacting to Fitz's voice. "There's no point. He's taken his comm out" I told him and just listened to what he was saying to the other man.
"I've been where you are right now. So please believe me when I tell you, you don't have to be afraid". Oh, god. Please don't make me listen to what I think he's about to say, I thought as he resumed speaking after a bit. "Your job… gets pretty dangerous, doesn't it? Mine, too. I got hurt once… pretty bad". There were long pauses after every sentence. My eyes closed shut at his words, trying very hard not to think of what had happened at the Helicarrier all those years ago. "And I… I died. Some say that it was only for 8 seconds, but I know it was more than that. I know I wasn't here anymore. I was there".
I felt a hand on my shoulder and I opened my eyes to see Jemma looking at me. She possibly thought that it was because of the mention of the Battle of New York, as she didn't know about what happened with Coulson. But she still kind of understood and at that moment I felt grateful for the fact that there were two people on this team that knew my secret.
It was morning by the time S.H.I.E.L.D. sent more people over, dressed in biohazard uniforms in order to take the Chitauri helmet from the firehouse. We were all gathered there as Fitz went over each member of the team to make sure that they were okay.
When the "all clean" was heard I released a breath. The other firefighters would all be quarantined and observed at a S.H.I.E.L.D. biohazard facility. My happiness and relief for the fact that everyone was okay lasted only so long before two other uniform-dressed people carried the helmet in a metal case out of the firehouse and onto our truck.
Just looking at Coulson was enough for him to understand my silent question. "We're flying it to the Sandbox".
Fucking great.
He turned to Jemma. "If what you suspect is true, that this is a virus, then those firefighters could be infected, and they're gonna need a cure. Find one" he told her.
Jemma audibly gulped. "Yes, sir".
One after the other started heading back to the truck so as to go to the Bus. I made a move to leave but noticed that Jemma was still lingering behind. "Hey, you coming?" I gently asked but managed to startle her nonetheless. Her only reply was a small smile and a nod before she started walking.
As soon as we went back to the Bus and took off, I went to my bunk. The fact that the Chitauri helmet was stored in the Cage, that it was in my near proximity didn't make anything better. I took my phone out of my backpack and sent a message.
- Hey, you here?
I fell back on my bed and kept half of the phone close to my chest. The reply came almost instantly.
- Yeah. Are you okay? Did something happen? I smiled internally at the concern that those messages contained.
- We bumped into a Chitauri helmet today. And now we have to transport it.
- Sounds fun. Want me to call you?
- Can't. The team doesn't know who I am and if they heard it would only raise questions. Plus, I'm not really supposed to talk about missions
- I think Fury would forgive you for this breach of protocols. Not that you would care even if he didn't.Oh, how right he was. Do you have any days off soon? I haven't seen you since forever and I'm sure Nat and the others would appreciate it as well :)
- I haven't heard anything. I'll let you know as soon as possible. I've missed you too, Old Guy. Have you finished with the farm yet?
- Nah, still working on it. Soon though. Hopefully, it will be ready for Christmas, but I'm not sure. That would be nice. A place for the two of them to get away from everything. And I knew that I would be welcome there anytime. After I hadn't replied for a while he sent another one. You feeling better?
- Yes, thanks a lot. I sent and then an alarm went off and my phone, being connected to the Bus' systems, alerted me it came from the Lab. Shit. I need to go. I'll let you know as soon as I know when I can visit.
And with that, I run out of my room and to the cargo hold, where Coulson was standing outside of a locked-down Lab with Jemma inside. The others soon came downstairs as well, all looking as perplexed as me.
I was looking between Jemma and Coulson, whose expression was one of almost sorrow. That's when I noticed one of the various medical equipment floating next to Jemma, then a tiny electrical current left it and it dropped back down. Just like the three other victims. Just like the things around the room Tony Diaz was in before he died.
"Jemma…"
Notes:E06... we all knew it was coming at some point.
Be prepared for a more angsty chapter tomorrow...
Chapter 25: By Death's DoorNotes:
All rights go to Marvel
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Skye's POV
Jemma was inside the sealed Lab, her back on the glass separating us, while Fitz was sitting with his back on Jemma from our side. The tightness on my chest only increasing as I heard what Coulson was saying. "Simmons believes that she contracted the virus approximately 36 hours ago when she received an electrostatic shock from the first victim".
I hardly managed to swallow before asking, "How much time does she have?"
Coulson's normally stoic expression turned something akin to sadness when he turned to look at me. "Based on when the firemen were infected, how quickly their symptoms manifested… two hours at most"
That wasn't nearly enough time! I turned to May. "How long 'till we arrive?" I asked though I already knew the answer. Hoping for a miracle, more or less.
"Three hours" she replied slowly. "Our path to the Sandbox has us right in the middle of the Atlantic"
I felt a whimper rise in my throat but I pushed it down. After a while, Ward was heard. "Sir, correct me if I'm wrong. But if we cannot land in time—"
"Simmons will receive a pulse that will blow this plane right out of the sky" he cut in. "There's only one person in this plane capable of finding a solution for this, and I'm willing to bet my life that she will" and he turned to look at Jemma, as did everyone else.
"She's just a kid" May whispered.
The tightness on my chest had now increased so much that I was finding it hard to breathe. I lifted my gaze and found May watching me. I couldn't take it. "Excuse me" I whispered and practically run up the spiral staircase and went all the way to the cockpit. I could have gone to my bunk, sure. I would be alone. But I didn't think that I really wanted to be alone right that moment.
I heavily sat on the co-pilot's seat. My eyelids were pressed together so tight that I would find it hard to open them again. I could hear my heart beating loudly in my chest and all the way to my head, and my breaths were coming out short. I didn't even need to look down on my heart-monitor-for-a-clock to see that my heart rate was way higher than it should have been. I could feel my hands trembling and I knew that it was only partially from my mental state at that moment. I hadn't come this close to losing control in a very long time and at that moment I honestly didn't know what to do. I couldn't think clearly.
I just couldn't think.
My thoughts were too many and none at the same time.
I hadn't realised that I was crying until I felt gentle hands on my face, wiping the tears away.
"Skye, I need you to focus" I faintly heard May talking over the raging sounds in my head. "Come on, Skye. Focus on me" she spoke again but it did nothing.
I barely registered being pulled out of the seat and onto the floor as May cradled me to her chest, placing my head where her heart is, as she held me tightly. "Listen to my heart, sweetie. Just focus on my heart" she whispered to my ear, her hands holding me safely in place. She kept murmuring in my ear.
I couldn't tell you how long we stayed like that even if my life depended on it. It could have been a minute, it could have been half an hour, when my breathing slowed down enough for me to get a hold of myself. I slowly took in my surroundings again, still keeping my eyes shut. We were still on the floor, May's hand still around me, but she had stopped talking. I slowly opened my eyes but decided to close them again.
"You back with me?" May softly asked and I hummed as a reply.
"How long?" I asked and my voice came out raspy.
"About 20 minutes". I moved a bit and she unwrapped her arms to let me swift to the side of the cockpit and place my back to one of its walls, facing her. "Has that happened before?" It took me a while, but I nodded, still taking deep breaths to relax. I looked down at my watch and my heart rate, happy to see that it had dropped to more normal numbers. "Wanna talk about it?"
"Not really, but from experience, I know it will help" I took a deep breath and cleared my throat. "This mission has just been a bit much" I started. "The Chitauri helmet, Coulson talking about when he was killed". About when I killed him, was what I wanted to say but didn't. Still, May understood just fine. "And now, Jemma". I turned my gaze to meet hers and saw more emotion than I had during all of our time together. "I can't lose another person, Mel" my voice broke.
"I know" she whispered back.
"I can't lose her"
"I know" she repeated.
"No, you don't understand. I can't lose her" I said once more with more force. She didn't know what Jemma meant for me.
"Skye,," she said a bit louder, with a little more force to get my attention. "I. Know" she gently smiled. "Okay?"
I felt a second wave of tears coming but I stopped them. "How?"
The small smile never left her face. She wasn't agent May right now. She was Melinda, the Melinda that I had grown up with. "Because despite all the years apart, you're still my kid. And I know you better than anyone".
I didn't know what to say to that. So we just stayed like that for a while before she decided I had stayed there long enough. "What are you still doing here? Go to her"
I shook my head. "She doesn't need me right now. I'm a mess. I would just distract her" I took a deep breath in and averted my gaze. From the corner of my eye, I still saw her getting up and walking towards me as she extended a hand for me to take.
"Go…". My fingers wrapped around hers and she slowly lifted me up.
I, just as slowly, exited the cockpit and starting walking towards the Lab. Halfway there, though, I realised that I just couldn't and found myself in the briefing room, the large screen showing what's happening in the Lab from the camera there. Jemma working on a vaccine, pacing around the lab as she talked with Fitz.
Ward walked in shortly after, stopping at the door and looking at me. "Please, Ward. Not now" I asked of him.
"Why aren't you down there?" He said despite my plea for his silence.
I let a breath out. "They don't need an audience"
He took a step into the room and stood next to me. "I remember you and Simmons were pretty tight back in the Academy". When I kept staring at the screen and not say anything in return, he continued just standing there but instead of looking at the screen, he was looking at me. "I know you feel helpless. You wish it was a person, a superpowered psychopath, someone you could hurt, someone you could… punish. But you cannot protect her from something you can't even see". He let out a breath. "You need to get ready"
"Get out," I told him.
He just shook his head. "I know it's hard, Skye. I'm not saying to accept it. But you should be ready"
"Fine!" I pushed myself off the table. "You don't want to leave, be my guest. Stay. I'm leaving" I told him and stepped out of the room. Coulson was coming downstairs from his office, a not so pleasant expression on his face. "What happened?"
He closed his eyes, collecting himself. "We got orders from up high. They said that if we have anyone compromised—"
"No" I interrupted him. "Just no," I said firmly.
He lifted his hands in surrender. "I agree. The 'connection' wasn't very good so the orders didn't quite come in" he said.
Just as I let out a relieved sigh, my eyes travelled to some noise and saw Fitz running from the Cage down to the Lab holding the case with the helmet. "Fitz!" I yelled and run after him, the rest of the team running behind me. By the time we reached the cargo hold, Fitz had run in the sealed Lab with the case and was arguing with Jemma. "…always do. We're gonna fix this. Together" Was what I caught of their conversation.
I caught Jemma's almost bloodshot eyes and then her attention was back at Fitz. She nodded and they started working. I know I was probably distracting her but I couldn't help it, the whole time I was right next to the glass, my face almost planted on the transparent material.
I couldn't understand half of the things they did, but I had the utmost trust that those two would make it. I didn't know what I would do if they didn't.
"Third time's a charm," Fitz said with the vaccine in hand. Looking up to Jemma. "May I do the honours?" And he walked up to the last rat that they had to test and used his machine to send a small electrostatic shock to him.
"I can't breathe," I said as I watched this whole thing unfold. I felt a hand on my right shoulder and looked over to see May there.
A few seconds passed, when nothing happened and Jemma let out a shuddering breath. "We did it" but as we all started hoping, a blue light left the rat and he started floating.
"No…" Fitz and I breathed out at the same time, eyes glued on the floating animal.
I looked over and noticed that Jemma had walked up to the glass, tears in her eyes as she faced Coulson. "Sir, I know the protocol in these circumstances, but could you tell my dad first? I just think my Mum would take it better if it came from him" she tried to smile.
"We're not there yet. There's still time" Coulson replied shaking his head ever so slightly.
"Sir, please," she said with a tone that all but said 'let's not kid ourselves'. After he conceded she turned to the others. "Would you mind if I had a brief moment with Skye and then Fitz?"
No one questioned or said anything. The three of them just made their way upstairs, May giving me a last squeeze before walking away.
"Skye" she started when neither of us said anything for a while.
"No" I firmly said. "There's still time. There has to be" I started rambling. "You have… what? At least 40 more minutes. That's plenty of time to try again. Something might have—"
"Skye" she interrupted me again. "It's-" her voice broke. "It's okay".
I shook my head. "No! None of this is okay? How can you say that?"
"Listen to me". She placed her hand, palm open on the glass separating us. With a trembling hand, I mimicked her move, 2-3 centimetres of thick material being the only thing between us. "We both know that if this were you, you would tell me the same thing" and she was right.
"We never had the time to discuss what you wanted to talk about," I said in a small and broken voice.
She gave me her small gentle smile, tears running down her face. "There are a lot of things left unsaid". Her hands curled a bit as if she wanted to break the glass and take my fingers in hers. "So many things". Her eyes lifted from our hands to my face. "You know I love you right?"
I felt my eyes tear up even more at that. "Jemma…," I said in a pleading voice. Why is she doing this now? Now of all times?!
She shook her head before meeting my gaze once more. "It's okay if you don't feel the same way. I just couldn't not tell you. I had to—"
"I love you, too" I interrupted her, trying to smile but was sure it was more of a grimace. "You know that right?"
She gulped. 'I do' she mouthed, no voice coming out. A few seconds passed where we talked just with our eyes and she cleared her throat. "Could you give me some time with Fitz?" She asked and I looked over her shoulder to see him over his desk, hands trying to adjust something.
"Of course" I reluctantly let go of the glass and took a step back. Then I willed myself to take another one, and another one until I was in the briefing area. The three other agents stopped talking when I walked in, they were all right across from me. "What's going on?"
May looked around the room. "Agent Blake is on the line. He wants to know what is going on. If Coulson won't answer, he'll ask for Ward"
"Orders are unchanged" Coulson quickly said.
Just as he finished an alarm went off. "What is this?" I quickly asked and May quickly typed on the digital table.
"Someone's lowering the cargo-hold ramp," she said looking at me.
It took me a second to realise what was happening. Jemma's name left my lips, as soon as I sped towards the cargo-hold. I found Fitz trying to put a parachute on. As soon as he saw me he yelled over the loud noise of the wind, "The antiserum worked, but she jumped!"
Without thinking about it twice, I grabbed the antiserum he had with one hand and the parachute with another and I jumped behind her.
Notes:Aaaaand yeah. I handled it that way. I just couldn't resist, okay?