AN: So here's the new chapter. Nothing much to say besides I'm still hoping to hear Spots!Verse ideas from you all. The song used in this chapter is "Dying Californian" the rendition as performed by Moira Smiley and Voca. Warnings for this chapter include depictions of vilence, character death and discussion of emotional stress.
Coulson finds them all still sitting in the glass cube, staring blankly at the ebony and crimson fox mask that still lay on the floor where it had fallen. His sharp eyes take in the corpses of the fallen guard/interns, the mutilated body of the scientist and arrows that litter the wooden walls and floors, all emblazoned with the black fox he's grown so used to seeing in his time at SHIELD. He takes all of this in with his usual calm.
He'd connected the dots long ago, though, to his chagrin he would admit, by accident. SHIELD had been watching Tony since he was old enough to walk. The night Howard Stark had been visited by the jackal-masked assassin was one of the first entries in Tony's long file, which had been transferred over to Coulson shortly before the Afghanistan incident. For years SHIELD had watched from afar as Tony was trained and, eventually been masked, though at first the lead agent hadn't been able to put the young man to his mask.
It wouldn't be until a year after meeting him in Saudi Arabia that SHIELD finally placed Tony as the Fox, and a tiny, lost-among-the-pages-unless-you were-looking-for-it form was slipped somewhere into his file. Coulson hadn't figured out until he'd been placed to guard Tony while he was making the new element for his Arc Reactor and seen a familiar arrow, half hidden amongst the clutter on one of the lab work tables.
For now though, as medics are carefully leading the rest of the Avengers out of the glass cube, preparing to shuffle them off to the E.D.D Ward for evaluation, debriefing and decompression, he leans down and scoops up the mask, fingers smearing in half-clotted blood. Coulson has nothing but respect for the men and women who wear these masks. They do the dirty work the government can't, often at the cost of family and friends, their entire lives should their masks come off.
And now, in his hands, is the mask of a man who holds half of the world's tech in his hands, a well-loved and venerable member of New York, loved by its citizens for the work and protection he's offered them.
For the first time in a long time, Coulson feels sick to his stomach.
The ride in the SUV back to Kea Memorial Private Practice is tense, but in a fearful way. Brad, his dragon mask sitting in his lap and Aaron, his bear mask hanging about his neck, are pressed into Tony's side protectively on either side and in the front passenger seat, Anatassia, her leopard mask resting on the dash, is talking rapidly into the phone.
Only an hour before Tony had called Jarvis and locked the workshop down in what Robert had once jokingly called "apocalypse mode". The suits, which were displayed in alcoves on the wall, were locked in tight by thick Vibrainium sheeting, the suits and arc reactor spares themselves set to self-destruct if anyone but himself, even Brad or Pepper, tried to touch them. As soon as the main workshop was safe, Tony knew Jarvis would do the same to every property SHIELD thought they knew of and even the ones they didn't, and then Jarvis himself would go dark.
Every person except for the driver in the car was bruised, cut, limping or otherwise injured, hence the visit to Kea Memorial. Anatassia worked there, which would give them access in the dead of night but, not only that. Within the ICU, a small, four room section of the building, was the reason for the previous mission.
Ensconced in one of the rooms, surrounded and guarded by near five dozen assassins and novices, was a young woman, Kelly "Otter" Osborn, only five years Tony's junior, dying of a terrible wound.
In the Raan Do Sivaas, there were two types of missions. Those that they took on a daily basis, assassinations both common and specialized, and there were Blood Kills. Blood Kills were rare, a revenge to be visited upon those unfortunate enough to injure or kill a Sunvaar, a hunter, with malice aforethought.
Tony would never know what possessed Dr. Malike to have attempted everseration on the woman, but he knew that the man, and every single one of those that occupied the building, had felt great and terrible fear when they'd swooped in, rage lending vicious accuracy to their attacks. Injury and death is something every assassin is prepared to face, and Kelly had completed her assignment and protected her novice, at the cost of her own life in the face of a hidden assailant.
Tony was honored to be picked for the kill squad. He remembered when Kelly had first come to the Den, a bright-eyed ten year old, and Tony recently masked. She'd said she was going to take the fox mask for her own one day, and Tony had smiled, ruffled her hair and walked away with a soft "can't wait to see you try" as he left. He's overseen her fifth mission and been the one to hand her the Otter mask at her ceremony in the absence of her mentor.
He's brought back when he felt a gentle pressure on his fingers and looked up. Brad's grin is dim and trembling, and the hand that came to rest on his face, fingers gently wiping away tears, was unsteady.
Tony doesn't know why he's crying. If it's Kelly's impending death, the doctor being unable to help her after the infection had set in.
He doesn't know if its the fact that the Avengers, his friends, have just seen him melt a man's face off, and will never again want to see him.
He doesn't know if its the fact that there's a very real possibility that he's about to lose being Tony Stark, being Iron Man.
He doesn't know if its one of these things or all of these things, but once he realizes what's happening he tamps down on the feeling violently. There'll be time to cry later, if at all. For now, Tony's needed in the here and now. Anatassia ends the call with a sigh and looks back at him. "Marcie will handle it." Her voice is just barely a whisper, but she's heard loud and clear and the tension in the vehicle dissipated, if barely.
The driver pulled around the dark back of the clinic and everyone piled out. Tony allowed himself to be shuffled inside, Brad's hand gentle on his lower back, tense until they were safely inside the clinic and surrounded by even more people, people who would give their all to see Tony safe.
Coulson found Pepper bustling busily around the main penthouse floor when he arrived, sans the rest of the team, but the mask in his hands, wrapped up in an old swathe of cloth he'd found lying around. There are two large duffel bags in the center of the room and a familiar pet carrier, empty for now save a soft looking blanket and Pepper had a piece of paper in hand, muttering to herself and Jarvis.
"Knee brace?" She asks and the AI responds in the affirmative. "Clothes? Spare hearing aid? Melanin patches? Shoes, sandals, socks? Tablet and phone? Dye, contacts, identity papers? Cash and a credit card?" Each question was met with an affirmative and Pepper sighed, rubbing a hand over her face before she whistled sharply.
Inari's familiar form came bounding out of the hall and, to Pepper's soft order of "carrier", hopped inside, turned around three times and lay down, waiting until Pepper had closed the cage door before putting his head and falling asleep. Pepper made quick work of closing up the duffel bags and was about to lean down to pick them up when Coulson cleared his throat, walking into the room proper.
Her face was curiously blank and Coulson could tell she's wary of him right now, so he stopped a few feet away from her. "Ms. Potts, I have something that should be returned to Mister Stark as soon as possible." He gently held out the small bundle and she took it from him, peeling back the wraps to reveal the blood stained mask.
Coulson watched as a strange splash of emotion, something of fondness and yet sadness and fear at the same time, crossed her face as her fingers brushed across the whiskers on the left side. Coulson was about to turn on his heel and leave when Pepper spoke.
"He saved me." She said and Coulson turned back around to hear what she was going to say. "I couldn't tell you the night or the year, but it was more than a decade ago, but not by much. I'd been out late with friends, we were going to go and see a movie and I was on my way home. Two guys jumped me from an alley and we're going to steal my purse, and might have done something worse if he hadn't shown up. He just...appeared out of the dark and shot them both. But he came to help me and he was so nice." She carefully wrapped the cloth back around the mask.
"He's told me, about a couple of the assignments he's taken, before Brad, when he used to get drunk every night after Afghanistan. He'd wake up, screaming, from nightmares, and he would tell me things from his past, people he'd met, how he trained, assignments and even some of what happened in the cave." She took a deep breath and looked at Coulson, her eyes going hard and sharp.
"He's a good man, Agent Coulson. He's done more for the people then they will ever know. Don't let the team hurt him. If they can't accept him for who he is, then you keep them away from him. Am I understood? Because I will do every great and terrible thing within my power to them if any of them hurts him."
And Coulson only had to glance at the fire and determination in Pepper's eyes to know it wasn't an idle threat.
The kill squad didn't even bother with undressing from their uniforms after they were escorted to the hallways that the members of the Order have commandeered. The team was supposed to be going to a room to be checked over by one of the Order's medics, but they're forestalled a drawn looking older woman exited Kelly's room, two orderlies behind her.
"Is there a...'Nio Stark here?" She asked, pulling off the gloves that protected her hands. Everyone turned to stare at Tony as he moved through the group, face smudged with some combination of blood, soot and sweat.
"Me?" He asked and the doctor nodded, stepping aside so the cracked doorway was visible.
"She's asking for you." She said and Tony nodded. He peeled off his gloves and handed them to Brad, making for the door, slipping inside. Kelly was laying on the bed and she looked markedly different from when they'd left only hours before. The oxygen mask was gone, as well as the monitoring equipment, leaving the room in an eerie silence. All that remained was an IV in Kelly's hand, and it hit Tony that Kelly had finally told the doctors that it was time for her to go.
He went to shut the door and was stopped by a sharp sound from the bed. "Leave it." The voice from the bed said and Tony nodded, leaving the door open for those in the hall to hear as he walked away. She turned razor grey eyes on him and she smiled. "You finish it?" She asked as Tony came to stand next to the bed, grabbing her good hand. She was pale and Tony was sick with what that meant, hidden beneath the blanket.
"It is done." He assured her, voice formal and Kelly snorted indelicately. She knew he was being formal for the sake of tradition, to giver her grounding.
"You'll take care of them, right? My sister and my husband?" She asked and Tony tightened the grasp he had on her hand comfortingly. "Don't let them mourn too long. Help them get on with their lives."
"You know I will." He said firmly and Kelly smiled, eyes dimming a little as she stared at the ceiling blankly.
"Sing for me?" She asked, voice soft and weakening, and Tony was aware of the others pressing in behind him, the rest of Kelly's class and Tony's own pressing into the room, the others crowding around the door. "You know the one I want to hear."
Tony nodded and cleared his throat softly, before humming the opening notes of the song before he started, voice high and yet dark.
"Lay up nearer, brother, nearer,
For my limbs are growing cold,
And thy presence seemeth nearer
When thine arms around me fold.
I am dying, brother, dying;
Soon you'll miss me in your berth,
For my form will soon be lying
'Neath the ocean's briny surf.
I am going, brother, going,
But my hope in God is strong.
I am willing, brother, knowing
That He doeth nothing wrong.
Hark, I hear the Savior speaking.
'Tis, I know His Voice so well.
When I'm gone, no, don't be weeping.
Brother, hear my last farewell.
Lay up nearer, brother, nearer,
For my limbs are growing cold,
And thy presence seemeth nearer
When thine arms around me fold."
Behind him, the group filled in the last dying notes as Tony's voice faded away into the quiet of the room, and when Tony looked down, Kelly's eyes were closed and her face was smiling. Tony sighed heavily and gently lay Kelly's hand down.
"Tell the doctor the time, Anatassia. And tell one of the orderlies to bring me a bowl of warm water and a terrycloth. Someone call the pastor from her church. And don't talk to the sister or the husband yet. I'll do that." His voice was quiet and cold, a contrast to the usual warmth that came with his voice. The room emptied out behind him as he went over to the wall,pulling out a pair of gloves and pulling them on.
He'd just finished removing the IV when the doctor from before entered the room, holding a large bowl of water. "I trust there's a good reason you're doing my orderlies' job, Mister Stark." She said, but her voice held no heat. Tony looked up as he took the bowl of water.
"For all intents and purposes, doc, its Nurse Hennesey for now." He said softly. Tony knew she was a retired army nurse, one of the dozens of plants that ran this clinic, funded as it was by WSC and her eyes sparked with understanding.
"Very well then. Carry on, Nurse Hennesey." Tony nodded as he continued his quiet work. He had much to do still.
Brad finally managed to get Tony away from anything work or Order related almost three and a half hours after the team had returned. He, Anatassia and Aaron had already had their wounds seen to, showered, changed and eaten something. But he knew for a fact Tony had been going non-stop for more than twenty-four hours before the assignment and now, with the assignment, Kelly's passing and the ever-looming possibility that his life was about to fall down around his ears.
So he pulled a couple stitch and bandage kits into one of the rooms set aside for overnights for staffers, grabbed an outfit out of duffels Pepper had brought for him and then stalked to the room where Tony was finishing his business with a kindly old priest, who'd dragged himself out of bed at some god awful hour to make arrangements for a lovely woman, and hadn't even commented on the state of Tony.
Brad made Tony's excuses and then gently led him into the room, locking the door behind them and then putting him in the middle of the room. Tony was dead on his feet, but seemed determined to keep going until Brad made sound, angry, low in his chest, and Tony seemed surprised before he nodded weakly and stood still. Brad pulled the tabard off first, letting the ebony and crimson fabric flutter to the ground.
"Arms up." He ordered. When Tony was like this, tired but wanting to push past his limits, the best route was to take a firm hand with him. Brad pulled off the linen shirt and then the chainmail shirt and leather armor, leaving him in the Proto-skin undershirt. "Left leg." He reached down and pulled the boot off and then did the same to the right. Next he pulled down the linen pants and the scalemail armor that protected Tony's legs.
His suspicions about Tony's exhaustion were confirmed when the genius, usually ready with a smart-ass quip when they did this nightly ritual, was silent. When Brad was done and Tony was left in nothing but the Proto-skin underclothes he wore in the armor and when he was working out, he stopped to look his boyfriend over.
Knuckles abraded, missing a few toenails, cuts on his shoulders and arms and legs and a scary looking burn on his chest near the reactor. His neck was a terrifying mass of blue and black and red. The jerking motion the guard had tried with the wire had obviously been meant to collapse his trachea, and if Tony hadn't been wearing the chainmail and leather neck guard, the move would have worked.
"Go shower. Your shower bag and a towel are in the red duffel bag. Make sure you're clean, but be mindful of the injuries." He ordered. Tony nodded, zombie-like and grabbed the items out of his duffel bag and made for the adjoined room where the shower was. Once Brad was sure Tony was in the shower he left the room after gathering the armor and clothes on the floor. He found one of the novices in the hall, one he was sure worked in the smith, and gently ordered them to see the armor cleaned and polished, the clothes cleaned and stitched.
Once the novice was gone Brad went searching for Anatassia, who'd gone to get food for Tony and coffee for everyone else, and found her sitting in the hallway with the others. They'd agree that, for the night they would stay here and, after the emergency of Tony's unmasking blew over, Tony would put them up out of town until Kelly's funeral. She handed him a takeout container, and Brad could smell warm bread and hot meat inside. "Steak stew and rolls with honey butter?" He asked and she nodded.
"I figured he wouldn't eat unless it was something he couldn't resist." Brad smiled and nodded before went back to the room, where Tony was standing listlessly in the middle of the floor. He'd dried off and slipped into a pair of boxers and Brad gently steered him into a chair after putting the container down.
"How much does it hurt?" He asked and Tony bit his lips before holding up a hand, all five of his fingers spread out. Brad frowned. A five, but if he wasn't speaking then his throat must be killing him. "Throat?" He asked gently and Tony nodded. "We'll ice it down after you eat." He assured. Starting from Tony's feet and up he sterilized and bandaged each wound, numbing and stitching where needed. He worked steadily and quietly until he reached the burn.
There were few things Tony feared in the world. Caves and small, dark spaces. Water gathered in anything bigger than a five-gallon bucket. And having the Arc Reactor removed. No one, not even Brad and Pepper, was allowed to touch the reactor. When Brad and Tony shared a bed, Brad was certain to always keep his arms below the reactor. Anatassia, though she was allowed to touch the area near the reactor as his primary doctor, was never allowed to touch the reactor itself.
Brad carefully disinfected the burn, keeping his hands up and clear and then rubbed a soothing salve over the injury. When that was done, he carefully lay the patch over the wound and taped it down, until the edge of his hand brushed the reactor.
Tony startled violently and made a sound, hurt and scared, deep in his throat, and Brad pulled back as if burned, apology already on the tip of his tongue. Tony surprised him by grabbing his wrist, hands shaking. "Tony..." He said softly, voice quiet. Brad let his hand be guided gently until it was placed gently on over the reactor.
Brad froze, palm resting over cold metal, fingertips resting on warm, scarred skin. He could feel the rapid fluttering of his heart and the heaving of his chest as he tried to breathe through the fear of having someone touch the reactor. Brad didn't speak, simply twined his fingers with Tony's and touched their foreheads together.
Brad didn't move his hand from over the reactor and, slowly but surely, Tony calmed down. After about twenty minutes Tony gave him a wavering smile and Brad was sucker-punched to see his eyes wet with tears. He leaned forward and kissed his lips chastely, gently and squeezed his hand gently. "You did great, kitten." He praised and Tony smiled softly. Normally Tony would brush off the praise, but for once, Brad was glad he just let it slide.
With Tony all bandaged up, Brad pressed the still hot stew into his hands and cleaned up while Tony ate and then dressed himself. And when all was said and done, Brad climbed into the bed and held his arms open until Tony was tucked up against his chest, head tucked under Brad's chin. Brad sighed heavily and ran his fingers through inky hair.
"We'll figure it out Tony. It's all gonna be okay." He murmured and Tony nodded numbly against his partner's chest, arms tightening just a fraction more.
The following evening the SHIELD HQ was all abuzz with chatter, the air tense. The Avengers had been cleared to leave the main decompression ward, but were confined to the building itself. They were eating dinner in one of the lounges when four junior agents entered, so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't see the team.
"Do you know when they're gonna get here?" One asked, voice high with anticipation. The team turned to look at the small group of agents, interest peaked.
"Word is, the Director's going to meet them at at nine. They're coming to talk to the WSC!" Another barked. "Apparently there's going to be five of them. Four elites and the Leader, personally!"
"Are you sure they're not here to enact a regime change?" Another voice, followed by the sound of a loud smack, like someone's hand contacting the back of another person's head.
"Idiot! They're assassins, not political anarchists. And if they were here to do that I'm certain the Director wouldn't meet them at the front door!" One growled and that got the attention of the team. Steve stood up and cleared his throat.
"What's this going on now?" The agents looked at Steve wide-eyed before one, a burly looking fellow, answered him.
"It's all over the base. Five members of the Raan Do Sivaas are coming here, tonight! Four of the most elite and the Leader! Rumor is, one of them was recently unmasked, and the meeting with the WSC is to figure out what's going to happen to the unmasked assassin. Person must be pretty high profile for all the cloak and dagger that's going on." He said, apparently not noticing that a majority of the team had gone pale.
"When is this supposed to happen?" Clint asked from the table, coffee cup in hand. The same guy answered.
"Within the next twenty minutes. All of the agents with less than a year and a half of work have been cleared off the lower levels." The man answered before, cups in hands, the small group of junior agents left. The team looked at each other before vacating their seats. The trek to the entrance level was easy and the team situated themselves against a wall with a good view of the entranceway. In the middle of the large anteroom stood Director Fury, flanked behind and on either side by Maria Hill and Coulson.
They came from nowhere, literally. Five wraiths from the dark on either side of the door, in animal masks and with glowing eyes of every color, green, blue, red, gold and mercury. Even as they were coming through the door they were ranking up. In the front, a tall womanly figure in a wolf mask with shining golden eyes.
The two behind her, a leopard with green eyes and a bear with red eyes and, behind them a blue-eyed fox and a mercury-eyed dragon. The room was silent as they glided forward, their footsteps silent on the marble floor until they came to stand across from Fury's party. The team focused on the Fox, they knew who was behind that mask, but the man didn't turn in any direction.
"Aak Wolf, a pleasure to have you and your assassins here." Fury said and the wolf-masked woman turned to stare at him.
"The pleasure is ours, Director Fury. We must thank you for allowing us the use of your facilities. I apologize if we've interrupted your base. I understand that the circumstances of this meeting are...strange. But, seeing as how this affects you directly, we figured...semi-transparency would be in order." Her voice was smooth and lightly accented.
"Understandable. But perhaps you could tell me how to address your assassins, so I don't step on any toes." This was Fury, navigating the field of a group of people that had recently taken down an entire science complex and burned half of it to the ground, with some tact.
"You may call me Sunvaar Wolf. Behind me immediately are Bear, Leopard and Dragon. Address them similarly. The one in the Fox mask, you will address him as Sah Sunvaar, in respect for the position he's earned among our Order."
"Of course. Behind me are Agent Phil Coulson and Agent Maria Hill. If you're ready, the meeting room is ready for you." All five nodded sharply and followed behind the SHIELD group out of the anteroom, leaving the team and the other agents alone.
There was a moment of silence before conversation picked up.
"Huh, they weren't that scary. The entrance was a little dramatic for my tastes." One agent said as she walked towards the far hallway. The agent next to her laughed loudly.
"I dare you to say that to their faces. I'm pretty sure any one of those people could knock you out with the flick of a wrist. Did you see the weapons that one with the fox mask was wearing? A sword and a Bo staff! I'm pretty sure he's not carrying them around for shits and giggles. And you see that bow? Responsible for the deaths of over a ninety people, nearly half of the Fox's accounted kills, plus all the others he's probably racked up that we don't know about."
That was the last thing the team heard before the team headed towards where the video conference rooms were, anxious to get a glimpse at their teammate, even though some of them didn't know what to think about the situation.
The meeting was simple and quick and Tony's head was spinning. He couldn't leave. Couldn't get away. Tony Stark and Iron Man were too noticable, had too high of a standing among the city's people, that for him to even go into hiding temporarily wasn't an option. And so Tony would have to stay as a member of the Avengers, had to try and work somethingout with the team and make it work.
When the meeting was done and the monitors off, Tony removed his mask. They knew, there was no reason for him to wear it now. Being maskless in front of the WSC would have been seen as a terrible insult. Tony breathed a sigh of relief as cool air brushed against his face, pushing his hood down and running his fingers through his hair.
"Awfully kitted out there, son." Tony looked up and came face to face with Fury. He smirked and ran his hand down the scabbard of Haru Urufu, Spring Wolf, the name he'd given his sword after blooding it three times, as tradition mandated.
"I know how to use everything you see, One-eye. Tread lightly." He snarked, though there was no heat in it. Maria snorted from the side and even Coulson smiled briefly while the other masked assassins behind him chuckled lively.
"What are you going to do, Stark?" Hill asked from her spot and Tony looked blankly at the wall before a hand on his shoulder brought him back. He looked up to meet the familiar mercury eyes of his dragon-masked lover. Tony was aware that his own eyes still glowed Vibrainium-blue and he smiled and it must have had an eerie effect because Hill shuddered lightly.
"I guess I'll...talk to the team. If they can't handle it, they can get out of my tower. If none of them can handle it, then the only time they'll ever have to see me is as Iron Man, or a passing glance if I ever come here for business." He said. Fury nodded.
"Fair enough." Was all he said. Tony took a deep breath and refastened his mask in place and pulled his hood up. He was just about to lead the way out when Hill's voice came from behind him.
"Hey Stark?" She asked and Tony turned to look at her, head tilted in question. "How do you breath in that thing?" The question took her off guard, but when he realized what she'd said, he laughed brightly and walked out the door.
And headlong into Steve Rogers.