A/N: Hello hello, hope you all like chapter 5, I do have a question you will see at the end of the chapter, if you have time, please consider giving me you input. Anyways, enjoy!
Finally a field assignment came their way. Well, it was a little out of their way, but Coulson's knew they'd manage.
"Morocco?" May raised her eyebrows.
Coulson shrugged. "What of it?"
"We're stationed in LA, HQ knows that," May muttered. She was more suspicious than angry.
"Don't you have agents in Morocco?" Skye asked.
"Yes, they do," Ward answered, equally confused.
"Then why-," Skye began asking but Coulson quickly interrupted.
"They want us to go in. Don't question it, unless you'd rather stay here and do nothing for a couple more weeks."
To Fitz it didn't seem like a bad idea, staying in safe company with occasional paperwork sent their way. But he knew the team was bored and didn't have the urge to say anything.
Ward assumed Coulson's word as final and quit pondering on the matter, deciding that he didn't care. Simmons willingly decided to ignore the dark cloud of suspicion as well, though Skye and May especially were difficult to convince.
That night May knocked on Phil's cabin door, demanding an answer.
"Look, I know it seems weird for them to send us all the way to Morocco to just check on someone, but we have to go," Coulson reasoned.
"Give me the truth Phil," was all Agent May had to say.
Coulson rubbed his eyes, stalling and loosening his tie. He threw himself onto his chair, finally his face giving away the confusion he was feeling.
His hazel eyes, then, met May's brown ones, revealing his vulnerability, a side of Phil no other agents had really seen.
"We have to go, May. Nick Fury assigned us this mission."
They both stayed quiet, but the air was filled with unanswered question.
Why would the Director send them to Morrocco?
"Is this alcoholic?" Darcy asked the airhostess.
"No ma'am," came the polite reply.
"Well why the hell not?" Darcy demanded.
"Um, that's orange juice ma'am."
"Oh."
An old gentleman two seats away signaled for assistance and the airhostess scurried away dutifully, happy to be free from Darcy's obscure questions.
"People on this plane are so dull," she said to Jane who was on her laptop, typing away.
"They're not dull, you're just overly exuberant, that's all," Jane smiled good naturedly.
Darcy sighed dramatically. "Yeah, it really sucks to be me." She turned her heard to read Jane's writing. Jane Foster had a lot of legal explaining to do regarding her two yearlong disappearance, but it was nothing a little hacking and anecdote couldn't solve. "Smart," Darcy snorted. Now she could see why Thor and Loki find humans to be so amusing. There was always a way out and every law created had so many loopholes that they seemed to encourage crime.
"Wonder how Fury's doing. Do you think he'll be happy to see me?" she asked the astrophysics.
Jane laughed quietly. "Oh of course, SHIELD will have a ball when they see your face again."
"I can imagine the tears and gunshots…," Darcy thought.
"Don't forget the armed welcoming committee, probably with the world's deadliest assassins of all time," Jane reminded her.
Darcy shrugged, "I've still got my Taser, I'll be fine."
"That thing has been with you forever hasn't it."
"Yeah, well, it is my other best friend. I'm thinking of naming it."
Jane just laughed again, still focused on her typing.
Darcy took out her headphones. "Well, I guess it's another movie for me then."
"Hm, go with a boring, non-emotional one," Jane recommended.
"Why?"
For the first time in hours, Jane finally looked away from her laptop, straight at Darcy.
"Because," she said, "Last time you were sobbing at the screen so much, I'm pretty sure I heard a baby tell me to put my friend on silent."
Darcy pouted, but Jane had gone back to typing, holding no avail for her appeal. She thew her headphones on her lap and grabbed at her drink again.
"Well, then. Looks like tonight I'll just have to get drunk on orange juice."
Ward loaded his pistol, securing it in his belt while Fitz poked into Ward's ear to set up the coms.
The team prepared themselves efficiently, not wanting their first mission to be their last.
Coulson marched out with May behind him.
"Alright, let's review this again," Coulson instructed, "Simmons, Fitz, and Skye, you three will stay in the van and Skye you're responsible for driving away if the mission is comprised. Meanwhile, Ward and May will infiltrate the building so we can acquire the drive. Fitz, I'll need you on coms the whole time in case we have any errors with the tech." Everyone nodded hurriedly.
"Questions?" Coulson asked, hiding his anxiety.
No one said a word.
"O-kay then," he inwardly sighed, leading out of the Bus.
Ward stepped next to May. "So, what exactly is on that drive?" he posed the same question every member of the team had been wondering.
"We don't know," May responded with such certainty that all Ward could do was nod.
"You're not scared?" Skye asked and walked faster to catch up May and Ward. "The odds aren't exactly on our sides. We don't even know what we're doing for. It's just a flash drive."
"If Fury asked us to get it, it must be worth it," Ward said and May agreed.
"Our concern isn't what we don't know," she elaborated, "The problem is with what we know. As far as I have heard, this building is most secured building in the entire continent and our extraction team consists of three kids in a van. We have no room for error."
Ward frowned and Skye slowed down, letting them walk away.
What was she getting herself into?
The van was set up, all coms double-checked and working, for now.
"As soon as we go in, remember to lock down the entrances and exits. We can't have a swat team come in to take us out. We'll deal with whoevers in there," Coulson reminded Skye who fiddled with her laptop, successfully hacking into the security system. That was the easy part; the tough part was doing everything without raising any suspicions that would give away the covert operation.
"How are you guys going to get out?" Fitz asked.
"We'll let you know when to open the exits. Remember guys; let's avoid any combat and interference. They can't know we're here," Coulson stressed. Soon, the field agents left to find an entrance to the tall building located in the middle of a small village, an odd sight. After they left, Skye moved the van away from the building, parking near another industrial looking van. She locked it and joined Fitzsimmons in the back. Fitz offered her some pretzels which she munched on anxiously. Skye looked over at Simmons who smiled at her a reassuring smile, trying to calm the other two.
The three sat there and waited.
There were cameras everywhere.
"This is a nightmare," Coulson mumbled. The three of them were trying different routes to see which one could get them in. Coulson was hovering around the bottom of the building. All doors were open thanks to Skye, but they were all exposed. May and Ward were at the roof now, after climbing up, trying to be discrete, using the trees to hide themselves. Eventually May got the idea of checking out the windows below and finally found an empty located at the third floor of the five story building.
"Coulson, Ward, found a clear room," she mumbled.
"Check if it any air vents," Coulson whispered.
"I see two."
"Cameras?" Ward asked into his mic, still standing on the roof of the building, constantly peeping over his shoulder with May's rope secure in his hand.
"I don't see any. They must be hidden," May said.
"Skye, can you disable them?" Coulson asked her via the much helpful coms system.
"Well, yeah, but I'm pretty sure they'll notice," Skye mentioned.
"May?" Coulson asked for ideas.
"I say we go in. If you can, just turn off the cameras off the third floor, you can do it sequentially," May decided.
"Um, I have an idea," Fitz offered.
"What is it Fitz?" Coulson asked.
"What if we sent in a recorded feed of the rooms, that way they'll think the cameras are still working, maybe?" the Scotsman posed, slightly unsure.
But Jemma flashed him a thumbs up.
"Skye?" Coulson asked.
"On it," she confirmed, "It'll take me ten minutes though."
"You have five."
"Got it, boss man."
Eventually they got in and May stepped into the ventilation system and within minutes they had the security system down. They had it all as planned until they got to the basement.
And the coms went off.
Skye, Fitz, and Simmons watched horrified as their screen revealed the lasers protecting the drive. It didn't take them much time to figure out that the coms were down and Coulson, May, and Ward were about to walk into a trap.
First the alarms went off. Then the guards rushed in. Ward took them out as quickly as they came in and with the outside doors firmly shut, the security team was delayed since the incoming teams had no entrance.
But Coulson's team didn't have an exit either. He quickly grabbed the drive in the room that had been displayed like a trophy or artifact in the middle of the laser protected room.
Cars rushed into the parking lot the van was parked at and Simmons pushed Skye to drive away.
"No, they'll notice us leaving," Fitz shouted, grabbing Skye backwards and she fell into the back once again.
"Well, if we stay here, they'll notice that too, and then it'll be too late, Skye you have to go," Simmons yelled, pushing her up.
"You two, shut up!" Skye screamed.
The van got quiet as they all went silent, listening to the men filing out of the black vans that had just rushed in.
"We can't leave without them," Skye whispered. "We have to get them out."
"But Coulson specifically told us to leave," Simmons whispered back, desperately.
"Simmons, we have to do something," Skye reasoned and finally Fitz agreed too.
The three watched quietly, afraid to be caught. There were a couple armed men standing next to the van and they knew that they were one fight away from getting caught.
"Let's open the gates," Skye suggested.
"Are you mad?" Fitzsimmons whisper-yelled.
"Guys, they have no way of getting out."
They stayed quiet again. Inside May and Ward were fighting off all the basement guards while upstairs people panicked.
"Idea!" Simmons said in her normal voice, causing Fitz to land his palm across her face to shut her up while Skye mouthed, "Shhhh!"
The voices outside the van grew louder and intrigued and the team cowered back, hiding. Fitz, who had brought a blanket, closed it over the team which covered the team. The men, who lazily gazed into the van saw a mass of maroon in the backseat which they dismissed, but they didn't move away.
Fitz hand was still on Jemma's mouth which she licked in protest. Fitz mock-yelled back in horror, but Simmons grabbed him upright, pulling Skye towards her too.
"Listen to me," Simmons demanded silently, "In times of orderly disorder, it only makes sense to add confusion. The only way they can come out safely is if these guards don't suspect them. You have to create a scene to distract both them and the people inside."
"Yeah but how?" Skye asked.
"Make the fire alarm go off or something Skye! I'm sure you've been in this kind of situation before."
"Yeah! Do whatever you used to do whenever you got in trouble and didn't want anyone to find out," Fitz offered, whispering loudly.
The hactivist studied the eager scientists. "Should I be offended?"
"Skye, please."
"Okay, not bad idea, guess I can pull something crazy…," Skye started typing again.
"Can't believe you licked my hand," Fitz whispered to Simmons who rolled her eyes. "Don't ever lick my hand again."
Couple minutes later, just as Coulson was about to instruct his team to go all out and reveal their presence, a fire alarm rang loud and proud, causing more commotion with the afraid workers still locked in upstairs.
A voice spoke over the intercom that made everyone freak out even more.
"Attention, people of…this building. You are surrounded by, um, the deadliest team on earth. If you want to live, you must comply to the Rising Tide. If you dare stay in this building for one more second, prepare to be eliminated. You will scurry, yes, you will run far like hopeless little monkeys otherwise we will find you. You have fifteen minutes to clear the area. Mwahaha. Haha. Ha."
There was silence. Then the sprinklers went off. Then the screaming began.
"Was that?" Ward asked.
"Fitz," May shook her head. But the illusion seemed to work. The guards they were fighting looked anxious to get out.
All the doors opened and Coulson and team caught onto the message. The joined the sea of desperate civilians, rushing out the door, grabbing random belongings and supplies to piling into the parking lot, keen to leave quickly. The armed guards were washed away.
It took less than 60 seconds for them to find the van and get inside, with May driving, they were the first ones to leave the parking lot.
When they were at a safe distance, Coulson turned around to look at his extraction team.
"Not bad guys. But really? 'Hopeless little monkeys?'" he looked at Fitz.
The team erupted with laughter; even May smiled.
"We were under a lot of pressure," Fitz shrugged.
"So were we," Ward retorted. But his next words were never expected. "Yet we never would come up with that plan. Great job guys, you all saved our asses today."
"Oh em gee, Agent Grant Ward just complimented us you guys," Skye mock-fangirled, fanning herself with her hand.
"This is alarming," Fitz nodded.
"Totally unanticipated. Wow, I think I'm going into shock. Can't believe I'm witnessing this," Jemma joined in.
Ward sighed, already annoyed.
Skye leaned in towards him, placing a hand on his arm to get his attention.
"Ward," she said sincerely, making him look up into her eyes, "In all seriousness, I have to ask you something."
Her intense gaze complied him to listen.
"Tell me," she began dramatically, "Did it physically hurt?"
"Huh?"
"Do you have a bruise? Do you need an icepack?"
Confused, Ward gave her a questioning look until he finally got it. "Ha ha, very funny," he mumbled, grouchily turning away.
"I think that compliment tired him," Simmons laughed and they all started giggling again until Ward joined in.
Coulson smiled goofily at May, very pleased with the new development in the team.
May gave him a meaningful look which quickly reminded Coulson of an important issue.
"Skye I need your laptop," Coulson held out his hand.
Skye, in response, held it closer to her. "Why?" she squinted at him.
"I'm afraid Agent Fury isn't answering my calls. I might have to settle for a strongly-worded email."
"Why are you calling Fury already? Shouldn't we wait for further orders?" Simmons asked, confused at the informal gesture.
"I'm afraid the questions I have cannot wait," Coulson said, taking Skye's laptop.
"Why not? We just broke into this building and avoided a mass-murder. We could use a break," Fitz said with a mouthful of pretzels.
"That 'building' was a SHIELD facility," May said, stunning the three in the back.
"Wait, what?" Skye articulated the reaction of everyone else.
Ward turned to them to explain. "When we went in, the SHIELD logo was everywhere in the basement and that swat team that came in to eliminate us? That was sent by SHIELD."
"But why in the world would Fury ask you to break into a SHIELD facility?" Simmons asked, utterly perplexed.
"That is why I'm emailing," Coulson said, disdain evident in his voice. Despite his casual tone it was easy for everyone to sense the tension.
"That's so weird. That drive belongs to SHIELD; why would Fury of all people need a hijack team? And what the heck is in that flash drive?" Skye asked.
"We don't know. All we know is that there were fifty-something agents hired with the sole purpose to protect it," Ward answered.
"Those people in the building? Didn't they recognize you guys?"
"No one saw us until the end. But they weren't SHIELD agents. May suspects they didn't even know the basement was hiding something."
"Wow," Skye muttered, impressed, or well she seemed to be until she said:
"You people are really messed up."
A/N: Long chapter wasn't it? Hopefully it wasn't too painful to read but hey there's some good stuff coming.
I've got a question and I don't know how to conduct a poll on this site so if you could review your answer or pm it to me; that would be fantastic and very much appreciated. I have this story sectioned under the genres, "friendship" and "adventure" which I find to be accurate but are there genres you feel go with the story as well? I wanted to see if I could replace "adventure" with "humor" but then I went through an inner turmoil over my sense of humor. So basically, I'm asking you, is this funny enough to go under the "humor" category or do you feel that "adventure" is more accurate? Do let me know, pretty please.
Thank you.
As always, thank you for reading, it means a lot. The story currently has almost 500 views, yay. Thanks to the fab Princess PrettyPants and incredible JigokuShoujosRevenge (who now I know wants to slap me. Yay for that.) for your comments. Please feel free to review if you have things to say and stay tuned!