V I G I L A N C E ~ (Marvel) ~

C H A P T E R 2 5_

(song above dedicated to Loki and Esther)

CLINT BARTON:

"We have no allies in Asgard with the Bifrost gone. Heimdall used what magic he had to get me to earth in order to stop Loki but there is no way to get an army here without the Rainbow Bridge," Thor tells us (Tony, the Maximoff kid, and I).

"And there's no one else out there we can get a word out to?" I ask him.

"Our allies have no way of knowing what is happening on Midgard. No. And the only way would be with the Tesseract."

"So Earth is stuck here in the middle of an invasion and we are all just waiting to die?" Quicksilver asks with disbelief, wanting to help and above all, wanting hope.

"If your realm was more advanced we would have a chance at getting aid from other planets but... what we have to work with is ancient," Thor sighs with his fists leaning against the table.

"This coming from the guy who argued with a mechanical pencil?" Tony mutters.

Thor looks offended and I roll my eyes, Maximoff snickering.

"That was one time..." Thor grumbles.

We have given up and everyone only wants to argue. I have left and gone to the bottom level of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s headquarters to speak with my wife. The first floor is serving as a shelter of food, clothing, water, and more for the homeless, orphaned, and injured vets. Since the hospitals were so full (the ones that are still standing) the second floor which was already the base's medical center, is now another hospital for those fighting against the aliens and anyone else we can help.

I spot Darcy Lewis sitting in the corner reading to some small orphaned kids, one of them with a tight bandage wrapped around his small head. She smiles as one of the children touches a picture in the book and says something to her.

I walk by some injured and recovering soldiers, eyeing me for a moment with loss and despair in their eyes. I've been there too many times and I turn away from their gaze. I look across all of the faces and see Laura there in the food area, using a ladle to pour soup into bowls.

I walk around the back of the table up to her when she's finished and take her hand while she's gently wiping both with a hand towel.

"I talked to Sargent Harris. He says he can get a place set up for you and the kids to be safe."

"I like being here," she argues, as I knew she would.

"Laura..."

"These people have lost everything... No matter what has happened to me... they've been through worse... And I will help where I can."

"If they find out everyone is here I may not be able to..." I sigh and look away, always worried about her especially since Hydra has infiltrated everything.

She squeezes my hands and smiles at me. "Everything is going to be okay..."

I look back into those brown eyes I love so much. "You should get some rest."

"When I'm finished, maybe," she replies. That's the best offer I will probably get. She has always one to do all she can to help others even if she's exhausted. Selflessness... it's her best quality.

She furrows her brows. "Have you heard from Nat and Banner yet? Or Steve?"

I breathe through my nose in thought, my eyes downcast. "No... not yet... But I'll find them don't worry. We just got a disturbance at the gate to get inside that I need to check out first."