Author's Note: Okay, not quite as long as I had hoped. I just wrote half of this today, so forgive me. Please continue to review, I love you all! Also, feel free to make predictions on future pairings or whatever you wish. I do promise a few pairings to come up a bit later. xD ~Jazzy
P.S. Next chapter Tryst and Lupe WILL be meeting the rest of the gang. So prepare for some interesting conversations!
Chapter 5: Life Goes On…
At S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ…
Agent Knox entered the headquarters quietly. Two agents behind him dragged the unconscious bodies of the two demi-gods. The girl had woken up mid-drive and had to be tranq'd a second time. She was truly superhuman if she needed two horse tranquilizers to keep her down for 3 hours…
"Put them in holding rooms 2 and 3," He commanded the two Agents. They nodded and took their charges to the rooms.
He walked into main command room, where Fury would be waiting. "Director Fury, I have successfully captured the two persons of interest." Agent Knox said simply. The Director turned around and gave him a quizzical look, holding a manila folder in one hand.
"When were you going to tell me, Agent Knox?"
"Tell you what, sir?"
Fury smiled, a truly rare occurrence. "I had to look in your file to find out…" Knox shifted his weight nervously. "That Agent Coulson was your father…?"
Knox paused and gave a breathy laugh. "It wasn't relevant."
"Of course it is. Your father was a hero. A true Agent. With his status, you can go far in your career. Everyone respects him…" Fury pointed out, examining the folder closely.
"With all due respect sir, I didn't want anyone to know. I wanted to make my own way in S.H.I.E.L.D., not be promoted because of my father's deeds."
"Good answer," Fury chuckled. "How old were you when he…."
Knox interrupted him, not wanting to hear the rest of the sentence. "I was 6, sir." His eyes grew wistful.
"It must have been hard for you and your mother."
"It was. She took it badly. But life moves on. They weren't married actually. But they were going to be…" Knox smiled a little, remembering his mother going dress shopping only a few weeks before his father's death. She had been so happy and carefree, taking him with her. Swirling in the dresses. Feeling like a queen. And she would hold him and tell him that he was her little prince and that daddy loved him.
"She was a… cellist?"
"The best around. Orchestras all wanted her to perform with them…" Knox trailed off. "Well sir," he cleared his throat. "I have to go back and interrogate the suspects now."
"Good talking with you, Agent Knox." Fury said briefly.
"Thank you sir."
2.
Lupe woke up with a stinging headache. He tentatively placed a hand over his forehead, massaging his temples. Then he realized he was in handcuffs. His head darted around, as he took in his surroundings. A dark room with a small plastic chair at one end and a table at the other. He was laying on the ground.
Lupe could barely remember a thing. As the seconds ticked past, he slowly remembered the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent, who had tazered him. Why? It was apparent that this was not a desirable place to be. And where had Tryst gone? Had the Agent taken her too? But she seemed like a girl who wouldn't give up without a fight. Why was he so worried? He barely knew the girl.
The door opened as Lupe pulled himself off the ground. He narrowed his eyes to get a better look at the new arrival.
The man from before, the man who had tazered him, walked in. "Lupe Lokison," the man said cordially. "I'm Agent Knox, I trust you remember me…?"
Lupe bit his lip angrily, trying to hold back a quip or comment that would only get him in trouble. "Yes. I do remember you. Why am I here? I'm pretty sure this is a violation of my ri-"
The Agent smiled ruefully. "I am sorry for the… incident. I was only told to take you into custody by any means necessary." He walked towards Lupe and pulled out some keys, unlocking the handcuffs. Lupe rubbed his wrists, which had small red indentations on them.
"Why am I here, though?"
"It's about your father." Knox stated simply. "And you."
"What about me, I'm nothing special," Lupe said automatically.
"Oh, you're far from ordinary, Lupe. And I think you know that too. Something's happened to you, hasn't it? You've discovered something about yourself…" The Agent said mysteriously. Okay, so they were watching Lupe. He wondered for how long.
"I'm not a threat, if that's what you mean," Lupe said, looking the Agent in the eyes.
"I'm afraid you are. You see, you don't have a very good control of your abilities right now. Which is understandable, considering the fact that they're brand new. But the point is, you could accidentally do something you'll regret. And you don't have a good track record right now, considering your parentage…"
"I am not my father," Lupe said gravely. "I just met him. I don't know any-" By the light that dawned in the Agent's eyes, this was new information. Lupe frowned a little, he shouldn't have said that he just met his father… "-thing about him. I have no grudges against S.H.I.E.L.D. or my country." At least not any I'd divulge.
"We understand your position, and we have a deal for you." Knox said with the slightest of smiles. "We want you to work for us, at S.H.I.E.L.D."
"Doing what exactly?"
"We have a new… initiative. We're collecting the 'next generation' of superheroes and talented individuals all around your age."
Lupe murmured a hushed 'hm…'. "But still, what is the purpose of this 'Initiative'?"
"Just doing things to help out the world. Fight crime. Defeat those who seek to destroy us. Coordinate and discuss things with-" the Agent stopped rather abruptly. "With Asgard."
"Why should I?" It wasn't that Lupe didn't want to help, but there was so much to consider. Working with a bunch of strangers who all hated his father… It didn't seem good. And of course, his father said not to trust S.H.I.E.L.D…. but then again, could Lupe even trust his father?
"We are prepared to give you whatever you ask for, within reason, of course." Lupe thought for a second. What would he want?
"I want… money and protection. For my mother. I guess you know where she lives…" If you've really been stalking us, was his under-thought. "I also want training. From competent people. I don't want innocent people getting hurt from my abilities. And finally… I want files." The Agent had a surprised look on his face. "Files on who I'll be working with. And about the events of 19 years ago. I have a lot to catch up on."
"I can't get you all the files," Knox warned. "Only some of the more declassified files. Or whatever Fury allows you to see."
"That's fine," Lupe said quickly, happy to even get the barest of information. "But I want the files of my father. ALL of his files. Non-negotiable."
"Fine," Knox agreed. "But you may not like what you read."
"It's my choice. I need to know about my father. Is there anything else?"
Knox shook his hand. "Welcome to S.H.I.E.L.D."
3.
Honestly, Amy thought that Bane was about to explode into a giant green rage monster at the news he had just received. The shouting and surprised emotions on his face made it apparent that it was not good news. Amy had used her super-sense abilities to listen in on the conversation. And it really wasn't good.
His caretaker, his 'Yvonne', was missing.
"Are you okay?" She asked him, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder. He looked up at her sadly, brown eyes dulled.
"I-I'm fine," he stuttered.
"Y'sure dude?" Everest said, strutting over. Yes, strutting. "You looked like you were about to explode or something."
"I'm fine," he rubbed his temples. "I have a pill for that…" he chuckled a little.
"Gosh, where can I get me somma those magic pills? Sure could save me from getting grounded…" Everest muttered.
"Trust me, you don't want these pills." Bane said grimly. Everest raised an eyebrow but otherwise remained silent.
"What happened?" Anubis asked.
"Nothing. Nothing important." Bane replied.
"Suuuure."
But Bane wasn't going to enlighten the others any further. Amelia coughed a little, trying to alleviate the burden of the silence. "Anybody want to play a board game or something?" She tried, wincing a little when she heard how ridiculous that sounded.
"I actually have a couple board games somewhere around here…" Neo said enthusiastically. He rummaged around some of the cabinets and finally emerged with a stack of board games in his arms.
They all sat down awkwardly on the couches and chairs settled around. "How about clue?" Neo suggested. A few nods decided that they'd indeed be playing it. Amelia was glad. She was half-decent at that game.
They had to explain to Banner how to play. "Okay, you're 'Reverend Green,' so here's your piece." Everest said, handing the boy a game piece. "You set it right there. And then you roll the dice and go a certain number of steps. And you get in a room. And you try and guess who the murderer is!" Okay, so he wasn't the best instruction giver, but luckily Neo and Anubis tag-teamed and showed Bane how to play.
"Okay, Miss Scarlet always goes first," Neo said, tossing the dice towards Anubis. "And then we go clockwise. So it'll be me next, Professor Plum, then Amy, Mrs. Peacock, then you, Bane, then finally Everest, Col. Mustard. Then we repeat it."
"What about that piece?" Bane pointed to the white figure.
"That's Mrs. White. We don't have enough people to have her play."
"Ah."
And so started the weirdest and most awkward game of Clue. Quite possibly ever. Amelia was doing well, she had it narrowed down to Miss Scarlet or Professor Plum as the suspects. And it was either in the Conservatory or the Ballroom. She just needed a few more clues… And Everest was already out. He had made a rash guess of "Mrs. Peacock, in the Library, with the lead pipe!" only a few turns in. And he had been horribly wrong. So he sat sullenly on the outside, pointing out various little details in the game, and peeking at everyone's clues.
"I'VE GOT IT!" Neo said triumphantly. "It's Miss Scarlet in the Ballroom, with the revolver!" He reached over to the small 'confidential' envelope and took out the contents.
"Well, are you right?" Bane asked quietly.
"Yup! Sorry Anubis," Neo smirked. "But you're the murderer. You're going to have to go to jail now."
"Oh darn," Anubis frowned. "I never suspected myself. I thought it was you, Neo."
"It's okay," Amelia spoke up. "I thought it was both of you. Like in some conspiracy. Who'd you suspect, Bane?"
"Oh, I, uh-" he stammered. Everest yanked his cards and notepad out.
"Oh man. Look at this! He knew the murderer all along! It says right here, 'Scarlet, Ballroom, Revolver.'"
"Why didn't you accuse anyone?" Anubis questioned.
"I-I just. I don't know. I guess I just didn't want anyone to get in trouble." Bane shrugged, gently taking the notepad away from the red-haired boy.
"It's just a game, Bane."
"Yeah, I know…"
5.
"My head feels like Mjolnir fell on it…" Tryst complained, waking up. She went to scratch her head, but found out she couldn't move her hands. They were held to a chair by some sort of plastic ties. The chair was also secured to the floor. She couldn't move her feet either.
"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!" She shouted. "I AM THE HEIR OF ASGARD. YOU SHALL NOT CONTA-"
The door opened halfway through her shouting. The Agent known as 'Knox' walked in. "I see you're awake." He said simply.
"What am I going here!" She struggled at her bounds.
"You tried to attack us. We had to temporarily knock you out. The restraints are for the Agents safety. We didn't want you waking up and hurting one of our men." He explained. Tryst wanted to trust him. He had an honest face and looked nice enough.
"I am sorry for my actions. I do not know most of my own strength. It is why I am present here." Her face suddenly turned into shock. "Where is Mjolnir?!" She moved about, trying to undo the restraints. Suddenly the hammer burst through the wall, leaving a sizable hole. However, since she couldn't move her wrists, the hammer settled itself on her lap.
"Ah yes," Knox said. "We had to leave it back at the Motel. None of our men could lift it," he admitted with a laugh.
"Only I and my father are able to lift this hammer." She said proudly.
"I will undo your bounds if you promise not to attack me or my men."
"What is your name?" She asked quickly.
"What?"
"What is your name? And your father's name?"
"Uh…" He paused. "I'm William Knox. My father was… Phil…?"
"I promise to you, William Knox, son of Phil, that I will not cause harm to come to you or your companions." Tryst proclaimed, as Knox took out a scissors and cut the ties to her arms and legs.
She stood up, stretching. And she still felt exceedingly sore on every part of her body. And had a roaring headache. "You are with the organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D.?" She asked.
"That's correct," Knox replied.
"Then I have come to assist you!"
"Wh-?"
"My father, Thor Allfather, has given me a quest on Midgard, to gain immortality! I am to assist S.H.I.E.L.D. and help to protect your realm for the course of a year…"
"Well, that's great," the Agent said. "And I know just where you can help…"