I just want to start off by saying thank you to the lovely's MorWolfMor, Cara Tala and Theta-McBride for reviewing! I'm glad you're all enjoying the story and mean Tony won't be mean for much longer I promise. :D I don't like a mean Tony, but it had to be done.
Anywho, hope you all enjoy this next chapter!
~R~
Steve gave Rory a small smile before walking forward as everyone gathered around the table Bruce stood at.
"You located the Tesseract?" Thor asked.
"I could get there faster." Tony said getting ready to leave.
"The Tesseract belongs on Asgard. No human is a match for it.
"You're not going alone." Steve said grabbing Tony's upper arm.
Rory exhaled sharply. Here we go again…
"You're gonna stop me?"
"Put on the suit, let's find out."
"I'm not afraid to hit an old man."
"Put on the suit."
"Would you two stop it? This fighting isn't getting us anywhere! We're all grownups here so either shut up or leave the room before I make you." Rory harshly said silencing the two men.
Rory turned her attention on to Bruce and saw the expression on his face. "Dr. Banner?"
The computer continued to beep until an explosion ripped through the helicarrier. Rory was thrown to the floor with Steve and Tony. She shielded her head with her arms to keep it from hitting the floor. A body loomed over her and shielded her from any flying debris.
"You alright?" Steve asked moving away. Rory nodded and sat up.
"Put on the suit." Steve said to Tony helping him up.
"Yep."
She watched as they both ran from the room. Rory glanced around the room, her eyes landing on the gaping hole where Bruce and Natasha previously were. She climbed to her feet and walked over to the hole.
"Are you two okay down there?" she called as Natasha looked up.
"Go on and get out of here. We'll be fine…" Natasha didn't sound too sure but Rory respected her order and left the room.
The hallways were bustling with SHIELD agents. Rory ran down the hallways gently pushing people out of her way as she reached the armory. She grabbed an MP-5 sub-machine gun along with an M-9 handgun.
"The enemy is wearing SHIELD uniforms!" Fury's voice came over head.
Rory ran from the room and headed for the bridge. The first enemy she encountered was taken out quickly with a bullet to the thigh. She jumped over him and turned the corner only to be met with a hail of gunfire. Rory ducked back around the corner and crouched before peering out. She aimed and fired killing each target with well-practiced ease.
"Freeze." A man said behind her. She felt the barrel of a gun pressed to her head and slowly raised her hands. "Drop your weapon and turn around."
She did as she was told and once she faced him she smirked. Her left hand flew out and grabbed the barrel of the gun while her right hand pressed below the crease of the man's wrist between the radius and ulna bones. The man's hand went numb and he released the gun. Rory's quick reflexes allowed her to grab the gun and turn it on the man before he recovered. She fired without flinching as the man fell backwards. She tossed the gun at his feet and picked up her discarded one.
"Major Hayes, you're assistance is requested on the bridge."
"On my way." She replied before running off.
~R~
"Damn, how many enemies does SHIELD have?" Rory muttered to herself as she took out another seven enemies. She peered around the corner as enemies kept running toward the bridge only to be shot. Her eyes widened as they spotted her and fired. "Oh shit."
Rory pulled her head from around the corner as bullets flew by her. She reloaded her gun and cocked it before opening fire. They dropped like flies as another tried to enter the bridge. Once the last one was dead, Rory ran forward and grabbed a stray, putting him in a chokehold until he stopped moving. She glanced into the room, quickly raising her hands as Fury's gun was aimed at her.
"Whoa, don't shoot!" She said.
"I want you to meet up with Rogers and Stark. They might need your help." Fury quickly replied giving her their location.
With a quick nod she ran off once again. She reached her destination only to find more enemies firing on Steve. One of them threw a grenade only to have Steve jump and smack it out of the air. Rory went to fire only to have the gun click empty. The sound got the men's attention along with Steve's. She tossed the gun aside and pulled out the M-9 handgun and deftly shot the man closest to her. Another went down as Steve found a gun. Rory ducked around the corner as more showed up.
"They just won't give up." Rory said moving around the corner and firing. A stray bullet grazed the side of her arm. She ignored the pain and killed what she hoped was the last enemy. Steve covered her from the raised platform as she reloaded her gun. When she looked up Steve was nowhere to be seen.
"Steve?" she called out concerned. "Steve?!"
After taking a quick glance to make sure the coast was clear she looked for a way to climb up the platform. She found a ledge and pulled herself up and onto the platform. Rory looked out and saw Steve dangling in the wind. A few bullets bounced off the wall above her head causing her to lie on her stomach. She looked behind her and saw two more men and groaned.
"Give me a freaking break!" She said pulling a knife from her right boot. Rory jumped to her feet and threw the knife before he was able to take another shot. The knife hit its mark, killing him instantly.
"Rory! The lever!" Steve shouted.
"What?"
"The lever next to you!"
Rory turned to her right and saw the red lever. She went to pull it as Steve started pulling himself along the wire. Her hand grabbed the lever and pulled it down. She felt the helicarrier shift and steady itself in the air. Steve stood up next to her as Tony flew past them and taking out the remaining enemy. Rory leaned her back and head against the wall as she left out a long sigh.
"It's Coulson…" Fury said over the intercom. "They called it."
~R~
The two of the three remaining Avengers were seated at the table. The back of Tony's chair faced Steve as Rory walked in. She was sent to the medical bay to get her arm checked out and cleaned. It wasn't terrible, just superficial. She had changed out of her clothes into a new pair upon the doctor's request. She messed with the bandage as she walked toward the bridge; her military boots echoing along the hallways. When Rory reached the bridge it was silent except for the agents trying to get their communications system back up. She glanced over at Fury before taking her seat to Steve's right.
"These were in Phil Coulson's jacket. Guess he never did get you to sign them." Fury said tossing Captain America trading cards on the table. Rory looked down at them with a sad expression. She looked up at Steve as he reached forward and grabbed one with blood on it. She looked down at the table and cradled her head in her hands.
"We're dead in the air up here. Our communications, location of the cube, Banner, Thor. I got nothing for you. Lost my one good eye. Maybe I had that coming." He paused, "Yes, we were going to build an arsenal with the Tesseract. I never put all my chips on that number though, because I was playing something even riskier. There was an idea, Stark knows this, called The Avengers Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, see if they could become something more. See if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles that we never could. Phil Coulson died still believing in that idea, in heroes."
Rory looked up as Tony silently stormed from the room. Her eyes lingered on his back before she glanced at Fury.
"Well, it's an old fashioned notion." Fury said shaking his head. Rory pushed away from the table and set out to search for Tony.
Rory was halfway down to the detention level when she stopped walking. She stood in the center of the hallway and stared down at her shoes, her hair creating a curtain around her face. She was vaguely aware of the sound of running footsteps approaching her, but she did not move.
"Ma'am?" Steve asked approaching her. He placed a hand on her shoulder when he saw them shaking. He wasn't sure of the proper way to handle a crying woman.
"Coulson was the only one besides my father who believed in me. It was Phil who told me to prove myself to the higher ups. He saw I had potential and even said he'd recruit me to work with SHIELD when I was ready. I'm not going to let him done not after everything he's done for me." She said lifting her head.
"From what I've seen today I believe in you too. C'mon let's find Stark." Steve said patting her shoulder.
They reached the holding cell Loki was held in and found Tony. He was standing looking down as they entered. Rory followed behind Steve as they walked up and over to the edge. Steve leaned against the railing and crossed his arms while Rory crouched down. She watched as clouds passed below them.
"Was he married?" Steve asked.
"No. There was a cellist, I think." Tony replied not looking up.
"I'm sorry. He seemed like a good man."
"He was an idiot."
"Why? For believing?"
"For taking on Loki alone."
"He was doing his job."
"He was out of his league. He should have waited." Tony scoffed, "He should have…"
Rory looked over at Tony. She recognized the look in his eyes. It was the same look she wore whenever she lost a soldier, a friend. She turned her attention to the blood stain on the wall and couldn't even begin to imagine the pain Coulson was in.
"Sometimes there isn't a way out, Tony."
"Right, I've heard that before."
""Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. Winston Churchill once said." Rory said out of the blue. Steve and Tony looked down at her. She didn't acknowledge their looks as she tossed a piece of debris.
"Is this the first time you lost a soldier?" Steve said a few minutes later.
"We are not soldiers." Tony bit back.
""No you're not, but you don't have to be a soldier to have courage and fight for what's right. Coulson had that courage and I won't let his death be in vain. He was the most courageous out of all of us." Rory said turning from the edge.
"I'm not marching to Fury's fife." Tony looked at them, his eyes lingering on Rory for her answer. She shook her head and crossed her arms.
"Neither are we. He's got the same blood on his hands that Loki does. But right now we got to put that behind us and get this done. Loki needs a power source. If we can put together a list…"
"He made it personal."
"That's not the point."
"Tony's right Steve." Rory agreed.
"That is the point. That's Loki's point. He hit us all right where we live. Why?"
"To tear us apart."
"Yeah, divide and conquer is great but he knows he has to take us out to win, right? That's what he wants. He wants to beat us; he wants to be seen doing it. He wants an audience."
"Right. I caught his act in Stuttgart."
"Yeah, that was just previews. This is opening night. And Loki, he's a full-tilt diva, right? He wants flowers, he wants parades. He wants a monument built in the skies with his name plastered…" Tony trailed off as realization dawned on him.
"Tony?" Rory asked raising an eyebrow.
"Son of a bitch."
Rory ran after the two as they headed to their respected rooms. Tony veered off from their small group and went to work on fixing his suit. Steve continued down the corridor as Rory followed.
"We're really going to do this aren't we?" she inquired.
"It's as you said Coulson was the most courageous out of all of us and we won't let Loki get away with what he's done. Do you have a suit?"
"You're looking at most of it." She replied holding her arms out to the side. Steve gave her a look to which she rolled her eyes. "It's not like I brought a military uniform with me. Besides I don't need a special suit to fight, you'll see."
"Alright then suit up and meet on the flight deck."
"Copy that, Captain." Rory gave him a salute and a smile before turning on her heel and leaving.
~R~
Sorry if it feels like I'm dragging out the chapters but I don't want to put everything in one. Don't forget to review! :D They keep me writing.