This is the story of Original Character Asia Monroe, an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. from the Operations school, hand picked by Strike Team Delta themselves to join Phil Coulson's team. Being an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. isn't always all it's cracked up to be. And what is the dark secret Fury is hiding about her past?
Notes: None of the Marvel characters or their origin stories belong to me. The only details in this story belonging to me are those of the original characters. Chapter 1Chapter TextIt was hot, too hot even, for the amount of black the slim girl was wearing. A black leather jacket, over a black tank top, paired with black, tight fitted pants and black combat boots. It was expected for anyone to be sweating in such a heat wave, but the brunette held her composure just fine, occasionally glancing at a silver watch which hung on her wrist. It was five minutes past her directed meeting time. Not exactly a good start to things.
Pushing her aviator sunglasses up to rest atop her head, Agent Monroe once again glanced around the bus stop where she was waiting. Perhaps they were simply watching her, waiting her for to catch on to their presence. But it seemed unlikely. Seeing she had arrived two hours early to survey the entire land, she didn't think any figure had escaped her grasp. Yet, her grey eyes, grey like the colour of storm clouds ready to burst, moved slowly over the terrain of the New York streets, waiting for a sign, any sign.
And suddenly, there he was, the man from her file folders, rolling up in a shiny, red convertible, a 62 Chevy Corvette from the looks of things. He had on a dark grey suit and matching tie, and sported his own set of Aviators. "Nice to finally meet you Monroe," he said directly to her, not missing a beat, "How about you hop in and we'll take a ride?" His words were surprisingly kind, and his face equally so. Not exactly what Asia had expected from an Agent in charge of his own operations team.
Nevertheless, she slid effortlessly into the vehicle, glancing carefully around them to make sure no one was paying to much attention as they sped away from the grimy bus station where she had waited. "So, Monroe, it's a pleasure to finally have you aboard. A team member handpicked and trained by Strike Team Delta...well...let's just say we haven't had someone at your caliber of talent in a while." Phil Coulson said as they made their way out of New York City and into gentler surrounding country.
"Please, call me Asia," the brunette in the passenger seat said with a smile on her lips and a faint blush on her cheeks. It was true, she had been trained by Natasha Romanov and Clint Barton, to be their backup essentially. She was on her way to becoming the latest Avenger, unbeknownst to her, if that was the path she chose. That was, at least, until Director Fury had a private discussion with her, explaining Coulson's team, and how she could very well be an essential member, a pivotal turning point when it came to the success of their missions. And when he asked her if she was interested, she couldn't exactly say no. "And I'm honored, really, to be a part of your team. You have quite a legacy, Phil."
"Hey, you're making quite a legacy of your own, for how long you have been with S.H.I.E.L.D, Asia," Phil replied, using her name as requested. "I think you'll be an asset. Did Fury brief you on who you'll be working with?"
Asia shook her head in response, "All he really told me was that you were in charge of a group of rather...elite, I believe was how he put it? Elite agents who were working unclassified missions, specifically one's involving 084's." She was rather excited to meet these alleged elite agents. There were several people she had in mind from Operations who she hadn't seen since graduation. Well, since traditional graduation. With her own training process, it felt as if she never truly graduated. With Nat and Clint, whom she adored dearly, she felt as if she was always being babysitted. As if the two agents had made the mutual decision to adopt her and train her, but never let her go out alone. The 25 year old had been with S.H.I.E.L.D. from the age of 15, hand chosen by Natasha Romanov herself as the perfect student. And she had still yet to do a solo mission, after ten long years.
"They are really something special," Coulson replied, a gentle smile on his weathered face, "Each of them, really. But I'll let them introduce themselves. We do have one other new recruit...she wasn't exactly planned. But I think you'll get along. You've got a lot in common."
Asia turned to look at the fellow S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, raising one thin eyebrow, "And whatever do you mean by that, Agent Coulson?"
"Oh please Asia, call me Phil," he teased, glancing over at her, "Now buckle up, things are about to get a little bumpy." He pressed a button, and suddenly the car was no rather driving on four wheels, but rather launched into the air, wheels shifting position and becoming a hovering rocket of a vehicle which shot into the sky. Asia felt her heart leap into her throat and immediately grabbed onto the edges of her seat, even though the belt was already secured. "And she is also looking for some lost past," Phil shouted over the wind as they approached a mass of clouds.
Asia looked at the fluffy white orbs warily, ready to get drenched, when suddenly a large, dark black bird of a plane dropped out of the clouds, the cargo door dropping open for the car to easily glide into, hovering once more until the cargo door closed and the wheels rotated back to their proper positions. When the wind died and made it easier to speak, Phil turned back to the agent, whose hair was whipped wildly around her face. "Welcome to the bus."
The Ops Agent had been on many planes in her time, but there was nothing like the Bus. "How the hell did you get something like this?" She asked immediately, forgetting to bite her tongue. Nat would have been ashamed, but Clint would have laughed along with her. Her pale cheeks once again flushed slightly, but then when she saw Phil smiling, she threw on one of her own smiles, a genuine one.
"Well it was part of that whole near-death experience thing. War perks you could call it," Phil said with a shrug of his shoulder. "She's been through a lot, but she's a strong bird. How are your skills at flying?"
Asia blanched, "You'd let me fly? Damn. I didn't know you had so much confidence in me." Her laugh was genuine. She did have experience flying, there was no way her mentors wouldn't teach her that much of an important skill. "I've done my fair share of flying. I've clocked about 750 hours to date. I still need more, if you ask me."
"Well you'll get plenty of chances," Phil said, stopping and turning to her. "You're a part of our team now Agent Monroe, and that will have its perks. But, it's going to be dangerous, too. Danger like you never experienced with Strike Team Delta. And they won't be around here to save you now. You'll have to rely on us, and us on you. Is that something you're ready for?"
"With all due respect, Agent Coulson, I was born ready," Asia replied. If only she knew how literal those words were.
"Well, the rest of your team should be inside those doors," Phil said, standing with his hands crossed in front of him. "Do you want to go inside? It's entirely up to you." He looked down at the young woman with patient eyes, yet he was clearly testing her.
"What, you're not planning to introduce me?" She asked, challenging him back, shrugging off her leather jacket and hanging it over one shoulder, exposing her soft shoulder blades and the weaved black tank top beneath, which showed off her curves rather nicely. "Or has my reputation already proceeded me?"
Phil grinned slightly, "Well, they know you're coming, they just don't know who exactly. So go ahead, give 'em hell."
Rolling her eyes, Asia placed a hand on the door and twisted the knob, pushing it forward and stepping into the lab. As she entered, she could hear Phil whisper "Good luck kiddo," and any nerves she had washed away, replaced by a smile on her face. There were four people in the room in front of her, and she could hear the shuffle of footsteps coming from behind one of the shelves.
Simultaneously, all full four faces looked up at her, stopping what they were doing. The first agent Asia recognized immediately, Melinda May, the gorgeous Asian female with calculating eyes that could make even the strongest of men whimper. Asia had met her before, when she was on missions and getting briefed. The woman was nearly as deadly as Natasha, if not on par with the Black Widow. Immediately, a half smile slid across the woman's face.
Next to her was a girl who could almost be a younger version of Agent May, a cute Asian American girl with long, dark hair that fell in waves. If only Asia could get her hair to fall like that. The girl's fingers had been rapidly typing over a keyboard but froze when the new agent had entered, her pouty lips dropping open slightly.
And to her right were a man and a woman standing next to each other, both in cardigans, the girl's being dark red and the boy's being pine green. The girl had short, red brown hair and very pale skin, with wide, wide eyes which were studying her with an intensity that could only belong to a scientist. The boy next to her hair short, curly brown hair and soft blue eyes. His mouth was dropped open just slightly. By his proximity to the other scientist beside him, she could only guess they must be rather close, whether it was a tight friendship or a relationship.
But the Agent who really excited her was the Agent who walked out from behind the shelf, a tall man with clean cut black hair and a chizzled jawline. He was well built and walked with attitude, but when he saw Asia, a smile crashed over his face.
"Ward!" Asia shouted, throwing open her arms and running to him, jumping into his matched open arms. He swooped her up and swung her around in a circle before setting her down. "Shit, Monroe, I knew they were sending someone good, but I never thought we would be lucky enough to get my number one competition." Agent Grant Ward was someone Asia had grown quite close with in Ops school, their level of proficiency pushing each other to competition, but also spurring the best sort of friendship.
"I had no idea you were here either!" She said enthusiastically, looking him up and down, "Man, you haven't changed a bit!" Admittedly, it had been a while since Asia had actually seen her friend. When they had graduated and she had gone on to work with Strike Team Delta, leaving Grant Ward behind, she was worried he wouldn't forgive her. But they had stayed in touch, getting drinks whenever they were in fact in the same city. And from how things seemed, he didn't hold her advancements against her.
"Hey you haven't either. When are you going to grow as tall as me?" He teased, rubbing the top of her head fondly, messing up her soft brown hair. Turning back to face the other agents, Agent May nodded at the new arrival. "Agent Monroe, I'm glad Agents Romanov and Barton were able to spare you." And immediately the manners fell and the two hugged quickly. "How have things been since Bora Bora?"
"Good, good," Asia replied, "We all got a few bullet scars, but nothing time won't fix."
"Romanov and Barton?" The other guy whispered in a heavy Scottish accent, although his whisper, one that couldn't keep Asia from giggling, wasn't quite soft enough to keep everyone else from hearing. When it was obvious that everyone had heard his whispering to the pale girl next to him, he said in a louder voice, "You mean to say that you, you are the Agent training under, under Agents Romanov and Barton?"
Asia shrugged it off, "That would be me. But instead of calling me 'the agent' you can call me Monroe, or Asia if you want to be chummy." Her words were teasing, and polite enough, but she still felt slightly uncomfortable.
"I'm sorry, but holy shit, you don't get to just shrug that off!" The girl who looked like Mini-May spoke up. "That is ridiculously cool," she continued, stepping forward and extending a hand for her to shake. "My name is Skye, I'm new too, so we can figure out this whole thing together."
Asia bit back a response of saying she wasn't all that new, not to S.H.I.E.L.D. at least, and instead shook her hand, "It's nice to meet you, I'm Asia. And I'm glad I'll have someone here to go through all the newbie things with me."
"I'm Jemma Simmons," the last girl spoke up, with a lilting British accent, "I'm one half of the lab here, in charge of biochem." She shook her hand formally, with a very stiff arm and an almost too cheery smile.
"And she stitches us all up after missions go wrong," Ward interjected.
"What, you got a lot of missions going wrong?" Asia teased her old partner in crime, "Man, Ward, you're really slippin. What would you do without me?"
But instead of laughter, the room was uncomfortably silent. Apparently missions going wrong was a serious subject aboard the Bus. It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.
Rescuing her, Skye spoke up, "Well, we can talk about missions later. Want me to show me your room?" Asia responded with a nod of enthusiasm, ready to get out of the situation as quickly as possible. Skye took her hand and lead her out of the room, down a surprisingly long hall for an airplane to have. "Sorry about that back there," Skye continued on, Asia finding herself enjoying the girl's chatty behavior. "We just had a really bad mission yesterday. You wouldn't be able to tell on first glance, but we all took it pretty hard. That's part of the reason you're here now, I think. We just need more man power. Or in our case, woman power."
"Well, I'm really glad to be a part of the team. I hope I can help you guys get what you need, but I'm seriously nothing special." The two twentysomethings stopped in front of a very inconspicuous door, with no windows and only a knob.
"Nothing special?" Skye turned to her, "You trained with two Avengers. That is incredible. I could never do what you do. All I do is hack things."
Asia shrugged, "What I do just takes training, really. I can show you some stuff, if you'd like. I'm sure you're learning a lot from Ward, he's your SO right? But there's some things I can show you that he might not." It was nice, the easy sense of familiarity between the two of them.
"I would really like that Asia, really. You'll do great here." Then, Skye gestured at the door. "This is you. Next to you is Fitz, and past him is me, then Jemma, then Ward, the May, then Coulson. The rooms are for the most part sound proof. I mean, if you go firing off a gun they'll hear it. But if you gotta punch a few things, scream a little, it's all okay. I'll be in my own room, so just come knock if you need me." With that, she turned and disappeared down the hall.
Asia stepped quietly into the room, flicking on a small light switch. The room was bare. The walls were patterned with an octagonal shape and were black as the night. Against the wall was a bed, a queen surprisingly, probably one of the favours Fury had called in for her, with white sheets and two pillows. Gone were the photos of all three Strike Team Delta members in various places, mostly with only Clint and Asia smiling, but occasionally with Nat giving a wry grin. Gone were the six pillows, no less ever, that she usually slept with, and the dark purple silk sheets. Gone were the vanilla candles and the soft reading lamp she usually kept next to her bed. She knew this was supposed to be something which she could adapt to, after all she had spent nights in far worse places during her advanced training, but she had slept in those places knowing the two people she trusted the most, the only family she had left really. Here, she had no one. There was nothing familiar at all. Closing the door behind her and shutting off the lights, she stepped over to the bed in the dark. Sitting on the edge, she put her head in her hands, and took Skye's advice: she let out the loudest scream she could manage.