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Once the tracking algorithm was activated, the only thing Hermione, Bruce and Tony could do was sit around and wait for a location to come up. Of course, Tony was the only one who had something to do, and Bruce was watching the screen intensely as dozens of SHIELD's files popped up and then vanished. Hang on a minuteā¦
"Are you hacking into SHIELD?" Hermione asked loudly, walking over to the duo and finally seeing what they were up to.
"Nope!" Tony denied, changing the screen back to something more science related and pulling it away from her. In return Hermione pulled the screen back and opened up the recent applications, he was hacking into SHIELD alright. What even is Phase 2? It didn't sound right even for her. Most likely it was something the stupid World Council wanted as soon as possible. Hermione always wondered what goes on inside their heads for them to push for such stupid things so quickly.
As Hermione got lost in her thoughts about the Council, the lab door swung open and Fury stormed in, "What are you doing Mr Stark?" He demanded, his one eye staring intensely at the eccentric billionare.
"Kind have been wondering the same thing about you." Tony replied.
"You're supposed to be finding the Tesseract."
"We are," Bruce interjected, "The model's locked and we're sweeping for a signature now. When we get a hit, we'll have the location within half a mile."
"And you'll get the cube back no muss no fuss. What is Phase 2?" Tony finished.
The dull throbbing in Hermione's head worsened as Steve entered the room and slammed a HYDRA weapon on the table, "Phase 2 is SHIELD using the cube to make weapons." He explained bluntly. Hermione snatched the weapon off him and took it to her corner, carefully disassembling it so she could reach the power source, "Sorry, the computer was moving a little slow for me," He apologised to Tony and Bruce.
"Rogers, we gathered everything related to the Tesseract. This does not mean that we're.."
Tony cut him off again by pulling another screen around and displaying the schematics for a nuclear bomb, "I'm sorry Nick. What were you lying?"
"Steve's right, this thing has been taken apart before and the core taken out. Were you going to incorporate HYDRA's weapons of mass destruction into our arsenal? I can't believe you would do such a thing! There is no way any government would back this if they found out where you and the Council got the idea from!" Hermione shouted at her pseudo uncle.
"I was wrong. The world hasn't changed a bit." Steve grumbled.
Of course the argument got worse when Natasha and Thor entered the lab with stony expressions on their faces.
"Did you know about this?" Bruce asked Natasha.
"You want to think about removing yourself from this environment Doctor?" She asked in return, stepping closer to Hermione.
"I was in Calcutta, I was pretty well removed."
"Loki's manipulating you." Natasha pointed out.
"And you've been doing what exactly?" Bruce asked in return. If Hermione didn't have a headache or wasn't involved in such a life threatening situation she would have climbed into the vents, grabbed a back of popcorn and watched the argument play out. Hang on a minute, this is what Loki wants to happen, divide and conquer.
"You didn't come here because I bat my eyelashes at you."
"Yes, and I'm not leaving because suddenly you get a little twitchy." Bruce argued once more, he wasn't even turning a shade of green. Why was Natasha getting so worried? "I'd like to know why SHIELD is using the Tesseract to build weapons of mass destruction."
Fury turned his glare to Thor, "Because of him." He said.
Thor looked taken aback, "Me?"
"Last year Earth had a visitor from another planet who had a grudge match that levelled a small town. We learned that not only are we not alone, but we are hopelessly, hilariously outgunned." Fury explained.
"My people want nothing but peace with your planet!" Thor protested.
"We didn't even cause New Mexico in the first place! That was an isolated incident Thor solved that year. Asgard as a whole won't invade unless we give them a reason to." Hermione joined in with Thor's argument.
"But you're not the only people out there, are you? And you're not the only threat. The world's filling up with people who can't be matched, they can't be controlled."
"Like you controlled the cube?" Steve questioned.
"You're work with the Tesseract is what drew Loki to it, and his allies. It is a signal to all the realms that the earth is ready for a higher form of war." Thor accused.
"You forced our hand, we had to come up with something." Fury responded.
"Not like this!" Hermione shouted.
"A nuclear deterrent, cause that always calms thing right down." Tony scoffed.
"Remind me again how you made your fortune Stark?" Fury sniped.
The throbbing in Hermione's head developed into someone taking a hammer to it as the rest of the group's bickering and sniping became a full blown argument. Her vision blurred as the pain got worse, but she was certain the sceptre was glowing brighter and brighter with every second. Natasha was right, Loki is manipulating us and more importantly, the sceptre was amplifying the emotions radiating off Bruce and Stark in droves. Then all of a sudden it stopped as everyone turned to look at Bruce with concern.
"Doctor Banner, put down the sceptre." Steve ordered gently.
"Expelliarmus." Hermione cast, ripping the sceptre out of Bruce's hands and into hers, Hermione put it back on the table and stepped closer into the group so even she couldn't reach it without the movements being obvious. Natasha and Fury looked at her in surprise; she didn't use her wand that time.
Her computer bleeped loudly with the location of the Tesseract as Bruce walked over to it and checked, "Sorry kids you don't get to see my party trick after all." He mumbled.
"Have you located the Tesseract?" Thor asked.
"I can get there faster." Tony called out.
"Look, all of us.." Steve began however his seemingly logical plan was cut off by Thor,
"The Tesseract belongs on Asgard. No human is a match for it."
Tony begins his way to the door but is cut off by Steve, "You're not going alone!" The soldier protested.
"You gonna stop me?" Tony relplied.
"Put on the suit, let's find out."
"I'm not afraid to hit an old man." Tony threatened.
"Put on the suit!"
"EVERYONE JUST SHUT THE HELL UP FOR ONCE AND LET US TELL YOU THE LOCATION!" Hermione screamed at the arguing duo. She didn't actually tell them the location because a large explosion tossed Hermione out of the lab window like a rag doll. Her back collided hard with someone else's front, and they landed hard on the ground. Immediately Hermione rolled away and sat up as the comm link in her ear came to life,
"Barton, you okay?" Fury asked, concern filling his voice for the youngest person on board.
"I'm okay. Can't say the same to the sucker I landed on." She groaned in reply.
"Get to the detention level with Coulson. Try and keep him in the container, drop him if you have to." He ordered.
"Got it," Hermione confirmed, before turning back to the winded agent, "Can I borrow your gun?" She asked sweetly, the man just groaned so she took it as a yes and she pulled the handgun out of his holster, "Thank you."
Coulson held out is hand to pull her up, "You alright?" He asked.
"I've been better. At least I don't have a headache anymore." She replied.
"Good. Let's go."
They left the bridge at a steady jog but used the backways to the Detention level as to avoid the men that caused the explosion, "So how's that team of yours forming?" Hermione asked.
"Good, just need a pilot and we'll be golden. Know anyone good?" Coulson asked.
"Heard Melinda May's getting bored in admin. May might not be ready for action but I bet she'll pilot if you ask nice enough. Can't hurt to try right?"
Gunshots echoed down the hallway as the armed invaders finally reached their section of the corridor, Hermione and Coulson quickly returned fire. The distinctive clicking noise of an empty cartridge came far too quickly and she had no spare clips. "Shit." She cursed, tossing the now useless gun aside and ducked behind an air vent.
"I'll deal with this, you go!" Coulson shouted at her, shooting the man closest to where he was hiding, spinning him around and using his as a shield and kicking his semi-automatic to Hermione which she picked up. She kicked the nearest grate open and neatly slipped into the vent without a sound until her feet hit the ground. Hermione crawled around the series of tunnels designed for her father and herself to sneak around in until she could see the back of Loki's head through a glass door. Got him now. She thought, kicking away the grate and jumping out.
Loki turned around as Hermione slammed the door open and pointed her gun at him, "Make a move and I'll shoot!" She told him, putting enough steel in her voice as possible.
"You'll do such a thing?" He returned as footsteps grew closer to the main entrance, Hermione faced it and shot down the incoming gunmen without hesitation.
"I will if it keeps you in a cage."
Loki laughed darkly as he stepped towards her and began analysing her like an animal for slaughter, "You have so much power for a young girl. And friends, such loyal friends. Tell me, do they know of your true life? Or do you hide from them like you did me?" He asked.
"If you've messed with either of them I swear to God you'll regret it!"
He laughed again, "It really is in your nature to lie and kill isn't it? We have a lot in common, you and I."
"We are not alike in any way whatsoever. I want to know how you know about them." Hermione spat.
"Your father is quite the talker, as you may have discovered. He told me everything about you and your friend's escapades over the years. Yet they have no idea how easy killing comes to you. You've lied to them and deceived them so many times I doubt even you believe the lies you feed them. How can you be in the house of the brave, when you have more cunning them Salazar himself?"
"Because I value bravery far more than I do lying. You think I'm the only one born a killer? Lies and deception run in Harry's blood for two generations. Even the leader of his society thinks he was born to kill. So do yourself a favour and shut up." Hermione ordered.
While Hermione defended herself from Loki's verbal attacks, a small handful of his men managed to sneak behind her and cover the room's possible exits. She was trapped and all she could do was keep Loki from messing her head.
"Sir is she becoming a problem?" The man closest to her asked. Hermione whipped around and pointed the barrel of her gun at his chest.
"She does need dealing with," Loki answered, "Gather what remains of the men and leave before this place falls out of the sky."
The cage opened and Loki stepped out smoothly as his sceptre was handed back to him. Hermione could feel the fear building up inside of her at the sight of Loki walking around with the swagger of a free man. It was without a doubt that Loki would do anything in his power to make sure Hermione felt all the pain she's inflicted on her targets before she died; but he wasn't going to do it such a private place. No; it had to be public, exposed so that her friends would see the real side of her and be happy about her death. She gulped and backed herself into the wall as one of his mindless servants approached her and the rest left.
"NO!" Thor roared as he lumbered into the room, hoping to tackle Loki from his position in front of the open cage.
"Thor it's a trick!" Hermione shouted, raising her gun and shooting the man in front of her as the image of Loki vanished and Thor stumbled into the cage; she could only watched helplessly as the glass door closed, locking her so far only asset in.
"Are you ever not going to fall for that?" Loki mused to his once brother. Thor swung his hammer into the glass, putting a large crack in however forcing one of the claws to release its grip on the cage and tip it further into the steel chasm.
Hermione scanned the Loki that was walking around the detention level, hoping that this one was as real as the man handling the control panel still, "Thor don't make a move otherwise the cage drops." Hermione warned.
"The humans think us immortal, shall we test that?" Loki asked, moving towards the control panel as the man by it steps back, only to be caught in Coulson's choke hold and consequently tossed to the ground lifelessly. Coulson raises his monster of a gun at Loki and politely asks,
"Move away please?" Coulson doesn't pause as he continues, "Do you like this? We started working on the prototype after you sent the destroyer to Earth. Even I don't know what it does. Want to find out?"
Loki says nothing, instead choosing to fade away and reappear behind Phil and raise the sceptre towards his back. Both Hermione and Thor cry out when it enters the agents back, sending scarlet liquid pooling onto the front of his white shirt as Phil falls back against the wall. Instantly Hermione reacts, scrambling forwards and sending a pulse of magic to the control box before sending another to the glass cage. Shards shatter outwards, hitting everyone on the level as Thor rushes over to Loki.
"Thor move!" Hermione shouts, pulling the gun out of Phil's grip and pointing it at Loki as it fires, melting away the metal walls and tossing Loki away from sight like a rag doll.
Phil swallows feebly as he looks at the carnage, "So that's what it does." He coughed out. Hermione shoved her hands onto his bleeding front.
"No no no. Phil don't leave me okay, don't leave me!" Hermione sobbed as he grew paler, Thor did everything he could to save the man's life by copying Hermione, only further up his chest.
"You'll be alright Maya, just remember who you are."
"No! You're not going to die Phil! I won't let it happen. Please don't go!"
Hermione could hear footsteps grow closer as orders were given out concerning Phil, Fury's own voice being the leader as he gently pulled her away to let the onsite paramedics get to Phil. Her hands were stained in blood as Fury turned her around, "You need to go. We have your dad. Let the EMT's deal with this." He told her.
"Lady Emerys let this go. Your healers will be capable of looking after him." Thor reassured, taking her arm gently. Hermione turned back to look at Fury.
"This is on you, you know that? I blame you." She spat, before turning around and walking out of the detention centre with Thor.
Fury turned his attention back to Phil, "Emerys huh?" Fury scoffed.
"Well we were looking for a name for her." Phil replied, earning a smile from the hardened director, "At least it's better then what we planned."
"BlackHawk was never going to go down well with anyone. Sorry Phil."
"It's alright. At least I won the bet."
"That you did."
"Two hundred milligrams of ketamine going in." One of the medics called out as the needle of clear liquid went in.
"If all else fails I want you to take him to the T.A.H.I.T.I project," Fury ordered, "Make it a level ten."
"Right away sir."
Within moments the medics were gone; all that was left was an alarmingly large puddle of blood and shattered glass. Loki had killed Phil Coulson. At least, that's what Fury made the Avenger's believe.
And everything Fury said was true, right?
And done!
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