S H I E L D Agent Rhapsodos: Taking the Backseat

by Wayang.Silver

It was supposed to be his reward from the Goddess after his service as a WEAPON to the Planet. Except, his life now consists of being a SOLDIER, Turk, Superhero Sitter, & this time as the unwilling hero in one. With so many heroes around, Genesis decides to take the backseat. At least Coulson concurs that the backstage crew can make differences; Fury doesn't seem to agree.

8. Consultants Meet, Avengers Greet

S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Rhapsosdos: Taking the Backseat

Disclaimer: Refer to the Prologue Chapter. I also do not own any movie dialogue in this chapter.

Beta-ed by:CommentatorInThePeanutGallery (December 9th, 2012) [Last Edit January 1st, 2016]

AU Notes:

Another late chapter... but I did warn readers last time that I'll update more slowly to check up on a few things. However, I do have other reasons being that Hurricane Sandy hit the eastern coast of the US where my beta resides. So things had to be pushed back further as RL got in the way for the most part. I don't/won't promise anyone on quick updates, however I will deliver with the best of I have; and if I can I will try to keep improving to make this fic as epic as it can be. I know I can't satisfy everyone on this, but knowing that readers smile reading this fic is my motivation and happiness to get this fic in motion.

Plus, I did more extensive research – I like to mix a few real world things (like real Intelligence agencies, organizations, people, etc) and incorporate them into the story. More fun that way. Likewise, my beta and I have been trading ideas in regards to the plot and characters.

About this chapter: Beware that this chapter packs a wallop for in turn of my absence. I highly suggest that you read this when you aren't in the middle of something (like in the middle of a class/lesson/meeting/work/whatever you're supposed to be doing). I am not in any way responsible if your teacher/lecturer/boss/whoever will give the evil eye on you. LOL. This chapter's story body alone (without AU notes or Trivia) is a whopping 19.000 words. It features some scenes and dialogues from extended scenes of the Avengers, agents doing what they do best, Easter eggs, Loki being the evil cunning guy his is, exploring beyond the movie, and plenty of character interaction.

So – Sit back, relax, and always...

Enjoy!

---

~ Chapter 7: Consultants Meet, Avengers Greet ~

"You never know who's going to become your friend. Friends are always chance meetings." ~ Steve Guttenberg

---

At Evan's Diner...

Despite the good food, the atmosphere inside the diner was gloomy.

Two people sat in the private area of their favorite diner usually reserved for small celebrations whether they would be for birthdays or the success of a long-term mission. The waitress hadn't even thought of bothering them at all, preferring to clean up their tables after they had left or whenever she was called over. She sighed as she cleaned the counter, wondering what was wrong with her favorite regulars. Whatever came up, it seemed to put her mood down a little seeing them so sullen. Of course, she knew better than to interfere what they were up to seeing as they were part of some secret government agency. Hoping for the best, the waitress disappeared into the kitchen.

"She left," Genesis muttered without looking behind him. He was poking his apple pie mindlessly, clearly not in the mood to finish it.

"Minnie's understanding like that," Coulson said with a nod. His eyes betrayed his voice, though, giving the impression that he was clearly disturbed by the recent events.

"So," the young agent said, trying to get his handler's attention. "The whole facility has been completely leveled."

"Over eighty personnel dead, a hundred more injured, and our most important artifact stolen." Phil sighed. "This is probably the worst rodeo I've seen since I left the CIA and came to work for SHIELD." (1)

Genesis snorted as he tapped his fingers on the table carelessly. "SHIELD was ready for anything but magic. Or a Norse god coming down to make people grovel at his feet."

"You still can't pinpoint Loki?"

The auburn haired agent shook his head. "I would have told you if I did. Clint's been taken, and I don't have a fucking clue as to where he could be. Whatever that staff is capable of, I'm sure it's hiding him from my senses with the Lifestream. Shit, Phil. If only I had told you sooner."

"Don't blame yourself, Genesis. It was the perfect storm." Phil scolded. He gave a very stern look to his youngest apprentice and said, "The circumstances placed you on a mission that was too far away for you to immediately warn us. Things have just taken a turn for the worst. Director Fury and I entrusted you to take care of Rogers and you did exceptionally well."

Genesis' eyes narrowed. He wasn't buying it. "Really, Phil? Fury wasn't giving me that impression when we were debriefed earlier this morning."

"The director doesn't understand your powers or their limitations. Look, he's desperate for information and you know just as well as I do we're lacking in manpower right now." Coulson explained tiredly. He hadn't slept well either knowing that one of his best agents was missing. Plus, it wasn't helping that his youngest agent was affected by the situation more than he would have liked. Phil had to admit that Genesis was taking most of the heat of the situation than he did last year this time around.

.

~ 2 Hours Ago... ~

"You're certain you have no way to locate Loki through his magic?"

"Yes, Sir." Genesis snapped, frustrated with being asked the question for the umpteenth time. "I would have an idea if I was closer to the site by tracking down his magic residue. Apparently that's not possible when the whole area's been leveled and all SHIELD's agents are needed here."

"Rhapsodos," Phil warned the younger agent from doing anything rash against their superior.

The former SOLDIER had to bit his lip to stop from saying anything else to rein in his temper. He then settled himself by crossing his arms, stubbornly looking anywhere but at the director of SHIELD.

The Director eyed Genesis thoughtfully before he stood up and turned his face to the screen of pictures of Loki, Doctor Selvig, and Barton. "Fine. Is there any information or ideas how two of these sharpest men I know would just follow Loki by looking at these images? I'm sorry to push you, Rhapsodos, but right now you are the only person we have who has experience with magic."

This time, the younger agent decided to play along, but his eyes still did not meet his superior. "Very well. We can start with the reports and advice you gave on Agent Barton. Doctor Selvig has been behaving peculiarly lately, like muttering to himself, and he has been extremely focused on his work with the Tesseract. Then, 'coincidentally' he's involved when Loki suddenly makes an appearance and leaves with Loki once they took the cube." Genesis then reached out to Coulson's papers, took a sheet and laid it out. "Agent Coulson did some background checks. If I heard correctly, he had a conversation with Agent Barton and he found out that Doctor Selvig remembers Barton when he was assigned to guard the Tesseract. But that shouldn't be possible, as he wasn't aware of Barton being a sniper at the time SHIELD made a facility around Thor's Mjölnir."

Agent Coulson didn't like the sound of where this was going. "Are you saying that Selvig has been Loki's pawn this entire time?"

"That's the most probable answer." Genesis shrugged. "According to the footage from the hidden camera on your person Director, Doctor Selvig was taken over by Loki's 'mind control' the fastest compared to the other agents in the room."

Fury seemed to accept the mind control part but he wasn't sure of the how. "And?"

The auburn haired spy didn't like what he was hinting at but said it anyway. "He's been cast a micro magic spell, meaning that Loki cast the spell on a subconscious level previously. Doctor Selvig was never aware he was affected by it or even knew Loki was around. Doctor Selvig wasn't the one who said that he remembered Barton, it was Loki."

"It does explain how he knows about Barton if he visited Thor while he was in our custody previously." Phil agreed, remembering back when Thor had said goodbye all of a sudden during their short interrogation.

"There's still no information on how to find them." Fury sighed crossing his arms while his eye was still on the missing agent and scientist. "Seems like for now we can only figure out what's done to them, which is mind control."

Genesis shook his head, this time, he finally came eye to eye with Fury. This matter was serious. "I beg to differ. With the high-level concentration, Loki's putting effort to it, it's Manipulation spell."

"What's the difference?"

"Mind control only consists of the brain being taken over. If you have a strong mind, it's possible to snap out of it." The younger agent pointed to the screen, "Whereas every time Loki took over a person, he pointed his staff to their heart which then spreads the spell through the whole body including the brain. From here, it's not possible of escaping Loki's control."

The director raised an interested brow. "It seems you're aware of the differences. You're giving me the impression you're capable of such a spell, agent?"

"Yes," Genesis admitted reluctantly. "I never used it since I got here on Earth. I don't have an idea of the aftereffects on humans here, and I would not risk of causing someone to go mad. Especially when there's no known natural cure for it here. Status alignment spells can be fickle to use on people because it depends on their immunity to magic. The less immunity they have..."

"The more affected they are." Coulson ended Genesis' conclusion.

The three agents shuffled restlessly on the desk they sat at in the briefing room.

Nick Fury was surprised yet very relieved at the same time that Genesis Rhapsodos wasn't their enemy at the current moment. He had no understanding of magic but was glad the younger agent was willing to explain it thoroughly for him and Coulson. The director gave points for Rhapsodos in the well-being of humans, though, he could have used such a spell many times in the past but at least not in his time in SHIELD. Supposedly it was fair he didn't need to know all of Genesis' capabilities in magic, considering Fury wasn't even aware what Thor could do and he was in the Avengers Initiative. One glance at Agent Coulson and it was clear that his second man learned of the information at that moment too. The kid has his reasons, and for that, the director of SHIELD wasn't going to pry when there were more important things that needed their attention.

"Rhapsodos, is there a way to snap them out of it?"

"One way is to hit them very hard on the head until they're unconscious. Naturally it breaks the link of the mind and body where the spell works and is most active. They should be back to normal once they wake up and the spell dismissed." Genesis stated as clearly as he could. "Consequences are, you might cause mild concussions on the victims."

"You're implying there's an alternative?" Fury noted the auburn's explanation, considering it was one option he heard.

The auburn haired agent had an expression he was unwilling to say what it was, looking away from the two older agents in the room.

"Rhapsodos, we need to know every way possible if we can free Doctor Selvig, Agent Barton or any other person Loki's got hold of." Phil reminded gently.

Genesis huffed. He really did not want to get involved in this personally, but he relented, "I'm not sure it will work, but I can cast DeSpell on them."

Coulson blinked. "DeSpell?"

"A spell that cancels any sort of magic alignment, reduction, or enhancement." He rose one finger, "There's a catch. I'm not sure it works on Asgardian magic or whatever magic Loki's staff possesses. If we're lucky, the spell is dismissed. If we're not lucky, it won't have any effect at all or I would be forced to use more of my magic reserves and be left weakened by the end I cast the spell, but it would work."

Genesis' handler didn't like the last method. There were too many uncertainties if the auburn haired agent used his magic abilities on something they were all not too sure of. "Director Fury, I think we should stick to the first method. It may cause the victims discomfort afterward, but they'll survive. The second option is too risky at the present time. It may not work at all or put my agent's safety at risk."

The youngest agent was clearly going to protest Coulson's suggestion but Fury stopped him. "For now, we go with the first method. However, in the event that any higher ranking agent or someone who's in the Avengers Initiative is controlled by Loki and could not be so easily taken down, I want you to use that spell Rhapsodos. Whether it's me or Agent Coulson. No exceptions. That's an order, Agent."

Genesis sighed defeated by his superior's command. "Yes, Sir."

~ Back to the Present... ~

.

"It's like the director doesn't even trust the other Avengers to actually defeat Loki." Genesis huffed indignantly. The former SOLDIER was aware he had trust issues. But Fury? The One Eyed Eagle took that to the level of insanity. The auburn put his food to the side, his appetite gone.

"Perhaps that is the reason," Coulson said patiently. "He trusts you to do it because you've known him the longest."

A frown. "I thought Natasha was the most trusted by Fury."

"In highly classified Intel and dangerous missions, yes. But this time, this area is your expertise Genesis."

Genesis chuckled weakly, his tone with deep sarcasm, "And here I am as a consultant to the Avengers Initiative ordered to do something that a full member would have to do. Dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul. Pride is lost."

"Speaking of consultants..." the elder agent directed their conversation in another direction, "Stark's going to be ruled out as a consultant in an event of an emergency and will be a full member."

At Phil's hidden loathing tone, it didn't take a genius to figure out he wasn't thrilled about it. Genesis scowled in turn, "And you plan to dump me on Stark, seeing that Fury, you, and even Natasha rubbed him the wrong way. You threatened him last time if he did something stupid under your watch, you'd hit him with a taser and leave him on the floor while you watched Super Nanny."

The elder agent sipped his cold coffee ignoring Genesis' last remark. "You know I have limits to my patience. Stark pushes the envelope. Nonetheless, he is not someone who you can get close to easily. He has a close-knit group of friends and even they can be driven off the edge at times." Phil added, "It's best for you to come in and introduce yourself as you are by protocol have the same job he has. If you can persuade him to work with us on a tolerant level, that means we only have to worry about Doctor Banner and Thor. Natasha's handling Banner so there's a chance it's good in the long run, but I'm not so sure of Thor..."

"He'll most likely come to Earth," Genesis said certain of it.

Phil was curious. "What makes you so sure?"

"The Tesseract doesn't just contain pure energy, Phil." the younger agent pointed out. "It's imbued with some sort of sustaining magic that keeps it active even when it lacks a power source. When Loki came through with the help of the cube, I felt it from the facility where I was on a mission with Steve. I didn't appreciate a migraine it gave me, though."

"So it's like a beacon of sorts to those who are sensitive to magic?"

The former SOLDIER nodded, "Precisely. And if the Asgardians are like in the legends, the guardian of the Bifrost bridge who sees all would have noticed it. Well, it was more of like fireworks on the 4th of July, but my assumption is, Thor might be running a little late to get to Earth but he will pursue his brother."

"Noted." Phil agreed, glad to hear that Thor could help in tracking down his brother later. "So, do you have any ideas how to negotiate with Stark?"

"A few." Genesis said and he looked to his watch. "If it means we can get help in finding the Tesseract and as well as the people Loki have taken, I'll do what I can. I'm not expecting perfection, especially if Stark's capable of pissing off someone as patient as you, Phil. I need to get going, there are some things I need to do and get before tonight."

Coulson noticed that particular tone Genesis was using, "You're planning to bribe him?"

"Persuade him," Genesis said with his poker face.

Phil's facial expression was priceless. It had a 'how do you bribe one of the richest people on the planet' look to it.

"Infinite in mystery is the gift of the Goddess," the auburn-haired youth said as he left the diner.

Snapping out of his stupor, Agent Phil Coulson decided he needed another cup of coffee to keep himself awake that day. Whatever Genesis was thinking, he was hoping it would work.

Meanwhile...

Genesis who was already on the phone to making a few requests between calls as he walked down the street was berating himself this was a risky idea.

Then again, this was the Tony Stark who was capable of pissing off the worst type of people and gets a target etched to his back. The former commander was fully aware he was by no means the most patient person in the world (heck, Coulson even defeated him by miles) but something needed to be done. On a second note, Genesis was gambling that if he could get on Stark's good side, perhaps the billionaire could prove to be a worthy ally if he and SHIELD get to the worst of relations. Just because he trusted SHIELD, for now, it didn't mean it couldn't turn into something like ShinRa in the future.

Genesis was always on guard on who knew what he was truly capable of. There were just too many people who would want him as a weapon and he had done that job in his last life. So it was decided that only so few he told half the story, less who knew his whole story. It was safer that way for him; it was also safer that the world didn't know.

While he had the 'like-hate' boss-employee relationship with Director Fury, he trusted the man was a good person. The Lifestream had said so and to Genesis, Nick Fury was a mixture of Sephiroth, Lazard, and Veld with an eye-patch, sharp tongue, and used the most unorthodox methods to get the job done. When Genesis was able to sneak around and sniff into Intel he wasn't privy to thanks to his Synaptic Net Dive, Genesis found out that Fury was pretty much taking all the heat of the World Security Council off all his subordinates (including Agent Hill and even Coulson). The WSC members were a grouchy lot, giving them somewhat obnoxious rules, small limited budgets, crappy orders, all the while expecting grandiose results. It was probably why Phil or anyone who stood at the higher chain of command of SHIELD were ever loyal to Fury. The man knew where it counted, where he had to draw a fine line between what was over the top of rule breaking or when bending the rules even if it meant making the WSC look like idiots.

Of course, everything that happened around SHIELD wasn't always under Fury's orders. When that usually happened, Genesis was aware it was thanks to the WSC members. If there was the case where Director Fury wasn't in charge anymore, Genesis was already halfway in making preparations to ditch the organization altogether. It wasn't new that many people wanted to be in Nick's position and were trying to take a bite out of it like a chunk of meat being fed to the sharks. Also, there was only so much loyalty Genesis had for the organization because he was only loyal to a chosen few people.

Right now, Genesis didn't exactly appreciate taking the heat from Fury–which no doubt came from the WSC members–thanks to a certain God of Mischief. Yet, these were desperate times, desperate measures were needed, and the ex-SOLDIER had to keep his mind on the task. The more he hesitated, the chances were he was going to regret not doing everything in his power to get Clint back from Loki. A buzz from his cell phone alerted him from a text message that the deal was done.

"Legend shall speak, of sacrifice at world's end..." Genesis murmured knowing he was throwing away his ego and just declared himself mad.

He had an appointment to make with a psychiatrist.

.

.

---

SHIELD Branch Training area...

Steve landed more hits on his punching bag. He wasn't actually focusing on it. He was distracted by memories. Many were of his past, and some, very recent. To him, the past didn't hurt as much as before. The scars were still there, but he knew they were on the mend. He had managed to accept the death of most of his teammates well, found out Peggy was still alive, adapted to his new era and even made some friends in this new world he lived in.

Too bad he was restless.

His punches were getting harder.

Something big was going on.

He felt it.

The atmosphere he was experiencing right now was like the time him and all his comrades during the war planned the final attack on the largest HYDRA base. Steve wasn't stupid or naïve not to follow his instincts from looking around him. When he was notified by the other agents at the facility the Gast family were moved to that they all were to meet up at a SHIELD Quintjet, he noticed the disturbed faces of the other agents. Genesis had shortly joined him and gave a silent nod that something serious was going on. The super soldier was rather irritated he didn't get straight answers, but he wasn't heartless when around him were people who looked dead tired, but they were all called in because there was an emergency.

But it was when he woke up from the flight was what Steve worried about. They arrived in the early morn at 2 AM. While most of the agents were getting out of the plane, the blond noted that Genesis had stayed back like he was caught up in his thoughts. The super soldier asked him what was wrong, and he was astounded that the younger agent replied truthfully to him.

.

"At the moment? Everything, Rogers."

"What's going on?"

"The Director will brief you." was a curt reply.

Steve knew something troubled the younger agent. "Are you okay, Genesis? You're pale."

"You'll find out later." Genesis shook his head not explaining the details. "With this emergency status, I no longer am going to be your mission supervisor. I'll be a consultant for any members of the Avengers Initiative."

After a small silence and the message sunk in, the super soldier said, "You're still my friend, Genesis. That's not going to change very soon." At the agent's shocked face, Steve added, "Don't argue with me, I'm not backing down on it. You don't have to tell me now. Tell me when you're okay sharing it. I'll be around, and I know you can find me."

"...Thank you, Steve," he managed to say after he was lost for words. "I'll take your word on it."

"This is where we part, huh?" Steve said changing his tone to make things a little brighter.

Genesis nodded, "Until tomorrow. I have a load of work waiting for me at my office, briefings, and a meeting with a Mr. Stark."

That took the blond's attention."Stark?"

"Anthony Edward Stark or Tony Stark. Howard's son." the agent said casually. "He's SHIELD's other consultant to the Initiative."

Rogers wasn't sure how he actually felt about that. While there was a feeling that it was good some things never change, there were very few memories he was on good terms with Howard. It made sense that Stark's kid was a genius just like his pops was. However, it was also a clue that SHIELD was in deep trouble.

"Later, Genesis. Good luck on the meeting. And thanks for the dancing lessons."

Genesis just looked at him as if he grown a second head.

Steve laughed and waved before he made his way to his apartment, "I owe you."

.

It was worth making the auburn haired agent stunned for a moment, because when Steve looked back as he walked away, Genesis smiled and chuckled back at him with amusement. The kid needed that, and the super soldier was glad enough to distract him from whatever he was worried about even for that one moment.

His fists were now pounding the punching bag with more speed.

He couldn't sleep when he got to his apartment. He had too much pent-up energy in him. Steve had later regretted he slept on the plane on their way back to the branch base. His restlessness ended up having him back on base and he made his way to the gym to vent some steam off. The base now was on tense alert. No would give a second glance when he passed by, all too occupied with orders. Steve could only wait until he was called.

What was going on?

'SMACK'

The bag flew across the room, but Steve didn't care. With a huff, he grabbed another punching bag from a stack that was available in the room, fixed it into place, and resumed punching again. Even though his focus was on the bag, the super soldier heard someone was coming in. Large boots, but soft steps of a super spy, and they were in a stride that showed that person had authority.

"Trouble sleeping?"

Steve answered, knowing it was the director of SHIELD, "Slept for seventy years, Sir. I think I've had my fill."

"I'm actually quite thankful Rhapsodos managed to drag you out to see the world." Fury commented. "Your thoughts Captain?"

The super soldier honestly said, "When I went under, the world was at war. I wake up, they say we won. They didn't say what we lost." Probably too many things. Too many lives were lost. That didn't count the wars after WWII that Steve later learned from his trips with Genesis to the museums. Or what happened in the recent decade like terrorist attacks that happened on American soil or around the world.

Nick Fury paused in his steps towards the super soldier. "We've made some mistakes along the way, some very recently."

As Steve unwrapped the strips of bandages on his hand, he knew this was the answer he was waiting for. "You here with a mission, Sir?" It was in his nature to be blunt. He was a soldier, and he had enough waiting for real orders. A real mission where he was a soldier, not a spy agent.

"I am."

He wondered what Fury wanted. Steve wasn't going to join up if it was just about raising moral and going to shows for being a past icon. "Trying to get me back in the world?" he asked. The super soldier wanted to make sure Fury was serious about it.

The director of SHIELD did not disappoint. "Trying to save it."

When Steve was handed with a file and he opened it, he was met with an object he thought he would rather never see again. It was the energy source that was the foundation of Schmitt's power to his army and weapons; the same blue cube that many of his fallen army men died fighting against. Steve had to put up a mask to stop himself from flinching as it sliced and opened an old wound that was in the process of healing.

"HYDRA's secret weapon." The super soldier knew then he couldn't walk away from this mission. His deceased friends would probably never rest in their graves if he didn't do something about it.

"Howard Stark fished that out of the ocean when he was looking for you." Fury explained softly on what had happened in the past. "He thought what we think. The Tesseract could be the key to unlimited sustainable energy. That's something the world sorely needs."

"Who took it from you?"

"He's called Loki. He's-not from around here. There's a lot we'll have to bring you up to speed on if you're in. The world has gotten even stranger than you already know."

"At this point I doubt anything would surprise me." Steve shrugged as he packed up getting his duffel bag and lifted a punching back for his apartment. He didn't say yes directly, but he knew Fury was smart enough to know that he wasn't going to back away from the mission. If Howard fished it out, it was obvious then his son was involved, and that also meant so was Genesis. Steve would get all the answers he was looking for.

"Ten bucks says you're wrong." The director supplied stopping him from leaving immediately. "There's a debriefing packet waiting for you back at your apartment. Is there anything you can tell us about the Tesseract that we ought to know now?"

"You should have left it in the ocean." Steve said toneless and left Fury behind without looking back.

In the past, Steve would have likely got a warning from his superior for being disrespectful. For once, saying what he wanted to his superior was a good thing. The grief that the cube generated in the past was bad enough. Now seeing it again and hearing it was in the hands of someone who was akin to the Red Skull made Steve stick to his stomach.

His thoughts were on his friends who were a part of his past.

'Don't worry, I'll finish this. I won't let your deaths be in vain.'

.

.

---

Xavier's Institute for Higher Learning...

Zack felt like his limbs collapsed into tiny pieces. He was dead beat. Kitty and Peter were even staring at him and nicknamed him 'Zombie Zack.'

But worst of all...

He was so booored!

Scowling with his brows scrunched up, Zack's eyes darted around the bedroom to the only thing that would be his source of distraction from the boredom he was suffering from. He grunted as his mostly bandaged body protested from the strain and pain as he reached for the TV remote that was on his bed table. Before he can get his hands on it, another hand swiped it.

"Kitty! Give it here!"

Katherine Pryde gave it to him with smirk. When Zack made a grab for it, his hand would just phase through her.

The spiky teen pouted. "Oi! That's not fair! What's the point of giving it to me if I can't touch it? No powers!"

"Aren't you supposed to be resting?"

"I am resting." he insisted.

The girl rolled her eyes at her friend who hand bandages all over him. "You're still healing from the workout Logan gave you today."

Zack shrugged like it was nothing. "I'll be fine. I should be okay by tomorrow. I just need some entertainment. Now can I please have the remote?"

The girl was about to reprimand him, but Peter came into the room. "We might as well watch a movie or something."

"Yes!" the raven whooped, but then winced thanks to his injuries. "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!"

"Easy there, Zack. You shouldn't be moving too much at least." Peter laughed and went to the DVD player to pop in a movie.

Kitty sighed, "I still can't believe you asked the Wolverine to mentor you. Honestly, what happened with training with Scott?"

"I want to learn getting the hang of my powers without the fuss I'm a ticking time bomb." Zack replied as he waited for Peter to play the movie.

"How are you supposed to learn if your injuries are like this?" the girl asked skeptically. "You're like his personal punching bag, Zack."

Zack had to cringe at her description. "Yeah... I guess I wasn't expecting that his hits really hurt. It's like getting punched by Peter's iron fists but fifty times worse – which I think comes from his bones that have adamantium in them." He quickly amended, "It's not as bad as you think."

"Not from the way you just described it." Kitty countered. She didn't bother to give the remote to the injured teen but to Peter instead. "And you should be backing me up to make sure Zack gets rest, Peter."

The older mutant boy was as patient as ever. "He is getting rest by staying on his bed. But Zack's horrible at 'bedside on the mend' manners since were kids. The best thing you can do is keep him distracted from boredom. Trust me, you don't want to give a bored Zack any ideas."

Kitty frowned at the statement. "Is this from your experience?" When Peter nodded attentively, she decided to give up. "Fine–I don't wanna know."

"Still..." Peter continued, "I'm kind of curious if you have any other reasons why you wanted Logan to be you mentor, Zack." When the younger boy shrugged, Peter gave him an expectant look. "Come on, Zack. I know you have other reasons, but I trust you know you're making the right ones. Spill it."

"Well..." Zack hesitated. "It just felt right."

Peter and Kitty waited patiently.

"Logan reminds me about those people I dream or remember about." the raven explained. "Kind of a mixture of two people I think, and it's kind of funny after his training I was expecting something worse than what Logan trained me on."

At his explanation, the only girl in the room handed him a notebook, "You should write it down like with the rest of what you're remembering like the Professor requested you."

Zack felt uncomfortable, "Um, you don't mind if you write it Kitty? My fingers aren't really in the right condition right now." He showed her his bandaged fingers. The raven couldn't quite believe Logan was so hard to punch at.

Kitty didn't seem to mind. "No prob." She opened the book and turned the pages. "So, who's Logan going to be under?"

"My mentor, and the silver-haired man." the raven replied as his eyes were remembering Logan's harsh training.

Peter was livid. "Didn't you say the silver-haired guy freaked you out? You said about him have cat's eyes."

Zack was thinking over it. "Well, that was the first impression. But in a way I think I admired him too, but in a different way. It's weird but I got some flashes I was training with him at a few points, and before every one of them I dreaded what he was going to drag me into next." (2)

The mutant girl took down the notes, and then asked, "Okay, which is more scary? Logan or the silver-haired guy?"

"Silver haired guy." the raven said without a thought.

Peter and Kitty shared shocked looks. "I guess that explains you're not entirely complaining about Logan's methods of teaching." Peter concluded pressing the play button to the DVD player.

"Logan's not that bad, Pete. He just looks scary and has that growling face so people don't mess with him." the spiky teen said pointing out the positive things about the older mutant.

Peter laughed. "Only you can make friends with nearly everyone, Zack. Including the most intimidating people."

"That's me," Zack grinned back proudly in a childish manner.

"You haven't got any other memories about the other people you written in here?" Kitty asked changing the subject.

The raven scratched his head. "Not so far. The only stronger memories that keep coming in is my mentor, the silver-haired guy, and the red-head guy."

Zack hadn't said anything about the red-head guy of having a wing on his back, because it was too far-fetched. He hadn't even wrote anything concerning the person because all he felt about him during his memory flashbacks were all negative feelings. Behind all of it, he also had a belief that he understood the guy and it wasn't his place to say anything about it. All his other flashbacks hadn't come to him yet, but Zack was quite sure that whatever the Lifestream in him was trying to tell him, it was about something to do with all the people who keep coming to his mind. It was like his powers were saying to go and find them.

People with swords? Like that would go well if he asked a random officer or cop on the road. The teen rolled his eyes on why his life was really weird. Zack was glad that his parents were understanding enough that he needed to stick to Peter and get him to somewhere safer. But it had been some time he hadn't called them. He was afraid about their reactions if they found out that their son was even weirder than the mutants themselves. Even with his friends, sometimes Zack felt rather lonely he was the only one with the mix mashed powers that made him different. If his powers were telling him things about these people, then that could mean there were people like him too, right?

As the film they watched started, Zack asked his friends, "You guys heard of anything big going on lately on the news?"

"Nope." Peter said without concern, eyes on the TV. "If there was, the whole school would be talking about it."

Kitty shook her head too. "There hasn't been anything going on the mutant side of the world either. The Professor would probably had told all of us. Something wrong?"

Zack quickly shook his head, "Nah. Just a thought."

He turned his attention to the television so Kitty wouldn't ask more questions. Zack couldn't focus much on what was the film about when the Lifestream in him was twitchy and restless. It was worried about something that the teen had no idea of (well maybe about the weird dude that had the staff and golden armor). Yet at the same time, it was happy that Zack was far away from what caused it to worry. Zack had tried to ask it a few times that day about what was it about; only to be replied with emotions, nothing near as clear he heard yesterday.

'Why do I get the feeling whatever really bad was going on, is going to get worse?'

.

.

---

That night at Stark Tower...

Two agents stepped into the elevator and shuffled into a comfortable silence as the door closed. The older agent held a gray-like folder that was actually a large SHIELD data tablet his expression had a poker face on. He was fiddling with his cell phone in finding the right number to meet up with Tony Stark. The younger agent, on the other hand, had a small touch screen device in his hand sorting out the right codes to his initial task that he needed to do. Beside his foot, was a box that acted as a packet that SHIELD wanted for their other consultant to see.

"All the security systems are down for a while," Genesis said as he inspected his work. "We're quite lucky that this tower isn't exactly fully operational. If not, I doubt we would have bypassed Stark's AI."

"Keep hacking in, Genesis." Phil said calmly. "I may need some sort of incentive to get Mr. Stark's attention." He put his cell phone to his ear.

"We're hacking JARVIS?" the younger agent inquired. (3)

"JARVIS will usually be the one to automatically pick up calls. Just rewrite a few protocols." Coulson responded. "I already gave you some of the codes that should be easy for you to handle."

The former commander raised a brow at his mentor and noticed the new codes that weren't the usual ones they used in his device. "You nicked some of these from last year when you stayed at Stark's place in Malibu?"

Phil gave him a small polite smug smile that was usually to say, 'Let's leave it at that.'

Genesis dramatically rolled his eyes and then continued hacking in with a stylus in hand. It would have been easier to hack in with his SND ability, but Coulson insisted that he did it manually. The older agent said it might get him some good points for Stark in the long run. The former commander wasn't too sure of that as there was a fifty-fifty chance things might turn out the opposite. He was rooting and hoping for the positive outcome.

.

.

---

He loved the feeling of accomplishment.

This is so his night.

It was a genius' goal in whatever they aspired for. And Tony Stark achieved many things that many simple people would dream of. Building circuit board at four, his first engine at six, graduated high school at thirteen, graduated summa cum laude from MIT at 17 and took over as a CEO of Stark Industries at 21. Yet those things mattered little to him right now. This night was one of the greatest achievements he was going to enjoy. His Arc Reactor technology would be the first to start the sustainable energy revolution with his tower, he wasn't dying anymore now with the new element he found. And last but not least, he had Pepper to share this night with.

"Light her up."

"How does it look?" Pepper Potts asked.

"Like Christmas but with more–me." Tony supplied as he saw his tower light up while he flew in his Iron Man armor.

"We've got to go wider on the public awareness campaign. You need to do some press. I'm in DC tomorrow. I'm working on the zoning for the next three buildings." Pepper reminded him through his armor HUD.

There went Pepper again, it was always about work. Tony wasn't having any of it on his night. "Pepper, you're killing me at the moment. Remember, enjoy the moment."

"Then get in here and I will."

'Hah! Score!' Tony thought and smiled to himself. He landed himself on the landing pad that led into the penthouse on top of his tower and walked in as robotic arms deconstructed his armor off of him.

"Sir, Agent Coulson of SHIELD is on the line," JARVIS said.

"I'm not in. I'm actually out," Tony answered. His face may not have shown anything on the outside, but in his mind, there was a question why suddenly SHIELD had wanted to call him. Ever since the Stark Expo, he'd only get a few calls here and there, and they all were according to consulting hours. Why did they call at a time like this? He shrugged off the thought and wanted to enjoy tonight instead.

"Sir, I'm afraid he's insisting." JARVIS pressed.

"Grow a spine, JARVIS. I got a date." Tony said carelessly and persistent he didn't want to be bothered. Fury's underlings can wait a little longer–tomorrow–and survive.

"Levels are holding steady–I think." the red-head said looking at the schematics on the screen her eyes were on.

Tony approached her with a smug smile. "Of course they are, I was directly involved. Which leads me to my next question. How does it feel to be a genius?" he turned off the display so he could be face to face with Pepper.

"Well, ah, I really wouldn't know now would I?"

"What do you mean? All this came from you." Tony responded and pointing to her, making his point.

She shook her head lightly. "No, all this came from that." Pepper said pointing to Tony's Arc Reactor in his chest before she tapped on it.

He held her at arm's length, "Give yourself some credit, please. Stark Tower is your baby. Give yourself... twelve percent of the credit."

"Twelve percent?" She questioned with a brow raised.

"An argument can be made for fifteen." Tony mended swiftly.

Pepper walked over to the living room of the penthouse asking, "Twelve percent of my baby?"

Tony followed her. "Well, I did do all the heavy lifting. Literally, I lifted the heavy things and sorry but, the security SNAFU? That was on you."

"Oh!"

"My private elevator," the genius stated.

Pepper poured champagne into two glasses. "You mean our elevator." she corrected.

"Yeah, it was teeming with sweaty workmen. I'm going to pay for that comment about percentages in some subtle way later, aren't I?" Tony said trying to persuade her.

Pepper wasn't going to lose to Tony but handed over his glass of champagne to him. "It's not going to be that subtle."

Stark thought of a solution in light speed as he offered a toast to her. "I'll tell you what, next building is gonna say 'Potts' on the tower."

"On the lease," Pepper replied. She was going to toast to it, but Tony retreated his own glass and had a wincing expression on his face.

"Call your mom, can you bunk over?" Stark asked. Pepper chuckled.

"Sir, the telephone. I'm afraid my protocols are being overridden." JARVIS announced.

Tony frowned. "Ah-"

"Mr. Stark, we need to talk." Agent Coulson said over the phone.

Tony picked up his high-tech phone and held it up. On it was a picture of the said agent. "You have reached the Life Model Decoy of Tony Stark. Please leave a message." Pepper was chuckling in the background.

"This is urgent." the agent said firmly.

"Then leave it urgently."

Stark had expected a retort of some kind, however, his elevator doors opened and Coulson easily walked out of it.

"Security breach!" Tony pointed to Coulson and couldn't help but feel on edge when there was another agent beside him. For as long as he could remember, the agent never brought a partner in. He turned to Pepper, "That's on you."

"Mr. Stark." Coulson greeted. The other agent followed with a silent nod.

"Phil! Come in!" Pepper welcomed the agent in. "And who's this?"

"Phil?" Tony asked skeptically. He followed closely behind her, and also wanted answers on who the other guy was.

"I can't stay." Phil said politely declining the offered glass, but then pointed out, "But he will be. Miss Potts, this is Agent Rhapsodos."

"Pleasure to meet you, Miss Potts," Genesis said shaking her hand with a well-mannered smile.

"Likewise."

"Uh, his first name is Agent." Tony pointed to Phil trying to say that he was there. He then faced the younger man who accompanied Coulson, "So I guess you're Agent #2." The younger red-head didn't reply, and that made the genius wonder if all spies were the silent type.

In return, Genesis was thinking that he might as well leave all the talking to Phil at the moment. The auburn haired spy wasn't the type who liked being given nicknames so casually–unless they were fitting. No need to make things a fuss while there were Miss Potts and Phil present. If Stark was going to chew him out, he might as well handle it privately.

Pepper easily ignored Tony, more focused with her guests. "Come on in, we're celebrating."

"Which is why he can't stay," Stark said quickly putting on a fake smile. He added, "Same goes for #2."

"We need you to look this over, as soon as possible." Coulson said as he tried to hand him the laptop.

Tony stared at the computer like there were germs on it. "I don't like being handed things."

"That's fine because I love to be handed things. So, let's trade." Pepper easily countered. She swapped her glass with Coulson for the laptop. She then quickly took Tony's glass and handed the laptop to him, making him sigh in defeat. "Thank you."

Genesis inwardly smirked at Pepper's feat. He deduced quickly she was probably the only person capable of keeping Stark in line.

"Official consulting hours are between eight and five every other Thursday." Tony reminded the agents in front of him.

Coulson disagreed, "This isn't a consultation."

"Is this about the Avengers?" Coulson and Genesis looked over to Pepper. "Which I know nothing about," she added in a hurry.

"I thought that the Avengers Initiative had been scrapped. I also thought that I didn't qualify." Tony said, cracking open the laptop.

"I didn't know that either," Pepper said, trying to smooth things over.

"Yeah, apparently I'm volatile, self-obsessed, don't play well with others." Tony listed off the things that SHIELD said about him.

"That I did know." Pepper was giving apologetic smiles to the two agents.

"This isn't about personality profiles anymore," Coulson said keeping his tone level.

Tony couldn't care any less. "Whatever. Miss Potts, got a sec?" he called her over.

"Half a mo." Pepper raised a finger that they needed some time to discuss things. She left the two agents to themselves.

Genesis noted there was a twitch in Coulson's behavior. Normal people wouldn't have noticed it unless they were very observant. "No need to worry Phil, he'll check it over.", he reassured his mentor in a whisper.

"Time isn't exactly on our side here." the elder agent replied just as quietly.

"Which was the reason I'm staying," Genesis said back. "Seems like I'm staying."

"You heard?" Coulson asked, referring to his enhanced hearing.

The auburn haired agent frowned, "For private parts of the conversation, I wish I didn't."

On the other side of the room, Tony was opening the laptop and entering his login credentials. "You know, I thought, we were having a moment."

"I was having twelve percent of a moment," Pepper replied by taking their previous 'arrangement' into their conversation. Tony gave her a look. "This seems serious. Phil looks pretty shaken. And he brought someone with him."

"How would you know if this is—wait, why is he 'Phil'?" Tony asked. There was a tone of jealousy oozing in the question.

"What is all this?" Pepper asked.

"This is–this..." Tony grabbed the icons on the display and threw them up to his personal holograms. Holograms filled the room, images, files, and videos of each member of the Avengers Initiative filling the virtual panels. Both Pepper and Tony watched videos with surprise written across their faces, Thor's battle with the Destroyer and Hulk's rampage through Culver University.

"I'm going to take the jet to DC tonight," Pepper said trying to say it as if she wasn't shocked.

"Tomorrow," Tony said immediately.

"You have homework. You have a lot of homework." Pepper told him looking at all the articles. "And I think the other agent is here to help you out."

"Well, what if I didn't?" Stark asked.

"If you didn't? You mean when you finished? Well, um, then-" She leaned in and whispered in Tony's ear. Tony had a surprised and sneaky hidden look.

Genesis rolled his eyes hearing clearly what she was saying and looked at the box he was holding in one hand as if it held something interesting. Phil took that as a cue to look away from the couple.

"Square deal. Fly safe." Tony agreed and they both kissed.

Pepper smiled. "Work hard." She walked over to Genesis, "Make yourself at home. Tony won't bite. Won't you, Tony?"

Tony gave her a disappointed look. He didn't want this agent—or any agent, really—to stick around. He answered, "As long as he doesn't bite first."

"Tony," Pepper warned him quietly.

"I'll be fine." Stark shooed her off and went back looking what was in his hand.

"Good luck," Phil said to the auburn haired spy. Genesis quietly thanked the elder agent and walked into the room quietly.

"So, any chance you're driving by LaGuardia?" Pepper asked as she entered the elevator.

"I can drop you off." Phil offered.

"Fantastic." Pepper clapped her hands. "Ooh, I want to hear about the, ah, the cellist. That's still a thing right?"

Coulson shook his head. "She moved back to Portland."

"What? Boo," she exclaimed disappointedly.

With a ding, the doors of the elevator closed.

Tony didn't look back, trying to ignore the young agent. He didn't seem important, and he wasn't in a mood for someone to help him. Shouldn't SHIELD have realized he was a bona fide genius? Or was Fury sending in another babysitter after 'Agent' filled his part last year because he was suicidal? He had enough super spies to deal with last year (like a certain red-headed Widow) and now he had another red-headed super spy in his living room. Was there some twisted reason for all the agents assigned to him having red hair? Stark frowned upon noting the unusual silence. From his workspace, he turned to the left and found the living room to be empty.

"Infinite in mystery is the gift of the Goddess."

Tony yelped loudly, scared the hell shit out of it. With his reflexes he turned around frantically into a comical fighting stance as if to fend off an unwanted attacker, then realizing that the agent was sitting at his bar with a tablet in his hands.

"We seek it thus, and take to the sky. Ripples form on the water's surface. The wandering soul knows no rest. LOVELESS, Act I." he said in a voice of what Tony thought could be from a storyteller.

"Are you sure you've chosen the right career?" Tony blurted out. He was eyeing the guy in a jittery manner. "Seriously, how the hell did you sneak around like that?"

"It's a hobby." Genesis shrugged. Then he answered simply, "I walked here."

Tony wasn't convinced. Oookay. So here was the super spy poet who just waltzed in and was capable of scaring the shit out of him. Nope. He didn't like the guy one bit. Too much like the Widow, and he preferred reading the articles without going into cardiac arrest. Medium length auburn hair, young—too young, maybe—typical men-in-black suit, and a studded earring on his right ear.

"Are you gay?"

The young agent scowled, "No."

"You're a kid. How old are you?"

"I'm 23," the young agent deadpanned, like he had this sort of conversation too many times.

Well, at least the guy wasn't so blank faced like the other agents he met, Tony confided with himself. "If you're here to help, you can just sit tight and I'll be alright on my own."

"I didn't come here to help you."

Stark didn't believe that. "Then what were you sent here for? To spy on me?"

"To compare notes, Mr. Stark." Genesis replied smoothly his tone neutral. "I've been brought in as an additional consultant."

"What? Fury got you to be my replacement?" Tony asked unbelieving with a haughty laugh.

"Second consultant." Genesis emphasized. "Not replacement." He was already cursing in his head why the man was making it difficult for him. Crap. He had been hoping he could last the night.

"Right." Tony said with doubt written all over his face letting go of the hologram. "So what's your name again? Agent Number Two? Wait! Agent Rap?" he pointed at the kid.

"Agent Rhapsodos." the former SOLDIER sighed. Genesis was wondering whether this person was really Tony Stark the genius billionaire.

Tony stared at him with a blank look. "That's a mouthful. I'm bad with remembering people's names."

Genesis nodded. "I've been told numerous times people have problems with my last name. You can call me Genesis."

"Your parents must have a crazy thing for science and literature for them to have given you that name." Stark commented putting two together. When the younger one was ignoring him, he prodded some more, "How long are you planning on staying here?"

"As long as it takes. Virtue itself 'scapes not calumnious strokes."

That was not what Stark hoped for. His mood darkened as this was supposed to be celebrating night. SHIELD wants him to check something ASAP, he can't spend the night with Pepper, and Fury drops a kid who could be in his position as a consultant to babysit him. Yeah, fair world? Apparently not. If Tony was a genius, then he also had expertise to get people out his way. Oh, yes, he was an expert on driving people crazy, but there was not much to it other than press their buttons until they exploded. He was looking forward to see how long this kid would last.

"Kid?" Tony called. He was actually satisfied the auburn haired agent didn't enjoy being called that and responded with a silent glare. "Just make yourself comfortable. I'll skim through, then we'll talk. But first, I think you have to give me something."

Genesis raised the question, "That is?"

"Your SHIELD profile." Stark said like it was obvious taking his hand out. "The less classified the better."

"Very well." the younger consultant agreed as he took a microchip from his pocket and handed it over to the billionaire by placing it on the table where he sat. "This one requires level seven security clearance."

Tony was stunned taking it and looking at the chip in his hand. "Uh, you realize that I only have level six credentials?"

"I'm not fond of secrets being kept from me, just as you are Mr. Stark. I have trust issues and I don't particularly enjoy being the World Security Council's lapdog with all the ridiculous orders they give SHIELD." Genesis explained with a tone of resentment. "Just say it's a token of trust."

The billionaire caught the hidden meaning behind Genesis' words. "Wait, you're only a consultant because some big ass board members told you to be one?"

"If there's one thing that the Director fails to do Mr. Stark, is that he fails to give you the option to refuse what is being offered."

"That I absolutely to agree with." Tony nodded knowing the feeling. Between looking at the kid and the chip, he wondered why Genesis seemed bitter with the big wigs. Well–he probably wouldn't find out the real reasons, but the kid did get a point for not liking authority crackpots. Red head was smart no doubt about it, but Tony wasn't one to give handicaps to people. In fact he was looking forward to the challenge. "Okay, I'll be here then. Do you want to ask anything before I get to skimming? I don't like sudden disturbances."

"Do you have a coffee machine?" the agent asked.

Tony pointed to the bar. "Behind the bar, there's a whole set from grinding to the machine is in one of the cupboards." He didn't add the part where if the kid could work it out or not. Like many things Stark had, they were custom-made and only he knew how to use them (unless he taught Pepper how to). The genius didn't bother making a manual. "Don't break it and don't make a mess."

"Yes sir."

"By the way, say we do finish this 'work' early, will you leave?" Stark asked just to make sure.

Genesis inclined. "Yes. I won't waste more of your time. Like as the waves make towards the pebbl'd shore, so do our minutes, hasten to their end." He paused, "I nearly forgot." The young agent took out a tech phone device and with a stylus accessed to the codes he did previously undoing his work.

"Thank you for returning the overwritten protocols, Agent Rhapsodos. It is very much appreciated." JARVIS voiced in.

"You were the one who hacked JARVIS?" Tony questioned.

The former 1st Class shrugged. "Agent Coulson taught me and I was only following orders. I apologize."

"Whatever," the billionaire said. "Doesn't change the fact you were able to." And it made Tony curious who the hell Genesis was. He shooed the agent away. "You can scram now."

Genesis didn't need to be told twice, he was actually waiting for that order to come out. He silently walked over to the box he'd been carrying since they arrived here and opened it up. Inside it, were numerous papers, journals, and articles that for Tony Stark. Also, inside it was a plastic air sealed container filled with coffee beans. He took that out and gingerly closed the packet, making his way to the bar. While the billionaire did have a great selection of alcohol, Genesis wasn't in the mood to drink any during work. Granted, it wouldn't affect him much, it was just that he preferred to remain sober on the job.

During the hour Tony Stark spent on skimming through the files SHIELD wanted he to look at, the former commander found the items he had been looking for. Genesis noticed, at first, he had never seen any type of coffee machine or grinder from the market. It was then he deducted that the guy behind Iron Man made them. Just by looking at too many buttons, he was aware Tony over complicated things so no one else could use it. He also realized that Tony hadn't told him how to use it and told him before, and he didn't want any disturbances. Bastard. He had been set up!

Genesis counted in reverse and breathed in and out to calm himself down soundlessly. He'd get through this, and he wasn't going to let the visit to the psychiatrist be in vain. In the past, Genesis would never even dream of seeking help from a psychiatrist, but in this special case, he had to. Heck, if it weren't for the fact it was because of this mission he would never have asked on normal occasions either. Genesis had asked about how to handle people with a temperament like Tony Stark's. The only thing the doc didn't know was that every worst sort of situation he asked, was a mixture of what Tony was. In fact, Tony Stark was even worse than Sephiroth on a moody bad day when he had his Mako injections—he was only missing a six-foot sword and had tech armor instead.

Groaning inwardly, Genesis wished Angeal was there. He was always the patient one. The auburn haired agent winced on all the times he was impatient with his friend and thought if he ever found the calm SOLDIER on Earth, he would apologize. Since there was little time to figure out how the machine worked, Genesis focused on his powers and used SND. In a way, it was like being a 'technopath' as Earthlings called it. A few seconds and he knew how it would work. Just as he finished doing an SND connection, Genesis paused as his Lifestream flow buzzed at him.

The former 1st Class blinked as he noted a slight disturbance in the room. It wasn't telling him it was lethal, but it was an energy signature nonetheless. Following the Lifestream's flow, his gaze settled on Stark. More specifically, on the arc reactor in his chest. Genesis was baffled by how the Lifestream wasn't reacting to it. The Lifestream lazily tapped onto the arc reactor but Tony didn't seem to notice it at all. In turn, the energy didn't seem to do anything to the Lifestream, either. And here Genesis had thought Stark created something that worked like the Tesseract. He had been wrong all this time.

Since he wasn't going find out anything about it without getting to the person first, Genesis decided he'd make good coffee. He'd make extra, just in case the genius needed it.

An hour and a half later, Tony Stark finished skimming the important parts of the articles of what SHIELD had sent him. Well truthfully he had the help of JARVIS, but that was what smart AIs were for. He managed to conclude that SHIELD was in deep trouble–scratch that, they were in deep shit. The fact this had to do with magic and gods was causing a migraine in Tony's head. Since he was a genius, he did not like migraines. It meant his mind would cease to function for a while. He hated things that didn't have an explanation to anything and magic seemed to be it.

His nose perked up at the distinctive smell and his eyes darted to the bar. There, sitting silently and enjoying fresh brewed coffee was the agent. Tony walked over to the coffee machine and found it was working normally, just like he would have used it.

"Coffee?" Genesis offered.

Tony asked, "Is it good?"

"Strongest blend there is." the agent said seriously. "It's the only type that can give me a kicker. You can try if you wish, I have plenty for two." It was probably the only drink he didn't have to mix with his higher than normal metabolism thanks to the Mako in his veins.

What the heck, Tony thought. He might as well use some time out from trying to figure out magic. Genesis poured some in a delicate manner to his cup and the billionaire took a sip. When he gulped it down, he suddenly felt like a robot getting a 200% charge up. With eyes wide he said, "Whoa, where did you get this? I never had coffee that could do this!"

"Obviously not Starbucks. It's through a private channel." Genesis replied with a smile. "It has double or triple the dose of normal coffee, depending on the blend."

"You know, R&D could use this stuff. I bet they'd love it." Tony commented taking in another sip. He found his mood was lifting, and sighed. "Looks like SHIELD got itself into a bottomless hole on the general conclusion." A pause. "You have the address or contacts to buy this coffee?"

Genesis blinked at Stark's scattered replies but agreed anyway. "I'll leave you the address. It's the reason why the Director has his feathers ruffled. It's the first time rodeo for everyone this time."

"Speaking on the subject on someone," Tony started, he inserted the chip the younger consultant gave him previously into the table of the bar. And a hologram came up. At Genesis' surprised expression, he smirked, "Come on, I have these devices installed everywhere in the tower for convenience. I don't want to sound conceited, but I am a bona fide genius."

"You just sounded conceited." Genesis deadpanned.

Tony wasn't listening to the young agent at all too busy skimming on his profile. What he found was both something he did and did not expect. What he did expect was that the kid was smart. He finished high school a little before seventeen with the highest grades in the class and was then recruited by SHIELD at the same age. He did not, however, expect the agent to have received as many licenses and as much training before twenty that he did. In most cases he had been given the highest awards. This was all without having started school until age fifteen. Stark wasn't a person who liked to say it, but he did.

"And you, young man, didn't tell me you're a fucking military prodigy in strategy." Tony shot back. He didn't care about the swear words. It was probably the reason why the kid had managed to figure out the coffee machine. "I want answers."

"I kept it quiet." Genesis said more interested in taking another sip of his coffee. For good reasons too. He couldn't exactly say this was his second life, he had military training before hand, and managed to lead more raids than most people in a lifetime. Plus he was a military leader too, one of the commanders just second to Sephiroth.

Tony frowned at Genesis' evasive nature. "Why would you hide that?"

"Expectation is the root of all heartache." the auburn haired spy replied with a quote. "Before SHIELD, it was like everything I did was never enough. No matter how much I tried. I was unlucky. I don't have parents or guardians. That's when people poke and prod and try to force me into doing things I don't want to. I was catching the attention of people like General Ross."

"The stick in the mud who tried to revive the super soldier project?" Tony exclaimed. He was now thinking that perhaps buying and demolishing that bar wasn't enough.

"The very same one," Genesis stated. "He was shortly promoted to General at the time. I could have turned into another Blonsky if Coulson didn't find me."

In science, Tony was an epitome of epic genius. His social skills were lacking (not surprising when he had his PR division to do it for him). However when it came to the feeling of being a genius at something, he understood. Having that pressure of expectations of everyone wasn't the most happiest thing Tony had felt in his childhood. Even now people still see him as Howard Stark and even his own father couldn't care less about him in the past. His eyes then saw a red note on Genesis' profile.

"This says you were rejected from the Avengers Initiative." Tony pointed out now desperate for answers. "Care to explain?"

Rhapsodos shrugged his shoulders. "They said I was too young, so instead they made me a consultant."

"Pfft! Too young?" Tony scoffed. "You've got brains, kid. Their loss," he said rolling his eyes at the WSC members.

"I was under the impression you wanted to get this over and done with?" Genesis asked setting them back on track.

Tony wiped his face and raked his hair back. "Sorry, I was distracted there. The coffee works wonders." He shuffled on his stool and thought back to what he had been reading. "So, Hulk, Thor and Captain America."

"Thor's most likely off the list, or will join us very late." Genesis said showing his tablet to Tony on his own findings. He filed away Tony's negative reaction to Steve Rogers. "Seems like there has been no readings about any Einstein-Rosen bridge—they call it the Bifrost—appearing over Earth. Steve Rogers after his time in the ice is recovering and cleared for missions inside SHIELD. We're also going to ask Doctor Bruce Banner for help in locating the Tesseract. During the fallout, the cube was emitting small amounts of gamma rays."

"Too small," Tony said looking at the tablet. "JARVIS, move the display from the workstation here."

"Yes, Sir," JARVIS said. And all the data on his workstation previously was now displayed at the bar.

With a flick of a wrist, Tony added in Genesis' notes to the data. "Better." He looked at all of them again. "Our best bet in knowing more about the Tesseract is combining my notes from my father and with Doctor Banner's."

"I have more from your father that was in SHIELD's safe keeping." Genesis slid the box on the table. "Those include Doctor Selvig's notes, extraction papers, with others."

Tony opened the box and asked the auburn haired agent, "Can I read these later?"

"They're for later." Genesis agreed.

"Good." the billionaire said glad he wouldn't have to go through them all tonight. "I'm more of an engineer but I'm aware of Doctor Banner's work to a degree."

The former 1st Class rolled his eyes. "Liar, you know nearly everything about anti-electron collisions. You did use it in making the new element."

"You got me." Tony pointed at himself in fake hurt. "Question is, aren't you supposed to be a military prodigy?"

"I do read notes. Knowing a bit of everything helps with tactical forecasting in life-or-death scenarios." Genesis answered logically.

Stark concurred but crossed his arms. "There's a problem. I only have half of his notes. The rest? I'm not sure where they are."

This time, the agent tapped into his tablet and then flicked it to the screen. "Actually, that's where I come in. I did some extensive research and found the rest." A pile of documents showed up on the screen. "All in all, that's another 25 journals by Doctor Banner."

"Where did you find them?! I thought General proverbial stick in the ass destroyed nearly all his stuff or are still in US military safekeeping." the billionaire asked. Well, it wouldn't stop him from hacking in, but he wouldn't know where to start.

"Doctor Banner's smart to have sent it to a friend in Europe who's working at CERN. Since they fall under the European Union's jurisdiction, you can't really demand such information be handed over so easily. I have contacts there and I've visited it before." the auburn haired agent said.

"CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research," Tony said remembering it fondly. "Largest particle physics laboratory in the world and birthplace of the World Wide Web. My research and development division is five years ahead."

Genesis ignored Stark's ego-inflating comment. "Well, from what I've gathered between the notes and Doctor Banner's journal articles is that it's heading for one particular subject."

"Which one would that be?"

"Thermonuclear astrophysics."

Tony laughed out loud.

The former commander wondered if the billionaire just went mad. "What's so funny?" Genesis asked as he was taking another sip of coffee.

"You."

Genesis nearly gagged on his drink. "What?!"

Tony shook his head in amusement. "You're a military prodigy but you understand my lingo. I wonder where you really come from."

A skip in a heartbeat. "You saw from my profile where I'm from."

"You have a family now?" Tony asked curiously.

"No blood-related ones. But Coulson's the best father figure I can ask for." Genesis shrugged like it was nothing. He didn't mention Natasha or Clint.

"That's swell. Better real family and they barely realized of each others feelings when they were alive." a bitter tone came from Tony. "That's what you get for having a corporate titan for a father."

"Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them," Genesis said. "I think we have the third part of the deal."

"Sure do." the billionaire sighed. He then leaned his head. "Seems like we covered everything here on the science part. So tactical forecaster, what's your verdict?"

Genesis thought on it. "Loki wants to rule the world and needs to get his minions to Earth. To do this, he needs to activate the cube in a stable condition, without having consequences like at the PEGASUS facility. Classic invasion tactic."

"Sounds unoriginal," Tony commented in a bored tone. "So the key is Doctor Selvig and thermonuclear astrophysics."

"And you'll need Doctor Banner," Genesis added. He drained his coffee cup.

Tony smiled at that, he then dragged a video of the Hulk and expanded the hologram. "I'd really wish to hear more about his theories from him, but I have to say he looks awesome turning into a green rage monster. Especially when it's General Plunderbolt Ross that's taking the heat of it."

"He's in a similar situation as you are Mr. Stark."

Stark had a confused look. "Explain."

"He's been running around the world in developing and third world countries away from General Ross." the younger consultant said, he flicked his hand to the hologram and showed photos, files, and sightings of the Hulk. "The reason he does so, is because he doesn't want people like the general making more Hulks, or, to put it bluntly, human weapons. Unfortunately, he has problems in control and doesn't have people to back him up to avoid the military."

"Anything you know about the general?" Tony asked.

"He's keeping his head low for the moment. He has been since the Hulk showed up in Harlem, and even lower since you kicked him out of a bar by buying the place and demolishing it." Genesis explained.

The billionaire smirked. "You heard about it, huh?"

"Heard it from the man himself." At Tony's surprised face, the former SOLDIER pointed out, "Fury sent me to keep an eye on him from the shadows after I found him snooping around our database. Just to make sure he keeps his nose out of things where it doesn't belong. I've been keeping tabs on him since Doctor Banner disappeared."

Stark needed to know about something. "Has he changed?"

"No. Not before you challenged him, and even not after. He's been bitter about it." Genesis shook his head. "Better Banner on the team than Blonsky."

Hearing the Genesis' suggestion, Tony agreed. "I'll keep that in mind." Especially when Doctor Banner was a fellow scientist. He also made a note to not supply tech that had anything to do with the general from Stark Industries.

Genesis' tablet beeped. When he looked at it, he scowled.

"What's wrong?"

"Blasted paperwork." the younger agent growled. That caused Tony to laugh at him.

"Cheer up, V; at least, we have some idea where this is heading to."

Genesis asked incredulously, "V?"

"You know from the movie, V for Vendetta?" Stark jested. (4) "Vigilante who speaks in Shakespearean? I'm calling you that since you have a near impossible last name to remember, your first name is no fun either, and you do speak Shakespearean."

That was a funny coincidence to Genesis because the character was also a monster created by the government and ended up destroying it in the end.

"Hey, no offense, right?" Tony poked the silent auburn haired kid. But the silence didn't last.

"The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it's my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V." Genesis smoothly said in a manner that was completely the same as the actor himself.

The way Tony stared at him with his mouth hanging open didn't go along with the genius persona. He eventually straightened himself, coughed, and faced the young agent with a grin. "Remind me to send you a Guy Fawkes mask for your birthday."

Genesis had a dreaded look on his face. "No thank you, Mr. Stark. I don't want the mailman to get into trouble of being accused as a terrorist."

"So that means you agree on being called V?" Tony asked giddily like a kid.

"I might as well go along with it." the agent shrugged. Although he was inwardly freaked out how Stark decided to do an excited Zack the puppy expression on him. "You probably would call me that whether I agree or not, Mr. Stark."

"It's Tony." Stark insisted throwing the profile chip back to Genesis. "You can call me Tony. Mister Stark is my father's name."

The ex-SOLDIER caught the chip but stared at the billionaire. "I thought you despised me from the beginning of our conversation."

Tony nodded. "I did, but that was before. It's not every day I find people understanding my lingo, especially if they're from SHIELD. I don't like the fact they're super spies and go creeping around people for the sake of intelligence."

Genesis countered him, "I'm a spy."

Tony waved his finger at the agent. "From what I'm hearing, you're there to avoid some unwanted attention and went in willingly because it's the only best option. You're blunt, and you weren't so secretive since you set foot inside this room." He slid from the stool and stood up. "If there are people I hate, it's those who hide too many things from me. No offense, but ever since I got into the mess with Obi, trust isn't something I give anyone easily. This discussion doesn't leave the room you hear me?"

"Crystal." The auburn haired agent stood up as well. "I'll be leaving then, Mister-"

"Tony."

"I'll be leaving, Tony." Genesis inclined and somewhat relieved he was able to get on the genius' good side. It was a hard-fought battle and he finally won. Now all was left to do was to maintain it. He slid a note to Tony's hologram. "That's the coffee maker's address."

The billionaire smiled at that. He then asked the thought, "I noticed in your profile you're also good at negotiations. If you ever get bored with SHIELD, I could have someone like you in the company. Better pay."

And have his ego being bulldozed flat to the ground by Tony Stark every day? Genesis inwardly shuddered. As tempting the payment sounds, he'd like his ego remain perfectly intact and whole. Tony was just too much like himself, and Genesis wouldn't want their newly acquired friendship turning into a boss-employee relationship or end up with a battle of the egos. "Thank you for the offer. But I'll have to decline. I'm not in the best position to quit SHIELD."

Tony didn't look offended and took his hand out to shake the deal. "Offer still stands. I'll send you my own notes tomorrow. Glad to work with a consultant like you, V."

Genesis took it and shook firmly. "Looking forward to working with you again, Tony." He walked over to the elevator and the doors closed.

When Tony was sure that the elevator was already on its way down he talked to his AI, "Looks like you were right about it, JARVIS. V doesn't like to lie to me." When he was silently pouring over the articles he did have time to type in and ask his AI soundlessly.

"From the emotional algorithms, he doesn't hide much. It there anything part of the meeting you wish to review, Sir?" JARVIS asked.

"No-no. I'm going to give it a rest and call Pepper–Actually JARVIS, place a reminder for me to send a Guy Fawkes mask on his birthday." Tony ordered with a toothy grin.

"I thought you mutually agreed with Agent Rhapsodos of SHIELD you didn't wish the mailman trouble with the authorities," JARVIS argued lightly.

"Doesn't mean I have to send it through the mail." Stark pointed out. "I'll have Happy or Pepper take it personally to him."

"Of course, Sir. How can I forget you're devious in spotting loopholes?" JARVIS responded sarcastically.

Tony smiled smugly. "You know me too well, JARVIS."

.

.

---

SHIELD Quinjet...

Next morning...

"We're about forty minutes out from home base, Sir." the pilot said.

Coulson nodded at the pilot in thanks and stood over inspecting his idol and hero even looking at the video of the Hulk. His eyes then drifted to Genesis who had a tablet in between his crossed arms hand but he was closing his eyes, most likely half asleep thanks to last night. Half as in he was resting his body but his mind was conscious, like a meditation of sorts. It was one of his habits when he was on missions so enemies thought he was asleep. Also, it was a habit from his previous life of being a SOLDIER. Genesis would probably need it, and Coulson had to say he was proud at his youngest agent that he was able to get in good terms with Stark. There were very few that could.

Steve, on the other hand, noticing that Genesis was asleep (to him) called the elder agent over. He was a little nervous at the first meeting with him, but with Genesis coming along it had helped him calmed down. Agent Coulson walked over and stood beside him hovering over on what he was looking at on the display screen.

"So, this Doctor Banner was trying to replicate the serum they used on me?" Steve asked pointing to the doctor changing into the Hulk.

Phil had a sympathetic look towards the Hulk. "A lot of people were. You were the world's first superhero. Banner thought Gamma radiation might hold the key to unlocking Erskine's original formula."

"Didn't really go his way, did it?" the super soldier commented as the Hulk raged across the university grounds tearing through army vehicles like they were paper.

"Not so much. When he's not that thing, though, the guy's like a Stephen Hawking."

Steve looked confused.

"He's like a- smart person." Phil said simplifying it for Steve, and the blond nodded. "I gotta say- it's an honor to meet you, officially. I sort of met you, I mean, I watched you while you were sleeping. I mean, I was, I was present while you were unconscious from-the-ice." he slightly stuttered. "You know it's really- it's just a just a huge honor to have you on board- it's..."

"Well, I hope I'm the man for the job," Steve said uncomfortable.

"Oh, you are, absolutely," Phil said sure of it.

Rogers then looked at the auburn haired spy who was smiling in his sleep. Not that he believed he was asleep because the smile was a dead giveaway he was laughing at them. With a fairly strong nudge, Genesis nearly moved half way across his seat and blinked his eyes opened.

"What?" Genesis huffed irritably.

Steve frowned. "You weren't asleep."

"I blame it on the caffeine. If my mind can't sleep I'd rather have my body rest." the younger agent said shifting his position back to the way it was. "You two, on the other hand, should relax. You've both been stiff as a board since we got on this plane. Phil doesn't bite, Steve." He then turned to Coulson, "And didn't you want to talk about Cap's uniform, Phil?"

"Ah- we made some modifications to the uniform. I had a little design input." Phil said continuing where the younger agent left off.

This caught Steve's attention. "The uniform? Aren't the stars and stripes a little...old-fashioned?"

"With everything that's happening, the things that are about to come to light, people might just need a little old-fashioned." the agent said.

The super soldier leaned his head in thought and turned to the youngest agent there, "Say Genesis, what do you think about the new uniform?"

Genesis who was in his position of fake sleep popped open one eye. "You're asking the wrong person Steve. I'm modernist for clothes. And I haven't seen your uniform yet." Not soon after, he went back to closing his eye again.

Steve had a questioning look to the elder agent. "Is there a problem?"

"Don't mind Genesis," Phil said dismissively. "We've all been getting more paperwork recently. Some more than others and he hasn't had the time to rest."

"You think we can find the Tesseract?" Steve asked.

Phil nodded. "We hope so. Getting it back from Loki is another. There are some people he's taken from us as well."

The super soldier nodded silently as he went back to the screen selecting other member profiles of the Initiative.

.

.

---

The Helicarrier, Main SHIELD Headquarters

Touching down the Carrier, the jet came to a stop. Agent Phil Coulson led the way to the deck as Steve Rogers walked down the ramp to see soldiers jogging by, numerous jets, fighter planes. Even though it was more technologically advanced, the feeling of the military was the same. Genesis was behind him talking with the pilots and technicians. Just as his feet landed on the tarmac, he was greeted with a familiar red-head.

"Agent Romanoff, Captain Rogers." Coulson introduced him to his co-worker.

"Ma'am." Steve greeted as politely as ever. "We've met when I first woke up. Sorry to make any trouble back then."

"Hi." Agent Romanoff replied. "I remember. No need to worry, it was expected." She turned to Coulson quickly with orders. "They need you on the bridge; they're starting the face trace."

With and apologetic look, Phil signaled them he was leaving. "See you there."

"It was quite the buzz around here, finding you in the ice. Thought Coulson was gonna swoon. Did he ask you to sign his Captain America trading cards yet?" Natasha asked the captain.

"Trading cards?" Steve asked back. He wondered if Phil's idolization towards him was an inside joke among the agents.

The Black Widow nodded. "They're vintage. He's very proud."

"I think Genesis has mentioned them before."

Smoothly making his entrance, Genesis said, "Of course I mentioned them. Couldn't resist."

"Heard you got promoted, Rhapsodos." Natasha teased the younger agent.

Genesis rolled his eyes. "I'm not enjoying the paperwork if that's what you're asking, Romanoff."

Between the banter of the two spies, Steve lost interest when he spotted someone who looked a little lost and out-of-place on the deck of the carrier. Just like in the pictures he saw, Doctor Banner was looking around feeling very out-of-place in a military setting. Occasionally he'd bump into someone and apologized while making sure to move to a spot where he wouldn't bump into more people.

Steve decided to call the man over. "Doctor Banner."

Banner blinked for a moment before noticing Steve. "Oh, yeah, hi. They told me you'd be coming."

"Word is you can find the Cube," Steve said straightforwardly.

The doctor looked a little nervous at the question. "Is that the only word on me?"

Steve shrugged but said truthfully. "Only word I care about."

Bruce didn't like the statement but he decided to make some small talk. "Must be strange for you, all of this."

"Well, this is actually kind of familiar," Steve said observing the deck.

Natasha called out to them, "Gentlemen, you might wanna step inside in a minute. It's gonna get a little hard to breathe."

The Helicarrier Intercom spoke, "Flight Mode. Secure the deck."

At the loud blaring whirring and clunking sound, irritation emerged from Genesis' face. He focused on turning down his enhancements to his ears to keep the worst parts of the noise out. Natasha patted him on the back sympathetically knowing what he was exposed to. They both watched the two newcomers of the SHIELD base walking over to the edge of the deck.

"Is this a submarine?" Steve questioned looking at the moving water below him.

Banner did not like it one bit. He felt the other guy was nervous of it. "Really, they want me in a submerged pressurized metal container?"

That's when the two realized that the saw propellers spinning and the carrier lifting them into the air.

"Oh no, this is much worse." Bruce winced as the Helicarrier carried them higher into the sky.

Steve, on the other hand, was listening on to the conversation of the two agents behind him. He knew it was private but he was curious when they spoke in low tones. He wondered if their conversation had anything to do with the Tesseract problem.

"Any word on Clint?" Agent Romanoff asked.

Genesis shook his head. "If I knew I would have told you and Phil, Natasha. Phil's been agitated about it."

"I heard Loki's the one behind taking the doctor too, along with more agents," Natasha said. "I owe him, Genesis."

"We'll get him back somehow. Clint Barton's tougher than he looks." Genesis said hopefully. "Right now we focus on finding Loki first."

Hearing their conversation, Rogers realized the people who Genesis mentioned as family members. Coulson was the most obvious one, 'Natasha' or Agent Romanoff was another. The last name he knew was 'Agent Barton' (in the conversation they had driven to the airport) or Clint Barton from what he was hearing right now. No wonder the kid was worried when they were heading back to the branch base, Loki had taken his family member. To Steve, it was like seeing someone in his place when Bucky went missing and the Nazis caught him. He silently said to himself he'd make sure to search for the missing agent if he got a chance to handle Loki.

"Gentlemen. Come inside." Agent Romanoff called them.

Steve followed closely behind Natasha. The doctor, on the contrary, stood looking ill. He turned around, "Doctor are you alright?"

"Just need to calm down." Doctor Banner said breathing in and out.

Agent Romanoff bit her lip, but Genesis had a hand on her shoulder. "Head on without me with Steve. I'll handle this."

She gave him a careful look before agreeing to go on ahead. "This way Captain Rogers." And Steve followed her.

Genesis stood silently as the doctor was meditating as he stood. While he had been sent as a spy to keep an eye on the general, he never had to meet the person behind the Hulk in person. When he first had seen the Hulk, he was a berserk monster. Something that was familiar he went through in his degradation when his emotions were out of his control. Even so, the fact that the Hulk protected Bruce's love interest, Betty, made Genesis feel there was something else behind the green beast. He wasn't surprised the Hulk was vicious against anyone that wanted to harm the doctor and reacted to his emotions without knowing what was coherently wrong. It was like a summon being called out without a purpose, they'd get angry or furious.

It was a mystery what the 'Hulk' was. Blonsky may have the same sort of serum the doc had, but for some reason, he didn't have this 'other' personality that Bruce had. Well, SHIELD obviously didn't know the other side of things, so Genesis decided he'd introduced himself with good intentions and with the Lifestream. He wasn't sure the 'other guy' would react to it. But he hoped it could help Bruce calm down like many people Genesis helped with the same method.

"Sorry," Bruce said sheepishly. "The 'Other Guy' didn't like it."

"No problem. Just tell the other guy we're not here to hurt you or him." Genesis replied. "I think we haven't been introduced. I'm Agent Rhapsodos. If it's a mouthful, call me Genesis." Taking out his hand for a shake. He let his Lifestream flow convey his words that he meant it. SHIELD wasn't interested in making more Hulks, not since General Ross rubbed Fury the wrong way.

Hesitantly, Doctor Banner shook the young agent's hand. It was odd how he was calming down. It was even weirder that the other guy wasn't clawing in his mind anymore, but was questioning on who Agent Rhapsodos was. There was wariness from the Hulk, but it seemed to stand down observing the agent carefully at the back of his mind like it would test the agent's words. "I suppose you know me from Agent Romanoff. You can call me Bruce if I can call you Genesis."

"Agreed. Shall we walk inside?" Genesis offered.

"Sure." Bruce nodded.

As they walked, Genesis asked, "How was India?"

Bruce was surprised at the sudden question. "It's a good place to hide when you have people hunting you down."

Genesis nodded with a grim expression. "Not surprising if it's General Ross."

"You know him?" the doctor asked warily.

"Yes. And I don't like him." the former SOLDIER admitted. "I had some dealings with him before. Not a pleasant experience. If you do plan to run, Bruce, I'll happily point the general to the opposite direction." Genesis smiled.

Bruce chuckled weakly. "You're not just flattering me are you?"

Genesis shook his head. "No. I'd do it because I want to. The guy needs to stop poking his nose into places where it doesn't belong."

Before Bruce could ask anything else, they joined with Steve Rogers and Agent Romanoff. The scientist decided to keep his mouth shut and observe by walking behind the agents and beside the captain who was looking around the halls with awe. The other guy was now curious on what Genesis was, which threw the scientist in a loop. From what Bruce was seeing the young agent looked human, but the Hulk seemed to be feeling something else. Especially how now Bruce wasn't nervous anymore while the agent was there. He wondered what would happen if Genesis wasn't present with him. That he'll have to see later.

Eventually, the four of them arrived at the bridge. Natasha silently peeled away from the group more concerned on a display that was looking for Agent Barton. Bruce preferably stood at the back while he took a look at the command center with awe. Steve was just as awed, but was braver to search around the front. Genesis walked away towards Coulson who was with Agent Sitwell starting the face trace analysis. The whole area was in a buzz with SHIELD personnel working at stations and communications running through the room.

"Maximum performance take off, increase output to capacity." a carrier bridge technician said.

"Power plant performing at capacity. We are clear." Another technician responded.

"All engines operating. SHIELD emergency protocol one nine three-point-six in effect." Agent Maria Hill ordered taking the main lead on the Helicarrier. She then turned to her superior. "We're at level, sir."

"Good! Let's vanish." Fury said.

She shouted the order. "Engage retroreflection panels."

"Reflection panels engaged." was the response, turning the Helicarrier invisible to look at in the sky.

Director Fury greeted the newcomers. "Gentlemen."

Steve slipped Fury the ten dollars he bet earlier, honoring his part of the bet. He'd take the loss of proven that there were things that did surprise him even. The Director gave a nod of gratitude and respect for it.

"Doctor, thank you for coming," Director said greeting Banner personally.

"Thanks for asking nicely," Bruce said. He then shuffled his feet. "So, um, how long am I staying?"

"Once we get our hands on the Tesseract, you're in the wind."

Bruce was happy to get a straight answer and decided to help out. "Well, where are you with that?"

"We're sweeping every wireless accessible camera on the planet. Cell phones, laptops, if it's connected to a satellite, it's eyes and ears for us." Agent Coulson answered his question.

Steve just stood in the background feeling lost now on what Coulson was saying. His eyes then noted Agent Romanoff was kneeling to a screen where he saw Barton's face trace in progress, checking its stats.

"It's still not gonna find them in time," She said.

Doctor Banner gave them a suggestion. "You have to narrow your field. How many Spectrometers do you have access to?"

"How many are there?" Fury asked.

"Call every lab you know. Tell them to put the Spectrometers on the roof and calibrate them for Gamma rays. I'll rough out a tracking algorithm, basic cluster recognition. At least, we could rule out a few places. Do you have somewhere for me to work?" Banner asked.

Fury ordered his agent, "Agent Romanoff, would you show Doctor Banner to his laboratory, please?"

"You're gonna love it, Doc. We got all the toys." Natasha said as she led the way to outside the bridge.

The doctor was surprised. "Really? Do you have the com-meter sixty-four?"

Agent Romanoff was confused. "I'm not sure-"

He cut her off. "Oh, you're very young." He quickly dismissed it and talked about the Helicarrier instead.

The Black Widow wondered why Genesis wasn't with doctor banner instead. At least, he read through more scientific journals than she ever did and would have understood what the doctor was asking for.

Back at the Bridge...

"Agent Rhapsodos, please help the face trace scan on Europe with Agent Sitwell for Loki." Fury ordered.

Genesis nodded. "Yes, Sir." Well, at least, he had something to do to distract him from the noise he was hearing. He then turned to Steve was still on top of the stairs. "Come on over, Steve. You might as well join us. It might take some time for the search."

"Sure." Steve agreed and walked down to where they are.

The former 1st Class then turned to Phil with a smirk, "I think this is the part where you ask for the autographs."

"We're working," Coulson whispered, not taking it too well his youngest agent teasing him again.

"Ask now, and get them signed later," Genesis suggested flatly. He turned around and sat next to Agent Sitwell leaving Phil on his own.

Phil couldn't retort because Steve was now with them. He rolled his eyes and decided to talk with Steve since he was there only to keep watch of the agents doing the face trace for Loki.

Meanwhile, on top of the bridge, Fury walked over to his second command. "Hill, did you tell the council that Barton had been compromised?"

Hill was confused, "Was that not procedure?"

Fury didn't answer and walked off the bridge and onto the air deck, looking out the windows silently in thought.

"Did you tell them who exactly is on your response team?" Hill asked again just behind her boss as she wanted answers.

Fury gazed over his shoulder. "Doesn't appear that I have to."

.

.

---

Unknown Underground Area...

Loki rubbed his temples in trying to sooth his raging headache. He detested when he needed to have any form of contact with the 'Other'. Every time they broke the link of communication his head felt like it was going to crack. But no matter. He calmed his breathing down as there was more work he had to do. With the Tesseract in his hands, it was only a matter of time his plans would play into motion. All he needed was a medium of the sort to stabilize the cube, so the portal won't cause a fallout like back where he was transported at.

Standing up, he walked to the larger area of his current hideout in confident strides. Loki was sure everything would work out. He had this thoroughly planned, he had petty Earthlings to work under him, but he needed to make sure there wasn't anything that would stand in his way. Thinking of people getting in his way, Loki walked around the area as the humans passed by doing what they were ordered to helping Doctor Selvig with the preparations.

"Put it over there." the doctor commanded the others. He then turned to Hawkeye. "Where did you find all these people?"

"SHIELD has no shortage of enemies, Doctor," Barton said with ease. He showed the elder man a screen. "This the stuff you need?"

"Yeah. Iridium. It's found in meteorites, it forms anti-protons. It's very hard to get hold of."

The agent agreed. "Especially if SHIELD knows you need it."

The god of mischief walked over to them.

"Hey! This is wonderful. The Tesseract has shown me so much. It's- it's more than knowledge; it's truth." Doctor Selvig said enthusiastically welcoming the god.

"I know. It, ah- touches everyone differently." Loki responded airily. He turned to the agent, "What did it show you, Agent Barton?"

Blue glazed eyes turned to the god, "My next target."

Doctor Selvig just laughed at him. "Stick in the mud. He's got no soul. No wonder you chose this, this tomb to work in."

"Well, the Radisson doesn't have three levels of lead-lined flooring between SHIELD and that Cube." Barton snapped back.

Doctor Selvig didn't seem to be interested in the conversation anymore and went back to working.

"I see why Fury chose you to guard it," Loki said knowing the bowman had an eye for details.

"You're going to have to contend with him, sir. As long as he's in the air, I can't pin him down. And he'll be putting together a team."

Another variable he needed to count into his plans. "Are they a threat?"

"To each other more than likely. But if Fury can get 'em on track, and he might, they could throw some noise our way."

Loki's eyes narrowed with disgust. "You admire Fury."

"He's got a clear line of sight," Barton replied.

"Is that why you failed to kill him?" the god asked referring to the incident where he made his appearance.

"It might be. I was disoriented, and I'm not at my best with a gun." The blond shrugged.

Well – there was so much the manipulation spell could affect a mortal. The Asgardian took a few steps in thought, before he stopped, "I want to know everything you can tell me about this team of his. I would- test their mettle."

The god stood there and listened attentively on who were on the team. He wasn't particularly impressed with whatever that one-eyed agent was setting up and had to laugh how the plan was scrapped before. Loki did note, though, that there was a chance it would be reactivated in an event that was considered an emergency. Thinking over is, he then asked the agent about what he knew about each member excluding his brother. Loki needed to know their weaknesses. The super soldier wasn't going to be a problem as he was the type to listen to orders on general. Man in Iron? He wasn't really anything without his contraptions. As for the green beast, he could use the rage monster for his own purposes later. Then there was the spy and seductress. Loki would enjoy breaking her.

Of course, Loki had asked if there were any others that he should know of, which lead to information about the Director with his underlings, mainly who were directly under his command. That's when he heard something out of the ordinary.

"So this friend of yours is said to be from another world?" Loki's voice said interested. "Did you hear where he hails from?"

The archer shook his head. "I've never asked, and he doesn't tell me. I only heard from someone else that he has abilities, but I have no clue what they are besides he's able to manipulate fire, ice, and other things but they weren't mentioned."

Strange. Very strange indeed.

The god weighed the scales of the uncertainty of the odd agent. He shouldn't be much of a problem. Even if he was a rejected candidate of the group who would have worked alongside Thor, the agent was a young one and, therefore, should be easier to manipulate into his hands. In fact, he could actually use their youngest against them if the beast didn't do its work properly. Or Loki could hit this team where it hurt the most by adding in more casualties. He already had Barton in his hands, another to make more mayhem was certainly too good to pass. Being the god of mischief, there should always be second plans if one doesn't work.

"What is his name, Agent Barton?"

"Agent Genesis Rhapsodos."

It didn't ring any bells about matters of the outer realms. Loki nodded quickly taking note of the name for later. Knowing was just one part of the game, and he needed to know everything if he was going to succeed in his endeavor. The god went back to business. "You know not where the item the Doctor needs?"

"I do," Barton said sure.

"Tell me what you need."

The sniper walked over to a small case. Opening it he got out and released his bow out in its full form.

"I need a distraction. And an eyeball."

.

.

---

SHIELD Helicarrier Deck...

"You look horrible."

Genesis sighed as he eyed the other agent who was like him sitting with a computer monitoring face trace scans. "I was never fond of the Helicarrier, Agent Sitwell. I don't think I'll like it any sooner either." His mood was getting sour by the second as he had to suppress his hearing more than usual. However, it was enough to hear the conversation going behind his back a few feet away.

The other agent nodded with sympathy. "Don't let it get to you." He turned to have a look back where Steve and Phil were having a conversation. "Seems like Coulson is hitting it off well with his idol."

The auburn haired agent had to smile at Sitwell as the bald man was trying to distract him from hearing the turning turbines of the Helicarrier. He was one of the nicer agents around besides Coulson. "No kidding, it's been like that since we got into the Quintjet."

"I'm not surprised. You should have seen him when he found the guy." Sitwell said in a low voice, but smiling all the same. "The Director thought of it like Coulson finally found his long-lost action figure."

"I've heard."

"We could use the good mood," Sitwell said with his eyes back on the monitor before him. "Everyone's been down since the facility was leveled."

The ex-SOLDIER did agree. Everyone on the deck was in a buzz in trying to keep an eye out for Loki. "Let's hope the search isn't just wishful thinking."

"Anything on your end?"

"No. We're getting blank for the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Denmark, Slovenia, Iceland, Ireland, Bosnia, and Herzegovina," Genesis responded listing off the ones he was in charge of. "You?"

Agent Sitwell gave a list that was ruled out. "I got nothing for Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland, Greece, Turkey, Belarus, Tunisia, Latveria, Serbia, Montenegro, and the Czech Republic."

"Who's in charge of Asia?" Genesis asked.

The older agent flipped down the list of agents on his computer who were on the search through live connection. "Agent Clark along with his team. They've got all Asian countries ruled out in exception of China, Indonesia, India, and Pakistan. Not a surprise there... those countries are the most populated in the region and it could take a while. We're drawing a blank from Agent Hunter and team for the Middle East and the Africa continent area."

Genesis did his own live feed connection search. "Agent Lee's team is on Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific countries. He's got nothing from them so far. Agent Owen and her team have been on the US, Canada, Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the surrounding areas with no luck. All large countries in South America like Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, are checked by Agent Frans and team with no results. I highly doubt Loki would be going to somewhere too remote like Saint Vincent and the Grenadines."

"Not unless he wants a sun sea sand vacation." Sitwell jested.

Genesis chuckled. "Which isn't happening so soon if he's bent on conquering the world." A pause. "We've done nearly most of the countries in Europe. Russia's face traces is being handled by Agent Petrelli, and is still in progress."

The older agent wiped his eyes from staring at the screen too long. "How about we do the next country together, that way we can get a country done quickly and move on if Loki's not there," he suggested.

"Agreed." the former commander nodded. "I pick Germany."

"Germany it is."

Both agents set their scans on Germany, one taking different data to speed things up. While the screen shifted and scanned faces, Genesis sat and leaned back on his seat a little, eavesdropping on the conversation behind him while keeping an eye out for scanning results. It was about freaking time Coulson asked him to sign the cards.

"I mean if it's not too much trouble," Coulson said rather nervous.

Steve wasn't bothered by it. "No-no, it's fine."

"It's a vintage set. Took me a couple of years to collect them all. Near mint, slight foxing around the edges but-"

"We got a hit!" Agent Sitwell announced from his seat. "Sixty-seven percent match. Wait– cross-match, seventy-nine percent!"

The previous conversation was forgotten as they found their culprit. Coulson came to their station and asked, "Location?

"Stuttgart, Germany. Twenty-eight, Königstraße. He's not exactly hiding." said the bald agent showing a picture of Loki wearing a sophisticated tux.

"But dressed for the occasion," Genesis said dryly. His eyes narrowed with suspicion why Loki was out in the open.

Fury gave his orders. "Captain, you're up."

Steve nodded and left the room, along with another agent that would show him to his gear.

To his agents that were left in the room, Nick Fury turned to his second in command first. "Agent Hill, contact our branch in Germany to get close and keep eyes on the location until Captain America is there. Inform the local intelligence authorities to likewise be alert. And also, make sure the head of Bundesnachrichtendienst and Militärischer Abschirmdienst are specifically notified of the situation. It might get ugly." (5)

"Yes sir." she said and left to the main communication area on deck.

"Agent Sitwell," Fury continued, "Get a pilot ready for Rogers and send a word to Agent Romanoff she will act as co-pilot for this mission. I want her personally to watch over the situation."

"Sir."

The three remaining agents stood quietly as they watch Agent Jasper Sitwell leave the bridge.

Phil broke the silence. "Director Fury, there's a large chance that Loki won't hold the Tesseract with him with what information we have so far."

"That I know, Agent Coulson." Fury said with understanding. "If we don't act either, who knows what mayhem that Asgardian can cause. Agent Rhapsodos, what's your view on this as a tactical forecaster?"

Genesis crossed his arms as he looked back to his superior. "It screams bait, Director. Blending in with the general public, wide open for attack, and he's not making an effort to disguise himself or hide from cameras. It's a diversion, therefore, there's another target. Perhaps something that is related to the Tesseract. Him coming to a meeting with important party guests who are related to the space programs is also too much of a mere coincidence. It very well means there's a target there as well."

"Two targets..." Fury said to himself. His eye went straight to Phil. "Coulson, run a background check on the guests who will attend the party. It might give us clues to what Loki's second target is."

"Of course, sir."

"And Rhapsodos?"

"Sir?"

"I want you to be our direct communications concerning this mission from base." Fury ordered. "You'll also be acting as a tactical adviser over the com for the team. Understood?"

Genesis nodded. "Yes, Sir."

"To your stations, Agents."

---

"Hell is empty and all the devils are here." ~ William Shakespeare

---

TBC...

Next time... Chapter 8: "Spangles, Demigod, and Tin Man."

Notes/Trivia:

(1) Agent Phillip Coulson according to his official movie SHIELD page database was a CIA Agent before he became an Agent of SHIELD. - Marvel Cinematic Universe Wikia

(2) Sephiroth in one of Zack Fair's DMW memory cutscene during Crisis Core is shown to be instructing Zack in a training session of hunting down monsters. - Crisis Core DMW cutscene

(3) Tony Stark's artificial intelligence JARVIS serves as his butler with a British accent and sarcasm. JARVIS runs all internal systems for his home, office, and Iron Man suits to help him. In the novelization of the film by Peter David, it is revealed the acronym stands for: Just A Rather Very Intelligent System. In the comics he is actually a real British butler by the name Edwin Jarvis and has appeared frequently as a supporting character in the Marvel Universe in Iron Man, Spider-Man, and the Avengers. - Marvel Wiki

(4) V is Tony Stark's nickname for Genesis Rhapsodos due to his habit of quoting Shakespeare or any other poetry he can get his hands on. V is a Guy Fawkes-masked vigilante from the movie V for Vendetta (2006). V known to be a bold, charismatic freedom fighter driven to exact revenge on those who disfigured him (he is a result of a biological weapons experiment). He also has a tendency to quote Shakespeare's works depending on the situation. In the film he is portrayed by the actor Hugo Weaving who also portrayed the Red Skull in Captain America The First Avenger.

(5) Bundesnachrichtendienst [BND] / Federal Intelligence Service and Militärischer Abschirmdienst [MAD] / Military Counter-intelligence Service are two of Germany's Intelligence Agencies. The BND acts as an early warning system to alert the German government to threats to German interests from abroad. It depends heavily on wiretapping and electronic surveillance of international communications, collecting and evaluates information on a variety of areas such as international terrorism, WMD proliferation and illegal transfer of technology, organized crime, weapons and drug trafficking, money laundering, illegal migration and information warfare. MAD is one of the three federal intelligence agencies in Germany and is responsible for military counterintelligence. It is also responsible for the protection of Bundeswehr (German armed forces) properties from sabotage, foreign espionage, and are also involved in planning and construction of buildings with high security requirements. - Wikipedia

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