Awakening

-.- I own nothing, don't say I do, or I'll have Mortem's Hell Hounds eat you.

Tony's POV

My eyebrow twitched and I had to resist the temptation to punch everyone in the room, again. Apparently, it seemed like Rogers didn't know when to drop a matter, and was still bugging Fury about Phase 2. Sadly, their disagreement had brought everyone back into the lab not fifteen minutes after they had left.

The time alone with Hel hadn't been wasted however;we had been able to clean up the footage and discovered who was behind the shooting.

I was pretty sure that Hel was the only reason that I hadn't blown up yet, and killed the person responsible.

Hel was very irritated at the moment but she was staying out of this argument. She was leaning back in the shadows, muttering to herself and glaring at everyone in the room. Personally, I was surprised that she hadn't lost it yet and hadn't started yelling at anyone yet.

I sighed as I stared at the searching program for locating the tesseract. It wasn't going very quickly, as it had to filter through a lot of global radiation for a very weak Gamma signal, but I knew that it would get there eventually.

A loud crash interrupted my thoughts and I turned my attention back to the arguing people in front of me.

Fury, Rogers, and surprisingly Thor, were all arguing about the necessity of Phase 2, while Romanoff and Coulson were arguing over the SHIELD regulation that Phil had apparently disobeyed when he didn't report Penny to Fury.

If a black shield constructed by Hel wasn't around Loki's staff, then I would have thought that it was manipulating us again. But I knew that the staff couldn't be the source of the anger manifesting in the room. There had to be another reason.

I had Jarvis scanning the whole Helicarrier, and comparing the results to the staff in order to see if there was any malicious energy pumping through the air base.

Part of me had been surprised to see the remaining people on this base who I associated with barging into the lab and arguing only a few minutes after Hel had chased them away. That was my first clue that something was wrong. Even if they were idiots, they usually had more sense than that.

"Sir, there is a foreign energy wavelength that is quite strong in this room. It is not the same energy manifested by the staff, but it is surprisingly similar to the energy I recorded during Miss Penny's attack and Dr. Banner's breakdown."

My eyes widened as my thoughts remembered the blast of purple that had affected the situation both times. My eyes then narrowed as my mind raced with the possibilities. Hel had been right, something, or someone else was pulling the strings here. And obviously, they didn't want any of us to get along.

For a moment I wondered why I wasn't being affected, before remembering that my stomach was a fiery storm at the moment, but Hel wasn't letting it affect my mind.

Suddenly very grateful for the young Asgardian, I shook my head and ordered Jarvis to see what he could do to counteract the rage intensifying energy. After my loyal AI did as I asked, I turned back towards the bickering childlike adults annoying me.

"Ok," I muttered to myself as I set my phone down and swiped away all of the holograms in the room.

"Will you all just shut up! You're acting like bratty five year olds; if you are going to be in this lab then you will calm down and use your brains! Otherwise, take your bickering someplace else!" I scolded with a harsh snap, instantly falling back into my 'father' voice. They all stopped and stared at me wide eyed, and I almost cracked a smile. Just because I was a billionaire genius didn't mean that I couldn't be responsible and serious.

"Just who do you think you are Stark? This isn't your lab, you can't order us around!" Rogers exclaimed, his eyes narrowed and his face red. Fury and Thor were both taking deep breaths, trying to calm down.

"I believe that I'm the one who hasn't lost their head!" I exclaimed, my voice sharp and biting. I added a silent, yet, in my mind. But I wasn't going to say that aloud, at all.

"Yes, you're perfectly sane." Romanoff sneered and my eyebrow twitched. I spotted Hel glaring that the redhead from her shadowy corner and had to stop snickering.

"I never claimed to be sane." I drawled my eyes cold and hard. "But I'm the only one who currently isn't trying to kill anyone else in this room!"

"We're not the ones who fly around in a metal deathtrap taking anyone who disagrees with you down!" Rogers exclaimed, causing me, Thor, and Coulson to stiffen. Hel snarled, and Thor's expression darkened as he narrowed his eyes.

"Do not insult Miss Penny's father." Thor growled and Hel started muttering to her uncle to calm him down.

Taking a deep breath so that I didn't start another argument I said, "That's not what I do, Rogers, and you would do well to remember that. Now, are all of you going to shut up or not?"

"You don't get to order us around Stark!" Fury snarled, his one eye narrowed. "Not matter how smart you think you are."

I groaned, realizing that they weren't rational at all. Turning my back on them as the arguments started again I rubbed my temples.

"What a mess." I sighed, wishing that I could just blast ACDC to tune them out.

My eyes widened as I fingered the small cube attached to my belt. If Jarvis couldn't pinpoint the location of the energy interfering with everyone's emotions, I could just block it out.

"Jarvis, what's the probability that the replicated shield will be able to block the radiating energy?" I asked quietly, wincing as I saw Thor's expression darken once again, and watched as Coulson started yelling.

This was getting really bad.

"Extremely high sir," Jarvis replied almost instantly into my earpiece. Nodding to myself I pulled the small cube off of my belt and set to work.

The power source required for the shield replicator wasn't too high, as it fed off of my Arc and I didn't want to be sucked dry. However that requirement was only for a five foot radius, enough to securely cover one person. To be able to shield the entire room...I was going to need a lot more energy, not from my Arc.

"Hel, would you toss me those?" I asked her as I moved over to a wall socket. I pointed at a pair of pliers as well as a screwdriver. She didn't move from her corner, though she nodded. The tools were flung at me by her black energy, and I swore I saw her eyes flash red as she turned her attention back towards the heated discussions.

I tried to tune out the noise as I worked, but it was very hard. Especially since both of the arguments were extremely infuriating.

I was quick to pull apart the wall's wiring, and break open the small cube. I just had to reroute the power source so that it ran off of the Helicarrier's electrical system rather than my Arc, and boost the rotation so that the shield used the larger source to grow.

"...you want a reason? I've already given you one!" I ears focused on Fury's voice as I snipped and stripped the wires. "Phase 2 is our last line of defense against those who outgun us! We're entering a world where we barely stand a chance against multiple enemies! Not only do we have to deal with our own human threats, but we must deal with those from other worlds, and those within our own who are starting to stand against us!"

My eye twitched as he basically blamed Thor and Mutants for the billionth time. I knew that everyone was out of sorts at the moment, but it was still ugly to see this side of people.

"...you shouldn't even have your badge!" I paused in my work to look at Romanoff in shock as she shrieked; yes, Romanoff was shrieking!

"I did what I thought was right! Penny was just a child, I saw no threat to SHIELD so I didn't report it!" I almost smiled at Coulson, but considering he was also yelling (something I had never seen him do before) I decided that getting the shield up as fast as possible was a priority.

Thor's booming voice entered the conversation again just as I connected the wires. He ranted on, insulting humans and basically calling us weaklings. I winced as I practically sensed Fury's blood boiling.

Yeah, this really needed to stop.

With a sigh of relief I finished hot wiring the power source, and with a frown of concentration on my face I poked at the innards...just a few more adjustments...

With a small laugh the device sprang to life and with a loud buzz, a bright blue shield bubbled out and encompassed the room.

Everything seemed to freeze as the others noticed the new shield that acted like a second skin to the walls. I climbed to my feet, dusting my pants off with a smug expression on my face.

"Now, will you children behave or do you need a time out?!" I drawled, drawing the eyes of everyone else in the room.

"Stark." Fury growled warningly and I rolled my eyes.

Standing up and frowning in disappointment at the others, I stepped instantly into my father/teacher role.

"No, I'm going to draw the line in the sand now. Fury, Rogers, you both need to get your heads out of your asses and focus on the problem now! It doesn't matter that there's people from other dimensions, or mutants in the world. Take responsibility for your own actions. Rogers, time is different now and you need to get out of the past. Thor, they were being idiotic but please remember that not everyone is like them. Besides, they were right, the Asgardians haven't exactly made the best impression to the majority of the Earthen powers."

I all stared at them sternly before turning towards Romanoff and Coulson.

"Romanoff, I hear that you are displeased but this is a discussion that Fury should have with his senior agent, and not you. What Coulson did is none of your concern, and I won't tolerate you harassing my friend. Now, will all of you calm down, or would you rather continue this pointless bickering?"

I gave them all stern looks as they looked around in confusion and shame, no longer sure why they were fighting in the first place.

"Now," I said cheerfully clapping my hands, extremely glad that they all shut up. "I would usually call you all emotional idiots, but considering that it was Loki's little puppet master pulling your strings I won't."

This earned me a few gobsmacked expressions from Rogers and Fury, sadly Romanoff and Coulson had reconstructed their masks so they didn't really react. I almost pouted, seeing Romanoff and Coulson frazzled had been brilliant

"Wait, I thought she took care of that?!" Rogers explained, pointing to Hel. Said Asgardian just gave Rogers a dull look, telling him that he was an idiot with her eyebrows.

"I canceled out the negative effects of the staff. I could not challenge the one who pull's my father's strings, that is beyond my power." Hel stated, speaking for the first time in a while.

"So someone was trying to make us fight?" Coulson asked, and I nodded as he became troubled.

"This is the third time that the two of you have stated that Loki isn't the one behind this." Fury stated looking between the two of us in thought. "How can you know this?"

"It is unlike my brother to act this way," Thor stated in thought, his eyes full of determination. "Tis very likely that someone has managed to grab hold of his mind. For he has been unstable for many moons, even before my banishment."

"That is the most likely scenario." Hel agreed, and everyone's attention turned to the two Asgardians. "I know from my mother that Father has not returned home for many moons, and it is unknown how long he has been under someone else's control. Mother had been away, and my siblings and I have long since left home. He was alone, something that is usually…not advisable turned into very grave."

I could hear the rage in her voice and knew that she was worried for her father. I wanted to know who was messing with our lives, who was the one pulling the strings. Whomever it was, they were responsible for Penny's 'death', Bruce's Hulk-out, Loki's insanity, and the anger that everyone was feeling. But could only control the variables around me, so I would deal with those first.

Fury sighed, drawing me back to the current situation. Romanoff looked ticked, but considering what I knew…I didn't really give a damn.

"How do we know what else has been a consequence of this person's meddling?" Fury asked, his mind spinning. I sighed and leaned back against the table. While my mind was spinning, and the fact that I had something to think about kept the pain at bay, knowing that there wasn't much I could do was calling it back.

"Let's focus on what we do know, and what we can figure out." I stated, getting everyone's attention once again. "Contemplate this; everything up to this point has been a series of strategic moves by the person Loki is currently enslaved to, if we are correct. First he basically waved his power in your faces, then stole your agents and scientists, causing you to panic and scramble to retaliate. He then allowed himself to get captured, basically walked right into our arms. Bruce was put out of commission, as was Penny. Then, we were pitted against each other in multiple incidences.

"Loki currently has the manpower and resources to invade, and possibly conquer this world. We are being moved like chess pieces, and our king is wide open. So why hasn't Checkmate been called? Why was Loki allowed to be captured, why did he walk here with open arms?"

All I got was contemplating or blank stares and I wanted to tear my hair out. It was times like that I really wanted Pen here, she at least knew what I was talking about!

"Arg! For once use your minds people! There was a doctor in here, a certain one with anger issues, working right next to a staff that was emitting energy to heighten anger! Look at what he's accomplished, think about it! What on earth could he have gained coming here, besides our own demise! He was pushing us, driving the wedges that already existed deeper, trying to tear us apart. He came to create an explosion, to divide us, and that's exactly what he's done!"

I took a deep shuddering breath as I finished my rant.

I was right though; everything had been about pitting us against each other. Penny's death, Bruce's freak out, my own instability…

"Genius." Fury muttered as his mind finally caught up to my own. "Divide and conquer...one of the oldest tricks in the book."

"Thankfully, we're not the first to fall for it." I stated with a smile, twirling a screwdriver with my fingers.

"And now we can counter strike." Rogers stated, being the most cool headed that I had seen him. My eyes narrowed and my head tilted as I noticed the change in his behavior. Maybe the puppetmaster had more than one puppet…

"You are a very wise mortal," Thor stated with a smile, nodding to me. "And very like Lady Penny."

I smiled at the man, before a large bleep echoed through the lab. I tossed the screwdriver down and pulled the holograms back up.

"Sir, the Tesseract has been located, however, there is also a security…"

Just as I was about to pull up the location of the tesseract, a large explosion rocked the Helicarrier, causing the shield to fail and sent all of us flying.

The next chess piece had just moved into place.

Hahaha, see I updated quickly! Or, well, quicker than I had before. I hope you liked it, I wrote it during class. (go boring school days!) I know it's more AU then the original version, but I think it still works.

Tell me what you think!
Cp