Hi guys! I'm back! If you recognize me, it's because I also wrote The Truth about Skye, which I may or may not continue. But, regardless, I'm starting this new story! If you liked The Truth about Skye, then you'll love this. EVEN IF YOU DIDN'T LIKE THE TRUTH ABOUT SKYE, please at least try. I have improved a lot since then. Remember to Review, Favorite and Follow!
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"The world is not the same. Not since the battle of New York. Everything has changed. Everything is still changing. Constantly. We can follow the strict laws of Earth today and be crushed the moment something changes again or we can choose to the follow the rules of the universe and be prepared for the future. People like S.H.I.E.L.D. try to stifle our freedom. Do you remember the day the aliens tried to make us their slaves? We relied on six unstable, egomaniacs to save our world. If there is another alien war tomorrow, do you want to place your own life as well as the lives of your parents, your spouse, your children, your friends and the fate of everything you care about to them? Or do you want to save the world? Do you want to be the next Iron Man, the next Thor, the next Captain America? Because of Centipede, you have the ability to change the world. Now, the only question is, are you ready?"
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"Have you found anything yet?" Coulson said as he leaned into Skye's bunk, looking at the screen of her laptop.
"Nothing," Skye said, biting her lip as she typed furiously. "Absolutely nothing. They just disappeared. No purchases, no sightings, nothing. What the hell could've happened?"
"I have no idea. Keep working. Sometime soon Centipede will slip up."
"Right," Skye said, laying back on her pillows. Coulson left her bunk, trying to remember the way that he had looked at her before finding out about her past. Now, whenever he saw her, he wanted to understand her story but in the same way, he wished he had never come upon her.
Coulson crossed to the kitchen, sitting down at one of the chairs, trying to plan his next move. Since the accident at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy, nothing new had come up. It had been less than a week but the lack of action had taken its toll on everyone. Ward trained harder and longer. Skye stayed up late researching. Fitzsimmons had taken to locking themselves in the lab overnight. Coulson often found himself shut up in his office until May came in and demanded he do something else. She actually seemed to be benefitting from the lack of danger. Coulson noticed that she talked more than ever. She forced him to play board games, to watch bad TV and to play video games. He actually saw her laugh – once. They were playing Mario Kart and she had hit Coulson with the blue shell. After Coulson went from first place to fifth, she let out a maniacal cackle. Sure, it sounded slightly evil, but a laugh was a laugh. It was nice, it seemed like the real May was coming back. However, Coulson was questioning whether he was still the real Coulson.
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Ward heard voices in his head. He was not insane. He knew it was only old memories, long and once forgotten but resurfaced. He hit the bag in time with the screams of his little brother and his fists flew the same way his older brother's had. It was the quick, the memory ran three times normal speed in his head and he was punching the bag as fast as he could, trying to keep up, trying to understand.
"Whoa there," he heard a voice say. He thought it was just another one in his head, so he ignored it.
"You okay?" the same voice, this time accompanied by a dainty hand that placed itself on his shoulder, said.
"What?" Ward said, feeling as if he had just awoken from a coma, silently gasping for air. "Yeah. Fine."
"I know that you probably don't want to talk to me but –" she began, shying away from him again. This man was something new. He was like her, only different in every way, if that makes sense. She didn't know about Ward but she recognized the loss in his eyes. It's the glazed look you get when you try to push away the past. She saw it every morning in the mirror before she piled on eyeliner, mascara and a bubbly lie. Usually Ward did the same, with a concrete mask and the perfect image of a soldier, but at the moment, he was vulnerable. Skye saw the way his eyes were darker than normal and the way his face was just a little bit paler.
"No, I don't," Ward admitted. He looked into Skye's brown eyes. He saw the way that they were deducing everything about him the way Simmons picks through a corpse. He saw the momentary hurt that his answer caused before she blinked the emotion away. Quickly, Ward added, "I'm bad at that. Why don't we just… hang out, maybe? No talking about painful topics. Just enjoying… us."
"I'd love that," Skye said, smiling genuinely.
Ward sat up against the wall of the gym, breathing deeply and Skye joined him, sitting close enough the feel the warmth he gave off but not close enough to physically touch him without moving. It was an awkward situation, but not one that either was ready to finish. Neither one was very sure about the other. They weren't sure what was right, what was acceptable, what was comfortable. It was awkward, the silence. Finally, Skye, much more radical than Ward, moved to lean up against him before closing her eyes, enjoying the firmness. Ward looked down at her for a second, unsure of what to do. He liked the way her thin frame felt against his. He liked the way her warmth set off sparks inside him. He liked the way this kind of human contact felt – not sex, but peace.
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"Fitz, pass the scalpel," Simmons said. The two were working in comfortable silence, Fitz tinkering with Grumpy, who needed repairs, and Simmons studying a skin sample. They moved in coordination, always knowing where the other would be and what they would need before they asked for it. Without breaking the silence, Fitz slid the scalpel across the counter towards Simmons, who caught it without looking.
The silence never became awkward or boring, but it was always broken, one way or another. Sometimes it was the door opening and another team member walking in. Sometimes it was a various alarm or a mission. This time, it was a cat. No one was quite sure how the cat got in. But, as Fitz finished fixing the drone, he spotted the orange tabby clawing at Lola.
"Jemma, is that a cat?" he asked, pointing at it.
"Oh my gosh!" Simmons practically squealed, running out of the lab and down to the cat. "It is!" She picked up the cat and brought it into the lab.
"You know we can't keep that, right Jem?"
"There's not a rule against it."
"Actually, there is – you're not going to – Simmons, you can't hide a cat on a plane."
"I'm not exactly hiding it," Simmons said, laughing awkwardly. "I'm just not informing everyone of its existence."
"You can't put a cat in the closet, by the way."
"I think that's a great idea, Fitz," Simmons said, opening up the biggest cabinet in the lab and beginning to clean it out.
"I'm pretty sure Ward's allergic to cats, actually," Fitz said weakly.
"He'll never actually see him. I think I'll call him Fitz Jr. Anyway, it'll be good training for him to overcome his silly allergy."
"This is crazy."
"Just once, Fitz, enjoy the change," Simmons laughed, as Fitz stood still, unsure of how to respond.
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"Now, the only question is, are you ready?" Raina smiled, standing in front of a large audience. Most of these people were homeless. Many had low income jobs and families to provide for. Some were dreamers. All of them were ready to participate in the Centipede program. "Now, Mr. Miles Lydon here will demonstrate some of the wonderful things you'll be able to do if you participate."
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So, what do you guys think? This story will focus on action and missions as well as fluffy downtime moments! It'll include bits of Skyeward, Fitzsimmons and Mayson/Coulvary/Phillinda. Please, please, please comment what you think and where you want the story to go! Reviews, favorites and follows help the chapters come out faster!