10 Chapter 10 (1/2)
I was picking up strands of grass from the dirt out of boredom when Steve's voice came out of the Omnitrix. I scrambled up to my feet, looking over at Tony and Rhodey. With a whir of noise, they stepped forward.
”Okay,” I said softly. ”Let's go.”
Sam Wilson/Falcon
Sam turned towards Steve, ready to say something. Then Steve began to speak into the intercom. And Sam stopped to listen in silence.
”Attention, all SHIELD agents. This is Steve Rogers. You've heard a lot about me over the last few days, some of you were even ordered to hunt me down. But I think it's time you know the truth. SHIELD has been infiltrated,” Steve looked over at Maria, who nodded. ”HYDRA has infiltrated SHIELD. Alexander Pierce is their leader.”
Natasha Romanov/Black Widow
Black Widow, disguised as Councilwoman Hawley, looked at Pierce at the same time as the other Councilmembers did. Pierce looked back at them. The man smiled slightly as Steve continued to speak. He had the audacity to shrug slightly, an 'aw shucks' sort of shrug.
She almost smiled at that. As much as she couldn't wait to kill him, she had to admire how calm he was. Not as much as she admired the calm smooth tones Steve used to speak over the intercom, however.
As she shared a look with Councilman Yen, who winked at her. All the while, Steve continued to speak.
”The STRIKE and Insight crew are HYDRA as well. I don't know how many more, but I know they're in the building.”
Sharon Carter/Agent 13
”They could be standing right next to you. They almost have what they want with the help of the Insight Helicarriers: absolute control.”
Sharon listened to the voice of Captain America with horror and sadness filling her. Unlike the others in the room, SHIELD wasn't a job or even a duty. It was her legacy. Something her great-aunt, Peggy Carter, had believed in with all of her heart. Sharon couldn't count how many times Peggy had spoken about founding SHIELD, of the pride and joy she'd felt building the organization.
To know how her pride was torn apart would break her heart.
Sharon focused, looking around quickly.
”As of now, all loyal SHIELD agents should be getting a program on their phones,” Steve said.
Sharon blinked when the phones of every person in the room began to buzz. Including her own. Everyone took out their phones, Sharon included. She blinked at the screen on her smartphone. ”Hercules?” She asked herself. The words were in big letters. As she watched, it flashed into the SHIELD symbol, then showed a photo of a man. Rumlow, leader of STRIKE team. Other began to flash, person after person. Apparently the app not only had files on all HYDRA, but would flash green near SHIELD members and red near HYDRA
”The app will show you every member of HYDRA as we discover them, with evidence to back it up so you know I'm not simply spreading dissent in the ranks. The threat is real. HYDRA is among us. They shot Nick Fury. And it won't end there.”
Sharon shared looks with other agents in the room. Almost as one, they all raised their smartphones. All had the Hercules app flashing green, something that visibly relieved her. SHIELD. Everyone in the room, down to the skinny technician sitting at the computer in front of her. Now to see about the rest of the base.
Robert Gonzales/Commander of the Iliad
Gonzales had been working for SHIELD for decades. The only time he'd ever stopped was when his wife died, only to return to service three years later. He was proud of the work he'd done. He worked on the Iliadnow, an aircraft carrier built for SHIELD to do its work across the world. He had seen many strange things in that time, sitting at the bridge of the carrier.
And yet, he had never heard of anything like this.
When the voice of Captain Steve Rogers suddenly began to come out of the intercom of his ship's speakers in the middle of a routine patrol, he didn't know what to think at first. It was clear he was in the Triskelion based on what he was saying.
He stood on the bridge of his ship, listening as Steve Rogers explained that HYDRA had infiltrated SHIELD. HYDRA, the boogeyman that was supposed to be dead.
When Gonzales received the Hercules app. So did ten others in the bridge. Six crewmen, however, very obviously did not. For a moment, everyone looked at each other. The Hercules app helpfully flashed photos of the six, apparently basing the decision on proximity.
Then Gonzales reached for his sidearm. The six tried to do the same.
And all over the world, the same thing repeated itself again and again. Some HYDRA surrendered. Others died. Some escaped. But no agent of HYDRA was immune to Hercules' sight.
Sam Wilson/Falcon
”If you allow the Helicarriers to launch today, HYDRA will be able to kill anyone that stands in their way, unless we stop them,” Steve breathed deeply. ”I know I'm asking a lot... but the price of freedom is high. It always has been.”
Sam watched as Steve spoke. For a moment, Steve Rogers seemed to... to shrink. As though he had taken on so much, too much, as though he realized how much he'd been through. Steve Rogers staggered under the weight as Sam watched.
But before Sam could say anything, before he could step forward, the man raised himself up. Steve took a deep breath, and Captain America spoke.
”And it's a price I'm willing to pay. And If I'm the only one, so be it.” He looked at Sam and Maria. The pair gave him determined nods he returned. ”But I'm willing to bet I'm not.”
Steve turned off the intercom. Sam stepped forward, smirking at Steve. ”Did you write that down first, or was it off the top of your head?”
”I was an actor once,” Steve said with a smile. They stepped towards the window. High in the sky, two dots could barely be seen, one slightly larger than the other. Both flew towards the hanger bays of the Insight Helicarriers. ”Now, let's watch for a bit. According to Mahmoud, this will be quite a sight,” Steve held a hand to his ear. ”Dial... shut'em down.”
Mahmoud Schahed.../Dial
”Got it!” I yelled. I didn't have to yell, technically. While I didn't have a comm link, the Omnitrix was advanced enough to pick up my voice with ease. But when you're soaring through the air at high speed, yelling is just the only way to speak.
”Sorry if the rides a little rough,” Rhodey said.
”Nah, this is awesome!” I was behind held under my armpits by War Machine as Iron Man flew next to us. We were crossing hundreds of feet over the water, my legs dangling in the air.
”Focus up!” Tony said. ”Jarvis, we good?”
”Yes sir,” he said. ”X and I have sent the Hercules app throughout the world, shut down HYDRA communications devices, and begun stage 2 of our attack.”
”Okay,” I breathed in the cold air. ”Drop me!”
”Good luck!” Rhodey let me go.
Just like that, I was falling through the air at high speed. For a moment, all I could see was the hangers below. Three of them, hiding under the water, but visible from above. A glint of sunlight shone off the river, forcing me to squint.
Then the roaring noises of rocket boots came close. Iron Man flew by on my left, zooming towards the hangers. War Machine passed on my right. The two men of iron opened up shoulder hatches on their suits, firing rockets at the hangers on the left and right. When the explosions opened holes in the hanger bay doors, water from the river began to rush inside, creating waterfalls into the hanger. Rhodey and Tony flew into the openings they'd created.
Which meant it was my turn. I reached for my the Omnitrix and activated it. Flesh and bone became shining blue-green crystal.
”Diamondhead!”
I pointed my hands at the ground, and turned my arms into cannons. As I dropped towards the earth, I started shooting crystals at the hangers bay doors. Each one the size of a knife, they sliced easily into the steel doors. Hundreds, covering every surface I could shoot of the doors.
And as I fell towards them, I made them grow.
Like a fast-motion video of water freezing, the crystals grew at a rapid pace. They joined together, then got bigger. Soon the three doors were covered in crystals dotting their surface, each the size of a car or bigger.
Not good enough.
Bigger, bigger, bigger. I stopped shooting the crystals, instead focusing on their growth. They shot upwards to meet in the middle towards where I was falling. One of the crystals shot directly at me as hundreds of spears rose up into the sky, glimmering beautifully in the light.
Just before I would have landed on one of my own gems, I shifted it to become a ramp. I still slammed into it hard enough to shatter human legs, but Diamondhead's durability made the impact negligible and let me slide down along the crystals to the center of the middle hanger. I turned my left arm into a razor sharp blade. It took three cuts to slash my way into the hanger. I dropped in, slamming into the asphalt of one of the Insight Helicarriers below. I bent by knees on impact, a crater getting created by my drop. I looked around.
The Insight Helicarrier had crates, Quinjets, and men dotting its flight deck. The 'island', or command tower of the ship, was across from me. I stood on the middle of the ship. I took in my position, ignoring the stunned HYDRA agents around me. Then I rose up and lifted my hands to the sky, closing my eyes. The sunlight outside came in through the hole I'd created, letting a beam of light into the dark hanger. As the mountain I was creating outside grew, the yellow light became a sea green. Then the hole was covered in crystal.
”Kill it!” One man cried out behind me. He fired a handgun. The bullet slammed into the back of my head. I ignored it, and the bullet fell to the floor with no effect. ”Come on, shoot that thing!”
More men, about fifteen, came up and started shooting as well. I grunted in annoyance, but ignored the useless bullets bouncing off me.
The Omnitrix on my chest spoke then, Steve's voice coming from it.
”All right, Dial. It's perfect. Neutralize the crew.”