NOTE: Wooooooo! 10 chapters in and over 10k words. I'm so happy with how this story is going and I'm glad everyone is happy. This chapter is going to be intense and the story will pick up significantly. Thank you as always for reading and if anyone has any questions or comments, feel free to tell me! I want to make this as easy as possible for people to understand. I appreciate the support everyone has given me. I know I was vague about the mission in the last chapter but I meant to do that and it will be explained further in this. I made this chapter longer than any of the other ones just to pump everyone up. Happy reading! (I also apologize for any mistakes. I will be going through the whole story once it's complete to edit.)
Gunnar was sitting on the edge of one of the walkways on the helicarrier with his legs dangling in between the rails. His head was resting forward looking out at the Atlantic Ocean watching the waves roll. The wind was whipping across his body and cutting through the suit he was wearing. Yet, it didn't bother him. He was focused on the information that he had just found out about his ancestry. He was angry at Coulson for lying to him all this time and felt like the one person he had trusted all his life, betrayed him without a second thought. He had been sitting there for an hour when Bruce walked up and mirrored the position he was sitting in.
"I know you're mad. But, Coulson was going to tell you at the right time. He was going to explain everything but then when Agent Procopio died, he thought you needed some space from work and Shield. He gave you this assignment for a reason. He knew you would need people to look out for you." Bruce explained.
"So you knew too? Figures…" Gunnar scoffed. "Does everyone know?"
"No. Just me. Unless Tony hacked into the files again. I was assigned to do research on your blood. Since we both shift into other… creatures." Bruce said.
"So it's true? I'm Asgardian like Thor? How did this even happen? How did I get here? I need to know Bruce; I need to know what happened." He quickly spoke. His started getting flustered.
"I don't have those answers. I just know that your blood is similar in some ways, but very different. You don't have the same DNA as a regular Asgardian which probably has something to do with why you morph." Bruce replied.
"I need to talk to someone who can tell me what happened. I need to know if I have family…" He said desperately.
"I know, I'll try to help in any way I can. I promise. We will find out what happened." Bruce said kindly. They sat silently for a few minutes and just looked out at the view. Gunnar always had kept his cool on the outside, never letting anyone know how he truly felt on the inside. But during this conversation, he knew Bruce could read everything on his face. All the emotions that had been building for the past few months was displayed across his tired face.
"I trusted him. I didn't have parents, and Phil was always there. They were my family. He trained me and protected me. If I needed to vent about anything, he was there, and he lied to me. He betrayed my trust. He's been keeping this secret from me for months." Gunnar said sighing.
"And you still can trust him. He did what was best for you, give the guy a break. He's only human." Bruce said while smiling. Gunnar laughed at the last part of what he said. "We should go back Wells. The team needs us, and we need you. I know you're upset with him, but we have the mission. Stay up here for a few more minutes, collect yourself and come back ready to work. Alright?"
"Alright, I think I can do that." Wells replied.
"I know you can." Bruce said while getting up and walking away.
A FEW MINUTES LATER:
They were all standing collectively in the debriefing room and ready to get underway. Steve made eye contact with Gunnar and stood next to him. He quietly asked "are you okay?" and Gunnar nodded.
Fury enlarged a profile with a picture of a man up on the projector. "We have some new information on our target. His name is William Stryker. He is a leader of a group that call themselves the Purifiers, who have taken out mutants and plan to try and wipe them all out. They have killed many mutant children and adults. Our intel shows that he has created a weapon that neutralizes a mutants powers, making them weak and able to kill in one deadly blow. We decided to give mission to you people because you can handle this. It's dangerous but we need you." Director Fury explained. "There is something else. I need Wells to go undercover as a mutant. You have the most believable transition from human to dog. That way you can be taken to his lair and be the bait, so the rest of them can get in and kill him."
Wells looked at Fury and without any hesitation he nodded.
Steve looked around the room and started objecting to this plan. "With all due respect Director, I disagree. Wells has always been on search and rescue. He's never been on this type of mission, or for that matter, undercover! This guy is an extremist. He will kill Agent Wells!"
"Cap. I can do this." Gunnar said.
"I won't allow it. This is my team." Steve said. "We have to find another way."
"Excuse me Captain, but I believe this is still my team. There is no other way. This is the best solution we have come up with and it is the most secretive. We get in, take him down and get out before nobody else knows. We take down the leader, and they become weak with no direction." Fury shot back.
Steve had an angry look on his face and crossed his arms. "I don't like this."
"I didn't ask if you liked it, but this is the plan." Fury replied.
"I accept, Director Fury." Gunnar stated.
They finished debriefing about the mission and headed to their respective quarters to get ready and suit up.
20 MINUTES LATER:
Steve was dressed in his usual American flag suit and putting on his boots as Gunnar knocked on the door. Steve hollered a "Come in!" and Gunnar opened the door and walked in.
Steve looked up and saw it was Gunnar and then went back to finishing getting his weapons together that were lying next to him on his desk.
"I know you don't want me to do this. But I need you to have some faith in me. I need you to be my partner in this. It'll be okay. I promise." Gunnar said.
"Just promise me you'll be careful." Steve replied.
"I promise. Now what should I wear?" Gunnar asked.
45 MINUTES LATER:
They were all aboard the quinjet on the deck of the helicarrier. Gunnar was wearing casual clothes because he was about to get sent undercover, while the rest were dressed in their cat suits and armor.
"Alright. We suspect that Stryker is here at this church that has been heavy with mutant riots the past few months." Coulson said pointing at a holographic map. "We'll land about 3 miles from there and Gunnar will head down that way and see if there's any suspicious characters hanging around that building. If you see anything, I want you to morph into a dog and get their attention. I want them to follow you and let them capture you. This guy likes doing the murder himself, especially since there are very few mutants in this particular area. They're thirsty for new blood. Hawkeye, I want you on the adjacent roof and watching everything. I have two agents already undercover that will be hanging around. One will have Yankee's cap on and the other will have thick rimmed glasses and a beard." He showed everyone their pictures. "The rest of you are on standby until we need you. Dr. Banner, you're here for intelligence and will be joining my team. We're all set up in the top level of this building. The other guy shouldn't be making an appearance but we'll see how it goes. We might need him." They all nodded in agreement.
The quinjet landed on a rooftop and they all walked off. Gunnar looked at Steve and nodded that he was ready. Coulson had one of his agents implant a tracking device in his arm quickly and told him to head down the street.
Gunnar was nervous but he didn't let it show. This was his job and he was trained for these moments. He walked down the street at fairly fast pace and was looking at every person and analyzing scents. A half an hour later he arrived a block from the target building. It was quiet. He saw one agent across the street at a newsstand drinking coffee and the other was washing windows on a nearby building. Hawkeye was nested on one of the higher buildings but he couldn't see him. Since he planned on getting captured, he didn't have a com system. He was relying on his team to get him out.
He saw the church and took note to how well kept it looked. There were beautiful stained glass windows lining the front and flower beds along the walkway leading up to the door. There were a couple men standing in front talking. They were dressed in upper class outfits but Gunnar whiffed a scent of gunshot residue on them. That was a perk of having the nose of a canine. He ducked down the side alley of the church where only the two men had view of him but blocked the view of anyone passing by. He ripped off his jacket to catch the attention of them and morphed into a dog. They immediately started talking and Gunnar took off at a medium pace down the alleyway. They rushed into the church, collected weapons and raced out the side door after him. Gunnar purposely turned into a dead end and they cornered him, catching their breath. Gunnar growled and backed up a few feet. They laughed and one took aim through the sights. He had never seen this type of weapon. He shot what looked like a tranquilizer and it stuck in Gunnar's right shoulder. He realized that this tranquilizer was no ordinary one because his world went black and he fell to the ground.
"Abort mission. They aren't going to take him to Stryker. I repeat, they aren't going to take him to Stryker. They're going to kill him." Hawkeye repeated over the com. He got his bow up and looked through the sight.
The other man was about to bash Gunnar's head in when he got an arrow in the chest. The other man looked scared and then he got an arrow in the leg. Two agents came around the corner and seized the injured perp and checked to see if the other one was alive.
"Agent Wells is down. I repeat Agent Wells is down." was heard over the com by the entire team.
NOTE: So William Stryker is part of the X-Men comics, but I decided to use him because he is still a part of the Marvel universe and I wanted something different. I also decided that he would fit into the story best and am excited about what happens next. I tried to make it as believable as possible and I hope that nobody is upset that I chose him. I wanted to be creative with this! Thanks for reading. I hope to get the next chapter up soon!