Chapter 5 – New Boundaries
Somewhere deep in the Mojave Desert, one of the biggest secret operations was taking place. Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S., as the World Security Council had dubbed it, was a joint venture between S.H.I.E.L.D. and N.A.S.A., formed to investigate phenomena beyond the range of conventional scientific understanding. Both major contributors have provided scientific expertise to the project, and due to the highly sensitive nature of the research conducted there, S.H.I.E.L.D. also provided its security forces.
For many years, Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S. has played host to the Tesseract, an object of incredible energy that's origin has yet to be discovered. Scientists were completely baffled by it, and have never been able to find any way to ignite its immense power. Some hope came in the form of Xegh Hikesh, the 'Prothean.' The scientists had hoped the alien had some knowledge of the Tesseract, but Hikesh was not familiar with it. He was just as baffled as they were. Thankfully, some of the alien technologies recovered from Xegh's life pod allowed easier study of the Tesseract. Progress was going along a lot smoother now.
Now, on the subject of Xegh, he didn't seem to care about the scientists studying him or his technology. In fact, he welcomed it, believing that his place among them would in time uplift their cycle. That way, when the Reapers finally emerge many centuries from now, the humans may have a better chance at survival. Xegh's story of these Reapers was very unsettling. Fury didn't tell the World Security Council of them, for he knew they would not believe him.
Another noteworthy operation that was taking place in the subterranean facility included the White Investigation, as it had been dubbed by S.H.I.E.L.D. The operation dealt with the mysterious case of one Carrietta 'Carrie' White, the teenage girl who single-handedly caused one of the most catastrophic disasters in American history. Carrie White's frightening telekinetic powers leveled an entire suburbial town in Maine, all because of a heartless prank issued upon her by a group of cruel bullies. S.H.I.E.L.D. managed to covertly recover her and save her from a lethal stab wound, but she remained in a coma for several months until awakening in S.H.I.E.L.D. custody. The agency then made up a number of stories to cover up the destruction of Chamberlain, and to the whole world, Carrie was just another missing person.
Carrie was scared by the unfamiliar surroundings, and had reacted violently, forcing the agents to sedate her and keep her under quarantine. The girl was eventually deemed mentally unstable due to constant abuse and torment throughout her life, and it took a great deal of time for S.H.I.E.L.D. to get through to her and calm her down.
Now, Ms. White was nothing more than a nervous, quiet young girl, haunted by the ghosts of the past. She rarely ever used her powers unless directed to by S.H.I.E.L.D. as part of their 'sessions' with her. Many agents were weary of Carrie, but Agent Tremel was the first to show her any form of kindness, and was the first to get her to open up. Agent Tremel saw what Carrie had been reduced to when she and Agent Sitwell found her outside the Cavalier roadhouse, and instantly felt sympathy for the girl.
Currently, Carrie was sitting in her quarters, wearing a hospital gown and seated in a single chair. That, along with the bed positioned in the corner of the room, was really all she needed at the moment. She was just sitting there, her long, dirty-blonde hair draped over her eyes. She seemed to be thinking about something. Of what, nobody could really tell. Agent Coulson observed the girl through a one-way glass window, a sympathetic look on his face. He noticed Agent Tremel walk up, holding a stack of cards. The two smiled at each other, then directed their attention to the window.
"Any progress?" Coulson asked. Tremel shrugged.
"She's become a lot more stable. The violent outbursts and mood swings have stopped. She barely talks to anyone." Tremel said sadly.
"She'll talk to you." Coulson pointed out.
"Yeah, a few words." Tremel replied. "What she needs is someone she can really connect with."
The two looked at the girl through the glass. She looked so frail just staring off into nothingness, and it was easily the saddest sight Coulson ever had to behold. Tremel turned to him. "Is this right? Keeping her here against her will?"
Coulson sighed. "I don't like it either, Maureen. But the council has still deemed her a dangerous force that must be controlled. Plus, we'd need to go through all the trouble of creating a new civilian identity for her."
Tremel huffed. "Well, I better see her. She must be dying of boredom by now."
Coulson watched Tremel enter Carrie's cell. He couldn't hear what was being said, but he saw Tremel hold up the cards and say something to Carrie, who smiled and nodded. Smiling, Coulson walked away, and soon entered a large laboratory where several scientists were bustling around a machine that housed the most important scientific item in the entire facility: the Tesseract.
Looking around the room, Coulson's eyes fell upon a tall inhuman figure that was leaning over a table, studying some of the collected research. Walking over, Coulson greeted the figure.
"Hikesh."
The Prothean regarded the bald agent, nodding. "Agent Coulson."
"Have you made any new discoveries regarding the Tesseract?"
"Barely." Xegh shook his head. "The cube gives off energy readings similar to the mass effect fields that my people used during my last cycle. But other than that, this 'Tesseract' is… unreadable. Not even my own technologies can tap into its power."
"Well what about those senses of yours? Have you tried that?"
Xegh nodded. "I have. The energy it gave off was too intense. It actually forced me away."
"Well keep trying. The boss is hard pressed on getting this thing lit up." Coulson demanded, but Xegh blinked his four eyes, unsure.
"Agent Coulson," He began. "I have studied your peoples' history. I read about this World War and how the humans of that time couldn't decipher the Tesseract. If you cannot even decipher it today, then it may take decades for you to find a way."
Coulson turned serious. "We're willing to risk it. The benefits this could have on humanity are too grand to pass up. We need an unlimited power source."
"Yeah well, good luck with that." A new voice spoke up. Hikesh blinked, looking around for the source. But Coulson sighed, knowing very well who the voice belonged too.
"Agent Wrekk?" He asked aloud. There was a brief gust of wind, and suddenly, a young woman with large, metal wings landed nearby. She had curly brown hair and grayish blue eyes. Her skin was a light ivory color, and she had a sucker in her mouth. Most likely strawberry, Coulson guessed. She was wearing a white t-shirt and ripped jeans, and had a leather jacket thrown over her shoulder. Once she landed, her wings folded up behind her, receding into her back, and she put on the jacket.
"Nice to see you, Phil." Soladat Wrekk said, and then she looked over at the Prothean, and winked. "You too, Hikesh."
The Prothean huffed, and turned away from the girl. He was still miffed at her from the first time they met. She was sorry, yes, but people tend to stay angry after someone else has tried to shoot you with a sniper rifle.
"So what brings you back here, Soladat?" Coulson asked. "I had thought you'd be in Instanbul."
"My mission was cut short." Soladat shrugged, and then smiled innocently. "Why? You not happy to see me?"
Coulson sighed. "It's not that I don't enjoy your company, Soladat. It's just the other agents tend to be a little… apprehensive when your around."
Soladat frowned. "So they're nervous when I'm around, but there okay with him walking around?" She was motioning towards Hikesh, who looked at her, frowning.
"No offense, buddy." Soladat assured. Xegh just shook his head and went back to his work. Coulson shook his head at her.
"Look, Soladat, the World Security Council already has problems with you. They've been making comments about your actions during some missions. Not all of them positive."
"Since when have you ever liked the Council?" Soladat asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I don't." Coulson confirmed. "But what they says goes, no matter how hard Fury tries to defy them. So, just try to be a little less extreme on your next assignment, alright?"
Soladat smiled. "I'll try to do my best Phil. But fortunately for you, Fury's given me some time off."
Coulson raised an eyebrow. "He gave you vacation time?"
Soladat chucked. "Yup. Even specially trained assassins have to take a break."
"Where do you plan on going?" Coulson asked, a little worried. Soladat smirked.
"Someplace with little boundaries."
And with that, Soladat walked off, getting a few weary looks from some of the other agents. Coulson just shook his head, and turned back to look at Xegh, who was looking back at him.
"She behaves too erratically. She is going to get herself maimed one day." Xegh commented.
"Don't be so sure." Coulson said.
Introducing Soladat Wrekk, an OC created by Ketsueki no Kuki. Don't like OCs, then don't read. So now there are four characters. Others may be introduced later. Also, those of you who've been reading my other story, Thordis, are probably aware that that fic will now be a tie-in with this one. My reasons is because I don't like Chris Hemsworth and the whole point of United They Stand was to create a new timeline with several noticeable changes. Since I like Darcy Lewis, she will be on the Avengers in this fic. Don't like, don't read. Later.