A/n: Just a disclaimer, because Skye is a hybrid and it is known that non-pure Inhumans may have strange reactions to Terrigenesis, I have taken liberty with her reactions to the process. Any power she gained has nothing to do with electricity, in case that is unclear.

Previously: Skye went into the chamber and had a reaction with the mists two days before the Skrulls wanted her to do the ritual. Meanwhile, the team have been out and about looking for Skye and Fitz. When they saw blue flashes of light, they decided to follow.

Chapter Thirty Five

Skye hadn't known what to expect.

Or rather, she'd expected many things. She had expected to be in pain – big old check, there – but even so, she'd expected to eventually not feel anything.

She did not expect this feeling.

Power.

She felt it surging through her veins, trickling and coursing through her blood and body like electricity as it sparked and filled her with life. Even though, she realized, she was near unconscious as she lay on the ground.

But she wasn't. Her eyes felt wide as saucers as she stared up at the ceiling of the chamber. She was aware that only a few seconds had passed since her cocoon had broken and the mist had sparked, causing this… feeling, to jolt through her.

Her cocoon.

How. Strange.

She wished she'd asked more questions to Paibok when she thought he was really Wolfe, because the cocooning process definitely took her by surprise.

More so that she even made it out of the thing at all.

But the Terrigen Mists apparently sparked a great deal of electricity when conducting with, for lack of a better word, herself, causing the covering over her body to break open in rapid, flying shards.

So Skye was wide-awake. Alert and aware. But for a few moments, as much as the electric shock filled her, surprise did as well. She just looked up, waiting for a noise to penetrate this deafening silence.

When it didn't, her body seemed to make a choice for her as her legs swung down from the strange position they'd fallen to: lodged up the side of the chamber. The chamber, she abruptly noted, that had cracked from whatever had happened.

She put her hands to her head, trying to stop its toggling around on her neck as though she were a bobblehead. It felt heavy and she couldn't keep it straight even with the support from her fingers.

As she managed to steady it her thoughts caught up to her, and with those thoughts came the thought that she was thinking those thoughts, therefore…

She was alive.

Which was… unexpected.

Picking herself up gingerly from the ground she attempted to scan her surroundings. Most noticeably, it was just quiet and dark. Then a spark lit up the room. Just for a moment, just a tiny blue light.

That came from herself.

It happened again. And again. Her body was producing some sort of static shock, or more. It didn't hurt, but even in Skye's ogled mind she registered it as hella strange.

But the sparks did give her a little extra insight as to what the room looked like, as well as her eyes ever adjusting to the darkness. Along with the fact that the many Skrulls, just a few minutes ago fiery and angry and terrifying as they attempted to claw their way into her cage, were now knocked out.

Even more pressing, the unmoving figure at her feet.

"Fitz!" she shrieked in concern. She'd tried to keep her voice somewhat quiet, though it still echoed through the halls of the spaceship. She reached for him.

Fzzt. Fzz.

Her hands recoiled. She was still teaming with electricity, static shock, or something. Whatever it was, she was afraid if she touched the man, it would hurt him.

But as a Skrull stirred beside her, she knew it didn't matter. She had to get Fitz off the ship. Not to mention, herself.

She grabbed at his hand, preparing for an incredibly difficult journey as she tried to pull it over her shoulder. For a guy Fitz was pretty light, but Skye wasn't exactly Rosie the Riveter herself. Still, she hauled him up.

And nearly pulled his arm out of his socket.

He flung up her shoulder, and she was so unprepared for the his jump that was made from her own muscles she flailed, trying to get a handle on him before he drifted back to the ground. Despite her fumbling she managed to catch him, and she felt strong.

She was strong.

Whatever the Mists were doing to her they were still coming off her body in waves, in moments of shock and shedding power. She didn't know if she would die still. She didn't know if the strength would last, if she had a power she hadn't noticed. For some reason, in her mind she knew the electricity was from the remainder of the mists shifting through her, and not a permanent gift from them. But it didn't matter. Only one goal mattered now.

Getting off this damned spaceship.

Skye carried Fitz in her arms, hauling him a little roughly. She had the power and strength to pick him up over herself, but did not have the shoulder space, as her body mass seemed to remain unchanged through the process.

Following what the Skrulls did when they'd brought them on in the first place, she managed to get the door opened and get off the ship. They appeared to be in the same place, on the same rooftop in Rome, even though Skye couldn't fathom why they'd want to stay there. But she was all too grateful for it.

It was dark. Nighttime escape; just as they'd planned.

She went into the old building and down the stairwell. Her sparking kept up a nice flashlight substitute in the pitch-black area, though it caused her to flinch each time it went off. Not that it hurt her in the slightest. She couldn't feel it at all really, but it was a strange occurrence that despite its frequency she nearly forgot about during each interval. The shock of being alive and the focus to get the pair of agents away from this situation took over most of her thoughts now.

When Skye had gotten the two of them clear of the building, beginning to start the trek away, she heard something that made her skin crawl.

The ship door opened again.

Which meant the Skrulls were awake and could be on her at any moment.

The girl shuffled away as quickly as she could with Fitz in tow, but even with the strength to lift and carry him, there wasn't much strength left to be fast.

But she'd damn well try.

Skye got a couple blocks over and happened upon a street that appeared to be a low key bar scene. The amount of people out told her it couldn't be too late into the night quite yet - or very early in the morning, depending on how you looked at it - as there were still many partiers living it up.

The frazzled hacker was somewhat relieved to be around other people, even if she knew she couldn't stay there. Still, she had to stop and stare. Just for a few moments because something was weird. Something was off with these people.

They were glowing.

Different colors wafted off of them as vapor from a fresh shower. Radiating like a big glow stick party... if someone had taken out the juice from the things and threw it into the air.

As Skye observed the scene in a shocked silence, she made note that each person seemed to be holding their own color, even if many of them were the same: red. Some a light red, some a reddish-orange. There were also a couple darker greens and purples.

It was bizarre, and Skye couldn't help but just stare. Did no one else see this?

Fitz shifted in her arms.

Whatever was going on, it would have to wait for an explanation later. Right now, she needed to get away, or at least contact her team. Maybe she could ask someone for a phone…

"Skye?"

She nearly screamed at the sound of her name, but it was a familiar voice.

Ward stood in front of her.

Skye's heart burst and plummeted in her chest at the same time.

"Oh thank god," he told her, the relief in his voice impossible to miss.

But after her start, Skye didn't move. Not an inch. She just stared, attempting to absorb the sight in front of her.

His face looked overjoyed with relief, as a genuine, full out smile lit it up, which was something she'd only seen on this man's face a few times in her life. Still, he was certainly exercising a portion of caution when he made a step for her.

He was a Skrull. He had to be a Skrull. What were the odds her team would find her so quickly? Even if the chances were good at all, the Skrulls finding her first was surely the highest probability.

And maybe it mattered, maybe it didn't, but there was also the fact that he was glowing too.

Unlike the rest of the crowd, he seemed to be sort of… morphing through colors quickly? Yellow, to aqua, to purple. Skye may have witnessed it happening in the group of partiers a couple times, but not quite this fast.

She pulled Fitz back defensively.

"Stay away fro-om us," she told him firmly, her voice skipping when a shock decided to jolt through her at the time. She'd almost forgot about the side effect.

Any happiness that was on Ward's face dropped; concern was all that was present now. And maybe some anxiety. Skye made note of a color change to the mists that surrounded him. The yellow was gone, the purple dimmed. An aqua hue was the dominant one now.

"Hey, it's ok, Skye. You're ok. It's Ward," he cooed gently with his hands out in a surrendering gesture. "I'm me, I promise. We know about the Skrulls and their abilities, but this is me. Coulson's around here too."

"Coulson…" Skye mumbled out in breathy tones, yearning to see the man. She also yearned to jump into Ward's arms, let him carry her and the engineer back together in a great big group hug.

But there was quite a good chance "Ward" would carry them right back to the ship they'd come from.

Even as the colors danced in front of her vision and obstructed her thoughts, the question she asked was probably somewhat unconventional for the situation.

"What is wrong with you?" Skye demanded, to which Ward's confusion deepened, his brow furrowing. "The colors! You're glowing. All spectral-like."

Ward hesitated, but eventually took a step forward. Slowly. Calculated. Like he was approaching some injured animal and wasn't sure of what its response would be.

"I don't think I see what you're seeing, Skye," he told her gently, staring intently into her eyes. "Did they do something to you?"

"Don't ask me questions! You're just trying to distract me!" she snapped. "I need to get out of here…"

"No! Skye, please don't go," he asked desperately, evidently afraid to have her slip from his fingers. But for what reason... concern of her well being or concerned his prize would slip away? "Call Coulson! He'll tell you where we are. And since it's his number, a number you know, you'll know it's him."

That sounded like a good idea. For her, yes, or as a distraction tactic for him. He could be stalling. Could be a Skrull.

Or he could just be Ward trying to get her to come home.

Skye didn't know. She just didn't! And her life, and Fitz's, were literally hanging in this moment and the stupid choice of whether or not she could trust someone.

All the colors raving in front of her eyes didn't help either.

"Find me a phone," Skye ordered coldly. "I'm not using yours."

Ward nodded with relieved eagerness, going into the group of people quickly to ask for a device. Skye took the moment of waiting to rearrange Fitz, drape an arm over her shoulder so it seemed she could just be supporting a friend that had already had their limit of partying for the night.

Ward came back less than a minute later, tossing Skye the phone from a few feet away.

"Oi!" a spikey-haired girl he'd brought with him shouted, the light red rays emitting from her turning darker. Skye supposed it must have been whose phone he'd borrowed, but she couldn't help the uneasy thoughts that ran through her head about everyone around her…

Skrull. Skrull. Skrull.

"I said you could borrow it mate, I didn't say you could throw it at your weird girlfriend." The girl gave an angry nod at Skye. "Where did you even find an outfit so hideous?"

Skye ignored her (though not without the inward realization that she and Fitz were still wearing their alien jumpsuits), as she'd already been typing Coulson's number in the phone, holding it up to her ear by the time the girl finished her speech. Out of the corner of her eye, Skye could see that the Spikey Hair had turned livid. Ward spoke up.

"She's actually not my girlfriend, just my friend," he said, flashing her small smile that would keep any woman busy trying to get her heart not to melt. "And I really appreciate you letting her use your cell. That was so nice of you."

Spikey Hair was just short of mesmerized, her eyes growing big at Ward's tender and grateful words. "Oh, not a problem," she stated with a complete change of tone. "Just didn't like seeing it thrown about. But maybe once I get it back, you and I could get a drink…"

"Hello?"

The voice on the other end of the line snapped Skye into listening, her heart leaping when she heard the team leader.

"Coulson! It's me," she told him quickly, making sure her head was clear enough to keep an eye on MaybeWard and his new friend.

"Oh Skye… thank god," he breathed in relief. "Where are you?"

"Um…" She glanced at the sign. "A bar called 'On the Rox'. I don't know where…"

"I know where it is. I'm right next door."

"Is Ward with you?" she asked.

"He's somewhere in the vicinity. We split up."

"He's here," Skye told him, relief hitting her like an ocean's wave as she watched the specialist chat up the girl. He was distracting her. He was distracting her so Skye could confirm it was him and he could take her back to the BUS, where she and Fitz could finally be safe.

"I'll be there in two minutes, Skye," said Coulson through the phone. "Just stay with Ward and-"

"Skye!"

Again she turned around at the abrupt shout of her name, but the sight before her had the color draining from her face. It wouldn't usually, but when someone is talking in your ear, you wouldn't think to see them saying something else right in front of you.

And unless they'd stolen Coulson's phone, she was pretty positive the one in front of her was the fake one.

Skye found herself backing up with Fitz clutched firm in her hands. Quickly realizing she didn't want to alarm the Skrull that she was onto its charade, she willed herself to stop. It wasn't easy.

"Coulson?" she asked the Skrull, taking a moment to appreciate the aura that seemed to be attached to everyone and their mother since she'd gotten off that spaceship. But his… it was strange. Instead of coming off in waves, it came off in jagged spurts; different than anyone else she'd seen.

"Skye, are you still there?" she heard real Coulson's voice from the phone, which had drifted a couple inches from her ear.

"Yeah, I'm-"

"Who are you talking to?" asked fake Coulson.

"I was just-"

"Just stay with Ward, Skye! There are shape shifters around, don't talk to anyone else," real Coulson informed her.

"I know, I'm not-"

"Aren't ya done yet?" Skye heard Spikey hair, as she felt the phone ripped from her grasp.

"Hey!"

"It's my phone!" the girl protested, and Skye stopped paying attention to her, turning back to fake Coulson. Fake him was staring at her with fake concern. "Whatever, I'm leaving this freak show."

The girl walked off mumbling something about "old men in suits," when Skye felt Ward approach her from behind, though he still kept his distance.

"See, here's Coulson. Can we get out of here now?" Ward asked.

"Skye, let me help you with Fitz…" fake Coulson suggested, coming closer to her.

"No!" she exclaimed, dragging the engineer away like a mother bear with her cub. "Just… everybody back up!"

Maybe Ward was real, maybe he wasn't. It could be either way since phone Coulson told her they were both in the vicinity. But the Coulson in front of her… there was no doubt about it. He was a Skrull.

"Please, Skye…" said Ward desperately, though she could hear his frustration. "We have to go! They could be on us at any moment, and I swear to god it really is us-"

"Oh thank god!" exclaimed another Coulson, the real Coulson, as he came running at them. He jogged passed the other two and directly up to Skye. The only person she'd allow in her little bubble.

Unlike the jagged shapes of colors coming off of the fake Coulson, this one held the same colors she'd seen Ward with when she first saw him: yellow, aqua, and purple.

She felt a very big urge to hug the man, but with Fitz on her shoulder and a still dire situation in front of her, she knew that would have to wait. Though she did accept the help from her team leader as he lifted Fitz's other arm over his shoulder.

Ward began backing away from the lot of them.

"This can't be good…" he said warily, surveying the group.

Coulson's eyes widened as Skye knew he was just noticing his double. She opened her mouth to explain the dilemma, but was suddenly distracted as two new figures entered the scene from the back of the bar.

"Damn. For an older chap you really move fast," said an English man Skye was fairly certain she'd never seen before. He was definitely out of breath when his golden brown eyes met with Skye. "This the girl then? …and I bet that's the engineer?" he added as his gaze shifted to Fitz, before finally turning to Coulson. "And… holy hell there's two of you."

The other figure that had come in with the man looked just as shocked. Skye could tell from Simmons' quick jump along with a small yelp of surprise.

"Dear lord!" she said, shocked. "How can we know who's who?"

Ward's eyes scanned the group quickly, obviously calculating some sort of response.

"Well Skye seems ok with that Coulson," he said, nodding to the agent.

"But she could be wrong!" protested Simmons.

Skye stared at Jemma, noting how surprised she looked at the situation, but at the same time, she didn't seem particularly worried. The hacker noted there was a definite lack of concern for anyone's well being. Noted the fact that her aura matched the only confirmed Skrull. Noted that she stood just a little too comfortably near said Skrull.

Skye's hand reached around the back of Fitz and into Coulson's gun holster. Grabbing the one she knew to be an ICER, she let Fitz's weight fall completely onto her team leader and fired six shots: three at fake Coulson, three at fake Jemma, just for good measure.

"Christ!" shouted the English man as he knelt down to check on her. "Bloody hell, you didn't tell me she was crazy! Are all SHIELD women completely insane?"

Skye suddenly felt offense mix with her whirlpool of current emotions.

"I'm not insane, Trainspotting."

"And I'm not Scottish!" the man protested. "But why the hell shouldn't I think you are? You just shot Agent Simmons!"

"It's not really her. They're both Skrulls," Skye explained, hoping whoever this was (and everyone else) knew what she meant by it. "I can tell. They give off… a different color."

English snorted. "Oh yeah. Playing with a full deck, this one."

"Hunter. Shut up," ordered Coulson. "Actually, talk. Do you have any idea where Simmons is?"

"You don't really believe her, do you?"

"Of course I do!" Coulson exclaimed shortly, Fitz still in his arms. "Is there any point when you separated that she could have been intercepted and replaced?"

"Uh, yeah actually. Rest stop, couple blocks back."

"We have to find her," Skye said with determination, already starting to head the way Hunter had gestured.

"Actually, I may be able to help you out there."

That was a new voice. Well, not new. But new to the current conversation. It was also a voice she never, ever expected to hear again.

"Wolfe?" she asked incredulously.

The man looked exactly as she'd known him, other than the jumpsuit he was wearing. But she hadn't ever known him. She'd known Paibok the Skrull, a tormentor. The evil leader she'd come to compare as Hitler in her own mind. She'd never met her real father.

But the colors… the aura. They weren't lit like the fakes. They seemed more like the team's and dancing people's colors.

Like he was… real.

And she certainly hoped he was. Not just for the sake of not wanting to deal with a Skrull, but because Skye could only assume that was the real Jemma Simmons held unconscious in his arms.

Assume because there were no colors coming off the girl. But as there were none coming off of Fitz either, Skye was starting to believe whatever was happening didn't happen when you were asleep.

Skye was awestruck and so sure in her gut that the man before her was her true father. She'd felt it before, this feeling of positivity. But after a dream that merely showed her what he was on the outside. The person she'd seen as a baby, with her own two eyes.

She could see the inside now.

"Is he a friendly?" asked Hunter after hearing Skye say the man's name.

Ward cannoned his gun up to point at the man and Coulson set Fitz down rather harshly to do the same.

"Guess not," Hunter chimed, raising his weapon as well.

"How…?" Skye mumbled.

"I was on the ship. Your Terrigenesis shorted the circuits, I tried to come after you."

Skye could feel how wide her eyes were, in awe and completely drawn to the man bathed in yellow and olive greens.

She stepped forward.

"Skye don't get too close!" protested Ward, stopping her stride with a hand to her arm.

She crumpled.

"Ahah!" she shouted, falling to her knees. She felt it. And by it she meant just... a heck of a lot. She felt concern, joy, tenderness… excitement at finding the person they were looking for because thank god they found Skye they needed to find Skye-

Hold up, wasn't she Skye?

She didn't even know anymore. The feelings were drowning her. And when she opened her eyes, the blues and purples and reds were flooding her mind, clouding her vision. She couldn't see. Sparks were flying off of her in waves and she recognized that the lights to bar began to short out, making it even darker except for the spectrum of mists in front of her, wafting off people.

She could barely make out the cries of eagerness to help from her concerned friends before she was too overwhelmed by emotions to feel anything at all.

A/n: So I've been lightly basing Skye off the mutant Luna, who has the abilities (that will be elaborated on soon) and is an Inhuman hybrid as I've made Skye. Lame to reveal this is an AN, but I didn't think Skye on the show would be based off an actual character from the comics and I didn't want to say her name was something it's not xD

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! While I was off writing a Christmas one shot, Shadow375 WAS WRITING ME THESE AWESOME LYRICS OH MY GOD SERIOUSLY IT'S ABOUT THIS STORY AND IT'S PREQUEL AND I LOVE IT. I've read it so much. I would have totally put it as a separate chapter but then the numbering would be messed up... IT STILL NEEDS TO BE HERE THOUGH. Thank you again Shadow!

To be read in the tune of Jingle Bells :D

A New Jingle
by Shadow375

Dashing through Cybertek

Looking for little Ace

Ward and May are fighting

May's hit right in the face

Skye tricks Ward for a while

Before she then gets caught

By the psycho Garrett

This is Viva's plot!

Oh! Wolfe is there, to help the team

Get the lost girl back,

But he ends up kidnapping her

To look like a good dad!

He fakes his death, when Ward turned

On his old SO

No one saw it coming now

Thought it was a Disney show.

Fitz is kissing Simmons,

One too many times.

The team finally rescues Skye,

She breaks down and she cries.

Her dad then tells a myth,

Of Skrulls and all their hate

Now Skye has to die really soon

Cause she controls their fates.

Oh What the hell! Coulson says

To the crazy man.

Sacrificing your own daughter,

It's a stupid plan!

They find the crystals,

When they go, for a little swim,

Confirming the words of the man

That is a sheep in wolf's skin.

Her dad is now a creep

Threatening mankind

If Skye isn't a sacrifice,

Gravitons in line.

Asgardians are called,

They send down Lady Sif,

She tells them there is no such thing

As the crazy myth!

Oh! But Skye is gone, She's already left

Fitz holds her scared hand

He claims he understands her choice

To go and take a stand.

Oh my God, what just happened?

Fitz was just a fake!

The real one's alive and functioning

In a normal state.

Too bad his second chance,

At life is put to waste

When the Skrulls go and torture them

Word games they will hate.

They find a way to run,

She sees the crystal blue

Skye gets into the creepy chamber,

She's turned into a caccoon,

Oh what the hell! There is light

The chapter ends right there!

I hope the mercs and Coulson's crew

Find them with no despair.

This is where, the song will end,

Got nothing left to say

Viva's 20,000 words

Will give it all away!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

(I was 20,000 words ahead in this story, in case your confused there ;))