Game of Shadows - Prologue
"Well, then"
The shot rang out, hitting him straight in the chest, causing him to fall on his back. The trio walked behind the tall, lean man, passing by Director Fury who was sprawled on the floor. One picked up the silver briefcase containing the object at the center of it all. No more than 10 minutes later, the Alpha One S.H.I.E.L.D base was a giant hole of rubble, the Tesseract was gone, and the war for Earth began.
—-
The voice rang out from the intercom. "Ladies and gentlemen, the Captain has announced our final descent into Washington, DC. Please fasten…"
Barbara scrambled for her seat belt, nearly knocking over what was left of her scotch on her copy of Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol. Flying itself was scary enough, but landings were exclusively frightening, no matter how many times she steeled herself for impact.
"Perks of the job" she huffed, as her seatbelt clicked. She heard a chuckle next to her.
"Still not over your fear, Ms. Contreras? Perhaps once our business here is over, I shall order you to go skydiving as professional training" The older man teased, though his eyes were kind. She smiled.
"Not if you think you can find a better assistant after delivering me to my family in a coffin, Ambassador." She handed the flight attendant her drink and closed her tray table.
"Touché. Relax, maybe this trip will be one of the best you've ever had, aside from going to Moscow for the first time" he winked. "You can spend a day sightseeing, or in your case, hunting for Freemason treasure" he laughed, pointing to her book.
"Treasure is not always gold, Ambassador. The Freemasons possessed a treasure greater than all the riches this world can offer. They possessed knowledge; ancient knowledge. The greatest power of all"
Russian Ambassador Koltsov just smiled and gave her a nod, his assistant never ceasing to amaze him. When her predecessor Veronica had married and become pregnant, he had been a little lost. After five ladies had stepped up to the plate and failed miserably, he had found Barbara Contreras, wasting away at NASA. A mere executive assistant and phone receptionist; running around doing the bidding (or barking) of the Director of the Laboratory of Astrophysics. Upon seeing the fascination and sparkle in her deep brown eyes as he and the Director discussed the potential and power of Stark's nuclear reactor, he knew he had found a gem. That and the fact that the Director had boasted of his assistant's skills: She had organized, sorted and classified all the lab's system files. He offered her his card and a job upon leaving. The Director should not have shown her off. What was an intelligent woman with a Bachelor's degree in Astronomy from MIT doing working as a receptionist anyway?
Barbara shut her eyes as the plane landed at Dulles International Airport. She calmed herself by thinking of all the wonderful places the city had to offer, but her mind settled on two. Before she left Washington, she had to see the Air and Space Museum, and the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. With a quick smile, a flutter of excitement in her belly and a flick of her long black curls she followed the Ambassador out the airplane and out a secure exit from the airport to the awaiting motorcade of black SUVs. Work first, then fun.
—-
"That will be the Oriental Suite for one night for the Raven family. I can assure you, its top floor location is exceptional, the views are panoramic and the amenities within, almost as breathtaking. A suite fit for a king. You also have access to Tai Pan Club. Let me bring you assistance with your luggage."
"No, thanks, we got it" Said the short man with the baseball cap and sky blue eyes as he took the keys. The hotel receptionist couldn't help but stare. All three members of the Raven family had the same amazing eyes, except for the tall one at the back. He was unbelievably handsome in his leather jacket, jeans and Indians cap. Maybe he was adopted. He caught her stare and she looked away.
"Enjoy your stay at the Mandarin Oriental".
The trio made their way to the elevators. Loki smiled. In two days they would finally arrive at Pennsylvania and the Doctor would begin building the device. As the doors closed and it began its ascent to the 9th floor, a motorcade of black SUVs containing the Russian Ambassador stopped at the front of the hotel.
End of Prologue