The Intervening Government
Tony Stark, Natasha Romanov, Steve Rogers, Scott Lang, Hope van Dyne, Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, Vision, Sam Wilson, and James Rhodes sit at a meeting table.
Bruce Banner and Thor Odinson couldn't make it, due to both being off Earth. Bruce, as The Hulk, flew off into the unknowns of space, and Thor said he was fighting some weird race known as 'Dark Elves.'
The Secretary of State walked into the room, "Good afternoon, I can see we are missing a few members." Scott spoke up, "Hulk, and thus Bruce is M.I.A and Thor is working on Asgardian matters, sir."
The man nodded his head before continuing, "On to what we are here for. The world owes The Avengers an unpayable debt. You have fought for us, protected us, risked your lives. But while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some who prefer the word 'vigilantes."
"And what word would you use, Mr. Secretary?" Natasha asked, "How about 'dangerous?' What would you call a group of US-based, enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose and who, frankly, seem unconcerned about what they leave behind?"
The man pressed a button, turning on a holographic screen of a world map. "New York," the screen turned to a yellow dot, before showing footage of the Chautari attack. "Washington D.C," it changed to footage of helicarriers falling onto the capital. "Sokovia," it changed again, now showing the city being lifted into the air as people run in fear. "Lagos," it changed to The Avenger's most recent battle in Nigeria, where Crossbones tried to steal a bioweapon, and when he failed, tried to kill himself via suicide bomb.
"Okay, that's enough," Steve Rogers said after seeing the pained, grief-stricken look in Wanda's eyes. The Secretary pushed the button again, shutting off the screen. "For the past seven years, you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. But I think we have a solution."
He grabbed a wad of paper from the suited man he came in with. He put them on the table, in front of Hope, "The Sokovia Accords. Approved by 117 countries. It states that The Avengers shall no longer be a private organization. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel only when and if that panel deems necessary."
The accords were passed from person to person until they reached Steve. He absentmindedly flipped through the pages with his thumb on the corner, "The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place. I feel we've done that."
"Compromise. Reassurance," the Secretary continued, "That's how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground." Rhodey looked at the man, "So, there are contingencies." The Secretary looked up and continued, "Three days from now, the U.N meets in Vienna to ratify the accords. Talk it over."
"And if we come to a decision you don't like?" Pietro asked the man currently walking out of the room. "Then you retire," he said before leaving The Avengers alone.
They move into a living room esc room, The Sokovia Accords in the hands of Steve Rogers. He starts reading the entire thing, well, he tried, but he couldn't get past a fourth in until arguments started to happen.
"Secretary Schiff has a Congressional Medal of Honor which is one more than you have," Rhodey said to Sam. "So let's say we agree to this thing. How long is it gonna be before they LoJack us like a bunch of common criminals?"
"117 countries want to sign this. 117, Sam, and you're just like, 'No, that's cool. We got it."
"How long are you gonna play both sides?"
"I have an equation," Vision spoke, bringing Steve, Rhodey, and Sam back to the group. "Oh. Oh, this will clear it up." "In the eleven years since Mr. Stark announced himself as Iron Man, the number of known enhanced persons has grown exponentially. During the same period, the number of potentially world-ending events has risen at a commensurate rate."
"Are you saying it's our fault?" Steve asked the android, "I'm saying there may be a causality." Scott entered the conversation, "Have you heard of 'correlation, not causation,' Steve?"
The captain merely squinted his eyes as if he was thinking. "Okay, so if it's a sunny day, and a whole lot of ice cream gets sold, and on the same day, a murder kills a lot of people, is the ice cream being sold at fault? It isn't, it's a correlation, two events happening simultaneously, not causation, one event happening because of another. This could be either one"
Steve nodded before Vision continued, "Thank you, Mr. Lang. Our very strength invites challenge. Challenge incites conflict. And conflict... breeds catastrophe. Oversight. Oversight is not an idea that can be dismissed out of hand."
"Boom," Rhodey said, turning to Sam. "Tony," Natasha spoke up, "You are being uncharacteristically non-hyperverbal." Steve looked up from the accords, "It's because he already made up his mind."
"Boy, you know me so well," Tony joked before getting up from his seat and walking to the kitchen, "Actually, I'm nursing an electromagnetic headache. That's what's going on Cap, it's just pain, it's discomfort."
Tony grabbed a cup and filled it in the sink, "Hey! Who's putting coffee grounds in the disposal? Am I running a Bed and Breakfast for a biker gang?" Tony pulled out a screen and tapped it, showing a teenager.
"Oh, that's Charlie Spencer by the way. He's a great kid. Computer engineering degree, 3.6 GPA, had a four-level gig, an Intel plan for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul before they parked him behind a desk, see the world, maybe be of service. Charlie didn't want to go to Vegas or Florida, which is what I would do. He didn't go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer building sustainable housing for the poor, guess where? Sokovia. He wanted to make a difference I suppose, but we won't know because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass."
Tony stopped only to breathe and take a sip from his filled cup, "There's no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes I'm game. If we can't accept limitations, if we are boundaryless, we are no better than the bad guys."
"Tony," Steve put the accords on the table, "someone dies on your watch, you don't give up." "Who said we're giving up?" Tony asked, to which Steve rebutted, "We are if we're not taking responsibility for our actions. This document just shifts the blame."
"I'm sorry, Steve, that- That is dangerously arrogant," Rhodey joined in. "This is the United Nations we're talking about. It's not the World Security Council, it's not S.H.I.E.L.D, it's not HYDRA."
"No, but it's run by people with agendas, and agendas change. And in this document, their agenda is putting everyone like us in danger," Steve replied. "Where? Where does it say that?" Rhodey asked, getting Steve to pick up the accords and scan through them.
"Here, Chapter 1, section 4, paragraph 3. 'Any Avengers who do not sign these accords and all superpowered vigilantes will be arrested and given a choice. Either they can join The Avengers, or they can reveal their identity to the public and be sentenced to jail time."
Steve paused before asking Vision, "How many enhanced persons are there, Vision?"
"687, including us."
Steve counted off the Avengers in the room and not, "673 people would be in danger if we sign this. We aren't perfect, but the safest hands are our own." Tony walked toward the man, "If we don't do this now, it's gonna be done to us later. That's the fact. That won't be pretty."
"You're saying they'll come for me," Wanda said, "We would protect you," Vision told her. "Maybe Tony's right," Natasha said, shocking Tony. "If we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off-" Sam cut her off.
"Aren't you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass 'bout half a decade ago?" "I'm just reading the terrain. We have made some very public mistakes. We need to win their trust back."
"Focus up. I'm sorry. Did I just mishear you or did you agree with me?" Tony asked, getting her to sigh, "I want to take it back now." "Nonono, you can't retract it."
Steve lost focus when he heard his phone buzz. He grabbed it out of his pocket, seeing a text from Sharon Carter. "She's gone. In her sleep."
"I have to go," Steve said abruptly, cutting off Tony's gloating, before walking out the room and down the stairs to mourn.