You've Been Warned

Nick Fury comes to get us the very next morning. We're already awake and I'm surprised by how much better I feel- like I could take on the world and then some. Ace is still a little woozy but it wears off after she eats a well-rounded breakfast and steals most of my cinnamon roll.

"It's for the good of the team," she explains as I watch my roll disappear down her throat.

I simply roll my eyes. I'm not able to resist the temptation of having the last word, though.

"Just don't throw it up, Your Majesty." I am rewarded by a pillow to the face. Yeah, she's feeling better.

"At least I don't 'eat my Oreos the wrong way,'" she says. I freeze. She'd heard that...?

I stare at her. She grins innocently and turns over in her bed, giving me her back. I throw her pillow back at her.

"How much of that did you hear?"

"Oh, just something about...not being alone together. Then I got bored and went back to sleep."

I sigh in exasperation. "Glad to know I'm boring."

"You know, you two really do make a great couple."

"Thank you-"

"It's sickening."

Her mischievous grin lets me know she's mostly kidding.

"Uh, thank you."

"You are most welcome, my humble servant."

I'm glad Alex has left to get coffee. She won't see my whole face turn scarlet.

Fury seats us all behind a large pane of Plexiglas, looking out over a large arena-like floor. It's the first time I've gotten a spectator view of the training room. Beside me, Natasha seems nervous. I don't blame her, really. I'm not exactly looking forward to see what Fury has made our daughter into. But it's for the good of the team. I have to keep repeating that to myself.

Fury's voice rings out over the PA system. I know he's up in the control room above the arena, setting up the simulation and letting Ace and Loki know that it's showtime.

"Greetings, Avengers. I'd like to introduce two new candidates for the team. This scenario, I hope, will give you a taste of what Loki and Verusha have learned in these past two weeks."

A door opens at the far end of the training room, and two teenagers walk out. They're both dressed in black pants, black boots, and twin black jackets with white T-shirts underneath. The taller one has two knife holsters and a large ring, but no other visible weaponry. The shorter one has a folded silver bow strapped to her thigh and a black quiver slung across her back. She looks the same as the Ace who fell asleep in Stark's virtual reality program two weeks ago, but the way she holds herself and her confident stride, matching Loki's, tells of how much she's changed since then. They stand in the middle of the floor, looking up at us. I can tell everyone else is impressed by the auras of control and confidence that emanate from the two.

"You have five minutes to disable all twenty of your attackers," Fury says over the PA. Wait. Twenty attackers-?

They nod, going back to back and lowering themselves into fighting crouches. The timer goes off, making us all jump.

Bzzzz

As soon as the buzzer sounds, enemies materialize all around the two. All of us take in breaths as we recognize the half-alien, half-robot forms. The Chitauri. But instead of big generals leading the company, five tall blue forms head the small army. Who are those-

"Frost giants! By Odin's beard!" Thor bellows. Oh.

"Do you ever say things the normal way?" comes Stark's incredulous remark.

Thor looks like he's about to reply but doesn't pursue the argument, instead turning his attention back to Loki and Ace. They've sized up the situation already, and Ace keys a sequence into her gauntlet, arming an arrow. She whips it out, fits it on her bowstring, fires, and blows up seven Chitauri in a single fluid motion. I resist the urge to cheer. That's my girl.

"Seven down!" she shouts.

"Thirteen to go!" Loki responds. My heart swells with pride.

Loki runs toward the frost giants, but skids to a halt when he's five feet in front of them. He stands, staring them down. One of them advances and slices the boy in half with a huge icy sword. We collectively gasp, horrified, but Loki's form disappears in a burst of golden light. Thor lets out a yell of appreciation. Stark sighs and puts his head in his hands.

"I apologize," Thor says, not sounding particularly sorry. A sickening crack brings our attention back to the fight, and we look up in time to see the giant's head rolling across the floor and Loki jumping off his shoulders onto the head of another giant, slitting his throat. He rolls as he hits the ground, and takes two steps backwards. One by one the giants fall. Once there are no more, Loki moves back to the middle of the room where Ace is.

"Twelve down," he remarks, almost as an afterthought. Ace grins a cold grin.

"Eight left."

The next few minutes of the demonstration are the ones that convince us Fury has done his work well. As the Chitauri regroup into a circle around the two and begin advancing, about ten copies of Loki pop up, each finding a soldier and attacking. They're not real and can't do any damage, but as the soldiers try to fight off the new attackers a carefully aimed arrow flies and hits each of them in the middle of their foreheads. The count of live Chitauri grows less and less, until as the illusions clear only three are left. They charge at the teens, weapons bristling. Ace picks off the one charging her just as it's about to slash at her, but another one appears behind it, weapon at the ready. A hand pushes her shoulder down and she responds quickly, ducking down. Loki punches it hard in the chin, and I can hear the bone snap. From her kneeling position, Ace draws, aims around Loki's leg, and fires in the blink of an eye, killing the soldier that was about to stab him in the back. He helps her up and they stand up.

"Nineteen down..." Loki trails off.

"One to go," Ace finishes.

Thirty seconds remaining, the computer says.

They both look around frantically, and finally Loki looks up and sees it. A lone Chitauri pilot flies a small chariot-like vehicle above them. Ace turns to Loki.

"Up and away," her voice rings out across the mostly empty floor. He nods and she takes a few paces back from him, turns, and sprints toward him. He knits his fingers together, sets them on his knee, and as she plants a foot in his cupped hands he hurls her into the air. She catches a surprising amount of air, flying and tackling the pilot right out of his seat. They land with a dull thud, Ace's back hitting the floor first. The pilot gets up quickly but she remains there, trying to regain her breath. It's about to stab downward at her but as if confused it drops the weapon and crumples to its knees. A shining knife sticks out of the back of its head. Loki stands a few feet away, his hand still up from throwing the projectile. Ace props herself up on an elbow and gives him a thumbs-up.

"Twenty down," he says.

Bzzzz.

It's silent for a moment, then the whole room erupts in cheers.

"Welcome to the Avengers," Fury's voice rings out.

"I need you to make me another scenario," Fury says, after Loki and Ace have finished proving their new team skills and are upstairs celebrating with the original Avengers.

"I thought we went through this. I am not making you another bloodbath," I reply.

"And I thought I made it clear what would happen if you didn't." He motions to my jawline. I shiver, remembering the incident.

"I don't care anymore. You can do whatever you want to me. I am not going to watch them die again. Never again."

He draws himself up, and a change comes over his face. His good eye seems to flame a bright ruby red. His face shifts from dark skin to a transparent blue, showing off patchworks of veins and bones. He sneers at me, and his teeth are crooked and broken. He laughs a terrible, grating laugh. I cover my ears and try to scream. A cold hand closes over my mouth. He brings his face closer to mine. My heart races with pure and absolute fear.

"It's not your life I'm after. I would hate to see your little godling pay for your insolent refusal to comply." My eyes grow even bigger. Loki. I pull away from the monster.

"Don't you dare touch him!" I scream. "This has nothing to do with him!"

"You have been warned." He turns back to his normal self then. He moves to the door, but before he leaves, he looks over his shoulder. "I expect the plans on my desk tomorrow morning."

I don't know how I ended up here, but I fall on my bed and start crying. I'm terrified for my life and now Loki's. I cry for a good hour and when I've spent my tears I sit up, realizing what I have to do. I crawl over to my computer, not trusting my legs yet, and open up my training scenario designing program. I'll make Fury- or whatever he is now- a scenario, but it won't be bloody at all if I can help it.

A good two hours later I'm done and shakily ask Jarvis to send the plans to Director Fury. I shove my computer away from me, feeling utterly useless. All I do is design scenarios for the team. Nothing more. I feel like I could cry again, but I've used up all my tears. Instead a cold rage begins to wash over my mind, replacing my previous depression. It ends now. I will be worth something to the team, if it kills me. But how? How can a girl like me, with no fighting experience or planning experience or special powers or...or...or. Or. An idea forms in my mind and a smile creeps over my face. Of course. I get up from my bed, changing into a pair of athletic pants and a T-shirt.

"Jarvis? Hold the elevator. I need to visit my dad's lab."

I get into the elevator and ride it smoothly down until the doors open on the huge testing floor of Daddy's weapons lab.

"What are we doing here, ma'am?" Jarvis finally asks. I smile.

"We are becoming useful."