Chapter One
A/N: Welcome to the start of my first Marvel fanfic! I plan to continue for as long as writers block holds off. Feel free to critique, review, and leave suggestions! Bucky will appear soon enough, don't worry.
Disclaimer: Marvel owns all recognizable characters, buildings, gadgetry, etc. My OC's are mine; yada yada.
Rebecca Dorothy Jones was hanging 700 feet above the sidewalks of Seattle when news of S.H.I.E.L.D's demise reached the internet. Rain pelted against the surface she was climbing, as it is wont to do to anything in the Puget Sound area. Wind whipped around her frame, threatening to tear her off of the 56th floor window of the Columbia Tower. Ignoring the mind numbing cold, Jones continued to make her way up vertically. Hand over hand, one foot over the other. Specialized gloves and boots detached and gripped the wet, slick glass surfaces of the building, in near silence. Everything was going to plan.
A thick raindrop managed to make its way between her mask, and underneath the collar of her jumpsuit. Her shoulders rolled to try and get rid of the awkward sensation of water rolling down her neck, but the figure dressed all in black quickly got back to climbing. Now was not the time for distractions. She had an elite party full of multi-billionaires like Bill Gates, Harry Osbourne, and Tony Stark to crash. Speaking of... Jones twisted around to look out over the various towers, the waterfront, and even the colorful ferris wheel to locate the residence of Bill Gates. She tutted, tongue clicking briefly. "I though it would be larger." The tallest building in Washington State was the perfect place to sight see from... Too bad sight seeing wasn't why she was clinging to the Tower.
For ten minutes the woman made her journey upwards, stopping to avoid the eyes of multiple guards. Security cameras were easy enough to time her maneuvering around, and weren't an issue. Breaking and entering was just her cup of tea. High risk espionage though, that was going to be a fun new bit to her assignment. A lightweight, waterproof backpack was looped over her shoulders, cinched around her muscled waist. Inside was a strapless gown, complete with a pair of white stilettos. Her hair and makeup was already done; hidden underneath her normal hood and goggled mask. Normally The Black Widow would be here instead, wooing men for their secrets, but apparently she was preoccupied with another mission. As of last night, S.H.I.E.L.D operative Rebecca Jones had been promoted from undercover agent surveying Boeing personnel to stealing important flash drives from embassy-men. All that was left between her and completing the mission was the window into the ladies powder room on the top floor. Easily fixed.
Slowly peering into a smaller window, Jones was both surprised and relieved to discover the window belonged to an empty bathroom stall. Scurrying towards the upper part of the window, the agent turned herself upside down to face the sidewalk over 900 dizzying feet below her. Eh. She'd climbed higher. Planting both feet flat on glass, she slowly drew herself into a crouching position. With a deep breath, she released her left hand from its grip on the clear surface. Shaking water off of her fingertips, she then did the same with her right hand. A grin graced her face beneath her mask as she thought back to her father teaching her how to do this crazy balancing act. "Hope you're proud Pops."
She clapped her hands together.
Water sprayed from between her palms.
Water which then started to sizzle between her fingertips.
A familiar buzz soon engulfed the entirety of her hands, emitting what looked like a soft purple glow through her night-vision goggles. To the naked eye, nothing abnormal would be seen. Just a boring pair of black gloves. Deft fingers traced a large circle in the glass, melting away in the intense heat. By deactivating the heat producing mode in her gloves, Jones gently pushed the large plate of glass inwards with one palm, letting it stay stuck to her hand to avoid it shattering against the bathroom counter inside. It was set silently down on the granite. Her entire body soon was inside as well.
She was in without incident. Wonderful. Now to get dressed. After locking the door, Jones ripped off the backpack and set it on the counter. All of its contents were dumped out, and Jones set to work. First her boots came off, then her jumpsuit. Just as she was about to slip the gown on, her headpiece crackled to life.
"Agent Jones? Agent Jones. Abort mission. I repeat, abort mission. S.H.I.E.L.D has be compromised from within. Get out of there and find a safe place." Agent Maria Hill's panicked voice broke through static, stunning The half-dressed agent. "Do you copy?"
"I copy. What-"
"No time to explain. I'll send someone to find you if any one's left. Get Out Of ."
The next twenty seconds were the most panic-filled, and frenzy-like of Rebecca Jones' entire career. She was fully dressed and back out the window as fast as lightning. She could hear footsteps pounding towards the bathroom from the inside; muffled by the shouting of billionaires inside. What was going on? It didn't matter. The mission was compromised, and someone was probably coming to kill her. Time to go.
Throwing her arms straight out to her sides, she started to run down the building-face; not caring for guests or guards to see her. Her jumpsuit became rigid supporting her structure as she ran; keeping her body horizontal to the ground below. It was crazy. Running towards what otherwise would have been a death plummet. The farther away she got, the more panic she felt. Gunshots erupted from above, spattering the windows with a rain of bullet casings. Feet ran faster. She was practically flying.
Floor 73.
Floor 68.
Floor60.
An explosion of glass far above registered somewhere in the back of the woman's mind. A few seconds later a body fell past her, then another. Two bodyguards, dead. Suddenly, something large and heavy slammed straight into her side; disconnecting her feet from the Columbia Tower completely and knocking the air straight out of her lungs.
"Looks like you could need a hand, Princess." Tony Stark's voice joked from within the Iron Man suit.
"I wasn't expecting you to drop bye Mr. Stark." Rebecca gasped, gripping tightly to the suit. Seattle flew by at rocket speed, rain pelting them like mini water bombs.
"I wasn't expecting S.H.I.E.L.D. to blow up and reveal all of it's database online either, but consider me surprised."
"What happened?" She asked, but her question fell on deaf ears as Tony Stark kept on with his rambling.
"You're lucky I always have JARVIS running on S.H.I.E.L.D's radio frequency, or else I never would have known we had a daredevil agent running up Tower tonight... Or rather, fleeing down it."Lucky indeed, the female agent thought with a shudder. She could have ended up like those body guards, a bloody pancake on cement. Tony continued to fly; taking her past the The Space Needle, over the lakes, and into Northern Seattle. "I've got a safe house here that isn't on any S.H.I.E.L.D database. You'll be safe tonight while I help figure out this mess." Safe from what though?
"Stark, thank you, really." Said Jones as she squirmed in his metal grip. She'd never actually met the billionaire before."Seriously though, you need to tell me what's going on. S.H.I.E.L.D's compromised from within? What the hell does that mean?"
"Oh, I don't need to tell you, Sweetheart." The suit slowed to a stop and touched base in an alleyway. Rebecca was released from its grip, feet hitting hard pavement for the first time that evening, and took a moment to massage her ribs where he had hit her back at The Columbia. Tony looked around, checking if the coast was clear. Deeming it so, the suit deactivated and folded itself into a red and gold suitcase. "You'll understand as soon as you turn on the tv."Still clad in her full body burglarizing suit, she followed him through a couple of streets; careful to always stick to the shadows. Who knows what enemies were around.
"Here we go." A dingy apartment complex stared back at them. "Third floor Princess, apartment 307..." He dug around in his suit breast pocket to grab a set of keys. He gestured to a staircase, his figure barely visible in the darkness. "Shall we?"
"Might as well."