Chapter 20: Avengers Tower

"Entering the arena, the still-undefeated champion of Avengers Tower- Loch Nessa Ryker!" Tony was sitting at Inessa's bedside when she woke around midday. She tried to turn her head to see him, "Nope, you've got to keep still. The back of your neck was torn clean off, remember?"

Inessa tried to reach out with her other senses and see through the shadows of the room- nothing. No Nadya, no Valley. She sighed, frustrated.

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that. Grounding still stands. Until we can safely reattach this," he held up the discarded implant, "JARVIS is your DJ."

"How much trouble-" Inessa's throat was dry, scratchy, and raw. Speaking set off a small coughing fit- which only agitated the oozing scabs on her neck.

Tony winced in sympathy, "Not envying you right now, kiddo. If you were asking how much trouble we're in, we don't know. The med Suits were blown to hell on their way to the hospital with the little assassins still inside. JARVIS is analyzing the data and security camera feeds now and we should have a rough idea soon enough. If, on the other hand, you were wondering how much trouble you and Bucky are in-" he waited to see Inessa's response. She did what she could to indicate a nod, "none at all. There were no rules against walks- even though there damn well are now. Pulling the implant probably was the only call that could be made, so yeah- you're both off the hook."

Inessa nodded (sort of) and swallowed several times before trying to speak again, "How is Bucky?"

"Bitchy, brooding, grumpy- nothing new."

"I heard that," Inessa couldn't turn to see him, but Bucky was propped up in the bed on the other side of her from Tony. He'd been awake for an hour or so already.

"Oh, good, your hearing is alright. JARVIS, add that to the med file."

"It was never not alright," sometimes he understood Steve's frustration with Stark.

Tony stood up with a smirk- he liked Bucky. He was almost as fun to needle as Steve, but tended to take it better. On a good day he'd even dish it back. "I've got work to do on this thing," he held up the implant, "and you two are on lockdown in here until JARVIS gives you the all-clear, so hang tight."

"JARVIS, give me the all-clear."

"I cannot do that, Mister Barnes, bed rest is still advised for one in your current condition."

"I'm coming after your hard drive with a magnet," Bucky grumbled.

Something low came over comms, Bucky wasn't entirely sure he'd heard it right, but Inessa's suppressed giggle (and groan from the pain that caused) made him think the A.I. really did just say "Good luck getting it off your arm first."

A knock on the door stalled Steve on his way to the meeting room, "JARVIS, who is it?"

"Doctor Pryor to see you and Miss Inessa," Steve sighed, he didn't have time for this right now.

"Hold on for a few minutes, I have to deal with something," he waved off Tony and Sam as they headed in. Before opening the door, Steve plastered on a courteous smile, "Doctor Pryor, how are you?"

She came in quickly, before he even had a chance to turn her away. The doctor seemed agitated, "I saw a news story saying someone destroyed several of Mister Stark's suits and Inessa missed her appointment- naturally I was worried for the well being of my patient."

"I'm going to have to ask you to come back tomorrow, now isn't a good time," Steve blocked her path before she stepped further into their home.

Pryor immediately began to push at Steve's mind with her gifts, "Why isn't it a good time?"

There's no harm in telling her, he thought suddenly, she just wants what is best for Inessa, "Inessa was injured last night, not critically but she does need her rest. I'd speak with you but I'm on my way into a meeting with the other Avengers to decide how we are going to respond to the attack on those suits as well as the deaths of the teens inside. If you'd please just bear with me, I'm sorry that I forgot to call and tell you she wouldn't make it today."

"Swear to me I will be permitted to see my patient tomorrow? You won't send her out of town? I don't have to tell you how detrimental that would be to her treatment at this time." she nudged at Steve's mind again, making her words lock in place.

"Y-yes," he felt odd, slightly dizzy and dazed, "I promise. Now, please," he stepped around her and grabbed onto the still-open door.

Doctor Pryor checked his mind one last time to make sure her puppet would play his part, then smiled, suddenly friendly again, "Of course, pardon my intrusion. Have a nice day, and I hope nothing is too amiss."

"Thank you for your understanding doctor, you have a nice day as well." Steve closed the door, shook his head to dis-spell the fog, and returned to the meeting room where the four at the farm were already on the screen. He'd intended to send Inessa back as soon as possible, but maybe he was being too hasty. Maybe the city really was the best place for her right now.

Sebastian Morris' Base - Location Unknown

"Tell me Ryker, what would your next move be, if you were them?" Albatross was reclining on a small sofa while the (now much younger) General cut up an apple at the kitchen table nearby.

"They would be fools to not see this as a declaration of war," Ryker remained focused on peeling the skin away from the apple. "They should gather in one place and dangle Nadya out for all their enemies to see. If they were convincing enough, even Morris might buy into the illusion. Then, once we attack, they should scramble their lineup, keep each of us from ever seeing our targets, and hope that is enough to stop us."

"And what is it you believe they will do?" Albatross liked Ryker, he reminded him of his favorite KGB leader from back in the good old days. Competency was so hard to come by.

"They will continue to keep secrets from one another, allow their ranks to become weak, focus on all the wrong problems, and when we do attack, they will die. Disappointingly quickly."

Albatross grinned, "Not my Natasha. I've known her since she was just a wee lass- she'll die, but I bet she puts up a hell of a fight on her way out the door."

"You believe you can beat her this time? You've been in prison for twenty years, she has continued to train and fight all that time."

"Natasha used our friendship to lure me into a trap, this time that will not be possible. Besides, her mind will be so muddled and confused by the time we are unleashed she'll barely be able to muster a defense, let alone an offense."

"Compared to the rest of you my job is easy- lock Banner down before he becomes the Hulk, then let that green bastard rage and test the strength of his prison until he becomes the man again. He'll provide me with plenty of blood to analyze, then Morris will take him as a gift of thanks from me to his master, along with my disappointing granddaughter. Hopefully he'll be able to make something remotely respectable out of her, unlike my idiot son. Sunshine and rainbows all around."

"Ideally," Albatross agreed, "but don't get ahead of yourself. Hubris is as dangerous an enemy as any. Remember how Banner defeated you in the past, and what it cost you. Make sure he isn't in a position to do that again. And we will need to be patient and evaluate the others Mister Morris brings in on this venture- three Avengers are still without enemies, and I do not like the idea of trusting the brother of the Avenger to take part in his assassination."

"Family makes the best enemy sometimes," Ryker for one didn't doubt the hatred Berny had for his elder brother.

"I do hope you are right."

Morris cleared his throat as he entered with a large and very old man- at least seven feet tall, "Gentlemen, allow me to introduce Cul Borson, the Serpent of Asgard." he snapped his fingers and two dozen Hydra agents entered the room and lined up neatly against the far wall, "Will that be enough? I can find more."

The man spoke with a frail, strained voice, "They'll make a good enough start." He held out a grizzled hand towards the soldiers. A black mist poured from him and slipped across the room. Albatross casually lifted his feet to keep the mist from touching him and watched. As it touched the Hydra agents they seemed confused- clearly they hadn't been told what kind of assignment this was to be. Ryker was intensely interested as the men began to scream and tried to break ranks. The mist acted like concrete and locked them in place. One by one the light in their eyes faded, their irises became milky and opaque. Some lines appeared on their faces as the skin sagged and hung limp.

Albatross turned from the spectacle to watch Cul Borson himself. All of the Hydra soldiers had withered to the half-alive state, but he was now quite the opposite. His white, thin hair was growing thicker and darker, the hunch in his spine straightened out, and he seemed to glow with an otherworldly youth. His face was quite peaceful, whereas his victims looked dead at best. Walking corpses. "Welcome to our merry band, Mister Borson," he wouldn't stand and risk the mist, but Albatross nodded his head politely to their new teammate.

"Take care how you address me Midgardian," the man's voice boomed, filling the room- a voice meant to be heard over large crowds, "I am a God."

"My most sincere apologies, your holiness," Albatross tried his best to mask the sarcasm in his voice. He half-bowed, still refusing to stand from his chair, "I look forward to our partnership moving forward."

"Tell him your line about hubris," Ryker mumbled under his breath. Morris escorted Cul Borson to another room in their little base, leaving him and Albatross with the zombies in the corner. He didn't like the attitude- anyone who declared himself a god was closer to the nut house than Olympus or Asgard or whatever the hell he thought he ruled, but he had to respect the display of power. Suddenly this venture was looking much more promising.

Albatross was eyeing the soldiers in the corner, still vacant and staring, "I hope they don't begin to stink."

For story notes visit ProjectEchoFanfic dot tumblr dot com

Also, there seemed to be a wee bit of confusion with the last chapter. I received a handful PMs asking about the whole bit with Odin and I wanted to confirm that he *is* Loki. Everything pre-"Age of Ultron" from the MCU is being taken as canon for "Project Echo"- including Loki deposing Odin and taking his place (that goes for his mini-appearance in Part 1 as well, Odin has never appeared in "Project Echo", only Loki).