Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers, sadly!
The fire engulfed the beach side home in a passionate mélange of sunset fused color; the wood rotted black, and the Japanese cherry blossom tree in the front yard withered with the force of the splenetic heat, which was never stopping in its conquest; swallowing any prey, whether it be the portrait hanging above the marble fireplace in the once ornate living room, or the missing portraits of long ago, trapped inside the closet located in the bedroom that no one bothered to look in.
As the tides swelled, and the moon cried bitter rays upon the dissipating house, a shadow was seen, running across the golden plains of sand.
"We've got her," Agent Hill stated, swinging into the dimly lit cavern that was Fury's office; he stood with his back to her, peering down at an unsettling array of documents splashed across his desk.
"Was there any fight?" he asked.
"Of course. But, our men got it under control in fair time."
"You do realize that we've been looking for her for over seven years, and we've finally found her?"
"Yes. It's been a while. But, at least we've accomplished the primary goal."
Fury swiveled around then, a finger tapping his chin contemplatively. "Where is she from, exactly?"
"We don't know," Agent Hill shrugged, "But we found her on the coast of New Jersey. She's got that look in her eyes…the…the…"
"That I-ain't-from-your-world look, am I correct, agent?"
"Precisely. Although we can't be too sure."
"The newest crater landed in Arizona, about seven years ago. Since then, we've experienced crazy-ass frequencies in our radar that only one of them could have produced."
"Like when Loki arrived," Agent Hill said.
"Yeah. Apparently Asgard, or whatever that place is called, thinks Earth suitable for its rejects."
"Maybe. But not entirely. We've had the help of Thor, who's a formidable ally."
"True. But we've also experienced an influx of creatures who sure as hell ain't our 'allies.'"
She sighed, and leaned back on a dark gray chest of drawers, her elbows propped up on the cool metal. "You're right. But we were bound to come in contact with them at some point or another."
"Of course," he said, shaking his head. "How's the girl doing, anyway?"
"We've transferred her to the Auxilium. She hasn't said a single word."
"Funny. Just like our buddy who just landed his ass in there the prior week," Fury said.
"He was on that fire planet for a while, but, I guess they don't have psychotherapy there," Agent Hill said.
"Both of them seem to love playing with fire," Fury mused.
"I don't think Loki had the best time on that planet, so, I think she's the only one who receives gratification from that," Agent Hill pointed out.
"I don't get why, it's dangerous, and quite frankly, stupid," Fury said.
"Hey, we are not her therapists, it's not up to us to analyze why," Agent Hill replied.
They were quiet for a moment, thinking about the perplexity of the situation which had been thrust upon them.
"Do you think she'll cooperate?" Agent Hill asked.
"Not at first," Fury replied, "But in time, I'm sure that she will." He grabbed a shiny set of keys out of his pocket, and made for the doorway.
"Sir, where are you going?" she asked.
"To the Auxilium. I want to see how our guest is doing."
"For Pete's sake, woman, are you retarded?!"
The woman sitting in the scoop of an ebony chair merely raised an eyebrow at the outrageous allegation. The agent she had been cooped up with since the moment of her capture had been trying to scrape answers out of her with a series of far too personal questions, and she simply wasn't having it. In return, his anger was building on a generous scale, because he was used to spitting out questions at rapid fire, and having the recipient answer back dutifully.
"You know what?" the agent growled, and then stepped closer to her, "I'm glad they're locking you up. Freaks like you shouldn't be on the loose."
She gave him a dim smile.
"Oh, so you can smile," he rasped. "A lobotomy could change that."
She didn't respond.
"So…your name's Cordelia, is that correct?"
You've already stated this fifty times you stupid fucking asshole
"Do you mind if I call you Lia?"
"My father used to call me Lia," she said, finally. Those were the first words she'd spoken in over forty eight hours.
"Oh?" he grinned, satisfied that she was finally talking.
"And I hated my father," she snapped, nostrils flared, her eyes burning holes through the agent's skull. Her hands rattled in the cuffs as she bent forward slightly, sweat trickling down her spine.
The pallor of his skin paled considerably. "You're a vengeful, hateful person, you know that, right?!"
She grinned, and leaned back into the chair, satiated.
"So, Lia, can you tell me why you dyed your hair that vulgar hue of blue?"
She simply stared back at him.
"I thought you liked fire, Lia, wouldn't you dye your hair red instead? Or are you so fucking retarded that you dyed your hair blue?"
"Blue flame is hotter than red," she said flatly.
"Ah, so you speak again, Li-"
She shot up out of the chair, and kicked him sharply in the shin. Crying out from the sneak attack, he clunked to his knees, and she popped him sharply on top of the head with her metal cuffs. He slumped to the floor, unconscious.
"You need to shut the fuck up," she spat at the body curled up on the floor, and dug her heel into his ribcage for extra measure.
Of course, her efforts were all in vain, as the door burst open, revealing a man with an eye patch stretched across his face, swathed in a black, ominous trenchcoat, followed by three more Shield Agents toting bulky guns.
"Miss. Cordelia," he said, motioning to the man curled up on the floor, "Now, why would you do that?"
She crossed her arms, and huffed, turning her head to the side.
"Cordelia, please respond so we don't have to sedate you, and force you to the farthest wing of the hospital."
"He called me a retard," she said, in a gravelly voice.
"Well, now, we'll have to have a talking to with him. How are you settling in?"
She shrugged, her dark eyes fixated on the wood paneling of the doorway.
"You will have plenty of time to talk," he assured her, "But for now, you don't have to. Welcome to the Auxilium."
In the clear window of the office, she saw a man pass by, with dark hair drooping to his shoulders. His pensive emerald eyes swept over her figure, and he smiled.
She glared back at him. She knew him from a time long, long ago...
Author's note:
So. This idea just popped into my head, and I've actually got some of it planned out already. You don't get to see much into my OC's mindset with this chapter, but, in the next, we'll learn a little more about her. Of course, the next chapter will be fixated on Loki, primarily. I'm very excited to write this.
Cordelia's line, "And I hated my father," was influenced by the Joker's line in The Dark Knight, at the dinner party. It just fit too well with this!
This story will be rated M for mature language, gore, and sexual situations in later chapters.