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"Talking"
"Phone, Intercom, or radio talking"
Jutsu, Abilities, and Powers
(Location) = Scene Break/Time Skip
(A few weeks later – The Bus)
Fitz-Simmons had gotten word that something they each had a part in 'creating' had been used to almost kills a few S.H.I.E.L.D. Cadets. Naruto was sitting nearby with some tea, Skye and Ward were not too far away as they looked at the information they had been given.
"Being part of something so horrible. Completely unaware. The Cadet could've died." Simmons commented as Fitz pours himself and Simmons some tea
"We drew up those concepts years ago. We didn't know they'd be applied in that way." Fitz defended
"Is this the device they found in the frozen pool?" Skye asked as she looked at Ward's tablet only to get a nod "Correction, the instantly frozen Indoor pool?"
"Seems like it was planted in the filter days before. Like someone was waiting for those specific cadets." Ward commented
"Well, as far as they can tell, the device uses a crystalline nucleation process she designed." Fitz said
"And a delivery mechanism he invented." Simmons added "That's why we're being asked to consult on the investigation."
"So, we're going to the Academy?" Skye asked
"Science and Technology Division. Cadets are pretty shaken up over what happened. Agent Weaver asked if you could speak to the student body about 'potentiality.'. Calm them down." Ward said
"Of course. The talk. We've all heard the talk." Simmons said with a hint of dread in her voice
"I haven't." Skye chimed in
"Neither have I." Naruto added
"I guess you will." Ward said as he took a sip of his coffee
"Well, I've heard a lot about the Academy. I'm excited to finally see it." Skye commented
"Me too. Never been to Sci-Tech before." Ward said drawing everyone's attention to him
"Never?" Skye asked "Huh. The different S.H.I.E.L.D. Academies don't interact?"
"Not much really. Academy of Communications does. But they're the biggest, and focused on data analysis." Ward answered
"Boring." Fitz said
"By far the easiest to get into." Simmons added "That's where you'd be, Skye."
"Thanks." Skye said sarcastically
"Operations is the most aggressive program. More people wash out of Operations than the other Academies." Ward said
"That explains why you are so aggressive." Naruto commented causing Ward to turn to him
"And what Academy did you go to?" Ward asked
"I didn't go to any Academy. Fury brought me in directly bypassing all that Academy stuff." Naruto answered causing Ward, Fitz, and Simmons to frown
"That's not fair now is it." Simmons commented
"Yeah. Honestly." Fitz added
"Just how special are you that Director Fury bypassed all the Academy's for you?" Ward asked
"Special enough." Naruto answered with a smile before he took a sip of his tea
"So, which one is the hardest to get into?" Skye asked causing Fitz-Simmons to smile at Ward which didn't go unnoticed by Naruto or Skye
"I'm picking up on the rivalry between Sciences and Operations." Skye commented as May walked past them "You and Coulson past all that, or are you going to help Ward steal their mascot?"
"We're not going. After we drop you off, Coulson and I have other matter to attend to." May answered before she walked away leaving silence so thick you could cut it with a knife causing Skye and Ward to walk up to Fitz-Simmons table
"Coulson hasn't come out of his office in a while. Do you think he's all right?" Skye asked
"We saw him at a low. That's not easy for anybody. Coulson's tough as they come. He'll be good. Just give him time." Ward answered "While he takes that time, it's on us to figure out what's going on at the Academy." And with that everyone dispersed
(Several Hours later – S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy: Science and Technology Division)
Ward had dressed in his professional Agent attire while Fitz-Simmons, Skye, and Naruto opted for something comfier, .
"This was the SSR facility before S.H.I.E.L.D. was even founded. SSR stands for—" Simmons commented
"Strategic Scientific Reserve. Yeah, I know." Skye finished as she cut Simmons off "Is this where you got all your PhDs?"
"Oh, no, you need at least one to get through the door." Simmons answered
"Science and Technology what you imagined, Agent Ward?" Fitz asked
"Yep. No uniforms. No rope course. No defined muscularity on anyone." Ward answered
"No marching in place. No IQs in double digits." Fitz added as a woman walked up to them
"There they are. So good to see you." The woman greeted as she shook Simmons's hand
"You look as lovely as ever." Simmons greeted back
"I concur." Fitz agreed as the woman shook his hand next
"Thank you." The woman said before she turned her attention to Ward "Agent Ward, it's a pleasure to have you, sir."
"Agent Weaver. There's a list of suspects?" Ward asked
"Based on the level of intelligence it would take to put a device together like the one we found, we've narrowed it down to the top 10% of our cadets. I'm worried there's a bad seed." Weaver answered
"Ops and Sciences have differences, but both have to be careful about what we call 'bad seeds.' People want to use the tools we give them…" Ward explained before Skye cut him off
"'Bad seed' isn't a S.H.I.E.L.D. term, Ward. Just a term." Skye said
"There is no such thing as a bad seed. Only a blank seed soiled by a bad influence." Naruto commented getting Weavers attention
"A wise point of view, if I do say so myself." Weaver responded before Ward turned his attention to her
"I know you've already questioned the victims, but I have a few questions I'd like to ask him myself." Ward stated causing Naruto to roll his eyes as Weaver nodded
"I'll arrange for you to talk to Seth Dormer when he's out of class." Weaver responded before she turned her attention to Fitz and Simmons "Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get Agents Fitz and Simmons settled into the lecture hall." Before she motioned for them to follow her as she walked off with Fitz, Simmons, and Naruto following after her
(A couple of hours later – Lecture Hall)
All the academy students had gathered and taken their seats, Naruto and Skye had taken a seat in the middle of the lecture hall as Weaver took the podium.
"Today, we're proud to welcome back two of S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy's finest. Our youngest graduates to date. You know their names. Please join me in welcoming Agent Leopold Fitz and Agent Jemma Simmons." Weaver announced as Fitz and Simmons walked up to the podium as everyone clapped
"Thank you, Agent Weaver. It's nice to be back. Unfortunately, it has to be under these circumstances." Simmons said
"If you don't know the history of S.H.I.E.L.D. by now, there's no excuse. Unless you fell asleep in Professor Vaughn's class, that's a perfectly acceptable excuse." Fitz said causing all the academy students to laugh
"Our instinct, as scientists, is to move forward, advance quickly, push the envelope. But given recent events, it makes sense to reflect back on our history." Simmons continued
"S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded after the SSR was able to defeat the nearly indomitable force known as HYDRA." Fitz explained
"We tend to forget that these organizations, Hydra, Centipede, AIM, were also made up of extremely brilliant scientists. Men and women who started with the same unlimited potential as you or I." Simmons continued
"Potential can sometimes be dangerous. Plutonium has the potential to power a city, or to be a nuclear bomb." Fitz continued
"Today we'd like to share a few stories from the field in which we learned this lesson, up close and personally. And faced the consequences when untested technology or biology lands in the wrong hands. And don't worry, we brought pictures." Simmons finished before a cadet stood up
"Oh, God. Oh, God." The cadet called out drawing everyone's attention to them as Ice slowly crept up their body "What is this? What's happening to me? Help me! Help me! Get it off. Make it stop." As they started to panic, Fitz-Simmons were immediately on them followed by Naruto and Skye "Help me! Get it off! No! Make it stop!" before they were fully consumed by the Ice
Naruto immediately followed the trail of ice before he laid his eyes on a device laying on the ground. Naruto immediately destroyed it with his Heat Vision shocking everyone before Naruto began thawing the cadet with his Heat Vision, he was done within seconds as the cadet collapsed
"It's OK. It's OK. It's OK. It's OK. It's over." Fitz reassured as Ward walked into everyone clapping before he turned his attention to Naruto and saw a puddle of water on the ground
"What happened?" Ward asked
"Another attempt was made on a cadet. Maelstrom took care of it though." Simmons answered
(Several Minutes later)
The lecture hall had now been cleared out and several Agents were scanning the seats and surroundings with UV lights, Skye was questioning the cadet that Naruto had to dethaw.
"And you can't think of anyone here who'd want to hurt you?" Skye asked
"I don't know anyone here." The cadet responded before Weaver walked up
"Donnie, I'm going to have you escorted back to your room. You get some rest. Stay warm." Weaver said before Skye and Donnie both got up and walked down the walkway towards Fitz-Simmons, Naruto, Ward, and Weaver
"Sorry I ruined your lecture. I was really looking forward to it." Donnie apologized before he turned to Naruto "Thank you for saving my life."
"Think nothing of it kid." Naruto responded
"It's not your fault, Donnie." Simmons reassured before Donnie walked past them
"No genetic materials or prints found on the device. Not that there would have been any to recover after Maelstrom was done with it. The components are rare and expensive." Fitz announced
"Excuse me for saving the cadet's life." Naruto said defensively
"Freshman pranks are tradition, but these are something else." Simmons said
"Attempted Murder." Weaver stated
"So, Donnie was the intended target all along. Did he have anything in common with the cadets at the pool?" Ward asked only for Weaver to shake her head
"These kids were popular. Donnie was…" Weaver said before Skye cut her off
"Not." Skye finished
"Donnie hadn't made any enemies here, but he hadn't made friends either." Weaver explained
"He had a hard time adjusting? How old is he?" Simmons asked
"Eighteen. Youngest since you guys. 190 IQ and failing our of high school when we met him." Weaver answered
"Probably bored out of his mind." Fitz deduced
"If things went well, we were considering graduating him early and assigning him to the Sandbox." Weaver said
"Wow! Well, he would love it there." Simmons commented
"He doesn't like it here. So, I'm afraid he'll wash out." Weaver stated
"Maybe that was the idea." Ward said getting Weaver's attention "Agent Weaver, keep working with investigations. Interviewing cadets, instructors."
"Of course." Weaver said before walking off
"And us?" Skye asked
"Their interviews won't bear fruit. We teach cadets to keep secrets." Ward said before he turned to Simmons and Fitz "Where did you guys hang out when you wanted to get away from the faculty?" as they all started walking
"Can we tell someone from Operations?" Simmons asked
"Yes. Because we need to conduct our own investigation." Ward answered
"There is the boiler room." Fitz stated
"Great. Let's start there." Ward said
"And when we get there?" Simmons asked
"We mingle, low key. You and Skye get comfortable with the students, and see if you can get them gossiping. Skye looks young enough to blend in." Ward answered
"You're not exactly Ol' Man River, Fitz looks younger than us, and they will probably be all over Maelstrom especially after his display saving Donnie. Sciences should be at least." Skye explained
"The time will come when you won't make fun of me for that. You'll be jealous. You'll be jealous, wrinkly old hags." Fitz commented causing Simmons to turn around giving him an 'Excuse me' look "You know I wasn't talking about you babe."
"I want Fitz to go talk to Donnie." Ward ordered
"Sorry?" Fitz asked
"Donnie's withdrawn. Might know more than he's letting on. You're a hero here, Fitz. He looks up to you. Go hang out with him. Even if he has no clue who might be after him, he could use a friend." Ward explained
"That is a wonderful idea." Simmons commented
"For once I agree with Ward." Naruto added
"Ward has them from time to time. I'll meet you later." Fitz said as he gave Simmons a peck on the lips before he was off to find Donnie's room as Skye, and Simmons turned to Ward
"What?" Ward asked "It's strategic."
"It's adorable." Simmons said
"The Tin Man has a heart after all." Skye commented
"So, where are we going?" Ward asked as he pushed past Simmons and Skye who quickly followed after him as well as Naruto
"S.H.I.E.L.D. keeps careful watch over everything within their walls. So, in the late '60s, to escape the cameras and the prying eyes of the faculty, a few cadets started sneaking down to The Boiler Room to play cards, exchange ideas…" Simmons explained as they made their way to across the campus to the Boiler Room
"My kind of people." Skye commented
"Some amazingbreakthroughs have come out of here. So the tradition lives on." Simmons added
"Of cramming into The Boiler Room?" Skye asked as they walked up to a red maintence door, as soon as they opened it they could hear music blaring
"Well, over they years, we've made a few improvements." Simmons commented causing Skye to laugh as they took in their surroundings before Simmons turned to Ward "Do you have one of these at Operations?"
"No." Ward simply answered
"Did not think so." Simmons commented with a smile
"Drinks are on me." Skye said as she made her way down the stairs followed by Simmons, Naruto, and Ward
(Half an hour later)
As Skye said Sciences were all over Naruto as soon as they made him out. Of course, he didn't reveal anything aside from the fact that he was on the Index. Ward had gotten a cadet talking and finally had gotten some answers. Naruto, Skye, Simmons, and Ward were gathered at a table as Simmons got Fitz on the phone.
"Babe, please don't tell me you've left The Boiler Room already." Fitz said
"Fitz, they staged the attacks." Simmons responded
"Why would they do that?" Fitz asked
"To lure us to the Academy, and to take them off our radar as suspects." Simmons answered "You need to get out of there, he's after you!"
"Relax, Babe, I'm out. You're overreacting. He's just a lonely kid. We had a nice little hang session. I actually helped him solve his…" Fitz reassured before he stopped "Power problem." Before the phone went silent as Fitz hung up the phone
(45 minutes later – Bus)
Coulson and May had gotten back from what they were doing. Simmons, Naruto, and Skye had gone after Fitz only to find him just regaining consciousness as they entered the room, now they were back at the Bus walking up the ramp, with Fitz holding an ice pack to the back of his head as May and Coulson walked up.
"How could I have been so stupid?" Fitz said berating himself
"Baby will you stop?" Simmons asked/pleaded
"I'm sorry, sir. It's my fault." Fitz said
"Any word on the missing cadets?" Coulson asked
"Ward's coordinating the search effort with Agent Weaver. They've set up a perimeter and are going building-to-building." Simmons answered
"Where'd you guys go?" Skye asked causing Coulson to look at her but said nothing "We were trying to reach you."
"Not now." Coulson ordered "How dangerous are they?"
"Extremely dangerous. This device turns any moisture around it to ice, very rapidly, at a great range." Simmons answered
"But Donnie's a good kid. Just felt isolated. Seth must have befriended him to manipulate him, using him to finish the—the product." Fitz added getting May's attention
"Product?" May asked
"Oh. OK, I think they have a backer. The device, the components are incredibly rare and expensive. Nothing either of them could find on the open market themselves." Fitz answered
"If the parts are that rare, we can trace the purchases." Skye commented
"Sometimes it's not a bad seed. Just a bad influence. Let's go." Coulson said
"As I said to Weaver, Ward, Skye, Simmons, and Fitz. There is no such thing as a bad seed, only a blank seed soiled by a bad influence." Naruto said before everyone departed
(A couple hours later – The Lab)
Skye had traced the money and found that it all lead back to Ian Quinn, and was now debriefing Fitz, Simmons, Naruto and Coulson.
"We were worried about bad influences, he's the worst there is." Skye commented as they looked at the information that Skye found on the big screen
"Ian Quinn, You've got to be kidding me." Coulson said
"Thermopower radiation sensors." Fitz added
"Shipped to Seth's father, who's a lawyer for Quinn Worldwide. Quinn's buying their technology." Skye said
"What a sleaze. The cadets have no idea he's a criminal. To them, he's just a venture capitalist." Simmons commented
"This is Quinn's MO. He finds young talent, and he takes advantage." Skye said before he turned to Coulson "Right? Hello?"
"Contact Ward and Agent Weaver. Have them widen their search to include Ian Quinn." Coulson ordered before Fitz, Skye, and Naruto dispersed, with Naruto heading for his bunk
(Hours later – Command Center)
Fitz-Simmons had caught a super-storm forming and had informed Coulson who had gathered Naruto, Fitz, Simmons, Skye, and May and were not debriefing them.
"How do we stop it?" Coulson asked
"That's the thing. We can't stop it. They're in real trouble." Fitz answered
"Where is the device?" May asked
"Most likely, right there. Dead center of the storm." Simmons answered pointing to the sent of the superstorm on the touchscreen table
"We've got to get Donnie out of there." Fitz said before he turned to Naruto remembering he could fly "Could you extract them from the center of the superstorm?"
"Get the Bus directly above the eye of the storm and I can jump out and extract them." Naruto answered with a nod
"Ward, how are things on the ground?" Coulson asked
"We got almost everyone safe in The Boiler Room." Ward answered "How bad is this going to get?"
"Bad" Coulson answered before he turned to May "Get us above the eye of the superstorm." Only getting a nod in return before he headed toward the cockpit
(15 minutes later- Eye of the storm)
Just as Naruto said once they were above the eye of the storm Naruto opened the loading ramp and jumped out as he let himself freefall down to the parking garage where Donnie and Seth were located. Naruto landed right next to a pickup truck a little ways from Donnie and Seth causing a small crater where he landed.
"Two for pickup." Naruto joked as he saw Donnie standing over Seth
"He's been hurt. Please, you need to help him." Donnie pleaded as Naruto walked over to Seth and picked him up before gently throwing him over his shoulder, Naruto then walked over to Donnie and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt
"Hang on." Naruto said before he took off flying back up towards the Bus, within seconds Naruto reached the loading ramp where Fitz-Simmons, Skye, and Coulson were waiting
"Something is wrong with Seth he isn't breathing." Naruto said as he gently placed Seth down on just beyond the loading ramp
"He's in cardiac arrest. Skye, get a blanket for his head. Sir, I need an AED. Fitz, oxygen. 0.4 milliliters of epinephrine." Simmons ordered as Fitz ran back into the Lab
"Got it." Fitz said as Simmons began CPR on Seth before Fitz came back with the AED as he handed Simmons the shock pads which she immediately placed on Seth's chest before she turned her attention to the AED
"Get ready to clear. Charging." Simmons ordered as the AED began charging up "Clear." As the AED discharge causing Seth's body to jerk "Pulse?" as Coulson checked his pulse
"Nothing." Coulson answered before Simmons pressed a button on the AED to charge it up again
"Charging." Simmons called out "Clear." As the AED once again discharged causing Seth's body to jerk "Pulse?" as Coulson checked for a pulse
"No." Coulson answered before Simmons reached for the AED "He's gone"
"Keep trying Simmons." Naruto ordered causing Coulson to look at him "You don't decide when someone is gone." As Simmons once again charged up the AED
"Charging." Simmons called out "Clear." As she discharged the AED causing Seth to jerk "Pulse?" as Coulson checked Seth's pulse
"I got a pulse." Coulson answered as Seth began slowly breathing again as Donnie turned to Naruto
"Thank you." Donnie said before Naruto waved him off
"Think nothing of it kid." Naruto said
(A couple hours later)
Agent Weaver had come to get Seth and Donnie, they would be transferred to the Sandbox but not as researchers but to be watched over. Skye had requested a moment alone on campus, Naruto and Ward accompanied her.
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