Z.R. Stein
The Avengers from Earthland – A Fairy Tail/Avengers crossover AU fic.
I do not own the characters to either series in any way.
I've gotten a fair number of flames recently, one in particular which stated I should be shot because of how bad my story was. I'm only going to say this once: Shut the fuck up and get the hell off of this site. Do it. I ain't got time for that shit. If you don't like my story, fine, tell me, but at least try to keep it respectful.
If anyone wants to do any fanart of this, I would love to have a new cover image.
This is part one of the chapter. Part two will be uploaded soon. I had to split them in half due to length (I mean, this chapter is already the longest I've ever uploaded, and the other half is comparable in length.)
The runway was practically deserted, cold rain dripping down onto less than half a dozen small bush planes. Despite the emptiness of the area, Bruce Banner knew that something was wrong the moment he stepped off onto the ground.
After all of the strange things that happened in Canada, he'd decided to take his fortunes elsewhere; preferably someplace less weird, somewhere where he wasn't in danger of being found. Which is why he'd 'persuaded' (read, bribed with several hundred dollars) an independent pilot to fly him to Alaska immediately, after which he planned to take a boat to Russia and move on from there. If all went well, he'd be in Calcutta in a few months, and General Ross would be none the wiser.
Unfortunately, it didn't look like Bruce was going to be sampling any Indian kolkata anytime soon if the red haired woman in front of him was an indication. After so long on the run, Bruce had a finely tuned sense for danger and was a fair hand at reading people's intentions and backgrounds. And this woman screamed government agent.
No doubt there were other agents in hiding. He had to give Ross credit, the man was relentless.
"Love the outfit. What're you going for, homeless vagrant?"
Bruce chuckled humorlessly.
"Nice clothes tend to attract attention from the wrong sort of people."
The woman crossed her arms and smirked before saying "I can imagine. You look awfully cold though. You should find a better jacket."
"Thanks for the advice, but if it's all the same to you, I'll be on my way."
The woman didn't move, nor did Bruce. If they were here to capture him, they could at least stop dancing around the subject. After a moment, the redhead sighed and reached up to tuck a lock of wet hair behind her ear.
"Doctor Banner, I'm going to cut to the chase. I'm here on behalf of SHIELD. Fury sent me. We need you to come in."
Bruce raised an eyebrow, surprised. So she wasn't with Ross? That changed things...slightly. He still didn't trust her, but Nick Fury at least hadn't tried to capture him. Yet.
"Mmm. How'd you find me, anyways?"
"We never lost you. We've kept our distance. The only time we've been within a hundred meters of your home was a few days ago, and we weren't exactly there because of you."
"A few days...Thor and Erza?" Bruce questioned. "They were telling the truth?"
The woman hummed.
"Trust me, you don't know the half of it."
Bruce frowned in thought, pushing aside his skepticism for now.
"So...what's Fury's play on this? What's he planning with me, a Norse god, and a sorcerer?"
The woman withdrew a phone from her pocket and tossed it to Bruce. After fumbling it with cold fingers, he managed to make out the...blue cube? The blue cube that was on the screen.
"That," began the woman "...is the Tesseract. It has the potential energy to wipe out the planet."
"What's Fury want me to do with it, swallow it?" Bruce countered, a little more harshly than he'd intended.
The woman was unfazed though.
"He wants you to find it. It's been stolen. It gives off a radiation signature, too weak for us to trace it...but no one knows gamma radiation like you do. If there was, that's where I'd be."
Huh. "So Fury's not after the monster?" Bruce asked, perplexed and wary.
"Not that he's told me."
"And he tells you everything?"
"Talk to Fury, he needs you on this."
"He needs me in a cage?"
The woman bristled faintly, and she said "No one is going in a cage except the guy who started this."
Bruce paused. He'd been ready to test her, try to gauge what her reaction was, but something in her voice made him stop. There was history here between this woman and whoever had stolen the Tesseract. Something personal.
"The one who took the cube?"
The woman grimaced and turned away, not sharing any more. After a moment, Bruce sighed, running a hand through stringy hair.
"If I say yes...and I'm not saying I will...I'm only tracking it. Nothing more. And when I leave, I want SHIELD off my back."
The woman looked up and nodded, a slight dip of her head.
"That's agreeable, I'm sure Fury will sign off on that. So...you on board?"
Bruce glanced longingly in the general direction of Russia before finally giving in.
"Yeah. Lead the way, Miss..."
"Romanov. Natasha Romanov."
. . .
Over four thousand kilometers away, a very different meeting was taking place.
"This is out of line Director. You're dealing with freaks, forces of nature...these people can not be controlled."
Nick Fury increased his stranglehold on the railing in front of him. He knew this would happen; it seemed the only thing the World Security Council was good at was annoying the shit out of him.
"You ever been in a war, Councilman? In a firefight? Did you feel an overabundance of control?"
The Councilor frowned, image flickering.
"Are you saying this Jellal has declared war on our planet?"
Fury resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"It certainly seemed that way to me."
Another Councilor leaned forwards, adding on "And what about the other one, Gajeel? Your decision to trust him has backfired considerably. Turning sides that quickly...it does not speak well for your judgement, Director Fury."
"With respect, Councilors, I believe that Mister Redfox is the one who has been wronged here. Both Agent Barton and Erik Selvig were turned, and neither one had any reason to, Barton least of all. He's been one of my best agents for years. Whatever that staff is, it gives Jellal the ability to control others." Fury directed his gaze towards each Councilor in turn. "Gajeel Redfox is not the enemy here. Jellal is. And we need a response team to combat him."
"We're running the world's greatest covert security network and you're gonna leave the fate of human race to a handful of freaks."
Fury's frown deepened.
"I'm not leaving anything to anybody. These people may be isolated, unbalanced even, but I believe with the right push they can be exactly what we need."
"You believe?" began one of the Councilors "War isn't won by sentiment, Director."
Fury knew that fact well enough.
"No...it's won by soldiers."
. . .
Steve Rogers was at something of a loss, lying on his back and staring up at the ceiling.
Waking up seventy years after dropping into the ice could do that to a person. Everything was so...different. Nothing seemed the same. The buildings were too shiny, the cars were too fast, everywhere he turned there were screens and lights and a cacophony of sounds. It was frightening and disorienting, and sometimes, he just wanted it to stop. Lord knows he hadn't slept in days, the lights outside of his windows far brighter than he was used to. Although, the nightmares probably had more to do with his lack of sleep...
What was there left for him to live for? Everyone he knew was most likely dead or so old they would be unrecognizable. The war was over, the battle won, and Steve Rogers was a soldier without a purpose.
"Trouble sleeping?"
Steve broke himself out of his ruminations to look towards the door of his room. He'd only been awake for a handful of days, and hadn't yet been moved out of the faux forties apartment that he'd woken up in. After Nick Fury (the black man in charge of SHIELD, and wasn't that a pleasant surprise. Steve had always been critical of certain 'policies' back in the day) had explained the situation to him, Steve had agreed to stay onsite for awhile. It wasn't like he had anywhere he could go.
"I slept for seventy years sir. Think I've had my fill."
Fury grunted noncommittally before dropping into a chair opposite him.
"Suppose so. No desire to see the outside world though?"
Steve shrugged, grimacing.
"Maybe...right now I'm just trying to find my feet. When I went under, the world was at war, and I was in the thick of it for years...suddenly being back is...and how I…" Steve trailed off before saying "Frankly, sir, I don't know what to do."
Fury's eye bored into him, searching.
"Mmm. I'm an old soldier, Rogers. I've seen your type before. Guys come back from the front, guys who've been through hell...then they get home, expecting everything to go back to the way things were but instead, everything's changed. People have moved on without them, kids have grown up. Timmy got divorced and is seeing someone else. As time goes on, you get to realizing that you've changed as well, maybe even more than they have, and you can't go back. Only forwards. I'm not gonna sit here and tell you how easy it is, because it isn't. But the first step to living again doesn't involve sitting on your ass all day, alone."
Steve sighed and sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.
"You here on a mission?"
"I am."
"Come here to give me a pep talk, get me back into the world?"
Fury shook his head once.
"No. I'm trying to save it."
Steve's previous lethargic look sharpened, years of honed instincts rising to the surface. Fury noticed the change and smiled minutely before placing a standard military folder on the table. Flipping it open, Steve noticed the image on the front page, a blue, glowing cube that he was intimately familiar with.
"Hydra's secret weapon. What's happened to it?"
"It's been stolen. We've had our hands on it since you went under, thanks to Howard Stark. That cube holds the potential to be the key to unlocking unlimited clean energy...or, it could be a weapon that could wipe countries off the face of the Earth. You can see why we're concerned."
Steve nodded, having been on the receiving end of more than his fair share of HYDRA's weapons.
"Who stole it?"
"He's called Jellal, he's...not from around here."
Flipping the page again, Steve made out a blurry photo of a man with...was that blue hair? Steve shrugged; he'd seen weirder things.
"There's a lot we'll have to bring you up to speed on if you're in. The world has gotten even stranger than you already know."
Steve released a humorless chuckle.
"At this point, I doubt anything would surprise me after what I've been through, Director."
Fury smirked and responded "Ten bucks says you're wrong."
The two men shook on it, a small thrill running through Steve's mind. If there was one thing Steve Rogers knew how to do, it was fight. Maybe this would be exactly what he needed; ever since coming out of the ice, he hadn't really been living. But this...maybe he could be Captain America again, if only to move forwards. Ignorant of the Captain's inner thoughts, Fury stood and turned to leave. Stopping at the door, he spoke over his shoulder.
"Everything you need to know is in that debriefing packet. If you're in, ask for Agent Cross. He'll get you to where you need to be. And Rogers?"
"Yes sir?"
Fury's smirk widened.
"Just telling you right now, you owe me ten bucks."
. . .
Tony Stark sat in front of a bank of computer screens, eyes unblinking as he observed them. Agent Coulson, damn his smug little smile to hell, had somehow managed to maneuver his way into his own house and turn Pepper against him. And on date night as well. It was patently unfair.
Still, on the bright side, he had Pepper's promise to look forwards to. Sex was a great motivator that way, especially if the offer was coming from a hot ginger vixen. And it wasn't every day Coulson brought him a present like this. The information Agent McStuffyPants given to him was like Christmas, Easter, and two birthdays all rolled into one. Which, considering he was a billionaire, just made it all the more impressive.
Onscreen, a towering green man-thing tossed a truck like it was a basketball. Another man with flowing blonde hair raised a hammer to skies and summoned a bolt of lightning that shook the earth and the camera along with it. Footage he had never seen before of true to life Captain America played, and if the files were to be believed, the soldier was still alive. Wasn't that just jiffy.
A woman with flowing red hair suddenly glowed yellow and reappeared wearing what looked like a spiky tube top, complete with a club that looked like a tree's worst nightmare. And most interesting, a man with wild black hair spewed a tornado of metallic shards out of his mouth by screaming.
It had been only a few days since he'd taken care of Vanko and found out he wasn't going to die from palladium poisoning, but boredom travelled at lightspeed fro Tony Stark. Working on Stark Tower was fun enough, but now that he'd signed over the company to Pepper, Tony found himself with waaay too much time on his hands. He'd spent a few hours repairing the Mark VI, and using all of his newly found free time, was more than halfway done with the Mark VII. But this...this took precedence.
There was no way he wasn't jumping on this bandwagon. He wanted in on the fun. Pepper could handle the construction of Stark Tower for now, he needed to go save the world. Again. It seemed to be a running theme for him.
Tony Stark smiled to himself and sent message to Fury telling him that he was onboard, making sure to end the message with a winking smiley face. Fighting for Fury's team he may be, but Tony would never stop trying to annoy him. He was just too much fun.
. . .
Jellal could remember red.
Red like roses hanging down from lush, heavy vines. Red like the sunset over the ocean. Red like blood dripping down. Red like a strand of hair, flashing scarlet in the light.
Jellal could remember red.
He couldn't remember much else though. Everything was lost in a sea of blue, blue like Ethernano, blue like ice, blue like the Tesseract that his Master desired so much. So much blue, swirling around him, forcing its way down his throat, under his eyelids and into every corner of his mind, until he burned in the maelstrom that was his alone.
He loved his Master. He was devoted to his Lord. Not like that other one, the false one. The little black imp that he had been rescued from. What was his name again? Jellal didn't know anymore.
He would not fail his Master. He would take the fight to these primitives. He would show them the power of the Mad Titan. Death would rain down from the heavens, and all would succumb to the blue. It was inevitable; his master's will would be fulfilled. The blue commanded it.
Dimly, the part of Jellal that still retained the will to think heard the one called Barton ask him a question. The staff the Master gave him allowed him to spread his light to others. This archer knew the wonders of the blue as well.
"Sir, what's our next move?"
The answer appeared, floating out of the burning azure haze. So easy to just go with the flow. Jellal let the words form on his tongue.
"My lord gave very specific orders. We will take the fight to them on two fronts. Barton, Selvig, you will handle the portal. I will assist if you require it. Gajeel...I have a very important task for you. One that will ensure that Asgard does not interfere."
Gajeel bowed his head and Jellal felt a rictus grin form on his face. The blue made him happy. He needed nothing else.
So why did he remember red?
. . .
Landing on the deck of the SHIELD ship, Steve Rogers took his time examining his surroundings. For the first time in a week (or was it for the first time in seventy years?), he felt alive again. This was his element. Sure, the planes were different, and the ship was somewhat larger than most aircraft carriers had been during the War. But military life, it seemed, was very nearly the same as it had always been. It was comforting, in an odd way.
Another ship (a Quinjet, according to Agent Cross) landed nearby. A red haired woman with a gorgeous figure stepped out, clad in a leather jacket and sporting a pistol on her hip. A man followed behind her, owlishly blinking as he stepped into the sun. The man wore a frumpy suit coat and looked completely out of place on the carrier. It took a moment for Steve to place them, both faces having appeared in his debriefing packet. The woman was an elite SHIELD agent, Natasha Romanov, aka the Black Widow. A former Russian operative who'd joined SHIELD years ago. And the man was Bruce Banner, aka the Green Monster or the Hulk. A scientist who'd tried to duplicate Erskine's formula and had ended up failing catastrophically. Both were apparently part of this 'Avengers Initiative' that he had signed up for.
"Captain Rogers." spoke Romanov, stepping up beside him.
"Ma'am. And you must be Doctor Banner."
Banner blinked, eyes widening.
"Ah...you're Captain America. Hi."
Steve gave the doctor his best winning smile, trying to set the man at ease.
"Word is you can find the cube."
The other man's nose wrinkled up briefly, and he asked "Is that the only word on me?"
"It's the only word I care about." Steve finished, deliberately leaving out any mention of Banner's 'problem'. As long as the doctor had a handle on himself, Steve didn't feel the need to bring it up.
The man nodded, taking in the statement before gesturing with his hand "This must be strange to you...all of this."
Steve thought back to his earlier rumination and smiled.
"Actually, this is kind of familiar. I've been on my fair share of military ships in my time...it seems that not much has changed."
An alarm of some kind sounded, causing both men to look around (Steve calmly and Banner with very visible nervousness). Natasha's lip curled up and she said "Gentlemen, you may wanna step inside in a minute. It's going get a little hard to breath."
The entire structure began to shake, sending Bruce stumbling. Rogers steadied him, his brow furrowed.
"Is this a submarine?"
Bruce laughed hollowly.
"Really? They wanted me in a submerged pressurized metal container?"
Both men looked over the edge, only to observe that the ship wasn't a submarine at all. Instead, enormous propellers were emerging from beneath the surface of the water, spinning faster and faster until they blurred together in a high speed whirl of propulsion.
Bruce chuckled with slightly more vigor as Steve just looked amazed. It was obvious now that the aircraft carrier was much more than it seemed.
"Oh no, this is much worse."
With a little nudging from Romanov, the two men made their way into the interior of the Helicarrier onto the bridge, where Fury stood at the helm. Dozens of technicians sat in the bridge, observing banks of monitors and calling out measurements and numbers.
Without saying a word, Steve handed Fury ten dollars in ones, causing Fury to raise an eyebrow.
"Really? That was all it took? You haven't even hit the weird shit yet."
Rogers shrugged sheepishly.
"Guess I'm not as well travelled as I thought I was."
Fury briefly looked disappointed before shrugging as well.
"Thanks for coming anyways. You as well, Doctor Banner."
Bruce nodded.
"Thank you for asking nicely. It helps when someone isn't trying to kill me. So...how long am I staying."
Fury gave the man a considering look and said "I believe our deal was you stick around until we find the cube. After that, you're free to go."
"And SHIELD will be off my back."
Fury frowned, somewhat displeased.
"As much as we can be. At the bare minimum, I'd at least like some way to get in contact if I need to."
Bruce frowned as well, saying "Well...we can work the particulars out later. How is the search for the cube going?"
Fury was about to speak when a technician shouted out.
"Sir, I've got two unidentified objects incoming."
Turning on a dime, Fury strode away from Banner towards the woman who spoke out.
"Speed?"
"Fast. At least Mach 3, I'm having a hard time tracking them."
Fury's eye narrowed.
"Stealth, or size?"
The technician pressed a few buttons before saying "Size. Both of them slightly larger than a human on radar."
"It might be Stark. See if you can open a line to them. Just in case, send out a general alert, but d not fire unless I say so."
Steve and Bruce exchanged a glance, both watching the screen, trying to figure out what was going on. For a few moments, everyone waited with baited breath before a different technician called out.
"Sir, the bogies have landed on the port side of the Helicarrier. I have a visual."
With a few taps, the technician brought up a camera feed onto his monitor. Onscreen, four people were seen walking along the top of the Helicarrier, seemingly uncaring of the winds that buffeted the airborne ship. One was a tall, blonde man, clad in silver armour and wearing a flowing red cape. The other three were women, two of them wearing armour and one clearly a SHIELD agent, if the eagle logo was anything to go on.
Bruce blinked, eyes widening.
"Thor? Erza?"
. . .
Erza looked around as their small group entered the belly of the great airship they had landed on. Agent Fleming hung on her shoulder, staggering drunkenly as she attempted to refrain from throwing up (Erza was grateful she hadn't during the flight). Nearby, Thor and Sif marched along looking no worse for wear, Thor in particular looking reinvigorated. Four other agents of SHIELD accompanied them, rifles at the ready as they escorted them to see the 'Director'. A few words from Fleming had calmed them down, which Erza was thankful for.
Erza admitted to herself that the airship they found themselves in was a very impressive construct. It was at least three times larger than any she'd ever seen before, and if Agent Fleming was to be believed, it hovered and flew without the aid of magic circles or lacrima. Erza was sure that many back in the guild would love to analyze how the ship functioned.
The thought of Fairy Tail sent a pang of longing through her heart, which she dutifully squashed down. She would see her family again, Mystogan had promised, she had nothing to worry about. She didn't have the luxury to worry like a housewife; she was a warrior, Erza told herself, and she would act like one.
The foursome entered into a large room where dozens of people were working, using what looked like Archive magic of some kind. Three people stood out, though. A dark skinned man in black leather, his one eye glared at them and his craggy face seemingly set into a permanent grimace. Beside him was another man, tall and fair skinned, with a physique to rival Gildarts'. And beside him was…
"Bruce?"
Erza and Thor looked at each other briefly before they both turned their attention to the unassuming man that they had spent a night with.
Bruce glanced around before stepping forwards haltingly, waving.
"Uh...hi. What are you two doing here?"
"What are we doing here? What are you doing here? The last time we saw you was in Canada?"
Bruce reached up and rubbed the back of his head, wincing.
"I uh...did Fury call you here?"
"Who is this 'Fury' you speak of, Doctor Banner?" asked Thor.
The dark skinned man stepped forwards, arms crossed.
"That would be me. Nick Fury, Director of SHIELD. And you two must be Erza and Thor."
The two in question nodded, Erza giving the man an appraising look.
"You are the man who heads up this agency? Then to your question, Doctor Banner, no. We came here on the advice of Agent Fleming. She told us that SHIELD knew the location of Gajeel."
Fury's grimace changed, a flash of what looked almost like guilt crossing his face. It was gone in a split second, but Erza caught it, her eyes narrowing.
"So...where is my guildmate?"
Fury stared at her for a second, frowning, before he sighed and gestured towards the back of the room where a table and chairs sat.
"I might as well catch everyone up to speed, we don't seem to be on the same page right now. Captain Rogers, Doctor Banner, Thor, Erza, and...who are you?"
Sif inclined her head slightly and said "I am Sif, shield maiden of Asgard and companion to Thor."
Fury shook his head but kept his mouth shut. The five of them sat around the table, looking up at him expectantly.
"SHIELD is the agency that protects the world from threats that others aren't equipped to deal with yet. Threats like aliens, interdimensional travellers, and so on." Fury gave Thor and Erza a significant look. "We come across some strange things, let me tell you, some of which are harmless, and some of which are far more dangerous." Fury turned his eye on Steve Rogers. "Seventy years ago, in the final days of World War II, Captain Rogers fought against an organization known as HYDRA. They were a dangerous group for many reasons, but the foremost reason was the artifact that they'd acquired from a chapel in Norway. An artifact of unimaginable power...a blue cube that was known as the Tesseract."
Thor's eyes widened, and he shared a look with Sif. The jewel of Odin's Vault was here?
"Captain Rogers brought down a bomber that was set on obliterating the entire United States, and he crash landed in the Arctic. The Tesseract was recovered not long after, apparently having burned through the floor of the aircraft. We didn't find the ship itself until this year."
Fury looked down at the table and continued.
"SHIELD has had the Tesseract since then...or we did up until yesterday."
Thor asked sharply "Someone stole it?"
Fury nodded, a quick jerk of his head. He looked up and fixed Erza with a piercing look.
"His name was Jellal. And he seemed to know your guild mate."
Erza froze.
Jellal. Jellal was here after all. And he had stolen an artifact of tremendous power. Erza's heart clenched. Of course it had to be him; who else would it be? It was always going to be the man who haunted her nightmares.
Erza dimly heard Fury asking her another question, and with great effort, managed to drag herself out of her panicked memories.
"I'm sorry...what did you ask?"
"I asked you if you'd tell me what the hell we're dealing with." Fury said "You know him, don't deny it. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't restrain you right here and now."
Thor stood up abruptly, his chair hitting the floor.
"I would sooner rip this ship from the sky than let you lay a hand on her! The Lady Erza is innocent in this, Nick Fury, Director of SHIELD."
Thor's outburst had everyone on edge; out of the corner of her eye, Erza noticed several agents put hands on their weapons.
"Thor...enough." Erza waved her hand at her friend "As for you question...it's a long story. But to summarize...I was once friends with Jellal. We...we were slaves together at the Tower of Heaven."
Some of the tension bled out of the room, and Thor righted his chair to sit back down. Erza continued "He was...different back then. I looked up to him. He was always so strong. And then, one day, he was taken away by the guards after an escape attempt and when I saw him next...he wasn't the same." Erza shook her head, eyes distant.
"He claimed to have seen truth. That Zeref had shown him this truth...and that he would create a world of true freedom, by resurrecting the most powerful dark mage my world has ever known. We fought, and he effectively banished me from the island. I didn't see him again for eight years. When I finally did...he wanted to use me as the sacrifice to bring Zeref back. Too much happened during the Tower of Heaven assault to talk about, but in the end, he was consumed by Ethernano, and I thought that was the end."
Erza sighed and finished "Not even a month afterwards, Gajeel and I happened upon a massive chunk of Ethernano in a cave. Jellal was inside. I still don't know exactly what happened...but somehow, the three of us were dragged through to this dimension."
Fury leaned back, face neutral.
"So. What can we expect with this guy?"
Erza scowled at no one in particular, arms crossed.
"Jellal was one of the Ten Wizard Saints back in Fiore. They're the ten strongest mages on the continent. He is a master of Heavenly Body magic, can use Thought projections, and has proficiency in elemental magic and darkness magic. In a word, he's dangerous."
Fury released an explosive sigh and leaned back in his chair.
"Wonderful. We're dealing with a fucking Dark Wizard from another dimension."
With a cough, Steve Rogers drew attention to him and asked "Wait...you're saying that magic is real?"
Erza raised an arm, a shimmering form taking place in her hand as she summoned a double bladed axe out of thin air. Twirling it around, she slammed it into the tabletop, Steve eyes nearly popping out of his skull. Bruce actually stood up and moved closer, tapping the axe in several places just to make sure it wasn't an illusion.
"It's real...creating matter is scientifically impossible...some kind of pocket dimension, maybe?"
Erza smiled minutely and said "Precisely right. I store all of my weapons and armours with my Requip magic and can summon them remotely."
Bruce nodded, eyes examining every inch of the battleaxe.
Fury interrupted his examination, saying "Can we get back on track here? Frankly, I don't give a shit if you can use magic or not. All I want to know is if you're gonna help us against Jellal."
Erza looked at the Director and nodded.
"Jellal is...it is my duty to see that he is brought to justice, as it is partially my fault he is here. I will aid in your battle, Director Fury."
Without skipping a beat, Thor spoke up.
"I will stand by Lady Erza's side. I owe her a great debt."
Sif nodded as well, before she tilted her head.
"Forgive me...but I do not think you answered the original question."
Erza's gaze sharpened once more, and she said "Yes...that is true. Where is Gajeel?"
Fury paused before speaking, another flash of guilt crossing his face.
"We made contact with Gajeel not that long ago and brought him in. We asked him some questions, he asked us some, one of which was where you were. I asked him to accompany me to the JDEMF, the place where the Tesseract was being kept...he was there when Jellal came out of the portal."
Fury leaned forwards, placing his elbows on the table.
"I don't know how he did it...but Jellal used his staff to control Gajeel's mind, along with two of our own. He's out of our hands."
Dun dun dun.
I know I've screwed up the timeline. That has never been more obvious than it is here. Thus, several things are different. Steve Rogers has just gotten out of the ice, Phase Two is in a much earlier stage, Natasha Romanov didn't have time to infiltrate a Russian gang, etc. But realistically, Gajeel and Erza both want to get home, so waiting around for large chunks of time just wasn't going to work.
Next chapter: The Avengers finish assembling, and the first really big throwdown of this fic.