Returning to Grace
A Marvel: Avengers Alliance fanfiction
by Jonathan 'KnightMysterio' Spires
Chapter 4: Constrictor
All characters not original copyrighted to Marvel and used without permission for non-profit amusement reasons. All original characters copyrighted to me. Agent in this and subsequent stories is male and based on me, but my in-game Agent is female.
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SHIELD Helicarrier...
Holographic training room...
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Agent Towers strode into the monitor room of the training hall, a deep frown on his face. He wasn't happy about this, but he'd made the offer and was actually a big help.
But the problem was, Frank Payne, also known as the Constrictor, had betrayed the organization to become a mercenary. A supervillain.
The Agent just watched for a moment as Constrictor went through his routine, running on a treadmill. Once he was done, he then turned to the free weights. He blinked, and nodded upon seeing Agent Towers.
"Hey, y'mind spotting me?" he asked.
Agent Towers blinked, but nodded. He helped Constrictor finish his workout. Once he was finished, Constrictor nodded, smiling. He looked around the gym, chuckling. "Been a while since I've seen the inside of a helicarrier," he said, sipping from a water bottle. "Still smells like a locker room full of motor oil, I see."
Agent Towers snickered. "I always thought it smelled like sweaty underwear and old cheese," he said.
Constrictor gave him a look. "Sweaty underwear?"
"My roommate in college was a slob," the Agent said, smirking.
Constrictor cackled. "But yeah. Place still stinks. Chalk that up as another reason I left SHIELD and went into the mercenary biz."
The Agent nodded, his smirk fading. The two walked to the shower room in an awkward silence. Finally, Constrictor sighed. "I can see what you're thinking, y'know. 'Traitor. Greedy bastard. I'm so much better than him.'"
"You went into supervillainy, Constrictor. What am I supposed to think?" Agent Towers said, scowling.
"You think it's that simple?" Constrictor sneered. "'Oh, I got tired of being a goody good so I'll put on some long underpants and have Spider-Man punch me in the face every other week.' You really think it's that fucking simple. Well, you wait and see. You're still green. You think being a hero's enough to keep you going."
"Shouldn't it be?" Agent Towers asked.
Constrictor shook his head, frowning. "Gimmie a minute or two to shower. We'll talk after," he said.
Agent Towers nodded, and sat down on one of the workout benches while Constrictor got cleaned up. A few minutes later, he came out wearing his full costume. He stared at the Agent for a long moment, and shook his head.
"Rookies..." he said softly.
"You say that like it's a bad thing," Agent Towers said.
"It's only a good thing if you live long enough," Constrictor said. "SHIELD runs on rookies like you. They'll send you to the worst places in the world, to fight things you can't even imagine. Year after year, you'll bleed for them, all to defend people who'll never thank you." He shook his head. "Hell, they're doing it to you already. Putting a rookie in charge of the Alliance. My God..."
"I can handle myself," Agent Towers insisted, glowering at Constrictor. "I've done well so far. Plus, being a hero isn't about getting thanks."
Constrictor rolled his eyes. "Sure. Say that now. Then one day you'll limp home after fighting some costumed freak that killed half your squad, and you'll realize you can't pay rent and your only friend is a bottle. Think you'll feel like a hero then?" he said, clenching his fists angrily.
The sight gave the Agent pause. He needed to look into Constrictor's records. What had happened to him to give him so much anger?
Constrictor shook his head, staring out the window. "You'll come to that point some day. When I got there, I chose money over duty. Self-respect over honor. And up until now, I haven't regretted it."
The Agent blinked at the phrasing. "'Up until now?'"
Constrictor pulled up his face mask, revealing his tired eyes. "Yeah... The thing is, I've GOT money now. Hercules beat me half to death the last time we tussled, so I sued him for excessive force. Nobody was more surprised than me when I won. And I won BIG," he said, grinning.
Agent Towers nodded. "I remember that," he said. "Hercules crossed a line. I can understand the need to thump on a supercriminal when they're dangerous enough, but it looked like Hercules was trying to kill you."
"THANK YOU!" Constrictor said, throwing up his arms. "It has been SO DAMN HARD to find people who agree with me about what Jerkules did. SHEESH!"
Agent Towers smirked. "I may not like you all that much," he said, "but I know when one of the costumes crosses a line."
Constrictor grinned. "Heh. I like you, Agent," he said. Agent Towers just grinned. Constrictor chuckled. "Anywhere, where was I?" he muttered.
"You'd just sued Hercules and won," the Agent provided.
"Right, thanks," Constrictor said, continuing. "So anyway. Now that I have all the money I could want, I'm finding it isn't enough. I want to do more. Maybe that's why I joined SHIELD in the first place. Maybe that's why I'm back here now."
The Agent had nothing to say. He'd come into the room feeling dismissive of Constrictor because of his past. Now? Now he wanted to investigate what it was that made him turn against SHIELD. Now he had sort of bonded with Constrictor, finding himself liking the man. It was... confusing.
Constrictor sighed, shaking his head. "That's my advice to you, rook. Don't work for SHIELD because of crap like honor, but because you want a better world. And remember you always have a choice. Even if you chose wrong the first time."
The Agent said nothing. Constrictor picked up his gym bag and headed out, leaving the Agent alone with his thoughts. Perhaps there was more to the former supervillain than Towers had originally suspected...
