0.8.4.: Part One

Inside a hanger, Skye's van parked right next to the ramp of the plane. She threw out a bag and grabbed a hula dancer off of the dashboard. Skye hopped out of the van and shouldered her two bags. She reached back into the van and pulled out a box with her belongings. She took a moment to look at her van one last time as an airman walked by. "Hey," she said to him, "no joy rides, okay? That's my house."
The airman smiled, "No worries." He put a small back pyramid on the hood of the car and the engine came to life. Skye scoffed at seeing that.
"Where do they think of this stuff?"

In the planning room, Sara listened with crossed arms as Coulson and Ward argued.
"Skye? That girl's not qualified to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent," Ward snapped.
"Agreed," Coulson said. "That's why I've invited her on as a consultant." Beside Sara, May gave a little scoff.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. does it all the time," Sara reminded Ward. "Technically, Stark's a consultant."
"And technically Skye is a member of the Rising Tide. She hacked our RSA implementation –"
"Twice, from a laptop," Coulson interrupted. "Imagine what she'll do with our resources."
"I am! That's exactly what I'm thinking during this frown. You brought me on for risk assessment, she's a risk. She doesn't think like us!"
"Exactly!"

The doors to the lap opened and Fitz-Simmons exited to greet Skye.
"Oh, Agent Coulson told us the news," Simmons gushed. "What a wonderful surprise, isn't it, Fitz?"
"Yeah," Fitz nodded without any enthusiasm.
"No, it's wonderful," Simmons scolded.
"Yeah, a surprise." Simmons looked back at Skye.
"You must be very excited."
"Yep, first day of school," Skye muttered. Fitz took the box out of her arms and she followed Simmons up the spiral staircase.

Sara's foot tapped as she listened to May speak on Ward's side.
"We have two kids on this Bus who aren't cleared for combat, you're adding a third."
Ward shook his head, "At least Fitz-Simmons are trained S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists. But Skye? You said this was a select team. Assembled to work new cases, to protect people. I don't see how letting some hacker tag along –"
Coulson interrupted him, "I'm looking for an objection I haven't already anticipated." He looked at May who stood down. "I'm calling this, but your frown will be on record."

Ward sighed, back down at the order.
"We've been called in to investigate an 0-8-4, we all know what that means."
"Yes, we do. It means, we don't know what that means." He handed a tablet to May and the two of them walked out of the room. Sara looked up at Ward.
"Thanks for the help," he grumbled.
"I'm sorry," she said, "but I agree with Coulson on this one."
"Obviously."

Looking at Sara's arm in a sling, he frowned.
"Will you be up for…"
"A scientist doesn't need an arm," she interrupted. "And I use my left hand, not my right. I'll be fine, Grant." He would have bristled if anyone else had use his given name. But he liked it when she did. She didn't use it like it was a plague like everyone.
"Fine," he nodded curtly. She smiled brightly, pecking at his lips before heading toward the cockpit.

Sara found Fitz-Simmons and Skye walking into the living quarters.
"Officially it's an airborne mobile command station. But we call it The Bus," Fitz was telling Skye. She gave him a confused looked so Sara stepped in.
"We find it best to use shorthand when in the field."
Fitz nodded, "But, everything has to be just so, you know, because of the danger."
Skye nodded slowly, "Yeah, I've been up here before, but I didn't see much because of the bag that Agent Ward put over my head."

Simmons face turned contrite, not seeing the look at Skye sent to Sara.
"Yes, so sorry about that." Sara's eyes darkened in thought, something that Fitz rarely saw. He paused, catching Skye's look. It was a mixture of jealousy and hatred that quickly faded. Simmons held out a water bottle out to Skye. "Water?" Skye took it begrudgingly. Sara brushed past them, all of a sudden in a hurry.
"Wheels up in two. Lock it or lose it," she said quickly.

Skye looked at Fitz-Simmons.
"What does that mean?"
"No backing out now," Simmons answered. She turned to Fitz, "Let's find a bunk for our guest."
"Oh, oh yeah. There's only one bunk left." He ran to an open doorway and set Skye's box down on a small bed. The bunk was mostly empty, holding on a small bed, monitor on the wall, and a small shelf to hold things.

The two scientists hurried away and Skye dropped her two bags on the ground inside her bunk. Ward walked over and knocked on the door. She turned, smiling lightly when she saw him.
"Hey, I know we didn't really –" He handed her a pamphlet, not interested in talking to her.
"You may want to read that. This isn't like other planes."

He marched away as she opened it.
"You could say that again," she muttered.
"Say what again?" Coulson asked, joining her.
She gave him a smile, "Sweet ride."
"I earned a little good will from Director Fury when I got hit right before the Battle of New York."
Her eyes widened, "You took a bullet?"
"Ish," he shrugged. "An Asgardian stabbed me through the head with a Chitahuri scepter. The effect was similar. Got a few weeks of R&R and this plane. Had it completely refurbished, studs up, spared no expense."

Skye nodded, "Yeah, Agent Ward told me they sent you to Tahiti."
"It's a magical place," Coulson told her.
"Yeah, you mentioned that." She sat down at a both like table, setting her water down. Coulson stopped her before the bottle could hit the table.
"Here, use a coaster." He set one on the table and sat down.
"Buckle up," he told her after she put her water on the coaster.

Pulling on her seatbelt, Skye looked at Coulson.
"I don't even know where we're going." There was a beeping noise and the lights went out for a moment.
"Peru. That's where the 0-8-4 was reported."
"And an 0-8-4 is…?"
"An object of unknown origin. Kind of like you. Team goes in, determines if it's useful or if it poses a threat. Last one turned out to be pretty interesting."
"And what was the last one?"
"A hammer."

Driving through the jungle, Coulson drove the white SUV with Sara while the black S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV followed. They pulled into a small camp. The Incan Archaeological Site, LLactappata. Coulson parked and got out with Sara following.
"Tire tracks," Ward told them as they scouted the area. "40 meters back. I'll check them against the site's trucks, make sure we're alone." May stood just outside the car, holding onto the door.
"Too much exposure here, I'm going to find a place to park."

Fitz-Simmons walked out from behind the SUV, walking over to join Sara.
"I would love to see a capuchin in the wild," Fitz told them. Simmons smiled at him. "Maybe even a yellow-tailed wooly monkey. You know, um, Peru has 32 different species of monkeys."
Simmons nodded eagerly, "Yeah, and close to 200 species of snakes. The shushupe has a fascinating venom. It's neurotoxic, proteolytic, and hemolytic." They laughed and Sara shivered.
"No snakes," she said firmly.
"Yeah," Simmons wrapped an arm around her friend. "Oh, no, I'd me more concerned with earthquakes, mala –" She reached up and slapped the back of Fitz' neck. "There's no vaccine for Dengue Fever."

They entered the jungle and Simmons gasped when she saw what was ahead.
"Ah, look at this!" The trio started at the temple building into the trees. It was a massive structure and at the bottom, near the ground, was a doorway.

Skye and Coulson walked into the jungle, grinning when they saw the temple, although, Skye seemed more reserved.
"We should warn the people who live around here if the 0-8-4 is dangerous. They're already dealing with anti-mining rebels and the Shining Path Guerillas. I could post something."
"Remember the panic with the anti-matter meteor splashed down just off the coast of Miami, nearly devoured the city?"
"No."
"Precisely. Because we kept it quiet and contained."
"So… what am I doing?"

Coulson sent her a glance.
"Well, if it gets out, I might need you to create some kind of diversion, put the public on the wrong scent."
Skye frowned, "So, everything I'm against?"
"Yep." He turned away from her just as a man exited the temple. Fitz-Simmons and Sara were taking a selfie next to the doorway, smiling brightly. Their smiles weren't something that Skye expected. Well, Simmons seemed obvious, but she hadn't seen the other two smiles at all before. The smaller girl, Sara, seemed the toughest, yet she was favoring her right shoulder after what happened with Mike.

Walking up to the man who left the temple, Coulson pulled out his credentials.
"Good morning, Professor. I'm Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. I understand you've made an interesting discovery."
"I – I'm not sure how to explain it. This temple dates back at least 500 years. It filled with pre-Incan artifact. One of them is impossible and looks like it might be dangerous."
"Well, that's why we're here."

The Professor led Coulson through the door. The professor pointed at something on the floor of the hall before entering a larger cavern.
"Watch out." Fitz-Simmons and Skye followed Coulson into the cavern, staring at the ancient writing on the wall along with something that was a shiny metal with blue glowing lights. There were what looked like wires running out of the device. "Exactly as we found it," the Professor told them.
"Who else knows about this?" Coulson questioned.
"Just the ministry. I believe they were the ones who contacted you."

Skye stood behind Coulson as Fitz-Simmons started opening their equipment and took things out.
"Sir," Coulson addressed the Professor. "I need you and your team to evacuate the site until we determine the risk associated with this object." Using his tablet, Fitz' drones flew into the air and the Professor watched them as they passed by.
"Leave the man alone," Simmons said reproachfully as 02 Sleepy drifted to close. The small drone flew over to the device and began to scan it.

Coulson herded the Professor back to the entryway as Skye looked at her phone.
"There's nothing about this anywhere," she said with a small laugh. "It's amazing. I searched every data-stream. What do we got here, guys?" She reached out one of her hands and was about to touch the device when Fitz stopped her.
"Whoa, car – uh, careful. I – no I couldn't do that."

Skye lowered her hand and looked back at Fitz worriedly.
"The object's placement is fossiliferous rock formations suggested it's been here for at least 1,500 years," Simmons said. "That pre-dates this temple by a millennium. Ah! Maybe it's alien." That excited Simmons and she looked to Fitz, but he was looking at a readout on his tablet.
"Yeah, but the shape and craftsmanship, it's almost German."

Outside the temple, Ward joined May and Sara who were standing guard just outside the door.
"Tires match the Prof's truck. Where's your sidearm?" Ward asked May. Sara smirked lightly at May's answer.
"If I need a gun, I'll take one."
"Right… I forgot I was working with "The Cavalry"." May tensed and Sara shot Ward a glare.
"Don't call me that," May growled.
"Apologies," Ward said quickly.

Sara fiddled with a strain of her hair as the other two walked in different directions, checking out the jungle around them.
"I've heard the stories," Ward told May, "what went down in Bahrain, about you in action. You know, it was smart of Coulson to pull you out of retirement. It's nice to have a trusted friend who has your back." Sara's brown furled as he walked close to a bush.

As he spoke, he reached into the bush and pulled out a man holding a gun in camo. Sara instantly pulled her gun as another man in camo came to May. May grabbed his gun before he had a chance to aim it at her. She spun the man down to the ground, taking him out, as another man appeared and attacked her. She flipped that man to the ground. After disarming them both, May used their guns to point at them, keeping them in place.

Ward stood over the other man, but he looked up as they heard a vehicle approaching. Sara and May trained their guns on the road where the vehicle appeared. Ward picked up his man, using him as a human shield. Two other vehicles arrived, and men poured out of the SUVs, aiming at the three agents.
"Should have taken more guns," Ward told May.

Coulson frowned when he heard Sara buzz through his walkie-talkie.
"Sir?"
"Go."
"We have a situation." Skye's ear perked up and glanced at Coulson.
"Lots of rebels in this area."
"Not enough gunfire," Coulson told her. "Keep working." He clicked the walkie-talkie, "I'm on my way."

He walked outside and addressed the soldiers.
"Buenos Dias. Soy Agent Coulson. Estamos aqui por un asunto de la seguridad internacional." As he spoke, a woman in camo walked closer to him, bringing a couple of guards with her.
"Philip?" she asked. Sara's eyes widened along with Coulson.
"Camila? Do you mind?"
Camilla shrugged, "After you." Coulson nodded at Ward and he shoved the soldier he was using as a shield away and lowered his gun.

May did the same, lowering the two pistols she was holding. Sara lowered her gun, but kept a tight grip on it as she watched Camilla speak a few words in Spanish to her soldiers, who lowered their guns as well. Camilla walked up the stairs and stood next to Coulson.
"And now, for a proper hello." He leaned closer to her and she gave him a kiss on each of his cheeks with a big smile.
"Comandante, a promotion. Congratulations."

She gave him a proud smile. "Three years ago, but thank you." Coulson didn't take his eyes off Camilla as he introduced the others.
"Agent Melinda May, Agent Grant Ward, this is Comandante Camilla Reyes. She's with the Policia Militar Del Peru. We used to work together back in the day."
"You did more than work," Sara snarked.

May sent her a smirk, but Camilla's back straightened.
"Sara Elizabeth Camilla Reyes! Back straight at attention." Ward's eyes narrowed when Sara instantly straightened.
"Reyes-Fitz," Sara muttered angrily. "It's Reyes-Fitz."
"Ward, May, let the team know everything's okay," Coulson ordered. Ward nodded, casting one last look at Sara before following May into the temple.

Camilla looked at Coulson and her daughter.
"I know you've found a strange object on Peruvian soil. We should have a conversation about how to proceed."
"Of course," Coulson agreed, "but an 0-8-4 supersedes all national claims."
"You look good."
"Yeah, I work out." Sara had to keep from rolling her eyes at their open flirting. Camilla gave him a little grin, putting an arm around his shoulders.
"Come, let me show you something."

Inside the temple, Fitz pointed at something on his tablet, a small red dot inside the device.
"Are you seeing this?" he asked Simmons. "It's alive." Skye, once again standing way to close, turned and looked at Fitz.
"Wha – alive, alive?"
"It has a functioning power source," Fitz answered. Skye turned and looked back at the device.
"Sleepy's reading radionuclides, but they don't match any known isotope," Simmons said. "I get temporal matches, but even then, they seem to shift. Is that even possible?"
"Depends on the shifting of the temporal radio stuff," Skye said.
"So…"

The pair looked up at her with confused looks, missing her joke.
"It's totally weird, right?" She gave them a smile, but they were still looking at her like she was talking gibberish.
"I'm… I'm gonna go check on Coulson," she said awkwardly. She started to leave the temple, but Ward stopped her as he walked in.
"We've got company. National Police."
"What?" Simmons asked.
Fitz glanced at the door, "Why are they here?"
"They heard about this object, they're probably here to protect it."

Walking over to the device, he took a look at it for himself.
"This area has lots of rebel uprising."
"Yeah," Skye nodded, "people are fighting back against the government's mining policies. It's pretty kick ass."
Ward sent her a angry glare, "Yeah, it's kick ass, all the violence."
"That's not what I'm saying," Skye sighed.
"No, that's what you're typing. In your van, alone, where it's safe." He turned to Fitz-Simmons. "How much longer?"
"What's the hurry?" Simmons asked.
"Are we in danger?" Fitz asked.
"Not if everyone does their job," Ward promised. He glanced over at Skye, "What is yours exactly." She lowered her eyes, knowing she didn't have an answer.

Sara holstered her gun, rubbing at her temple. Her arm was still in a sling and it was bothering her greatly. It also didn't help that her "parents" were flirting in front of her. Honestly, she was being childish, but when one should be dead and the other abandoned her, it was bound to cause trouble.

Camilla held out her hand, showing it to Coulson.
"The cacao is from a secret valley in Peru. Very special." Coulson reached over and took a piece of the chocolate. "The best chocolate in the world," she told him.
He made a face, "Could use some sugar."
Camilla laughed, "Americans."
"You know me, Camilla. I'm a pretty simple guy." She cocked her head, making a slight noise of disagreement.
"There was nothing simple about your last mission here."
"I had some great help," Coulson told her.
"There isn't any chance we get to keep the device, is there?" she sighed.
"It's not mine to give, but I'm sure we can find a way to resolve this respectfully, in a way that gives your coun –"

An explosion rocked out behind them taking out a small building. The three of them flinched, turning to see what happened. The soldiers that were following after the two fo them immediately turned and started to fire in the direction of the blast. Sara cursed under her breath, pulling her gun.
"Rebels," Camilla said. "Stay close, on my six," Coulson said. The two of them moved in the direction of the fighting.
"Sara, get to the van!" Coulson ordered. Her face turned annoyed.
"I can't drive," she muttered before rushing into the trees.

Inside the temple, Ward went on immediate alert as dirt rained down around them.
"Sounds like they're engaging with the rebels," he said. "Let's go." He started to head out, but stopped, ducking back inside. "Rebels, they're coming for it. Let's move."

Sleepy flew to Fitz, who caught the drone and quickly put it back in its case as Ward guarded the door. Fitz-Simmons and Skye tried to pack all the things away, but Fitz was being picky about where everything went in the case.
"No, no, no, no, no, no!" he exclaimed at Skye.
"It doesn't matter," Skye snapped.
"It does to me!"
Simmons looked at her sternly, "Please, let us do this." Skye backed off, letting them work. Simmons glanced at Ward, "We need a containment case for the 0-8-4."

Ward looked at her like she was insane.
"There's no time."
"But, it has a fluctuating power core, frequencies way above 10 exahertz," Fitz exclaimed. Another explosion rocked the ground around them, and Fitz ducked. Ward walked away from the door opening to the device.
"Sorry, science class is over." He started to pull on the device. Fitz turned and saw what he was doing.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait!" Ward ignored him, pulling the device completely out of the wall and putting it in a bag. "You did not just pull that out of the wall! What is the matter with you? Do you realize we do not know the amount of photon emissions coming out of this –"

Giving him a hard shove, Ward forced Fitz to face the open of the temple.
"Okay. We don't know what will happen if it gets excited," Fitz said, getting the silent message.
"Stay close," Ward ordered. Simmons and Skye followed him towards the door. Fitz was the last one, hiking his bag higher on his back.
"Fitz, come on!" Simmons called.

Chaos was still reining outside as Coulson and Camilla made their way through.
"Come on!" Coulson said. He waved Camilla over to a small house. Camilla flipped over the table and used that for cover then yelled to her men.
"Your men need to fall back now, or we'll never make the runway," Coulson said. "Now, your truck, let's go." They both headed out of the building, heading towards Camilla's truck.

Ward exited the temple with his gun up and prepared to fire, which he did the second he exited. The other three poured out and stayed behind him for cover and protection. As they came under heavier fire, Ward put his arm back, keeping them from going any further.
"Get back!" Fitz-Simmons and Skye fell back into the opening of the temple out of breath, looking around nervously. Ward pulled a small baton device out of his jacket and with a flick of his wrist it lengthened to more like a walking cane.

Coulson, who had been watching them, shot a quick look to Camilla.
"Tell your men to get down." She did and immediately her men fell to the ground. Ward did a roll of the steps, coming to a rest on his knees on the ground in front of the temple. He drove the cane into the ground and pressed a button on top. A small device popped out of the top, hovering in the air for a moment, then sent out a shockwave of green energy. It hit the rebels in the trees, sending them back.
"My truck!" Camilla called to Coulson, getting to her feet.

Ward pull the cane out of the ground, tossing it aside. He waved to the others inside that it was clear. They rushed out to meet Ward, but there was one rebel who the wave did not knock out. He cocked his gun, causing Skye and Fitz-Simmons to freeze. Suddenly, an SUV arrived between the rebel and blocked his bullets.
"Get in! Get in!" Ward shouted.

The passenger door opened showing May with Sara in the driver's seat. Simmons had a relieved smile on her face.
"Yes!" she nodded.
"Yeah, that's a good idea," Fitz said. The three of them hurried down the steps to the SUV.

Once everyone was inside, Sara spun out of the area and past the encampment. Camilla's dark truck, full of her soldiers, followed. As did a jeep with the rebels. They fired on the SUV as it drove through the jungle. Ward leaned forward, looking straight out the window.
"Coulson's secure in PMP's truck. Take the south route to the airfield." Sara didn't respond, but took a sharp turn. "Where'd you get the bruise?" he asked, seeing a dark mark under her eye.
"It was an accident," May mumbled guiltily.

As the road turned bumpy and unpaved, Fitz-Simmons and Skye began to jangle about in the back.
"Slow down!" Fitz called.
"You're joking, right?" Skye asked bewildered.
"Ward, listen, we have to be careful. There's a binding energy structure that could overheat…" Simmons got an excited gleam in her eyes.
"I could roll down a window."
"Do not touch the window!" Sara snapped. "Stay quiet and keep your heads down. I still technically don't know how to drive this car."
"Head left, the ravine empties," Ward told her, a slight smirk on his face.

Sara followed his directions.
"But, Sara!" Both May and Ward turned to Fitz.
"Quiet!" they snapped. May reached down to the center console screen and punched a few buttons. The ramp on The Bus began to lower.
"How fast can you have the wheels up?" Ward asked her.
"Fast," May answered. Sara pulled into The Bus, putting the SUV into park. May jumped out and addressed her. "Ramp!"
"On it," Sara said.

She went to a bank of buttons nad switches, pushing and flipping them. Skye shot her a look as she got out of the car.
"What are you doing? Coulson's still out there!"
Sara glanced over at her, "Get off the ramp, Skye, you're in the line of fire." She turned her head, watching the truck pull up. Camilla, Coulson, and some of the soldiers ran over to them. A few soldiers stayed behind, proving cover as the others rushed to The Bus. The rebels arrived and Ward shot at them, also providing cover. May got into the cockpit, preparing for takeoff.

At the ramp, Skye and Fitz-Simmons all cowered in a corner, trying to avoid the bullets ricocheting around them. Faintly Coulson, Camilla, and her men entered the plane and Sara pushed a bottom that caused the ramp to close.
"Cutting it pretty close, sir," she told Coulson.
"Didn't want to leave anyone behind," Coulson said.

Sara turned to Skye and Fitz-Simmons who were panting from fright.
"I got to say it, I miss my van," Skye said. Ward holstered his gun and addressed Fitz.
"Now, what was the problem?"
"As I said before, this device has a high-frequency, fluctuation, sub-material compression –"
"Fitz, in English," Ward snapped.
"The 0-8-4 is fueled by Tesseract technology. Hydra. World War II. Captain America."

Skye nervously got to her feet.
"It's full of lethal amounts of gamma radiation," Fitz continued.
"Gamma, you're saying it's nuclear?" Ward asked.
Sara shook her head, "No. He's saying it's much, much worse." The group looked down at the bag and slowly started moving away.