Well here it is. The third chapter is up. I all hope you like it. I do not write this for profit.
Chapter 3 – They Unite
When one thinks of India, there are few things that come to mind. Things like Bollywood, the Taj Mahal, and the Golden temple. These three things are also what make India so special. Well, that and it's a wondrous place for those seeking to make themselves hidden from a world of pursuers and prying eyes. Though, that doesn't seem to work quite so well for a certain doctor, who seems to find himself at the edge of New Delhi, the capital of India. As he comes to the aid of a little girl, who had came to him for help with her ailing father, finds that it was all a lie to draw him to a more remote location.
It's here that Doctor Bruce Banner meets the first person that he will later come to consider a close friend and trusted ally. Bruce, who is mumbling to himself about getting paid before hand, takes notice of another presence in the room. When he finally turns around, he sees Tora who is dressed in a dark blue sari, making her way towards him. She stops when she's a good forty or so feet from him as she sees the timid, almost skittish look to the way he's walking.
"What can I do for you miss…." He trails off when he realizes that he doesn't even know her name yet. That's when Tora realizes she hasn't actually introduced herself to him yet. "Forgive me, Doctor Banner. My name is Tora, Tora Blade. I'm here to speak with you about something of national importance." She smiles calmly at him as she says this. Bruce not sure of her true intentions, offers a small smile and slight nod of the head in return. "Well, Miss Blade, how can I be of service?" he asks in a slightly timid voice.
"Well, will you please allow me to finish once I start to explain?" she asks, keeping her eyes on Bruce's movements as to not scare or startle him as though she were talking to a small child. "Sure," he states with a slight smile as he's starting to feel a bit more comfortable around her. With a smile, Tora nods and begins her explication. She tells him more or less what he needs to know to get him to help without making him think he would become a prisoner there. "I believe all we need from you is to locate this," she shows him a picture of the Tesseract before continuing on. "By tracing the low levels of gamma radiation this gives off."
Bruce looks at her with a slightly suspicious, slightly happy look before he answers. "Well, if that's really all you need from me, then I see no problem with helping." Tora smiles with pure joy and relaxes a little at the not so stressful situation. "Thank you so much then, Doctor Banner," she says softly. He nods and speaks relatively calmly, for him anyway. "Of course, Miss Blade." She escorts him back to his home, which Tora finds to be completely off the grid. It makes sense now why it had taken her just over a week to find him. Tora then proceeds to offer him assistance in getting packed, which he of course turns down. As she waits, watching him move about getting this thing and that, she can't help but let her thoughts drift off. With a smile on her face, his voice brings her back to reality. The moment he's ready, they head off to SHIELD's newest base.
It's only after Tora and Lex get to the helicarrier, that they find out just who had gone to get Captain Steve Rogers and Tony Stark. They both try not to smile, let alone laugh at the thought of Coulson and Fury convincing those two to help. Well, more of getting Tony Stark too, anyway. They do laugh however, when they realize that Stark isn't even on board yet.
"I'm really not all that surprised by this. I mean, Tony isn't one to follow the rules anyway. Not after hearing Coulson and Jas complain about him so damn much and seeing it all first hand myself. I swear he spends more time with his toys then a grown man should," Lex states with a shake of her head, knowing Jas would hit her over the head if she ever heard her say that. Though, Tony wouldn't care either way. Tora just raises an eyebrow at the thought of her sister standing in the same room with someone like Stark and not wanting to kill him. It's only after saying this does Lex notice Natasha talking with Steve.
Lex gives them a few moments before making her way over. It's during this brief moment, that she thinks back to the time she first met Stark and just how close she's gotten to know him since then. It's hard to image her and Stark ever being friends, let alone acting like siblings, which is what they have become over the years. Lex smiles to herself as she thinks about just how big her family is going to get if this plays out the way Fury is hoping.
Once Tasha finishes, she walks over and introduces herself to him. "It's nice to meet you, Captain Rogers." "Nice to meet you too, Ma'am," he says politely. Lex smiles and nods, speaking softly, "Lex please and the honor is mine." "It's times like this that I wish Rebecca were here," he whispers, not meaning for Lex to over hear. Though, as it were, she does and asks, "Who's Rebecca, Captain Rogers?"
"Oh, I didn't mean for you to over hear that," he sighs. Lex just smiles at him and waits for him to answer. He sighs once again and replies, "Rebecca is Liberty Raine. She is, well was my girlfriend but I don't know what happened to her. Every time I bring it up, Fury avoids the questions." Lex sighs and says, "Yeah, sounds like him but I'm sorry to hear that, Captain Rogers. Well, I'll keep my eyes and ears open and if I hear anything in regards to her, I'll let you know."
Steve just smiles before replying, "Please call me Steve and I would greatly appreciate the help." She simply smiles and nods. It's only after Steve leaves to introduce himself to Banner, does Lex let herself sigh. Letting her thoughts drift towards Hawkeye and the current situation at hand. With another sigh, she goes to standby Tasha and her sister as they watch the boys walk over to the edge of the ship.
Natasha lets the guys know that it's time to head inside and that it'll get a little hard to breath. Lex and Tora try to hide their smiles when they hear Banner's comment about being trapped in a submerged canter then states no, it's much worse. They all head in once the helicarrier begins to rise into the air.
The moment they all get to the bridge, Steve and Bruce look around in awe. They are truly amazed by the ship. It's then that Fury has Tora show Bruce to his lab, as Tasha tags along. Making some comment about him liking it because they got all the cool toys. Lex stays behind, looking out the window on the bridge for a while, thinking things over.
While trying to figure out how to overcome Loki's blasted scepter. Fury watches this with some concern but the moment he sees Natasha coming, he lets it go. He'll step in only if Tasha fails in helping. Lex is so deep in thought that she never hears Tasha come back nor the looks Fury is giving her. That is until Tasha scares the living day lights out of her.
"Thinking about Hawkeye huh?" Tasha speaks softly as her voice is right at Lex' ear. Lex, not knowing Tasha is behind her, jumps a good two feet in the air. "God, Tasha, what the hell? You scared the livin' crap out of me," Lex states, trying to calm her racing heart. "You didn't answer the question, Lex," she smirks in an almost singsongy voice. Lex glares before answering, "Yea, I can't help it. I miss him," Tasha smiles and whispers, "Maybe, we should continue this conversation elsewhere," Lex nods in agreement as they head off, going for a walk about the ship. As they walk, they talk while learning where everything is.
"I'm sorry, Tasha. I couldn't save him. Not for my lack of trying. I just…I just.." Lex' looks away from Tasha as she says this. Tasha, knowing this was coming, smiles at her in her weirdly concerned way. She loves Lex like a sister she never had but sometimes she has a really bad habit about putting the blame upon herself when there's really no need. A habit she gets from that stubborn headed lover of hers. "It's not your fault," she states as kindly as she knows how. "I know. I just wish I could've done more. That I could've stopped Loki somehow. I keep questioning whether there was something I could've done, something I should've done," Lex states and sighs, knowing Tasha is right.
That beating herself up isn't going to help but not wanting to admit that to her just yet or even at all really. She knows she needs to stop with the self blaming but she can't help it. That's just who she is. She still doubts herself, doubts in her own abilities even when Tasha, Tora, Clint and even Tony tell her otherwise. "We all do," Tasha states matter of factually.
Now while Tasha and Lex are taking their walk, Tora leaves Bruce to begin his search. She roams the halls looking for a quiet place to relax. Her search brings her to the deck of the helicarrier on the port side, where she sits by one of the jets and watches the clouds go by. A few hours into her relaxation, finds Steve joining her. Tora looks over at him and tenses. Steve, noticing the tense look to her body, explains that she looked like she could use some company. Tora, not having to heart to turn him away, nor the heart to tell him she prefers to be alone, lets him stay. They begin to talk and by the time they both realize just how long it's been, the sun is beginning to set with vibrant reds, pinks and violets coloring the sky.
During the time Tora and Steve spend talking; Lex and Tasha are back to having a rather interesting one of their own. They ended in a more secluded area of the ship. Lex smiles and looks Tasha in the eyes as she whispers, "You know, you nor Clint ever told me just how you knew A.I.M. had me." Tasha goes wide eyed as she never thought she'd be having this conversation. Tasha just doesn't what to say to this. She knows Lex can't remember what happened prior her landing in A.I.M. hands. Though, how do you tell someone that they had already met the love with the love of their life, only for that to be stolen from them? The answer is simple, you can't.
Tasha sighs and looks at Lex before telling her some lie about how her parents wanted to sell them to the highest bidder. Though, it was their reason why that had gained SHIELD's attention. That Lex' unique ability was something SHIELD desperately wanted and therefore sent them to bring her in but had gotten there too late. That it was Clint who had somehow figured out A.I.M. had her.
"Really? You have no idea how he did it?" Lex is surprised. More surprised by the fact that Tasha never figured out how Clint knew but then again, this shouldn't surprise her. Clint just seems to have this ability when it comes to her. The bond of true soulmates, at least that's what Tasha is always saying about them anyway.
"No but it's more likely just the bond you two share," Tasha says knowing where Lex' mind is going. "yes, even then Clint told Coulson and Fury that you had to be with us. That he had to get you back because he couldn't stand by and let them use you. Clint…" she trails off as she sighs. She takes a deep breath, trying to calm her surge of emotions at all this.
"Clint would of went AWOL if Fury and Coulson hadn't okay the rescue. They had only seen him do this once before and that was when it came to me. Though, this time it was different. I could see it in his eyes. The pure emotion in them, spoke volumes to me. He had fallen for you in that instant. This is how I knew it was a soul bond. For the moment he saw you, his whole world had changed," Tasha doesn't realize the mistake she just made.
That in saying that the moment Clint saw her, everything changed because it told Lex that Tasha and Clint knew more than they were telling her. Lex just lets it go though, knowing that when the time is right, Clint will tell her. That now just isn't that time though. Lex just smiles as Tasha keeps going.
"After our first mission as a team, he couldn't stand letting you out of his sight. He tried saying that it was because your parents were still out there but I knew. I knew the truth and called him out on it." She smiles at the blush and grin that crosses Lex' face. Clint really should have told Lex the truth before now but then again, it's a good thing he didn't in this case. Mainly as it would be a very painful reminder of all she has lost, in more ways than one.
Well, how was it? I hope you all like the least update. Please read and review. Enjoy