Jessica Murphy was the most normal girl you could ever meet. On the outside at least. On the inside she was falling apart. She witnessed her parents death at a very young age and being an only child she had to learn to take care of her self. Spendin...
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"Five years ago.." Secretary Ross sighed as the Avengers all sat in the meeting room, "I had a heart attack." Jessica looked over at Steve with a confused expression, "and dropped right in the middle of my backswing. Turned out it was the best round of my life because after 13 hours of surgery and a triple bypass...I found something 40 years in the army had never taught me. Perspective. The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt. You have fought for us...protected us, risked your lives...but while a great many people see you as heroes there are some who would prefer the word "vigilantes"."
"What word would you use, Mr. Secretary?" Nat questioned.
"How about "dangerous"." Ross answered briefly, "what would you call a group of US based enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose and who, frankly, seem unconcerned about what they leave behind?" He asked rhetorically before turning towards the TV, "New York."
Jessica looked closely as she watched a video of the Hulk destroying New York.
"Washington, DC." Ross said putting up another example of a helicarrier blowing up.
Jessica looked over at Sam with sad eyes as Sam looked down in disappointment.
"Sokovia." Ross moved onto another video from when they fought Ultron, "Lagos."
Jessica looked over at Wanda quickly when Ross showed the video of Wanda blowing up that building.
"Okay. That's enough." Jessica said quickly after seeing Wanda's expression.
Ross nodded as he turned off the TV, "for the past four years, you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. But I think we have a solution. The Sokovia Accords." Ross stated as he passed a book to Wanda, "approved by 117 countries...it states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organisation. Instead...they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nationa panel only when and if that panel seems it necessary."
"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place." Steve spoke, "I feel we've done that."
"Tell me, Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?" Ross questioned, "if I misplaced a couple of 30 megaton nukes you can bet there'd be consequences. Compromise. Reassurance. That's how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground."
"So, there are contingencies." Rhodey chimed in.
"Three days from now, the UN meets the Vienna to ratify the Accords." Ross nodded, "talk it over."
"And if we come to a decision you don't like?" Jessica asked before Ross left.
"Then you retire." Ross shrugged before leaving the building.
———
"Secretary Ross has a Congressional Medal of Honor...which is one more than you have." Rhodey argued with Sam.
"So let's say we agree to this thing. How long is it gonna be before they LoJack us like a bunch of common criminals?" Sam argued back.
"117 countries want to sign this. 117, Sam, and you're just like, "No, that's cool. We got it."." Rhodey mocked.
"How long are you going to play both sides?" Sam retorted.
"Who cares?! The guys full of shit!" Jessica yelled to stop the arguing.
"I have an equation." Vision stepped in.
"Oh, this will clear it up." Sam rolled his eyes.
"In the eight years since Mr. Stark announced himself as Iron Man the number of known enhanced persons has grown exponentially. During the same period...the number of potentially world ending events has risen at a commensurate rate." Vision stated.
"Are you saying it's our fault?" Steve asked looking up from his book.
"I'm saying there may be a causality." Vision corrected, "our very strength invites challenge. Challenge invites conflict. And conflict...breeds catastrophe. Oversight...oversight is not an idea that can be dismissed out of hand."
"Boom." Rhodey smirked as he looked at Sam.
"Tony. You are being uncharacteristically non-hyper verbal." Nat stated.
"It's because he's already made up his mind." Steve sighed.
"Boy, you know me so well." Tony scoffed as he stood up, "actually, I'm nursing an electromagnetic headache. That's what going on, Cap. It's just pain. It's discomfort." Tony said as he made his way towards the sink in the kitchen, "who's putting coffee grounds in the disposal?" Tony said looking towards Jessica.
"Don't look at me." Jessica said taking a sip of her coffee before realising and placing the cup on the coffee table.
Tony rolled his eyes before pulling up a photo of a young man, "Oh, that's Charles Spencer, by the way. He's a great kid. Computer engineering degree, 3.6 GPA...had a floor level gig at Intel planned for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul...before he parked it behind a desk. See the world. Maybe be of service." Tony shrugged, "Charlie didn't want to go to Vegas or Fort Lauderdale, which is what I would do. He didn't go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer building sustainable housing for the poor. Guess where. Sokovia." Tony said bitterly.
Jessica's face dropped as she recalled the events of Sokovia.
"He wanted to make a difference, I suppose." Tony continued, "I mean, we won't know because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass. There's no decision making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes, I'm game. If we can't accept limitations, if we're boundary-less...we're no better than the bad guys."
"Tony, someone dies on your watch, you don't give up." Steve mentioned.
"Who said we're giving up?" Tony questioned.
"We are if we're not taking reap for our actions." Steve shrugged, "this document just shifts the blame."
"I'm sorry, Steve. That is dangerously arrogant. This is the United Nations we're talking about. It's not the World Security Council, it's not SHIELD, it's not HYDRA." Rhodey argued.
"No, but it's run by people with agendas, and agendas change." Steve argued back.
"That's good. That's why I'm here. When I realised what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands I shut it down and stopped manufacturing." Tony butted in.
"Tony, you chose to do that." Steve retorted, "if we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should go? What if there is somewhere we need to go and they don't let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own."
"If we don't do this now, it's gonna be done to us later." Tony sighed, "that's the fact. That won't be pretty."
"You're saying they'll come for me." Wanda spoke.
"We would protect you." Vision stated.
"Maybe Tony's right." Nat shrugged, "if we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off..."
"Aren't you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass a few weeks ago?" Sam questioned cutting Nat off.
"I'm just reading the terrain." Nat shrugged, "we have made some very public mistakes. We need to win their trust back."
"Focus up. I'm sorry. Did I just mishear you or did you agree with me?" Tony asked in surprise.
"I want to take it back now." Nat shook her head.
"No, you can't retract it." Tony shook his head with a smirk, "thank you. Unprecedented." Tony smiled as Steve's phone chimed.
"I have to go." Steve said sadly before standing up and leaving the room.
