(One Year Ago)
"I'm Sarah Smith, reporting live, where we're a block away from Stark Tower and an alleged fight has broken out."
It was a year to this day. The day the war broke out between human and an alien race.
"We've received word that a group called The Avengers is trying to contain the attack to a block"
A year since he died, since he'd been murdered.
"We've received word that,"
A year since they invaded.
"An Avenger known as,"
A year since the world went dark.
"Thor has been reported dead."
A year since the Avengers failed.
"We're going to stop broadcasting, the battle has expanded."
A year since they fell.
"If you don't hear from me again, good luck."
A year since Loki took over.
I turned on the television, knowing that the radio signal was just white noise, seeing as how the satellites were turned off two weeks after Loki arrived.
There were no more radios or phone calls or t.v. Everything had gone quiet. Everything had died. Everything went quiet.
So, there it was, the white noise. The white noise of death.
Sometimes, if you searched long enough an "error" would appear, and an old movie or episode would play, but that was rare.
Tonight was the night he died, Thor died. It was exactly a year ago.
I hoped that maybe something would be on in honour of him, that maybe someone had finally managed to broadcast something.
Nothing.
I left, there was nothing to do except read a book, or write or learn something, or if you were lucky enough learn an instrument or play one, and I wasn't about to do something I could do later tonight.
The streets were empty, no one was outside, no kids were playing in the streets, and no animals ran free. Everyone was inside, everyone locked their doors, refusing to help strangers.
A once thriving society with technology, had been reduced to nothing in a matter of days, and on top of that, a curfew was enforced: twenty-hundred.
Anyone out past that time was to be punished, was to be put in jail.
Besides the people booked for jail before being invaded, the jails were empty, and with that the rate of law enforcement went down, almost dropping to nothing.
The streets were clean, no drugs, no crime. Just quiet, and clean streets.
The drug lords and criminals had ceased their activity, as the curfew had set, those who didn't follow it were an example to those who did.
Yet, here I was thirty minutes before curfew, taking a walk, getting fresh air, and that's when I saw it.
It was in a tiny alleyway that led to absolutely no where, no bigger than three feet across, and with it a small wooden table laid in the back at the end of the alleyway. Around was a group of six or seven people.
They had a picture of Thor, the fallen God, on the table with tea lights surrounding it.
The smallest man there had light brown hair, and it was he who heard my footsteps and turned around to face me.
"I apologize." I say coldly, knowing I clearly wasn't invited, and hoping that. I could get away without causing problems. I tried to move, wanted, to move, but I couldnt the only thing I did was turn my head as if to move.
"Wait." I hear a female voice call out and I turn my head to facw the red head. "What's your name?" Her voice was quiet, toneless even, but soft and weary no less.
"Aella."
"Aella what?"
"Black." There was female in the back that made to move, she turned her head to hear us better, her,brown hair sliding off her shoulder and back to her waist.
"Do you have any intentions of reporting what you've seen here?" It's the famous billionaire, Tony Stark ans Iron man, who speaks.
"To whom, Loki? The one who doesnt mourn for his own brother? The one who claims this planet as his? To go to him would only cause trouble, something I am not fond of."
"Then, welcome, Aella," Captain America spoke. "To our service for Thor." I stepped into the alleyway , and I could finally process the people that were standing around the table.
All the Avengers, every last one of them was here, but one person, the same person who had listened to our conversation was still staring at the picture.
"You're the Avengers aren't you?" I couldnt stop myself.
"Were. We fell, every last one of us, but no one harder than Thor." Cap looks down to the ground. "He gave his all for nothing."
"For nothing?" I scoff a little. "You're here aren't you, the humans are alive, you jave not failed him." The words left me faster than I could realize what was being said, but they needed to hear them, it was what they needed, what they deserved.
"Stromg words for someone Who has never met him." Tony snaps.
"Tony." Widow hisses. Captain watched the exchange and turned his attwntion to me as they started to argue.
"Do you know how he died?" I shake my head and Cap sighs.
"They never gave the details."
"Loki killed him, stabbed,him through the chest." He said solemnly.
"And with Thor went Mjilnor." Tony interrupts. "And the hammer lies at the base of my tower."
"My apologies about your stupid building, I didn't know material things were more important than human lives." I see Widow grins maliciously, and Cap snorts.
"The hammer still lays there." Tony continues ignoring my comment. "Only a person of worth can lift it."
"I know the story, I studied it back when I was in school."
"We need to get to that hammer." The man known as Banner speaks, I saw him as the Hulk a year ago on T.V.
"How do you plan to do that?" My brain starts reeling, trying to find way as to how they could get in and get the hammer. "Eve if you could manage to get in, there has to be a person worthy of it, and unless you know someone-"
"Steve has lifted it." Tony cuts in and gices a quick half smile.
"Thays why he wants fo make sure you're dead." I'm floored, he's lifted it. Captain America has lifted it. He's worthy.
"And that's why we need your help." The female finally turns around and walks towards me, and I realize she's only two or three inches shorter than I am.
"Jane..." Widow says, cautioning her.
"What? What is so wrong with this? She's the one Thor told us about, how could it be anyone else?" She montions to me. "I mean look at her!"
"Jane, it will take weeks of training and preparation-" Captain begins, but she's quick to cut him off.
"There's no better time than now, then." She tried to force her opinion on them, but they didnt seemed to be swayed, so, it was my turn to interject.
"If I may," i interrupt, y voice slow and cautious, and everyones eye's turned to me. "I'd like to be part of this decision, seeing as how it's about me, so, woud you mind filling me in so I can help you with the descicion?"
"She has a point." Stark says, pressing his lips into a frown.
"Then, we take her to Furry, let him brief her and from there she can decide." Clint says.
"Well, since we're all agreed, shall we?" Stark presses a button and I hear people protesting, but mostly I see white.
It's bright and blinding and then my stomach does a three-sixty and I'm kneeing,on the ground clutching my stomach, and staring at blue tile.
Transport. He discovered how to teleport, with a large group of people no less
"Impressive." I wheez out, and Tony snorts.
"What was that about only caring for materialistic items?"
"A smart ass remark." He raises his head a little, and a very amused face appears on him.
"Gotta say kid, I may not like you, but you got balls." He winks, and a man dressed in black everything aproaches me, and helps me to my feet.
"I have to say," his voice powerful, asseritve, commanding. He was the leader, and possibly this Fury they had spoken of. "I had not expexted you to kidnap a young woman five minutes before curefew."
"We didn't kidnap her." Jane started, but Fury cut her off.
"I dont care about the details, all I want to know is if she's the one." A buisness man, we'd get along just fine.
Jane looks to me, an expression of guilt and worry flashed over her face and left even quicker, her cool and calm demeaner returning. She looks at Fury. "She is."
"Then training starts tomorrow at five." He tirns to me. "Jane will show you your room, if you need anything ask her. Dont be late." He walks away before I get a chance to say anything, and Jane motions for me to follow her.
She leads me down a hallway and I struggle to keep up to her.
"So, how did you end up in the Avengers?"
"My boyfriend." It's cold and quiet, she wanted to be somewhere like her room, maybe and she wanted to be alone. It was so clear, so evident, that she wanted nothing more than to be alone.
"Who was he?" My curiosity overpowered my politeness.
"Thor." Shit.
She stops, and I almost run into her.
"This is your room, I'm right across from you if you need anything." I nod and say my thanks, and turn to open my door. I hear here open and close hers.
It was small, nothing bigger than a small dorm room, but it was all I would need.
A pair of clothes were set on the bed, and I changed into them. They suprisingly fit, they must have known, must have planned my arrival, known everuthing about me, my background. It wouldn't surprise me, they managed to keep a whole team of superhumans hidden from the world and the government.
So, I no longer lived in my old apartment, this was home now. I was to get my briefing tomorrow on who I was and why I was important. My old life was no more.
And as much as I would miss my floor to ceiling bookshelf, there wasn't anything holding me there. I had no friends, nothing to do, I was just, alive. Not living in the slightest way.
I laid on the bed and let the wave of sleep fall over me, kmowing i needed much sleep for the full day if work ahead of me tomorrow.
Day one was in eight hours.
Day one of training.
Day one of defeating Loki.
Day one of falling in love with psychopath.
Jane came in around four in the morning, waking me up and giving me clothes that once again surprisingly fit.
"Come on, get up. You dont want Fury mad at you on your first day." I threw the covers off of me and stood up, the cool tile reaching my feet and sending a shiver through my body.
"Get dressed, I'll meet you outside your room." She let me be, letting door give a soft click as she shut the door behind her.
I unfolded the clothes that she put on my counter, revealing the dark blue jacket and pants, with the blank tanktop and combat boots.
It was what Jane had been wearing, probably their uniform.
I put my clothes on and put my hair up in ponytail and made my way out to the hall to meet Jane and she started walking with me following behind her.
"Breakfast is at seven, but Director Fury will want to brief you and give you the run down on how everything goes here." She stops. "Welcome to Shield." She, opens the door and there's a table in the middle of the big room, and all the avengers are sitting there, Jane takes a seat next to Black Widow and the man who helped me up off the ground yesterday stod up.
"Ms. Black, welcome. Take a seat and lets get on with this briefing." The only seat available was between Tony Captain America, and begruddginly I tok my seat.
"Now, we have reason to believe that Loki plans to hold a competition to find a...partner of sorts." The lights dim and a projector comes on. "That's why we're sending you into the heart of that competition." All eyes turned on me, except for Cap's, his eyes turned downward.
"Me?" I blink and try to form valuable reason as to why I should be the last person to be sent into that operation. "I dont even know what to do, I don't have training, I'm obviously the last person to go in, and the most likely to fail."
"Thats why you're going to spend the next two weeks training." Widow said.
"With that training, you will learn about his mental blocks and his tricks and how to avoid them, how to fight and how to be strong and submissive for him so as to not have him suspect you. This is the highest training you will revieve here at shield." He gets closer to me. "What you would learn in one year has been reduced to two weeks. Can you manage these responsibilities?" I nod. "Good, now, Ms. Foster, would you care to brief us on Loki's down-fall?" She nods, amd several pictures flash from the projector.
"They say the fall of Loki was to be brought down by a black storm," she begins, and instantly I hang on every word she speaks. "At first, the Asgardians thought this to mean magic. A black wall of sorts, taking his powers away, drawing them out, never to be used again." Another click, and a another picture appears, a book filled with runes.
"But, as time went on, they discovered that this black storm wasn't magic, this black storm was given attributes, a personality, and,most thought it meant how tough the storm was to be.
"Then, they got smart, and as years passed the prophecy got somewhat clearer.
"They had discovered the black storm to be a person, one that would come to know Loki, and eventually be his down-fall.
"And we believe that to be you, your name literally translates to black storm."
"What if you're wrong, what if I'm not the one, what if there is someone else who is to be his fall?"
"There have been...others." Fury says and looks away from me.
"What happened to them?" I ask, already knowing my answer.
"They we're killed." Cap says. "Just like you will be, like they all have been. By now, Loki suspects us. He would expect us to train someone to get close to him, he would know the instant he met them."
"That's why, we erase her memory of us," Tony speaks up, providing more information as to how this was going to go. "See, what you forgot to include was that when she's done with all this training she won't remember it, but you'll know how to act." He points to me then,turns to Fury. "We have to give the kid full disclosure, she has the right to know." Fury shakes his head.
"No, not that part, she can know everything but that." He stands up and turns the projector,off and turns the lights back on.
"Can I hear the prophecy" I ask,Jane who was lost in thought, her eyes turned to me and she nodded.
"As Loki rises, he'll take a storm with him, one of black, and beauty, firceness and compassion. It will be his strength, his weakness, and his downfall."
"And if he doesn't choose me, what then?"
"He will." Fury replies all to quickly.
"How can you be so sure?"
"I just am."
"And if I refuse?"
"It's the world or you." Widow says, and it suddenly hits me, the world needs me, whether they realise it or not, they need me. I'm the saviour, the one to bring earth back to it's rightful glory.
"I accept my fate." Steve gets up amd walks,out of the room.
"Natasha," he directs at Widow. "Get her started on her training, then feed her. You know the drill." He gets to the door, his leather coat flowing,behind him. "Dismissed."
Everyone files out, save for Stark and Natasha.
"I want you to know," Stark begins, and I find a spot on the floor to just stare at. "That what is about to happen, I won't hate you for it, it wasnt your choice after all." With that he leaves, and Natasha stands to my side a hand resting on my shoulder.
"Come on, lets syart your training."
I spent the next and a half hours with her, learning how to use my body, my room and surrounding, objects, just about anything really, to my advantage. I had mearned more in those two hours than anything else in my whole life. Then came breakfast.
The cafiteria had a perfect spread of breakfast choices, but i couldnt eat, I settled with an apple, orange juice, and a bowl of oats. A heavy enough meal to get me through to lunch, but,not to heavy that I could throw up.
I sat down next to Jane, and she without a second of hesitation, stood up and got rid of the food amd stormed off.
"What did I do?" I ask Steve who sat in front of me.
"I'll talk to her." He says, getting up with the same bitterness as Jane.
"What's with him?" I say, pointimg with my thumb behind me.
"Don't worry, he's just moody, and Jane doesn't like Loki." Clint says.
"So, they don't like me." I give a straight face and Clint tilts his head.
"I never said that..."
"You didn't have too." Natasha come over and places a piece of paper in front of me. It had a schedule for me, giving me the general layout for my day to day activities.
0430 Wake up
0500 Natasha- Combat
0700-0800 Breakfast
0800-1050 Tony-Tech
1100-1230- Banner- Mind
1230-1330- Lunch
1330-1530- Clint-Weapons
1530-1700 - Natasha-Study
1700-1830- Dinner
1830-1900- Free time
1900-1930- Hygiene
2000- Lights out
With Tony, came technology. He told me the principals, how it worked, what it did, what they'd put inside me. He gave me the run down of what was to happen, of how they would see and hear everything through my eyes and ears.
"How you feelin' kid?"
"Exhausted, this is so much to take in, and it doesnt help that only two of you are nice to me."
"Just wait until you meet Loki, then,we'll seem like a walk in the park." He winks at me, and I smirk.
"Speaking of, what wasn't I supposed to know about the prophecy?" Tony rolled his eyes.
"As much as I want to tell you, I can't, that's top secret."
"But, I think I have a right to know." I protested.
"I agree, but that's something to take up with Fury. I don't,habe any control over that." I scoff.
"Since when do you follow rules?"
"Simce Thor died." I was quick to apologize,but he eaved me off as if it was nothing, like his death hadn't fazed him. It had, in all honesty, the worse effect on him, he just didn't show it.
Banner gave ne mind blocks, tricks,on how to keep Loki from prying around inside my mind, and how to avoid his mental games altogether.
Clint familiarized ne with all sorts of weapons, Natasha was with me once again, and this time she taught me how to modify my personality for Loki.
The only people missing from dinner were Jane and Steve, and it was here where I began,to wonder just how much my presence upset them.
Turns out each if us had a different time for personal care, so, as to save water and not attrack attention to ourselves. Everything here at SHIELD was done for a reason, and for once, it was nice to be told what to do, where to be and what to wear.
The weeks flew by, and before I knew, I was to finish my last day tomorrow. I would meet Loki in a forenight. I was scared, petrified even, but somehow I was also ready.
Ready to save earth, and the people on it, ready to bring the downfall of Loki.
There was a knock on my door startiling me out of my thoughts.
"Come in." I call, only loud enough for them to hear. Steve enters and I smile. "What can I do for you?"
"Come with me, I want to show you something." He holds out his hand and with a doubtful look, reach to take it, and he pulls me along the hallway and up a staircase and finally to the top of the building.
From here I can see thousands of diamonds in the bruise-black sky, and I smile. I've never seen this many stars in a New York sky.
"It's breathtaking." He nods and,smiles in agreement.
"Yes, I come here when I need to be alone."
"Then you're alone a lot." He chuckles. "That I am." I look over to him.
"Why are you being nice to me?" He sighs and stares out into the black horizon.
"It's not that I didn't like you, if anything it was because I did. But, I didn't want to get attached to someone who is-"
"Who's going against the enemy. I know."
"Well, yes. But, you remimd me of someone I once knew, and all I want to do when I look at you, is protect you." He sighs and looks,to me, where I take a seat and motion for him to do the same.
"I don't need to be protected, I can handle myself just fine."
"I know," he smiles sitting next to me. "But I still want to." I smile and nod, giving him the sign that i understood. I sighed.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Depends on what it is."
"Stark, Jane, and Fury all know a part of the prophecy that I'm not allowed to know, what is it?" He sighs and I shuffle closer to him, stealing his body heat as I warmed up.
"You would be better off not knowing." He says wrapping an arm around my shoulder
"Would I really? I'm the one whose riaking their life, not any of you."
"If we could, beleive me I would."
"I know, but this is my life, I deserve to know what I'm gettimg myself into, dont you think?" He nods his head.
"What they left out, is that you're bound to fall in love with Loki, no matter how hard you try not to."
"Then I'll have to kill him."
"Really, you kill a god, whose skin is hard to pierce with our average weapons? You'll kill someone you're bound to love?"
"I can try can't I?"
"As hard as you want."
"Then that's what I'll do.' I lay my head on his shoulder.
"I'll support you in whatever decision you make, I'm here for you." I smile, glad I had a friend that I could confide in.
"Thank you."
"Are you ready for tomorrow?" I shake my head no, and he sighs in agreance.
"Be safe okay? I know you wont remember anything, but be safe."
"Steve?" I look up into his eyes and he looks down. "I want you to take the day shift."
"Are you sure, there's no guarantiee that I wont see something you may not want me to."
"I trust you."