Silence
Chapter 29: Dogs of War
SHIELD headquarters; the Helicarrier
Deep in the heart of SHIELD headquarters, three men entered the highly secure room that was used for mission planning and intelligence briefings. One of the men was a grizzled WWII veteran with a missing eye. The second was a highly decorated warrant officer and the third in command of GI Joe. The final member of the trio sat and contacted a secret location in the middle of Utah. After the connection was secured and scans for threats were completed, the face of a blonde first sergeant appeared on a large, flat computer screen.
"What's the latest?" Clayton Abernathy asked. The man known as the Tomahawk, or General Hawk, waited patiently for the response. His second in command, who was currently supervising the construction of the new Pit, launched into a detailed report.
"Forge and Stark have completed the blueprints for the new Pit," Duke said. "Rather than encrypt the files and send them to you, I think it's better that we deliver a copy in person. Stark has volunteered to brief you on it."
"Good," Hawk nodded. "Tell him that I want to meet with him as soon as possible, preferably tonight or tomorrow morning. I want a skeleton crew in Utah tomorrow and the rest of our people moved in by next week. We can continue with the construction after we've settled in."
"Understood," Duke replied. "Any ideas on who you're going to send for the skeleton crew?"
Hawk thought a second. He'd already decided on the crew, but he ran through the list of names again anyway. Satisfied with the team he'd chosen, he answered the first sergeant.
"Lady Jaye, Dusty, Breaker, Dial Tone, Mainframe, Lift Ticket, Clutch, and Cover Girl," he answered. The Joes needed their mechanics and communications experts to help with construction of the new base. Dusty was going stir crazy up in the SHIELD Helicarrier, so it was better to send him to the Utah desert and have him help build the new Pit. Lady Jaye he needed to help Duke coordinate and run operations. Lift Ticket was there for obvious reasons. They needed at least one pilot on hand to help with transports.
"I'll send one of my agents as well," Nick Fury said. "I'll send James Woo. He seems to be getting along well with the Joes." It was one of the Secretary of Defense's newest orders. There must be a SHIELD agent operating with GI Joe as a liaison officer and vice versa. Hawk hadn't decided yet which Joe he was going to assign to SHIELD. Whoever it was, he or she wasn't going to be happy about it. He and Nick Fury had decided to do one month rotations for the liaison officers, so at least that way it wasn't a permanent assignment.
"We look forward to having him around," Duke told him. "I'll have Lady Jaye assign the billets when she gets here. Forge thought it would be better if we returned to having two people per quarters to save space. We'll get some temporary barracks built for the Joes and greenshirts in the meantime."
"Didn't Psyche Out want to go?" Flint asked. "I thought he was concerned about Forge."
The mutant in question had passed the psychological evaluation. However, he also showed signs of PTSD stemming from his Vietnam experience and possibly other issues. Because of that and probable stress from anti-mutant bigotry, Psyche Out wanted to examine the man more closely.
"Forge passed the eval," Hawk explained. "Psyche Out can wait until we move in. I don't want to spook Forge into quitting. He already threatened Kenneth after he tried to talk him into doing counseling sessions." This, of course, had only convinced the psychiatrist that Forge had anger issues and therefore needed counseling.
"If I remember right, Forge threatened to shove his wrench into an uncomfortable place up Psyche Out's rear end," Flint reminded them dryly. Nick Fury snickered quietly to himself, causing Hawk to roll his eyes. As level headed and capable as the Native American mutant was, he seemed to have a stubborn and irritable streak. It was going to be interesting to work with the man.
"Which is why Psyche Out's not going to push him right now," Hawk sighed. "Unlike Snake Eyes or Beach Head, I can't order Forge to cooperate."
"Speaking of Psyche Out," Flint grinned. "He wants to evaluate Gambit too."
"What?" Duke asked from the computer screen. "Why? We don't need an eval. Gambit's not working for us."
"Intellectual curiosity," the warrant officer answered. Nick Fury started snickering again. The man was getting too much amusement out of all of this. Hawk debated on whether or not he should taunt the man with threats of stationing the Joes' psychiatrist with him for a month, before deciding that Fury might end up shooting Psyche Out by the end of it.
"That'll be all for now," Hawk sighed, bringing the conversation to an end. "Besides, I need Psyche Out here to work with Beach Head and also Storm Shadow when he returns." Charles Xavier had told him of the ninja's wishes to work for the Joes. Hawk wasn't going to turn that opportunity down.
"Alright," Duke said. "I'll keep you posted and send Stark your way. Duke out."
As soon as the first sergeant signed off, Nick Fury swiveled his chair around to look at the two Joes. Fury caught his eye and subtly indicated the warrant officer still in their midst. Hawk understood. His friend wanted a private conversation.
"Flint," he said. "I understand that you're assembling a team to retrieve some of Stark's stolen weapons?" Intel had shown where Cobra had stockpiled at least half of what they'd stolen from Stark Industries. Flint nodded and gave him a brief report.
"Keep me posted," Hawk told him. "Dismissed." He watched as Flint made his way to the briefing room door, only to hesitate slightly. The warrant officer paused to look back at him.
"Sir?" Flint asked. "If I may ask, what about Jim Rhodes' status?" Hawk's lips quirked up at the question. This wasn't the first time that the warrant officer had brought up the Joes' newest greenshirt.
"I think we should let Beach Head have a crack at him first," Hawk replied dryly. "Our dear ranger will bitch endlessly if we don't give him a chance to train Rhodes some more and decide if he's worthy of Joe status." He didn't think that the ranger would say no to the idea, as Beach Head already seemed to like the Marine. Besides, it wouldn't hurt Rhodes to have a few more training missions with the greenshirts.
"Understood," Flint replied. The warrant officer left the room, leaving just Nick Fury and Clayton Abernathy. Nick Fury cut to the chase and spoke first.
"Congress is close to passing the Mutant Registration Bill," Fury told him. "I think we can expect them to pass it by the end of the week."
"I know," Hawk groaned. "Fucking idiots. This is only going to cause riots and drive mutants to join Magneto or Cobra." Mutant registration was wrong and in his mind, unconstitutional. It was going to cause more problems than it solved. Who knew what Congress would sanction next? Hawk knew for a fact that the government was running a secret mutant internment camp in Alaska, which he intended to find a way to shut down. How long would it take for mutant internment camps to become "legal" if the Registration Act was passed?
"Unfortunately, we're not ready to move against the Jugglers," Hawk sighed. He knew they were pushing for the registration bill. One was overseeing the internment camp. He and Fury suspected that at least three of the Jugglers were involved with the revived sentinel program.
"I've sent some of my best agents to tail Crowther, McClean, and Clarke," Nick Fury stated, referring to the three generals in the Jugglers that they were most concerned with. "Xavier's team is trying to determine where the sentinels are coming from."
The two men then discussed the most recent report from Charles Xavier. Sentinels had been spotted in nearly every state, as well as provinces in Canada and Mexico. The most recent attacks on mutants had taken place in Kansas City, Missouri; Batesville, Arkansas; and Zacatecas, Mexico. There didn't seem to be any area where sentinel attacks were more concentrated.
"There has to be a way to track them," Hawk mused after a while. "If we could get a tracer on one, we could follow it home."
"We have to get close to one first," Nick told him. "It would be best to draw one out, but that would require bait. I don't know about you, but I don't exactly want to ask any of our mutant friends to do that." Hawk thought on that for a moment before an idea struck him.
"Mutant brainwaves are different than ours, correct?" the general asked. "That's how the sentinels track them."
"Yeah, why?" Nick asked. Hawk leaned forward as his idea continued to form. There was a small grin on his face.
"Can't we just simulate mutant brainwaves and broadcast it?" he asked. "I'm betting that Mainframe could do it in his sleep." Nick Fury's eyes widened slightly before a similar grin appeared on his face. Fury pounded the table and pointed at him.
"Clayton, you fuckin' genius," Nick grinned. "If we draw the sentinels out, we can have one of the ninja get close enough to stick a tracer or two on. After that, we just have to sit back and watch."
Hawk immediately got in touch with Mainframe. The man was originally supposed to go to Utah, but his energies were better spent on this particular project. When Mainframe finally arrived and listened to his new assignment, his eyes immediately lit up.
"You mean I get to trick the sentinels and help get them back for going after Beach and Lifeline?" the Joe asked. A look of pure glee danced across his face. The man looked even happier when he found out that Fury would let him play around with any of SHIELD's tech that he needed. Nick Fury shook his head when the computer specialist finally left.
"I think he's happier about it than we are," Nick observed.
"He gets to play around with expensive equipment, of course he's happy," Hawk told him. "I'm even happier about the fact that he's so willing to go after the sentinels."
"How are things going?" Nick asked him. "Among your people, I mean?" Hawk didn't have to ask him what he was talking about. Dealing with the issue (or non-issue, in his opinion) of having mutants on the Joe team was a constant hassle. Many of the Joes and greenshirts had gotten over the shock of having mutants in their midst. Ones who had previously been wary, nervous, or even hostile had begun to mellow.
However, that didn't include everyone. The attack on the Pit had allowed the soldiers stationed there to witness mutant abilities first hand. Some soldiers seemed to have walked away with an even greater distrust of anyone with an X gene. Short Fuze's outage as a mutant had also increased fears by some that other mutants were hiding among the ranks. Psyche Out continued to have his hands full with a handful of personnel that apparently had developed a phobia of mutants.
"Better," Hawk admitted. "But not great. Things should be better than they are."
"That's a start then," the SHIELD director said, standing up and stretching his worn muscles. "If you'll excuse me Clay, there are a few things I need to take care of. There's a mission running in Madripoor that I need to check on."
"Of course," Hawk told him. "I have a meeting with General Colton soon anyway."
"Can we honestly trust him?" Nick asked again. They had been over this before. Hawk was at his wit's end about how to convince the ornery SHIELD director to give Colton the benefit of the doubt.
"I trust him more than any of the Jugglers combined," Hawk reassured him.
"That's not very reassuring. I'd trust a blindfolded, untrained teenager with an Uzi more than that lot."
Clayton Abernathy gave up on the argument for now. The Pentagon had placed General Joseph Colton as the director of a new, as of yet unnamed secret agency. GI Joe and SHIELD were the two branches of the said agency, which had been established to coordinate the two anti-terrorist divisions. Both Hawk and Nick Fury were now answerable to Colton. The GI Joe leader wasn't necessarily pleased about it, but he understood the reasoning behind it. He'd also met Colton before. Joseph Colton was the only man that Hawk felt he could stomach as his immediate superior. The Jugglers had probably chosen Colton with that fact in mind.
Nick Fury, on the other hand, was still simmering about the fact that the Jugglers were imposing an unasked for and unwanted general above him. Since Fury had never met Colton and had only his reputation to go by, he was understandably a little more...skeptical…of it all.
"Nothing we can do about it, Nick," Hawk told him once again. Fury would get over it eventually…hopefully without cracking a few heads open first. As if on cue, the other man grumbled under his breath before pulling out one of his trademark cigars. The GI Joe general wondered once again why the hell Nick Fury hadn't developed lung cancer yet.
"Clayton, about Forge," Nick said, flicking the edge of his lighter to produce a flame. Once he succeeded, he held it to the tip of his cigar. The SHIELD director gave a satisfied puff and blew out a cloud of smoke before continuing. "You might have him test Iron Knife for magic." Hawk gave him a surprised look. What was the other man talking about?
"Forge and Shaman of Alpha Flight both have magical abilities," Nick Fury explained when he noticed the general's puzzled look. "And they were trained as shamans and are also from a line of shamans. From what I've read on Spirit, he is as well. It's possible that he has latent magic and isn't aware of it."
That thought hadn't occurred to Hawk at all. Then again, the other man had interacted with magic users in the past. If Spirit did have latent potential, it would certainly be useful to cultivate it. Having a trained magic user on the Joe team would be worth a lot.
"I thought Forge was against using magic?" Hawk asked. Fury shrugged and took another puff of his cigar.
"I didn't say that he would train Iron Knife, but I think he might be willing to at least test him for magic," the other man answered. He tapped his cigar on the edge of a trash bin and bits of ash fell in. He took another puff before balancing the cigar in the corner of his mouth.
"Alright," Hawk agreed. "I suppose I can send him to Utah in Mainframe's place."
The two men walked together for a few minutes before pausing in front of a wide, bullet proof window. The occasional man and woman walked up and down the corridor and very pointedly did not disturb the two military leaders. The floating aircraft carrier was currently hovering just off the coast of New York City. Hawk found it somewhat ironic that SHIELD operated up in skies while GI Joe had an underground fortress.
"I had a thought," Nick Fury said suddenly. "Since we're supposed to coordinate and all, I was thinking that we could combine training for the greenshirts and incoming SHIELD agents." Hawk looked at him and waited for him to continue.
"What if I sent some of my agents to train with the greenshirts for a month?" Fury asked. Hawk's lips quirked up slightly.
"You still haven't given up on Beach Head, have you?" he asked knowingly.
"Dammit Hawk," Nick Fury grumbled. "If you won't loan him to me, then I have to send my people to him. I know Sneeden will whip them into shape." Hawk chuckled again before giving the other man his consent. It wouldn't hurt to combine training. SHIELD already had training programs to deal with fighting superpowers. Hawk was taking the opportunity of putting Joes and greenshirts through them while they were operating with SHIELD.
By habit, Hawk's eyes flicked to his left and right while they were talking. Nick Fury's did as well. It was an automated habit that well trained commandos picked up early. There appeared to be nothing out of the ordinary. However, Clayton Abernathy felt the hair rise slightly on the back of his neck.
The general very carefully did another survey of the corridor. One SHIELD agent was talking on a cell phone about fifteen yards from him and Fury. Two more personnel were walking towards them and were engaged in conversation. There appeared to be no danger. Appearances could be deceiving however and the Tomahawk had long ago learned to listen to his instincts.
Hawk looked to his right and caught Nick's eye. The SHIELD director locked gazes with him and nodded subtly. The man was suspicious as well. That did it. If Nick Fury was feeling that something was off as well, then it was. Two old war dogs couldn't be wrong.
The general cast his eyes around the SHIELD corridor once again. Other than the two agents now walking away from them, it was just he and Nick. The man on the cell phone had disappeared. Clayton Abernathy felt his skin prickle, as it sometimes did before an attack.
Nick sensed and reacted to the unseen danger first. The director pushed Hawk to the side as something, or rather someone, invisible fired at them. A bullet ricocheted off of the bullet proof glass. Hawk felt something move between him and Nick. Perhaps it was years of combat experience or perhaps it was a result of training with ninja. Whatever it was, Hawk knew to swing his fist at the seemingly empty space. There was a grunt of pain as his fist connected with a person. The invisible assailant struck Hawk hard in the stomach.
A gash of blood appeared in the air after Nick Fury took advantage of Hawk's distraction. The SHIELD director clutched a knife in one hand, which was now dripping with blood. The wound he had inflicted disappeared a second later. Fury unclipped his side arm and took aim at the wall. Hawk pulled out his pistol as well. While he searched for their attacker, Nick Fury got on his radio unit.
"Attention all personnel, this is Nick Fury. This is a security alert, SHIELD has been…" Fury's broadcast was cut short when something struck him in the face. Hawk saw the air shimmer slightly between them. It looked faintly like the outlines of a body. Before it could completely blend back in to the environment, Hawk launched himself at it and attempted to pin it against the wall. The nearly invisible figure twisted out of his grasp and hooked one hand around Hawk's left arm and struck him hard between the ribs with the other one. Clayton gasped slightly and forced himself to ignore the pain.
Hawk brought his elbows in to protect his sides. He angled one arm slightly to cover his chest and the front of his throat. His legs were swept out from underneath him and Hawk went down. He rolled to his hands in the way that Snake Eyes had drilled into him. The general twisted his torso and was back on his feet in a few seconds. Those few seconds had been enough for their attacker to dislocate Nick Fury's right shoulder.
There it was…it was the shimmer of air again. Hawk aimed his side arm at an area of the floor, not wanting to take a chance of hitting Fury. He pulled the trigger and felt the gun recoil slightly in his hand. There was a ripping sound as a bullet made contact with flesh and bone. The air shimmered once again before fading to reveal a familiar, cowled figure. Blood dripped down Zartan's lower left calf muscle. There was a scowl on the man's face as he whipped around to throw a knife at Hawk. The general wasn't quite quick enough to avoid the tiny knife, but the left arm he threw up prevented the weapon from piercing his throat. Instead, cold steel embedded itself about five inches below Hawk's left wrist. Clayton faintly heard the sound of bone cracking as Nick popped his dislocated shoulder back into place.
A beefy arm wrapped itself around Zartan's neck. Nick Fury kneed the man hard in the back, right over where the kidneys were located. Zartan gasped from pain and stabbed at Fury's arm with a shuriken. Nick Fury ignored the sharp weapon now jammed through a muscle tendon and continued to hold Zartan in a chokehold. Hawk winced as he pulled the knife from his arm. Blood dripped out of the wound and off of the three inch knife now in his hand. Since Fury was currently preoccupied with Zartan, the general got on the radio and alerted his Joes to the Dreadnok's presence. He could already hear footsteps and shouting in the distance as men and women rushed to their location.
A grunt from Fury alerted him to the fact that Zartan had gotten a blow in. Hawk looked up just in time to see Zartan twist his body up and use the momentum to put the SHIELD director off balance. There was a blur of motion as the Dreadnok pulled out a hidden side arm and aimed at Fury's stomach. The bullet bounced off of the Kevlar of Fury's SHIELD uniform. Zartan compensated by wrapping a hand around Fury's chokehold. The Dreadnok squeezed a pressure point and forced Nick Fury let go of him.
Zartan flipped out of the other man's grip and twisted up into the air in a neat somersault. He planted a foot against the bullet proof window and kicked his other leg up and brought it down on Fury's head in an ax kick. The SHIELD director blocked the strike before it could connect. Zartan twisted backwards and fell to his hands. He swept his body down and kicked at one of Fury's knee caps. Nick Fury lost his balance and fell. There was a flash of metal as a shuriken appeared in the Dreadnok's hand.
Hawk threw himself at Zartan in a tackle that would have made a quarterback proud. There was a satisfying 'thump' sound as Zartan's skull made contact with the wall. The half dazed Dreadnok elbowed him in the face. Hawk tasted blood in his mouth, but ignored it as he tried to place Zartan in a judo hold. He felt something press against his chest as he struggled with the other man.
A gunshot went off at close range. Hawk's ears were temporarily deafened from the noise. Someone shouted, but his ears felt as if they were suddenly stuffed with cotton balls. The corridor spun in what appeared to be a horrible case of vertigo. Pain arched up his chest and it suddenly became difficult to breath. When Zartan pushed him off and aimed a tiny pistol at his head, the general suddenly realized that he'd been shot. Hawk coughed as blood began to clog his throat. Even as his mind began to lose consciousness, he recognized Zartan's weapon as a .32 light weight automatic pistol.
Clayton Abernathy saw Zartan smirk as his vision wavered. Spots danced before his eyes and blackness crept in. He heard a muffled gunshot and a man yelp in pain. Nick Fury was immediately at his side. A modified semi-automatic Walther PPK handgun was clutched in one hand. The other hand pressed itself down against the gaping hole in Hawk's chest.
"Stay with me Clayton," Nick Fury told him. "I've called a medic."
"Z…Zartan…" Hawk gasped. Speaking was growing more and more difficult. Nick Fury's face blurred into an indistinct oval shape. Fury dropped the gun as he pressed both hands to Hawk's chest in an attempt to stop the blood flow. Clayton barely felt it when his jacket and shirt were cut off to reveal his bare chest. Fury wadded up the remains of the uniform and pressed it against the bullet wound.
"Clayton…stay with me…" Fury ordered him. "Zartan slipped off, but I got him in the shoulder. That will slow him down. All of SHIELD is hunting for him now."
"Might not…get…" General Hawk struggled to find the words. His mind felt as if it were sinking in molasses. He barely noticed it when two more figures crouched by his side. Incoherent voices mingled above him. One sounded vaguely like Stalker. He lost consciousness a few seconds later.
Nick Fury slid a new magazine into his handgun. There was a click as it locked into place. He looked down at Stalker and two SHIELD agents, who were in the process of trying to stop the bleeding in Hawk's chest. Rather than wait for a stretcher, the dark skinned ranger finally picked up the limp body of his general and took off for the SHIELD infirmary. The remains of Hawk's uniform had been tied tightly around the wound in a temporary bandage.
He heard footsteps racing down the hall. Fury looked to his right to see Spirit, Shipwreck, Bazooka, and two more SHIELD agents running towards him. They paused by the grim faced Nick Fury and stared after Stalker and their commanding officer. The Joes seemed torn between following after the ranger and staying with the SHIELD director. Nick Fury made the choice for them.
"Bazooka, go with Stalker in case Zartan attacks again," Nick Fury ordered. "You too, Ramirez," he added, referring to one of the SHIELD agents. "The rest of you are with me. We're going hunting."
Nick Fury ignored his wounds as they ran down the corridor. He shouted orders into his radio. All ventilation shafts and possible exits were to be blocked by at least two guards. Aware of Zartan's ability to masquerade as anyone, Fury also made it clear that orders from a ranking soldier or agent weren't to be followed unless two other witnesses confirmed that person's identity.
"Fury," someone said over the radio. "We have movement down on the first utility level near the heating plant. Two of the guards on patrol there aren't responding."
"Understood," the SHIELD director replied. "I also want a division guarding the launch bay and teleportation unit. If you spot Zartan, shoot to kill. I want that fucker stopped."
Nick Fury led his tiny team down to the utility level. Spirit went on point, being the best tracker of the group. It didn't take long for the Joe to spot a small trail of blood. Shipwreck took up the rear as they made their way down into the Helicarrier's heating plant.
"Silent signals from here on," Fury whispered. The Joes and the single SHIELD agent all nodded. They inched their way silently through the plant and paused next to a giant furnace. Pipes crisscrossed the large room and light steam drifted through the plant. Several large, hot water tanks lined the back wall. Sweat dripped down Fury's uniform collar from the stifling, hot air.
A tiny shadow moved slightly in the far corner of the plant. Fury flicked his eyes down to look at Charlie Iron Knife, who was crouching next to a small boiler. The Joes' tracker met his eyes and nodded. Nick silently commanded his SHIELD agent to leave and contact the command and control center for reinforcements. He wanted a security perimeter set up around the utility level in case Zartan slipped by them.
Nick Fury's thumb slid up and down the well-worn handle of his pistol. He silently vowed that the Dreadnok wouldn't escape. Whatever happened, he was going to shoot the fucking son of a bitch in the skull. No one shot a friend of Nick Fury's and got away with it, especially if they did it under his roof.
"All right you son of a bitch," Nick Fury thought. "Let's end this."
Zartan breathed heavily as he leaned against a control unit. The bullet that Fury had put through his shoulder had luckily missed an artery. However, it had shattered some of the bone. The Dreadnok had done his best to stop the bleeding, but blood continued to leak out of it. He could feel his body starting to go into shock from the wound.
He'd botched it. The sight of Nick Fury and Clayton Abernathy together and alone had been too much of a temptation to pass up. At least he'd managed to shoot Hawk in the chest, if nothing else. Of course, his problems no longer lay with trying to kill Fury. Zartan's biggest concern was escaping from SHIELD with his skin intact.
The Dreadnok thought he saw a shadow move. Zartan blended himself in to his surroundings as he tried to think of an escape plan. All possible exits had immediately been blocked off by SHIELD. Joes and spare SHIELD agents were patrolling the base. Zartan had briefly used his Dalton Reynold's disguise, but had opted to simply fade out into invisibility again. There was still a chance that he could salvage some of this. As "Reynolds" had already clocked out, it was possible that SHIELD wouldn't be noticed that he was missing. For all anyone one knew, the man had already gone home.
Zartan thought about trying to raise the Dreadnoks again. He knew that Wade Wilson possessed a personal teleportation device, which might be his only ticket out of SHIELD. However, his previous attempts to contact Wilson had failed and he wasn't going to take a chance of someone overhearing him try again.
He saw another shadow move. Zartan sat up on his heels and watched carefully. After some searching, he saw the blurry image of a light blue shirt reflected against the metal of one of the boilers. After nearly half a minute, the face of a familiar sailor peeked around the boiler he was using for cover before ducking back behind it. So there were Joes in the heating plant with him. Zartan knew from his experience that Shipwreck could hardly be the only one. If there was one Joe present, you could always count on there being at least one more hidden.
The Dreadnok carefully looked around before silently exiting his hiding space. Zartan suddenly became aware of the fact that his camouflage ability wasn't masking the shadows he was creating. This realization came a split second before Spirit threw a knife into his hip. Zartan found himself grappling with the Joes' tracker, who shouted their location out his teammates.
Zartan disregarded all attempts at secrecy and tried to raise Deadpool again. The dark skinned Joe slashed open his abdomen. The Dreadnok grunted and managed to hook an arm around Spirit's right hand. Zartan quickly brought his other hand forward in a knife strike. He snapped the lower radius bone of Spirit's arm in half. The Joe winced in pain, but refused to back off.
"What's up boss?" Deadpool suddenly asked in his ear. Zartan swore darkly when Spirit suddenly dropped to his knees, which allowed Shipwreck an opportunity to aim a fist at his head. The sailor's fist connected just as Zartan was telling Wilson to get his ass over to SHIELD and extract him. Zartan rolled his head with the punch before kneeing the sailor hard in the stomach.
"Weasel's pinpointing your signal now," he heard Deadpool say. "Be there in a jiff." Zartan wasn't able to acknowledge the mercenary. He was too busy trying to fend off Spirit, who had managed to swipe one of his side arms despite a broken arm. The GI Joe tracker aimed the gun and fired. Zartan twisted his body enough that the bullet only grazed his chest.
A heavy force hit him in the back and slammed him into the ground. Zartan felt bones crack as a third person entered the fray. His nose picked up the strong scent of tobacco and Old Spice. A powerful hand gripped his head and smashed his face down into the concrete floor. Blood spurted out of his nose as cartilage broke. He felt a tooth break off. The hand lifted his head again and slammed it back into the floor. Zartan felt his jaw break. He struggled against his assailant, but the man broke his left arm. The Dreadnok felt the bones in his right arm break next.
Zartan was coughing up blood when he was finally flipped onto his back. The Dreadnok stared up into the face of a livid Nick Fury. Pain shot through him when the SHIELD director decided to punch him in the face. More facial bones cracked. Zartan realized numbly that if he lived through this, he was going to require reconstructive surgery. Fury raised another bloodied fist, but was prevented from punching the Dreadnok again when Spirit placed a hand in front of him.
"I think he's had enough," Spirit said calmly. "Zartan's not going to be walking anywhere."
Nick Fury shot a furious glare at the tracker, who responded with a level stare. Zartan struggled to breathe. He was starting to suspect that one of his lungs had collapsed as well. Fury alternated between glaring at the barely recognizable Dreadnok and at the GI Joe tracker. Nick Fury finally nodded to Spirit and backed off, though not before kicking the downed Zartan hard in the crotch. Stars danced in the Dreadnok's eyes.
"Uh, hey," a familiar voice suddenly said. Zartan would have cracked a smile if his jaw wasn't broken and if his body didn't feel like a truck had run over it. Nick Fury, Spirit, and Shipwreck whipped around to see Deadpool waving hello to everyone.
"Yeah, sorry to interrupt and all," Deadpool said cheerfully. "But I've got to take boss man here back to HQ for some…" The mercenary trailed off when he caught a look at Zartan. Wilson gave a low whistle.
"Aww man…" Wade Wilson said. "You look like Charlton Heston on the losing side of a battle with a meat grinder." If Zartan wasn't currently in need of rescue, and if his jaw wasn't broken, he would have responded with a 'Fuck you, Wilson.' However, he didn't…and couldn't.
"Get lost, Wilson," Nick Fury growled. Deadpool ignored the man and leapt nimbly over his head. Wade Wilson put one hand on Zartan and used his other hand to aim an Uzi at the group.
"Just earning my wages, sir," Wilson replied cheerfully. "I'm taking Old Zarty Boy back home. I'd love to stay and play, but, well…" Deadpool popped off a few warning shots with his weapon. One bullet grazed Spirit's leg. The second hit the tip of Shipwreck's shoulder. Nothing hit Nick Fury. Zartan wondered why Wilson purposefully missed hitting any vital points. He couldn't ask, however, having a broken jaw and all. As long as Wilson kept the yapping to a minimum and got them the hell out of there, he didn't care who Deadpool killed or didn't kill.
"Bye bye!" Deadpool sang. He activated the teleportation device around his belt and grabbed a hold of Zartan. The Dreadnok felt his molecules disintegrate briefly before being reconstructed back at one of the Dreadnoks' hideouts. He was immediately surrounded by curious Dreadnoks. Several of them winced when they saw his face. Zandar took one look at him before calling a doctor.
A group of Joes hovered outside of an intensive care unit in one of SHIELD's infirmaries. Doctors and nurses tried unsuccessfully to shoo the group of soldiers away. Nick Fury gave the Joes and greenshirts a sympathetic look as he marched up to the group with Spirit and Shipwreck in tow. Loyal soldiers to the last. It was a testament to what kind of man Clayton Abernathy was that he had both the love and respect of the men and women under his command.
"Attention!" Nick Fury barked out. Every single Joe and greenshirt immediately fell into line. He spotted Flint on the other side of the glass speaking with one of the doctors. Fury ignored him for the moment. As far as the SHIELD director was concerned, responsibility for taking care of the Joes had fallen to him until Hawk recovered. If he recovered.
"Until further notice, GI Joe is temporarily under my command," Nick Fury announced. He briefly studied the faces of all the soldiers gathered outside of the infirmary. The SHIELD director softened his voice slightly, but wasn't able to completely cut out the anger lining the edge of his voice.
"I understand that you all want to be here," Nick told them. "But the medical staff can't work with all of you here. You all have jobs to do. If you want to help Hawk, then return to your duties. If you wish, three of you at a time may take turns sitting with him in your off hours. For those of you getting ready to ship out to the new Pit, you have two hours to get your gear together. I will keep you all posted on Hawk's condition. Dismissed."
Every single Joe and greenshirt gave him a respectful salute and dispersed. Nick ordered Spirit and Shipwreck to go on ahead of him and get their wounds treated. He pulled Chuckles aside and ordered him to inform the Joes stationed with the Avengers and the X-Men about what had occurred. Chuckles nodded and left. Nick Fury watched the Joes leave, feeling the new responsibility on his shoulders settling in. It was true that Duke and Flint could run things for now, but Nick wasn't going to let them shoulder the responsibility by themselves.
Fury walked in to see the Joes' warrant officer sitting wearily on a chair. In the room next to him, several doctors were in the process of operating on an unconscious Clayton Abernathy. Nick Fury took a seat next to the man.
"They think he'll make it," Flint told him. "But it's going to take a while for a full recovery. He may even be in a coma for a while."
"Son, that's better than being dead," the SHIELD director replied. He patted Flint's back. Fury's knuckles were still caked with Zartan's dried blood. The two men sat in silence for a time before Fury finally dismissed Flint and told him to return to duty.
"Duke will need to know," Nick said before he left. "And Stark's coming soon. You'll have to handle the briefing for now. I have other things I need to take care of first. I'll look at the details later."
"What about General Colton?" Flint asked. "Hawk was supposed to…"
"I'll meet with him," Nick told him. "You have other things to worry about. GI Joe can't come to a halt just because its general has been shot."
"Yes sir," Flint responded. The warrant officer saluted him and left. Nick Fury paced around outside the intensive care unit until one of the doctors finally emerged. Hawk was going to live. Satisfied that his friend wasn't knocking on death's door, Nick Fury decided to follow his own advice and return to duty. There was still that business down in Madripoor that he had to keep an eye on.
The Xavier Institute for Higher Learning
Beach Head tapped his foot and fumed again. God damned ninjas. He glared at the closed doors of the Danger Room. Stupid Snake Eyes, he wasn't even supposed to be staying at the mansion anymore. Hawk had recalled the ninjas to the SHIELD Helicarrier and had rotated a different group of Joes to the mutant school. However, Snake Eyes had somehow sweet talked their CO into letting him return to Xavier's school four times a week to train in the battle simulator.
Stupid, goddamned Snake Eyes. The ninja was hogging the Danger Room now. Beach Head whirled around on his heels and stomped off. This was the last straw. He wanted to use the battle simulator too. The ranger reached out with his mind until he located Kurt Wagner in one of the lounge rooms. When he walked into the room, the ranger found that Nightcrawler was currently engaged in conversation about classic movies with Tunnel Rat. The two men looked up when he stormed in.
"Hey Wagner," Beach Head smirked, knowing well that the blue, elf-like mutant was always up for trouble. "I'll buy you lunch if you teleport Snake Eyes into the pool."
Nightcrawler's eyes immediately lit up at the thought of potential mischief. He grinned and vanished with a 'bamf.' Beach Head ignored the stench of brimstone as he listened for a splash of water. The splash didn't come immediately, so he reached out and found Nightcrawler's and Snake Eyes's minds. From what he could tell, the two men were currently engaged in a 'catch me if you can!' game. Finally, however, the man with the teleporting ability won out.
There was a giant splash from the X-Men's pool.
A sudden smell of fresh brimstone alerted Beach Head to the fact that Nightcrawler had returned. Two slender arms wrapped themselves around his wide chest. The ranger gave a surprised yelp when his surroundings disappeared and were replaced by ice cold water. He felt his body and mind freeze from the shock. Slightly disoriented, he surfaced and spit out water that tasted like chlorine. Wayne Sneeden whipped his head around and found a drenched Snake Eyes sitting on the edge of the pool, wringing out his shirt. A certain blue mutant was perched on top of the ninja's head. His tail swung back and forth behind him. He teleported off of Snake Eyes's head after the ninja took a good natured swipe at him.
"Y…you…" Beach Head sputtered angrily. He launched into an angry tirade and bellowed at the German mutant. Snake Eyes's shoulders shook from silent laughter as he kicked off his wet boots and emptied water out of them. Kurt Wagner gave him an innocent look.
"Snake Eyes made me a better deal," he replied cheekily. The German mutant didn't explain what this better deal consisted of. A quick scan of his mind proved that the deal had involved ice cream and Roadblock cake.
Beach Head muttered angrily to himself before a smirk twitched on his lips. He reached out and telekinetically pulled both Snake Eyes and Nightcrawler into the pool before they could react. The blue mutant immediately abandoned them with a poof. He reappeared seconds later with a bottle of perfume in each hand.
"I don't think Jubilee will mind if I borrow these," the mutant grinned. Snake Eyes and Beach Head froze an instant before they each leapt out of the pool and tried to escape in opposite directions. The ranger felt Snake Eyes mentally swear as the German managed to spritz him with women's perfume. Knowing that he was next, Beach Head threw up a weak telekinetic shield. There was a 'bamf' behind him.
Nightcrawler's tail swished back and forth while he grinned at the ranger. Beach Head crossed his arms and glared at the other mutant. Not to be deterred, Kurt Wagner poked at the barely visible shield. Psionic energy flashed from where he touched it. Rubbing his chin, the blue mutant vanished again. Not quite ready to believe that Nightcrawler had given up, Beach Head began to run back to the mansion.
He sensed Kitty Pryde right before she reached through the shield and grabbed his ankle. Beach Head fell on his face with an undignified crash. His telekinetic shield vanished and in an instant, Snake Eyes was sitting on top of him. The ninja put him in a headlock, but Beach Head went into Snake Eyes head and began to sing the most annoying song that he knew. Clearly not amused, the now agitated ninja discovered that "Achy Break Heart" was now stuck on rewind in his brain. Wayne Sneeden earned a jab to the ribs because of it.
Nightcrawler sprayed them both with a cloud of perfume. Laughing hysterically now, the German mutant saluted them and teleported away. Kitty Pryde winked at them and announced that at least 'they smelled pretty now.' Beach Head bellowed after them. He telekinetically pushed Snake Eyes off of him. The ranger debated dumping him in the pool, but figured that it might wash some of the stench off. If he had to suffer, then the ninja had to suffer.
The two Joes were engaged in a battle of wits, ninjutsu, and mutant powers when Charles Xavier telepathically summoned them inside the mansion. When Beach Head asked what the problem was, the mutant leader gave one short response.
"Hawk has been shot."
SHIELD Helicarrier
Lifeline took control of the SHIELD infirmary the moment he arrived in it. Several doctors and nurses, not knowing who he was, attempted to kick him out. The pacifistic doctor snapped at them once before they backed off. Edwin Steen discussed General Hawk's condition with a SHIELD doctor before proceeding to conduct his own examination.
The rest of the Joes who had come with him paced outside of the intensive care unit. Snake Eyes and Jinx immediately stationed themselves at the entrance to Hawk's private room. Beach Head and Tunnel Rat tried to sneak into it, but Lifeline kicked them out until he was finished. Frustrated, Wayne Sneeden aimed his foot at an empty chair and kicked hard. The chair slammed into a metal cabinet.
"That will do, Beach Head."
The ranger looked over at the speaker. Nick Fury was watching him with crossed arms. Standing next to Fury was a general that Wayne had never seen before. A telepathic scan gave him the man's name: Joseph Colton. Beach Head ignored the general for now while he focused his attention on Nick Fury.
"Hawk's lyin' in there with a hole through his chest," Beach Head told him. "Ah can't just…"
"Sit down, sergeant major," Nick Fury ordered, fixing a glare on him. Beach Head considered disobeying. One look at Fury's face told him that it would be a bad idea. He sat down, but he didn't shut up. The ranger launched into a tirade about Zartan nearly killing Hawk. Fury let him go on for a short time. When Beach Head got to the subject of killing the Dreadnok, the SHIELD director roughly cut him off.
"You think that I didn't want to kill that son of a bitch?" Fury asked him dangerously. "Spirit had to stop me."
"Deadpool got away with him!" Beach Head bellowed. He stood up and glared at the SHIELD director. Logically, he knew that none of this was Nick Fury's fault and that the man had done everything he could to prevent Zartan's escape. However, right now Fury made a good target for his wrath. Nick Fury chomped down on his unlit cigar before getting in Wayne's face with the most terrifying glare that he'd ever seen.
"Sit down, sergeant major, before I make you," Nick Fury warned him. "Sit your goddamned ass down. I don't like the situation any more than you do." There was hardened steel in his voice. Beach Head immediately backed down. Only Hawk had ever been capable of terrifying him into submission. Nick Fury had just joined the club.
"I'm sorry, sir," Beach Head apologized. He forced himself to calm down. Nick Fury was as upset as the rest of them, perhaps more so since he'd been unable to stop it. The SHIELD director nodded his head when it appeared that the disgruntled ranger was going to obey.
"I know you want to return to duty," Nick Fury told him quietly. "But as you only have about a week left of your leave, you're going to damned well finish it. Is that understood?" After a moment of contemplation, Beach Head muttered a gruff 'Yes sir.' He had no idea how Fury had known what was on his mind. The SHIELD director regarded him for a long moment before waving his hand towards the door.
"Walk with me for a while, kid," Fury told him. Beach Head bristled at being called a 'kid'. He nearly bitched about it, but thought better of pissing the older man off again. Nick Fury gave him a knowing look and smirked.
"You're a kid to me," Nick Fury grunted. Beach Head gritted his teeth, but didn't say anything. The SHIELD director outranked him and was technically his superior officer now that the government was integrating GI Joe and SHIELD.
They went for a long walk around the floating base. It took a while, but Beach Head finally felt himself begin to cool down and think more rationally. The ranger tried to get a read on the man at his side. Nick Fury seemed to have some kind of implant that scrambled his thoughts and made it impossible to scan telepathically. Beach Head supposed that it made sense for the head of SHIELD to have a telepathic blocker.
"Are you calmer now?" Nick Fury asked. Beach Head nodded. The older man lit his cigar and blew out a puff of smoke. He took a few more puffs before putting the cigar out again. There was a distant look in Fury's eyes as he stared out of a window. Beach Head refrained from asking what was on his mind.
"Good," Fury told him. "Now go visit your general. I'm sure Lifeline's done with him by now."
Beach Head saluted the man and left. Wary eyes stared at him when he arrived back at the infirmary. The ranger resisted barking at them. Instead, he slipped past the ninja sentries and sat at General Hawk's side. Scarlett and Short Fuze moved over to give him more room.
Wayne Sneeden looked down at the still form of his commanding officer. Tiny IV tubes snaked out of one arm and up to a couple bags. Small oxygen tubes were attached to the general's nose. As the ranger looked closer, he saw how ghostly white the man's complexion had become. Rage and anger burned through him. He had a sudden desire to hunt down Zartan and finish Fury's job.
The ranger forced himself not to lose his temper. Instead, he continued sitting where he was and staring at the unconscious Hawk. Wayne gripped his knees to keep from thrashing out at something. His knuckles soon turned white.
"Short Fuze," he said telepathically, very carefully not looking at the other blonde in the room. The mortar soldier gave a start and looked at him curiously. Scarlett noticed the man's reaction, but said nothing.
"What?" the other man asked in his mind. Short Fuze seemed to have realized that the sergeant major wanted the conversation to be kept private.
"Can you use your powers to locate Zartan?" he asked. Beach Head knew that the Dreadnoks had several hideouts in Florida. The question was which one Zartan was at, if he was even at one of them. It was possible that Deadpool had taken him to a Cobra base.
"I don't know," Short Fuze admitted. "But I can try." The mortar soldier silently struggled with the question he wanted to ask before giving in.
"Why?" he asked suspiciously.
Beach Head debated on his answer before deciding to be truthful. The plan forming in his mind could very well get him into a lot of trouble. Short Fuze deserved to know everything before getting involved.
"Fury's ordered me to finish my leave, but he didn't say how I had to do it," the ranger explained. "I'm going after Zartan."
Wayne listened as the other mutant turned that over in his mind. An independent, unauthorized and self-appointed mission to go on a blood hunt was something more reminiscent of one of the ninjas. Beach Head suspected that if Snake Eyes wasn't currently tied down with his own duties, he might very well disappear and do just that. Since the ranger currently had no obligations to stop him, he figured that he might as well go after Zartan himself. If Fury bitched about it, he could just claim that it was a training mission.
"How do you plan on getting anywhere?" Short Fuze finally asked. "Lifeline?"
"Lifeline wouldn't agree to it," Beach Head told him. "And I don't want him involved anyway. He's better off here where he can look after Hawk and help Beast work on a cure for the Legacy Virus. I'll borrow the Blackbird or one of the smaller planes."
"Oh…Cyclops will just LOVE that," Short Fuze remarked dryly.
"Cyclops ain't gonna know until it's over," the ranger admitted. He was probably going to get into a hell lot of trouble for what he was planning. Wayne took one look down at the unconscious Hawk and told himself that it didn't matter. He would walk through hell for Clayton Abernathy.
"Fine," Short Fuze silently told him. "I don't know if I can find him or not. Regardless…I'm going with you."
Beach Head tried to talk the other soldier out of it. Short Fuze refused and continued to insist that the ranger needed someone to go along with him to watch his back. The sergeant major finally gave in. Their conspiracy agreed upon, the two men continued to sit with Hawk. Lifeline gave them another hour before kicking everyone out of the infirmary. Now having no reason to stick around, Beach Head and Short Fuze headed back to the mansion.
Once there, they discovered that an injured Storm Shadow was currently with the Avengers and that a team of X-Men had already left with the Blackbird for Muir Island. The ranger didn't let this deter him. If anything, it made it easier to borrow one of the X-Men's smaller aircraft without getting caught. Before he and Short Fuze could do anything, however, they had to find Zartan first.
An undisclosed location in Utah
It was 2200 when a small group of Joes and one SHIELD agent landed in the middle of the Utah desert. Lift Ticket landed the transport plane on a makeshift runway. When it came to a stop, Cover Girl grabbed her gear and slung it over her shoulder. Her teammates followed suit and they all followed Lady Jaye out of the plane. Courtney looked around at the empty desert. There was very little proof that a top secret military installation was about to be under construction.
A single, metal building rose above the desert sand. Two military transport trucks were parked on one side of it. Several tents were on the other. Other than one light pole and the lights of the runway, which were quickly extinguished, the only other source of light were the stars and crescent moon shining above them. Dusty looked positively giddy as he disembarked from the transport plane.
As the group approached the building, they saw a single figure standing in the doorway. His long, dark hair was pulled back in a low ponytail. The metal of his cybernetic right hand glimmered in the starlight. The unknown man turned his head to look inside the building. Seconds later, he was joined by the Joes' first sergeant. All of the Joes paused when they reached the entrance to the building.
"I'm glad you all could make it," Duke told them. "Especially after what happened today. Welcome to the new Pit. I know it's not much to look at right now." He nodded at them before indicating the taller man to his right. Taking his cue, the man finally spoke up.
"I am Forge," the man said curtly. "For future reference, if you see a piece of machinery that you don't recognize, don't touch it. Nasty things might happen. Now that we're all acquainted, let's go to bed."
Forge turned around and went back inside the building. The Joes looked at each other before following after the Native American mutant. Duke seemed vaguely amused by the odd greeting.
"Friendly guy," Cover Girl muttered. She claimed one of the empty cots that had been placed in the corner of the large building. Another corner was a makeshift kitchen while the rest of the building was a small shop. The tank driver forced herself to stay awake while Duke ran through a list of rules and regulations before giving them each their assignments. They were also assigned guard duty shifts throughout the night. Once he was finished, the first sergeant left them alone. Courtney cast her eyes over to the shop area of the building to see Forge sitting by himself. The mutant was surrounded by pieces of machinery and tools. A single laptop was open beside him. Country music played softly in the background.
She wondered briefly if the man was anti-social or simply just not up to mingling with the Joes when they were going to have lights out soon. Cover Girl saw Spirit eyeing the man as well. His broken arm was currently in a cast. She had no idea why the tracker had still been assigned to Utah with his injury, but figured that Duke probably had a reason for it.
Too tired to think about any of it, Cover Girl visited the lavatory before climbing into her cot. They had a lot of work ahead of them. She pulled the covers over her head and was promptly asleep. When the time for her shift came at 0300, she yawned and took up her position at the entrance of the building. Only Dusty was awake, being the other guard on duty. When their shift ended, she gratefully climbed into bed again. Courtney Kreiger slept like a log the rest of the night.
Author's Note: I apologize for having Hawk get shot. Please don't shoot me for it. It had to happen for the plot. I promise that he will make a full recovery.
Oh, and I considered naming this chapter 'Don't Fuck with Nick Fury," but decided against it. The events that were mentioned about Muir Island and Storm Shadow are currently taking place in "Ninja Walkabout." I've also begun publishing extra/bonus scenes for Silence in a story called "Et Cetera."
