I'll be honest, I don't even know what day we're on anymore.
Chapter 24- Check Ins.
New York had gone to hell; civilians hid where ever they could as buildings collapsed around them and glass shattered. Their cries for help went unheard, masked by the sound of stone hitting concrete and battle cries from an invading force beyond their imagination. Still, entwined in the chaos and destruction were a handful of people fighting against the aliens who flew around the city like teenagers on a joyride.
Lucie and Steve had barely trained together, they worked out together regularly but it was rare that they sparred, a detail that Lucie scorned herself for. It would have made them a better team had they known each others moves. While Steve kept a steady pace, knocking each Chitauri to the ground that came at him, Lucie's arms started to tire and the adrenaline that was holding her pain at bay began to crack as lethargy and ache began to flood her system.
Thor found himself at the other end of the scale, not only was he not tiring, but he was enjoying himself, revelling in the joy that battle brought him.
"You need to hurry it up, Nat," she grunted, wiping the blood from her chin and allowing herself a couple of seconds before she re-joined the fight.
"You okay Lucia?" Tony asked, his voice dripping with fear and panic.
"I'm fine, get off the channel please," she answered, unable to stop herself from sounding frustrated.
Her request would have sparked an argument had they not been interrupted by a far more serious threat.
"Stark, you hearing me? We have a missile heading straight for the city," Fury informed, just like every other order he gave to an agent in the field.
"How long?" Tony and Lucie asked in unison, both looking to the skies in search of an answer in the shape of a bomb.
"Three minutes, at best. Stay low and wipe out that missile."
Three minutes, not much time by anyone's standards. Still, on the ground with a clip half emptied and a handful of knives at her disposal, there wasn't much Lucie could do. She grunted and kicked the door of the nearest car closed with enough force to shatter the window and leaving a boot shaped dent in the door panel.
All Lucie could picture was Hiroshima, the black and white photographs that became so grotesquely iconic. She knew all the figures, how many deaths, the stats of the bomb, the height at which it exploded, how much of the city was decimated. Back in 1945 five square miles was just about the extent of their power, 67 years later that area would only be larger. With SHIELD's innovation a nuclear missile could easily decimate New York State. Millions of people reduced to ash and it was SHIELD who would be unapologetically responsible.
Steve watched her, taking a step back as if to move out of the firing line. He had heard Fury's message over their comms but he didn't understand what was going on, not having the information to do so. He hadn't seen the photographs or heard the same stories that Lucie had grown up with, with that much history to catch up on since he went into the ice, it wasn't all that surprising. When the first missiles were developed, they were rarely used and certainly weren't well known.
The look on Lucie's face told him everything that he needed to know. Her eyes held nothing but cold flint, every other emotion bleached from her mind as her face began to change to that of a dangerous shade of red. It was then he knew that the missiles weren't on their way to help.
"SHIELD want to wipe New York off the map," Lucie explained through gritted teeth, taking out her aggression on a wave of Chitauri foot soldiers that were heading their way.
"I can close it! Can anyone hear me? I can close the portal!" Natasha shouted down the comms, looking for some kind of agreement from the rest of the team.
"Do it!" Steve answered only to be contradicted a second later.
"No! We got a nuke coming in in less than a minute. And I know just where to put it."
With his HUD tracking the missile's trajectory, Tony watched it closely as he sped to catch up with it, attempting to guide it off course just enough that he would be able manipulate it into the portal and out of harms way. Even if it blew up over the sea, the damage would be astronomical. Even with the suit, he barely had enough strength, pulling it away from its target with every ounce he had.
"Stark, you know that's a one-way trip?" Steve asked, not entirely sure who he was asking.
With another wave defeated, Lucie looked to the sky, for once not feeling pride or relief when she saw the familiar red and gold suit fly through the air. Instead she could feel the sweat on her hands and the tightness of her grip against the only knife she had left.
"Lu?" Tony asked.
"I'm here," she answered, barely a breath.
"You know I love you right?"
"Course I do. Just come home," she pleaded, watching as her father got closer and closer to Stark Tower.
"Shall I call Miss Potts, Sir?" JARVIS asked.
"Give it a shot," Tony replied, honestly glad of some kind of distraction from what he was about to do.
Peppers image sat in the corner of the display, waiting for her to answer her phone so that he could say just one final goodbye. The HUD began to drain of any remaining power, the display showing nothing at all so that all Tony could see was the inside of his own suit as the missile found a new target in space; the Chitauri Armada.
He stared in horror at what he saw, dozens of ships, each far more advanced than he ever could have dreamed of. They weren't the streamlined kind that Tony had imagined as a kid but instead looked like they had been forged in a scrap yard, bits and pieces everywhere that he had no idea of the function of. As an inventor, he often saw the beauty in things that others didn't, engine parts and tools but rather than being in awe of the Chitauri, he was terrified, he was out of his depth, shocked that they had managed to hold them at bay for so long.
He had only one thing left that he could do and he wasn't entirely sure that it would work or even make a dent in their armour. The missile meant to wipe New York off the map. Letting go of the missile was easier than he expected, the bomb shooting into the middle of the army and exploding with spectacular force.
"Dad?" Lucie asked, receiving nothing in return. "Dad!"
She didn't feel it when her legs buckled from under her yet her glare didn't falter.
"Close it," Steve reluctantly ordered, knowing that Natasha was waiting for the order before making her move.
In the middle of combat, every soldier dropped to the ground, its connection with the Armada severed. A heavy heap of metal and chaos clattering to the concrete in grotesque unison. Then, just like that, the battle was over.
Lucie had her head in her hands, a rare moment of stillness as she allowed grief and failure to drown her.
"Son of a bitch," Steve smiled.
Lucie's eyes shot to the sky in time to see Tony tumble towards the ground, spinning further and further out of control.
"J, pull up. JARVIS!" Lucie shouted, as if the AI would be able to hear her better through the comms. "JARVIS!" she screamed, her throat threatening to tear from the pressure of the shriek that ripped through her.
Well it's been a while. We don't have many left now!
Stay safe.