Intertwine

19 - What Laufeyson?!

Trigger warning for this chapter my lovelies xoxo

ROARA

"They're all... useful things. All things you'd need in machinery or military operations. Axels are used in rotating elements of machines, guns are well..."

"Guns?" Loki suggested.

"Yes, and locks..."

"Locks need keys." He looked at me. I nodded. I was the key. 

"He must be the big boss. The final level."

"This is not a video game Roara." Fury said through the phone speaker.

"Why did we decided to tell this moron again?" Loki asked me.

I rolled my eyes. "We can trust him. I hope."

"You can agent. I may be an asshole, but as proved many times, I don't betray my team." 

I looked pointedly at Loki.

"Fine." He grunted. 

"The point is, they're all useful." I said. "They're also part of bigger operations. An axel is just one part of a car, a gun is one item in an armoury, a lock is attached to something that needs protecting. They're not just code names, they're titles." 

"So you're saying there might be more than one Axel?" Loki asked.

"I know as much as you." I sighed, and looked again at our papers. "These ex-employees... they've had all but their names wiped from the system. Someone got there before we did but they botched the job. I'm guessing they realised they were out of time, or didn't have the skills, and did what they could to hide their identities. They needed their associates to be able to recognise which names needed completely taking off the systems without the names looking too obvious. These could easily be hidden as last names."

I pinched the bridge of my nose between my forefinger and thumb. 

"Something doesn't feel right." Loki said.

"I agree." 

"I don't trust the space prince, but I do trust your judgement Woodson." Fury said through the phone. "If you agree, then I'll hear you two out."

"It feels like it was too easy to locate these facilities. You say last you heard Natasha's group was headed off to check out a possible base. It's too fast."

"Funny feelings or not, as I have already said twice in this conversation, you are not going out into the field Agent Woodson. I know you've said that you're completely healed. And I am not having Loki left alone." Fury's usual fed up tone didn't sound any less intimidating through the phone call than it did face to face.

Loki pursed his lips before saying, "I mean, I could always go with her."

"No." Fury and I said together.

"It was just a suggestion."

"No, Loki," I turned to him, "it was a plan of your..." I trailed off, my brain whirring faster than I could catch up to it. 400 years of knowledge sometimes does that to you.

"What?" Loki asked, taking a step towards me.

"They knew I'd have to be left alone. They wanted me vulnerable, and they wanted me to be shot to see how fast I could heal. It was two birds with one stone. Maybe they don't just want me vulnerable. By having so many locations, forcing the avengers to split up, they're making everyone else vulnerable. They work best as a team."

"I think you mean to say we work best as a team." Fury corrected.

"Huh?" I asked, flicking through pages again, and pulling up the map Alina had made for us as a hologram.