Agent Rachel Forbes exits the helicopter with Director Fury and Agent Maria Hill to be greeted by Agent Phil Coulson. "How bad is it?" Fury asks Coulson once they're clear of the helicopter. "That's the problem sir, we don't know" Coulson replies and Rachel frowns at his response. How do they not know? They've ordered an evacuation of the facility and called them in the middle of the night.
The four enter the facility and make their way to the lower level to witness the problem themselves. "Dr Selvig read an energy surge from the tesseract four hours ago" Coulson explains to Fury while Rachel and Maria walk behind them. "Nelson didn't authorise Selvig to go to test phase" Fury quickly responds. "He wasn't testing it, he wasn't even in the room. Spontaneous event" Coulson explains and the three are shocked. "It just turned itself on?" Rachel questions in disbelief. "Where are the energy levels now?" Fury asks. "Climbing. When Selvig couldn't shut it down, we ordered evac" Coulson answers while agents rush past them during the evacuation. "How long until everyone's out?" Fury questions. "Campus should be clear in the next half hour" Coulson answers. "Do better" Fury orders before Coulson nods and leaves. Coulson has always had a confidence in his demeaner and his job and Rachel always admired that, especially since they're such good friends.
"Sir evacuation may be futile" Maria tells Fury as the remaining three make their way downstairs. "We should tell them to go back to sleep" Fury quickly responds with a level of sarcasm. "If we can't control the tesseract's energy, there may not be a minimum safe distance" she explains and Rachel nods to herself, thinking she has a point. "I need you to make sure the phase 2 prototypes are shipped out" Fury orders her, changing the subject. "Sir, is that really a priority right now?" she questions. "Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on. Clear out the tech below, every piece of phase 2 on a truck and gone" he answers her sternly. She responds "Yes sir" with a expressionless face and orders two men to follow her. Before Rachel has the chance to wonder what phase 2 is, Fury turns to her. "Forbes, you're with me" he states before continuing to the tesseract's testing station. "Yes sir" Rachel states before following him.
"Talk to me doctor" Fury orders Selvig as they enter the testing station. "Director" Selvig responds before making his way towards them. "Is there anything we know for certain?" Fury questions. "The tesseract is misbehaving" Selvig states and Rachel frowns at his choice of words. "Misbehaving?" she repeats, quizzingly. "Is that supposed to be funny?" Fury questions, clearly not in the mood for any funny business. "It's not funny at all. The tesseract is not only active, she's behaving" Selvig replies as he meets Fury and Rachel. "I assume you pulled the plug" Fury speculates. "She's an energy source. We turn off the power, she turns it back on. If she reaches peak level-" Selvig explains before Fury interrupts him. "You've prepared for this doctor, harnessing energy from space" he states with a questioning look at Selvig. "We don't have the harness. My calculations are far from complete. She's throwing off interference, radiation, nothing harmful, low levels of gamma radiation" Selvig quickly responds to Fury as Fury and Rachel glance at the tesseract. "That can be harmful" Fury states as he looks back at Selvig with a serious glance. "Where's Agent Barton?" Fury questions and Selvig chuckles in response. "The hawk? Up in his nest" he answers, pointing behind himself.
Fury orders a report from Agent Barton, another close friend of Rachel's, before Clint arrives on the ground. "I gave you this detail so you could keep a close eye on things" Fury explains expectantly. "So I see better from a distance" Clint responds as he walks between Fury and Rachel. "Have you seen anything that might set this thing off?" Fury asks as they all make their way to the tesseract. "No one's come or gone, Selvig's clean. No contacts. If there was any tampering sir, it wasn't from this end" Clint concludes as they all stare at the tesseract. "At this end?" Fury questions as he gives Clint a quizzical look. "Yeah, the cube is a doorway to the other end of space, right?" he explains to Fury. "Doors open from both sides" Rachel summarises as she understands Clint's point and he nods at her. Suddenly, the tesseract starts shooting out blue energy and everyone stands tense as the building shakes.
Everyone watches in suspense as the tesseract shoots a line of energy and creates a portal on the other end of the station. It releases a surge of energy through the room, as if a gust of wind has just blown through the room. Everyone looks up to see a man crouching as agents advance towards him with their guns raised. "Sir, please put down the spear" Fury shouts across the room as the man stands and stares at them all. The man in leather and long black hair glances down at the spear before raises it and a surge of energy is shot from it. Clint quickly pushes Fury to the ground as Rachel rolls to the right. The agents start firing their rifles at him as he jumps at them with the spear, their bullets having no effect on him. He jabs the spear into one agent's chest before throwing 2 knives across the room and into the throats of two other agents. He fires more energy into the doctor's work place.
Rachel rolls in beside Clint as they and other agents fire their guns at the man with the spear. The man sends another surge of energy straight at them and Clint and Rachel quickly dive in different directions as the energy hits the other agents. With all men on the ground, the mysterious man stares at the destructions he's caused. Rachel looks up to see the man pointing the spear at Clint's chest and Clint completely relaxes. She then looks over at Fury kneeling beside the tesseract and they share a shocked and confused look. Fury takes the tesseract out of its containment and places it in a brief case as Rachel climbs to her feet, wiping the blood and sweat from her forehead. Fury stands and starts to quietly leave the room with Rachel.
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I Can't Help It - Steve Rogers
FanfictionWhen Rachel and Steve meet through Steve's experience of waking in a different century, they get to know each other. And when they reconnect due to Loki's attack on New York, they become very close friends who start to trust each other more and more...
