[IC] All-Star Marvel: Audax Mundus Novus - Season 2

[Dedonus]

Carol Danvers

Although Carol was physically in school, her mind could have been light-years away. For a month, Carol had this fear in her mind that she was a mutant because of the sudden appearance of her powers. Carol had even dialed the number that the X-Men who had assisted her with dealing with the Brotherhood of Mutants in Boston, although she hung up before anyone picked up every single time. However, ever since her last mission with S.W.O.R.D., an even scarier revelation was uncovered.

Was she some kind of alien? For some strange reason, that avian woman identified Carol as some sort of extraterrestrial race called the Kree. Could this explain why her father had always preferred his sons over Carol? Even if this was true, Carol could never bring herself to ask. She was too afraid of asking if they thought that she was a mutant, let alone something as outlandish as an alien. Even S.W.O.R.D. was not sure what Carol was.

While Carol was lost in thought, a commotion erupted from down the school hallway. Karla Sofen was a notorious bully at Carol’s school, usually picking on hapless underclassmen who unfortunately incur her wrath. Because of her infamous reputation, it would almost be karma to describe her as white trash, taking out her own insecurities on others. This time, she was picking on a freshman girl of Pakistani descent. Karla had pinned the girl up against the wall of lockers and she would have stuffed the poor freshmen into a locker if they were a little bit larger.

Something instinctively pushed Carol to intervene. She marched over to where the freshman was being harassed and called Karla out on it.

“Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?” Carol dared Karla. In response, Karla turned towards Carol and shoved her, although for some reason unknown to the bully she could not make Carol budge.

Almost immediately after Karla had made contact with Carol, one of the nearby teachers rushed over to break up what he might have thought could have broken out into a fight.

“Ms. Sofen, don’t you have math this period?” The teacher asked, although he already knew that the answer was a ‘yes’. Karla rolled her eyes at the educator before she walked away back to class, lucky that he did not write up a detention slip on the stop. The freshman sheepishly thanked Carol for standing up for her and dashed away to class. Once Karla and the young girl were gone, Carol turned to head towards her own class. However, before she could get far, she heard the teacher’s voice again.

“Ms. Danvers,” The teacher began, “You know the dress code. While I will let you off with a warning because you haven’t broken them in the four years you have been here, don’t think you can wear whatever you want because you’re a senior now.”

Carol was bewildered at this comment. For the past couple periods, no one had mentioned anything about the dress code to her. In fact, she had worn this shirt and skirt before and have not been warned about it. However, when she looked down at herself, she was shocked to see that there was a small section of her stomach that wasn’t covered by the bottom of her shirt and that her skirt did not cover as much of her thigh as she thought it did. She was dumbfounded at how her clothes had shrunk. Or had they?

“Sorry about that. I won’t happen again!” Carol apologized as her face became bright red with embarrassment. Her powers must have somehow started to activate when she confronted Karla. The physical changes she usually experienced while she was ‘powered up’ must have only started to appear, which would have explained why her clothes might have looked a little smaller on her. Carol just stretched down the bottom of her shirt and scampered off to class before anyone could realize that it was her body and not her clothes that had changed.

[Natty]

Five minutes later both Kate and Humberto had been briefed on everything; How Stegron had been spotted by S.H.I.E.L.D. during a followup mission to Captain America’s recent to the Savage Land, as well as that the plan was to get there as soon as possible and kick some dinosaur butt. Given that Fury allowed the three of them to leave the Triskelion anyway.

Despite the upbeat and confident attitude that Humberto tried to submerge himself in at this “plan”, it was easy to see that he was still startled by the news. Today he would probably be seeing his parents for what would be the first time in years. America herself would do anything for that chance. As such, she was determined to do anything in her power to help him not squander this opportunity. Even if Fury denied them access to a quinjet, America was more than happy to break ranks and punch her way to the hangar bay.

She was just about to put this sentiment into words, when the appearance of a strange looking S.H.I.E.L.D. agent entering the room caught her attention.

“Who the hell are you supposed to be?” America blurted out, evidently confused. “Some kind of Hulkling or something?”

The comparison to the big mean and green was an accurate one. The man before them stood tall and muscular, his skin a piece shade of green, mirroring that of the Hulk. Despite the complexion, there was of course some noticeable differences, most noticeably being the wings. His shoulders also seemed to be coated in some kind of armoured scales of some kind too, with the guy’s hair reminding America of every lead singer of every annoying boyband.

What came next however could be considered to be even more shocking than this “Hulkling’s” appearance. He began to ramble on, informing them that he was joining the team. The team that America was now apparently in charge of. At the very least the idea confused her. She’d only been an Avenger for about a month yet they were already instructing her with more responsibility. What annoyed her even more however was that evidently S.H.I.E.L.D. had been aware of Stegron’s location for some time now, considering that this agent here had already been briefed. Why hadn't they told them sooner? Did they not think them ready? On the bright side, at least they had permission to go.

She was still trying to process all of this when the green skinned agent before began to change, his appearance shifting and his skin paling until he resembled the spitting image of the before mentioned lead singers of those boybands. That being said, America was impressed by his shapeshifting capabilities. She had come across a number of them during her dimensional travels and it was easy to say that they were always useful during combat, and if the guy’s previous wingspan and muscles were anything to go by, this guy would be quite the asset in the field.

Asset. She was already thinking like a suit.

The change had obviously shocked the others too, with Kate standing simply standing in place, her mouth hanging open, while Humberto just stood in his silence and pain. Fortunately the shapeshifter’s comments about trying his best to help had brought a glimmer of hope to the poor teenager’s face, which was all she could ask from him at this point.

“Well now that introductions are out of the way, what’s next?” Kate’s voice was a much needed addition to the silence, and America was extremely happy with it.

“We go get him, right?” Humberto spoke, his voice raising in confidence the more he spoke. “We beat Stegron, and get my mom and dad back.”

America wanted to agree. She wanted to lead a patriotic cheer before charging the bunch to the hangar. Yet instead she stood still for a second contemplating. What if they weren’t ready? What if they went out there and they got hurt. Or worse? The thought cut deep into America’s psyche.

“Ah dios!” America swore, clutching her hands against her face in frustration. She seriously did not want to be in charge. Taking a deep breath, she sighed loudly, before moving her hands up and through her hair. Slightly calmer now, she looked back up towards her new “squadron”, as the green skinned Hulkling had referred to them as. “Guess I’ll be having words with Cap’ after this then. For now though, I guess we should probably get going.”

She put on a smile as she strode towards the door, with Kate punching the air slightly in excitement as she followed behind. Humberto followed on soon after, evidently still partially cautious despite his previous remarks.

“Come’on Hulkling!” Kate called back towards Teddy, obviously having taken a shine to the nickname America had accidently given him. “Let’s go hunting dinosaurs!”

[Gowi]

[POST #3]

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A N T — M A N

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“You know you’re kind of stealing my motif.”

It seemed like Hank was right on time as far as things appeared— a wide grin underneath his helmet’s faceplate as he looked squarely at the villain that was in front of him that had attacked his mother in broad daylight. Even with the presence of a second heroic vigilante that Hank had not accounted for he was basically prepared and had prepared various quips and comments for the culprit.

“Two of you? Damn it! Who are you?”

Hank wasn’t exactly sure who the kid with the Spider motif was, but it didn’t really matter at the moment since he was looking confused like he had never dealt with molecular acceleration and manipulation technology before in his life. As Ant-Man he figured the word would’ve been out on technological concepts of molecular manipulation considering his entire first bout as Ant-Man had been dealing with a jerk who was aping on his father’s technologies in the first place but good press was hard to get. He’d have to make a mental note of talking to someone in news to get his name out there; after all, he was an avenger and didn’t deserve this kind of ignorance!

“I go by many names. Today I’ll be the guy who’s kicking your ass.”

He shook his head.

“I’ve come too far to get what I deserve to be outwitted by the likes of costumed morons!”

“Sir, I have a 11th level intelligence, so that is kind of rude.”

The villain charged him, blasting his particle gun in the process, with a grumble as Hank dodged the blasts with a few subsequent flips as he tightened his fists.

“I don’t care if you have a 20th level intelligence, you aren’t stopping me!” His left hand slammed on a switch on his belt as a loud 'beep' clicked that at their height sounded like a bullhorn. Before Hank could react the room filled with a thick smoke and he felt the crunch of a fist hitting his face knocking him back into a crushed up roll of paper as his enemy turned back to 'human' size as soon as he connected his attack with Hank.

Well, this isn’t going to be as fast as I thought.

[DrewVonAwesome]

(Collab between Drewvonawesome and Natty)

There was a weird pause to everything when he finally stopped talking. It didn’t help that the first thing to come out of America’s mouth was an interesting new nickname for Teddy. Admittedly Teddy never really had one up to this point like a lot of his fellow agents such as Mockingbird, Hawkeye, and Black Widow. Thinking about it for a moment he actually rather liked Hulkling. Like changling or earthling, but with more Hulk.

Kate apparently agreed as she called him Hulkling as his momentary moment of thought was leaving him in the dust of his new squad. “Oh yeah wait up!” Teddy called out as he hurried after the others. He had to call in a Quinjet pick up for the mission as he rejoined the others. Thankfully he had the qualifications to fly it so him and presumably Humberto didn’t have to fly the other two all the way over to the Savage Lands. Still he couldn’t help but already feel like an outsider. He had read in the paperwork how Kate and America already have an notable history. With America having ended a drug reign Kate’s father was running. In regards to Humberto though Teddy hadn’t even thought that much about him outside of regards to the mission. Not until the group waited for the Quinjet to be delivered to the carrier for them when Humberto glanced over at Teddy.

“...Say wait a second...” Humberto pointed at Teddy who curiously looked over at him. “Teddy? Teddy Altman?”

Pausing confused, Teddy had realized he might not have actually introduced himself to the rest of the group. Suddenly though what Humberto was talking about hit Teddy like a metaphorical fright train. “Holy crap Humberto! Oh my God I can’t believe I didn’t put two and two together.” Quickly the two pounded fists and gave one another a bro hug.

Kate looking on confused as she slowly pulled her purple tinted shades up. “Wait you two know one another?” She asked.

Teddy paused, “Yeah I didn’t even think about it because I’ve just been I guess too much of an airhead. No Humberto and I both did plenty of growing up on this helicarrier since our parents all work for S.H.I.E.L.D.” He noted all grins.

“Oh man you always were such a doofus!” Humberto chuckled. “How could you forget all the Hell we rose around here? I refuse to believe we’re not the reason Fury is bald!”

“Oh man how could we not be?” Teddy laughed. “Wow dude look at us man! I mean even given what’s going on we made it.” Teddy started though to regret why the two were even there though but glancing over he saw Humberto’s smile. Disheartened for the reason Teddy said, but the hope was still there for him. Especially knowing someone he trusted was there with him.

“Yeah... I guess we did man...” Humberto replied nodding. “I guess we did.”

When the Quinjet arrived Teddy took his time getting everything set before take off. As well as making sure everyone else was buckled in. He had once forgotten to buckle in when a Quinjet was taking off. He learned very quickly why that’s a bad idea. Quietly he slipped into the pilot’s chair and started the last of the checklist before takeoff.

“Teddy, right?” Came a voice from behind the young hero. “Mind if I take a pue?”

Not waiting for an answer, America Chavez nonchalantly slid into the co-pilot’s seat. It was clear from her face that something was bothering her, yet she stayed silent, only finally glancing up from her thoughts once the quinjet had begun to lift off of the ground. Yet it was only once the ship had left the Triskelion’s hangar and was taking to the skies above that she even uttered a word.

“So chico, they tell you anything else about Stegron that could come in handy?”

“By all means…” Although she was already in the co-pilot chair. Teddy still gestured to it. She clearly looked worried, confused, something was eating at her. He had a feeling he knew what it was too. The look on her face when he even just connected her with the term ‘leader’ came off as fear and confusion. It made Teddy realize that she was probably not made aware at all of the situation. Which surprised him, S.H.I.E.L.D. was usually on top of being upfront about such plans. At least that’s how it felt to him, he did just find out he was going to be a major team with these people less than an hour ago….

Pausing to think back to the debriefing he had moments ago. Teddy could only give a faint shaking of his head. “I think I only know as much as you do about this situation. Humberto more than likely can clue us in on any key points about the guy.”. Teddy noted glancing back at the young man in question.

“Eh, wouldn’t really surprise me if they knew more than they were saying. S.H.I.E.L.D. has never really been forthtelling with its information. Pretty sure that’s one of the constants across the multiverse…” Her voice trailed off, temporarily taking America back into her silence.

Turning in her chair, she glanced back at the other two members of the group behind them. Kate was sat towards the back, bobbing her head slightly to music she was listening to through her headphones. It was somewhat clear as to what she was doing; pumping herself up for the mission. A pristine looking gym bag sat open at her feet, filled to the brim with all sorts of weaponry, mostly notably being her trusty bow and arrow, as well as a few billy clubs, and battle staves.

Humberto was following suit in regards to the music. He sat in silence, his head leaning against the glass of the window, his eyes staring outwards. His left hand however was on his chest, gently touching the red glowing gem that was the source of the teen’s powers. It was obvious to anyone that he was hurting. Yet no amount of encouragement or comfort could help him right now.

“Am I really meant to lead these people?” America asked, turning her head back towards Teddy.

Teddy paused thinking about what the documents had said about America Chavez. She was a dimensional hopper eh? Teddy had to admit he was dying to know what he was like in other dimensions. Doctor Altman, Teddy Altman star quarterback for the New York Jets, Prince Teddy Altman… HE-MAN. He had to also wonder if she even knew him in other dimensions. Or if she would even want to know him in other dimensions.

Still he watched on as America glanced back at Kate and Humberto getting ready for action. Her wondering aloud did make Teddy pause for thought as he looked over at him. “Hey I know we’ve only met and all. But from my experience, if S.H.I.E.L.D. is willing to give someone this kind of status. That means they really see something important in that person. Besides, push comes to shove we can handle this like a head coach and assistant coach. If you want me to lead things until you feel comfortable, I’m alright with that.”

“I appreciate that Teddy, I really do.” She said, managing a smile. “I’ve just had some dodgy experiences with teams like this in the past. The Avengers are fine, it’s just that when you put a bunch of super powered teenagers in a room together, things always get overly dramatic. It’s loco.”

She fell silent after that once again for a few seconds, obviously reflecting on something private. Then at once that changed, with America darting her eyes back towards Hulkling once more.

“How are you so sure about S.H.I.E.L.D. though?” She asked, inquisitively. “From where I’m from they’re far from the perfect peacekeeping organization you make them out to be.”

Teddy had to let out a chuckle though it clearly a bit awkward given that yes, the idea of teens with superpowers being around each other sounded like an MTV reality show in the making. Only without the really fake melodramatic parts. Still Teddy had to reflect on the fact he would totally watch such a show. If that said anything good about him personally was debatable.

Still it was the other question that clearly got Teddy’s attention. Was he sure about S.H.I.E.L.D? It was a thought he hadn’t even phantomed before. Still he glanced over and although he didn’t want to express it outright. He was clearly a bit personally hurt and almost insulted by it.

“Am I sure about them? America all I’ve ever really known was S.H.I.E.L.D. My mom gave birth to me on that helicarrier. I grew up on it, I know Nick Fury and the other higher ups on a first name basis. Of course I’m sure about them. I wouldn’t have devoted all that time to training if I wasn’t. I mean I don’t know what life is like where… ever exactly that is.” Teddy awkwardly scratched the side of his head realizing he didn’t have a clue where exactly she was from being a reality hopper and all. “But here S.H.I.E.L.D. does what it has too. I mean they’re not perfect but what could be?” Letting his answer linger for a bit Teddy immediately felt the wave of awkwardness in the pilot’s bay of the quinjet. Especially knowing that he had just met this girl who he was already giving sass too. He couldn’t do that, needed to tone the sass way down.

Teddy coughed for a moment, controlling the ship’s path along before glancing back over. “So…” He started, tapping the control panel with an index finger. “Reality hopping huh? Must be crazy. You ever met like me on any of those realities? Teddy Altman? Couldn’t imagine what I’m like in some other life. Be like a… straight minister or something silly like that.” Teddy couldn’t help but giggle at such an idea. Though he quickly stopped himself not sure how it was going over with America. “I mean not that there’s anything wrong with being gay I mean I love it personally and…” Teddy quickly bit his lip again. Seriously why did he always sound like the dumbest of idiots when he got nervous like this? “You know just… maybe should just stop there…”

America couldn’t help but feel bad about her choice of words towards her new teammate, who seemed visibly hurt as a result of what she had said. She couldn’t blame him for being offended. She was in the wrong here after all. What did she expect for insulting everything the guy knew in life? How would she have liked it if he had started insulting her mothers? Of course, she had no idea at the time, but that was no excuse. Still, his response did give some clarity to S.H.I.E.L.D.’s true nature, which did ease her nerves somewhat. They couldn’t be all bad if they raise a kid like the one sitting in front of her. It would seem that he wasn't completely ignorant either of their actions. He knew they weren’t perfect, yet still he had trust in them.

She had to hope the look on her face was enough of an apology, as before she could say anything the green skinned teenager began rambling on; discussing his alternative lives throughout the multiverse. The thought of this bubbly teen as a strict christian minister amused her, with America letting out a laugh for probably the first time since she had been in that training room. His further ramblings about his thoughts on homosexuality merely increased the laughter.

“Chico, it’s completely fine!” She let out, her laughter dying down. “[color-aquamarine]If you must know, I’m actually a..[/color]”

THUD.

The sound of something landing on the roof caused the entirety of the four teenagers to stop in their tracks, their eyes all darting up towards the ceiling for a few seconds, for lingering nervously at each other.

“I’m sure… that’s normal…” Teddy muttered nervously. Glancing up and around at the ceiling of the jet.

As if on cue, a faint animalistic screech echoed throughout the quinjet.

Kate instantly reached for her weapon, notching an arrow into his bow, while both Humberto and America unbuckled themselves and rose to their feet, preparing for the worst. The consoles around them began beeping loudly, with an amber light overhead flashing ominously, signalling the danger. To make matters worse, the screeching had drastically increased in volume, indicating that whatever was out there wasn’t alone. By now though they were starting to recognise the sound. It was similar to the one’s Humberto often made during his training.

All the while Teddy began to frantically key in video feed to the outside of the jet. Trying to find the source before a shot to the above of the quinjet revealed all. Teddy’s eyes widened in surprised before he started to unbuckle himself from the pilot seat. Glancing back at the others.

“Guys! We’re at the Savage Lands… and I think the Savage Lands just sent out its welcoming committee.”

[Dedonus]

Peter Parker

Peter was amused by the scene that unfolded in front of him. While he was sure it probably seemed way more serious to the two combatants, to Peter, it almost seemed comical to him. They appeared like tiny living toys fighting one another. Fortunately for the two miniaturized men, Peter could not hear their metaphorical dick measuring contest about who had a higher intelligence level and therefore could not make a comment much at the two men’s expense.

While the two men were fighting, Peter decided that it was the perfect opportunity for him to get Janet van Dyne out of harm’s way. Peter performed a back flip and landed on the other side of the desk, where Janet had been hiding. He picked her up and leapt out the window. He shot out a webline onto the side of the building and used it as a tether so that he could slow his descent to the ground. Once they were earthbound, Peter handed Janet over to the police who had already established a perimeter around the building.

[color= ed1c24]“Don’t worry, officers. Your Neighborhood Friendly Spider-Man is on the job!”[/color] Peter gave a quick salute to the few officers who were standing nearby and then turned to return to Ms. van Dyne’s office, where the intruder was still located.

When he returned after climbing up the side of the building and entering through the same broken window as he had the first time, Peter saw that the intruder had restored himself to his original height.

“I see you’re back. For a moment there, I was getting worried that we had a ‘Honey, I Shrunk the Kids’ situation on our hands!” Peter quipped while perching on the desk in the center of the room. “Since I have only read the theoretical treatises on this stuff, seeing Pym Particles at work in person is quite the treat.”

“You think that I use that old hack’s research?” The man barked at Peter, who obviously had struck a nerve in mentioning Pym Particles. “My father was twice the man and ten times the scientist Hank Pym will ever be.”

“Okay…” Peter said, not entirely sure what else to say. “Well, I’m Spider-Man, but unless you have been living under a rock, you should have known that because of Jameson’s mudslinging campaign. So, what should I call you?”

“I am the Gadgeteer.” The man tossed a handful of small devices in Peter’s direction after he had revealed his name. Peter, not even needing his Spider-Sense to know that these small mechanical objects were dangerous, jumped back off the desk with a back flip. Once he had landed, Peter saw the small devices land on the desk. Right before his eyes, Peter witnessed the desk shrinking in size until it was almost barely visible.

“Hey! That was a perfectly fine desk!” Peter responded to the Gadgeteer after seeing the desk basically shrink out of existence. “You need to watch where you’re throwing those things. Someone might get hurt!”

“I told you that this didn’t concern you. But now that you have interfered, you now face the same fate.” The Gadgeteer raised up his weapon and aimed it at Peter. Once he had the young superhero in his sights, he blasted a shrinking ray at Peter. However, using his agility, Peter dodged out of the way of the beam and responded by shooting several web bullets at the Gadgeteer’s face, covering it with webbing.

“Okay, other guy! I think this is your cue to do something!” Peter shouted to Ant-Man, while the Gadgeteer struggled to rip the webs off his helmet.

[Spud]

The trip back to the States was considerably faster via plane ... the ship had taken aaaagggeeeessss. It was also considerably more comfortable, since she wasn't hiding in a cargo hold, she was travelling as a proper passenger. THe technology of this realm still greatly eluded her ... she'd only arrived relatively recently afterall and there were no planes on Vanaheim. Asgard had once had flying crafts though, but they were tremendously different to Midgardian airborne vehicles.

Finally, after roughly 7 hours, Tarene was back in New York. Thor had suggested she go to his home in a remote area in Montana ... there she could rest, allow herself to get comfortable and cause minimal damage, however S.H.I.E.L.D quickly scuppered those plans when they discovered she had been located and apprehended. Instead of exiling herself to Montana and keeping in contact with Thor, she was interned into one of S.H.I.E.L.D's specially designed containment facilities. Calling it a "cell" was a tad overzealous though. Yes, she was confined, but her chambers were generously sized and the S.H.I.E.L.D agents had promised to try make her as comfortable as possible since she'd allowed them to take her in with a great deal of willingness. There were no promises about when she would be released, but the general consensus seemed to be that she'd get to Montana once she was no longer deemed a threat, or at least, a threat that S.H.I.E.L.D could keep a lid on.

The agents were rather afraid of her, but, since Thor was taking responsibility for her, they seemed to relax just a little. When she asked for someone to find Dwight for her and allow him to visit her, they agreed, they also agreed to teach her how to use a phone, Dwight would like that and since she was sitting cooped up here for a while, she had nothing better to do than to try and improve herself. She hoped this internment wouldn't last long, she wasn't exactly the most patient ... She also hoped Thor wouldn't leave her to waste away down here, he could visit from time to time and update her on the world outside, then again, he was still her king, it wasn't her place to make demands of him. She was relieved that she was well fed here at least. She'd been in worse situations before, even though she was unofficially a prisoner of S.H.I.E.L.D for goodness knows how much longer.

Sif's sword was taken from her, and she still didn't have her reliable old golden hammer ... Perhaps Dwight had been able to track it down, she had told him about it and he'd begun researching all the big Norse ancient historical sites and museums that housed ancient artefacts. If he dug it up, she was hopeful S.H.I.E.L.D or Thor might help her reclaim her hammer (without breaking and entering and causing grievous bodily harm to scientists and night-security guards).

The Winter Soldier was prowling New York. Assessing escape routes, secret tunnels, back alleys and public transit networks. He worked methodically and precisely. It wasn't often he had a chance to properly map out large chunks of his hunting ground when he was sent on a mission ... Most of the time he was injected into the general area his target was scheduled to appear and then pulled out as soon as he made a hit, leaving the Winter Soldier out of cryo for too long had undesirable side-effects. This mission was top priority though, to make sure he didn't lapse out of his conditioned state, his handlers kept a close eye on him and mainained regular radio contact. A back-up team was on stand-by, should the worst happen, but so far, the Winter Soldier was thoroughly dedicated to his goal, all traces of Bucky Barnes and his best friend Steve, were gone.

"Soldat. Report." the radio earpiece crackled to life, a brusque Russian barked the order.
"I got a visual on the target. Mapping out the area for escape routes. I have read the dossier, I will not let the target escape."
"Good. Make the hit quickly, we need you to return to base Soldat."
"Understood."

Bucky levelled his sniper rifle and watched Fury's movements through the scope of his M4A1, his finger toyed with the trigger but didn't apply enough pressure to fire the shot. He studied Fury's mouth, lip-reading, he caught snatches of the discussion from his huge distance away from the target.
"Rodgers ... back from the dead ... the Captain America ... 1945 ... The ice ... he's with Wilson and Stark ... AIM agents ..."

Bucky felt a strange searing pain lance through his skull Captain America. It was the same pain he endured when he was "wiped clean", his memory scrubbed out like a bloodstain by his handlers. He knew the codewords. The magic combination of words that made him scream and spasm in pain, the words that made him compliant if he ever dared to run away or defy his handlers. He knew that Captain America wasn't one of those words, and he knew that he hadn't heard it, he'd lip-read it, and yet, it had hurt him.

He decided to do something he knew he probably shouldn't ... He had to get close to Fury. He needed to get answers first.

Then. He would kill him.

He leapt over the edge of the apartment building. Air sailed past him for several floors before he shifted his body as he flew down toward the concrete pavement below, swinging in to land on the fire-escape stairwell. The fall would have been fatal, but the Winter Soldier saved himself the embarrassment of splattering on the concrete below. He finished the rest of the drop in a shorter, non-fatal jump from the 3rd floor fire-stairwell down to the street.

He no longer had a visual on Fury, down on street level, but he had an aerial view of the city mapped out in his head. Fury had only a handful of places he could go in the time it took from Bucky to close the gap between them. He'd sweep the surrounding area and close the net on Fury, narrowing down his search area quickly. Then he'd get in close and strike. Quick, concise ... he wouldn't allow things to get messy.

"Captain America ... Captain America ..." while the Winter Soldier planned out attacks and escape routes, he felt the name swim around his skull in the background. "Was he a target? ... Was he a target I missed? Is that why my head ached when I saw Fury say that name? Is he my punishment?"

"Soldat. Report."
"I need to get closer to the target, too many witnesses. Mission could become compromised."
"Do not waste time Soldat-" the handlers attention was drawn away from the mission at hand for a moment and Bucky could hear chaos and alarms erupting on the other end of the radio. "What do you mean they've escaped? Well shut it down. Take the helicopters and shoot them down." The handler drew his attention back to the Winter Soldier.
"Soldat, there has been a change in situation. The Wolf Spider units have escaped and we are compromised. Abort Operation now, you have been reassigned, take down the Wolf Spiders now."

The Captain America questions had to wait ... Now there were 10 deadly super-soldiers on the loose with unknown motives. Bucky had to eliminate the Wolf Spiders which meant he had to move fast. There was a military base nearby, the National Airport and a certain technological tower which belonged to a renowned young businessman ... Stark tower was the closest, Bucky opted to head to the helipad on Stark towers roof, he had to admit he would have been mildly impressed by the security (and the tech) if his thoughts weren't focused on the mission ahead. Info from Siberia was relayed on to him, he knew the Wolf Spiders, their strengths, weaknesses, their training, to an extent, he even knew how their minds worked, their training had been modelled on his own training after all. He analysed their movements from the reports relayed to him, the movements seemed random and chaotic to most, but Bucky could anticipate their next move, he knew the method to their madness.

Breaking into one of Stark's jets was a piece of cake, then again, Stark probably never anticipated a Soviet Super-Assassin would make it through his security and get close enough to hijack a jet. Regardless, he fired up the engines and took off, soaring over the New York skyline and out over the Atlantic.

[Natty]

As soon as Hulkling spoke, the quinjet lurched and shook once more. A sound of screeching metal could be heard as a large panel of the ship’s ceiling was ripped clean off, revealing probably one of the ugliest creatures America had ever seen in her life. Despite her years of travelling the multiverse, America had never actually come into contact with a dinosaur before. That is if you didn’t count Reptil. Despite the emotional turmoil of what today’s mission brought, she was actually excited to have a chance to punch one right in the face. It would seem that that chance would come earlier than expect.

She shot up instantly, soaring straight into the dinosaur and sending her fist right into its beak. The force was enough to send the creature flying. America chased after it out into the sky above the quinjet, intent on following through with her attacked. That was however until she managed to get a good look around. The air around her was filled to the brim with pterodactyls, all of which were now staring directly at her. Furrowing her brow and cracking her knuckles, she grimaced. Time to get to work.

After pummelling several dinosaurs out of the sky, America was happy to see that the other two fliers from her merry team had joined her in the skies, with Reptil now sporting a set of dark red pterodatle wings which mirrored their attackers. With a smile, she continued, diving forwards fists first, tearing through the dinosaurs around her.

“Just be thankful we’re not going up against a swarm of Quetzalcoatlus’s” Reptil remarked, swooping down to land onto the roof of the quinjet, nearby to where she was now hovering. As he landed, his wings began to shrink as his body grew to regain the mass his transformation had distributed elsewhere. His arms however had now changed into a pair of red scaly clawed talons, which reached out in front of him and slashed at a pterodactyl that had been heading towards America, causing it to drop awkwardly out of the sky.

“Quetzalcola-what?” America questioned, as she sent her foot into the wings of another attacker.

“Trust me, you don’t want to know!” Came his reply, as Humberto took to the air once more, diving into a pterodactyl.

“You thinking Stegron?” America asked as she swung her arm around to retaliate against another attacker.

“Wouldn’t surprise me!”

As America punched her way through the swarm, she began to formulate a plan of action in her head. Before she could put anything into words however, her communicator erupted into life, with Kate’s voice filling her ears.

“I get that you’re having the time of your life up there, but I’m pretty sure I can’t keep this quinjet flying for much longer!”

At once, America turned her attention to Hulkling. “You heard the woman! We need to get her out of there!”

[DrewVonAwesome]

If you had asked Hulkling what he figured he would be doing today, getting attacked by flying dinosaurs would be... eh... 18th on the list.

Still he needed a moment to gather his sense of ‘wtf’-ness when he came out to the gaping hole in the roof of the jet and saw in the skies overhead a large grouping of pterodactyls attacking the ship. Sprouting wings Hulkling took to the skies with Reptil and Ms. America to kick some Jurassic ass.

Staying out of the discussion about Quetzal-a-thingies Hulkling finally piped in when the topic of Stegron and his involvement in the pterodactyls. “These birds might just be attacking the ship thinking its some weird new animal or something...” Hulkling called back to the others staying in the air with his ironically pterodactyl like wings. “I mean I’m no dinosaur expert but I’m pretty sure being a dinosaur whisperer isn’t possible either.”

Before he could provide a keen point by point reasoning behind his assumption. Kate spoke into their ear pieces and on cue Hulkling saw the jet starting to seriously nosedive towards the island below. Panic set in for the young SHIELD agent, as he didn’t want to have to explain away a piece of SHIELD property being blown to bit. Flying down, struggling to keep up with the jet, Hulkling got near the roof and with a grunt dug his hands into a portion of the top of the jet. Pulling back with all his might to try and get the jet out of its death spiral. The small lift back to a straight position though wasn’t fixing matters so he needed to go to plan B quickly.

Hulkling stayed with the jet, clawing his way down towards the cockpit where he saw Kate still frantically trying to save the ship herself. “Kate I’m coming in, don’t move.” Hulkling said into the communicator.

Lifting himself into the air slightly and before Kate could even finish asking “Wait how are you planning on getting in-”. Hulkling put all his weight into his shoulder, slamming through the roof of the jet and grabbing Kate in midair before slamming through the floor of the jet. Swooping down and around the now completely screwed jet as it fell.

“JESUS CHRIST HOLY SHIT I HATE YOU THAT WAS THE FUCKING COOLEST THING EVER!” Kate’s screaming in complete hysteria as Hulkling held onto her tightly. Trying to catch up to America and Reptil who were airborne themselves.

[Dedonus]

Clint Barton | Barbara Morse

“Boring!” Hawkeye exclaimed as he shifted through yet another file of the countless records for Malcolm Donalbain’s sports emporium business. After S.H.I.E.L.D. had applied some pressure on Shirlee Bryant, causing her to spill the beans about how Mr. Donalbain was paying her to swipe the serum samples so that his own research team could develop new products to sell to his costumers. Without even breaking a sweat, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents managed to convince Mr. Donalbain that cooperating with them would be his best option. As a result, they began to search of premises for any more evidence, including through their paper files.

Even after a couple hours of sorting through a mound of boxes filled with all sorts of records, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents still had not found any more evidence. Either Donalbain was actually smart enough to keep his criminal activities off his record books or they were hidden in what was still a room-full of boxes left for them to check. Sure, this dirty work was not as exciting or glorifying as punching a villain in the face, but it still had to be done.

“This is peculiar.” Mockingbird mentioned aloud as she examined a blueprint of Donalbain’s office building.

“What do you have, Bobbi?” Hawkeye basically yawned as he stretched out his arms and legs after having been sitting for a couple hours now.

“Remember that downward staircase that had barriers set up to warn people that it was structurally compromised? According to these schematics, there should not be anything there.”

“Finally! Some action.” Hawkeye practically leaped out of his chair. He began to hurry out of the room, quickly shouting over his shoulder. “I’ll meet you there!”

Hawkeye was already out of the door before Mockingbird could even utter a word, let alone respond. Sighing, she calmly folded the building blueprint and returned it to its proper place in one of the filing boxes. She then stood up from her chair and began the short walk down the nearby hallway to where that ‘out-of-order’ stairwell was located.

After waiting a few minutes, Mockingbird saw Hawkeye hurrying over to where she was standing. Before he arrived, she wondered what was taking him so long, but once she saw Clint, Mockingbird immediately knew why he was the last S.H.I.E.L.D. agent present. He had taken the time to change into his purple uniform, along with grabbing his bow and quiver.

“Why are you all just standing here? We got work to do!” Hawkeye joked since he knew that they were waiting for him to finally arrive. He then pulled out two arrows, one at a time, and fired them into the ceiling right above the staircase. Once the arrows had plunged into the ceiling, a rope fell from the fletching side of each of the projectiles.

“You all stand guard up here while we go check this out.” Hawkeye told the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents as he snatched one of the ropes. His other colleagues exhaled a sigh of disappointment, knowing that they had been assigned the ‘boring’ job. Despite their reaction, the two elite S.H.I.E.L.D. agents proceeded down the stairs, holding onto the ropes just in case there was actually some truth about the compromised nature of the stairs.

At the bottom of the staircase, Hawkeye and Mockingbird found a high-tech mechanical door that shielded another room on the other side.

“How much do you want to bet that AIM is on the other side of that door?” Hawkeye asked his partner while they fixed a few explosives to the locked door so that they could gain entrance to whatever lurked behind it. As usual, Mockingbird rolled her eyes at her partner’s joke.

After the explosions blew the door off its hinges, causing it to crash to the floor, Hawkeye and Mockingbird cautiously advanced toward the doorway, weapons drawn to defend themselves just in case.

“Alright, you crazy yellow-suited beekeepers! Come out with your hands up!” Hawkeye shouted into the doorway as the smoke started to dissipate. However, once they could clearly see into the next room, the two SHIELD agents were shocked that the scientists associated with A.I.M. were not there. Instead, there were dozens of men (or who appeared to be men) dressed in gray uniforms that were more fit for the costumed characters that have been popping up for the last couple years.

“I’m so glad you didn’t take me up on that bet.” Hawkeye said when he discovered that he was wrong to assume that AIM was behind the thief of scientific research from the University of Chicago.

[Spud]

S.H.I.E.L.D was wary this time ... Tarene had evaded S.H.I.E.L.D custody once already, and she'd managed to slip off the radar, albeit briefly. Even without the mythical hammer, Mjolnir, which S.H.I.E.L.D knew Thor (the original Thor) now possessed, they were positive she was still a threat. It was impossible to quantify the strength, the power, contained in Mjolnir, and no one was quite sure how strong Tarene was without it. One thing was certain though, no one wanted to risk fighting toe-to-toe with the fallen Goddess.

With Thor's word, S.H.I.E.L.D's agents were allowed to relax somewhat, they knew Thor had the hammer and that he could overpower Tarene. They knew she'd sworn an oath, they just had to trust she'd keep it, not many believed that yet but so far, she hadn't crushed any skulls despite being escorted to a reinforced containment facility.

Coulson had ensured she was made comfortable of course, and that her wishes (if they were reasonable enough) were granted. She ate better than she had in months. She had no money when she came to Midgard, and Dwight had ordered takeout for her countless times, but Asgardian appetites were ermm... HUGE. She ate heartily for the first time in months. Her "cell" wasn't really much of a cell, since she'd come willingly, they'd spared her a bare cage and instead given her a roomy space with modest but sturdy furnishings. It was more akin to a small studio or college dorm-room rather than a prisoners cell. Still, she was largely confined to her cell, allowed the occasional respite of being escorted by a troupe of guards from one place or another to stretch her legs from time to time.

She took to studying and learning about Midgard, though she was a dreadfully impatient student and terrified some of the agents who tried to explain the internet to her (although not intentionally terrifying them). Dwight was allowed to visit and he seemed to think S.H.I.E.L.D's cell was the best place for her until she was ready to intergrate into modern Midgardian society, she had to learn the basics otherwise she'd only get into more trouble again.

She'd just about managed to navigate the Skype app on her iPhone (though a great deal of it still mystified her) and rang Dwight.
"Tarene! Hi, why are you calling at this hour?!" Dwight yawned, struggling to straighten his glasses and rub sleep out of his eyes.
"I DID IT!" she declared with a hearty laugh. "I have made the I phone connect to your You phone."
Dwight let out an exhausted sigh and wondered if it was worth explaining that all iphones were ... iphones. "They're both iPhones Tarene." he sighed, already regretting beginning to correct her.
"But this is the phone of I, Tarene, and I have used it to call your phone, that of You, Dwight. Thine phone is not mine phone" she seemed cheery at figuring out how to use at least one function which was great progress at least.
"Ah, I have a question. Why do the birds war with the pigs? I do not understand this."
"What?" Dwight was thoroughly befuddled at this question which was exceptionally unusual even for Tarene.
"On iPhone there is birds filled with a fury I cannot understand and they launch themselves at pigs, but the root of this war I cannot understand."
Dwight couldn't help but laugh, "Angry Birds is a game Tarene, it is fun."
"There is little joy to be found in war Dwight, you dare call war a game?!" she sounded slightly offended, though it was muddled with confusion, Dwight knew she was not angry at him, but concerned about this "war".
"Don't worry Tarene, the birds and pigs aren't real ... its like ... um ... It's like a sparring match, it is a "practice war" but it isn't real. Listen, its really late, I'm glad youre learning to use your iphone, but you should probably get some sleep."
As Dwight complained about the ungodly hour and the trivialities of Angry Birds, a shimmering, rippling mist coalesced in Tarene's cell. Immediately her gaze and her thoughts were pulled toward the glittering translucent shape as it gradually curled and unfurled to form a familiar figure.
"By the Gods-." Tarene gasped, the phone dropped from her hands as she stared at an enemy she'd not battled for quite a long, long time.

"Tarene. It's been quite a long time." the figure smirked.

"Tara-? Tara. Are you there?" the line went dead and Dwight was cut off.

"I did not expect to find you here on Midgard ... nor did I expect to see you in a cell. You were such a fierce little thing back on Asgard, now you're locked away like a petty thief."
"Enchantress. What brings you here?" Tarene bristled.
"It seems you've forgotten yourself, I'm flattered you remember me" Amora smiled, "I think the real question is what are you doing here? The Tarene I knew could easily free herself from this prison, not sit here playing with human trinkets" Amora gestured at the iphone.
"This is where I belong, it is the wish of my King, until I am ready to serve him elsewhere" Tarene insisted. She was only here until she was safe enough to be released to the rural house in Montana.
"Your King imprisons you like a traitor. Tell me, why is it, you are locked away in here and his brother Loki is free to roam where he pleases? Should the God of Lies not be here in your stead?" Amora smiled smuggly, watching the expression on Tarene's face shift as she agonised over thoughts Amora was stirring up in her head.
"This is where I belong, and were that not the case, I have lost Mjolnir. I have lost my power."
"You had power before you had that hammer, and you can have power again, I can give it to you." Amora's hands shifted and shimmered, a solid golden warhammer appeared in her grasp. "I think it's time we worked together, you and I."
Tarene felt Amora's allure grip her, pull at the fringes of her mind and she tried to resist. "Thor would never agree to such a partnership, I cannot fight with you, for you, beside you, Enchantress. You have betrayed friend and foe alike. I do not trust you."
"This isn't about trust dear Tarene, but necessity. The Thor you saw before you in Wales is not the Thor of Asgard, tell me you sensed it. You who knew him so well and cared for him so dearly. He is not the same Thor he was on Asgard, this one is blighted, corrupt and the real Thor needs saving. I know, we have been rivals in the past, you and I, but despite my treachery, I have always greatly revered Thor. The Thor we knew would never ally himself with a snake like Loki, there is no one else who can save him but you and I."

The Enchantress's form began to quiver and vanish.
"Enchantress wait-" Tarene reached out for the glittering figure but it was too late and she vanished again as a S.H.I.E.L.D agent replaced her, a taze-gun at the ready as the door swung open.
"Tarene is everything alright? The scanners went haywire, what happened down here?" he asked.
"Everything is quite fine, I am unharmed, rest easy agent, I mean you no harm." she insisted.

Hesitant, the agent turned away and the door clicked shut behind him. The Enchantress didn't return, but Tarene had a feeling she hadn't seen the last of her just yet ...

[Natty]

America could do nothing but watch as the Quinjet dropped out of the air behind them, plummeting down into the depths of the jungle below. She grimaced, obviously annoyed by the sudden turn of events. What more, was that no matter how many they took down, the lines of pterodactyls around them never came closer to thinning. Even with all her strength and power, there was nothing that they could do right now. Regardless, she had to try.

Turning to face an oncoming swarm of enemies head on, America stared down the beasts as they sped towards her.

“I really hate dinosaurs.”

With one powerful swoop, she slammed her hands together in front of her with all her might. The results were catastrophic, with the shockwave that result easily sending the dinosaurs flying back, and even in some cases down towards the ground. She didn’t follow up with a further attack however, instead she found herself doing something that didn’t come naturally to her in the slightest; running.

Kicking downwards, the sky shattered, disappearing under her trainers in the shape of a glowing white star. Hovering above the portal, she turned her attention towards the rest of her team, as they struggled to fend off their attackers.

“C’mon chicos, time to blow this popsicle stand.”

[DrewVonAwesome]

A random bar in NYC

8:21 pm

“I mean it has a nice scent to it, but it’s really bitter for an IPA.”

“Sure I can agree to that, however I rather like my spirits more on the bitter side.”

Thor could only shake his head chuckling.

“How am I not surprised…” The god of thunder replied, sighing as he leaned back in his seat.

Sitting at a booth in some small cozy yet fancy bar with a man who once swore to end his life. Now though himself and Loki were sampling beers while talking about current life, old stories of surviving on Midgard, or even some of the more joyous moments in Asgard. The two were dressed normally enough, a button up shirt and jeans for Thor, a nice suit for Loki. Loki wasn’t quite as uncomfortable with the idea of being around Thor as he had been when they reunited. Still it clearly made him a little uneasy being around someone he had tried to kill.

For Thor though, it was a welcoming moment every chance he had. Finally having something familiar there in Loki, and back on good, if maybe somewhat awkward terms with him was a plus. Especially as Loki found out Thor’s developing taste in specially crafted beers. It gave the two something that they could actually see common ground on which used to be an unimaginable thing for Loki back when they were younger.

Still as Thor finished the small glass of beer and placed it onto the wood tray he glanced over at Loki and immediately could sense something was bothering him. Not the typical feeling of regret that seemed to come from him constantly whenever they were around one another. More akin to something recent troubling him.

Thor smile faded a little, “Something troubling you Loki?”

Loki’s distant look into his own half finished glass of beer got cut short as he realized what Thor asked. “Oh uh… well.” Loki quietly seemed to decide how to talk to Thor about matters. “I told SHIELD earlier today I didn’t want to take part in their big project.” Loki simply stated, though clearly still deep in thought over his actions from earlier that day.

Thor wasn’t expecting him to do such a thing, and was shocked to hear Loki’s news. Especially considering Loki himself was the one to break from the deal. Thor could’ve been more understanding of the situation if SHIELD removed Loki from the team (and also suspicious). However Loki walking away simply didn’t seem like something he could do.

“Are you serious brother?” Thor asked, his hands planted on the edge of the table and eyes wide. “You were so proud of your involvement with them. What happened? I had a feeling that Stark fellow would be difficult to work with for long periods and…”

Loki quickly waved off the theory Thor was about to put out. “No Tony has been fine to be around. Actually rather fun to mess with all things considered…” Loki smirked a little but it quickly faded as he got back to the more important matter. Thinking back he clasped his hands together, leaning forward and placing his elbows on the table. Eyes looking ahead but at nothing. “It wasn’t really one thing to be frank. Valkyrie and I had issues being able to work together. I think the past was just too difficult for her to forgive. When she left I worried my past might make working in such an environment and with such condition probably unwise.” Shifting a little Loki rested his right arm as his left propped up his chin as he looked over at Thor.

“You might be alright with my past, as much as frankly that still amazes me.” Loki glanced away slightly as his own mind had to figure that out. He had a theory it might be due to Thor’s ‘simple minded’ nature. But he felt ashamed thinking that was the only answer. “But my own past just leaves me worried about how I should conduct myself. Make no mistake I’ve learned all there could be to learn from what happened on Asgard. I just worry about slipping up and ruining everything. I’ve made something good for myself now for the first time in eons and I don’t know if I’m willing to risk that.”

Thor paused to think about Loki’s reasoning, even considering he wouldn’t be able to understand Loki’s pain from everything that happened. Even having seen it all first hand, Thor knew his brother was a complicated soul. Still Thor nodded his head. “Its your call but so long as you’re comfortable with the decision I’ll be happy to stand by you on it.” Thor gave Loki a brave smile and a hand placed onto the table toward Loki who gave a weary smile in return.

“Thanks…” Loki quietly replied. Pausing for a moment, going back into his own thoughts before looking back at Thor. “Director Fury was fine with the decision, but you should know I suggested they bring you into the project. I’ve seen all the fine work you’ve been up too lately, maybe being able to do more on a larger scale will fit you better.”

Thor didn’t need long to think about the idea before liking it honestly. “Well they know where to find me, speaking of I should show you the place they set up for me. I still have to move things in but it's got a spectacular view of the city.” Thor for a moment considered telling Loki about Tarene and everything that had transpired a week ago with her.

Finally Thor decided against it. Loki clearly needed to get away from all that kind of drama and Thor could respect it. Not to mention he himself was having difficulty dealing with the matters. SHIELD offers him more than once chance to go see Tarene in the quarters they had set her in but he couldn’t bring himself to see her again. She was so broken when he saw her last, and he still couldn’t shake the nagging feeling he should’ve left her alone.

Loki sensed Thor’s mind swirling itself and paused. “Hmm, something troubling you brother?” He asked mildly concerned.

Thor paused, chuckling a little. “It’s nothing brother, we should enjoy your retirement!” He joked, sliding over a glass of another beer to Loki. “Alright so getting back to more pressing matters at hand. You remember that brew Fandral always had on hand but would never say where he gets it? Try this and tell me it doesn’t remind you exactly of it….”

Loki took a sip and instantly knew exactly what Thor was talking about, and just as quickly realized what Thor was thinking when it came to the issue. Holding back a laugh as he smiled, leaning back in his chair. “Oh no…” Loki laughed.

“Right?! I’ve had half a mind to go visit the brewery that made this out in Portland for the last week!” Thor proclaimed.

[DrewVonAwesome]

The struggle with the pterodactyls became even harder for Hulkling as now he had to make sure he didn’t drop Kate Bishop to what would easily be her screaming death. Still Hulkling’s clawed hands kept snugly but not painfully on her shoulders. Freeing her hands to swat her arrows at the dinosaurs before notching and dropping them with an arrow straight to the noggin’. All while Hulkling could only swing his legs out and try to kick away any pterodactyls that got too close.

The numbers though were slipping at all as it felt like for every three pterodactyls they’d take out of the sky five more took their place. Hulkling knew they needed to just get the Hell out of there and America’s portal came with perfect timing. Sure Hulkling didn’t have a clue yet where the portal went, but there wasn’t very many places that could suck more than where he was now. So it was odds he was happily going to bet on.

Flying towards America, with Kate still shooting down whatever dinosaurs got close. Hulkling gave her a nod as he started to swoop upward. “Don’t mind if I do.” Hulkling called to America before swooping back down towards the portal.

All the while Kate in his grasp shouted “Maybe I dooooooooooo!” while flailing slightly in his grasp. The star shape in the sky gave way straight into what looked like the jungle floors well below. With a quick snap Hulkling slowed his decent as he let Kate drop the few inches left to the ground.

“OH GOD LAND... I MISSED YOU!” Kate quickly went to her hands and knees, kissing the dirt before quickly retracting. Coughing and wiping her own lips and tongue profusely. “Ack! The fuck did I do that for?!” Kate was certainly an energetic type Hulkling noticed, though if that could be considered good or bad remained to be seen.

Still As Hulkling finally landed on the slightly soft ground he looked over, seeing in perfect timing the quinjet sail a distance away into another part of the jungle. Crashing and exploding in one hell of a scene even viewing it from a long distance away. Still Hulkling sighed grasping at the side of his own head. “Man I don’t even want to imagine what kind of paperwork SHIELD’s going to make me fill out for that...” He thought aloud in a tone that was parts tired, bummed out, and very worried. While he loved the SHIELD job, there were still bad parts to it. The paperwork? Oh that paperwork... it was practically 75 percent of the bad parts of the job.

[Omega Man]

Days later...

Warren was in his top floor apartment looking out at the city. Doctor Sweet and his father had managed to clone Warren and without wings. His father had the son he wanted, but it was all wrong. Sweet claimed if Warren cut his research funding he'd do something to make the clone kill Warren's father. "He almost deserves it..." he though for a few moments as a breeze kicked up. The sun was going down and the young billionaire had planned on going out. Looking down at the street from some forty stories high, it looked like a man inside of a tornado tinted green.

"What in the hell could THAT be?" Warren said aloud from his balcony, "This looks like a job for the Archangel..!" he continued tearing his shirt open and expanding his wings.

Moments later Archangel dived down toward the street in Manhattan, to get to the bottom of this man eating tornado. However, the young hero couldn't have been more wrong.

"Why are you doing this?!" Archangel exclaimed trying to communicate with whatever it was in the center of this thing.

"The shape of that helmet... this could be a robot or a guy in some Ironman wannabe tech suit. Never know in THIS town..." Warren thought to himself waiting for the thing to respond.

The winds stopped and a man stood where the tornado was once spinning. Clad in black, silver, and green he yelled out.

"'Cause I can! YOU gonna stop me Bird-Boy?" the villain asked.

"The name... is ARCHANGEL!" Warren screamed pulling his flaming sword from it's place on his hip and lighting it up.

~KL~