May 2016
Berlin, Germany
Suddenly, the Captain raised his arms - and that was the signal.
Talia's whole body tensed as an arrow shot down at Rogers' bound hands, cutting through the webbing and freeing him.
'Hawkeye.' Talia thought grimly; he was somewhere nearby. Stark's mask dropped over his face as he also searched for Barton in the direction the arrow had come from, when Spider-Man suddenly called out to them.
"Hey, guys. Something-"
The boy was cut off as a man suddenly grew out of nothing, kicking out from the side of Captain America's shield as if he were a mushroom growing along the base of a tree. Spider-Man released the shield as he was sent flying back from the kick to his chest, and the newcomer was quick to pick up the fallen shield. The man was already darting away by the time the group recovered from the surprise of seeing him appear out of thin air.
"Whoa. What-What the hell was that?" Colonel Rhodes demanded as the newcomer handed Rovers his shield back.
"I believe this is yours, Captain America." The man announced as Rogers took his shield back.
Talia's lips thinned but she looked back at Stark as he reported, "Oh, great. Alright, there's two on the parking deck. One of them is Maximoff, I'm going to grab her. Rhodey, you want to take Cap?"
The two men started to lift off in their suits, when Rhodey reported over their comms, "Got two in the terminal. Wilson and Barnes."
At once, Talia and T'Challa's attention was captured.
"Barnes is mine!" T'Challa snarled as he spun around and started to dart off in the direction of the terminal.
Talia was right behind the Wakandan king, even as Spider-Man asked anxiously in her ear, "Hey, Mr. Stark, what should I do?"
"What we discussed, keep your distance, web 'em up." Stark ordered.
"Okay, copy that!"
Talia felt movement behind her and she ducked; Rogers' shield flew over her head not a second later and hit T'Challa. The Black Panther fell forward, knocked down, although he was quickly back on his feet. Before T'Challa could get any further, Steve lunged at the man and grabbed him by the neck, hauling him back in an effort to keep his friend safe as Barnes made a run for it.
Talia, however, used Rogers's momentary distraction to slip past the struggling men and into the terminal building. Technically, every single person they were fighting would need to be arrested, but her first priority was Barnes. If not for anything else than to make sure he didn't turn complete psycho assassin on them again at the worst possible timing.
Present
Undisclosed area, South Korea
It was morning by the time they had secured Klaue at the CIA South Korean Black Site. The man himself was quite unconcerned as they hauled him in and locked him up alone. In fact, he was downright insufferable the entire time as he just cracked jokes and took nothing seriously. Not even when they took his mechanical arm away.
T'Challa watched from the sidelines as the CIA undertook processing Klaue while keeping him under strict surveillance. His main focus was on the man who had managed to flee from T'Challa's home country with some of their weapons; and more importantly, their secrets. Okoye stood beside her king, her eyes ever watchful - although her gaze flickered often to the dark-haired woman across the room.
Kumiho, they called her here. The Wakandans had gathered it was Talia's codename in the CIA, and T'Challa vaguely recalled hearing it once back in Germany right before he'd followed Stark in chasing Rogers and Barnes. Although he also recalled someone calling her White Fox. He wondered if Kumiho meant the same thing.
As Okoye glanced toward Talia yet again, T'Challa also allowed his gaze to move briefly from Klaue and to the pretty Asian woman. With short black hair framing a delicate, oval face, Talia Ross was oddly pale for a field agent. Perhaps because of this, the red of the lipstick she seemed to wear daily stood out sharply like a bloodstain on a white cloth. It was also very much at odds with the soft curve of her cheeks that retained some of the roundness of youth. Youth T'Challa remembered Tony Stark mocking constantly; which was ironic of him considering he had brought an actual kid to the fight. But Talia's most striking feature was, as T'Challa remembered, her big, brown doe eyes that looked almost golden in direct sunlight, they were so light. It wasn't how pretty her eyes were, however, that made them memorable. It was the dark expression in them, the seriousness that made her seem years older than she was (let alone appeared. Tony Stark hadn't been completely wrong, aside from the sharpness in her eyes, Talia looked much younger than she actually was). It was that same darkness that made T'Challa a little bit uneasy around the young woman even if he respected her as a fighter, for it spoke of a lack of innocence not common in one so young.
As if sensing the eyes on her, Talia suddenly looked up. T'Challa turned away before he could be caught staring at her, and he returned his gaze to where Klaue was still mocking the two-way mirror from inside the room he was being held in.
"I can see you! I can." He laughed, making kissing noises as he kept his head turned toward the mirror despite how uncomfortable it probably was for him given the way he was strapped down into his chair.
Everett Ross joined T'Challa then, finally through with all the security checks and logistics they needed to clear before he could begin to question Klaue.
"So, this is a big mess, huh?" Everett observed, easing his way into a conversation with T'Challa. "I figured we could go good cop, bad cop? I'll talk to him first, then you guys go in-"
"We can't let him talk to Klaue alone." Okoye protested quickly, cutting Everett off.
Everett glanced from Okoye to T'Challa, clearly not able to understand although he seemed to sense Okoye's protest. T'Challa stroked his chin figuratively in thought as he looked from his general to the CIA agent.
"Better to let him talk to Klaue alone for five minutes than to make a scene here." T'Challa murmured to Okoye before he addressed Everett briskly. "After your questioning, we will take him back to Wakanda with us."
"What? No." Everett shook his head at once. "Look, I like you, a lot. But he's in my custody now. He's not going anywhere. Listen, I'm doing you guys a favour by letting you even be in here."
He tapped T'Challa's shoulder with the back of his hand. Okoye turned her head sharply to stare at him indignantly when he did.
"If he touches you again, I'm going to impale him to this desk." She growled, pointing to the desk behind them. T'Challa thought he saw Talia's eyes flicker over to them at Okoye's threatening tone, but he wondered if he'd imagined it when a second later, she appeared to be absorbed in securing the surveillance on Klaue once more.
Everett meanwhile stared at Okoye warily and he asked T'Challa in an undertone, "Does she speak English?"
Okoye smirked. "When she wants to."
At that, Talia did glance over. Her expression was curiously neutral but T'Challa had a feeling she didn't appreciate Okoye's snark. Although he doubted she was in a place to judge Okoye. He would bet his rightful place to the throne Talia had used the same tactic at least once in her life.
Everett meanwhile stared at Okoye, looking as though he wasn't sure whether to be offended or not. "Huh."
Shaking his head, the CIA agent turned back to T'Challa. "I'm going in. And when I'm done, you guys are up."
Everett started to turn away to enter the room Klaue was being held in, when T'Challa called after the man.
"Agent Ross?"
"Yeah?" Everett turned back and T'Challa clasped his hand warmly on the shorter man's shoulder.
"I do appreciate your help in Busan." He stated.
Everett smiled and he looked at Okoye pointedly.
"You see that? It's called diplomacy." Turning back to T'Challa, Everett answered, "You're welcome."
With that, he walked away and T'Challa gave Okoye a chastising look that didn't quite hide his amusement.
"Okoye." He said in a tone that matched his expression.
"Bleh."
Okoye pretended to gag but T'Challa insisted, "Play nice."
Okoye scoffed. "Americans."
Meanwhile, in the interrogation room, Everett settled down across from Klaue who was still singing off-key. But when Everett was settled with his coffee by his feet, Klaue finally trailed off and got serious. Slightly.
"You know, you really shouldn't trust the Wakandans. I'm much more your speed." Klaue informed Everett, who snorted.
"I don't trust anybody, not in this job. But what I am interested in is that arm cannon out there."
He nodded to the mechanical arm they'd confiscated from Klaue, which sat on the table to the side of the room. It had been how Klaue had caused the mini explosion in the casino and how he'd almost outrun the Wakandans, but it was technology like nothing the CIA had ever seen before.
"Where'd you get that?"
Klaue laughed. "It's an old mining tool that I made some adjustments to. But I can, uh, get you one, if you like."
"Why don't you give me the name of your supplier, and I'll ask them?" Everett shot back, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms. But he was surprised by Klaue's answer.
"He's right outside." Klaue nodded to the two-way mirror. "Why don't you ask him yourself?"
Everett frowned. "What? T'Challa? You're telling me that weapon on your arm is from Wakanda?"
"Bingo." Klaue grinned before he also leaned back in his chair. "What do you actually know about Wakanda?"
"Um… Shepherds, textiles, cool outfits." Everett shrugged. Klaue shook his head.
"It's all a front." The weapons dealer revealed. "Explorers searched for it for centuries. El Dorado, the Golden City. They thought they would find it in South America, but it was in Africa the whole time. A technological marvel. All because it was built on a mound of the most valuable metal known to man. Isipho, they call it. The gift. Vibranium."
"Vibranium, yeah, strongest metal on earth." Everett shrugged; this much wasn't new. But Klaue scoffed.
"It's not just a metal. They sew it into their clothes. It powers their city, their tech… their weapons."
At that, Everett stiffened. "Weapons?"
"Yeah. Makes my arm cannon look like a leaf blower." Klaue chuckled. Everett observed the other man for a moment before he shrugged.
"That's a nice fairy tale, but Wakanda is a third world country and you stole all their vibranium."
"I stole?!" Klaue started laughing as though he found the notion hilarious, before he suddenly slammed his fist down on the arm of his chair. "All of it?! I took a tiny piece of it. They have a mountain full of it. They've been mining it for thousands of years and they still haven't scratched the surface."
Everett maintained a neutral mask but inside, he was growing uneasy. Klaue was a liar by trade but he recalled Talia reporting that bullets had appeared to simply bounce off T'Challa's cat suit; not unlike how they did off Captain America's shield.
"I'm the only outsider who's seen it and got out of there alive." Klaue growled before he sat back in his chair. "If you don't believe me, you ask your friend what his suit is made of. What his claws are made of."
Everett stared at Klaue silently for another long moment. Then, making his decision, he grabbed his coffee and exited the room. Klaue remained quiet for the first time since his capture, letting Everett leave without a word. As soon as he was out of the room, Everett walked straight toward T'Challa. Talia flanked him this time, having heard everything from over the comms unit Everett had been wearing.
"He's stalling; trying to divert our attention." She muttered under her breath and Everett nodded.
"But he's right." He pointed out.
Talia fell back in agreement and she stood slightly behind her boss's shoulder as Everett reached T'Challa, who was waiting for them with a calm mask that was a shade too innocent.
Everett cut right to the chase. "Your father told the UN that Klaue stole all the vibranium you had. But now he's telling me you have more?"
He gestured to Klaue and T'Challa raised an incredulous brow.
"And you believe the word of an arms dealer strapped to a chair?" He asked, feigning disbelief and acting like he hadn't heard the entire exchange over the tiny mic he'd planted on Everett's shoulder.
T'Challa had the answer to his question in the look the two agents shared with each other. Talia's face was smooth but her eyes were filled with suspicion while Everett didn't bother to hide his feelings as he turned back to T'Challa.
"How much more are you hiding?" He asked bluntly.
Before T'Challa could respond, the door to the surveillance room burst open. Talia's hand went to her gun immediately, but she stopped as Nakia rushed in with her hands raised to avoid being shot at by the CIA agents in the room. Despite her body language, her attention was solely on her king as she said anxiously, "Something is happening out back-"
The wall suddenly blew up behind them, throwing them all off-balance while Klaue started laughing maniacally as two masked figures burst in through the hole in his room and started firing machine guns at the two-way mirror.
"Get down!" Everett yelled, lunging toward Nakia and dragging her out of the way as the first shots were fired.
"Sir!" Talia yelled, her heart stopping as she saw him fail to move after he and Nakia had rolled to a stop.
T'Challa tackled her to the ground as more bullets rained down on them, his body shielding her. The others also leapt for cover behind the desks as they avoided being shot while the intruders grabbed Klaue even as they continued to open fire at the CIA agents to make their escape. And Talia's eyes narrowed as the bullets seemed to ricochet off T'Challa's clothes - just like they did on his panther suit.
Her eyes flew back up to his face; his answering look was grim but he knew they had far more pressing concerns at the moment.
"Stand down!" He ordered.
And Talia watched in disbelief as T'Challa's clothes were quickly covered by his suit, as though it were a second skin. His mask appeared in place last of all, within seconds of his clothes changing, covering his face and fully shielding him. Ignoring the way she was eyeing him, T'Challa got up, ready to lunge at the intruders who were rescuing Klaue; when-
"Cover!" An agent yelled as a small round object was tossed into the middle of the room while another hollered, "Grenade!"
"Get down!" Talia yelled as she started forward.
T'Challa, however, jerked her back as he threw himself over the grenade… and somehow absorbed the explosion as the grenade went off beneath his stomach. Talia stared in disbelief as his suit glowed purple where it had apparently absorbed the explosive energy from the grenade before she stared right into the Wakandan king's eyes through his mask. And he knew she knew. Very well-made bullet proof vests could mimic what T'Challa's suit did against mere bullets but Talia had only ever seen a grenade being contained like that once before - with Captain America's vibranium shield.
But now was not the time for questions. T'Challa turned on his heel and gave chase after Klaue while Talia growled but she had other concerns. Her eyes flickered briefly back toward where Everett lay beside Nakia. And then she stilled while her whole attention focused on the unmoving figure of her father.
"No."
Talia slid across the ground on her knees to where Nakia was bent over Everett worriedly. Talia barely paid the other woman any mind as she pressed her fingers to Everett's pulse, her own heart pounding in her ears as she saw the blood seeping through the hole in his back and the way Everett's eyes were unfocused as his entire body shook. Going into shock. She thought immediately, her training kicking in despite her fear.
By now, the other agents had joined her and someone was tearing Everett's shirt, revealing the extent of the damage. It was just one bullet wound but Talia could see instantly that it was damning. It had hit him in the back, right along his spine. And she knew without needing further examination that the bullet had hit its mark.
Talia heard footsteps behind her but she ignored them as she bent down to try and look Everett in the eyes.
"Sir? Sir?"
He didn't respond, just kept grunting in pain as his mind kept going into deeper shock as the bullet wound continued to steal his life.
"He just jumped in front of me." Nakia was saying to whoever had joined them - the Wakandan king, Talia realized absently. He must not have been successful in stopping Klaue's escape to have returned so quickly. "I don't think he'll make it here..."
Nakia's words went right over Talia's head as terror gripped her as Everett continued to shake without focus. Years of carefully built walls dropped and Talia allowed her fear, her desperation to show. What did it matter when she was faced with the death of yet another person she cared about?
"Dad?"
Everett's eyes flickered, as though registering her at last. Feeling a spark of hope, Talia whispered to him urgently.
"Dad? Everything's going to be fine, just stay with me..."
Everett's face contorted; even he didn't believe her. His breath was shortening alarmingly and Talia bit back sudden tears. She should have saved him; she should have protected him. He was so much more fragile than her, she should have been faster, should have-
"What the hell are you doing?!" Talia snarled, whipping around to look at T'Challa.
He stilled, stopping in the middle of placing some kind of bead right over Everett's bullet wound. Okoye hissed at Talia for her disrespect, but T'Challa didn't seem the least bit bothered. Instead, he looked Talia right in the eye, calm in the face of her agony.
"This will help stabilize him." He explained.
Talia bit her lip; but what more could they lose at this point? Nakia was right - Everett would likely die within the day at this rate. There was no help fast enough that could save a bullet right to the spine. Sensing her agreement, T'Challa continued what he had been doing and pushed the bead into Everett's wound.
The bead and the surrounding skin glowed a faint blue and Talia eyed it skeptically. How on earth would a bead inserted into a fatal bullet wound possibly help? But she gasped as, almost immediately, Everett's grunts slowed, his breathing came easier… and he slipped into unconsciousness.
"Dad?" Talia called gently, touching his face. He didn't respond and Talia looked back at T'Challa fearfully. "What did you do? Can he be saved?"
T'Challa hesitated, not answering immediately. He seemed reluctant, or rather indecisive, as he stared back at Talia. But perhaps something in the desperation that was all too clear on the usually stoic face helped him make his decision, because after a beat, T'Challa's expression turned grave.
"Give him to us. We can save him."
T'Challa glanced at his companions as he spoke; and Talia didn't miss the surprise on Nakia's face and the disbelief on Okoye's. But she kept her eyes trained on T'Challa as he looked back at her, sensing she was the person who could sign off an agreement. Not because she was the most senior agent in the room, because she wasn't. But because she was, to his admitted surprise, Everett's daughter (although he realized he really should have guessed it from her name). Indeed, all her fellow agents were looking to her, knowing it was her decision. And it was no decision at all - Talia knew for a fact her father wouldn't survive if they waited for help now. But if the Wakandans had something, which their weapons and weird bead-thing indicated they did, he'd at least have a shot.
"Okay."
T'Challa nodded in relief she hadn't fought him, but Talia wasn't finished.
"But I'm coming too."
"My king-" Okoye started to protest immediately but Talia cut her off firmly.
"I know you guys might be his best shot, but I'm not leaving him alone, defenseless, with people who have lied to us before."
T'Challa stared back at her pensively, measuring his next words carefully. "You cannot say you have always been truthful. Especially if you are an intelligence operative."
"I'm not saying that." Talia shot back. "But between the two of us, you're the one who has lied and kept things from us. And that is my father."
She stared straight into his eyes and T'Challa knew she had won the argument. He knew too well how it felt to hold your dying father in your arms. And if it were the other way around, he would have let nothing and no one get between him and his father.
"Very well." He conceded, despite the disapproval he could feel coming in waves off his general.
*A/N Thank you to bored411, for not only giving yet another of my stories a try but for commenting!