Agent Ana Williams drove down a dusty road in a borrowed Jeep from the containment facility she had been released from. She took a deep breath of fresh air. Her assigned mission had been vague but no less than she had expected since S.H.I.E.L.D. had crumbled under the attempt of takeover from Hydra. The file had a short list of suspected loyal S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and a much longer list of suspected loyal Hydra agents. The mission was a simple help rebuild the organization.

So here she was, driving down a lonely barely existent road to find a place she knew didn't technically exist. She had met Nick Fury once, several years ago. She had suspected that he was…uncomfortable…with her ability to read people. Thus he had kept their conversation short. But she had been given opportunities in the academy and supreme missions since that meeting. She knew she had made an impression on him. She smiled. She had no doubt he wasn't really dead, contrary to what the world thought.

Pulling into an empty stretch of deserted field that was possibly dustier than the road, she cut the engine and looked around. A few clumps of grass and some birds in the distance. That was all that was before her. Perfect.

Reaching into the backseat, she pulled out her small duffel and got out of the Jeep. She took precisely 73 steps in front of the vehicle and stopped. The dust kicked up around her boots and the sun beat down on her neck. She pushed her aviators up on top of her head and dropped her bag. She waited a few more moments, but other than the wind picking up a little around her, nothing else happened. She reached into the waistband of her pants and pulled out her Glock 42, firing two bullets into the air above her.

Immediately a flurry of activity rushed up around her. An automatic machine gun rose in front of her and to both sides, turning to face her. She dived to the side of their warning shots and rolled in front of a hidden camera with her S.H.I.E.L.D. badge drawn. Pointing it at the camera, she held up her weapon.

"I don't mean any harm. I just needed to get your attention." She slid the safety on the gun and slowly lowered it to the ground. Rising again slowly, she looked directly into the camera. "I need to speak with you Agent Coulson."

Ana counted the seconds of silence that ensued. 97 seconds passed as she waited. A door leading into the ground began to rise to her right and a tight-lipped Asian woman came out to meet her. She was holding a weapon pointed directly at Ana's head.

This must be the infamous Agent May. Ana turned her head towards the woman but kept the rest of her body still. The woman stepped out of the doorway with the gun still trained on Ana.

"Drop your badge and walk in front of me." Ana complied and moved slowly toward the door to the underground. The concrete steps led down far enough all Ana could see what the occasional fluorescent light illuminating the stairwell. "Don't try anything." The door slid shut behind them.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Ana saw that the bunker was mainly a series of rooms located off the fairly wide hallway. Efficient.

"Turn left here." May's voice directed her toward one of the doors. They walked through a set of double doors into a large hangar. Ana's eyebrows lifted as she saw a massive black plane before her with its cargo doors open.

"In."

Ana walked up the ramp and was met with another Agent. This one was a black man with an immaculately trimmed beard. He also had a gun trained on her and lifted it towards the spiral staircase, beckoning her up. The pair of them led her through the living space of the plane before they ascended yet another spiral staircase. The woman opened the door to an office and Ana met the eyes of Agent Coulson for the first time.

Ana had always been aware of her ability to take in the smallest details and paint a picture from a very young age. Sometimes it had helped her through the foster system and sometimes it had hurt her. It was not something she could shut off and she learned to use it to her advantage. It was a matter of seconds before she was done analyzing the situation in front of her.

Inside the office were two other agents, both of whom she did not know. They were both women. One was dark haired with olive skin and a pissed off look on her face. The other was a sandy brunette and seemed distracted. She was biting at her thumb as Ana walked in. She quickly stopped.

Ana shifted back toward Coulson. His blue eyes penetrated hers. He was frowning. Her escorts kept their guns trained on her as she stood before them. She decided to just go ahead and dive on in.

"Director."

Coulson's eyebrow quirked up at her comment. "Well you certainly have my attention. You called me agent earlier. Why the change?"

Ana pointed at a small black cube sitting behind Coulson on a shelf. If you didn't know any better, it might look just like a souvenir or an ornament of some sort. But Ana had seen it in Director Fury's office a long time ago. If it was here, that could only mean one thing.

"Logical deduction."

A knock on the door brought Agent Koenig carrying Ana's duffle, badge and disassembled weapon. He set them on Coulson's desk and turned to face Ana, greeting her with a warm smile.

"Agent Williams!"

Ana met his warmth with a small smile of her own. Nodding her head to him, she responded, "Agent Koenig."

"You know each other?" The Asian woman asked. She sounded inquisitive but her face remained stoic.

Koenig nodded. "She's one of the best sir." Turning and giving Ana a small nod, he left the room. Ana turned her attention back to Coulson.

"Interesting. Explain, please." Coulson sat down behind his desk and folded his hands.

"Agent Ana Williams of S.H.I.E.L.D. Specialist. 8 years of service. Level 8."

"Level 8? You are young for that level. How'd you raise through the ranks that fast?"

Ana took a breath. Her abilities were not a secret but a well-kept truth throughout S.H.I.E.L.D. But things were changing.

"I'm able to read people, situations, and context better than most. I also know how to handle said people, situations, and contexts better. It's served me well."

"I've heard of you." The black man spoke to her left.

"Agent Trip, explain."

"Garrett spoke of a specialist pair, a man and a woman. Most people had never seen them and thus didn't believe they existed. It's said they were a pretty deadly force."

Coulson turned back to Ana. "You have a partner? Where is he?"

"Had a partner. I no longer do."

"What happened?"

"I shot him."

The silence that followed her statement was expected. Coulson's next question wasn't what she anticipated, however.

"Can you explain more about this 'reading' that you do?"

Ana opened her mouth to give her normal recitation, but then decided against it and closed her mouth again. Sighing, she closed her eyes for a moment.

"It's easier if I show you." She met Coulson's eyes again. He nodded at her.

Ana began to motion around the room, starting with the distracted brunette.

"The woman to my left is only half-listening to this conversation. Her mind is clearly elsewhere. I suspect she is worried about somebody important to her and is trying to work through a problem in her head. Which means she is probably a science graduate. Based on those you surround yourself with, I'm going to venture a guess at Agent Simmons. Which begs the question of where is Agent Fitz?" Ana pointed at the olive skinned brunette. "This one is angry. And very clearly doesn't trust me, especially now that she knows I've shot and killed my ex-partner. However, she has a deep loyalty to you and is willing to hear me out. Not a graduate of the academy but still working on training. She moves stiffly as though her muscles are sore so I'm assuming one of my escorts is personally training her. Also based on the wear of her fingertips and nails, I'd say she is pretty good around technology. I'm going to label her a techie."

Ana nodded her head at the Asian woman to her right. "Agent Melinda May. It's surprising you got her out in the field again after what I read about in Budapest. But that's another story. She's here for the long haul now. She hides her emotions quite well, but that's pretty well known. What's not as well-known is how she feels about you, sir. I'm pretty sure you have an idea about that. She's proud of the angry one over there and worried about how everyone is coping with the new situation of S.H.I.E.L.D. Which brings us over to this gentleman." Ana nodded her head to the right towards the black man. "He is a true specialist. He will follow the orders you give him, especially after the disappointment that was his last SO. He has a good heart and a conscience which isn't always what S.H.I.E.L.D. has looked for in their past specialists. He is, as they say, a team player. And as you've already pointed out, his name is Agent Trip…or Triplett according to official records."

Triplett was shaking his head. "How'd you know Garrett was my SO?" Ana turned her head to look up at him.

She shrugged a shoulder. "The way you spoke about him." She turned back to Coulson.

"And now you Director Coulson. You are hiding something from your team. Nothing deadly, but it keeps you up at night. The people in this room, with the exception of me, you have a fierce loyalty to and you will protect them at all costs when you can. But you are beginning to feel overwhelmed with your task and even the comfort of your team isn't enough anymore."

Ana took a deep breath and looked around the room. "How'd I do?"

The silence in the room was deafening this time. Agent Simmons had gone back to chewing her nail but was watching Ana with a new interest. The techie was considering Ana with a furrowed brow and was running the edge of her fingertips along her palm, as if trying to sense what Ana had seen. Agent May might have looked as stoic as ever to the untrained eye but Ana could tell she had shaken her. Trip seemed okay with the whole situation.

Coulson looked almost angry. Glancing around the room he stood again.

"Everyone out. Sit down Agent Williams."

May went to protest but stopped at the look Coulson gave her. The group began to shuffle toward the door. The olive skinned brunette stopped next to Ana.

"My name is Skye by the way."

Ana nodded at her. "Nice to meet you Skye."

And with that, Ana was alone with the new Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.