The Long Flight

Authors Note: Hi all glad you liked the last chapter, it was a risk not toning it down but I stand by that. MusicAngel98 this is for you I'll try my best to update a few more times in the coming week. I'm so glad I took 2 weeks off this year the joys of being a working mum, I have to fit my true calling in around my job and 3 year old who is also an avid marvel fan :). So anyway we are back with Ward and Dex now as they fly out to try and track Skye down in Hong Kong.

"We got a hit!" yelled Fitz bursting through the lab doors and heading to the stairs where Ward was still sat. Fitz took in his red eyes and melancholy demeanour and gave the normally stoic agent a sympathetic smile before repeating himself "Agent Ward we got a hit through Jarvis"

"Well what did you find?!" Grant was impatient he didn't have time to beat around the bush, If Fitz was offended at his offhand tone he didn't show it.

"Well actually it was Dex's idea he said we should try running Grayson's alias since it would be rather stupid to use his real name when he was a wanted criminal. Dr Mark Johnson owns Johnson International, their headquarters is in the old banking district in Hong Kong. They make bio weapons for military and non desirables the world over; they'd have to have state of the art labs to develop the tech. Since Skye is now ridiculously strong it's the only place that would stand a chance of holding her. Once we were sure of that Dex hacked into their main server and accessed their security cameras now the room they took her too didn't have cameras but he got a good shot of her in the hallway. They'd obviously sedated her but she'd have to be alive for them to get what they want. Maybe...maybe they'll just keep her sedated and they won't hurt her..." Fitz tailed off when he took in Wards pitying glance.

"Is it stupid to hope that they won't hurt her Ward? Simmons seems quite convinced that they wouldn't need to" he looked up at the older agent the hope rapidly disappearing from his eyes. Sometimes he forgot just how young Fitz and Simmons really were, who was he to destroy the ray of hope they were clinging to. Dex was smart he must be thinking the same as Ward but if he hadn't corrected them than maybe Ward shouldn't either. He sighed deeply before he replied "It's not stupid Fitz, you should ignore me I'm just worried and I miss her that's all this is"

"We're going to get her back Grant, I swear we will me and Jem are going to work round the clock, and as sick as I am of Dex and Jemma's incessant flirting I'm glad you brought him he's been very useful" Fitz's determination was back and although Ward didn't share his positivity he was glad to see it.

"Well you should let Coulson and May know then" Fitz nodded and bounded up the stairs two at a time. It was late well past midnight he should get some rest but he knew if he went back to his bunk he'd just be reminded of her. She still had her own bunk but since they'd moved back onto the bus she'd chosen to sleep in his and slowly but surely her things had started to appear in his room. Her clothes were strewn on the floor, laptops and computer parts cluttered the sides, perfume and makeup had found its way to his bathroom. They were complete opposites he liked order and control everything had a place his bunk had been neat and tidy before she invaded it with her disorganised chaos. He'd complained animatedly at her messiness before but now she was gone and whatever he told Fitz he knew they were hurting her. Even as he stood here in the dark cargo hold he saw her face twisted in agony, heard her blood curdling screams. Even if he got her back she wouldn't be who she was before, how could she be? Look at May after Bahrain .

No he wouldn't sleep so instead he decided to do what he'd originally come down here to do. He didn't even bother to wrap his hands before he attacked the bag, laying into it with brute force. All of the rage and anger he had tried to keep under wraps since he'd read her note was overtaking him, choking him, he couldn't breathe for it. He had to let it out before it consumed him his punches were venomous and on target, the bag swung wildly from the force of his impacts. He was so focused on venting his anger that he did not see Dex approach.

"You're going to pop a knuckle if you keep going at it like that" he said simply "You should at least have someone to steady the bag".

"You offering?" he ground out.

Dex shrugged and positioned himself behind the punch bag "Might as well, it's not like there's much else to do on this tin can"

"Don't let Coulson here you say that, this tin can is his pride and joy next to Lola. A gift from Fury for his service in the battle of New York.

Dex looked impressed at that "So Coulson fought in the battle of New York huh that's pretty impressive"

Ward had to give it to Dex he was a strong guy he absorbed every impact that Ward through at the bag. Given his propensity for snark and sarcasm and his blatant hostility towards S.H.I.E.L.D and the military it was easy to forget that he was a highly decorated operative." Hey Hacker why didn't you come clean with FitzSimmons?"

"Come clean about what?" Ward wasn't buying his confused tone.

"You know what, there's no way that Hyde won't hurt her" his voice cracked at the end.

Dex blew out a breath "I don't know really, I guess it's just they're both so young and it doesn't take a genius to realise that they have next to no field experience. When Jem suggested that maybe they'd just keep her sedated I just couldn't do it. You and Me we're realists and we've been here before maybe not with someone so important but with other team members. We know the score but they really don't and I don't think they can handle it no matter what they say, they're still just kids" he reasoned.

Ward nodded his head "I didn't tell them either", Dex patted his shoulder.

"Working with those two it kind of takes me back you know, before I joined black op's I was just a Major in the Marines. My job was to make sure my guys get the job done but when they're joining up at 18 and their idea of a warzone comes from call of duty" he rolled his eyes "they need a good dose of reality but that comes from personal experience, sometimes no matter how much you want to protect them you can't. You got to let them see for themselves and be there to pick up the pieces. I never imagined myself as anyone's big brother but I guess when you're in the middle of hell that's what your unit become, family."

"Is that why you look after those Rising Tide kids?"

"It's part of it, I've never really had a convential

family, my mom left my dad when I was 10. She died not long after I enrolled...cancer. The core was the first real family I had apart from mom"

"What about your dad? Your file said he left you his bar"

"Yeah he did and that's the only decent thing that drunk ass ever did for me" that effectively ended that conversation.

"So suit" Dex noticed Jemma approaching "if you really want to burn off some of that rage why don't you try a real target? You box?"

"Er yeah but we're not really set up for that here and we don't have gloves or guards"

"You ever bare knuckle box?"

"No have you?"

"I'm half Irish suit it's in the blood, come on. Unless you're scared I'll beat you of course"

"Careful Dex" piped up Jemma.

"Awww don't worry baby I won't hurt him, you better wrap your hands up though. You wouldn't want to break your hand on my face now suit" Dex chided him, it was childish but this is exactly what the suit needed. He needed to let it all out because rage is only useful if you can use it to your advantage for most men it's their downfall, it makes them rash and sloppy.

The two men wrapped up before squaring off against one another, they had agreed no head shots. Although this is precisely what Ward needed he knew Coulson would not approve at all, it was definitely against protocol to attack a consultant well mostly. He was sure Fury would make an exception in Tony Starks case. There was barely an inch difference in height and Simmons noticed that they were both of a very pleasing muscular stature. She could see why Skye would fall into bed with Ward that teamed with his obvious devotion to her made him a very attractive warrior.

Dex was an equally handsome prospect and she couldn't help licking her lips when he pulled his shirt over his head. He was built like a titan with numerous; she guessed they were military tattoos, decorating his upper arms, back and chest. Jemma had never been one for tattooed bad boys before maybe it was Skye's bad girl shenanigans rubbing off on her. Here she was watching a display of pure testosterone fuelled power and instead of being horrified as any decent and educated human being should be, she was more than a little turned on.

They were evenly matched that was for sure, Fitz joined along with May halfway through. Jemma had explained to a shocked Fitz and May (whose expression never really changed, so if she was shocked or perturbed how was one to know) that this was all very friendly and the boys were just letting off some steam. At one point Ward would have the upper hand and then Dex, there was a lot of back and forth and some very humorous trash talk but after what seemed like hours the pair decided that neither of them were going to come out on top.

Although his anger at Coulson, Hyde, Greyson, S.H.I.E.L.D, Miles and even Skye herself (yes he was mad at her for not coming to him, going off on her own and getting herself caught. But his worry overshadowed his anger, there'd be time to be pissed at her when he got her back) had not abated fully he felt more in control of himself. Even if he hated to admit it Dex was good at reading people, good at getting them to work through their shit, he guessed that's what made him a good CO. He really wanted to know what had happened to make the guy hate the military so much but he wisely avoided bringing it up.

Instead he decided he needed a drink and when the rest of the team followed him up to the lounge area he didn't object. He even laughed when Dex told him to pour him a man's drink and cracked out Coulsons best whiskey. All this was a welcome distraction from their current task, they knew where she was now all they had to do was get there it was a long flight to Hong Kong at one time getting clearance would have been a cinch since it was an old British outpost but since it had been given back to the Chinese, well that made it harder not that it would stop them.

Coulson joined them when they were an hour from their proposed landing strip, Ward didn't think he'd ever seen him look so sombre. For a few hours he'd let himself be distracted by some of Dex's war stories which the two younger agents enjoyed immensely hanging onto every word. Whatever objections Fitz had had to Jemma and Dex's shameless flirting he seemed to have gotten over it. The three of them were laughing and reminiscing about mishaps that FitzSimmons had gotten into at the academy, embarrassing high school stories and tales from Dex's bar. He knew what the hacker was up to he was doing what Coulson would normally do, he was distracting them because whilst neither of them had wanted to burst their bubble about Skye. They knew full well what they were likely to find and the two youngsters where not ready for that. This whole experience would likely mess them up nearly as much as Skye. No-one was ready to see a victim of torture, sure they'd have read about it at the academy, seen it in movies, maybe they'd even had some resistance training but to see if for yourself it was almost worse than being tortured yourself.

In truth he wasn't sure he was ready for this, it was exactly why he'd never had relationships with fellow agents before because of situations like this. If he were faced with the same decision again should he tell her how he felt or not knowing what he knew now would he have chosen differently? He knew the answer he's not sure what it said about him but he knew he would still have chosen to be with her. He had to suck it up and do what he did best which was kick some serious ass, she'd once said he was damn good at saving her ass he hoped to every God in the universe though he still maintained that Thor was not a God that she was right.

"Landing in five" called may over the speaker system.

As if someone had flipped a switch the cheer went out of the room and everyone put on their game face.

"Right, War Room now we need to come up with a plan to get her back" stated Coulson.

This was it time to make those sons of bitches pay.