Chapter 29
“Skye?” Ward called through the SHIELD plane. “Skye?”
Her door was shut, but he nevertheless opened it to find her tapping away at her laptop. “Isn’t the wristband supposed to stop you?”
“I got it hacked.” She said vaguely. “Hey Ward, is that a bee all the way on the other side of the plane?”
“Skye, I’m not going to fall for that.” She typed something on her computer, then immediately slamming it shut as he sat on her bunk. “What are you doing?”
“My job. I didn’t hack bank accounts to get by before SHIELD, and I like my job.”
“Then what is SHIELD?”
“I’m not even an agent, Ward. I'm a consultant, sure, I go into firefights with you guys, sure. But I’m not really an agent. Not like any of you or even Akela Amador. By the way, did you see Coulson's face when it turned out she was dead?”
“You can’t distract me like that.”
“No, I’m serious. He had this face on like when I found out my birth files were controlled by SHIELD. Except worse.”
“It’s a rumor that he went off the books to get revenge for her death, and that the Director let it slide.”
“You know more. Really, Ward. Please, stop playing me.” Skye finally said. “I’m not stupid.”
“What’s your job? A remote job for a barely high school graduate you’re dying to keep?”
“I’m an ethical hacker. Testing a company’s protections. I only actually hacked SHIELD for both myself and the rising tide. Stark Industries has a standing offer of a million dollars for every time you can hack into their servers and show them the gap in their defense.”
“So you’re trying to get in?”
“I’ve already gotten in 4 times. I’m about an hour from getting in again. I think the AI likes me.”
“Skye.”
“Ward.” She closed the door, and then looked him in the eyes. “You’re a double agent, aren’t you?”
“What?”
She pulled an image up on her computer. It was a dragon breathing fire out in the form of a Phoenix, wings spread, with black, green, and gold streaks on the dragon's scales. “Seem familiar?”
“What are you leading to?”
“Who's your boss?”
“Are you blackmailing me?”
“Yes.” She stated plainly. “You had some sort of protection against the berserker staff. The looks you give and the way you put things. You know it’s going to come out.”
“A very wise person said information isn’t meant to be kept secret forever, simply revealed at the most opportune moment.”
“You want to pull me, or at least some from this team in.”
Ward didn’t answer. “Your goal was to pull all of us into your double agenting, right? Coulson, May, Fitz, Simmons, they’re the best. And I was an accidental pickup.”
“You’re more than that Skye.”
“I’m a hacker and you work for a group that keeps absolutely nothing online. I’ve tried. They use decoy servers and either don’t use paperwork records or keep that all in hard copies only. Ward, why are you here?”
“Skye, I’m a specialist.”
“No, you’re an agent on the wrong team.”
“What do you want, Skye?”
“I hacked some very valuable stuff yesterday, and I want to meet your leader.”
Eugenia Zemo hung up the phone with her parents, telling them of her orders that just came through. She was to stay on Asgard for the foreseeable future, and unless it contradicted standing orders, she was to aid King Thor in any way she could.
“Commander Zemo?” Asgard’s general, Tyr, asked her.
“The commander title isn’t an official title, don’t worry about it, General Tyr.”
“If not Midgards government, who sent you?”
“I am of Earth, but we have more than one government for the planet, and armed forces are not limited to those. I work for a private organization.”
“Commander Zemo, I simply wished to ask of your soldiers. Where do you source such majestic mounts and then train and mount them? Dragons have bee considered extinct.”
“I’m sorry, I am not allowed to share that information, and our dragons are more than mere beasts. Dragons went nearly extinct because they only have instincts, and no capability for thought. We use a method to bond them as familiars, my mind is in the empty mental cavity of my dragon, it is simply an extension of my body with simply its own self-preservation when I am not controlling it.”
“That is fascinating. How long are your troops staying?”
“I received orders just now. We are staying for as long as we need. Our first priorities are to safekeep the ambassadors and ensure the war criminal Loki in your dungeon who attacked our world stays imprisoned. After that is ensured we are to aid King Thor in any way that does not contradict previous orders. That includes protecting Asgard during the convergence, so rest assured, General, we come with alliance on or minds.”
“That is good news indeed. Who do you work for?”
“I belong to the Order of the Phoenix, General.”
“So it is true that there was a Phoenix in our own halls during the battle?”
“Yes, the symbol my organization was founded from. Have the numbers of your Einherjar suffered too badly?”
“We lost several thousand good soldiers, but we will persevere.”
“Train your new ones well. My legion can scout the skies, we need to do regular training drills anyways. Good luck, General.”
“Commander? I sought you out because the King requests your presence.”
“Thank you.” She said, as she jumped off the bridge they were walking on. And from underneath, came out her dragon, whose saddle she had landed in. She quickly soared to the palace, landing in the open courtyard where Thor was gazing over the city.
“Commander Zemo.”
“King Thor.”
“You are not of any army of Midgard, riding on extinct beasts. Who do you work for, Commander, not that I am not thankful, but I must know who is and is not my ally.”
“I belong to the Order of the Phoenix, which is a private organization, and you are right, answers to no government.”
“Your information must be great to arrive in the nick of the moment like that.”
She didn’t answer, as a dragon ten times the size of a real one, semi-transparent and silvery appeared, the shot straight at Eugenia. She spread her arms, letting it sink into her, the words playing out in her mind. Open your mind.
Eugenia did. There had been rumors of what happens when that order is given. She gladly did so.
Eugenia felt a rush of magic through her, specifically the dragon breathing fire in the shape of a Phoenix tattoo wrapping around her left shoulder. It was powerful, it was infinite, and it was glorious.
She relaxed in the wells of magical power, of energy, mentally floating through the pools of it. Her consciousness left her mind, and instead her blue eyes lit up with an emerald fire. “Of course it is. Courtesy of the girl-who-lived.” Eugenia's face contorted.
He really regretted not actually being the one who should be on the throne, because Gungnir didn’t answer to him, and wasn’t going to show him the truth of the matter. “That is a very meaningless title.”
“Your aura is flaring.” She said, and as he met Eugenia Zemo’s eyes, he saw his own form there. “The disguise is hasty, no plan, spur of the moment, and you weren't even bothering to hide you’re an imposter and not King Thor.”
“He is no king.”
“Neither are you.” His disguise faded it as his hold on it loosened. “Loki Odinson.”
“Haven’t you heard, I was never a son of Odin.”
“Your magic says differently. You yourself said Gungnir would poison any who were not in line to wield it. Or will you deny both halves of your bloodline?”
Loki leveled Gungnir, ready to shoot a pulse of his magic. Eugenia vaulted over the railing, landing on her dragon. Then she arched back as the ethereal dragon left her the same way it had arrived. Except this time, the place where the eyes should be on it was burning with the same emerald fire that departed Eugenia.
The Dragon Legion lined up behind Eugenia and the Hungarian Horntail she was mounted on. In front of it, the ethereal dragon hovered, wings spread, larger than the palace itself. “Haven’t you realized, liesmith? The balance of power now faces the other way, and you’re not getting away to attack Earth again, vengeance or not.”
“You'll find I very much-” he didn’t finish his sentence, as the nullifying cuffs were suddenly on his wrists, and Eugenia cut off the portal.
“As I said.” and the dragon dissipated, leaving Eugenia in charge.
“Someone, get him to a more secure cell.” She ordered, “And find out what happened to the real Thor.”
“I am heeeereeeeeee!” Thor yelled, rocketing in with Mjolnir while Jane, held in his non-hammer arm, screeched, eyes occasionally flicking to the ground, flicking past.
“Problem solved.” Eugenia said. “What happened?”
“Malekith was not dead, so we extracted the Aether from Jane and then defeated him.” Thor said, then looked again at the surroundings. “Loki?”
“My point exactly.” Eugenia muttered. “I have to go report to my boss. You three,” she nodded to three of her subordinates, “keep him from escaping.” One of them had their dragon, a Ukrainian Ironbelly, dangerous for everything but it’s species notable lack of teeth, pick up Loki, hold him there, jaw clamped around his middle.
“There.” The dragon’s rider said. “He’ll live and it’s not uncomfortable enough to count as cruel and unusual punishment.”
“Americans.” Another one muttered with a distinct French accent.