Revamped!
[I have up to chapter 99 typed and ready to publish. I might update them twice a week, depending, I'm not typing any new chapters and will explain why in that chapter].
Chapter 88: The Contingency Plan Part Eight
Location Unknown - Time Unknown
The pure rage that fills her veins is a combination of so many emotions all at once: anger, sadness, betrayal, embarrassment, shame, disappointment and so much more.
The battle that she longed for and feared was finally here.
Iqadi swings her pole between her hands like a baton, aiming her attacks at Mike. He grabs hold of her pole with both his hands, his grip beside hers. His strength overpowers and he pushes it onto her, causing her back to curve. Iqadi looks down at his current vulnerability and uses it to her advantage.
She kicks one of his knees and his grip on her pole loosens. Iqadi quickly spins and whacks him with her pole. She spins again the opposite way and roundhouse kicks him multiple times while spinning through the air. Once she's on her feet, the dizziness hits her but she knows that it's only there because of her excessive blood loss, and she ignored it as much as she can. She holds both ends of her pole in her hands and changes the elasticity of it into a whiplike rope. She wraps it around him but that's when he attacks again.
Mike pulls on the ropes and she slides forwards. He knees her to the ground and she falls on her back, losing her grip on the whip. Mike attempts to whip her but she slides out of the way, side-kicking him to the ground. She takes this opportunity to get back on her feet. The moment she stands, a bullet whizzes by her head. Iqadi looks at his gun and dodges another bullet aimed the same direction.
Iqadi backs away and raises her arms in the air to call on the elements. She feels the winds and thunders form and build at her fingertips and break through the walls and windows. Iqadi feels another bullet graze her arm but her suit protects her body from further damage. She sends all the forces she made in his direction, her loud elements just enough to hear another five shots being fired but lost in her winds.
Mike covers his face as he gets pushed back. Iqadi holds her forces longer, taking steps closer to him to emphasize her power. Eventually, she lets go and that's when the claws come out but his gun is as well. Iqadi smirks a little. As if that gun will take her down.
"How much longer are you going to play the hero?" He asks her.
"Not much longer, actually," Iqadi admits. She takes a breath. "You know, you're using a 919 mm Walther P99 German semi-automatic pistol."
"So, you know some guns. What's your point?"
"You fired twice at my head and missed, grazed me three times, and shot aimlessly another five times. That's ten shots meaning that you're all out of ammunition."
Doubting her, Mike pulls the trigger again only to hear to click. Iqadi claws the gun out of his hand before he could reload. She grabs his wrist and flips him over her. Iqadi has to give him credit, though, he fights better than she thought a SHIELD agent would.
Then, Mike hits her so hard in her open wound that she can't breathe anymore. Iqadi collapses to the ground, pain searing through her temples as she's struck with a debilitating migraine, her vision flickering out. Despite all the fighting she has been a part of, she will never be used to dying. The pure irony in all this is that the plans were supposed to kill her friends and now she's the one bleeding out.
"Any last words?" Mike taunts.
"Want to know the true test of the blind faith behind Project: New Generation?" Iqadi asks softly.
"Amuse me."
"They found out that I made plans to kill them and they fell at my feet. Yet, despite all that, they still have my back like I knew they would."
Mike is confused by her words. Iqadi is smiles as her vision hazes. She hears a roar just as her eyes close.
-o-
All of them: Angela, Xavier, Apollo, Daniel, Emily, James, and Merida. All of them are there, breathing and ready to fight as if they were never shot down. The Hulk snarls at Mike as they all circle him with their weapons out and ready to use at their will. They can't believe that, out of all the agents to betray them and attempt to kill them, it's their debriefing officer. But after all the hard times he gave them in debriefings, they can't wait to make him pay.
Mike is stunned at the sight set before him.
"Explain to me how you all could be here from your deathbeds!" He yells. "I saw you all bleed and burn to death!"
"This isn't a debriefing," Merida grumbles, firing the first arrow.
Angela, Xavier, and Apollo all charge towards him at once. Emily and the Hulk standby just in case he thinks that escaping the majority would be the best option to get out of here. James runs over to Iqadi to check up on her since he is burned out and covered in burns from his contingency plan.
"Are you holding back?!" Merida yells at Xavier as she reloads her bow. She notices that his punches are softer than usual.
"I shot myself twice!" Xavier replies. "All you had to do was take a nap!"
Merida rolls her eyes as she fires another arrow at Mike. It flies right above Angela's shoulder and Mike dodges it easily. He slides with all the punches and kicks given by Angela, Xavier, and Apollo with no difficulty whatsoever.
"You all are so predictable," Mike tells them. "The Princess explained all of you to every detail. I know each and every one of your next moves."
"Really?" Emily questions. "Did you see this coming?"
Mike looks at Emily's suit and suddenly gets blasted from behind. He turns around and sees James wearing the arc reactor on his chest. To his surprise, James' face starts to pixelate and he rips off a holographic mask to reveal that it was really Emily who ran over to Iqadi. She blasts him again and Mike flies back as the rest of her suit's parts fly and connect on her body. Mike looks back to where the original suit was and sees James grow back to his normal size. He lights up both fists mid-air and blasts them both right at Mike with all his strength. His skin, which is covered in burns underneath his uniform, feels inflamed but that doesn't stop him. Before Mike could get up, the Hulk grabs and holds him tightly.
Now trapped and surrounded by everyone pointing their weapons at him, he has no choice but to surrender.
-o-
SHIELD Recovery Room - 5:58 AM
Iqadi wakes up to fluorescent lights and the scent of ethanol. Her eyes slowly adjust to the brightness of the room and she sees that she's wearing a hospital gown and heavily bandaged while connected to a series of IVs and vital monitors. Iqadi sees all her friends in the room. Some are asleep on chairs or looking mindlessly around. She can see the noticeable injuries on Xavier and James but at least they're on their feet beside everyone else.
"This has been my worst mistake…" Iqadi says.
Those six words cause all heads to turn her way and the sleeping ones to rise. Their faces don't change but remain passive.
"No," Angela says. "It's only a mistake if you refused to correct it which you did by giving us a starting point to overwrite our plans. If there's one thing that we know about you, Iqadi, it's that you love your kingdom and would do anything to keep it safe, even if it hurts you. I can't stomach that you were suffering for so long."
Iqadi has never felt so grateful in her life. Her friends understand that this life is hard. Most people just don't understand what has to be sacrificed in this life. The battles that are worth fighting never come easy, they come with opportunity costs.
Iqadi realizes something that is now bothering her. "This question has been on my mind ever since I saw you lot. How did you all get there?"
Everyone looks at one another with side glances before facing Iqadi again.
"Oh boy…" Daniel mutters.
"That is quite the story," Apollo adds. "Luckily, you're hospitalized so we have the time."
[Apollo is me… I've said on many occasions].
