Good Day, thou lovely being! Thank you again for everything! *sigh* It seems that holidays don't even stop my family from fighting like starving dogs after a piece of raw meat. But instead of being raging like them, I always smile when I see all of you guys favoriting and reviewing and following this! It makes me sooo damn happy! Anyway, a reply so that I don't keep you hanging!
Zantetsuken Reverse: They ARE nations, but do keep in mind the facility and He for they WILL come into play later on. And as for AU, not really.
AnimeGirl 144: Don't worry, He while be revealed soon enough.
Disclaimer: I don't own this awesomess once again.
After the whole incident with Thor, Fury was immediately called in.
"What the hell do you want now?" He growled out as he stepped out of the black S.H.E.I.L.D. helicopter that had landed not to long ago on the Avengers' Mansion helipad. The man walked swiftly across the marked roof top towards a fidgeting Clint and a twitching Tony. With his only eye, the director inspected the archer. 'Some sort of shit must've happened if he's fidgeting so damn much,' thought Fury.
Jerking up, Clint stammered, "Some crazy stuff is going on sir." At the raised eyebrow and incredulous look he was given, the agent continued, "We found Thor knocked out in a room at the other side of the mansion sir. Nobody goes there at all other than Steve when he goes to train."
That was all Fury needed to hear. Pushing the twitching duo aside, he stalked towards the door that led inside. As he yanked it open and went down the first set of stairs, he heard the other two scramble behind him. He slowly sidestepped towards the wall on the landing when the two Avengers toppled over one another and rolled down the stairs.
Fury stared at the archer and inventor as they detangled themselves from one another with a deadpan look in his only eye. Shaking his head, the director sighed and continued down the stairs with two twitching men behind him.
The trio finally reached the halls of the mansion. They twisted through them with ease despite their complexity, and soon enough they reached a wide meeting room. Inside, Steve, Natasha, and Bruce were all sitting on the chairs closest to the glass wall that was currently occupied with camera feeds of several different rooms and halls.
Upon seeing Natasha's troubled face, all of Fury's doubts left. 'Somethings definitely going down.'
"What's going on here?" He demanded.
Looking up, Steve choked out, "We don't know director. It's all happening randomly."
"Randomly?"
"Yes sir." Answered Natasha this time. She continued, "I know this will sound crazy, sir, but this morning I was attacked by a strange creature."
From his spot next to Bruce, Steve snapped his gaze towards her. "You too?" He asked nervously.
With surprise clearly showing on her face, the Russian nodded at the captain.
"What went after you Rogers?" Asked Fury, drilling his questioning one-eyed gaze at the icon.
With a slightly flushed face, the blond quickly replied, "Zombies."
Silence.
"...zombies? Really Rogers, really?" Dead panned Stark besides him. Both Clint and him had already taken a seat at the table, leaving only the director standing up.
Before Steve could retort, Fury snapped, "Enough."
Both immediately shut up.
Sighing again, Fury pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "Do you have any footage of either attack?"
From the edge of the table, Bruce squeaked out, "We were barely going to check sir."
Stark nodded with a 'yup' and stood up from his chair. He managed to stop his fidgeting as he walked to the front of the room were the glass wall was and pressed a holographic square on it that read 'Camera Footage.'
"Hey Nat, at what time was your supposed attack?" He asked in a bored tone.
"At around six in the morning in the living room. And it did happen, Stark," she growled out toward the end.
Rolling his chocolate brown eyes, Tony looked at the ceiling and called out, "Heard that JARVIS?"
"Yes sir."
And in the blink of an eye, the footages of the rooms and halls on the screen turned to a clear and frozen image of the living room from the camera on the corner of said place.
The AI dimmed the lights of the room just as the footage unfroze and played itself.
Everyone waited and watched the tape. When Natasha finally came into view at the doorway of the room, Fury's eye traveled to the corner of the wall. Grabbing a piece of paper and pen, he jotted down the time. '6:07'
He looked up just in time as 'Natasha' threw herself on the ground in the middle of the room for no apparent reason and kicked the air. After staying down for a few seconds, she bolted up and ran out of the room.
The living room camera switched from one hall to another as the Russian ran down them. She came to a stop in one, which was the hall where the rooms of the Avengers were located. And just as Natasha started running, she tripped. Struggling and trying to break free from seemingly nothing, she glared at the air in front of her. The redhead then opened her mouth as if to talk, but when the footage showed her mouth moving, no sound came out, not even the slightest whisper.
And then that's when the piercing cry of the alarm sounded through the speakers on the ceiling. The footage froze once more when the half asleep Avengers stepped out of their rooms with weapons drawn.
Just as the lights became brighter, Fury sparred a glance at the Russian redhead sitting on the table. And he almost cracked a grin at the sight despite the situation.
Natasha's face was currently a bright red that almost matched her hair colour and her jaw was hanging open. An enraged and confused look battled for dominance in her eyes, as if they couldn't decide which was felt the most.
"Well that revealed nothing," muttered Tony. He tapped a small circle on the wall's surface and it reverted back to its original blank look. "Next," he drawled out like a judge evaluating boring people.
"But it did happen! I was in the kitchen when I heard a bang with-" the Russian sucked in a sharp breath. The males in the room stared at her as she narrowed her eyes and hissed out, "them."
"With who Agent Romanoff?"Questioned Fury.
"The jesters. The albino and the blue eyed blond," she answered. "They were there when I heard the noise and when I fell down on the hall, I saw the British one in front of me holding my gun!"
"Are you absolutely sure you weren't imagining stuff, agent? 'Cause I sure didn't see anyone else in the tape other than you."
Natasha shook her head with so much speed her neck almost cracked. She was about to say something else when JARVIS interrupted her.
"Mr. Rogers? At what time did your accident happen?"
"Around eight in the gym, JARVIS," replied Steve.
The screen flashed for an instant before the footage of the gym appeared. But before it could play itself, Fury turned his one eyed gaz towards the captain and asked, "Where were you before you went to the gym?"
"In the living room with Tony and Clint, director."
"Did you see any of the Jokers before entering the gym?"
Steve thought for a bit. Had he seen anyone? Snapping his fingers, he looked at Fury and said, "Only one. And that was Spade, but I only saw him after I left the living room."
"Spade?"
"The albino, sir. They call each other by the names of the symbols on a deck of cards."
Fury nodded thoughtfully and turned to look at the wall. "JARVIS, change the footage to the living room this morning."
The tape changed to the one Fury said. Once again, the lights dimmed and the recording started.
It showed Steve sitting on the couch behind a pair of slouched figures. After a while, the blond stood up and quietly left the room.
The camera quickly changed to the hallway outside the living room where Spade and Steve were having an awkward, one-sided conversation. After a few minutes, Steve quickly detached himself from the chat and slipped away. The camera fast forward until it showed the blond America stepping into the gym.
Fury quickly wrote down the time again next to Natasha's. '8:14'
After that, the footage just showed Steve running around the gym before he started punching bags. From the corner on the doorway, the jester Spade appeared again. He appeared to be calling out to Steve, but it seemed like the latter hadn't hear him. After a few more times, Spade shrugged and left, leaving the captain alone with his punching bags.
The footage froze when Rogers suddenly stopped punching the black leather bags before bolting out of the gym.
All eyes turned to Steve. And like Romanoff, he had a disbelieving look in his eyes and his face was as red as the stripes in the USA flag.
"Well" started Fury "that was useless." He discreetly pocketed the piece of paper he had scribbled the time on and set down the pen. He ignored the shocked looks the two 'attacked' Avengers gave him while he questioned, "Do you have Thor's footage in the ball room?"
To which the AI responded smoothly, "No, Director Fury. The rooms on that side of the mansion do not have cameras installed in them."
"Well then until you have enough evidence of this so called 'attacks', I expect to NOT be disturbed again. And stop acting like little kids and take the blame instead of pinning it on the recruits." While he said this, he looked pointedly at Natasha. And with that, he turned and exited the room. When he was down the hall, he could hear Stark clearly scream "What the FUCK?! He won't believe us!"
Fury didn't stop walking until he reached the staircase that led up towards the roof. There he climbed up to the landing before standing still on it. "I certainly didn't expect you four be so sadistic on them," he spoke out loud to the air around him.
From the shadows on both the walls and ceiling, the four jesters emerged. Staring at Fury from his upside down position on the ceiling, Heart said with a shrug, "You told us not to hold back." Beside him, Spade nodded with a small 'yup'.
"And attacking two hours with seven minutes apart from the last isn't suspicious at all," retorted the director sarcastically.
"Nope," chirped Club. He stepped forth and did a small twirl before coming to a halt and snapping his fingers. From his hand, sparks and small flames erupted. The fiery limbs jumped from his hand and separated into six different flames in the air. "We already got rid of three," he explained and with the flick of his wrist, three of the dancing flames were extinguished. "And we're only missing the other three," finished Diamond as he leaned against the wall. With his words, the fire grew bigger and wilder before extinguishing itself.
Fury chuckled. "Well, this will surely teach them a lesson. Not to mention it will sharpen their damn reflexes."
The four jesters giggled cruelly. But their laughs stopped abruptly when Spade whispered uncertainly, "Has He made any sort of move?" The other three Jokers stayed silent with their eyes and faces suddenly nervous too.
Fury shook his head and the jesters sighed in relief. "Well then" he said "I have to leave this damn place but YOU four won't. Got it?"
Nod.
~~~~~In the Abandoned Ball Room~~~~~
France sighed as he lowered his cards. Running a hand down his face, he turned to his fellow nations, who were staring at him, and asked, "Was it really a smart move to run away?"
A scoff from Prussia and a nod from Spain was his reply. "Of course it was! If we hadn't, we'd be dead by now," spat England out. He always got annoyed when that subject was brought up. Probably because he had the worst time there.
"Now stop thinking about it and concentrate," scolded the Briton playfully as they resumed their game.
~~~~~Thousands of Miles Away~~~~~
A wicked grin stretched upon an old face. Attentive grey eyes stared out the enormous window at the magnificent mountain side the building was located on, admiring the rare beauty that was usually covered by thick fog and rain from the storm clouds that rolled lazily over head. Suddenly, a knock echoed through out the room from the mahogany door.
"Enter," wheezed the old man.
The door opened, revealing a man servant pushing along a trolley. Atop the cart, several medicine bottles rattled on their place upon a metal tray. The trolley came to a stop besides the chair the old man sat upon.
"Master, it's time for you to take your medication," stated the servant in a monotonic voice. Gloved hands grabbed a small plate filled with pills of different sizes and colors along with a glass of water. The owner of said hands handed over the objects to the graying old man.
After popping each pill into his mouth and swallowing it, the master turned to his servant. "Have you tracked them down, Anderson?"
The servant, Anderson, shook his head and pulled out a razor thin device from his pocket. He placed the device on the other man's hand before retrieving the empty bowl and glass. Just as he had placed them on the trolley's platter, his master called, "What are these red dots, boy?"
Without looking up, Anderson replied, "Possible hidding spots, master." And with that, he left the room with the trolley.
Grey orbs stared at the blinking crimson dots on the screen of the device with a grin stretching across the wheezed face they were a part of. The old man started giggling like a little kid before bursting out into roaring laughter.
"YOU CAN RUN, JESTERS, BUT YOU CAN'T HIDE!"
SOOOO SORRY IF THIS IS CRAPPY! *wails and rolls on the floor* This was supposed to air DAYS ago! But once again, my cursed family won't stop fighting. All day and all night! I swear I'm this close to snapping out at them. *sighs* And the reason this wasn't posted before was because when I was about to upload it, my parents started screaming at each other and I took it as a sign to turn the computer off and get the hell out of the room. So I'm really sorry if its bad. Anyway, enough ranting!
Hopefully the length of this makes up for the tardiness. AND who is that guy at the end? I'll leave it up to you to figure it out! :)