Wires
PenPatronus
Chapter Six
Maria Hill was supposed to be on vacation. She left the moment Phil Coulson's funeral ended. So it was quite a shock when her flight landed in Mexico right beside an F-22 branded with the SHIELD insignia. The even bigger shock was when she entered the plane and found Nick Fury. Only Nick Fury. No other pilot, no crew, no agents, no soldiers.
"Hill," he said, bypassing any civil greeting, "answer me this: are you with me or with the Council?"
Maria became very aware that she was wearing flip flops and short shorts. "I work for S.H.I.E.L.D, sir."
A single blink from a single dark eye. "I'll ask again, Hill. Me or the Council?"
"Is this a trick question?"
No blink.
"You, sir," she said. "You."
He took her hand and shook it. "Then welcome to level 10."
She hesitated. "I'm level 8, sir. Don't I have to be 9 before I'm 10?"
"Phil Coulson is alive."
A ton of bricks. That was the feeling. Hill dropped her suitcase and clutched her tank top. "Oh, my god… Oh thank God."
"No vacation for you, Hill." A rare smile from Fury. "Suit up. We have work to do."
Like an intoxicated puppy trying to get out of an itchy Halloween costume. That's what the very ill Tony Stark looked like trying to take off the Iron Man suit. Banner whispered the observation to Steve, who was cuffing an unconscious Coulson with zip ties. "People put costumes on their pets?" Steve asked, dumbfounded. "That's – that's a thing?"
"Unfortunately, yes," Bruce sighed. He stepped over Coulson and walked across the cargo hold to Stark. "Norse gods are real, aliens are real, and dogs wear Halloween costumes."
"I saw a Doberman in an Iron Man suit once," Tony said with a slight slur to his words as Bruce helped him lift the chest armor up and over his head. "Iron Dog – ha." He swayed dizzily before righting himself.
Goosebumps prickled down Bruce's neck. "Your fever's back. You need another dose of radiation. Not too much, though. Don't want you to turn green."
Tony started to sweat as he peeled off his leg armor with shaking hands. "Thought I'd be dead by now. Should've been dead by now. Would've been if not for Loki's damn scepter. Instead of being dead I just feel dead."
Cap marched over, trying not to look panicked. "Stark, you're bleeding," he said. Gloved fingers pointed at the newly returned lesions on Tony's arms.
"So are you. So is Banner."
Bruce fingered a bump on the back of his head. "Damn hammer hit me when the helicopter crashed."
"Blame Coulson." The three men looked down at their recently resurrected comrade.
"Are you sure we can trust him?" Cap wondered aloud.
Tony leaned against the wall and only fussed once when Banner knelt and helped him remove his boots. "Not with those nano-cells in his noggin. I have an idea, though. I know someone who might be able to help – might be able to hack the nano-tech." Tony wiped the sweat off his forehead. "Don't have any water, do we?"
Steve started rooting through the copter's emergency supplies. "Wouldn't it be easier to have Thor take him to Asgard like Barton? You should go, too, Tony."
Stark didn't seem to hear his fellow Avenger. "Mary… May… May-a. Right," he muttered. "Maya Hansen. If anybody can recode Coulson's brain, it's her."
Steve unscrewed the plastic cap off a half-gallon of water and handed it to Tony. It was too heavy, apparently. Tony's knees buckled. Water splashed onto Banner's head. Bruce stood. Steve dropped. They met in the middle and wrapped their arms protectively around Tony. "Crap," Stark whispered. His skin whitened another shade. As Steve steadied him and Banner helped him sit, Tony's head landed in the gap between Bruce's shoulder and neck, and stayed. Cap and Bruce exchanged wide-eyed, helpless looks. They waited, impatiently, for Tony to catch his breath.
Five minutes passed. Then, with no comment on what just happened, Stark continued. "Dr. Hansen knows how to access the brain's repair center. If we can get Coulson to her…"
Steve straightened. "What about Agent Rom—"
Bells suddenly chimed from Bruce's pocket. "Speak of the devil," he muttered after fumbling with his S.H.I.E.L.D.-issued cell phone. "It's a text from Romanoff."
"What did she say?" Stark asked.
Steve peered over Bruce's shoulder. "If Loki catches her contacting us…"
Bruce cut them off. "She says that Loki's scepter didn't work on her. He only thinks he has her under control… He's after the Chitauri tech, he'll go where she tells him so we can set a trap, just let her know the place and time."
Cap exhaled. It was the first good news in days. "We can ambush Loki."
"What about Loki?" said a voice from the helicopter door. The three men looked up to see Thor standing in the doorframe with his hammer over his shoulder.
"You moved the crew?" Tony asked.
The god of thunder nodded. "I took them to California, I think. Might have been Canada. Started with a 'C.'"
"Swell." Tony folded his arms against his chest. His head still rested against Bruce's shoulder. He wasted no effort moving it. He updated Thor, briefly, then thought aloud to the others, "We could kill two birds with one stone if we play our cards right, boys."
"How so?" asked Bruce.
"What birds?" said Thor.
Tony continued. "I know of a lab outside of Minneapolis. Maya could fly in and meet us there, we break in…" Tony pinched his shirt and fanned it. "Damn hot in here… We take Coulson. Maya cures him while we prep for Loki."
Bruce's shoulder started to ache from Tony's weight, but he didn't mention it. "Why Minneapolis?" he asked.
"Chitauri tech. That's where S.H.I.E.L.D. moved some of the weapons."
"It'll be three birds with one stone," said Bruce. "When we get the scepter back we'll hook it up to you again. More chemotherapy."
"Four birds." Tony's nostrils flared. "We save Romanoff." He winced and massaged the bridge of his nose. Bruce tightened the grip he had around Tony's shoulders as more weight sagged against him. "Guess I better call Maya before I pass out again," Tony whispered. "At least I remember this chick's name."
To Be Continued