Siniy
ukraine
Dripping in sweat and blood wasn’t something she liked, but the adrenaline gave her the extra boost she needed.
She, along with Coulson’s Team, had been in Ukraine for the past few of days, scoping out the scene and attempting to find more information. Despite being on a team mission, Cora relished being back in Eastern Europe, especially Ukraine. She enjoyed the people and the culture, despite the lingering sense of patriotic communism present in the elder community. Puzata Hata was the place she opted to go first, a Ukrainian food chain that served traditional food. After having her first spoonful of authentic borscht and another of gretchka, Cora sighed happily while Jemma looked at her curiously.
Currently located in Lugansk, a town with a close border to Western Russia, Cora had a Glock 26 in her hands ready to shoot. They were in an abandoned warehouse outside the city limits, and a few Hydra agents had already been encountered and shot at. She barely managed to dodge a kick to her face, but her lip was split open. However, Cora was more worried about the bleeding wound at the top of her right eyebrow. It was bound to leave a scar.
The corridors were eerily quiet as she made her way through them. The blood from the wound reached her jaw as she regulated her breathing from the fight.
“I don’t see anybody. Body heat signals?”
“No signals detected.” Daisy’s voice was tense through the small device in Cora’s ear. Lowering her gun slightly, she followed the agent’s instructions. “Left. Right. Right again,” the young woman instructed. “Eight steps and there’ll be a door on your left, two body signals are detected there.”
She wished she had her naginata instead of a gun. It was easier for her to use, but someone – Melinda – had to go and remind everyone that blood splattered a lot easier with a blade than with a bullet.
“Hacking into the lock system… give me ten more seconds,” Daisy spoke, beginning countdown. “Five, four, three, two… and now it is open.” The audible clunk indicated that Daisy had successfully managed to hack into the system. Cora made no move when it did. Her demeanor remained unchanging at the sound of bullets ricocheting against the large metal door she was next to.
The bullets halted. She took it as queue they were reloading and seized the moment to go in. Just like Daisy had said, only two people stood inside the big empty room. A man and woman, who couldn’t possibly be more than three years younger than her. They were inexperienced, fumbling around at their attempt to reload the gun. It didn’t take her more than ten seconds to shoot both of them in the kneecaps, watching them fall on the floor.
It was always a favorable spot for her. It debilitated people quickly without hitting anything major. Who cared if they ran the chance of never walking again? When they fell, Cora kicked their weapons away from them.
Calling for help to pick the two, Cora knocked out the male by kicking him swiftly in the head. Removing the belt from his waist, she turned him face down and tied his wrists together. The woman cursed at her in Russian while she held her knee, tears rolling down her eyes in agony.
“Zatknis,” Cora snapped, crouching to slap the woman. The Russian woman stopped, eyes glaring at the other with frustration and anger. The brunette was sent on finding the files, but she had to tie the bitch up first.
“You will never find them,” she said in Russian while she was being bound. The woman laughed at her own words, irritating the agent.
Her first instinct was to look through the cabinets. Her fingers skimmed through the empty manila folders in frustration, slamming it angrily as she went to the next section. Nothing. The cackling from the Russian only deepened her annoyance, and for a split second, she wondered if SHIELD had sent her on a pointless mission.
They wouldn’t send her on a pointless mission… right?
The sound of paper crinkling behind her turned her into the redhead’s direction, pupils widening at the realization of what was done. Sparing no time, Cora turned the woman over and raised her blouse.
“Why the fuck aren’t you wearing a bra?” she muttered to herself, finding the manila folder underneath the crinkled and dirty white blouse. It was tied against the Russian’s torso and she was overjoyed she hadn’t shot the woman in the chest. The files would have been drenched in blood.
“Bol'shoye spasibo,” a smug smirk on her lips as she took the files.
“Sooka,” the woman sneered in Russian, spitting in Cora’s face.
Seething, she wiped with her forearm while standing. There was a strong contemplation of whether or not she would untie her; it wouldn’t be a fair fight if one of them were tied up. Instead, she opted to kick her. A strong kick made contact with the woman’s torso and then head, knocking her out. The Russian could call her all the nasty and derogatory names in the world, but never spit in her face.
“Puta.”
There was a desk and chair in the middle of the room, and when she sat, she swung her feet up onto the desk. She heard Coulson’s voice through the earpiece, letting her know that they were just around the corner. Cora’s eyebrows furrowed as she skimmed through the file. They were mostly blank pages, a couple of numbers here and there scattered throughout it, but nothing usable. She sat up and placed the file on the table and tried to piece it together. Was it a cipher?
“Really?” Coulson said exasperatedly when he reached the room, “Their knees again?”
“The files are useless.” Anger emanated through her voice as she stood from her seat and looked at the agents.
“Nothing’s ever useless,” Melinda responded, taking the files from the table. Two agents carried each body, dragging them towards the plane and into the interrogation room. Coulson and Melinda took the male while Daisy and her took the female. Once all Hydra agents were in their designated rooms, Cora left so Melinda could do her job. Her strength and poised attitude had Cora wishing she could have the woman’s traits. Maybe if she convinced Jemma, the scientist could go and create some kind of osmosis pill.
Looking herself in the bathroom mirror, she frowned at the grimy face that reflected. A few rough blows, but nothing major. The gash above her eyebrow was a lot deeper than she orignally thought, and the cut on her lip wasn’t that bad. It would hinder her availability to facetime with her family.
Sighing, Cora began by washing her face from the sweat and blood, but stopped when she heard a loud knock. Sliding the door open, Jemma held up a first aid kit with a smile on her face.
“Need any help?”
xxx
Jemma distracted her with meaningless conversation as she finished dabbing the stitches with hydrogen peroxide. While their conversation on which Real Housewives series was better went on, Fitz had to come around and spoil a book Cora had been reading.
Quickly ushering him out, Jemma reminding Cora that the moment they returned to DC she would be “going straight home for a good ten hours of sleep.” That was a ridiculous idea, knowing she wouldn’t actually listen.
She rested her back against the seat, lights off as she let the adrenaline turn into drowsiness. The lack of sleep had really gotten to her, but she decided against taking a nap. She stood and made her way to the cockpit.
Cora wasn’t sure if she was mad about the lack of information. It was somewhere between the lines of ‘there was nothing in the files’ and ‘I couldn’t figure this out.’ She knew it was best not to be angry. Maybe she could even take her frustrations out on Maria in a friendly fight? That would probably help her clear her head.
Sitting down in the co-pilot seat, Coulson wasn’t fazed at her entrance.
“How’s the family?” he spoke first, filling in the silence. Twisting her back so it could crack, and she gave a slight shrug.
“Good, I suppose,” was her response. “Estrella turned four last week, and I can’t believe I missed another birthday. She called me crying because I wasn’t there.”
Cora was close to her family, especially her niece. Estrella was like the sun of her sky, brightening up her day after a terrible day at work. Hiding her real occupation for their own safety made her feel guilty on a constant basis. They were all under teh assumption her job was working as a Legislative Director for a senator. It was an obvious lie, but with her major being political science, her family didn’t question it. Letting the conversation fade, both knew that missing big family celbreations came with the job. Coulson didn’t respond, letting the conversation fade, as both very well knew that this type of work came with large sacrifices.
A ringing burst through the silence, startling Cora.
“Is that a phone?” Cora’s eyes grew at the shrill sound, looking at Coulson. He smirked, pressing a green button that brought up Fury’s face on the holographic screen. Her eyes bulged out. Fury was supposed to be dead.
“What the fuck.” She squawked, surprised to see the former SHIELD director. The man in question was annoyed at the reaction. Coulson looked like this was nothing new. She had a plethora of questions for Fury, but before she had the chance to even ask one, he spoke.
“Eloquent as ever Gonzalez,” the sarcastic tone laced with his words halted any attempt of words.
“I need you to land on the following coordinates: 48.045556 North, 20.4727376 East,” Fury instructed, and Coulson followed orders. While in the back of her mind she still considered Fury the Director… nobody really had to listen to him. Right?
“Gonzalez, grab your weapons,” he said, giving her the stink eye. She was about to protest, just wanting to be back in DC for a good sleep. “The Avengers need you.” The transmission went out.
“Do they really?” Cora questioned out loud, Coulson letting her know to hurry up. Her forehead wrinkled in confusion, tying to recover from the sudden appearance of Fury. She took in a deep breath and looked at the pilot. “Don’t land, I’ll jump,” she said, hands gripping the edge of the door. “Did you know h was-?” She couldn’t finish the question but Coulson didn’t answer. “We’re going to have a long talk about this later Philip.”
He only smiled and said they’d be arriving in thirty minutes, steering the jet’s wheel towards the new coordinates. She wasn’t sure why the Avengers would need her, on even as to why; nevertheless, Cora made her way towards the lab. If she was being requested then she really wasn’t in any position to reject. She had to focus.
Daisy, Fitz, and Jemma were all chatting when Cora walked in. Daisy’s greeting died halfway when she noticed the spirit Cora was in.
“Jemma, I need you to get these following items,” she instructed the moment she walked in. “I’ll need my naginata, my usual knife and get a parachute ready for me.
“Fitz, get me some of those electrostatic bolts, maybe shock yourself once or twice, I don’t care, and two Glock 26s with extra ammunition.”
Even in this tense moment, she couldn’t help but hope Fitz hurt himself just slightly. Maybe She’d even spoil the Game Of Thrones books for him.
She was ready to turn on her heel to go change, but looked over at Daisy.
“Look for anything that’s going on around the world relating to the Avengers,” the agent said. “Hack into systems, security cams, flip through the channels, I don’t care, make it happen.”
It’s not that she didn’t trust Daisy, but Cora needed someone to let her know what was going on.
Glad for the extra catsuit on the plane, and she stripped off her old one and put on the clean one. It almost made her feel better, the other one felt gross from the sweat and visible blood stains that weren’t hers. She didn’t bother saying her farewells to Melinda, not wanting to disturb the interrogation.
Back in the lab, Fitz was the first to hand her the guns. She placed one securely on her right thigh holster while the other one went on her waist. Her knife went in the holster on her left thigh. Fitz then helped her put on the bolts onto her wrist, and she attached the extra ammunition to her utility belt.
Jemma helped slide on the parachute backpack, a worried smile on her lips. Turning to the table, the biochemist handed her a naginata. It wasn’t her usual one, confused as her eyebrows knitted together.
It was a beautiful design. It had some traditional naginata attributes. The pole was made out of metal, it’s handle reinforced with fiberglass and nylon, and a small black button near the center, where she usually held it. The blade at the very end caught her attention. It was about 24-inches of stainless steel. A quarter-sized hole was near the base of the blade, and a bright blue light illuminated from it. It glowed, but it didn’t overshadow the rest of the weapon.
Is that…? For a second, she strongly considered if this was the scepter.
“We were going to let you test it out once we arrived in DC,” Jemma handed it over, almost unwillingly. “Fitz and I started modifying it a couple weeks ago as part of your birthday present, and it’s got some tesseract energy.
“We’re not sure how much power it has, but I want you to be careful Corazon.” She wanted to groan, knowing that Jemma meant serious business when her full name was in use. Giving her a tight hug, a large smile formed at Cora’s lips. Maybe she wouldn’t spoil GoT for Fitz since he did technically help.
“You’re the best,” she said to her best friend, eyes softening in appreciation. Jemma continued by telling her the new features of the improved weapon, a giddy smile on Cora’s lips. It was even retractable, which only caused her smile to grow.
The moment her lesson ended, she went back into action mode and turned to face Daisy.
“What do you know?” She arched her eyebrow while looking at the hacker.
“They’re at Novi Grad, Sokovia,” Daisy began as the screen flickered through videos and photos. “Apparently the Avengers are there, and there’s some kind of fight going on with a robot and a man with red skin. Not too much is being found honestly, but they’ve been circulating and it’s not the first time since…”
Daisy went on, and by this time Cora was only half listening as her eyes were trained on the monitor and studying the situation. It was difficult when footage was scarce at this point. Photos showed some massive robot, a dude she’d never see before flying with a cape. Some of the footage was problematic since they came from news feeds, and they switched from video to anchor a lot.
Coulson announced over the speakers that they were approaching drop off, and Cora made her way to the exit, thanking Fitz and Daisy. Jemma followed close behind the agent, and Cora was close to turning to her friend, telling her to cut it out. However, she noticed Jemma’s hands twitching sillety, and decided it would be better to let it go.
“I know I said this earlier, but be careful,” Jemma said, her voice mixed with worry. “Not just with the weapon, but with all of it, with...”
Whatever I’m doing, Cora finished for her mentally. The Latina fingers tightened around the weapon, and gave Jemma a reassuring smile.
Xxx
Landing safely, Cora discarded the parachute. She waited two agonizingly long minutes before she finally heard the sound of a helicopter coming from the south. Twirling the naginata between her hands to get used to its new weight, she waited for the helicopter to land. When it arrived, Maria Hill slid the door open as Cora ran towards the helicopter.
“Surprised you’re here,” Cora said the moment she put on the headset and sat in the copilot seat. Hill handed her a tablet with an annoyed look, and each woman strapped themselves in. The ex-deputy director began taking the helicopter in a new direction, beginning to explain the situation. She told Cora about South America, Korea and the new additions.
“Ultron was a Stark and Banner creation,” the woman said, her attention on the sky in front of them.
“For a couple of smart guys, they’re a bunch of pendejos,” Cora said, more to herself, earning a smirk from Hill. The story continued on about how Ultron had accessed leaked files from SHIELD, and currently held Romanoff hostage. Cora’s shoulders tensed and glanced at Hill to make sure she wasn’t lying. She wasn’t. Well shit.
“What about the brunette and the white haired kid?” Cora questioned, pinching the tablet’s screen to zoom into the pixelated photo. She hadn’t seen them on the news.
“They’re former Hydra,” Hill responded. “Wanda and Pietro, they’re on our side now. They’ve come to the realization that what they’ve done is wrong.” The Latina wasn’t able to distinguish them in the photos, but she had an idea as to what they could look like. At least she hoped she could figure it out.
She was a bit apprehensive of their sudden “realization” but she didn’t have time to question it. Reading over their files quickly, she learned their names, abilities, stats. They were twins who were left orphaned at ten. A difficult age to lose any parent, let alone two.
“What about the other guy,” Cora asked when her fingers swiped left and a man with deep red skin, green and red spandex, and a cape showed up.
“Vision, good guy,” Hill stated, agitation clear in her voice. “Another Stark and Banner creation. It has Jarvis’s voice so don’t freak out, it’s too complicated to explain.”
After what felt like an eternity of silence while Cora flipped through the photos, Hill spoke once more.
“The objective is to eliminate Ultron at all costs.”
Cora nodded, less than impressed with both Stark and Banner. Sighing, she continued looking through the photos and the information that was available to her. She felt the weight of her retractable naginata on her lap, and she hoped that it wouldn’t hinder her fights since it was a couple pounds heavier than usual.
In closer proximity to the floating city, she took off the headset and placed in earpiece Hill had handed her.
“Gonzalez is in,” Hill announced, and seconds later, Cora heard Tony’s voice in her right ear.
“Corazon! Glad you could join the fiesta!”
“Not the time Tony, you’re in some deep shit.”
“Barton, she’ll be dropped off near you,” Hill said.
The helicopter landed at the edge of the city, only a few meters from the actual city. Cora opened the door and stepped out, rolled her neck and took a deep breath as she enjoyed the moment of not working for just a second. She faced Hill.
“You know what to do if I die.”
Hill nodded, her lips tightening into a line.
In the far distance, Cora could see Clint and Wanda. She was sure it was Wanda, as red sparks were distinguishable from the scenery. Tony was fighting in the air, but no sign of the Hulk. Captain was probably helping civilians. But the one thing that stood out amongst it all was the plethora of robots that were in the city.
Cora thought that beheading the bastards should be enough, right?
“I’ll be back soon, picking up some old friends,” Cora heard Hill shout before closing the door. She moved at a safe distance from the helicopter, and it flew off.
With a deep breath, she prayed to God she wouldn’t die.
She, along with Coulson’s Team, had been in Ukraine for the past few of days, scoping out the scene and attempting to find more information. Despite being on a team mission, Cora relished being back in Eastern Europe, especially Ukraine. She enjoyed the people and the culture, despite the lingering sense of patriotic communism present in the elder community. Puzata Hata was the place she opted to go first, a Ukrainian food chain that served traditional food. After having her first spoonful of authentic borscht and another of gretchka, Cora sighed happily while Jemma looked at her curiously.
Currently located in Lugansk, a town with a close border to Western Russia, Cora had a Glock 26 in her hands ready to shoot. They were in an abandoned warehouse outside the city limits, and a few Hydra agents had already been encountered and shot at. She barely managed to dodge a kick to her face, but her lip was split open. However, Cora was more worried about the bleeding wound at the top of her right eyebrow. It was bound to leave a scar.
The corridors were eerily quiet as she made her way through them. The blood from the wound reached her jaw as she regulated her breathing from the fight.
“I don’t see anybody. Body heat signals?”
“No signals detected.” Daisy’s voice was tense through the small device in Cora’s ear. Lowering her gun slightly, she followed the agent’s instructions. “Left. Right. Right again,” the young woman instructed. “Eight steps and there’ll be a door on your left, two body signals are detected there.”
She wished she had her naginata instead of a gun. It was easier for her to use, but someone – Melinda – had to go and remind everyone that blood splattered a lot easier with a blade than with a bullet.
“Hacking into the lock system… give me ten more seconds,” Daisy spoke, beginning countdown. “Five, four, three, two… and now it is open.” The audible clunk indicated that Daisy had successfully managed to hack into the system. Cora made no move when it did. Her demeanor remained unchanging at the sound of bullets ricocheting against the large metal door she was next to.
The bullets halted. She took it as queue they were reloading and seized the moment to go in. Just like Daisy had said, only two people stood inside the big empty room. A man and woman, who couldn’t possibly be more than three years younger than her. They were inexperienced, fumbling around at their attempt to reload the gun. It didn’t take her more than ten seconds to shoot both of them in the kneecaps, watching them fall on the floor.
It was always a favorable spot for her. It debilitated people quickly without hitting anything major. Who cared if they ran the chance of never walking again? When they fell, Cora kicked their weapons away from them.
Calling for help to pick the two, Cora knocked out the male by kicking him swiftly in the head. Removing the belt from his waist, she turned him face down and tied his wrists together. The woman cursed at her in Russian while she held her knee, tears rolling down her eyes in agony.
“Zatknis,” Cora snapped, crouching to slap the woman. The Russian woman stopped, eyes glaring at the other with frustration and anger. The brunette was sent on finding the files, but she had to tie the bitch up first.
“You will never find them,” she said in Russian while she was being bound. The woman laughed at her own words, irritating the agent.
Her first instinct was to look through the cabinets. Her fingers skimmed through the empty manila folders in frustration, slamming it angrily as she went to the next section. Nothing. The cackling from the Russian only deepened her annoyance, and for a split second, she wondered if SHIELD had sent her on a pointless mission.
They wouldn’t send her on a pointless mission… right?
The sound of paper crinkling behind her turned her into the redhead’s direction, pupils widening at the realization of what was done. Sparing no time, Cora turned the woman over and raised her blouse.
“Why the fuck aren’t you wearing a bra?” she muttered to herself, finding the manila folder underneath the crinkled and dirty white blouse. It was tied against the Russian’s torso and she was overjoyed she hadn’t shot the woman in the chest. The files would have been drenched in blood.
“Bol'shoye spasibo,” a smug smirk on her lips as she took the files.
“Sooka,” the woman sneered in Russian, spitting in Cora’s face.
Seething, she wiped with her forearm while standing. There was a strong contemplation of whether or not she would untie her; it wouldn’t be a fair fight if one of them were tied up. Instead, she opted to kick her. A strong kick made contact with the woman’s torso and then head, knocking her out. The Russian could call her all the nasty and derogatory names in the world, but never spit in her face.
“Puta.”
There was a desk and chair in the middle of the room, and when she sat, she swung her feet up onto the desk. She heard Coulson’s voice through the earpiece, letting her know that they were just around the corner. Cora’s eyebrows furrowed as she skimmed through the file. They were mostly blank pages, a couple of numbers here and there scattered throughout it, but nothing usable. She sat up and placed the file on the table and tried to piece it together. Was it a cipher?
“Really?” Coulson said exasperatedly when he reached the room, “Their knees again?”
“The files are useless.” Anger emanated through her voice as she stood from her seat and looked at the agents.
“Nothing’s ever useless,” Melinda responded, taking the files from the table. Two agents carried each body, dragging them towards the plane and into the interrogation room. Coulson and Melinda took the male while Daisy and her took the female. Once all Hydra agents were in their designated rooms, Cora left so Melinda could do her job. Her strength and poised attitude had Cora wishing she could have the woman’s traits. Maybe if she convinced Jemma, the scientist could go and create some kind of osmosis pill.
Looking herself in the bathroom mirror, she frowned at the grimy face that reflected. A few rough blows, but nothing major. The gash above her eyebrow was a lot deeper than she orignally thought, and the cut on her lip wasn’t that bad. It would hinder her availability to facetime with her family.
Sighing, Cora began by washing her face from the sweat and blood, but stopped when she heard a loud knock. Sliding the door open, Jemma held up a first aid kit with a smile on her face.
“Need any help?”
xxx
Jemma distracted her with meaningless conversation as she finished dabbing the stitches with hydrogen peroxide. While their conversation on which Real Housewives series was better went on, Fitz had to come around and spoil a book Cora had been reading.
Quickly ushering him out, Jemma reminding Cora that the moment they returned to DC she would be “going straight home for a good ten hours of sleep.” That was a ridiculous idea, knowing she wouldn’t actually listen.
She rested her back against the seat, lights off as she let the adrenaline turn into drowsiness. The lack of sleep had really gotten to her, but she decided against taking a nap. She stood and made her way to the cockpit.
Cora wasn’t sure if she was mad about the lack of information. It was somewhere between the lines of ‘there was nothing in the files’ and ‘I couldn’t figure this out.’ She knew it was best not to be angry. Maybe she could even take her frustrations out on Maria in a friendly fight? That would probably help her clear her head.
Sitting down in the co-pilot seat, Coulson wasn’t fazed at her entrance.
“How’s the family?” he spoke first, filling in the silence. Twisting her back so it could crack, and she gave a slight shrug.
“Good, I suppose,” was her response. “Estrella turned four last week, and I can’t believe I missed another birthday. She called me crying because I wasn’t there.”
Cora was close to her family, especially her niece. Estrella was like the sun of her sky, brightening up her day after a terrible day at work. Hiding her real occupation for their own safety made her feel guilty on a constant basis. They were all under teh assumption her job was working as a Legislative Director for a senator. It was an obvious lie, but with her major being political science, her family didn’t question it. Letting the conversation fade, both knew that missing big family celbreations came with the job. Coulson didn’t respond, letting the conversation fade, as both very well knew that this type of work came with large sacrifices.
A ringing burst through the silence, startling Cora.
“Is that a phone?” Cora’s eyes grew at the shrill sound, looking at Coulson. He smirked, pressing a green button that brought up Fury’s face on the holographic screen. Her eyes bulged out. Fury was supposed to be dead.
“What the fuck.” She squawked, surprised to see the former SHIELD director. The man in question was annoyed at the reaction. Coulson looked like this was nothing new. She had a plethora of questions for Fury, but before she had the chance to even ask one, he spoke.
“Eloquent as ever Gonzalez,” the sarcastic tone laced with his words halted any attempt of words.
“I need you to land on the following coordinates: 48.045556 North, 20.4727376 East,” Fury instructed, and Coulson followed orders. While in the back of her mind she still considered Fury the Director… nobody really had to listen to him. Right?
“Gonzalez, grab your weapons,” he said, giving her the stink eye. She was about to protest, just wanting to be back in DC for a good sleep. “The Avengers need you.” The transmission went out.
“Do they really?” Cora questioned out loud, Coulson letting her know to hurry up. Her forehead wrinkled in confusion, tying to recover from the sudden appearance of Fury. She took in a deep breath and looked at the pilot. “Don’t land, I’ll jump,” she said, hands gripping the edge of the door. “Did you know h was-?” She couldn’t finish the question but Coulson didn’t answer. “We’re going to have a long talk about this later Philip.”
He only smiled and said they’d be arriving in thirty minutes, steering the jet’s wheel towards the new coordinates. She wasn’t sure why the Avengers would need her, on even as to why; nevertheless, Cora made her way towards the lab. If she was being requested then she really wasn’t in any position to reject. She had to focus.
Daisy, Fitz, and Jemma were all chatting when Cora walked in. Daisy’s greeting died halfway when she noticed the spirit Cora was in.
“Jemma, I need you to get these following items,” she instructed the moment she walked in. “I’ll need my naginata, my usual knife and get a parachute ready for me.
“Fitz, get me some of those electrostatic bolts, maybe shock yourself once or twice, I don’t care, and two Glock 26s with extra ammunition.”
Even in this tense moment, she couldn’t help but hope Fitz hurt himself just slightly. Maybe She’d even spoil the Game Of Thrones books for him.
She was ready to turn on her heel to go change, but looked over at Daisy.
“Look for anything that’s going on around the world relating to the Avengers,” the agent said. “Hack into systems, security cams, flip through the channels, I don’t care, make it happen.”
It’s not that she didn’t trust Daisy, but Cora needed someone to let her know what was going on.
Glad for the extra catsuit on the plane, and she stripped off her old one and put on the clean one. It almost made her feel better, the other one felt gross from the sweat and visible blood stains that weren’t hers. She didn’t bother saying her farewells to Melinda, not wanting to disturb the interrogation.
Back in the lab, Fitz was the first to hand her the guns. She placed one securely on her right thigh holster while the other one went on her waist. Her knife went in the holster on her left thigh. Fitz then helped her put on the bolts onto her wrist, and she attached the extra ammunition to her utility belt.
Jemma helped slide on the parachute backpack, a worried smile on her lips. Turning to the table, the biochemist handed her a naginata. It wasn’t her usual one, confused as her eyebrows knitted together.
It was a beautiful design. It had some traditional naginata attributes. The pole was made out of metal, it’s handle reinforced with fiberglass and nylon, and a small black button near the center, where she usually held it. The blade at the very end caught her attention. It was about 24-inches of stainless steel. A quarter-sized hole was near the base of the blade, and a bright blue light illuminated from it. It glowed, but it didn’t overshadow the rest of the weapon.
Is that…? For a second, she strongly considered if this was the scepter.
“We were going to let you test it out once we arrived in DC,” Jemma handed it over, almost unwillingly. “Fitz and I started modifying it a couple weeks ago as part of your birthday present, and it’s got some tesseract energy.
“We’re not sure how much power it has, but I want you to be careful Corazon.” She wanted to groan, knowing that Jemma meant serious business when her full name was in use. Giving her a tight hug, a large smile formed at Cora’s lips. Maybe she wouldn’t spoil GoT for Fitz since he did technically help.
“You’re the best,” she said to her best friend, eyes softening in appreciation. Jemma continued by telling her the new features of the improved weapon, a giddy smile on Cora’s lips. It was even retractable, which only caused her smile to grow.
The moment her lesson ended, she went back into action mode and turned to face Daisy.
“What do you know?” She arched her eyebrow while looking at the hacker.
“They’re at Novi Grad, Sokovia,” Daisy began as the screen flickered through videos and photos. “Apparently the Avengers are there, and there’s some kind of fight going on with a robot and a man with red skin. Not too much is being found honestly, but they’ve been circulating and it’s not the first time since…”
Daisy went on, and by this time Cora was only half listening as her eyes were trained on the monitor and studying the situation. It was difficult when footage was scarce at this point. Photos showed some massive robot, a dude she’d never see before flying with a cape. Some of the footage was problematic since they came from news feeds, and they switched from video to anchor a lot.
Coulson announced over the speakers that they were approaching drop off, and Cora made her way to the exit, thanking Fitz and Daisy. Jemma followed close behind the agent, and Cora was close to turning to her friend, telling her to cut it out. However, she noticed Jemma’s hands twitching sillety, and decided it would be better to let it go.
“I know I said this earlier, but be careful,” Jemma said, her voice mixed with worry. “Not just with the weapon, but with all of it, with...”
Whatever I’m doing, Cora finished for her mentally. The Latina fingers tightened around the weapon, and gave Jemma a reassuring smile.
Xxx
Landing safely, Cora discarded the parachute. She waited two agonizingly long minutes before she finally heard the sound of a helicopter coming from the south. Twirling the naginata between her hands to get used to its new weight, she waited for the helicopter to land. When it arrived, Maria Hill slid the door open as Cora ran towards the helicopter.
“Surprised you’re here,” Cora said the moment she put on the headset and sat in the copilot seat. Hill handed her a tablet with an annoyed look, and each woman strapped themselves in. The ex-deputy director began taking the helicopter in a new direction, beginning to explain the situation. She told Cora about South America, Korea and the new additions.
“Ultron was a Stark and Banner creation,” the woman said, her attention on the sky in front of them.
“For a couple of smart guys, they’re a bunch of pendejos,” Cora said, more to herself, earning a smirk from Hill. The story continued on about how Ultron had accessed leaked files from SHIELD, and currently held Romanoff hostage. Cora’s shoulders tensed and glanced at Hill to make sure she wasn’t lying. She wasn’t. Well shit.
“What about the brunette and the white haired kid?” Cora questioned, pinching the tablet’s screen to zoom into the pixelated photo. She hadn’t seen them on the news.
“They’re former Hydra,” Hill responded. “Wanda and Pietro, they’re on our side now. They’ve come to the realization that what they’ve done is wrong.” The Latina wasn’t able to distinguish them in the photos, but she had an idea as to what they could look like. At least she hoped she could figure it out.
She was a bit apprehensive of their sudden “realization” but she didn’t have time to question it. Reading over their files quickly, she learned their names, abilities, stats. They were twins who were left orphaned at ten. A difficult age to lose any parent, let alone two.
“What about the other guy,” Cora asked when her fingers swiped left and a man with deep red skin, green and red spandex, and a cape showed up.
“Vision, good guy,” Hill stated, agitation clear in her voice. “Another Stark and Banner creation. It has Jarvis’s voice so don’t freak out, it’s too complicated to explain.”
After what felt like an eternity of silence while Cora flipped through the photos, Hill spoke once more.
“The objective is to eliminate Ultron at all costs.”
Cora nodded, less than impressed with both Stark and Banner. Sighing, she continued looking through the photos and the information that was available to her. She felt the weight of her retractable naginata on her lap, and she hoped that it wouldn’t hinder her fights since it was a couple pounds heavier than usual.
In closer proximity to the floating city, she took off the headset and placed in earpiece Hill had handed her.
“Gonzalez is in,” Hill announced, and seconds later, Cora heard Tony’s voice in her right ear.
“Corazon! Glad you could join the fiesta!”
“Not the time Tony, you’re in some deep shit.”
“Barton, she’ll be dropped off near you,” Hill said.
The helicopter landed at the edge of the city, only a few meters from the actual city. Cora opened the door and stepped out, rolled her neck and took a deep breath as she enjoyed the moment of not working for just a second. She faced Hill.
“You know what to do if I die.”
Hill nodded, her lips tightening into a line.
In the far distance, Cora could see Clint and Wanda. She was sure it was Wanda, as red sparks were distinguishable from the scenery. Tony was fighting in the air, but no sign of the Hulk. Captain was probably helping civilians. But the one thing that stood out amongst it all was the plethora of robots that were in the city.
Cora thought that beheading the bastards should be enough, right?
“I’ll be back soon, picking up some old friends,” Cora heard Hill shout before closing the door. She moved at a safe distance from the helicopter, and it flew off.
With a deep breath, she prayed to God she wouldn’t die.