Chapter 12

They ended up in Munich, by a strange toss of a coin. It had been either Munich or Berlin, and Tommy (as Alice now insisted on "affectionately" calling him) had been no help with the decision, so in the end the Fates had decided in the form of heads. They landed in the early morning and were whisked to a hotel, where Alice promptly crawled under the covers and fell asleep.

When she woke it was well past noon. She sat up and let her groggy eyes come into focus. She was in a lavish suite with a king sized bed and far more amenities than were strictly necessary. She just sat there for a moment and stared around her, feeling very dirty. She hadn't even changed out of her clothes from the day before. She scrambled out of bed and headed for the shower. It was huge and she reveled in the hot water. She couldn't remember the last time she'd actually enjoyed a shower without the pressure of a line of people waiting outside the door.

She dressed quickly and rifled in her messenger bag for her phone, hoping Bruce had called. But she couldn't seem to find it. She upended the bag on the bed and sifted through the contents. No phone. She checked her pockets from the day before. No phone.

She was five seconds from dumping everything out of both her duffle bags just to be sure, when a knock echoed through the room. She paused, then she tiptoed to the door and peeked through the peephole. No one there. The knock sounded again. It was coming from the adjoining room door. She felt her shoulders sag. Of course she was in an adjoining room. She sighed and opened the door. Agent Thompson stood on the other side, looking pristine in his crisp black suit and military buzz cut.

"I heard some noise, Miss Ripley. Is everything alright?"

She ran a hand through her damp hair and tried to be civil.

"Yeah, I just can't find my phone."

"I'm afraid that had to be confiscated," he said brusquely.

Alice stopped with her hand in mid air and stared at him.

"What?"

"That phone signal was being tracked by our operatives," Agent Thompson said, "Since we are unsure how much information has been compromised, we had to confiscate and dispose of your mobile device and Dr. Banner's as well. It was for your own safety."

All attempts at being civil were abandoned.

"Wait, so you're telling me, you guys were tracing our prepaid, untraceable cell phones, all this time?"

"That's correct, ma'am."

Alice felt a frustrated scream building up in her chest and she swallowed hard to hold it back. She was trapped in a really bad thriller movie. She was cut off. No way to contact Bruce or anyone else. She was completely at the mercy of Tommy the Robot and his shadowy government organization. She felt her stomach twist painfully. She took a few deep breaths and tried to calm down. There was nothing she could do about it. She just needed to relax. It would be over soon.

She sounded like Bruce and the sad part was, she still didn't believe it. This would never be over.

"Would you like to order lunch?" Agent Thompson asked, his voice still neutral, as if he couldn't see that she was cracking right in front of him.

She was starting to hate Tommy.

"What, am I confined to the hotel too?" she snapped.

This time she was sure she saw him raise an eyebrow.

"No ma'am," he said.

That surprised her.

"Really?"

"You're free to go wherever you'd like."

Alice didn't need to be told twice.

"Then I'm going out."

She stuffed her things back into her bag and slung it over her shoulder. She couldn't breath in here. Her hand was on the door knob before she realized something important. She stopped and then sighed, dropping her head to her chest dramatically.

"I don't have any money, Tommy," she grumbled reluctantly.

"It's Agent Thompson," he said behind her. She could have sworn there was just a hint of amusement in his voice.

She really wanted to turn around and deck him.

"Agent Thompson," she said with sickly sweetness, "I appear to be stranded in a foreign country without any currency. Would you be a lamb and loan me a few euros, please?"

Every word was like a stab to the ear drum. She had to fight not to flinch. She heard the adjoining door close behind her and she whirled around. The bastard was gone. She was teetering between spewing a stream of obscenities and crying, when there was a knock on the main door. She yanked it open and Agent Thompson was standing on the other side, looking imposing and completely emotionless. Alice resisted the urge to launch herself at his neck, claws extended.

"Where would you like to go, ma'am?"

They managed to find a little cafe a few blocks from the hotel that appeared to serve homemade, authentic German bratwurst. It was exactly Alice's kind of place, and even though neither of them spoke a word of German, both she and Agent Thompson managed to muddle through a passable lunch. Some local food in her stomach made her feel a little better about the dismal situation she was in, and she became determined to take advantage of it. She had grabbed a tourist map from the lobby of the hotel and as soon as they were through with lunch, Alice pulled it out and started dragging her bodyguard through the streets of Munich.

To Alice's surprise, it took only a little prodding to convince Agent Thompson to buy her a new phone exactly like her old one, but with a new number. Tommy programmed a few numbers into it, in case of emergency or if they were separated, but that didn't really matter to Alice. What mattered was that she had a phone now. She wasn't quite as cut off as she had been before. The little black plastic case in her pocket gave her hope.

Munich was a beautiful city, better than Alice had expected, but what really caught her eye was an advertisement for the Stuttgart Ballet that kept popping up all over town. They were performing Swan Lake the next night at the Stuttgart Theater. As they were heading back to the hotel, Alice casually mentioned it.

"It's only a train ride away," she said, preparing herself for a battle, but it turned out no convincing was needed.

"If you'd like to go, I'm sure I can secure some tickets." Agent Thompson said.

Alice went to bed that night feeling not quite as grim as she had that afternoon. She only wished Bruce was there.

The next day, they got up early and caught the train to Stuttgart. They visited the Stuttgart opera house and a few other places, before arriving in time for the ballet. Alice felt extremely under-dressed and slightly self conscious until the lights went down. Then nothing else mattered by the music and the dancers and the beauty that was playing before her on stage. She felt such a deep longing for Bruce to share this with her that a tear slipped down her cheek. She brushed it away before Agent Thompson could see.

When they left the theater it was dark, but not terribly late. To her surprise, Agent Thompson allowed her to wander the lamp lit streets for a while, admiring the beautiful architecture. The night was balmy, but not uncomfortable, certainly not compared to summer nights in Kolkata. She thought about the Takeris. She wondered if they were worried about her. She felt bad that she hadn't been able to tell them goodbye, especially since it was entirely likely that she would never see them again.

Suddenly there was a loud bang and Alice jumped. People were rushing out of one of the buildings up ahead, panicked and screaming.

"Ma'am, I think we should go."

Agent Thompson's voice remained level and calm, but she could sense an underlying anxiety in his tone. Alice didn't move. The crowd gathered in the square and a flash of light surrounded them. Four green figures stood at the corners of the square, glowing and flickering. She heard the siren of a police car as it careened up the street. The green figure at the head of the crowd leveled something that looked like a spear and suddenly there was an explosion and the car flipped and skidded down the street in a blaze. Alice covered her mouth to stifle a scream.

A sharp, commanding voice echoed through the streets.

"I said, KNEEL!"

The staff hit the stones of the square with a loud crack and a bright light flashed, enveloping the crowd trapped within the circle. Slowly, they began to drop to their knees.

"Ma'am," Agent Thompson had his hand on her arm and was pulling her away, "We need to go. Now."

Alice resisted him, not able to tear her eyes away. The man whose image wavered and glowed around the edge of the square sauntered through the people, his face lit with a crazed smile.

"Is this not simpler?" he said, his voice now dripping honey.

Alice shivered.

"Is this not your natural state? It's the unspoken truth of humanity, that you crave subjugation. The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life's joy in a mad scramble for power, for identity. You were made to be ruled. In the end, you will always kneel."

Alice's skin crawled as his sickly sweet words echoed in the quiet of the square. Agent Thompson was now dragging her away, his hands on both her arms, pulling her back from the crowd. But before he could turn her away, she saw one lone figure slowly get to his feet. Alice felt her heart stop.

"Not to men like you."

The man's voice was raspy, but it carried over the deathly stillness of the cobblestone streets. The man in green grinned, showing his teeth.

"There are no men like me."

The old man stood a little straighter.

"There are always men like you."

Alice recognized the glare of Death in the cold eyes of the would-be tyrant and her stomach dropped. He was going to kill that man. They couldn't let that happen. Someone needed to do something! But no one moved.

Before she could think it through, Alice turned on Agent Thompson and stomped on the insole of his foot as hard as she could. She didn't weigh much, but she had the element of surprise and it was just enough to loosen his grip on her. She twisted away and started running. She could hear him behind her, yelling her name, his footsteps pounding on the pavement. But what she lacked in weight and strength she more than made up for in speed. She stretched her legs and before she knew it, she was through the wall of light and slid to a stop in front of the old man, her arms spread out, facing down the man that threatened him.

"Back off, leprechaun!" she snapped, trying to catch her breath so she wasn't gasping.

He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at her curiously. Then, to her surprise, a smile of recognition spread across his thin face.

"Well, well," he said, his voice oily and smooth, "Alice Ripley."

The sound of her name on his lips made her balk, but she gritted her teeth and held her ground, summoning every ounce of loathing and disgust she could muster.

"How do you know my name?"

His smile widened, showing teeth.

"Oh, I know far more than just your name."

He stalked toward her, sleek like a cat, his eyes glistening in hollow sockets.

"A girl playing Beauty to a beast in man's clothing."

Bruce.

His face shimmered in the back of her mind, but she swallowed and pushed it away. The man was just short of arm's reach. He lifted his spear and Alice stood a little straighter, not letting her eyes leave his face. She felt the sharp edge of the scepter brush within a hair of touching her, then her parent's wedding rings dangled before her eyes, the silver chain glinting in the spear's blue glow. He examined them carefully.

"It's a pity really," he said, meeting her eyes, "You and I have so much in common, wearing the chains of our families around our necks."

He jerked back sharply and the chain snapped. Alice heard the rings strike the cobblestones and roll to a stop.

"Such a shame," he said, stepping back, his arm extended, "That I'm going to have to kill you now."

He leveled his spear and in that moment, when Alice realized she was going to die, when the relief of Death started to spread through her, Bruce's face flashed in front of her. She felt his kiss on her lips and heard his words.

"Alice... please stay…"

And suddenly, she didn't want to die. She didn't want to die! And he would never even know…

I'm so sorry, Bruce

She turned and shoved the old man to the ground just as the power exploded from the spear. But instead of disintegrating as she had imagined she would, she heard a loud, sharp clang. She looked up.

Captain America was standing over her. Actual, really real, Captain America. For a minute she just stared. She had seen pictures of him, heard of him in history classes. But actually looking at him, standing over her with his shield poised, in full red, white, and blue uniform, it was more than a little surreal.

He looked down at her and nodded.

"Ma'am."

He was so young. He looked exactly as he had in the poster on the wall of her junior history class. Alice felt glued to the ground. She couldn't remember how to move or speak.

The Captain turned and faced the man in green. With his attention diverted elsewhere, Alice was able to use her brain again. She looked around and saw the old man lying on the ground beside her, staring at her. She smiled at him.

There was a loud whirring and they both looked up. A strange looking fighter jet hung in the air over them and Agent Romanoff's voice blared into the night air.

"Loki, drop the weapon and stand down."

Alice barely had time to recognize the voice before the crowd started to surge in a panic. Alice scrambled to her feet and helped the old man up. Someone put a large hand on her shoulder and she whirled defensively. It was Agent Thompson, glaring daggers down at her.

"Can you yell at me later?" Alice said, cutting him off before he could start, "We need to get these people off the street!"

There was a loud clang and a crash. Alice turned to the people nearest her, a group of old women in formal dresses.

"Hi!" she said, smiling into their panicked faces, "Listen, we're gonna head for the sidewalk, try to get out of the way, why don't you come with us?"

They all nodded dumbly and she gathered them up in front of her, moving as quickly and calmly as she could toward the sidewalks. She could see Tommy herding another group of men and women in the same direction. Alice tried to gather as many people together as she could, moving them all in a calm and orderly fashion. Every clang and crash was another eruption of screaming and panic, but Alice managed to get most of her group to the side.

Then music came blasting out of nowhere and there was a crash, like something hitting the street, hard. Alice whipped her head around and once again was caught frozen, staring.

Iron Man had landed in the center of the square. He and Captain America had the man in green, Loki, cornered on the steps of the building. There was a pause, and then Loki transformed, shimmering until he seemed almost unassuming. It was over.

Alice instinctively reached for her parents' rings, but then she remembered they weren't there. She felt a swell of panic. They were still somewhere in the square. She could see Agent Thompson heading her way, but she turned away from him and slipped into the crowd, her mind racing. She tried to find the exact place she had been standing, but without the crowd around her it was hard to tell. Her eyes swept the cobblestones frantically, looking for any hint of gold glinting in the dim lights. But she didn't see anything. The rings were gone, lost somewhere in the stampeding confusion. Alice felt a knot of panic start to form in her gut. She was about to drop to her knees and start searching the cracks in the cobblestones, when a hand came down on her shoulder. She whirled around expecting Tommy and instead found herself facing Captain America. She relaxed a little bit. She still felt a little star-struck in his presence.

"Ma'am," he said, touching his fingers to his forehead in a salute, "That was a brave thing you did back there."

A smile tugged at the corners of her lips.

"You too. If it weren't for you, I'd be dead right now. And I… I wanted to thank you."

The words sounded strange in her mouth, because for the first time, she meant them. She had never sincerely thanked someone for saving her life before.

The Captain smiled warmly at her, "It was my pleasure, Miss…"

"Ripley," Alice said, offering her hand, "Alice Ripley."

"Steve Rogers," he said, shaking her hand firmly.

She grinned.

"I know."

Captain Rogers put a hand to his ear and held it for a moment.

"Yes ma'am, Agent Romanoff."

Natasha Romanoff's name made Alice blink. She remembered hearing the agent's distinctive voice in the jet, but in the panic she hadn't been able to properly process the information. But now she had some time to think…

"Are you working with SHIELD?"

The captain's back straightened at the name and his open friendly face closed up.

"What do you know about SHIELD?"

"Bruce Banner!" Alice said, her mind working in a flurry of barely connected thoughts, "Do you know him? Are you working with Dr. Bruce Banner?"

"Ma'am, I'm not sure if I'm authorized to…"

But Alice wasn't listening anymore. She was frantically digging in her bag, coming up with a pen and her program from the ballet. It would have to do. Frantically, she scribbled on a corner of the program and ripped it out, folding it in half.

"Will you give him this for me?" she asked, her voice sounding more desperate than she would have liked.

He hesitated.

"I'm not sure I…"

"Please," she said, thrusting the paper at him, "I swear, it's not dangerous. Please."

The captain considered for a moment, his eyes flitting from Alice's face to the note in her hand. Finally, he took the paper from her fingers and shoved it in his pocket. Alice sighed.

"Thank you," she said, "Thank you so much."

"Miss Ripley!"

Agent Thompson's voice carried clearly through the night air. And he sounded pissed. She knew that she couldn't escape him any longer. She made one last sweeping glance over the cobblestones of the square, hoping against hope to see the gleam of gold. But there was nothing. Then Tommy was at her side, dragging her off with a hand of steel. Her heart sank as she turned away.