Chapter 21: Love and LividSummary:The dinner with Daisy's family finally happens, Prince T'Challa gets a present in July, a quick check in on Tony, and finally a newemployee's first day is about to begin.
Notes:Obligatory disclaimer: I don't own Marvel, DC, or any characters that come from other works.
I also want to thank everyone for their support and encouragement, and RhinoMouse for the inspiration their world of "Retirement Ended Up Super" provided.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextJune 7th, 2009, MCU
Alisha Whitley, Afterlife
Alisha had known this day was coming for a while now, but that does not make the stress she is feeling right now any less pronounced. She has known since weeks after the nearly catastrophic event in Bahrain 6 months ago, and the news that it brought. At least back then it was just an abstract idea, plan, and contingency. Then a month ago Cal Johnson was finally located, along with the young inhuman girl Raina that had been following him in search of his daughter and terrigenesis crystals.
Luckily the both were brought in just fine, although fists were NEARLY thrown between Gordon and Calvin, Jiaying was able to calm them down and have a… reunion with her husband (ex-husband? Alisha has not been privy to the exact status of their relationship, beside it being 'complicated'). The reunion was certainly not heartfelt and instead was filled with yelling that could be heard from all ends of their small settlement, but in the month things have calmed down.
Calmed down enough that their daughter was being invited to dinner at Afterlife, which brings Alisha right back to her anxiety about her role to come.
To say that the Elders were in an uproar once the details of the Bahrain situation were reported would be a gross understatement. The details were meant to be confidential among them, but so many had such loud opinions that the details spread within a week, which meant there were even MORE opinions to be shared.
She is a risk, we must bring her in and keep her here.
It is a miracle, and Daisy has done more for our community at her age than most do in their lifetimes.
We should be optimistic, but cautious. Who knows what will happen if she learns of Afterlife's location.
She flaunts our creed of secret, and must be dealt with immediately.
That last opinion was luckily in the minority, and was VERY quickly shut down by the incredibly murderous glares of Jiaying with the weight of all the centuries that the woman has lived behind those eyes.
After much deliberation, a solid plan was enacted. Jiaying would be allowed to talk with her daughter, but all outgoing mail would be read over by Gordon before he delivered it to ensure no secrets were being leaked. Once Calvin was located and calmed down enough to meet his daughter again, both Daisy and the alien girlfriend would be invited over for a family meal.
A family meal that Alisha would serve as the entire waitstaff for, without ever fully leaving the room. This let the rest of the Elders have some insurance of what went on in there, while Jiaying only had to open her personal life to one mentee that held a great deal of loyalty to her.
Alisha was only 25 and has had her powers for only about 4 years, as even though born in Afterlife have to pass many trials to be permitted to receive their powers. Yet she would gladly take the anxiety she experienced before Terrigenesis over the anxiety of the dinner to come.
One of the most powerful and proficient Inhumans of the modern era is showing up with her alien girlfriend to have an emotionally charged dinner with her family for the first time, and Alisha is there to act as both servant and spy to ensure no danger will be coming to Afterlife.
No pressure.
…Did she mention the ALIEN girlfriend?! That aspect of the situation was largely skipped over from both disbelief and from uncertainty. The only alien interactions the inhumans know are their ancestor's origins with the Kree, and the less thought about that situation the better.
All the same, Alisha's thoughts on the situation are pushed out by her duties as the telltale sound of Gordan's teleportation whoosh in from the center of the room, followed by a second whoosh as Gordan leaves their guests with Alisha.
Stepping forward Alisha begins greetings while subtly looking the two over. "Welcome to Afterlife honored guests of High Elder Jiaying. My name is Alisha and I will be helping as a guide and server for you this evening."
The first to respond is the dark haired girl, who must be the 13 nearly 14 year old daughter of Jiayang. She is wearing a nice light summer dress with a floral print that does a good job of not making her look like a little child while also not looking like the girl is trying to act much older than she is, visions of the future or not. Although maybe the confident way she holds herself, as well as the numerous scars on her exposed arms and legs do the heavy lifting.
"Nice to meet you, and interesting to hear that the meal is going to be full service. I'm Daisy Johnson, and this is my girlfriend Kara Danvers." So apparently Jiaying did not overstate her daughter's competency, as the tone of voice made it clear that Daisy held some suspicions on Alisha's role for tonight.
And then the last words hit her and for all Alisha's training, she is not able to stop her head from snapping to look at the other guest. The girl is a teenage blond wearing a pink embellished dress that seems to also have a subtle floral pattern to it, with little beads acting as the berries of the leaves sewn in. Yet despite the younger looking face than she is used to, it most certainly seems to be THE Kara Zorel Danvers standing before her.
The Elders may cut themselves off from the outside world, but the younger generation do not. Especially those like Alisha that receive training outside of Afterlife in case of retrieval missions. So she has heard all about the billionaire who has been able to make a partnership with Tony Stark with technology surpassing anyone else… Well at least things make a bit more sense with the technology literally coming from an alien at least.
The light snickering coming from Daisy, and the responding light slap to the shoulder in response by a blushing Kara clued Alisha into the fact that she has been staring slack jawed at Ms. Danvers. Snapping out of it, Alisha resumes her planned intro as she begins to lead them out of the entry home and into the path outside.
"Is there any particular way you would like to be addressed for your culture Ms. Danvers?"
Kara seems to startle a bit at the question, before suddenly giving a beaming smile in response. "Oh Golly. Formally I guess I would go by Lady Zor-El, but you can just call me Kara!"
"Of course Lady Kara." Alisha responds with a bit of a grin, playing the middle road and reminding their guests a bit of her role for tonight at the very least. But with that, they are off and into the outdoors, with the sun getting close to set behind the mountains nearby, casting lovely rays of sunbeams to shine down the streets of Afterlife.
As they travel across though, Alisha can't help but notice that Lady Kara is seemingly a bit distracted and keeps looking at the mountains and horizon rather than Afterlife itself. Just as she is about to ask, it seems that Daisy has noticed as well and beats her to it.
"Hey Sunflower. Feeling a bit a deja-vu?" Kara nods back, looking at her girlfriend for the answer. "Because you're allergic to obeying a straight forward flight plan and like to sight see instead, when you went to Mumbai for the day a month ago you passed by here. Since Afterlife is in the mountains of Nepal, you probably recognize it a bit."
And THAT startles and scares Alisha even more than the fact that the possibly-future-hostile alien is a billionaire and friends with the 'Merchant of Death'/ Iron Man. Afterlife being hidden and nearly inaccessible to all but Gordon has been their ace in the sleeve for decades now.
Before she can really work herself into a fit, Daisy seems to take pity on her because what she says next both settles her by giving them a secret in return, as well as sending her into a whole different spiral.
"Don't worry. I may have given her a hint about where we are, but I also gave you an important hint in return. What very famous blonde visited Mumbai a month ago that could have been Kara?"
Supergirl… The secret identity of Supergirl has been given as collateral for Daisy's knowledge of Afterlife given to her by the visions.
Alisha just wants this day to end, and dinner hasn't even started.
As the last couple minutes of the tour wind down, with Alisha doing her best to put out all the earth shaking news from her mind… with Daisy's teasing grin and Kara's apologetic expression the whole way not helping.
All the same they arrive, so blessedly Alisha will be able to become an observer and server soon enough.
"Introducing Daisy Johnson and her girlfriend, Lady Kara Zor-El." Alisha introduces, before stepping aside from the entrance of the dining room, where Jiaying and Mr. Johnson are waiting, revealing Daisy and Kara just on the other side of the door.
Both of the girls slowly step into the room slowly and quietly, with Kara trailing just behind looking to Daisy for cues on how to act, and at some point they started holding hands.
Meanwhile Jiaying and Mr. Johnson get up from where they were sitting at the dining table. While Jiaying stands up with a smile and a casual but welcoming stance, Mr. Johnson stands up almost reverently. With slow movements, as if he is trying not to startle a wild animal, Mr. Johnson gets up and takes a couple steps around the table and towards the couple.
"Look at that. The way you tilt your head is just like your mom. Is it nature or nurture? I've had a month to get ready for this, and I promised myself I wouldn't get emotional, but to have you back again is bringing tears to my eyes. I have waited so long for this moment." As Mr. Johnson fights down the tears and seems to go to say something more, he is interrupted as Daisy moves forward and embraces the man in a strong hug, with the father returning the gesture automatically, even if the surprise is clear on his face.
"Hi Dad. It's good to see you ag-.. to finally meet you." Daisy says. While there is clear emotion in her voice, it isn't quite the suppressing of tears that her father has. And the way she phrased her greeting… maybe she has more attachment to the vision than the Elders expected. Not just a movie of events, but experiencing the true emotions behind them.
"I want you to know, that NEVER stopped looking for you. I'm sorry that I couldn't be there for you, couldn't protect you." Calvin says, with a couple tears now rolling down his face. Looking over at Jiaying, Alisha notices a look of.. Jealousy maybe? That's noteworthy.
"And I never stopped looking for you both ever since I was old enough to understand." Pulling back a little to be able to look him in the face, Daisy continues. "But you have done A LOT of bad while trying to find me, and the only reason you haven't done worse is because I had a vision and was able to find you first. You have a trail of death to make up for, and I expect you to make up for it." Daisy finished pulling back, although neither seem to be hurt by the hug ending.
"I know. I have been a monster because I haven't been there with you. But I'm here now, and you're here now. I can start doing better, I'm already using my PHD here at Afterlife as it is when they can't just use their powers." Mr. Johnson responds.
Daisy appears to want to say something, before seeming to change her mind with a slight shake of her head. Turning to her mom instead, there seems to be something charged in the way they look over each other. Just as it appears like Jiaying is going to withdraw into herself and sit down, Daisy makes a decision and moves forward and hugs her mom as well.
The surprise is incredibly clear on Jiaying's face for some reason, and the hug is leagues stiffer than the one just a moment ago. But once Jiaying loses the surprise, she instead adopts one of clear adoration, and moves slowly and carefully to envelop her daughter in a hug back. The slight flinching and hunching of shoulders is another note to an unclear puzzle being shown to Alisha here.
Did… did more happen in the first meeting or in the letters than the Elders and other members have been led to believe? Of her two parents, why would Daisy possibly be more cautious of the High Elder rather than the unseen monster that stalked her entire life?
After a few seconds of the hug, with the tension very slowly leaking out of the both of them, Daisy backs off and rejoins Lady Kara on the other side of the table. Kara gives a beaming smile of encouragement and the two join hands again.
Suddenly Cal speaks up, something strange in his voice as he reaches down next to his chair and brings out a large bouquet of flowers. "I've been dreaming of this day for so long. I have some flowers for you, and I made almond cookies for dessert, the same recipe that me and your mother used to have."
As Daisy takes the flowers, letting go of Lady Kara's hand, Alisha sees the brief look of triumph in Mr. Johnson's face at that. Seeing that dinner can begin soon is the only thing that stops Alisha from rolling her eyes. Apparently he is playing the disapproving dad already.
Alisha splits off a few clones, pulling out the chairs of everyone, while other clones split off to retrieve the appetizers.
"Please, let's get started eating. I am especially looking forward to hearing more about you Dr. Danvers. Daisy was light on details of her girlfriend, so being able to recognize you was incredibly shocking to say the least." Jiaying opens diplomatically, to offset her husband's obvious actions.
Daisy has an incredibly cocky grin, seeming to find the situation hilarious, while Kara perks up at the welcoming tone coming from her girlfriend's mother.
With that, the dinner starts.
The dinner honestly passes without issues for the most part, although that is obvious because they avoid any difficult topics. The riskiest topic comes up when asking about Lady Kara's past, with the obvious unasked question of WHAT type of alien she is. The Supergirl reveal that Alisha had been unable to inform them about, is delivered with just as much shock this time as it was the last.
Although the information rather than comforting Mr. Johnson seems to cause him to scowl a bit more often at her, although he continues to hide it as quickly as he can. Soon enough, dessert in the form of the almond cookies comes out, and more serious topics begin to be discussed.
"I thought you would appreciate an update on the mother and daughter you delivered to me in Bahrain. The mother has been making wonderful progress and recovery from the trauma and hurt she experienced there, and while the daughter is still under constant surveillance for un-authorized use of her powers, she is at least being trusted enough to train with her powers to the point of voluntarily releasing her hold once training ends. They both work with our Second Elder Yat-Sen most often as he has more free time than I do, and has plenty of experience with the mental drawbacks of our powers." Jiaying opens with.
"That's wonderful to hear. Not sure if I'm ever going to be open to working with them if it comes to that, but glad to hear the situation isn't as bad as I left it for you." Daisy replies.
"Yes. Thank you for giving us an issue THAT large to deal with, with no warning." Jiaying's dry tone has enough humor in it that everyone takes it for the joke that it is.
Lady Kara looks like she is going to say a joke of her own in response, but is cut off by Mr. Johnson instead.
"Yes, about that whole situation. Nobody here seems to really know, nor did your mother learn from when you talked or in your shared letters; But why did you involve yourself so much there? And working with SHIELD?! They're the bad guys, they're the ones who kept me from YOU!" By the end he is very nearly shouting, and seems to see the effect its having on everyone at the table, so he quickly calms back down.
With a sigh that lets Alisha know that Daisy can tell this is going to be an upsetting topic, Daisy answers all the same. "SHIELD aren't the bad guys in the end. Sure they're incredibly misguided and have some prejudices a mile wide, and some horrible practices especially when it comes to anyone with powers, but HYDRA are the ones in the world that are the enemy. I'm not saying every SHIELD agent is a model of virtue, especially not the HYDRA moles, but there are enough people doing incredible amounts of good to make it worth it."
Jiaying and Mr. Johnson seem to be taking a moment to absorb what she has said, when Kara shares a bit more at a nod from Daisy.
"And besides, according to Daisy's future knowledge, we are just a few years away from an alien invasion of New York. So it's not just that Daisy likes some of them, but that the world still needs them. Or at least the world needs what Daisy is setting up to take over SHIELD eventually."
With that, Mr. Johnson's thin patience finally snaps as he jolts up in his seat, causing the table to jump up a couple inches as he knocks into it. "Alien invasion?! And 'what you're setting up' to take over SHIELD eventually?! Absolutely not! I don't know what plans you had before, but you can forget them. I couldn't protect you and keep you close before, but I damn well am going to do that now! You're staying here with us, where we can watch over you." By the end of his rant, Mr. Johnson is breathing incredibly hard, as he works to contain his rage.
Luckily Jiaying had a backup plan for something like this happening, so Alisha sends off one of her clones from the other room to be ready to call for help if it's needed, while another takes a position right next to the door of the dining room.
"Cal… That can't happen, the other elders won't allow me to make such a risky decision that obviously comes from a place of emotion." Jiaying delivers the information that Mr. Johnson had already been told, in as placating a voice without being condescending.
"Then- Then we can move out of here. Get a place all to ourselves, and live together safely! Ms. Danvers can come and visit, and- and- and you can forget about worrying anything about spy agencies and alien invasions and everything else. That doesn't have to be you!" Mr. Johnson says, starting off calmer but soon working himself back up.
"But that is who she is Mr. Johnson." Kara says in a light voice, full of affection and adoration. "Daisy is someone who can't help but do her best to help others, when she knows it's in her power to do so, and she has a LOT of power. Not just her inhuman powers, but knowledge, money, resources, and heart. I would readily accept her doing nothing but doing all the coding work she wants, and continuing with her hobby of cooking, but even in her memories when she tried to retire it didn't work out. Asking her not to do that, like askin-"
"SHUT UP! YOU DO NOT GET TO SPEAK FOR MY DAUGHTER, ALIEN!" Cal shouts at the top of his lungs, his fists banging on the table between them. Seeing a hard look pass over Daisy's eyes, as she slowly starts to stand up, Alisha decides it has reached the point where she should intervene.
Her clone steps into the room, looking straight at Cal before calling out. "I'm sorry Mr. Johnson, but Yat-Sen requires your assistance with Raina. Please come with me."
The tension in the air is high, as everyone waits for what decision Mr. Johnson will make. Unknown to Lady Kara and Daisy though, is that this was the agreed upon signal beforehand. Raina did not actually need help, and he knew it. This was much a test as it was a command. Mr. Johnson had let his anger go too far, so if he wants to continue to try and repair his relationship with his family without being kicked out of Afterlife, he will go with her clone now. The alternative is that Gordon will come in and teleport Mr. Johnson out and into a room with no doors or windows to leave out of, to keep him contained.
Alisha can see the hatred he currently holds for her in his eyes right now, but she can also see the fear. The feat of the Elders of Afterlife making good on their threat. After nearly a full minute of everyone hanging on edge, Mr. Johnson lets out a growl before standing up and stiffly making his way over to her clone and the exit.
"I suggest bidding a goodbye to Daisy and Lady Kara, as you probably will be held up until after they have left." His gaze snaps back up to the original her at her words, eyes and face a flurry of emotion, so she decides to send him a graceful way out of the situation. "A goodbye until the next time a day together can be arranged, that is."
"Goodbye Daisy… and Kara. And… I'm sorry." With those words, Mr. Johnson and her clone leave the dining room. With him, leaves the last of the tension as well, everyone breathing out a sigh of relief… And even Kara and Daisy reaching for additional cookies.
"My apologies for that, Kara. I did not think he would attack your heritage, even in your anger. We had explained to him the reality of what you want, and what the Elders will allow… but his emotions cloud what he knows still far too easily."
"Thank you, and I don't hold it against you." Kara says with a brittle smile."
"I understand what kind of person he is, mom, and I know it's not your fault. Like I said when we had our reunion, he has a lot of things to make up for, and I don't mean for him not being there for me as a child like I think he does." Daisy responds.
Jiaying sends back a grateful smile at each of them, obviously thankful for both of their understanding. "You both are far more mature than your years would suggest. I think this is as notable a time to end the night as any. I have reports to make. Feel free to take some time, eat some more cookies, and just ask Alisha to show you to Gordon when you wish to return home."
With the last longing look from Jiaying, she leaves, while Kara and Daisy settle back down for a couple minutes of comfortable silence filled only with the sound of snacking on the cookies. When finally, softly, oh so softly, Kara finally speaks up.
"I can… I can be sure not to join next time. So it's easier on you and your parents?"
Not even taking a second to think of the offer, Daisy responds. "No. You're a large part of my life now, and they are going to need to come to terms with that. Eventually I'll visit them by myself, but if you don't come next time Cal will take it as him gaining control. I care more for you, than a peaceful family life."
After another minute of silence, with the only change being Kara snuggling up into Daisy's side from what she said, Kara speaks up once again.
"I thought you would say something like that… and I know it shouldn't make me so happy, but it does. I'm not used to being chosen first… so I'm sorry, but thank you." Kara turns to face Daisy, with misty eyes looking into Daisy's own.
"You're always my first now. Remember that." Daisy says with a kiss.
A kiss that lasts for a bit longer than Alisha expects.
A kiss that begins to deepen.
Alisha suddenly hates being the last left in the room with the hormonal teenagers!
Luckily she must have made a noise or something, because suddenly Kara jumps up and spins around to face her, her face suddenly heating up a bright red in embarrassment.
"OHMYRAO,IAMSOSORRY.WEJUSTGOTABIT-" Kara's panicked incomprehensible word vomit are soon drowned out by Daisy laughing so loudly, the words get drowned out. Kara eventually gives up on words and just glares at her girlfriend, with cheeks puffed out in both outrage and embarrassment.
July 4th, 2009, MCU
Prince T'Challa, Wakanda Cover Village
As Prince of Wakanda and the most likely future King, assuming he can defeat any challengers at his coronation ceremony, T'Challa has visited the cover villages before. The villages that are used to bring the image to the world that they want to give, that are populated by citizens and warriors in a random assortment to keep everything fair, and not sentence some people to a life of poverty just to maintain the truth of their great nation.
He has visited them, and he has even spent 3 months there to learn about the duty he would one day assign others to fulfill for up to a year.
That said, he did NOT expect to be sent out here to retrieve the most wanted international criminal of Wakanda that had shown up out of nowhere an hour before sunrise, tied up and knocked out with a literal bow on top.
In the couple hours that it has taken for word to reach him, to be woken up, to don the suit of the Black Panther, and make his way out here, apparently the man has woken up. Because coming up to the hut where he has been told the man is being kept, T'Challa can hear screams of rage, screams of threats, of attempted bribes, and finally hysterical laughing as if the whole thing is a joke.
As he steps into the hut where the wanted man, Ulysses Klaue, is now restrained using vibranium restraints of Wakanda he can't help but notice that the warriors here have seemingly decided NOT to remove the giant bow from the man's head, and he can't help but agree that some joke is being played here.
Turning to the nearest warrior, still in disguise as a regular villager, T'Challa ignores the insane man who has now gone quiet below him. "Report."
With a bow, the warrior responds. "Two and a half hours ago, the sentry on duty heard a loud 'whooshing' sound as a sudden wind came directly downwards kicking up dust and sand everywhere. The sentry raised the alarm, and while the dust continued to settle every warrior took up positions around the disturbance. Once the way cleared, all we could see was our most wanted tied up with steel cables, and unconscious on the floor. A report was sent to the palace, while we changed out the restraints and brought him inside."
"And the bow?" T'Challa can't help but ask.
"It has a card like Americans use for their gifts, so we did not disturb any evidence that could be gathered from it."
"Ha! Is that why you cunts are keeping me humiliated like this?! I could have told you that the two bitches are far too professional to leave anything worthwhile there. So could you read the fucking card, and get this bow off of me!" Klaue yells out in a rage from the ground.
Finally crouching down to get closer to eye level with the man, and turning to address him, T'Challa responds back. "You know who captured you and brought you to us? I look forward to being able to send back a thank you gift in return."
"Hahaha! You don't even realize that those cunts already got the better end of this deal, no wonder it was so easy to steal from an entire nation, if you're the best they have. Go on then, read the card big kitty kitty, and tell me if you figure it out." The manic grin on the man along with the disrespectful words bring a burning fire of anger through his veins, but T'Challa clamps down on the impulse.
After scanning the card and confirming nothing dangerous is present, T'Challa opens it up to read the note.
Hope you enjoy our present here, and that it makes up for keeping the rest of his stock for us to play with. The best way to make friends IS to exchange gifts, so let's just consider us even!
Looking forward to a wonderful friendship.
-Q ;)
Who Q is, or why the winking face is written in purple pen rather than blank ink like the rest is a mystery, but T'Challa now knows what both the note and Klaue were referring to; whatever he had yet to sell of the quarter ton of vibranium that the man stole was in the hands of their 'new friends'.
"Now THAT is the expression I was so looking forward to seeing. Even if the suit hides most of it, I at least got enough to keep myself entertained. Ha! I'm pretty sure I can hold out under torture pretty well, so if you're wanting to know anything about the ones who now have your miracle metal and apparently know a lot about this country, I'm going to have a LOT of demands for my sentencing and perks. Think you can fit a chocolate fountain in my jail cell?"
With that, Klaue descends into hysterical laughter yet again, while T'Challa's headache rapidly grows. Luckily, his father may be getting older in his years, but he is still King and will be for a while to come. So this situation is more his problem to deal with than anyone else.
But T'Challa knows he is going to be going on a lot of missions around the world in search for the Vibranium, so it is a hollow victory over his father and King.
August 3rd, 2009, MCU
Tony Stark, Stark Malibu Mansion
Over the past few months Tony's relationship with the two tiny terrors has been rocky. Well less the two of them, and more the leader and shot caller, Shake Shack. Bubbles probably knew, but is far less to blame in the grand scheme of things.
It galls Tony so much to be so clearly manipulated by those he had trusted so deeply… yet the scientist part of Tony can understand the logic and reason behind it. Seeing the brainwashing and gaining true sympathy for the Winter Soldier, before learning that the man had killed his parents has avoided a whole host of problems.
Including something that the media called the 'Avengers Civil War' in the original timeline.
Frankly ridiculous name honestly. There were like a dozen people involved, in two fights, with no deaths. But still… the fate of half of the population on Earth ranks higher than Tony's feelings and any theoretical possible resentment towards Captain America's Ass.
Knowing something, and feeling something, are two different things though. So visits became less frequent, and some board game nights were skipped. Those that were skipped, were also far less festive and enjoyable.
Tony had been ready to forgive and forget for a while, only his stubborn pride making him maintain the current status quo rather than true anger. Luckily the two have now given Tony a nice out to keep his pride, while gaining his two terrors back into his life again.
Sitting in his workshop, with even Jarvis having no clue or records of how it got here (Daisy is still the champion of the two in their continuous hacking games), is over 200 pounds of the rarest metal on earth, Vibranium.
The only thing stopping Tony from going full kid-in-a-candy-shop is the small note taped to the block of metal. Reaching out and taking it off, Tony can't help but chuckle at the note that obviously comes from Kara.
It took some time to find out the correct way to melt down and reforge Vibranium in order to split it 50/50 between us two, but here is your share of what Daisy lovingly calls 'Bullshit Metal'. Enjoy!
Ps. Did you know August 3rd is National Friendship Day? And that giving you half of the Vibranium was Daisy's idea? …So can you two be friends again?!
Pss. I'll even help you cheat next game night if that's what you need!
Tony can't help but have his chuckles turn into full belly laughs. Those two are completely ridiculous, and honestly, he is glad to feel the last bits of anger leave him. This game night is going to be fun!
And with that, Tony gets to work on his new toys.
September 1st, 2009, MCU
Dr. Jemma Simmons, Los Angeles
Dr. Jemma Simmons can't help but shake her leg as the nervous energy courses through her. Luckily, many people around her are acting the same way, so she doesn't stand out. A slight bumping of shoulders from the person next to her, helps Jemma's racing heart to settle down considerably. Looking into the eyes of her partner, Dr. Leopold Fitz, who is sitting next to her and seeing the same nervous energy helps even more as her protective instincts kick in as well.
She can't fail because that would mean Fitz fails as well. Straightening her back, Jemma holds her head up high as she looks out the window of the brand new StarkJet that is flying her and a dozen other new employees to their first day of their week-long orientation at Dr. Kara Zorel Danvers' new company, House El Revolutionary Origins, HERO for short.
Unlike everyone else in the StarkJet, it is the first week in what could very well be a years-long undercover mission for her and Fitz. They will do it, and they will excel at it though. Because it is what SHIELD needs to keep the world stable.
And all of the groundbreak science they will get to be working on? Well that is just an amazing bonus!
Notes:Author's Endnote: Woops! Sorry about the nearly 3 month long hiatus there. At first it was work getting busy, then life changes like moving apartments, but then eventually it just came down to procrastination in writing, and lack of motivation/ inspiration to write the dinner scene. Thank you to the commenter who suggested using Alisha as the POV, it helped a lot. That said, I am back, and am aiming to get back into my weekly schedule!
I hope you liked how this chapter turned out. I think I got the dinner scene to be far better than I feared it would be, so I hoped you liked it. Meanwhile, what seemed to get me back into writing was apparently spending just a bit of time writing for a different story.
So if you like the anime Level 99 Villainess, feel free to check out my second story, A Few Drops of Poison . That story has no set update schedule, so it will be just how I'm feeling and when.
Toodles!
Chapter 22: Orientations and OverloadSummary:We get a long look into the orientation of Fitzsimmons as well as a look into what they have been up to before joining HERO. Meanwhile, Daisy is also starting to expand her network of influence.
Notes:Obligatory disclaimer: I don't own Marvel, DC, or any characters that come from other works.
I also want to thank everyone for their support and encouragement, and RhinoMouse for the inspiration their world of "Retirement Ended Up Super" provided.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextSeptember 1st, 2009, MCU
Dr. Jemma Simmons, Los Angeles
After nearly an hour of flying, to pick up the variety of new employees joining House El Revolutionary Origins, they finally begin their approach and landing procedures onto the landing pad on top of the company's HQ as another Starkjet takes off having delivered another team of employees just before them. The Starkjet is a marvelous piece of technology, making use of the propulsion tech used in the Iron Man suit.
According to Fitz however, its introduction ruffled some feathers in the engineering department of SHIELD as a mission-focused small team stealth jet capable of vertical take offs as an upgrade to the old retro quadjet was going to be their next big upcoming project… only for Stark Industries to beat them to the punch with more refined specs than they were aiming towards in even their wildest hopes.
Almost in an effort to spot something that he would have 'obviously' been able to do better at, Fitz took the first 15 minutes of the flight looking over as much of the jet as he was able to… and then spending the next 15 minutes pouting up a storm after finding nothing to improve on.
Honestly, Stark wasn't exactly a rookie inventor, so it was a bit ridiculous for him to think that he could find something wrong with the invention just at a glance.
Boys.
As they begin landing procedures, slowly descending vertically, Fitz taps her shoulder with his phone before showing her the screen. Reading through the article shown a little bit, she can tell it was an article on Supergirl, as apparently the alien superhero went on a bit of an anti-crime tear last night.
Meeting her eyes, Fitz explains a bit more than she was able to gleam from the portion of the article shown. "Last night Supergirl didn't do her usual style of picking a city to be a superhero for the day for, but instead was all over the country appearing in different cities. It didn't even have a common purpose like stopping some criminal organization as far as anyone can tell, as she was doing everything from helping drunk college teens home to busting an exploitative prostitution ring. That being said, we now have a better idea of her long distance travel speed thanks to this as-"
As Fitz continues on an analysis of the superhero's travel speed and what that means from a scientific point of view (luckily he is being careful and speaking as a scientist rather than SHIELD agent), Jemma can't help but let out a tiny shudder at the reality of the situation.
The fact was, right now, no one has any idea how to stop Supergirl if she, or anyone else of her unknown race, decides to conquer the planet. The main problem is that basically no one wants to take the risk of being the one to bring down the alien superweapon on the world by angering her just to test a weapon that doesn't even work against her.
The missiles and flak gun fired at her in Mexico City? Shrugged off as a nuisance with only the perpetrator of the attack going down via Supergirl's PR retaliation. But would Supergirl act the same in the face of a weapon designed specifically to kill her, especially if the weapon DOES actually end up doing damage? Nearly no one in the world wants to find out.
SHIELD has actually been the one to come closest to toeing that line. Just before this current assignment came through for Fitz and herself, they were put onto a project with other SHIELD scientists directly below Assistant Director Maria Hill. Jemma for her biological expertise to try and identify any possible way to find a physical weakness, and Fitz to work on the design and construction of whatever the team came up with.
Almost everyone had the idea that it was a thought exercise, or a contingency plan, as no one believed it was actually going to be used. But when the day came and the variable frequency sonic cannon was finished, AD Hill took a skeleton crew and set it up in an apartment's top floor in downtown Indianapolis with their control and observation post being a few floors down and over.
Apparently some other SHIELD team had been able to find some sort of rough predictive pattern to Supergirl's city choice, as Fitz, herself, AD Hill, and the few others were only waiting in agonizing boredom for three weeks before the city played host to Supergirl. Luckily they weren't going to actually attempt to do real harm, but instead test if their countermeasure had a noticeable effect at low level, and use that data to extrapolate what full power would do.
After nearly 20 hours, with only 4 hours to spare in the window where Supergirl lingers in one city, she finally had a flight path that put her squarely in their project's effective range.
At first, everyone watched in a mix of exhilaration and fear as the sonic cannon seemed to actually be working, as Supergirl slowed down her speed to a hover. Then the exhilaration disappeared and the fear overloaded as everyone realized Supergirl didn't stop flying because of adverse effects, but instead she was looking squarely at the apartment they were at, and not at the sonic cannon which was supposed to be what she focused on instead.
Some twitchy Agent who worked on the construction with Fitz then completely and totally panicked at being caught, and apparently believed in their success so much that he ripped the controller out of AD Hill's hands and turned up the power from 10% to max.
Supergirl went from curious, to downright annoyed apparently. While it was obvious she was being adversely affected by it, it seemed they were still no where close to having the possible answer to Supergirl's power, as the woman casually flew at a sedate pace straight to the front of the set up where it would be completely lethal to any human being, and took a few seconds before using her laser vision to safely cut off the power.
The woman then flew down to their balcony, where Maria Hill went out to meet her, but before she could get out any words of reassurance or excuses to the woman, Supergirl spoke up first.
"Your upstairs neighbor seemed to have a problem with city noise ordinances, so I turned off their music system, just so you know!" The line was delivered with such genuine pep to her voice, that some of the more socially isolated members of their team seemed to buy the idea that they somehow hadn't been caught, until Supergirl gave a last line before flying away. "Might want to keep a better eye on your neighbors, Assistant Director Maria Hill."
The possibility of finding something that would actually work on the woman, even if they were apparently years away from being able to make anything nearly powerful enough to do more than annoy her, was completely overshadowed by the fact that apparently the woman knew so much about SHIELD that she could know of a Director's name just by her face.
The project, in the end, was put on the backburner until such a time that technology gained a bit more development in order to support a more powerful version. And now Fitz and Simmons were assigned to investigate the rising technological prodigy of Dr. Kara Danvers, and especially see if anything more could be found out about her relationship with Tony Stark and Pepper Potts.
This undercover mission was a big step up for the both of them, and a big leap of faith from SHIELD as well. They had both always wanted to have more access to field work, rather than just being in a lab all day, which was why they had joined SHIELD. But opportunities for scientists to take that leap into field work were few and far between, so they needed to score perfect marks on this assignment!
Something that also helped to calm their nerves was the lack of high stakes with this mission. They were not being sent into the middle of a terrorist group, or some gang, or someone else with a history of violence. If their actions were discovered they would most likely be fired, or at worst be handed over to law enforcement, where SHIELD would make them disappear into the legal system quietly.
Additionally, they were not the only ones assigned to the infiltration either. Although they obviously don't know everyone who is, to ensure mission viability in case someone is caught, she at least knows who their handler is to report on the mission status once every two weeks or as needed; One Bobbi Morse who has been hired high up in HERO as part of the security team, although not as high as SHIELD was hoping.
The only real bump in the set up for this mission so far, has been that apparently Bobbi had planned for her ex-husband and his mercenary crew to be nearby with a safe house and to be ready for extraction in the most dire of circumstances during their assignment, only for his entire crew to be contracted out long term before he could be asked.
Jemma may be more worried about the idea of not having a safe house filled with backup to go to, if she wasn't so caught up with the idea that Bobbi was trying to actively contract her ex-husband?! SHIELD office gossip is that even post divorce, they are still a bit of an off and on again situation. Jemma is incredibly thankful that she has no paramours to speak of, it just doesn't seem worth the instability in the end.
As Jemma's mind finishes wandering, and the Starkjet lands with everyone deboarding, they are soon led a few floors down, and into a large conference room that seems to be specifically designed for any company-wide meetings, such as this first day orientation. The company is by no means huge, based on the size of the crowd of the room she is in, most likely only around 200 people are here today.
The architecture of the whole building is also a bit strange, and both a little off-putting while being comforting at the same time. Heavy use of glass in the decor, with curved walls and hallways give the whole building a 'flow' to it, rather than acting like a strict traditional office layout. But all the curves must mean a lot of wasted space in the groundplan, so it is an interesting choice to make for a science research company.
Jemma and Fitz make their way in, and grab a seat towards the back as most of the other seats are already taken.
"This wasn't as large of a company as I was expecting honestly, and not to judge people by how they are dressed, but with those gentlemen over there wearing jeans and work shirts I think this crowd even includes people working in the in-house manufacturing shop as well." Says Jemma.
"I know what you mean, some SHIE-... I mean, some satellite bases we have worked at have more people than this, so doesn't it seem odd how much effort was put in to… get us hired here?" Fitz replies, doing his best to keep his voice low and not say anything bad that could be overheard, but dear lord they need to work on that.
"Dr. Danvers herself is incredibly smart and was able to come up with those ingenious non-lethal guns and ammunition, but honestly a lot of the draw for people here are who already agreed to work with her. Speaking of which…" Jemma's reply is a bit cut off as the lights dim down around the meeting hall, while the lights at the far end go up a bit.
Walking into the spotlight are 5 people, 4 of whom Jemma instantly recognizes while the 5th has the air of someone who screams Lawyer, as the woman begins handing out folders to everyone.
Front and center is obviously Dr. Danvers, who looks even younger in person than she does in her few tv appearances. She has a blinding smile on her face, with hands twitching in nervous energy.
Jemma can't blame the girl. Dr. Danvers is even younger than Jemma yet is starting her own company today. If she was in her place, Jemma would have spent the night stress cleaning her apartment and not being able to get a wink of sleep.
Behind her is the person that probably gets the most stares, Dr. Bruce Banner. While legally acquitted, and with all pressing lawsuits settled by the funds from the Superhero merch line that Stark Industries has started, many people across the country and especially this city continue to feel nervous having the Hulk back in a major metropolitan area again.
Yet, time has now passed since he came back and signed on to HERO, with no incidents to speak of. There has also been a lack of tv appearances, besides the original announcement of his return and employment, so seeing the man is a novelty to many in the crowd.
Third is another controversial figure, but only by association this time. Maya Hansen, the woman who held the rights to and controlling interest of AIM after Aldritch Killian committed suicide following his lethal and illegal experiments on the homeless. The company looked like it would go completely under from the bad press and lawsuits, until HERO came in and bought the company out in an aggressive merger.
The final figure walking in is Agent Barbara Morse, although Jemma certainly didn't expect her to be walking in with this group at this time. Maybe there is more hope for the agent's position than expected?
Jemma is unable to speculate, or comment on it with Fitz, as the figures reach their spot and begin speaking to the new employees.
"Good morning everyone! I hope you all had a safe trip in today, whether by your own means or by Starkjet today. For those who don't know, my name is Dr. Kara Zorel Danvers and I am the co-founder of House El Revolutionary Origins."
The bubbly attitude only increases as Jemma's new boss begins speaking, and the adorable factor also goes up as far as she is concerned.
"While at the time of the founding there were no known superheroes in the world, I wanted to strive for being a HERO by making use of my education and good fortune. Some place for people to make the world better, without having to be able to fly."
The comment gets a smattering of chuckles and claps from the crowd, with them sounding more genuine than one might expect of employees hearing a joke from their boss.
"I don't have too much to say before having you all split off into your departments to begin setting up your work spaces and all of the orientation work that needs to start happening, but I at least wanted to give you an overview of why I want to do what I do. So if you have an idea of how to be a hero to the world while working here, bring it up! The worst I can say is that the company is uninterested, and the best is that you may be the one to come up with our next big idea. Nothing is too big or too small."
Again, employees applaud the small speech given and even Jemma and Fitz find themselves clapping along. Shield was great and fantastic, but it is also an organization built on levels and bureaucracy. So sometimes, it can be really difficult to make yourself feel heard, especially as a level 1 agent. So if Dr. Danvers lives up to her ideals, maybe even the two of them will be able to work on some projects that haven't been approved at SHIELD yet…
"So, introductions!" Dr. Danvers continues. "Like I said, I am the co-founder of HERO and am now working as the CEO. Aside from that though, I will also directly be overseeing our engineering department. Our first project is going to be working on the manufacturing process for a crystal-sand based water filtration system I worked up while having this building constructed. After that we will be moving on to connecting the world more, by increasing the world's internet capabilities through attempting to make cheap fiber optic cables for urban areas and satellite internet receivers for rural areas. But I will wait to get deep into that discussion with my own team."
Fitz very much perks up at the mention of the work that he will be taking part in. Although it is obvious that he has no-idea what she means by a crystal-sand based water filtration system, but that only seems to excite him even more.
"Hello everyone, my name is Dr. Bruce Banner and I am the head of the Bio-Chem department here. I'm sure you've heard of my name from my research papers on radiation… and nothing else." Dr. Banner steps forward and says, the joke again working pretty well with the group, as the tension in the room from first-day nerves eases more and more as the introductions go on. "While I will be overseeing the whole Bio-Chem department, I will also be leading a team on my own project. We will be looking into the modern emergence of powers in people throughout the world, and how to help those who may be victims of their powers as well, while making sure to maintain our ethics about the whole thing. We want to help those in a scary and unique situation, not work to control them or put them at risk in other ways."
It's obvious to everyone in the room that Dr. Banner is speaking from a place from his own heart. The man is obviously looking to try to both improve his own condition, and trying to help those that may be in situations like him. While her work with SHIELD lets Jemma know that he is being a bit naive about people who fall under the INDEX, she can't blame him for trying.
"My name is Dr. Maya Hansen and while I fall under Dr. Banner's department, my team will be one of the larger ones as we build on the progress I have already made when working at AIM and before. We have made sure to take Extremis back to its beginnings to try and work through all of the problems, rather than pushing on ahead despite them like my old boss did. The project will be divided into two phases. First is to try and alter Extremis to act as a temporary first aid injection, rather than a permanent genetic alteration to ensure we do not violate the laws on human gene editing. The second phase is to prepare the permanent version as much as possible, hoping to use any success from the first phase to gain support for amendments to the laws, so that when we can move onto humans legally, we are as ready to do so as we possibly can be."
Dr. Hansen's introduction is obviously the one that everyone is most wary about, with the history that Extremis went through at AIM, but it at least sounds like to Jemma that the work is going to stay on the right side of the law, even if they are apparently going to get as close to the law as possible. Since she is going to be on that team, it will definitely be something she will have to investigate while here. If Dr. Hansen isn't as innocent as everyone believed, then on her team will be the best place to find any evidence of illegal experiments starting back up again.
Dr. Danvers steps back up to the front again, seemingly almost ready to break everyone out to their own departments. "I mentioned I am the co-founder of HERO, so I'm guessing some are wondering where my partner Daisy Johnson is at right now. She will be acting mainly on a remote basis due to her own needs, functioning as a COO and Head of Security while doing so. The assistant Head of Security, Barbara Morse, is this lovely lady right behind me. So if you have security concerns that need to be addressed in person, she is the one to go to. Finally the woman passing out the orientation packets is our Head of HR and in-house Legal, Laurel Lance, so you will all be meeting with her one-on-one throughout the week."
Looking at her other leaders for anything else, Dr. Danvers seems to get a nod from everyone that all has been said so far.
"With that, please open your orientation packets that contain a map of the building, along with details about where you should report to. I want to thank everyone for joining me here, and I look forward to making the world just a little bit better with all of you!"
Jemma can't help but be swept up in the blonde's enthusiasm and sincerity just a bit at the end. Hopefully Fitz and her don't end up discovering anything that will make Dr. Danvers an enemy of SHIELD, but Jemma will do her job as an agent to make sure any secrets get reported back. This is her and Fitz's time to make their mark as field agents, and not just as scientists.
September 1st, 2009, MCU
Lance Hunter, Unknown Base in Unknown Location
Lance Hunter wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was REALLY starting to second guess his decision making skills at the moment. His problems started when his she-devil of an ex started acting like a human and not the denizen of hell she truly is. Lance Hunter may not be one of the egg-head scientists SHIELD sometimes employs, but he can certainly recognize patterns when he sees them.
And the pattern of his life is, whenever he begins to think his old flame is human, it's because she's buttering him up to ask him for something.
Now SHIELD normally does not do contract work with mercenaries, not the best business for a secret organization and all that, but there are a few exceptions. Lance happened to be one of those exceptions, because of his marriage to a SHIELD agent, as well as interactions on various missions with other agents before.
So if he knows about SHIELD, and is a mercenary anyways, why not hire him out to do the work that they don't want to give to their specially trained tinker tailor soldier spies?
It's good work, normally the more low profile missions, and pays well, so he usually doesn't fight Bobbi too much when she begins to butter him up to accept a mission.
But the way she was cozying up to him THIS time… it smelled all sorts of wrong! It was small things, but Lance got the idea in his head that this was going to be a long mission, with his ex having a central role to it too.
Once that idea got lodged in his head, it wouldn't leave, and every time they talked afterwards her little hints and manipulations just stacked the odds in favor of his gut being right!
So when an offer for him and his team to take a long term mission, across the world, for some shady organization, he said 'Hell yes'!
…Well actually he said 'How much is the pay? And here is the kind of work we won't do or help with…' But once his moral lines were respected and he saw the offer amount, then he said hell yes!
Then the pickup time arrived, and suddenly a brand new Starkjet (something that was just recently presented by Stark Industries and has yet to hit the open market) that had the ability to TURN INVISIBLE suddenly appeared above him, and he quickly began to think maybe he had been a bit too impulsive.
As the Starkjet flew itself without a pilot, in an indirect route, leaving him and his team with no idea where they were, that feeling grew.
As the Starkjet landed inside of a retractable hidden landing pad for an underground base, the regret and panic increased dramatically.
Finally, as he was directed into a room with nearly 40 other people, only to see a very dangerous figure at the head of the room in a dark combat suit, wearing a ski mask with a purple light up LED demented smile that is giving him distinct trickster-fae vibes… Hunter is not afraid to admit he broke out into a bit of a cold sweat.
-
… Still better than working with his ex-wife though.
Notes:Author's Endnote: Sorry that this chapter took a week and a half, instead of a week. Getting back into writing has left me working slower than I was used to. I didn't end up making as much progress as I wanted to, but I didn't feel like I could short change the scene here at all. Short changing Kara's new company opening, or Jemma's introduction to the story just felt wrong! Hence, why that ended up being so much of the chapter.
Why was Daisy not there as well? Well aside from her opening up SPEAR on the same day, Kara and Daisy only own one face veil, as they have yet to reach the tech levels to make another. So they can't appear in person together in the civilian identities, as they each need the face veil to look like the ages they claim to be. Luckily JARVIS is helping Daisy with a lot of her work at HERO, but when she can borrow the face veil, she is definitely going to go just to mess with Bobbi! :)
Finally we get Lance Hunter about to listen to Quake's sales pitch to join SPEAR long term! I wonder who else is in the room right now that we might recognize?... You'll find out next time! Thanks all.