When Storms Come and Stars Collide ~ Book I ~ Thor Fanfiction

Chapter 13: Pride and Prejudice

Chapter 13: Pride and Prejudice

"His name is Donald Blake?" Coulson asked the professor.

"Doctor Donald Blake," Erik corrected him politely.

"You have very dangerous coworkers, Dr. Selvig."

"You know how pretty distraught he was when you'd taken all our research. That was years of his life - gone!" Erik slapped his arms against his sides dramatically before observing his surroundings. "You can understand how a man could go off like that. A big, faceless of this organization like yours coming in there with their jackbooted thugs and..." Erik trailed off when Coulson looked at him with a face that said: Keep talking, and you might regret it. "That's how he put it," Erik finished softly.

"That still doesn't explain how he managed to tear through our security," Phil said, slightly irritated by that fact.

Erik threw his arms helplessly, "Steroids! He's a bit of a fitness nut."

Eerie beeps went off from the technician's computer. He called out to Coulson to see the supposed license of 'Donald Blake' on the screen. The name and Thor's ID photo were in the system, but the words 'Falsified Data' flashed over it.

Before Erik could leave to rescue Jane and AJ, he knew he had to save Thor, too. If Erik didn't create a 'legitimate' cover story, he wouldn't only hear about it from Jane and AJ. S.H.I.E.L.D. might take Thor and Jane into federal custody, then maybe arrest Erik and the interns for conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Fortunately, he knew someone capable of creating IDs and hacking the database in exchange for a minimum passing grade on the next midterm, higher if the individual decided to study.

"It says here that he's an MD," Coulson stated, not asking.

"Well, he is..." Erik insisted, "...or he was. He - uh - switched careers and became a physicist - a brilliant physicist! He's a wonderful man - a man in pain!"

Coulson narrowed his eyes, analyzing Erik to tell whether he was lying or telling the truth, "Why the family charade?"

"Well," Erik chuckled, rubbing the back of his flushed neck, "AJ has some attachment to the man, treated him as if he was family. Super Uncle Thor is what AJ calls him because of his love for superheroes, saving lives and all. And Jane and Donald were... unfortunately were a thing." Coulson pressed his lips in a hard thin line. Erik gulped, not sure if Coulson had bought his story or not. "Deep down..." Erik continued narrating, "Jane was embarrassed by this scandal, but she has learned her lesson and remained professional for the sake of science."

Erik kept his eyes locked on Coulson. If he dared look away, the agent might detect a white lie, then Erik might join his peers. He was fortunate that Phil wasn't asking the big question - was Erik involved in the plan? The older scientist had to act quickly.

"So - um - can they all go free now?" Erik asked with a hopeful grin. "As far as we know... you guys are supposed to be a top-secret facility." Coulson raised a brow at Erik, who suddenly grew a spine. His associate behind him lowered his specs and narrowed his eyes almost as if he was trying to scare Erik into silent submission. Erik didn't mind him; his focus lay on the supervisor.

"This is a small town. Everyone here knows Jane. No doubt, there will be questions. The word will spread all over town - worse, the conspiracy theories on the internet. One might phone the president and ask him why a group of feds is building a city around a crashed satellite unless they're holding people captive."

"Is that a threat?" Jasper challenged in the background.

Erik raised his hands in surrender, "I'm just stating the facts here, gentlemen."