Chapter 30 - The Cavalry

Agent Melinda May sat quietly in the solitude of her office, typing in reports regarding the missions of other reconnaissance and field agents. An Asian woman with a dark, emotionless veil, Agent May was a troubled woman, haunted by ghosts of a dark past who preferred to keep to herself rather than associate with other agents. That was all about to change soon.

Hearing footsteps behind her, Agent May glanced back, seeing Soladat approaching. May frowned.

Soladat gave May a smile. "Melinda."

"No." May said sternly, immediately returning to her reports.

Soladat sighed. "I take it you've read the reports?"

"I am not going back in the field, Agent Wrekk." May said a matter of fact.

Soladat rolled her eyes. "Oh, yeah. Sure. You've already got enough excitement here. You ever planning to take this desk anywhere?"

May glared at her computer screen, having stopped typing. She glanced up at Soladat, glaring. "I'm not changing my mind, Soladat."

"May, I just need you to drive the Bus." Soladat said, frowning. "You were the only one Coulson would ever qualify to fly that piece of shit. I sure as hell can't fly anything without crashing it. Plus, think about it. With me on the team, would you being on the field really be necessary?"

May lifted an eyebrow. "You recruited Agent Ward."

"I had my reasons." Soladat responded simply.

May continued to frown, until she gave a smirk. "Well, Soladat, it doesn't sound like you really need me at all."

"But I do."

May frowned up at Soladat again. Soladat continued. "There are no rules this time, Melinda. It will be up to us. No red tape, no taking calls. It's all us."

May frowned, thinking for a few moments. "You just want me to drive the Bus? That's all?"

"That's all."

May sighed. "Fine. When do we start?"

ooooo

"So, let me see if I got this." Ward said, glancing at Soladat. "You and the Prothean?"

Clad in her regular civilian clothes, which comprised of her leather jacket and white t-shirt, this time with a tight pair of jean shorts, Soladat walked alongside Ward, sucking on a cherry lollipop she picked up on the way. She gave Ward a frown.

"Yes. Is that a problem?"

"No, not at all." Ward said quickly. "I just... well... how do you..."

Soladat lifted an eyebrow. "How do I what?"

"How do you two... you know..." Ward said, but Soladat just kept looking at him questioningly. Ward sighed. "Never mind."

Soladat smirked, knowing full well what he was referring to. No way was she ever going to tell him, or anyone for that matter. Eventually, she and Ward strolled up to the large S.H.I.E.L.D. hanger up ahead. Soladat smiled when she saw the enormous aircraft stationed inside. A CXD 23 Airborne Mobile Command Station, better known as the Bus, a state of the art S.H.I.E.L.D. scientific transport. An enormous black jet modified by S.H.I.E.L.D. to serve as a flying command center for reconnaissance and scientific missions. Agent Coulson, before his untimely passing, had secured this particular Bus for his team.

And now, it belonged to Soladat Wrekk. Archangel's heart swelled with pride when she thought of that. She glanced over at Ward. "You know, I'm glad you decided to join us."

Ward rolled his eyes. "I'm only doing this because of you, Soladat. You better be straight about this."

"Aren't I always?"

The two agents walked into the open Bus, and immediately heard bickering from two of their new teammates.

"Hey, hey watch it!" A thick, Scottish voice said. The two agents looked to see two people, a young man and a young woman, clearly in their early twenties, standing amongst a pile of luggage and scientific equipment. The one who spoke, a curly, brown haired man of Scottish descent, ran over to the woman, taking a large rifle she had been handling.

He frowned at her. "This is the Night-Night Gun! You don't mess with that."

"Oh, come on." The girl, who had a cute, girlish face and long, brown hair, said. "There's no guarantee that it will actually work. And besides, there's no way we're calling it the Night-Night."

"Oh, it works." The man said back. "Non-lethal, heavy stopping power, break up under the sub-cutaneous tissue..."

"Oh, with a dose of .1 microliters of dendrotoxin. I'm not Hermione. I can't create instant paralysis with that." The girl said sarcastically. The two then started bickering over each other, and from nearby, Soladat and Ward glanced at each other in amusement. Looking back, Soladat dropped the bag she had been carrying, which hit the ground with a loud thud. Immediately, the two others stopped their bickering and looked up at the two who had entered.

Soladat smiled, and then looked between the two quizzically. "Er... Fitzsimmons?"

"Fitz." The girl said, pointing at her male companion.

"Simmons." The man, Leo Fitz, said pointing at the girl. "Agents Wrekk and Ward, I presume?"

"You presume correctly." Soladat said, smiling.

"Excellent!" Jemma Simmons said, clasping her hands together. She reached into a nearby bag, taking out a small swab. To Ward's surprise and Soladat's amusement, Simmons stuck the swab into Ward's mouth.

"What are you..."

"Just taking a simple DNA sample for our biometrics communications systems." Simmons said simply.

Ward gagged when she took the swab out of his mouth, and glared at Simmons, who just placed the swab on a surgical tray on the nearby table. She took another swab, and turned to Soladat.

"Agent Wrekk?"

Soladat smiled. "Go ahead."

Soladat opened her mouth, and let Simmons take the sample.

Ward frowned. "You ask for her permission, but not mine?"

"She's our superior, Agent Ward." Simmons stated. After taking the sample, she took the swab from Soladat's mouth and gave the two agents a smile. "So, you two ready for our expedition into mystery?"

"Like Christmas." Ward said sarcastically.

"Every day of my life is a journey into mystery, Ms. Simmons." Soladat said, hand on hip. "I assume you've read the reports?"

"Yes, I have." Simmons said brightly. "You've done many impressive things, ma'am. Surviving a vibranium implantation procedure, stopping several terrorist attacks single-handedly, fighting an alien invasion, and discovering a live, alien organism. It's all quite astounding really."

Soladat smiled sheepishly. "Yes, well. I've had a busy life."

Simmons gave the two a sweet smile, and then went back to working with Fitz on preparing their lab. Leaving the two alone, Soladat and Ward went up a series of circular stairs that led up to the upper deck of the plane. When they went inside, they were both surprised to see a nice, homey space, with several quarters on the side where the team would be sleeping.

There was also a meeting room with a high-tech S.H.I.E.L.D. terminal that the team would use whenever dealing with a threat that needed close analyzing. While Grant was exploring, Soladat came up behind him, standing close and glancing at him with a smile.

"So? What do you think?"

Ward didn't face her, just kept looking around the plane. "It's suitable. I assume you're the one who's piloting?"

"Yeah, no." Soladat said, smiling. "Coulson had recommended one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s more experienced operatives for that job."

"Really?" Ward said, looking mildly interested. "And who would that be?"

It was then that Soladat frowned, looking around curiously. "I'm not sure. She was supposed to be here already, but..."

"Agent Wrekk."

The two turned to see Agent May, now wearing a more combat worthy uniform, hands on hips, looking as professional as could be. Ward looked shocked to see her, while Soladat gave her a welcoming smile.

"We've received information on one of the Rising Tide's routing points." May said.

"And? Where is it?" Soladat asked.

"It's coming from Los Angeles, actually forty miles from where Tony Stark is giving his speech regarding the incident at the Norco."

"California?" Soladat said, surprised, earning a nod from May. "Get the Bus prepped up, May. We're leaving as soon as possible."

"Yes, ma'am." May said, leaving for the cockpit.

Ward watched her leave with a surprised look. "Was that who I think it was?"

"She's just the pilot." Soladat assured.

"Melinda May is just the pilot?" Ward said incredulously. He had heard a lot about her history. When Soladat said that she would be bringing some of the agency's finest into this little party of her's, he didn't think she was actually being legit.

"She's not going on the field. We've discussed this already." Soladat said. "I'm sure you're aware of her past?"

"Vaguely." Ward said, shrugging. "The stories have varied at the academy."

"Well, let's try not to speak of it to often when she's around." Soladat said, but then smiled. "Anyway, we've got our first target. You ready to get started?"

Ward smirked. "You bet."

ooooo

"The secret is out. For decades, your organization stayed in the shadows, hiding the truth, but now we know that they're among us. Heroes... and monsters. The world is full of wonders... We can't explain everything we see. But our eyes are open. So what now? There are no more shadows for you to hide in. Something impossible just happened. What are you going to do about it?"

Skye sat quietly in her van, the place she made her home, speaking into her computer. On orders from the Rising Tide, Skye was relaying her weekly speech out to the world, in particular, S.H.I.E.L.D.

"How will you come at us? From the air? From the ground? How will you silence us this time? How can you? The truth is in the wind. It's everywhere. You cannot stop the Rising Tide. You will not find us. You will never see our faces but rest assured. We will rise against those who shield us from the truth."

Skye didn't notice the door to her van had opened. "And nothing, nothing can stop us in..."

"Ahem."

Skye stopped, and slowly turned her head towards the open door. She saw two people standing there, one was a woman in a black leather jacket and jean shorts, with long curly brown hair. Her companion was a simple looking dark haired man in a black suit.

Skye looked at the two, at a loss for words. "Uh..."

Suddenly, the woman lifted up a small pistol and shot a dart that hit Skye right in the shoulder. Skye gasped, pulling the dart out, and was about to snap at the two, before she felt dizzy and fell from her chair. As her vision became cloudy, she looked up at the two who stood above her, before everything went dark.

Chapter posted. Review please.