Undercover Agent

ONCE again, Clint tackles his boss. Just in time, too, as the beam coming from the staff hits just behind where Fury had been standing, scorching a cabinet.

Kaylin grabs her gun from its holster on her leg and aims it at the foreigner. She creeps along the floor to her colleague and boss, inspecting them for injuries they don't have. Along with the other agents nearby, she forms a protective line.

The moment Clint is in hearing distance, she whispers to him, "Bad alien", which earns her a snort from the man.

Because Kaylin was so busy inspecting her boss, she didn't notice the 'alien' turning their attention to her. Not until Clint tackles her to avoid the beam aimed at her.

"Oof," she grunts when her back hits the concrete. "What the fuck?"

Crawling to get behind a cabinet, Clint helps her to sit up. "Sorry," he apologizes while looking around the corner to keep an eye on the danger. "We need to be careful."

The foreigner seems to have found his new hobby, as more and more beams are being shot around the room. Some hit nothing, but most hit at least a table or cabinet.

When agents and scientists start to be vaporized, the two agents decide to leave their safety. They nod at each other, and each take a different side to emerge from.

Kaylin hates field work, she hates using a gun, so she only holds it up in self-defense while she pushes down scientists left and right. She helps them to take cover and stay out of sight of the mad-man attacking them, while Clint joins the active fight at the front.

Slowly, Kaylin makes her way to the front, just behind her friend, and they circle around the foreigner with practiced ease. They may not have worked together often, but they do often train together.

Clint anticipates the foreigners next move and shoves Kaylin out of the way, shooting his gun with precision that does absolutely nothing in their favor. His hand is caught, and the 'alien' tilts their head as their eyes flick between Clint's and Kaylin's.

"You have heart," they tell Clint. They lift their staff and place the tip against the blond's chest, making Clint drop his arms and freeze up.

Kaylin watches in horror as some type of blue energy creeps over the staff and onto her colleague and friend. Clint's normally blueish gray eyes turn an icy blue, and his face seem to loose all expression. She gasps when he turn to her, but lets herself be pulled up nonetheless.

Being pulled to stand in front of the foreigner, Kaylin forces herself to not loose her cool. She's a SHIELD agent, for fuck's sake, she can't afford to show how scared she truly is.

The foreigner tilt their head once more before shrugging. "I suppose, you, too," they allow, and place the staff against Kaylin's chest.

The change is almost instantly.

As the blue energy creeps up her body, Kaylin feels all her worries wash off of her. Whereas she first felt insecure or scared or frustrated, she now feels strangely at peace. It feels as if she's free to breathe, free to not think. Nothing is important, not unless she's told it is.

The foreigner turns away from them, just to spot Fury trying to put the Tesseract into a case.

"Please, don't," they warn. "I still need that."

The director leans back on his legs where he's still sitting on the ground. He's trying to stall just a bit longer, while also trying to find out what, exactly, just had happened to his agents.

"This doesn't have to get any messier," Fury tells them.

"Of course, it does," the foreigner smirks, stepping forward slowly and menacingly. "I've come too far for anything else. I am Loki of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose."

"Loki?" Dr Selvig cuts in, stepping away from his hiding space to take a closer look. "Brother of Thor?"

Loki doesn't seem to like that question.

"We have no quarrel with your people," Fury says, trying to keep the peace once he recognized the names. His eyes flicker to Kaylin for a split second, but the woman only stands there, next to Clint, not moving more than to breathe.

"An ant has no quarrel with a boot," Loki replies.

"Are you planning to step on us?" Fury wonders.

The Asgardian walks around the room, seemingly not bothered about the guns trained on them. "I come with glad tidings of a world made free," they say, slowly making their way closer to the scientists.

"Free from what?" Fury wants to know.

"Freedom," is the simple answer. "Freedom is life's great lie. Once you've accept that, in your heart," at once, they place their staff against Selvig's chest, "you will know peace."

Kaylin might not have her own mind at the moment, she does still have her instincts. Her habits that have been drilled into her not only from childhood, but also from training, can't be simply pushed away. Her body moves on its own, forcing her to look at the ceiling to see the fail-safe she had asked to be put in place.

Apparently, Fury had listened to her.

"Sir," Clint speaks up, having spotted the same, "Director Fury is stalling. This place is about to blow and drop a hundred feet of rock on us. He means to bury us."

Fury starts smirking. "Like the pharaohs of old," he proclaims proudly.

Dr Selvig looks at a nearby computer and confirms their words. "He's right, the portal is collapsing in on itself."

There's a pull inside Kaylin's mind, and she follows it without thinking of why. She walks out of the room and, faintly, hears a gunshot behind her, but she doesn't turn around to find out why. It's not important.

The pull guides her to SHIELD's parking lot, and she scans the property for an empty vehicle. Many agents are rushing to get out of the building, which makes it all a bit more difficult.

Sidestepping Deputy-director Maria Hill, Kaylin climbs into a car with a cargo box and starts the engine. She ignores her superior asking what's going on as she waits for more instruction.

"We need these vehicles," comes Clint's voice, and Kaylin feels another pull in her mind that tells her to start rolling the car.

"Who's that?" Hill questions looking at someone behind the agent.

Stopping for just a second to answer, the blond shrugs. "They didn't tell me."

Something tipped off Hill, because not soon after, the two agents start battling. Kaylin doesn't focus on them, however, because she feels the weight of Loki entering the cargo box of the car. A second later, Selvig sits down next to her.

The car is rolling slowly towards the exit, and Selvig holds open the door for Clint to jump in as soon as he's punched Hill hard enough for her to not get up in time to catch him. As soon as Clint sits, Kaylin pushes down the accelerator and speeds down the tunnel to get out of SHIELD's garage as fast as possible.

Fighting her way through the tunnel, Kaylin waves between SHIELD cars, trying to get away as fast as she can without hitting someone.

Clint, however, is busy shooting his gun at a car that's following them at high speed. A quick look through the mirror tells Kaylin that it's Agent Hill, and despite the numb feeling in her brain, the woman smiles.

There's a rumble going through the tunnel, forcing everyone to really push down the gas pedal as far as they can. Rocks fall from the walls and ceiling, and Kaylin has to no longer dodge only SHIELD cars. There's a lot of dust, but she makes it out in time for the tunnel to collapse, trapping Hill inside it.

With free air, Clint pulls himself back into the car and closes the window. He puts the safety pin back on his gun and stores the weapon in its respective holster, crossing his arms when he's done and staring out of the front window.

A pull in Kaylin's mind tells her she's expected to pick a safe place for them to form the next step of Loki's plan. There's only one place she can think off that no one will think about to use, so she sets out for it.

LA is close enough, anyway.

-

The ride to LA is longer than expected.

When the tunnel collapsed, Kaylin thought they were safe. However, Director Fury had found a helicopter and started shooting at them.

Loki used their staff and, with a well-aimed shot, blasted the thing from the sky. Right into the open field not that far from the NASA base.

Now, Kaylin is speeding over the highway, trying to avoid traffic lights, but knowing it's almost impossible. Luckily, there aren't any cameras active anymore where they're going. She had deactivated them a long time ago, paranoid she was going to be found through them.

They found her, but in a park in England, and not that house.

It's hot out, despite it being early May, and Kaylin has every window open to get at least a bit of fresh wind. With three people in the car, it's bound to be warm, so they need the air-conditioning, even if it's a natural one instead of an artificial one.

Clint is looking around, keeping his eye on possible enemies, while Selvig is mumbling equations. Loki has tasks for all of them, even if they don't share them.

Reaching the familiar white gate, Kaylin scans her fingerprint and waits to be let in. It's been years since she's been back here, but the house still stands the same. Maybe a bit dusty, and the yard has overgrown plants, but it's all still there.

Driving the car to the front of the house, Kaylin parks and is the first to step out. She's looking up at the large building to her right, but makes a turn to the left and starts walking.

"Where are we?" Loki wants to know.

Kaylin swallows. "My childhood home," she answers. "No one will find us here, and the security is deactivated a long time ago, so they can't spy on us. As long as we don't go through that front door," she points at the other, much larger house, "then we're good."

"What's there?" Clint asks, giving the other house a once over.

Kaylin bends to pick up the spare key she knows is hidden beneath the flowerpot she had made for Mother's Day when she was four. "The house of my dad's old boss," she tells him. "It's heavily protected, but I know a way in that won't trip the alarms. There's a whole bunker beneath the house, which we can use for whatever Selvig is coming up with."

Kaylin might not know the task the doctor has, but she knows math. Those equations are for something, something large, and they need the safety that bunker provides.

Loki nods. "Lead the way."

So, Kaylin does.

She opens the front door and gives a small tour of the building. She points at the kitchen, the living room, the downstairs toilet, and then points upwards.

"Upstairs, there are three bedrooms and two bathrooms," she says. "You're welcome to use any of them. There are names on the doors, which I had done as a kid."

"And the secret way in?" Loki asks, moving their staff to the other hand.

"Right," Kaylin nods, and leads the way to the washroom. She moves aside the dryer and points at the hole. "This is a slide that leads to the entrance of the bunker. My father's boss made it for us to get there safely in case of need."

Loki looks at the slide with a raised eyebrow, but says nothing of it. "We'll rest for the night," they instruct. "At sunrise, I need more men, and I need that machine, Doctor."

Selvig nods. "I've almost got it," he tells the god, who's already walking away.

Kaylin follows the Asgardian to find them coming to a halt in her kitchen. They're looking around, taking in the scene, and narrows their eyes at a fruit bowl with plastic fruit.

"That's not real," they state.

"It's not," she confirms. "If you're hungry, I don't know what this house still has that's good to eat, but there's water? If you want a drink."

Clint walks into the kitchen with two cans in his hand. "I found the pantry. There's a lot of canned food that is still good to use. I can cook, if you like?"

"Yes," Loki tells him, stepping aside to walk to the living room.

"I'll help," Kaylin says, and is quick to find the kitchenware they need. She steps aside so Clint can do the cooking, and gets glasses to give everyone something to drink.

As of right now, they're just with three, but Kaylin has no illusion that the number is going to go up soon. She might not have most of her own thoughts, she can feel there's been a change in her mind.

Before, right when Loki had hit her with their staff, nothing that's unimportant to Loki entered her brain. Her own thoughts were unimportant, so she didn't have them. Not until her opinion was needed, at least.

Now, she can think more freely. There are thoughts in her head that have nothing to do with what she's doing. They're not important, but they're also not something that hindrances her.

It's like, whatever Loki did to her, is settling in with her own mind. It's working together to please both Loki and herself.

It's peaceful.

Clint announces that the food is ready, so Kaylin grabs some plates and utensils to dish out. They find Selvig in the living room, sitting on a chair with a notepad and pen in hand.

"I hope you don't mind," he says, "but I found these and needed something to write on."

Kaylin shrugs. "It's alright." If that notebook was still there, it's bound to be old enough that whatever is in it is outdated.

If it was her own, it might've even been old schoolwork.

They eat in silence, and Loki is the first to retreat for the night. Selvig is still working on his equations, and Clint is practically falling asleep on the couch.

Kaylin cleans the dishes and puts them back where she took them from before she makes her way upstairs, herself. She hesitates in front of her old bedroom, but decides to go for her parents' room.

Opening the door, she finds Loki standing near the window, looking out over the backyard.

"Sorry," Kaylin says. "I didn't know anyone was in here."

"It's alright," Loki tells her, moving closer to the bed to lay down their staff. "I was meaning to ask you something, anyway."

Kaylin closes the door behind her and steps further into the room. She walks over to the window and stands next to the god, looking at the backyard.

There's a pink flamingo standing proudly in the middle, and some of the sun-based lights are still working, giving the yard an eerie feeling.

"Ask away," Kaylin says, crossing her arms.

"Why this place?" Loki wonders, looking at her to see her reaction.

The brunette shrugs. "You needed a place that wouldn't be found," she tells them. "This place isn't in any SHIELD files, so they wouldn't know to look here."

Loki hums and looks around the room. The dresser catches their eyes, and then more the picture on it. It's the only one standing up, showing the content.

The picture has two adults on it and a little girl in between them. The three of them are laughing, like a joke had just been told.

"Are those your parents?" Loki asks, recognizing some bits and pieces of Kaylin in the two adults. Mainly the shape of her face in the woman, but the way she holds herself in the man.

Kaylin turns to look at where the god is looking, and freezes. "They were," she allows. She's fighting to keep her tears at bay, not understanding how she can feel the need to cry when it's not important.

Loki feels the energy-shift and looks back at the woman. They see her tremble, and decide to take pity.

"I'll leave you to it," they say. "In the morning, I need a plan."

The door closes soon after, and Kaylin listens to find out where Loki goes. They open the door right next to this one, which is the guestroom her cousin used to claim for himself whenever he was over.

Right across is her old bedroom, and that door still hasn't been opened. Or, maybe Selvig or Clint has decided to find a bed, but she didn't hear them.

Kaylin lies down on the bed and looks at the ceiling. She's tired, but sleep never comes easy to her, so she's already thinking on a plan. Loki wants to use that Tesseract, and he needs a high place for it.

How does she know? The pulls in her mind tell her.

Which buildings are high and not at all that far away? Which buildings can handle the energy-levels of the cube?

Furthermore, how will they even get there? Do they need a distraction? They need to get SHIELD away from their plan, so that means they need two plans.

One plan for the Tesseract, and one to put SHIELD on a side track.

The door opens and Clint walks in.

"Hey," he greets. "Selvig is still working, and Loki has the guestroom, but I'm not sure if you want me in your old room."

Kaylin sits up. "I said to take a pick, didn't I?"

Clint shrugs. "Still, it's your old room."

Kaylin sighs and moves aside. "Share this room with me, then, Clint," she says. "For your peace of mind and my own."

The agent closes the door behind him and takes off his shoes. He lays down and closes his eyes.

"It's a comfy bed," he smirks.

Kaylin snorts and lays back down.

"I always said the same to my parents."