When 2 SHIELD-Agents talk
Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel Cinematic Universe.
This story is anti-accords and anti Tony Stark. So if you are pro-Accords and a Tony Stark stan, this story is not for you.
This is the first part of a trilogy. I have written the second part which I will post in the near future too. The third part is not written, perhaps in the next year I will come to it.
It is in some parts an AU but it is canon how I describe the events in Age of Ultron and Civil War and it was the first time I wrote a story in English.
I never found a story where the various betrayals and contemptuous acts Tony Stark, who never pays for his crimes and always goes scot-free, committed in Age of Ultron and Civil War were mentioned, so I decided to write this story. Some things simply must be said.
Sharon woke up without knowing why. Her right hand creeped to her weapon under the pillow.
„It's me, Sharon", she heard a voice she knew too well.
„Finally, Barton, I was thinking, you didn't get my message", she growled und sat upright in the bed.
„I needed a little time to see if you were still under surveillance through Ross and his minions. You are!"
"How surprising", she snarked. "I trust, they didn't see you?"
"Don't forget who you are talking to. I trust, there are no bugs here?" asked Clint and she could hear the smile in his voice.
"Don't forget who you are talking to. How are you, Clint?" asked Sharon.
"Could be better, could be worse, but I'm not in the Raft anymore. Thanks for that."
"Believe me, it was a real pleasure to ruin Ross and Stark their plans."
"Did you get problems? It was a big risk you took."
"Nothing I couldn't handle. And I'm a big girl, I know the difference between right and wrong and I make my own decisions and then face the consequences."
"I wish, that asshole Stark could do that too", said Clint bitter. "But enough with the small talk, why did you want talk to me?"
"Not especially you, I wanted to talk to an Avenger and you are the best in sneaking in and out of places, even Natasha is not so good like you in this. And I can't get in contact with her nor do I know if I should. I don't know how her stance to Stark is nowadays."
"She is laying low and I don't think she is on his side anymore. Nobody is on his side anymore from the original avengers. Rhodey is a soldier who follows orders from his superiors and he is Tony's friend and blind to a certain point.
Vision has the matrix from Jarvis, who was programmed by Tony. Who knows what fail safes he put in Jarvis. Would have been nice if Tony had done the same by Ultron! I don't know how free Vision is in his decisions. There were some instances where his actions and decisions were questionable to put it mildly."
"Good to know. I wanted to talk to you to hear your side or more the side of the 'Rogue Avengers' about the 'Civil War'. All that I hear is the version from Ross and Stark and I don't trust anything these two say."
"A wise decision. It started with Ultron, it was the first time Stark was going behind our backs that I knew about. He said, he created this thing to protect the earth but the only thing he wanted was to feed his ego. Then we found the spear and Stark took it to play with it. He said, he didn't want to waste time and have a discussion with us about right and wrong or that there some things you shouldn't meddle with."
"So nobody of you knew anything about Ultron?"
"No. Bruce knew something but I think not all about it. After Ultron did fight with us at the party and escaped there was fight among us. Thor was angry because he only gave Stark permission to examine the spear not to experiment with it. Banner felt guilty and did say that after you created a killer robot you have to refrain yourself but Stark only joked how funny we all were because we were angry with him and how after he flew a nuclear missile in space he were owed special leeway for everything he does. Typically, Stark does one time something selfless und thinks he is absolved of everything. There was no apology, no owning up to his mistakes, no word of regret about the people Ultron would kill. But that he has a cavalier look on losses of live is nothing new. After what I heard he shocked Bruce with electricity to see if he would hulk out. Banner was on the helicarrier at this time and we all know what happened with it after Banner hulked out." Clint looked guilty.
"You know it was not your fault, Clint. And this story I didn't know about. What happened next?"
"After Wanda did manipulate the Hulk and he and Stark did destroy half of Johannesburg the Avengers had to lay low and I made the biggest mistake of my life. I did bring Tony Stark, this ungrateful piece of shit, to my family after he did create Ultron."
Sharon saw Clint wince and knew he didn't mean to say that but she had to ask. "What do you mean, your family? You don't have a family."
Clint hesitated visible than he nodded to himself. "I have a wife and three children. Only Fury, Coulson and Natasha did know about them and where they were, they were completely off the radar.
After the fight in Leipzig that was of course started through Stark, Stark visited us in the Raft. He saw, what Ross did to Wanda and did nothing. Do you know that he called her a weapon of mass destruction and set her under house arrest?
In the Raft I dared to call out the great and perfect Tony Stark on his mistakes, that he had no right to make this kind of decisions like the accords for other humans. I had the gall to have a different opinion than Tony Stark and so he betrayed my family out of spite to Ross."
"He did what? He knows that everything in the Raft is monitored!"
"Like I said, out of spite."
"Oh god, are they safe?"
"Yes, Fury did a little monitoring of his own and as soon as he heard Stark betray my family he did go to the farm and did first bring my family to safety and after my escape from the Raft did he bring them to me. They are now safe."
"How did he do that?"
"I don't ask Fury these kind of questions but I'm very grateful to him. Fury is not very happy with Stark that he endangered my family in this way. He gave Laura a message for me that he would find a way to make Stark pay for his betrayal. But I swear to you, should ever something happen to my family is Stark a dead man walking. Without his suit he is worthless as a fighter and merely prey for the Hawk."
Clint smiled with too much teeth. Sharon saw the white of his teeth and did shudder. For all that Clint was the Avenger who everyone overlooked, he was a master assassin with a higher body count than Natasha. He was one of the few agents by SHIELD who could go toe to toe with the black widow and had a chance to beat her. He was a tactical genius and his enemies were through his unpredictability always in for a bad surprise. As much as she know he always did get his prey und he always finished his missions.
"It is unusual from Fury to give such a message."
"Not if you know that he is the godfather of my daughter Lila."
"Okay that would be a reason. Is your wife very mad with you?" Sharon asked gently.
Clint looked puzzled at her. "Why should she be?"
"Because you fought on the side of Steve and she lost her home."
"Oh! No, she is not! We talked about everything as soon as the news of the accords hit the news. We knew it would come to this. She is even more against the accords than I if you can believe that.
We were not on the side of Stark and we did make together the decision, that I would help Steve if he asked. We knew that there was a risk but Laura was the opinion that our freedom, our free will and the right to make our own decisions was worth it.
And now more than ever we think that we make the right choice. I mean look what happens to the Inhumans and everyone who is different. We live now in a fascistic country thanks to Ross and Stark. I am curious how long the two assholes need to find a way to do the same to the 'normal' people."
"What happened in Siberia?"
"By Stark's visit in the Raft did Wilson tell him where Steve went to and why. Had Stark listened on the airport there would have been no fight, no 'Civil War', no Raft. This hypocrite did break his word 24 hours after he signed the accords and he did knew beforehand what he signed. Not like we others who were given 3 days to read and understand the accords. This is not possible for somebody who is not a lawyer. It was another of Stark's backstabbing methods to get his will.
I had every right to refuse my signature under something, where 1. I had no input in and which 2. took away all my rights as an human being without a chance to defend myself against anything that is done to me.
I don't sign something when I know that I can't keep my word. I am honest and have honour, not like Stark who thinks that everyone and everything can be bought and for whom honour and common decency is only a meaningless word.
I am not a stupid idiot like Stark who makes the same mistake again and again without learning a thing and when there is fallout, can't stand by his mistakes and makes others pay for it.
After what Steve said was Stark at first reasonable but after he saw the winter soldier kill his mother he tried to murder Barnes. He amputated his arm with a shot und tried to split his skull with his foot after Barnes was helpless on the ground. Steve saved Barnes and then Stark tried to murder Steve too. Because Steve is better in close range fighting than Stark and a better man than Stark ever could hope to be, he only did take the arc reactor. T'Challa did knew by then that Barnes was innocent and sided with Steve. He helped them escape and then did take back Stark and Zemo to the United States."
"I can't say that I don't understand that Stark was upset after he saw that with his mother."
"He had every right to be upset but he did know too, what HYDRA did to Barnes, that he was controlled by them and that he had no choice in his actions. He threw again a temper tantrum like a little child, and because there was no HYDRA to beat on, he did beat on Barnes who is the most innocent in all this. And he wanted to hurt Steve."
"Why?"
"While the business with HYDRA Steve saw a ten-second-clip that HYDRA was responsible for the murder from Howard Stark and his wife. Steve didn't know it was Barnes at this moment so he didn't think any more about it and he didn't tell Stark about it. Stark felt betrayed and wanted revenge. For all that Stark has no problems to betray people and backstab them, as soon as it's about him it is always different. Not that I think of that what Steve did or not did as betrayal."
"Like you said Stark is a hypocrite."
"T'Challa and his sister gave us refuge in Wakanda and try to give Barnes back his free will. So now I gave you my side of this disaster. What is this all about?"
"It seems that there is more communication between superheroes and vigilantes than I ever thought. And let's say at this moment not one of them is very happy with Stark. His tendency to go behind the back of his colleagues, to betray his friends and to manipulate, coerce and blackmail people to get what he wants, is for them the anti-thesis of that what a hero should be or do. Do you know that nobody wants to work with Stark as an avenger?"
"I wonder why", answered Clint sarcastic.
"Do you know, that he blackmailed a fifteen year old child to fight for him?"
"That answers some questions I had about the webslinger." Clint looked enraged. "Had Stark the kid registered?"
"Of course not. It is Tony Stark we are talking about, for him are the accords only binding as long as it is not too inconvenient for him."
"God he is such an asshole. How do you know that?"
"Deadpool visited me. He asked if he could kill Stark, his voices don't like Stark anymore."
"Tempting but no. Steve hopes that there will be one day a reconciliation."
"And you?"
"Let me say it so, I want that he apologises to my wife and my children for the way he put them in danger and that Stark finally owns up publically to his mistakes, from Ultron to the accords. Do you know that the information that Stark alone was responsible for creating Ultron never did go public? What by the way is Stark doing right now to protect people?"
"Nothing. He, Rhodey and Vision only make public relations for the accords and do nothing to help people. If Stark wants sometimes to do something, Ross stops it but it is not so that Stark fights very hard against Ross' orders in these things.
That is another reason why everybody is so mad with Stark. Not only tore Stark the Avengers apart and endangered so Earth but he made it through the accords very difficult for all others to protect people on day to day basis. Not that that stops someone like Deadpool or Daredevil for very long. Rhodey can walk again by the way. How was he hurt? The news said it was Wilson."
"Ha, Wilson, yeah, right. No, you can call it friendly fire, it was Vision. After Wilson saw what happened he landed and wanted to help Rhodey but Stark shot without provocation point blank at Wilson, like I said he had a temper tantrum.
It was only luck that Wilson wasn't killed. If someone else would have done that, it would be attempted murder but because it was Stark, nothing happened to him, again. God, I hope that one day his money and influence don't help him anymore and he pays for all what he did and faces finally the consequences of his actions."
"One can only hope." Sharon looked sad. "What do you think, Coulson would say about all this."
"I think he rolls in his metaphorical grave."
"I don't understand, he is dead, of course he is in his grave."
"Coulson is alive. From who, do you think, came the helicarrier in Sokovia?"
"How do you know that?"
"Coulson has his own style to do things, which I would recognize everywhere. I know when he has something to do with certain events."
"You are not angry that he hasn't contacted you or Natasha?"
"A little maybe, but I trust that he has his reasons. He is the godfather of my oldest son Cooper after all."
"So that means that Stark not only pissed off you, Fury and Natasha with his betrayal but Coulson too?"
"Yes, I think so. I mean I don't know what Coulson thinks about the fight between the Avengers but I am sure, he is very disappointed. And I can't believe he would support the accords. They go against everything Phil believes in. And what he absolutely don't like is when someone on purpose and out of spite endangers the family of an SHIELD Agent not to mention his goddaughter."
"Wow, I don't think I would like to be in Tony Stark's skin right now. To piss of one of you is bad enough, but all four of you, not good."
Barton smiled again with too much teeth. "So the others wanted to know our side. You can tell them everything but please, don't tell them about my family."
"I won't betray your trust like Stark did."
"Yes I know. Is there something else? The night is near the end and I must go if I want to get my plane safe back to Wakanda."
"Yes. The community of superheroes and vigilantes, and I can't believe they call themselves that, want to give a message to Steve and all Avengers who are against the accords. For them you are the true Avengers not Stark and his useless minions who don't do anything to protect people."
"We don't help anyone in Wakanda either. And what is about the people on the street. What do they think?"
"I know Steve, it is only a matter of time before he finds a way to come back and help secretly people again. And I think most of you will follow him."
"I will, if I get the permission from my wife. And the Secret Avengers, I like that."
"And what the people think we can't influence but what I know is, that every time one of the others go against the accords to help the 'normal' people while Stark and his ilk do nothing, one more 'normal' human will be against the accords. And now, where finally the accords are online, the people who can think for themselves, can see how the rights of everyone who is different are non-existent in them."
"One can only hope, but why don't you hear them?" asked Clint desperate.
"Because they aren't fanatic and tolerate other opinions without resulting to harass and bully people who don't agree with them.
The fanatics always yell the loudest and are too stupid to see what is in front of them. They wouldn't recognize the truth if it would bite them in the ass or they twist the truth to their own ends. Of course that is only successful to a certain degree before it all falls back on them."
"It was the same with HYDRA. Hm, perhaps is Ross HYDRA that would explain so much about him", wondered Clint.
"Maybe Stark is too", joked Sharon.
"Perhaps he is", answered Clint serious. "I was always wondering why Stark didn't know about HYDRA earlier, he was so often in SHIELD's systems."
"Do you really think that?" asked Sharon.
"At this moment I wouldn't put anything past Stark."
"I can see where you are coming from. You must go now, Clint."
"I know. Be careful."
"You too." Sharon concentrated her ears on Clint but she heard nothing as he left her house. "Fucking ninja", she murmured and laid her head back on the pillow.