AN: Hey everyone! So, I totally just realized that I left out a whole chunk of this chapter. I've added it back, and apologies for messing that up! It has been fixed, so enjoy!
Warning: Graphic violence and mild language.
The Cracked Brain House
There was so much going on that Leah had almost lost track of the number of military convoys she had shot up. The city's streets were in ruins, cluttered with fallen debris, bodies, and billowing smoke. Leah was flying just over two hundred feet, and she could see it all. She almost felt pity for the mortals that resisted Loki's will; those that still fought for their supposed 'freedom'.
She was having a hell of a time trying to tap back in to S.H.I.E.L.D. communications, and she was hoping to figure out if she could find Clint's downed Quinjet. There was chance that the shots she took at him had not killed him, and knowing that, she went in pursuit to find the wreckage; all the while taking out any ground forces that went below her boresight.
Loki's presence in the back of her mind was growing cold, she noticed, as she took a turn over 5th avenue. She wondered what was going on back at the tower but a gentle swishing sensation in the back of her head told her to continue with her given orders. She wanted to please her King, making him happy; but what if something had gone wrong?
No, she thought. Loki has everything under control.
Turning her attention back to the streets below her she lined up her gun and rained how upon a small troop of Marines that had set up a small strike zone on the ground. Their blood splattered over the pavement and their bodies doubled over as the bullets from her craft snatched away their lives. She felt her lips purse in a small bout of pity as she watched them die; it was borderline disgusting how the rest of humans thought they could resist the war that was to come.
Leah was focused on the street below her so much that she didn't look up until she heard a bone shuddering roar; the Hulk. Her eyes widened as she saw him, hands dug into the side of one of the buildings, crumbling brick holding him aloft.
"Shit!"
She said the one word before he was hurtling through the air and landing harshly on the Quinjet. The craft shook wildly and the cockpit went alive with lights and alarms as the beast began to tear apart her engines. She screamed as a true unadulterated fear gripped her; a fear that ran deep through the spell of Loki's control and reached him through the link. As her hands desperately tried to pull up on the joy stick, her efforts brought forth no fruit. The jet was hurtling downward, fast, leaving behind a trail of blackened smoke. Gravity was cruel in its grip of Leah's Quinjet and was leaving her only seconds to react.
"Mayday! Mayday! Barton down!" Leah screamed into the headset as a habit hoping that the radio was being tapped by S.H.I.E.L.D. or someone, and ultimately, hoping that Loki could sense her terror.
She managed to route all remaining power to her last engine before the craft slammed into the corner of a tall building and the Hulk was no longer tearing her jet apart. Smoke was flooding the cockpit now, blinding Leah as she coughed and gagged on the burning air. Her last glimpse of light was the view of the concrete slamming into the front of the cockpit and glass showering Leah's body; slicing and burning as it sailed around her.
An explosion of noise from the world around her was all the she heard as another pain slammed into the side of her head, blood spilling into her eyes and mouth.
I'm going to die. Then darkness took her.
The darkness was cold, Leah noticed, and sticky as it held her. She couldn't think, only see; she did nothing but watch the empty space in front of her, unable to turn, move, speak, do anything. It was limbo. A floating darkness that allowed awareness but nothing else. It was years, decades, as she hovered in it. Her existence seemed far away and it filled her up with something new; the feeling of worthlessness and failure moved sluggishly in her veins.
There was nothing left of her.
Leah's head was heavy and full of pressure; he squeezing sensation of her head expelled what breath she had in her lungs as a crackling whimper. The backs of her eyes felt squeezed by her skull as she struggled to open them and felt the belt from her seat cutting into her chest and waist. It was so hard to breathe that she barely managed to keep the static of her vision at bay. As her eyes focused she could also feel the stream of something hot on the side of her head. She assumed it was blood, and judging by the concentrated stinging on her eyebrow, that was where the injury was. She moved her jaw slightly and gasped as air filled her lungs, finally allowing her to become more aware. Leah looked in front of her at the rows of buttons and levers, all with their lights extinguished, and coughed. The light that streamed into the cockpit was thick with dust and coated her lungs heavily as she tried to unbuckle her seatbelt.
The last thing she remembered clearly was Loki breaking free of his cell and attacking her. After that it was so much like a dream that, if it weren't for her current situation, she would have brushed off as such. But no, the pounding in her head, the images of Loki, the orders she was given; it made sense. Loki had used her, had made her believe that it was his right, his right, to rule over Earth. No, Midgard, he called it. Leah let out a squeal of agony as she pushed herself up and onto her feet, nearly collapsing as her knees shook. Loki had convinced her that she existed only to serve him; that he was worth all the death that was occurring. And the orders he gave her… she could feel the bile rising in her throat and her guts threatened to give a painful squeeze and empty her stomach of whatever it still had. Pressing her lips together, she forced herself to take slow even steps and did a mental examination of her physical state. Her forehead was bloody, possibly concussed, her chest and ribs bruised from the compression of the safety belt pulling tight upon impact, left wrist swollen, and overall, pure exhaustion she assumed that was a side effect of Loki's spell.
Her steps were slow and it felt agonizingly long until she made it to the rear hatch, entered the command codes, and opened it. She was not prepared for what she saw outside.
Laying stretched out before her were the ruins of a city that never slept. Rubble and debris streaked the streets, cars set aflame, bodies and blood spattered on the ground and piled next to overturned hot dog carts. She could see women, men, children; all dead with blue-burned wounds on their bodies, some even with blood sprayed across their faces from some kind of bladed weapon. She whimpered as she looked on it all and didn't even try to keep her gut from clenching and sending up the burning fluid of her insides. She heaved twice more over the hatch door and spat, though it did nothing to rid her mouth of the acidic taste.
Oh God, oh God, what have I done? Hot tears burned and seeped over her the barriers of her eyelids and plopped down over her heaving chest.
The memories now burned her mind, staining her consciousness. She killed them. Innocent people and Marines, people of the service, her own kind. She blindly served Loki and did as he bade, following happily like a lovesick puppy eager to please her master. He even made her… shoot Clint. Her mind whirled as her hand gripped the side of the craft; she had shot down Clint. But, she thought vaguely, that's what I wanted. She knew she shot him down, and not solely because of his spell. She shot him down in a moment of absolute clarity. She wanted her brother dead.
Leah shook her head desperately trying to free herself of the mental torment she was enduring. She had to get to Stark Tower. She knew the device was still up there and there had to be a way to shut it off. Straightening herself, though sloppily, she took a deep breath and un-holstered her firearm. Getting to Stark Tower would be only a fifteen minute walk from here, she thought. And though it looked like hell had risen and taken over the surface of the earth, she knew she could make it through. She had killed innocents before, so why did this bother her now? The question stung her mind as she pushed herself forward through the mass of burning cars and fallen rubble; her head pounded with each step she took.
Broken glass and God knew what else crunched under her boots as she quickened her pace, trying to make it to the Tower the best way she knew how. Looking up she could see the Chitauri, as she learned they were named, flying by occasionally in search of more humans to annihilate. Focus, she told herself. She had to be strong, make good time, and get to the Tower. Maybe there was a way to send a message to Fury once she got there. Leah chewed her lip as she turned the block making it onto the main street that would take her to the Tower. But she saw Chitauri all along the sidewalks.
Leah sidled up against the wall and wished with all her heart that her head would stop feeling so stretched, so pained, as she fought to keep her eyes open. There was no way she could make a run for it. Every beast on the block would see her and take her down in a heartbeat if she showed herself. She glanced around and saw the subway entrance just twenty feet from her.
Yes, I can make that. With another anxious glance at the Chitauri that squawked and crowed at each other, she made a quick bolt for the stairs, nearly throwing herself head first down into the tunnel. Her vision fogged as she scrambled her way down the steps and into the dusty walkway, and Leah knew she would have to be gentler with herself or risk losing consciousness again. So, on she went. Her steps made the only noise aside from the occasional crackle of fallen electrical wire that hung from the ceiling. She kept her finger on the trigger and the gun raised as she made her sweeps and made a slow advance toward the tunnel that led straight to the lobby of Stark Tower.
Leah did a quick corner sweep and she turned down another hallway, empty of any living person, but occasionally spotted with bloodied and scorched bodies. She made a pointed effort to not look at the bodies for more than a second; it would make it too difficult for her to move on. She made a beeline down the hallway, trying to be quick, but before she rounded another corner that led to the stairs she heard rumbled noises. Freezing, she pressed against the wall and peaked around. Two Chitauri, tall and masked, lumbered awkwardly through the enclosed space away from Leah. She had the advantage of surprise and that was not something she was willing to lose. Without thinking she stepped away from the wall and fired two quick shots, splattering the alien blood and brain matter of both of the beasts over the floor and sending the bodies to the ground.
"Keep moving." She whispered to herself, and somehow, she found it easier to think now that her head hurt a little less. As she pushed onward, she trotted over the bodies, up the stairs, and made a mad dash to the building, snarling to herself as she found the building on lockdown; the doors bolted shut. She had to get to the top, and quick, so she fired a shot that pierced the air and shattered the glass of the door to the Tower. She looked around her quickly, hoping no Chitauri were coming to investigate. Deeming it safe inside the lobby, Leah jogged inside and went to the bay of elevators and nearly jumped out of her skin as the door to one of them opened, showing it to be empty.
Leah's heart was pounding and damn near burst through her ribs as an automated voice spoke. "CA Barton," a British sounding voice resonated in the lobby and Leah looked up at the cameras in the bay. "As a S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, you are given permission to enter the premises."
"Um," Leah shifted on her feet, "Identify yourself, please." She frowned realizing how pathetic that sounded.
"I am JARVIS. The AI of Mr. Stark's New York work facility. This elevator will take you to Mr. Stark's primary floor."
"Is that where Loki is?" She asked, tightening her grip on her gun and stepping into the metal box.
"The entity you identified as 'Loki' is indeed still in the Tower and on Mr. Stark's primary floor. Caution is advised, Miss Barton."
She almost smiled at the sign of respect, and oddly, she enjoyed not being referred to by her military title. She realized that after she had killed so many… she no longer deserved such a rank. She swallowed as the doors closed and the elevator began its ascension. Her head gave another painful throb, but it felt much better than it did before in the Quinjet.
"Thank you, JARVIS." Leah said finally. "Can you contact Mr. Stark?"
A small flicker of hope twitched in her chest as JARVIS answered, "Certainly, Miss Barton. Is there any information you wish for me to relay?"
Leah grimaced remembering how she had shot him out of the air. And how she shot down Clint. And the Marines. She gagged as her stomach gave a surprising squeeze, her thoughts plagued by the people she had killed. No, she thought sadly, I murdered them. Tears welled in her eyes and she shut her eyes tightly to try and keep them back.
"Yes," Leah choked out. "Tell him that I apologize for my actions earlier and to please find out if my… brother is still alive. Also inform Director Fury that I am no longer compromised, if you can."
"Yes, Miss Barton."
Silence filled her head now and she heaved a sob, tears spilling over, and she desperately tried to steady her breathing. She could see herself in the mirrored image of the elevator doors. She was a wreck! Her blonde hair matted in its braid, crispy with dried blood that still coated the right side of her face and neck. A bruise spread over her eye and down her cheekbone, with several more abrasions over her face and cuts through her uniform matched with black scorch marks. She could handle a simple concussion, she'd had much worse before and she wasn't going to let this slow her down. Swallowing the guilt that had knotted up her throat, she kept her eyes forward and tightened her grip on her gun as the doors opened. And what she saw, she wasn't sure she would be able to forget.
"Ah, Leah, darling. So good of you to come back for me."
