The Nine Tailed Foxx
Chapter 22
((A/N: No, I haven't forgotten about my other stories. Just waiting on one muse to step back and let others have some time.
A wonderful thanks to my friend Lady Moonhawke, who is also my co-writer, co-conspirator, Idea tester, plot hole finder, monkey wrench thrower, and ghost editor.))
Marco!
Last week of March, Monday morning…..
It was a simple matter of setting the alarm for the normal time he would be going to training. Dealing with Alexei was a slightly different matter though, he was cranky from having been awoke earlier than normal. A bottle followed by being secured in his carrier then covered with a light blanket settled the matter as he fell back asleep rather quickly. Once dressed, he glanced at the clock and noted that it was past time the Captain and Sam returned from their run but early enough no one else was really up and about yet. He replaced the light blanket with a heavier one, then slipped into the long coat that went with his suit.
At 7:34am, Johnny crossed the threshold of the Tower and was striding across the sidewalk to the waiting cab. "Morning Seymour. UN Headquarters please," he said as he secured Alexei's carrier then settled himself in as well. As the cab pulled away, merging into traffic, he looked out the back window at the Tower one last time then turned to face forward once more.
They had just passed the intersection of 3rd and 42nd when traffic slowed to a crawl. It looked like a semi had attempted to turn left onto 42nd from the side road that divided the block in half. The resulting accident left one car pinned under the trailer, and the other with the front smashed in. The police and emergency vehicles were on site working the accident.
Johnny wasn't too concerned with the traffic delay since he wasn't needed at the hearing for several hours yet. Propping his elbow on the door and his chin in his palm, he stared out the window absently, watching the pedestrians stand around and gawk. As they moved forward bit by bit, he noticed the vehicles behind them were being directed to turn around and find another way. Thinking it odd, he turned around to look out the back window and saw that a large delivery truck was now effectively boxing them in. When he turned around to ask Seymour about it, he found a pistol aimed at him by a man that wasn't Seymour. "Wha-" The man fired point blank range. He felt the impact to his chest then nothing.
"Targets acquired. Moving to secondary pick up point," the man said into a comm device before turning the cab down the side street. Ahead of the cab was a large delivery truck, similar to the one that had blocked them from behind. A pair of loading ramps were extended from the back, allowing the man to drive the cab up into the back of the truck. A few moments later, the man was climbing down out of the back of the truck. The ramps were loaded, the doors closed and secured then the truck was driving away.
No one noticed anything amiss, too busy gawking at the accident or focused on their phones. This was New York after all, where stranger things have happened.
When Johnny came to, several things instantly jumped out at him. Alexei was screaming, the fact his chest hurt like he'd been punched in the sternum by the Captain, his stomach was attempting to crawl up his throat and out his mouth, and he was being manhandled by a couple of people. He stayed limp as he tried to figure out what was going on. Voices almost drowned out by the sound of helicopter blades idling up in the distance ruled out the possibility he was being carried by several of the Avengers. All at once his mind snapped into crystal clarity, focused on one single thought, protect Alexei by any means necessary. All it took was one second of inattention and he surged into action. He high-kicked, the toe of his shoe catching the person under the chin and snapping their head back causing them to drop his other foot. Once his foot touched the ground, he had enough traction he was able to shove himself into the person at his shoulders. Though his hands were cuffed, he was able to swing them up and grab double handfuls of hair, yank and twist to the side. He kicked off the ground, swinging his lower body up as if he was going to kip up to his feet, but instead used his weight to throw the person off balance. He grunted as his back hit the ground hard and the man (trained and armed his mind supplied), landed partially on him. The second man was back, grabbing for his ankles. He kicked, trying not to give anyone a chance to grab him as he twisted, fingers hooking into claws as he went from yanking to gouging into the second man's scalp. Obscenities were shouted as he dug bloody furrows when he dragged the man closer and lunged, biting into soft flesh. The shouts turned into screams as the copper tang of blood coated his tongue. Multiple sets of hands grabbed him as several more people joined in and dragged him off his victim. A starburst of white followed by sudden pain as he was hit in the back of the head hard by something, possibly a rifle butt, stunned him long enough for his arms to be uncuffed then wrenched behind his back and re-cuffed. His feet were also cuffed together.
"Somebody gag and blindfold that bastard!" A voice ordered from somewhere closer to the helicopter. "And find some rags or something to clean up the blood! Better yet, shoot the idiot for getting bit in the first place." The second order added as an afterthought.
The sound of someone yelling followed by a single gunshot reverberated across the rooftop.
Johnny was dragged to the waiting helicopter then unceremoniously thrown into the cabin.
"I thought you said he'd be out for the entire trip," A first person said as they climbed in.
"How the hell was I supposed to know it doesn't affect him the way it does other people?" the second snapped back. "And are you sure it's safe to give the kid that stuff?"
"Shit yeah, gave it to mine all the time. Never heard a peep out of em when I didn't wanna be bothered with em."
Shaking his head, Johnny tried to clear the cobwebs but wasn't having much luck. When he heard that they gave Alexei something to put him out, that did the trick. He tried to get to his knees, cursing at his captors in both English and Romani along with a few others he'd picked up in his travels. He didn't get far before something slammed into his temple, rendering him unconscious.
"I'd just throw you out of the helo for all the trouble you've given me if it wasn't for the fact they want you as well as the kid," the first person groused, kicking Johnny in the side. "Alright, finish securing the prisoner then let's get the hell out of here."
"Yes, Sir!"
'Received cancellation notice from lawyers. No hearing today.' The send button was pushed and a moment later the phone beeped with a confirmation. "Message sent. We should have a few hours head start before they even know he's missing," the team tech said as he flipped the phone closed. "And then they have to figure out where he vanished to before they can start search-" The phone gave a vibrating chirp as a new message arrived. "Shit… 'What are your plans?'-BW… shit.. what do I say?"
"Tell her he's staying in for the day," the team leader replied.
The tech typed out the message and hit send again. "Ok, we're good."
"Great, now let's load up and go. Orders still stand. I've got the kid, you get him. Hail HYDRA." The leader reached down and snagged the carrier before walking off to the waiting SUV.
"Hail HYDRA," the tech replied back.
"Boss, you'll want to see this," FRIDAY said as the video screens came to life. A good quality security video started playing. "A building maintenance personnel discovered the body on the roof of the HBSC bank building. I took the liberty of investigating the security footage and verify that it was Foxx. I was able to cross reference security cams from the other buildings around it and was able to track the helicopter as far as Albany, New York before it landed."
The Avengers (Plus One), looked on. They watched as a pair of men dressed in standard combat fatigues carried Johnny from one side of the screen towards the other. Steve, Nat and Clint all caught the moment he awoke and silently approved his tactics of staying limp till he could strike.
Nat's lips quirked up in a smirk as Johnny performed a pointed toe high kick from his prone position. "And everyone has said ballet lessons were useless," she commented to the group.
Steve shrugged. "If he had more swing room to put power into it, he could have snapped that man's neck," he pointed out. "As is though, did a good job of stunning him to give him some breathing room."
"He's stalling them," Clint said from up front in the pilot's seat of the quinjet. "The longer he keeps them in place, the better the chances are of us locating him sooner."
"Damn! The kid fights dirty," James commented. "You believe this Tones?"
"Yeah, I believe it…." Tony replied, working on finding everything he could and tracing it.
"No, he's fighting desperate," Steve countered. "You can see the edge of Alexei's carrier here," he pointed out. "He's either scared or angry. Every few seconds I see his legs kicking wildly."
Clint kept their course steady as he watched the screen to his right. "Johnny's vicious when he's desperate," he said with a smirk. "Tore a chunk off that one guy's face after scratching him bloody. Need to teach him to go for the throat, not noses or ears," he said to Nat.
"Whatever works at the time. You don't always have a selections to choose from," Nat replied.
Wanda, Vision, Thor and Bruce had nothing to say after seeing the video. Both Wanda and Thor had seen parents fight to do all they could for their children, this was no different. Vision had nothing to compare it to so said nothing.
Pepper moved to stand next to Tony, her arms folded over her chest, fingers tapping against her arms. She watched as he did his magic with the video and all the information he gleaned from it.
"Only a single vehicle has left that location since it landed," FRIDAY said. "I apologize Boss, I seemed to have borrowed a North Korean spy satellite to track the vehicle. Oops."
"Tsk, tsk FRIDAY, such a naughty girl. Swiper's been rubbing off on you I see," Tony said with a smile, glancing to the side at Pepper.
"FRIDAY, find a way into the system and issue an Amber Alert," Pepper ordered. "It will force them to slow down, either by having to change their method of travel or deal with Law Enforcement. I know it will alert them to the fact they've been discovered, but that can be an advantage for us. Less chance of accidental collateral damage in the form of civilian casualties."
"Amber Alert has been issued."
"ETA 10 minutes out from the location," Clint said, dropping the quinjet's altitude. "I can drop us right on top of it."
"Slow down and stealth us," Steve ordered, then turning to face the rest of the team. "Sam, Vision, go after that vehicle. Do not engage. IF they switch to a different vehicle, keep following and report back. Thor, I want you to disrupt the weather a little. Make it hard for them to use that helo to escape. Keep it localized and small though, no need to disrupt too many flights in or out."
Clint backed off the speed before checking to be sure the rear hatch was clear. "Dropping the hatch."
Once down, the rush of wind drown out any and all talk. Sam rechecked his wing pack then dropped his goggles down to cover his eyes. With a salute, he dove off the ramp, vanishing into the sky. Vision followed after by simply stepping off into the air and speeding after Falcon. Thor was a little more showy as he spun his hammer a few times, launching himself out into the air as well.
Clint closed the hatch, then flipped a switch. "Stealth is engaged."
"Good, give Thor a minute or so then head in," Steve said as he turned to face the rest of the group. "Bruce, stay with the jet unless needed. Wanda, I want you to stay with him and ensure no one gets too close. Just in case. Tony, James, I want you two to cover the rear doors of the place. We'll go in the front. The rest of us will go in through the front then split up from there."
"Captain, I'm picking up reports of gunfire and explosions from the target location. The Police and emergency services have already been notified and are on their way," FRIDAY announced.
"Notify the others. Call in Fury's support as well. Clint, take us in," Steve ordered. "Can you give us visuals?"
"Bringing them up now."
An hour earlier….
"What do you mean he's gone?!" The Tech, a fellow by the name of Jesse, yelled in exasperation. First he couldn't find anything in his supplies that affected their prisoner for more than a few moments. Now this. "All you had to do was keep an eye on a single prisoner. How hard can that be?" he asked. "Don't answer that… Just.. lock the place down and find him!" When (not if) his SO found out about this there would be some serious repercussions.
Alarms started blaring as the laboratories were put into lockdown. Guards, armed and armored, were called in from other locations and stationed at the doors to the most important areas of the labs. The lab techs and scientists scrambled to backup data and last minute notes before they were escorted to the secure lockdown area. None were any wiser to who the intruder was or even why he was there in the first place.
'Idiots,' Johnny thought as he lay perfectly still, stretched out in the small space between the pipes and the ceiling in the service corridor. 'No one looks up... not even trained grunts.' Extending his gift outward, he searched for a pattern to the security personnel's movements. So far he noted that they traveled in pairs, two sets in opposite directions. It gave him a 15-20 second window to move before the next set arrived. 'Twice the idiots for not checking to be sure I had nothing on me.' He'd gotten out of tighter spots before but not while dealing with a concussion. The amount and variety of drugs they pumped into him trying to knock him out didn't make him too happy either. Taking a deep breath, he waited for just the right moment then move. Twisting to the side, he dropped off the pipes to a four point landing before darting forward. A lockpick was already in his hand by the time he got to the door. 'Note to HYDRA… thank you for using normal locks on your general supply room doors.'
The door was barely open wide enough for Johnny to slip through before it was closed again. The soft click of the lock engaging went unheard by the roaming patrols. He didn't bother turning on the lights since the emergency lights were on. They gave him plenty of light to see by as he waited for the patrol to pass by the door before moving. He eyed the packs of laundered scrubs piled up in boxes on the shelf directly in front of him. As much as he'd love to be in cleaner clothes, he knew how well he could move in what he was currently wearing. Methodically he searched through the contents of each shelf in the room. There was little to be had that was of any use for him so he examined the ceiling, taking a page from Hawkeye's play book and going the high road. 'Shower.. if I can find a decontamination shower, I don't give a fuck I'm getting a shower...these vents are filthy for being in a building full of labs. Someone should call the health inspector about it.' Twenty minutes and two labs later, Johnny had picked up enough items to be considered well armed. From scalpels to bundled vials of chemicals, he had an arsenal of impromptu weapons.
In one hand Johnny held a gas cartridge powered jet injector containing a powerful tranquilizer. The stuff worked fast, dropping an adult in under 3 seconds (the lab techs sprawled out on the floor was evidence enough). In the other, a stun baton he'd acquired from one of the now unconscious door guards. Movement from around the corner had him ducking back into the lab, just in time to avoid the hail of bullets ripping into the walls and glass windows. He dove behind a sturdy counter, curling into a ball and protecting the back of his head with his hands as best he could as several canisters of volatile chemicals reacted rather spectacularly. Someone didn't get the memo that guns were a no-no since the chemicals stored in some of the labs really didn't play well with bullets. When he lifted his head, his eyes got wide at the site of bluish-white mist slithering across the floor like it was alive. He scrambled up and onto the counter before it got to him. The tranqued people on the floor were just shit out of luck, he wasn't about to try and rescue any of them.
Johnny wasn't sure what his options would be if the mist crept any higher and he didn't want to find out either. He didn't have to find out as the door was kicked inward and security surged in. A diving tackle from the countertop resulted in bodies toppling backwards into the hall. Twisting to the side, he came up to his feet in time to drop back to his hands and knees, mule kicking the legs out from under one of the grunts before going into a forward roll to his feet once more. He stuck around long enough to replace the jet injector with a second stun baton, which he put to use immediately on the downed grunts. Then he was off and running.
Almost as soon as the Avengers landed, the police backed off and let them handle the situation. Thor, having taken care of the helo with a nicely placed lightning strike, rejoined them. Tony and James took off, heading over the building's roof to check for any back doors, their normal banter was reduced to a few quips.
"Alright, let's go. Pepper, stay with Natasha and Clint. I know you can handle yourself, but I'd rather not have to explain anything to Tony if something happened to you," Steve said. "When we come to an intersection, you three head to the right. We'll head left. Support should arrive in the next 15 minutes. Standard drill, if you meet resistance, take it out."
"Pep, take the bag with you," Tony told her over the comms. "It might come in handy."
There was the standard amount of resistance as they entered the building but it thinned out fairly quick. Most of the scientists and lab techs were quick to surrender with only a few die hards choosing the option of suicide instead.
"Cap, all clear on this end," Clint reported.
"We even managed to find a big fish amongst the little minnows," Nat said. "How are things on your end guys?"
"Boring. No one wants to talk to us," Tony commented as he hacked one of lab computers.
"That's cause most of em are either unconscious or dead," James pointed out.
"Well.. I think we've found all the action. We've heard fighting but haven't come across anyone yet," Steve said as he directed Thor down a hall in one direction as he took the other. "After support takes control of the prisoners, feel free to join us." The hallways were mostly dark, lit only by a few unbroken emergency lights. Smoke, mostly dissipated but still thick in areas, along with other noisome smells had flooded the halls, adding to the atmosphere. "Any chance you can bring the lights back on Tony?" he asked as he moved forward cautiously, shield at ready.
"Aw, Cap… Have you watched a scary horror movie recently? Is that why you don't like the dark?" Tony quipped.
"Really Tony?" Steve returned. "Can't you, for once, take something seri-" Out of seemingly nowhere, someone dropped down in front of him. He brought the shield up, blocking the pair of stun sticks as they descended. The harsh sound of electricity discharging against his shield echoed loudly in his ears. His attacker dropped below the level of his shield, twisting around in a leg sweep only to come back up again in a roundhouse kick followed by a side strike with one of the batons. Had he been a normal man, anyone of those attacks had the speed and accuracy to get past his defenses to land the hits and, if not incapacitated him, then sure as hell hurt. He jumped over the leg sweep, dodged back on the kick then blocked the side strick. The moment the attacker struck he was already cataloging holes in the person's defenses, their strengths and weaknesses as well as any distinguishing features. Male, equal height, less muscle mass but fast, pale skin, white hair and blue tattoos. He'd found Johnny. Or rather Johnny had found him. It took only a moment to disengage the electromagnets on his glove and drop the shield. Twisting his right hand, he grabbed Johnny's left bicep as he struck out with a quick (much pulled) jab to his solar plexus. At the same time he hooked his foot around Johnny's ankle, knocking his feet out from under him and dropping him to the flat of his back. "Stay down kid," Steve ordered.
Pain ripped across the back of Johnny's head when he hit the ground, stunned, moments after his breath was knocked out of him. He squeezed his eyes closed as he fought to regain his ability to breath as an electrical hum was followed by rapid pinging then a swoosh as the air was displaced by an object flying past overhead. His gift painted a better picture. The Captain reclaiming his shield in time to block the hail of bullets as Thor's hammer sailed overhead to take out the gunmen.
"What's going on?"
"Cap?"
"I found 'em," Steve said in reply, one hand pressing down to keep Johnny from getting up. "Thor!" he called, pointing down the corridor in the direction of the gunmen.
"Aye!" The Asgardian answered, striding past the two Midgardians as he summoned his hammer back to him.
"Where's Alexei? Who has him? Tell me none of you were stupid enough to bring him with you and if you were he's somewhere safe... " Johnny says as he grabs Steve's wrist and forearm with the intent to shove the hand off his chest.
"What?" Steve asks, letting Johnny shove his hand away. Standing up, he offers his hand to assist, which is promptly refused, as he realizes the mistake everyone's made.
As Johnny rolled to his feet, a wave of vertigo had him stumbling into the wall. He shook his head to clear the cobwebs, wincing as a stab of pain warned him that wasn't the smartest things to do. Pressing the heel of his hand against his eyes, he gritted his teeth and let the pain settle into the background once more. It was in that moment, he realized Steve never answered him. "Who.. has.. Alexei…" he said, enunciating each word clearly as he turned his head to look directly at Steve.
Before Steve could answer, Sam radioed in. "Bad new Cap…"
"Now's not the best time," Steve said, turning and walking away, finger to his ear to block any chance of Johnny hearing anything.
"There is no 'best time' for this I'm afraid," Vision said this time.
"Yeah…" Sam agreed. "They pulled off the roads to a small private airfield where they were picked up by a HYDRA quinjet. We got visual confirmation that they have Alexei."
Steve looked over his shoulder a moment at Johnny and found him at within arms reach. How the hell he missed Johnny getting that close to him, he wasn't sure. "Get to the point…" he said as he heard the fast approaching footsteps and turned back around. The rest of the team was arriving and by the looks on several faces, they were listening in as well.
"It appears that HYDRA has stealth capabilities now as well."
"Shit," Steve said softly as he transferred his shield to his back.
The whine of repulsors had Johnny turning to watch as both Tony and James appeared around the corner to land then continue on foot along with Thor. That made four of the Avengers along with Steve. Turning the other direction he spotted Clint and Natasha along with, surprisingly, Pepper. "Where are the others? Wanda and Vision, Bruce and Sam…" No one answered him. "Question for you Tony…." he said, looking straight at Steve, head tilted a fraction to the side.
Tony took a step forward, unsure of exactly what to do. He'd seen Johnny in all different manner of moods, but this was a new and dangerously unpredictable one. "Yeah kid?"
"You're suit can detect all manners of things, can it not?" Johnny asked.
"Indeed."
"Then do me a favor and scan for two things."
Tony shifted, looking between Steve and Johnny. "What two things?" he asked cautiously.
"That pink and purple polka dotted elephant and the metric fuck-ton of bullshit he brought with him," Johnny said as he grabbed the straps of Steve's uniform. He shoved the Captain back into the wall, meeting no resistance at all. "I relied on... even trusted in... the one simple principle that a child's life takes priority." He let go of the straps and stepped back, turning as if to walk away, but instead he twisted around and slugged Steve. He drew back to hit him again but a hand grabbed his arm, stopping him.
"No," Tony said. "First hit is free, you have to earn the rest." He let Johnny's arm go, moving it to his shoulder instead. "Come on." He started walking towards the front of the building.
Johnny dropped his hand to his side, flexing his fingers as he did. He gave Steve one last look before turning to follow Tony. Once he turned a corner and was out of sight of the others, he staggered into a wall using it to brace himself up. Turning his back to the wall, he slid down to the floor then dropped his head between his knees. Adrenalin could only take him so far before it gave out and he crashed. A single thought ran through his head, over and over 'They have Alexei.'
Tony could hear the others talking but chose to ignore it. If it was really important he'd have FRIDAY play it back for him. "Need more time?" he asked, looking from Johnny to Pepper and back.
Head still between his knees, Johnny shook his head. He leaned back, dragging air into his lungs, holding it, then letting it out. "No.. but I could use a hand up," he said as he held out his hands.
"I think I can do that," Tony replied with a quirked smile. He took one of the offered hand while Pepper took the other. Together they pulled Johnny to his feet. "I can hear the kiddies getting restless. We'd best get moving if we don't want company just yet." He looked at Pepper then at the bag she was still carrying. "You haven't given it to him yet?"
"Haven't had time yet," Pepper answered as she took the bag off her shoulder and held it out to Johnny.
Taking it, Johnny opened the bag and saw the familiar mask sitting atop mat black material. He let out a soft ghost of a laugh. "You know, I could have used this an hour ago." He closed it up and slung the strap over his shoulder. "Thank you." He looked around for the closest lab placard then nodded to himself as he started walking away.
"Hey, Swiper. Exit's that way," Tony pointed out.
"Hazmat shower is that way," Johnny replied, turning down a side hall but only getting a couple of steps before a hand closed around his arm, yanking him to a stop.
"Just where do you think you are going?" Pepper asked, one eyebrow raised. She wasn't about to let him disappear again, not after everything that's happened so far in locating him again.
Johnny ran a hand halfway through his hair before he closed it into a fist and tugged. "To the hazmat decontamination shower two corridors over," he said. "I've just spent the last hour running around this place, avoiding getting caught, or shot, or both. I've gotten who knows how many chemicals on me during that time as the idiots decided shooting into labs filled with dangerous or unknown substances was the most brilliant of ideas. Please, I just want a shower."
"You do have a rather unique smell wafting off of you at the moment," Tony pointed out.
Pepper pulled her hand away, looking at it closer. There was a sheen to it that hadn't been there before. And yes, he did smell worse than Tony after an all week binge in his lab. She let her hand heat up, burning away whatever it was and letting Extremis clean up any effects it might have had on her. "I have to agree with Tony on this," She added.
Everyone except for Pepper, Tony, and Johnny were gathered inside the quinjet. Clint was in the pilot's seat and Nat was perched on the edge of the secondary command chair, Bruce was towards the back and Wanda was sitting in one of the jump seats. Everyone else was standing around, leaving the middle clear.
"So how are we going to do this now that HYDRA has the babe?" Thor asked, arms crossed over his chest. He was concerned that his friend was taking setback too hard. Every warrior faced a time when plans went awry.
"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure. There's no guarantee that anyone from this base even knows where another one is, and if they do it might not be the one they've taken Alexei to," Steve admitted. "Our only option at the moment is to wait for HYDRA to contact us, or Johnny."
"Au contraire mon Capitaine," Tony said as he walked up the ramp with a pair of HYDRA agents thrown over his shoulders. "There is a plan," he dropped both men into a heap at the foot of the storage unit in the middle of the floor. "A really good plan if I say so myself."
Pepper followed with a pair of large, heavy looking duffles slung over her shoulders. If there happened to be a little bit of a ripple behind her, no one seemed to take immediate notice. She put the duffles in one of the side areas then took a seat.
"If I recall correctly, as part of your early career as Captain America, you starred in stage productions and even movies," Tony said. "I'm right, right? Of course I'm right, I'm Tony Stark." As he spoke, he walked to the tiny bay area and stepped out of his armor. "FRIDAY, load the co-ordinates. Katniss, if you would be so kind as to take us up."
Clint frowned but after a nod from Steve, he started to swing the pilot's seat around. He stopped and stared at an empty space for several heartbeats then shook his head. Once the chair was in the proper position, he powered the quinjet up, neither delaying nor hurring the pre-flight checks along. He checked with the airport tower to be sure the pattern was clear before he took them skyward.
"What are you planing Tony?" Steve asked. After a couple of seconds, he looked around. Something wasn't right, but he couldn't pinpoint it exactly. It was like he was hearing two sets of footsteps, instead of just Tony's.
"Me? Oh no, not me. I'm just helping the plan along. It's actually Mr. Todd's plan. So back to that early career of yours," Tony said as he moved around almost randomly.
Steve shifted, leaning to one side then the other trying to figure out just what was setting him off. "Yes, it was part of the USO Tour. Selling war bonds, drumming up support and all that."
"Good. You get to try your hand at acting again. Stand there. Sam, to Steve's left," Tony instructed.
"On your left," Sam quipped with an easy smile to Steve.
Steve gave him a look, then grinned back before turning to Tony once more.
"Rhody, on Steve's right and Legolas, once we're good, engage the autopilot and join the lineup."
By this time, everyone realized something was going on. More than just Tony's showboating. Someone else was aboard the quinjet with them, moving about but that was all for the moment. Neither Tony nor Pepper seemed alarmed in the least so the person had to be a friendly.
"Now, everyone else… yes, yes, gather around," Tony motioned to everyone else to come closer. "Now gentlemen, and I use that term loosely for some, you four are in the supporting roles. You will all have one very important line to remember. This plan is all about.. Showmanship!….And… action!"
The air on top of the motorcycle storage bay shimmered and rippled. As if by magic a crouching figure was slowly appeared. The person was enveloped in a large hooded coat of black that shimmered like oil on water. Reaching up, they flipped the hood back, revealing white hair and a full faced fox mask. "Hail HYDRA!" Johnny said. Behind the mask a cheshire grin spread across his face.