S1-112
He who is worthy

7:23 PM
08/18/3272

Approaching planet Earth

Music
none

Since Michael had finished his machine, and the Shadow had Taken Wizards and Hydras to work on what the machine would need to function, he had decided to respond to a radio contact... from a very old friend. "Tony Stark. MAN it's been a while!"

"Centuries, I know. Listen, I got Avengers Tower back in shape, and I was wondering if you'd like to meet some of my old teammates."

"You got it. I'm on my way, and I'm not coming alone."

"This should be interesting." Tony sounded intrigued.

7:29 PM
08/18/3272

Planet Earth - Avengers Tower
Recreational center

Once they had landed, Michael exited the Drop Ship, followed by his entire Fireteam, consisting of, Samus, Jenny, Spyglass, Blisk, Dane, Jack, Sarah, Mark-18, Hayden-10, and Tanner-21.

There were more people there, and they had Ghosts. Michael's helmet had acquired their IDs.

SCANNING...
NEW ENTRIES

1: Bruce Banner
2: Natalia Romanoff / Black Widow
3: Thor Odinson
4: Clinton Barton / Hawkeye
5: Steve Rogers - Captain America
6: Sam Wilson / Falcon

"The Avengers, I'm guessing?" Michael wondered, taking off his helmet.

"How does he know about us?" Steve asked.

"I told him. It was a few centuries ago." Tony answered.

"Well, who are these guys?"

"You first." Michael politely gestured to the Avengers, removing his helmet.

"I'm Bruce Banner, one of the three scientists of the Avengers, and-"

"{His alter ego gives me the creeps. I can hear him in Bruce's head.}" Bruce's Ghost interrupted.

"OK, that's almost as creepy as Eris Morn." Michael shivered. "I do NOT miss her."

"Yeah, anyway, that 'alter ego' is known as the Hulk. An experiment of mine involving gamma waves went wrong, and that created the Hulk."

"The Hulk has some breathtaking anger management issues." Tony added.

"Name's Natalia Romanoff, otherwise known as Black Widow. I'm a S.H.I.E.L.D operative, one of their best spies, and I was also one of the founding members of the Avengers."

"I am Thor, son of Odin, God of Thunder. And one of the Avenger's founding members."

"Name's Clint, you can call me Hawkeye. I never miss."

"I think you and my sister would get along just fine." Dane stated.

"The name is Sam Wilson, but you can call me Falcon."

"Reminds me of a Simulacrum named Falco." Michael recollected.

"I'm Steven Grant Rogers. You can call me Steve, Captain America, or just Cap. Tony's told us a lot about your 'IMC' organization. At first, I was beginning to think it was just some HYDRA trick, until I got some solid information."

"Nice to meet you guys. Now for us. I'm Michael W Johnson, leader of IMC squadron Eagle-Eye 9-1, now known as City Hawk 723. This is my Fireteam."

"I'm Samus Aran, formerly an intergalactic Bounty Hunter, now I'm Michael's second-in-command."

"I'm Jenny Aran-Johnson, their daughter. I grew up to follow in my dad's footsteps, becoming a Pilot."

"I am Spyglass unit #826591740-A, Vice Admiral of the IMC. You may refer to me as Spyglass. Spyglass units handle logistics, navigation, deployment, and communication between all IMC forces on the Frontier. They are built on a modified Spectre chassis and are considered expendable in the field. These units often accompany ground forces aboard Drop Ships to provide up-to-date mission information and live surveillance. I may be the only one left, but that means I am no longer expendable."

"The name's Kuben Blisk, former mercenary and recommissioned IMC Commander."

"I'm Dane C Smithsonian, Michael's former mentor. I handle weapons assessment and I help Michael in strategizing."

"I'm Jack Cooper. Sarah and I run recon until a mission is assigned."

"The name's Sarah Briggs, and you just heard what I do."

"I'm Mark-18, a Warlock, and these are my brothers, Hayden and Tanner. I handle strategically placed security firepower. And they call me Ikora Rey's greatest student, but I'm not so sure about that."

"The name's Hayden-10, Mark's Hunter brother, handling long range targeting and close-quarters combat."

"Tanner-21, that's my name. I'm the Golem of the Exo brothers, and I use my Light to defend the Fireteam should the need arise."

"Well, you guys seem like you can handle yourselves pretty well, and you seem more coordinated than we were back in the day." Steve stated.

"We never argued about our plans." Samus added.

"The perfect team; one who never argues about the plans made by the leader." Tony remarked.

Jack spoke up. "That's mainly because Michael has this sort of... dark half."

"Dark half?" Thor wondered.

It was then that a Taken rift opened, and the Shadow stepped out of it. "The Avengers. You're a pretty good team, but I'd say City Hawk 723 is better."

"That's true, since we didn't really stand a chance against Ghaul. We're lucky to have even survived." Bruce replied. "Not even the Hulk could smash his way through the Red Legion."

"Yeah, Michael was the one to kill Ghaul. Anyway, I'm the Shadow, Michael's dark half. The name is Death. I came about when a Hive god named Oryx 'took' Michael, thus creating me. I was originally loyal to the Taken King, until I learned the truth, and my allegiance turned to the Light. Now Oryx has been added to the Taken, which are under my control, and I am the new Taken King."

"A force of evil fighting purposefully for good? What sort of scheme are you planning?" Thor demanded.

"If the Darkness is a force of pure evil, then I intend on replacing it with myself, Thor. Imagine replacing a bad version of something with a good version of it."

The Odinson lowered his hammer. "You mean to say that you are the good that came from the essence of evil?"

Michael interjected. "The Shadow is the one good thing that was born from it."

"Exactly."

It was then that Thor laid his hammer, Mjølnir, on a nearby coffee table, then stepped aside. "Oh boy, I remember this." Tony sighed.

"Seems like Thor wishes to know if any of you are... worthy." Natalia added.

"Spyglass and the Exo brothers can sit this one out, since they're-"

"Artificial life forms. Mjølnir will only respond to living beings."

"Well, yeah." Tony finished.

Samus decided to give it a go, finding that she could barely move it... but it did move.

Jenny tried it next, only getting a faint creak as it budged on the table. Thor's smiled faded.

Jack and Sarah tried lifting the hammer at the same time, but neither of them got a result outside of the smallest of movement.

Dane grasped the hammer and yanked on it. A tiny creak. Thor looked worried.

The Shadow reached for the hammer, but then decided to sit this out.

Michael grabbed the handle with his human arm, as the prosthetic right arm would likely be considered an artificial life form. Much to everyone's surprise, Michael managed to lift the hammer. "I don't really know what the problem is with this thing. It weighs little over the weight of a regular hammer."

"You... are worthy? Hmm. You and your Fireteam have bested the strongest threats to the human race and survived, so it would stand to reason that the one to lead them would be worthy." Thor surmised.

"They followed along in their own ways, so why aren't they worthy?" Michael wondered.

Thor smiled. "Your concern for others is honorable, but I am unsure."

"Now, I believe this belongs to you." Michael then proceeded to toss Mjølnir back to Thor, who caught the hammer. "I've got something to take care of back on the Frontier. You're welcome to come check it out if you'd like."

"We'll see." Tony replied.

He is worthy.

They have met the Avengers.

See you next time.

Oh, and while the creaking is a reference to the Avengers: Age of Ultron movie, the Avengers in this story are of the 2013 animated television series Avengers: Assemble.