Temperance went up to the cockpit area and took the seat next to Natasha while Clint was in the back, discussing strategy with Steve.
"You should be listening to that." Natasha said, foregoing a greeting as she flipped a few switches near her head.
"Yeah, well, I wanted to talk to you about a few things." Temp said.
"Now's not the best time to go over your life history, Temperance." Natasha replied.
"I realize that. But I think I deserve some answers before I charge into battle." Temp told her, not budging. "And I know you have answers. You showed up to 'work' for Tony not long after I did. You weren't just watching him."
Natasha was quiet for a long moment before sighing. "You get three questions," She said. Temp sat up straighter in her chair.
"How did S.H.I.E.L.D. know about me?" She asked.
"As a child, there were some...strange...circumstances surrounding you. S.H.I.E.L.D. noticed." Natasha replied.
"Like what? Temp asked.
"I didn't promise explanations." Natasha answered. Temperance bit her cheek but didn't push it. She didn't want to risk losing her two other questions.
"So if S.H.I.E.L.D. has known about me since I was a kid, why haven't they involved me in anything? Why keep me separate?"
"You were young." Natasha answered, pausing. "And your father has been a good advocate for you." The distant look in Natasha's eye suggested that she hadn't had such an advocate for herself.
"So my father knows about all of this? He's been lying to me my whole life?"
"He's been protecting you." Clint cut in as he walked up behind them, motioning for her to vacate his seat. Temp sighed as she got up.
"One more thing." She said, still standing there.
"You're out of questions." Natasha reminded her, looking up at her with a raised brow.
"Did S.H.I.E.L.D. get me the internship at AccuTech?" Temperance asked anyway. She already knew the answer to this one, but she still wanted to hear it.
"It made it easier to keep an eye on you and Tony both. Kept you tied down so we'd know where to find you if we needed you. But we didn't expect you to rise to Tony's right-hand man within the year. That was you."
Temperance nodded slowly. She knew that assurance was supposed to make her feel better. She wanted to know about the 'strange circumstances' from her childhood. They obviously thought that she was the one causing those strange things to happen. But it just didn't seem possible. If she could do the things they were saying, wouldn't she have noticed it herself before others did? But now wasn't the time to dwell on it. New York City was her home and if there was any way that she could help protect it, she would try.
When Temperance returned to the back of the jet, she pulled out her phone. She didn't have time to talk to her father about everything she'd learned, but she figured she should call him to at least let him know that there was danger in New York, and that she was going to be at the epicenter of it. She dialed the phone and brought it to her ear, sticking a finger in the other one to drown out the other noise in the aircraft. The phone rang several times before going to voicemail and Temperance's throat constricted. She hadn't realized how badly she'd wanted to speak to him. He often let his calls go to voicemail without realizing his phone had ever buzzed. His tendency was to get caught up in blueprints and work notes and forget about his phone for hours at a time.
"Hey, Dad," She greeted after the voicemail beep. Steve watched, and although his gaze was empathetic, she was suddenly very aware of the fact that she was the only one calling a parent right now. "I just wanted to see what you were doing. If you're at work right now, please call me, okay? I love you."
She left it at that, hanging up. If all of this Loki stuff was resolved quickly and under the radar, then she didn't want to worry him needlessly. The jet suddenly banked left as they brought it down to a lower altitude, and Natasha worked to avoid the skyscrapers. Temp and Steve reached up and grabbed onto a bar on the ceiling to steady themselves. Steve pointed to his ear piece, and Temperance fished hers out of her pocket, playing with it until it was seated firmly in her ear.
"Stark, we're on your three. Headed Northeast." Natasha announced.
"What? Did you stop for drive-through?" Tony said. "Swing up Park. I'm gonna lay them out for you."
A chill ran up Temperance's spine. Them. She edged closer to the cockpit and got a glimpse out the windshield. She saw Tony shoot across a gap in between two buildings up ahead, and he was followed by a number of smaller aircrafts. Clint attempted to shoot at them as they passed by, using the jet's guns. Natasha turned the corner when they reached the edge of that street to reveal many, many more of these enemy crafts. There was an army coming. In her disbelief, Temperance didn't realize that she had let go of the bar until they took another sharp curve, and she flew back into the cargo area. Steve managed to grab her arm and keep her from slamming into the wall, and she grunted a quick thanks before anchoring herself in place again.
"We've got eyes on Loki." Natasha announced. Temperance saw a flash of the Stark Tower sign and heard the sound of the jet's guns once again. A moment later, the aircraft lurched hard.
"Hang on." Steve shouted over the noise. "We've been hit."
Every muscle in Temperance's body tensed as the jet began to lose altitude, and it became harder and harder to keep herself in place. Soon her feet had left the floor, and her hold on the bar was the only anchor she had. For the second time that day, she was falling out of the sky. This time, she had a feeling she'd be going all the way.
When the jet collided with the ground, Temp's hold finally broke and she slammed to the floor. She slid around until the aircraft came to a stop and groaned as Steve helped her back up. Natasha had brought it down surprisingly easy, considering that Temperance had expected it to go up in a ball of flames. She heard the sound of Natasha and Clint unbuckling behind her and followed Steve outside as the back door of the aircraft lowered into a ramp. The ground was already covered in concrete rubble; sirens and screams permeated the air. Temperance noticed many overturned cars as she ran alongside the others. Steve stopped short, and she ran into his back, coughing on cement dust. He was staring at the sky, and the hair on the back of her neck rose as she followed his gaze. The origin of the army was a giant portal floating above Manhattan. When she noticed movement inside the portal, she raised a hand to shield her eyes from the sun. A giant ship, serpentine in nature, was emerging from the space on the other side. It dipped directly down into the alley where they stood and the four of them wordlessly watched it soar overhead. Creatures began leaping from it left and right, anchoring themselves to the sides of buildings. Temperance took a couple of steps back, overwhelmed and panicked by what was coming. Natasha reached out and grabbed her arm, giving her a small, reassuring nod. Temperance swallowed hard. This was an invasion. It was happening, whether she decided to fight or not. The thought helped build her resolve again. If it didn't matter, she might as well choose the fight.
"Stark. You seeing this?" Steve asked, beginning to get his bearings as well.
"Seeing. Still working on believing." Tony replied. "Where's Banner?"
Temperance tuned out the conversation as a large succession of explosions began down the street. She turned to get a better look, kneeling behind a taxi cab that had been thrown onto the sidewalk in front of the public library. Loki and a number of his soldiers flew above the streets, shooting at everything that moved. Cars flipped end-over-end, and people scurried into buildings to avoid the large chunks of debris.
"Guys," Temperance called over her shoulder without tearing her eyes from the scene. The others came and took cover next to her, as Loki and his men drew nearer.
"They're fish in a barrel down there." Steve said as they watched the alien creatures land on the streets and begin shooting with handheld weapons. Temperance and Steve ducked lower as a couple of blasts came their way. Natasha and Clint jumped into action, pulling out their weapons and shooting back. Temperance had opted not to bring a gun because she didn't know how to use it, but now she regretted taking only a couple of knives and gadgets. They weren't going to be any good unless she got real close to those things.
"We've got this." Natasha assured Steve as she knelt down next to them again.
"You sure?" He asked, looking to Clint, who nodded.
"If I run down the center and draw most of the fire, do you think you can follow along and help clear people out of there?"
It took Temperance a moment to realize that Steve was addressing her.
"Yes," she replied with a lot more confidence than she felt. Steve nodded, grabbing a warped piece of metal that looked like it had once been part of a car door.
"Be careful." He handed her the makeshift shield and then disappeared over the hood of the cab, taking off at a full sprint. Temperance took a deep breath and ran around the back of the car, sprinting down a set of concrete steps to the street. Steve ran as the crow flies, right over cars and debris, while Temperance weaved through the chaos on the ground, largely unnoticed as the aliens turned to shoot at their new target. The few stray shots that came in her direction were deflected by the shield she held.
Get people off the street. She repeated as a mantra in her head. Get people off the street. It was easier to think of it this way - she wasn't fighting a battle. She was helping to keep people safe.
"Get off the street," She started calling out to people. "Go to the subway! Go! Go!" She directed people to a subway entrance nearby, watching them file down the stairs. "Let's go! Let's go!"
It wasn't long before the stairs down to the subway platform became clogged - there were already a lot of people down there, and they weren't moving efficiently to allow new people in. When a group of 4 or 5 people were left vulnerable at the top of the stairs, Temperance glanced around. A man was watching the chaos unfold from the front door of a brownstone nearby. She signalled for the people to follow her as she rushed up the steps of the building.
"Open the door." She told the man. He was watching through the window of the door, which was also reinforced by a locked lattice gate. He was shaking his head profusely, rambling about safety. Temperance glanced behind her - Steve and the police were drawing most of the fire now. It was the ideal time to get civilians off the street unnoticed.
"Open it!" Temperance shouted, slamming a hand against the gate and rattling it. The man paled and opened the door, pulling out a set of keys to open the gate. "You got a basement?" Temp asked. The man nodded. "Get everyone to the basement."
The people filed into the building and Temperance ushered a few others stragglers in before she allowed him to lock it back up. When the gate was fully secured again, the sound of escalating screams caught her attention. The creatures had discovered that people were escaping into the subway. One was standing at the top of the stairs, firing down into the crowd. Temperance rushed down the steps of the brownstone and approached it from behind. When she was close, she ditched the makeshift shield Steve had given her and instead picked up a piece of steel rebar that was sticking up out of the debris. There was still a hefty chunk of concrete stuck on the other end. Temperance stepped up behind the alien and swung the rebar like a baseball bat across the back of his head. The impact was hard enough that the concrete shattered against his skull, and he fell to the ground. He still writhed on the pavement, but the hit was enough to incapacitate him. Without thinking, Temperance knelt and pried the gun out of his hands before he could gain his bearings. It was bulkier than any gun Temp had seen, but it had a basic trigger like any other, and she pulled it without hesitation. The resulting energy blast killed the creature instantly without even a bit of kickback from the weapon.
By now, his buddies had caught on to her, and several of the creatures turned and fired in her direction. She backed onto the third stair of the subway entrance and squatted down behind the concrete barrier that held the handrail, shooting back. Yes, this weapon was going to be a gamechanger. She wasn't sure what the power source was, but it didn't seem to need reloading, so she was able to fire continuously without worry. She wasn't the best shot, but she managed to hold ground as the remaining New Yorkers on the stairs filtered down and out of sight. She managed to shoot a couple of them from a distance, but most had to venture closer before she had a chance of meeting her target. The streets had cleared out significantly, and Temperance was relieved to find that she couldn't see any more civilians running around. She wanted to re-group, but a particularly stubborn alien had pinned her down in a shoot-out from across the street, and she couldn't manage to hit him in his hiding place behind a car. After a couple minutes of back-and-forth. Steve appeared behind the creature and knocked it out, putting an end to the confrontation. Temperance glanced around warily before crossing the street to join Steve behind the car.
"You good?" Steve asked. Temperance nodded.
"What now?"
"Follow me."
Temperance ran behind him, holding her new toy at the ready. They headed back in the direction they'd come, having successfully managed to clear the street. The police also seemed to be moving and setting up blockades with more efficiency, likely thanks to Steve's direction. Many of the creatures had now converged on Natasha and Clint back at the library. Steve dove into the fray and Temperance approached more slowly, picking off a couple of them from behind. She managed to shoot one in the back as it ganged up on Natasha. Natasha, who'd obtained a high-tech staff from the fallen alien, managed to shock the other with it. She sent an appreciative nod in Temp's direction before calling out a warning.
"Watch out!" Temperance turned on her heel, gun held high, to see that the two creatures behind her were already convulsing. She could see the electricity coursing through their bodies and smiled as Thor landed a few feet from her.
"What's the story upstairs?" Steve asked as they all came together, having temporarily created a lull in the fight.
"The power surrounding the cube is impenetrable." Thor said.
"Of course it is." Temperance said with a sigh.
"Thor's right. We've gotta deal with these guys." Tony chimed in through the ear piece.
"How do we do this?" Natasha asked. Steve began to lay out some ideas, but was interrupted by the sound of a hiccoughing motor. They all turned to see Bruce approaching on a rundown bike.
"This all seems horrible." He announced as he got off the bike and they ran to meet him.
"Stark, we've got him." Steve said.
"Tell him to suit up." Tony replied. "I'm bringing the party to you."
He appeared from around a corner and headed right for them, trailed by the leviathan. Temperance suddenly felt less confident about her gun. Bruce turned and ran to meet it as he transformed into the Hulk, landing a punch directly on the leviathan's nose. The sudden loss of momentum caused it to flip on end, the tail falling swiftly toward them.
"Hang on." Tony said. Everyone crouched as he shot an energy blast into the leviathan's spine, causing it to split in half in a fiery explosion. Temperance felt the heat at her back, but the blast dissipated before doing any real damage. The group stood again, and Tony landed next to Temp. The creatures, still attached to the sides of the buildings, let out angry shrieks at the loss of the leviathan.
"Guys," Natasha said. They all turned around and followed her gaze to the portal. Two more leviathans and many more aliens on speeders were spilling through it now.
"Call it, Cap." Tony said.
Cap gave quick and efficient orders. Clint would perch on a roof and call out patterns and strays. Tony was going to take to the sky and keep the perimeter, making sure nothing made it more than a few blocks out. Thor would use his lightning to try and bottleneck the portal. Steve, Natasha, and Temperance would stay on the ground and fight those that made it to the streets. And Hulk...well, Hulk was just going to be turned loose.
"Want this?" Natasha asked, offering Temperance the staff she'd obtained. Temp eyed it. It was long, with a pointed end. She'd seen Natasha use it to electrocute one of them earlier, which could be useful. But only if she got close enough to use it.
"I'd better stick with the longer range weapon." She decided, holding up the gun that had become her safety blanket. Natasha raised the staff and, without looking, used it to shoot an energy blast at an alien several yards away. Temp's eyebrows rose.
"Yep, I'll take it."