It's finally here. I've been working on this story for so many years and I'm finally ready to upload it. Thank you for being so patient with me. I hope it was worth the wait.
The time between Iron Man 2 and Avengers and what happened to Morgan will be explained through flashbacks throughout the entire story
People were panicking. They scrambled around us, desperate to reach the cars and evacuate. S.H.I.E.L.D men, clad in full armour, directed the frightened researchers and developers around the base towards the evacuating vehicles. A few of them were trying to salvage any research they could, dragging containers full of papers behind them.
I sat and calmly watched the chaos unfolding around me.
I was at the Joint Dark Energy Mission Facility in the Mojave Desert; a secret S.H.I.E.L.D facility where both S.H.I.E.L.D and NASA scientists were studying the Tesseract. I was one of the S.H.I.E.L.D scientists who had been conducting research into the Tesseract and its energy potential.
9 months ago when Nick Fury had approached me in the hospital and offered me a job at S.H.I.E.L.D, I thought he was crazy. I was a 17-year-old, recently paralysed girl. What on earth would S.H.I.E.L.D want with me?
It had taken some time and convincing before I realised I could be a real asset to S.H.I.E.L.D. I had been working for them for 6 months now and part of my role was to study and research the Tesseract alongside Dr. Selvig. I hadn't been at the facility for two weeks now, as I had been away doing other work for S.H.I.E.L.D, but as soon as Selvig had called to tell me what was happening, I flew in immediately.
I was itching to go back down into the research bunker where the Tesseract was being held and find out what was going on, but I had a briefing to do.
The wind whipped my hair around my face as I watched the helicopter slowly descend. The evacuation orders blaring over the speakers could barely be heard over the noise of the helicopter as it carefully landed.
I stood up and walked over to stand beside Agent Coulson.
Agent Hill stepped out of the helicopter first, followed by Director Nick Fury. He was dressed in his usual black leather outfit, which helped to enhance the deadly aura that surrounded him. Despite the fact that he looked incredibly scary and most people in S.H.I.E.L.D feared him, I didn't have that problem. At first I'd been incredibly intimidated by him but that had disappeared very quickly. I respected his authority but I'd never had any qualms about enquiring into his decisions and why he made them. In fact I think he respected people who challenged him and weren't just mindless 'yes' men.
"How bad is it?" he asked as he and Hill stopped before us.
"That's the thing sir, we don't know," Coulson answered.
"Take us down."
As we walked into the building situated above the research facility, I felt Fury's gaze land on me.
"I'm surprised to see you here Stark," he commented as we stepped inside the elevator.
"Dr Selvig called me when the Tesseract started acting up a few hours ago." I looked up at him to see an eyebrow raised. While I was grateful to have a job at S.H.I.E.L.D, I hadn't been quiet when it came to wondering just what S.H.I.E.L.D was going to do with the information we discover about the Tesseract. I regularly asked Fury just what his plans were ad his answer was always the same; its above my clearance level. "One of the many reasons you hired me was so I could help with research into the Tesseract. Dr. Selvig has been sending me all of his research when I've been away. Until a few hours ago we'd never seen a spike in the energy levels. I came here to find out what the hell is going on."
"There was a spike in energy from the Tesseract?" Fury asked. "NASA didn't authorize Selvig to go to test phase."
The elevator doors slid open and the four of us exited. "He wasn't testing it. He wasn't even in the room," Coulson said. "Spontaneous event."
We swiftly walked through the maze beneath the building that led to the research facility. There were still people down here packing up as much research equipment as they could. No one knew exactly what would happen if the Tesseract's energy levels continued to climb or what would happen if they reached a certain level. But based on our research, it wouldn't be pretty.
"How are the energy levels now?"
"Climbing," I said. "When we couldn't shut it down we ordered an evac." As I walked beside Agent Hill, I resisted the urge to rearrange my catsuit. I still wasn't completely comfortable in the skin-tight suit, which resembled Agent Hill's and Natasha's. While I still didn't like that it showed every lump and bump, I loved the feeling I got when I put it on. For some reason I instantly felt stronger and more powerful, like I could take on anyone. The combat boots I wore and gun strapped to my thigh definitely helped too.
"How long to get everyone out?"
"The campus should be clear in the next half-hour," Coulson replied.
"Do better," Fury ordered.
Coulson nodded and spun around to go back upstairs.
I watched him retreat before following Hill and Fury down a spiralling staircase, going deeper underground.
"Sir, evacuation may be futile," Hill said. "If we can't control the Tesseract's energy, there may not be a minimum safe distance."
"She's right sir," I added. "Our research shows no indications as to the consequences that could occur if the power exceeds its current levels."
Fury showed no indications he'd heard either of us. "Hill, I need you to make sure the Phase 2 phototypes are shipped out."
Hill stopped in her tracks as she looked at him incredulously. "Sir, is that really a priority right now?"
Fury turned around to stare down at Hill. "Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on," he said, his tone more sharp and commanding. "Clear out the tech below. Every piece of Phase 2 on a truck and gone."
I saw Hill clench her jaw out of the corner of my eye. I wanted to ask Fury what Phase 2 was but I knew I would just be told it's above my clearance level. It has to involve the Tesseract in some way. That's why I had such mixed feelings about working for S.H.I.E.L.D on the Tesseract. I'd been told the research being done on it was purely for knowledge sake, but I wasn't naïve enough to believe that was it. I had a feeling Fury had other plans for the Tesseract, I just didn't know what they were. Yet.
"Yes, sir." Agent Hill all but stalked off.
"Stark," Fury said, drawing my attention back to him.
"Yes sir?"
"Follow me."
I nodded and followed him into the research facility. It was a vast room with an enormous dome shaped ceiling. The back of the room was taken up with rows of equipment and monitors while in the centre of the room was the Tesseract. It was being held in a container I designed to measure its energy and, hopefully, contain it if needed.
"You two," Fury said as we entered the room. He motioned to myself and Dr Selvig. "Talk to me."
"Director." Selvig nervously made his way over to us. He wasn't usually anxious around Fury, surprisingly, so the fact that he was now told me that things were going downhill fast.
Over the past few months I had been enjoying working with Selvig. Our communication had been mostly over emails and phone calls but I always loved the chances I got to work with him on the campus. He is a brilliant astrophysicist and I had learnt so much from him in just a few short months. In between our experiments I'd told him all about Iron Man and he'd described his encounter with Thor in New Mexico. I'd seen all the coverage on the news when it had happened, and even heard some stories from other S.H.I.E.L.D agents, but hearing the whole story from someone who had been there and been a part of it was amazing.
"Is there anything we know for certain?" Fury asked.
"The Tesseract is misbehaving," Selvig stated.
"Is that suppose to be funny?"
"No, it's not funny at all."
"Sir, the Tesseract is not only active, she's behaving," I said. We walked over to the Tesseract, encased in its container. The cube, with its swirling blue glow, was almost mesmerizing.
"I'm assuming you've pulled the plug?" Fury asked.
"She's an energy source," Selvig explained. "We turn off the power, she turns it back on. If she reaches peak level…"
"We prepared for this Doctor. Harnessing energy from space."
"But we don't have the harness." Selvig moved to stand in front of his computer, bringing up the most recent set of results.
"Stark, you said the container you built could contain the energy if it peaks?"
"I said it might contain the energy if it peaks," I said, placing heavy emphasis on the word might. I did not want Fury thinking I had guaranteed him anything. "We are literally dealing with an alien object. I can't give you guarantees about anything to do with the Tesseract. It might contain the energy, it might slow down the energy peaks, it might do nothing at all."
"Fantastic," Fury mumbled. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
"Our calculations are far from complete," Selvig said. "And now she's throwing of interference, radiation. Nothing harmful, low levels of gamma radiation."
Fury raised his eyebrows as he stared at Selvig. "That can be harmful." I think everyone in the room knew exactly how harmful gamma radiation could be. "Where's Agent Barton?"
"The Hawk? Up in his nest as usual." Selvig pointed up to the small platform situated above the room where Barton was perched.
"Agent Barton, report." Within a minute Barton had slid down from the platform and was standing before us. "I gave you this detail so you could keep a close eye on things."
"Well I see better from a distance," Barton replied.
One of the researchers motioned for Selvig urgently and he immediately rushed over. I was about to following him, concerned about what might be happening, when Fury spoke again.
"Stark, have you seen anything that might set this thing off?" He moved to stand directly in front of the Tesseract.
I shook my head. "Nothing."
"No one's come or gone. And Selvig's clean. No contacts, no IMs," Barton said.
As I stared down at the swirling blue object, a horrible and concerning thought that had been brewing at the back of my mind suddenly came to the forefront. "If something is causing these energy surges, it's not coming from this end," I said.
"This end?" Fury inquired.
"It's been hypothesized that the Tesseract's energy could be manipulated to form a portal through space, like a door. Doors open from both sides. If we're not the ones causing the power surges, then someone on the other side is." I watched both of their facial expressions change as that thought sunk in. The idea that someone, or something for that matter, could be controlling the Tesseract's energy from anywhere in the entire universe was truly frightening. The more frightening thought was what would happen if this person or thing was hostile. If they knew how to correctly wield the energy from the Tesseract, the power they would have would be immense.
As we all looked down at the Tesseract and tried to comprehend the horrors that could unfold, the swirling inside the object suddenly intensified. The glow grew brighter and brighter until the whole room was bathed in blue.
"What's going on?" Fury yelled over the humming noises being emitted from the Tesseract.
"The energy is surging again!" I yelled back. "But we haven't seen it like this before!"
We all took 5 steps back. As the energy coming from the Tesseract kept on climbing the ground and roof began to shake. Suddenly a surge of energy shot out from the Tesseract. A huge circular wall of blue energy formed at the end of the room. As the circle enlarged, its centre cleared up, and just for just a moment thousands of stars could be seen through the circle.
"Holy shit," I whispered to myself. This was it. Whoever was using the energy had just created a portal. The galaxy of stars were at their end, and they were about to come through to our end. "Guns at the ready!" I shouted. It was too risky to assume whoever was about to come through would be friendly.
Fury looked momentarily shocked at me shouting an order at him, but thankfully he nodded in agreement. All the agents in the room unholstered their weapons and had them trained on the energy in seconds. I pulled out my own gun, a Glock 19, and held it up with a steady hand. My heart was pumping wildly as I waited to see just what the hell we were about to see come through the portal.
The wall of energy stopped expanding. Seconds passed when suddenly the energy shrunk into a ball before shooting out across the room and evaporating. The bright blue light temporarily blinded everyone in the room. When the light faded, we all instantly realised there was someone new in the room.
Crouched at the end of the catwalk where the ball of energy had been focused was a man. As he slowly stood, a team of security guards surged forward with their guns aimed at him. He was dressed in odd green robes and had stringy black hair that fell to his shoulders. He slowly looked up to survey the room and the smile that was on his face could only be described as deranged. The most concerning thing about his sudden appearance was the large sceptre in his hand. At the top of the sceptre was a blade. Encased near the blade was a small circular object that glowed brightly. I had no doubt that the energy signature coming from the object would be similar, if not the same, as the energy from the Tesseract.
"Sir, please put down the spear," Fury shouted to the man.
The man looked down at the sceptre in his grasp. When he looked back up there was a deadly grin on his face. He pulled back the sceptre and shot a ball of blue energy towards where Fury and I were standing. Without thinking I leapt towards Fury and tackled him to the ground. I could feel the heat on my back as the ball of energy just missed us.
We landed hard on the ground. Despite the fact that I had just saved his life, it was still extremely awkward to be on top of your boss. I rolled off instantly and crouched down behind the small computer station positioned in front of the Tesseract. I peered around the station to see that the man had already attacked and killed 2 of the security guards. The remaining 2 guards were firing madly at him but the bullets seem to just deflect off his chest. The man pulled out 2 small blades and sent them flying into the guards necks.
Barton, who had crouched behind a nearby desk, began shooting at him. He responded by firing another ball of energy. Barton managed to roll out of the path of the shot but as he stumbled to his feet, the man was already there.
I raised my gun, knowing my bullets wouldn't make a difference but I hoped they'd at least distract him. Before I could fire, Fury had placed his hand on the barrel and pushed it down. He shook his head. I wanted to question just what the hell he was thinking but as I looked up, I saw it was too late as the man touched the tip of the sceptre to Barton's chest. Even from this distance I could see a swirl of blue energy travel from the sceptre into his chest. A second later his eyes darkened before glowing a brilliant blue. As I wondered what the hell had just happened and why the man hadn't shoved the blade into Barton's chest, I got my answer as Barton holstered his weapon and stood to attention in front of the man.
"What the hell?" I said quietly.
The idea of mind control sounded ridiculous but that was no doubt what was happening here. Somehow this man was able to manipulate Barton using just the energy from the object in his sceptre.
"Stark," Fury hissed. He was crouching down beside me and thankfully we were still partially hidden from view by the computer station. "We need to get the Tesseract out of here."
I hated the idea of just grabbing the Tesseract and running but I knew it was necessary. This man was obviously here for the Tesseract and if he got his hands on it the consequences would be deadly. While the man was distracted and putting more people under his control, I quickly crawled the short distance to the Tesseract. I pulled out the briefcase I had designed to contain it and slipped on the gloves to handle it. Delicately and trying not to draw attention to myself, I pulled out the Tesseract and slipped it into the case. I was pulling of the gloves when something caught my eye.
Up in the domed portion of the ceiling was a swirling blue mass of energy liberated from the Tesseract. It was growing by the second and already destroying parts of the roof. We had to get out of there. This energy would be able to destroy the whole campus within minutes.
I shut the briefcase and slowly rose to my feet. I'd barely taken 2 steps when the man spoke.
"Please don't." I turned around to see him staring straight at me. His gaze sent shivers down my spine. Up close I could see how haggard he looked. He was extremely pale and there were dark bags under his eyes. I wondered what he had gone through before he'd arrived through the portal. "I still need that."
"This doesn't have to get any messier," Fury said as he moved to stand beside me.
"Of course it does. I've come too far for anything else. I am Loki, of Asgard. And I am burdened with glorious purpose."
The name instantly registered in my mind. After Thor and the events in New Mexico, I'd done some reading into Norse mythology. While there are many legends and different tellings of the stories, in most of them Loki had been a merciless and cruel God. We were in serious trouble if he is anything like the stories portrayed him to be.
"Loki? Brother of Thor?" Selvig, who had been tending to a colleague knocked down by a blast, gazed up at him in wonder.
The man, Loki, did not look happy to be reminded of his brother.
"We have no quarrel with your people," Fury said.
"An ant has no quarrel with a boot."
"Are you planning on stepping on us?"
With every passing second, the blue glow filling the room was increasing. The minutes were ticking down and we needed to get the hell out of there. My hand was still gripping the briefcase tightly. My other hand was resting lightly on my gun in its holster. Despite the fact that the people under Loki's control were my colleagues and friends, I knew if it came down to it I would have to shoot them to protect the Tesseract.
That was one of the first lessons they taught you at S.H.I.E.L.D. If the lives of many were at risk, you better be prepared to sacrifice yourself. It was something I had accepted, and I would gladly give up my life if it meant saving others. But I had never considered the idea that I would have to hurt other S.H.I.E.L.D agents to protect the world.
"I come with glad tidings. Of a world made free."
"Free from what?" I questioned.
"Freedom," he answered. There was a murderous glint in his eyes as he stalked towards Selvig. "Freedom is life's great lie. Once you accept that, in your heart, you will know peace."
As he turned around to place to sceptre on Selvig's chest and put him under his control, I spun around and ran for the closest exit. We were running out of time.
The sound of shots being fired filled the room. I couldn't risk turning around to see if Fury or Barton were the one's firing. My heart was pumping madly as I ran, half expecting a bullet to hit me at any second. I made it out the door and into the concrete maze that eventually led up to the surface. The briefcase handle was cutting into my palm as I clutched it tightly. I could hear heavy footsteps trailing behind me. I pushed myself harder, determined not to let the Tesseract fall into Loki's hands.
I wondered where Fury was. Had Loki killed him, or placed him under his control? Should I have tried to warn him about my plan? I didn't think I could risk trying to signal to him what I was going to do. I knew Fury could handle himself but I still worried about leaving him in a room full of people under someone's control.
I rounded a corner and saw the elevator on the other side of the room. My joy at the thought that I was so close to reaching the surface and escaping was short lived. A shot echoed through the room and a second later I felt a piercing, sharp pain hit my upper right shoulder. The force of the impact sent me spiralling forward. The briefcase fell from my grasp as I instinctively held out my hands to break my fall. My wrists stung from the impact and my forehead smashed against the ground, causing my vision to instantly blur.
My first thought was 'thank God for kevlar'. While the shot still hurt like a bitch and would definitely leave a bruise, it would have been a lot worse if I wasn't wearing kevlar. My second thought was that even though I couldn't see straight, I needed to arm myself. I was too dizzy to even try and stand so while I was still lying on my stomach, I reached down to grab my gun from the holster on my thigh. A foot was suddenly on my hand, preventing me from reaching my gun.
I raised my head and, through the fog still clouding my vision, looked up to see Agent Barton pointing his gun at my head. His face was completely blank, showing no emotion whatsoever. I waited for him to pull the trigger and sent the bullet that would end my life straight into my head.
A shot was fired, but it wasn't the one I was expecting. Barton fell to the ground as a bullet hit his chest. Like myself, he was wearing Kevlar so the bullet hadn't killed him. He scrambled to his feet and I attempted to do the same. A wave of dizziness hit me but I steadied myself and pulled out my gun.
When I looked up I saw it was almost too late. Loki and all the men under his control were already in the elevator. Barton, who had snatched up the briefcase, was running to join them. I raised my gun and took aim but my finger hovered over the trigger. A second passed and it was too late. The elevator doors slid shut and Loki's grinning face disappeared.
"What was that?"
I spun around, regretting the movement instantly as my head spun too. Fury was stalking towards me, gun in hand. I guess I had him to thank for shooting Barton and saving my life.
I knew he was referencing my hesitation in shooting Barton. I was saved from answering when the ground beneath us shook violently.
"We gotta go," I said. Keeping a tight grip on my gun, I ran for the stairs with Fury closely following. I was forced to grip the handrail numerous times as the ground continued to shake. I heard Fury warning Hill over the radio that Barton was compromised.
We emerged in the lobby of a deserted building. I breathed out a sigh of relief when I saw that the helicopter was still there. We only had seconds left though. The ground was shaking so violently that cracks were beginning to form.
As I ran outside I couldn't see anyone so I hoped that everyone had successfully made it off the campus. I dived into the helicopter, quickly followed by Fury. We lifted off from the ground not a moment too soon. I watched as the cracks in the ground continued to expand.
There was a loud blast and suddenly the ground began to sink. The buildings crumbled and the sink hole grew. Within a matter of seconds there was nothing left of the campus. My heart was pumping insanely. Where was Coulson and Hill? And more importantly, where was Barton and the Tesseract?
Fury's radio crackled to life and Hill informed him that Barton and Loki had escaped using one of S.H.I.E.L.D's vehicles.
"Patrol the perimeter," Fury ordered the pilot.
We flew around the edges of the destroyed campus, monitoring all of the roads in and out.
"There!" I shouted as I spotted one of S.H.I.E.L.D's vehicles speeding down the road. Perched in the back of the car, still with the sceptre in his hand, was Loki. When they realised that they'd been spotted, they veered off the road.
Fury slid the door to the helicopter open and drew his gun. I followed his lead and we opened fired on Loki, who responded by using his sceptre to shoot at the helicopter. The shot hit the tail of the helicopter and it immediately began to spin out of control.
"Jump!" Fury yelled.
We were only 20 feet above the ground so luckily the fall didn't do anything but cause shooting pains in my ankles. The helicopter crashed into the field behind us a moment later. Fury immediately got to his feet and fired on the truck but it had already disappeared into the night. I ran over to help the helicopter pilot escape from the burning wreckage.
"What the hell was that back there?" Fury shouted.
"I hesitated, okay? I'm sorry that I thought twice about shooting my colleague and friend!"
"And now he's gotten away with the Tesseract. If you're going to work for S.H.I.E.L.D I need to know that I can trust your judgement."
"And I need to know that I can trust yours!" I retaliated. I'm sure standing in a dark field with a burning helicopter was not the right place to have this conversation but we were going to have it. "Why did you stop me back in the facility? I had a shot and you stopped me from taking it."
"Bullets were not going to stop Loki."
"But that didn't stop you from trying just then. I could have distracted him back there. For all we knew, he was going to kill Barton, not put him under his control."
"Director Fury, do you copy?" The sound of Agent Coulson's voice echoed through the empty field, coming from the radio in Fury's hand.
Fury looked pleased that our conversation had been interrupted. But I wasn't about to let this go. We would be talking about this again later. "The Tesseract is with a hostile force. I have men down. Hill?"
"A lot of men are still under," Hill said over her radio. "I don't know how many survivors."
"Sound a general call. I want every living soul not working rescue looking for that briefcase. Coulson, get back to base. This is a level Seven. As of right now, we are at war."
A level seven. That was serious. And it could only mean one thing. "It's time?" I asked.
Fury looked me in the eye and nodded. "Are you ready?"
"Yes," I said firmly. I had been preparing for this, and I was ready. "I'll let him know."
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