Chapter 54
“I now pronounce you remarried.” Teddy said to his parents, and boy was it strange that now he was the best person to do that. “Don’t split again.”
They nodded to his gaze. They had learned his lesson, it seemed, as after his and Shuri’s wedding, whenever neither was busy, nobody had seen them except leaving to go somewhere together. He didn’t even want to speculate, for all his mother-in-all-but-blood looked 17, his father-in-all-but-blood to be 25, though with his good aging, could pass as barely 21. And to think they were 54 and 63, respectively.
“Mr. Philip John Coulson you are under arrest for conspiracy for treason against the Royal Family, sedition, and conspiracy for insurrection.”
Phil wouldn’t just go down like that. “Run, Audrey!” he shouted to his wife, as he wiped out an ICER, although he would take more drastic measures if they threatened more severely.
From the back of the house, where Audrey was going to run into, another police officer said “Mrs. Audrey Coulson, you are under arrest for accessory to conspiracy for treason against the Royal Family, sedition, and conspiracy for insurrection.”
The police officer grasped Audrey’s arms, and that was the end for Phil. Nobody touched his wife like that.
He dropped the ICER, and as the officer aiming to arrest him paused for a second, he withdrew a real gun, full to the brim with bullets.
“You have the right to remain-” The one holding Audrey was shot first, as was, then, the one who lunged for him. They didn’t get back up.
“Phil!” Audrey exclaimed, as she ran to him, away and around the man now slumped, bleeding on their house’s living room floor.
“Audrey. Come on.” he said, “We’ve been betrayed. We need to go.”
Later on, in an unregistered car he had hidden in a lot a block away from their house, Phil asked, “Audrey, who did you tell?”
“Nobody that wasn’t in the group. You briefed Fury, I didn’t tell Maria Hill, she defected,
“Maria defected?”
“She’s been secretly working for the Order of the Phoenix, I saw plans to get her an official ranking title soon.”
“Dammit. Anyone else?”
“Oh, Virginia Potts. She holds a real grudge against Stark, she said she’d help, as long as she isn’t directly implicated. She has a high ranking good job in Stark Industries, that could be useful.”
“Then who was it? None of the lower-ranking agents know where we live, much less that we’re married.”
“What about your old team?” Audrey asked. “You talk a lot about them, but I don’t know what happened to them.”
“They were turned. Ward turned Skye, and FitzSimmons, Mack, and Trip went with her, Morse was one step away from turning anyways, and May just retired.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. They made their choices, now we have to live with them.” Phil said mournfully, just as their windows exploded out. That in itself was strange, if the motor of their car didn’t just suddenly stop, sharper than even an Emp could. They jumped out seconds before the car collapsed in on itself. THey had been talking, and Phil hadn't noticed the road was strangely evacuated.
He found the source of the strange attack immediately, as Audrey tried to shrink herself behind him. She could shoot a gun, but she was not the type of person who preferred violence, she was more of a speaker than a fighter. Their attacker pulled off her mask, and Phil faltered for a second, his gun’s angle dropping towards the ground instinctively, before he corrected himself.
“Phil, you promised.” Skye said, voice and face vividly displaying her betrayed disappointment.
“Skye, you know me. I really hoped you would back down from being one of the numerous bad guys who try to stand in my way of doing what’s right and saving the world yet again.”
“See this?” Skye asked, pointing to the patch on her uniform. It was the Order of the Phoenix's symbol, proudly stating her loyalties to the world. Around it was a stitching that seemed vaguely familiar. “I gave you a chance, Phil. The world’s changing, and it’s not Hydra vs SHIELD, bad guys vs good guys anymore.”
“Yeah, the bad guys won. I get it”
“No. The good guys won. And in your desperation to have something to fight for, you’re becoming the bad guy anarchist. Just because it wasn’t you leading the good guys to victory doesn't mean we didn’t win. And Phil, I am so sorry. I had really hoped you’d be there when I became Mrs. Skye Ward, instead of rotting behind bars in the best case scenario.”
“I won't be rotting behind any bars, neither will Audrey.” Phil stated, gun raised.
It was jerked out of his hand in an instant, as his hands were pinned behind his back, Audrey’s as well, as she was pressed against the car. “Are you done talking, Skye, and can we get the job done now?” Grant Ward asked, pulling apart Phils gun, and the three he had hidden, tossing the useless pieces onto the roadside, too far out of reach. “You’re under arrest, Coulson, in case it wasn't clear yet. And unlike the police officers you killed, this time we won’t give you that many rights.”
“Bringing before His Majesty King Edward Stark I and Her Majesty Queen Shuri Stark the prisoners Philip Coulson, on charges of sedition, conspiracy for treason and insurrection, and two counts of murder, and Audery Coulson on charges of aiding and abetting on Philip Coulson’s charges.”
Phil looked around. The royal couple was not worried about making a statement, there were no thrones in sight. The guards around them were Order of the Phoenix trainees, from what he had seen of their uniforms. The handcuffs on him, he would not be able to get out of, not even by breaking his own hands to slide out.
He exchanged a glance with Audrey, and she glanced at him mournfully. He had told her what he would do if they were ever captured. There was no known way to prove she had known what was happening, and if he couldn’t get them both out, he would at least take everything onto himself, have her walk away. Audrey didn’t deserve to be dragged into his mess.
He listened in as the royal couple was given an overview of their crimes. “Who led you to capture them? I need to know this wasn’t a trap for our people, those two police officers did not deserve to die.” The Queen spoke first.
“Our source was brought here this morning to testify, your Majesties.” Ward said. Skye turned to one of the trainees standing by and commanded, “Piper, bring her in for testimony.”
As Virginia Potts entered the courtroom, Teddy said, “Well, you are the last person I expected here.” he said. “Miss Potts, please, come in, although I had it on good authority you despised my father's guts with everything within you, it’s a pleasant surprise. Your testimony?”
Audrey hissed as Pepper walked to the front and gave a respectful nod to the royals. “I have given a full statement of the details already, however, the short version is that Mr. and Mrs. Coulson were attempting to recruit me to their anarchist organization, and I instead did the right thing and reported it through my job at Stark Industries.”
“So the rumors you quit over an argument with dad are false. Any other details you think are important? People you know are involved? Bases?”
“I have a job too good to quit over moral issues with a man I no longer work directly with.” Pepper said. “Furthermore, I don't believe in the father's sins going to the son, or in this case, the uncle’s to the nephew. It is not Tony Stark ruling the world. I don’t know about any of their bases, the only location I knew of was their house. As for people, Nick Fury is still well and kicking, he’s their main co-conspirator, and unless you catch him, their operations will continue. They have hundreds of agents all over the world, but most of them don't know anything, and none of them have yet to infiltrate that I know of. Nick Fury currently will have the full list.”
“And do you know where Nick Fury is?”
“He might have moved, again, he has a sixth sense for authorities, but last I heard he was camping out in catacombs below the Fridge, assuming nobody will look at the collapsed remains of an old SHIELD prison.”
“Ward, take a unit to the Fridge. I want Fury here today.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Commander Johnson, escort the Coulsons to the Raft’s examination and re-education facility. The evidence here is pretty damning.” the King commanded.
“Miss Potts, thank you for the information.” the Queen said, but Phiil couldn't catch whatever else she was going to say as both he and Audrey were dragged out, and then there was that uncomfortable feeling of being pressed through a wormhole that he had heard accompanied portal key usage, as he and Audrey were led to a room with the last person he expected to see that day.
“Agent Coulson?” Fitz asked. “Thanks, Slye, Jemma and I have to form here.”
“Alright. See you later Fitz. Don’t forget, we’re all going on a double-date tonight.”
“I won’t Skye. See you later.” Fitz said, as he bustled around the lab, calling, “Jemma! Do you have veritaserum?”
“Yeah. For who… Agent Coulson?!”
“You’re the Agent who helped me with Marcus Daniels!” Audrey exclaimed.
“Yes. Don’t worry, this won’t hurt. Fitz, start the dictation machine.” Jemma said, as she quickly pressed closed Coulson’s nose, until he opened his mouth, where she dropped a drop from a pipette.
Audrey watched horrified, as her husband dumped everything he knew in the most efficient interrogation ever. She wasn’t prepared when shortly after, the same was done to her, her brain-to-mouth filter simply disappearing as she dumped everything she knew, and the dictation machine got all of it.
“Thank you, Coulson.” Fitz said. “Here. I'll be back in a second.” he gave each glass of water, which they each inspeacted suspiciously, but drank anyway.
As the loyalty potion did it’s work, Nick Fury as well as SHIELD’s network was captured, and the rebellion against the crown finally died.
“Alright, I have had enough of his resistance. Tony, we’re good with the bombs.” Lilith commanded. “Wanda, General Udonta’s forces and Units 33-38 under your command are finishing our work on Vanaheim. Either it surrenders or it’s destroyed completely and then taken over.”
“My pleasure.”