Oh Brother Wherefore Art Thou
“Damnit.” Fitz groaned as he slapped his cards on the table.
“Still suck at cards huh Fitz.” Ward chuckled as he collected the chips.
“Well it’s not my fault I don’t have the superhuman ability to tell when someone’s lying.” Fitz grumbled.
“Trust me. It’s really not as fun as you think.” Ward sighed. “Sure makes cards easier but it also makes trusting people more difficult. Besides the way I got good at it isn’t something I’d wish on anyone.”
“Fair enough.” Fitz shrugged.
“So how’re things going with you and Simmons?” Ward asked.
“Good.” Fitz grinned. “We’re talking about moving in together. Jemma’s started looking for a place in her spare time. What little of it she has anyway.” Ward noted Fitz’s downcast eyes as he added that last bit.
“Everything alright?” Ward asked.
“Yeah it’s just hard with the way things have been lately.” Fitz sighed. “She’s always busy with her work with the Director. What’s your take on him anyway?”
“Think he’s an alright guy.” Ward shrugged. “I mean don’t get me wrong he’s still a politician but as far as those go I’ve met far far worse then Jeffrey Mace.”
“What do you mean?” Fitz asked.
“Well in addition to being abusive, my family was like, as Trip once described it, the cable version of the Kennedys.” Ward explained. “I had to go to a fair few of those godawful parties and shake hands with some incredibly disagreeable people. Say what you want about Mace, at least he actually gives a damn about making a difference.”
“Yeah I guess he’s not all bad.” Fitz conceded. “Just wish Simmons wasn’t spending so much time on work.”
“Talk to her.” Ward suggested. “God knows I’m the last person to be offering advice on romance but good relationships need communication.”
“Alright.” Fitz agreed. “When things settle down I’ll talk to her. Now, wanna play another hand?” Before Ward could answer, his phone rang. His eyes went wide when he saw the caller ID. He immediately picked up and heard the voice of his sister on the other line.
---
“There was a bombing in Chicago.” Coulson stated. “And it appears the criminals somehow got their hands on alien tech that they used to make explosives as well as some high tech weaponry and are using it to hold a number of government officials hostage. We wanna send in a strike team to neutralize the threat.”
“Do it.” Mace nodded. “But are you sure it’s a good idea to bring Ward along for this?”
“His brother’s life is on the line.” Coulson said. “I couldn’t keep him off this mission if I tried.”
“Fine just make sure to keep his head in the game.” Mace sighed. Coulson nodded and left the office. He went down to the hanger to where Ward, Kara, Donnie, and Fitz were waiting.
“Director’s given the all clear.” Coulson stated. “Let’s move. Fitz I want you to be my eyes and ears from here. Donnie I want you on search and recover. Help the paramedics any way you can. Kara, disable the bombs. Ward and I will go in and take these guys out.”
“So what’s the plan sir?” Ward asked.
“We’re meeting with the man who’s handling the situation.” Coulson answered. “He’s a US Congressmen and been informed we’re coming. Ward you’ve actually met him.”
“Wait Kellerman’s running the show?” Ward raised an eyebrow.
“Who’s that?” Fitz asked.
“Paul Kellerman is one of the Illinois Congressmen.” Ward explained. “He’s also ex-secret service and he worked with SHIELD to expose a conspiracy within the US government about ten years back. I was one of the agents he worked with. He’s also currently in the running for the presidency.”
“So he knows the full scope of what’s going on?” Kara asked.
“He’s probably got a pretty good guess yeah.” Ward nodded.
---
Daisy slouched in her van reading on her computer when there was a knock at her door.
“Tremors you in there?” It was Mack.
“Go away Mack.” Daisy ordered.
“I just thought you might wanna know some of the team’s gone off on a mission.” Mack shrugged.
“Thanks for the update.” Daisy replied disinterestedly. She wondered what it would take for Mack to get the hint that she didn’t wanna talk to anyone.
“Yeah no problem.” Mack said. “Oh I forgot to mention. The mission involves Ward’s brother.” That got Daisy’s attention. Ward didn’t talk about his younger brother much. All she knew about him was his name: Thomas.
“Is everything okay?” Daisy asked.
“Situation’s playing itself out right now.” Mack answered. “I just thought you might wanna know.”
“Why do you think that?” Daisy frowned.
“Because as much as you’re trying to hide it, you still care about the people here.” Mack replied. “About Ward, about all of us. And we care about you. We forgive you.”
“I didn’t ask for that!” Daisy snapped, the tears starting to roll down her face. “I don’t deserve your forgiveness or your friendship. The things I did-”
“Were on Hive not you!” Mack insisted. “The real you would never betray your friends and would never do the things Hive made you do. Daisy you can’t heal if you keep running. This pain won’t last forever. We just wanna help you. We’re your friends. Your family. And I know Ward still loves you with every bone in his body.”
“How?” Daisy sniffled. “How do you know that?”
“He still calls you Skye.” Mack smiled.
---
Simmons and Lincoln frantically wheeled May into Radcliffe’s lab. Time was running out as Chan had been killed by whatever was driving him mad and given the progression of symptoms, May wasn’t far behind. As she ranted and raved, Lincoln dosed her with a sedative that managed to calm her down.
“Have you determined whether it's chemical, biological?” Radcliffe asked.
“Not yet.” Lincoln sighed. “We've eliminated every probable cause.”
“Unless you want to consider Mack's theory.” Simmons interjected.
“Which is?” Radcliffe asked.
“She was touched by a ghost.” Simmons answered.
“A ghost?” Radcliffe frowned.
“It’s the most likely cause.” Lincoln sighed. “Mack and Fitz said they found boxes like the one Chen had at Momentum Labs. And Frederick said Lucy Bauer was trapped in one of them.”
“Who is this Frederick?” Radcliffe asked.
“We’re not quite sure.” Simmons answered. “He’s definitely something of an incorporeal nature. When you eliminate the improbable…”
“Then we've got to consider the impossible.” Radcliffe nodded.
“I'm thinking we could use the transcranial head apparatus you recently developed.” Simmons suggested. “Maybe we could find some sort of…”
“Well, with all our big brains examining hers, I'm sure we'll find a solution.” Radcliffe assured. Any idea how much time we have?”
“Based on the other cases we've observed and how long they survived after the initial onset of symptoms, I’d say we’ve got maybe six hours till May dies.” Lincoln said gravely.
---
The Quinjet touched down in a parking lot where a man in a black suit and two guards were waiting for them. The team disembarked and Kellerman stepped forward to greet them.
“Agent Ward. Good to see you again.” Kellerman said, shaking Ward’s hand.
“Senator Kellerman.” Ward greeted. “This is Agents Coulson, Fitz, Palamas, and Gill.”
“A pleasure to meet you.” Kellerman nodded.
“So what’s the situation?” Coulson asked.
“We’ve noted twenty hostiles in the building but there could be more.” Kellerman stated. “They’ve got forty hostages including the mayor. The rest are members of his staff, office workers, and people who work for the city that happened to be in the building. They’ve demanded a million dollars in cash and have said they’ll execute one hostage every hour until we get it. We know they’ve planted more bombs in the building. Not sure what they’re planning but I’m not waiting to find out.” Ward grabbed Kellerman by the arm and pulled him back.
“Is one of the hostages a Detective with Chicago PD named Roy Colt?” Ward asked.
“Yeah he was there following up on an investigation.” Kellerman nodded. “Why?”
“He’s my brother.” Ward answered. Kellerman tossed his head into the air at this.
“It’s always brothers isn’t it.” Kellerman chuckled. “You didn’t go to prison for him did you?”
“Not exactly.” Ward answered. “I went to prison because of my reaction to something that happened to him.”
“Wow you’re gonna need to tell me that story.” Kellerman chuckled. “So what’s your plan?”
“Agent Fitz will be out here helping us monitor the situation.” Coulson stated. “Donnie will help with search and rescue. Kara’s gonna be disabling the explosives. And Ward and I will infiltrate.
“Great. I’ll come along.” Kellerman replied.
“You will?” Kara frowned.
“I did this kind of thing a lot with the Secret Service, albeit without alien weaponry involved.” Kellerman stated. “Besides it looks good to the voters.”
“Fair enough.” Ward shrugged.
“Don’t you need to monitor the situation on the ground?” Coulson asked.
“I have someone from the FBI on site who can keep everything smoothly.” Kellerman stated. “We’ll be fine.”
“Alright.” Coulson shrugged. Fitz stepped forward and handed Kellerman an icer.
“I already have a weapon.” Kellerman said.
“Not like this.” Fitz replied. “This is an icer. Non-lethal. Incapacitates assailants.”
“So we can bring ‘em in alive.” Kellerman nodded. “You know I could use a guy like you on my staff.”
“Hey don’t poach my agents.” Coulson quipped.
“Alright alright.” Kellerman chuckled. “So how’re we doing this?”
“Kara, you go find and disable the bombs.” Coulson ordered. "Fitz’s DWARFs can help you with that. Kellerman, Ward, and I will go track down the hostages.”
“Alright.” Kellerman nodded. “Fitz, Gill, when you get to the staging area, find Alex Mahone. He’s with the FBI and handling the situation down there.”
---
Radcliffe placed the framework headset on May’s head while Lincoln and Simmons watched.
“What are you using that for?” Lincoln asked. “Is it gonna calm her down?”
“Well the framework could create a nice pastoral scene to help her relax, but who knows what her brain will make of it now.” Radcliffe sighed. “Could end up being land of the dinosaurs. So we're just gonna use it for feedback.” He turned on the hologram and a display of May’s brain appeared in front of them. “You know, it's a myth that we only use ten percent of our brains.” Radcliffe stated as he strode around the holographic image of May’s brain to the area that seemed hyperactive. “However, it is true that it's only a few neurons that make all the noise. The rest keep quiet. Look at this here.” Radcliffe selected the specific area of the hologram and brought it out. He tapped a few more times for increased detail to see what was going on.
“The reticular activating system.” Simmons realized. “Primarily involved in the sleep/wake transition.” She waved the hologram and embiggened what Radcliffe had been looking at. “Extremely hyperactive.” Radcliffe grabbed the particularly active part and brought it out to examine it.
“I suspect this is what's causing her hallucinations.” he stated. “Vivid waking nightmares that are sending her adrenal system into overdrive, putting her in a state of extreme fight-or-flight.”
“They were all scared to death.” Simmons realized, looking over at May panicking on the bed.
“Mm, precisely.” Radcliffe nodded.
“Well, how do we stop it?” Simmons asked.
“How do you cure fear?” Radcliffe countered.
“I think I might have an idea.” Lincoln chimed in. “Daisy used to talk about computers all the time. I didn’t understand half of it but she told me that a lot of the time when your computer is having problems, the best thing to do is to… reboot it.”
“You’re not suggesting we kill her are you?!” Simmons exclaimed.
“Actually I think he might be right.” Radcliffe said. “If like he said we think of her brain like a computer that’s been compromised by… by bugs and glitches. If we shut it down and reboot it, then the parts of her brain that have been hyperactivated should reset back to default.”
“This is crazy.” Simmons sighed.
“Without a doubt, but we don’t exactly have of options.” Radcliffe replied. “Lincoln has the electrical powers so if something goes wrong he can restore her back to life.
“Okay. Well, once her heart stops, we'll have approximately seven minutes before she has irreparable brain damage and can't be brought back at all.” Simmons stated.
“During which time we monitor her brain activity.” Radcliffe assured. “And once it reaches minimum threshold…”
“I'll shock her back to life and hope I’m right.” Lincoln finished.
“Exactly.” Radcliffe nodded. “Then we'll go and have lots of drinks. Right? You ready?”
“Hell no I'm not ready!” Simmons exclaimed. “We're about to kill May!”
“We're about to save May.” Radcliffe assured. Lincoln picked up a syringe filled with drugs and injected it into May’s neck.
“Do you think she’ll be mad when she finds out I killed her?” he asked. The heart rate monitor started beeping rapidly until it became a long whine. May was officially dead.
---
“So I’m curious.” Mack said to Robbie. “How exactly did you become like this?”
“I made a deal with the Devil.” Robbie answered.
“Seems you got a better deal then our ghost friend.” Mack chuckled. “Not really sure I buy your story. You got a long trail of bodies following you.”
“They had it coming.” Robbie stated coldly.
“This like Cellblock Tango?” Mack scoffed. “You’d’a been there you’d’a seen it you’d’a done the same?”
“With some of these people yeah probably.” Robbie shrugged.
“And who gave you the right to decide who lives and dies?” Mack frowned.
“This coming from the guy who walks around with a shotgun with an axe blade attached to it?” Robbie countered.
“I only kill people tryin’ to kill me.” Mack snarled. “I don’t go hunting people and dispencing justice by burning people alive.”
“Killing is killing ese.” Robbie scoffed. “Admit it or not I don’t really care. Doesn’t change anything. You’re still a killer.”
---
Fitz and Donnie arrived at the staging area where a man in a suit with long curly hair was giving orders to the men around him. As his men left he turned to face the two SHIELD agents.
“Are you Agent Mahone?” Fitz asked.
“I am.” Mahone nodded. “Kellerman let me know you two were coming. I take it we’re not discussing who you really work for?”
“That would be for the best yeah.” Fitz nodded. “I’m Agent Fitz and this is Donnie Gill.”
“Like English, Fitz, or Percy.” Mahone chuckled under his breath.
“I’m sorry?” Fitz frowned in confusion
“Nothing.” Mahone replied dismissively. “Yeah Kellerman said Mr. Gill would be helping with search and rescue. Go talk to Agent Lang. She’ll put you to work.”
“Got it.” Donne complied and went to go talk to Lang.
“Kellerman said you were gonna help find the bombs?” Mahone asked Fitz.
“Yes sir.” Fitz nodded, opening his case with the dwarfs inside and taking out his controller. “These beauties should be able to detect alien technology. One of our agents can short out their power so they don’t detonate.”
“Good thinking.” Mahone said. “So if all goes well, Kellerman should be a shoo in for the presidency.”
“Everyone loves a good story.” Fitz chuckled. “Hey can I ask, what’s English, Fitz, or Percy?”
“Really it’s nothing.” Mahone assured. “Just reminded me of a friend of mine.”
---
Donnie crawled into the rubble and began to look for people who were trapped. He heard a woman’s voice crying out for help and raced off in her direction. He found her trapped with rebar through her leg.
“Help me!” The woman pleaded.
“I got you don’t worry.” Donnie assured. He froze the piece of rebar from the back of her leg and broke it off. Once the woman was free, Donnie got to work using the medical equipment the paramedics had given him to secure the piece of metal to prevent the woman from bleeding out.”
“Thank you…” The woman cried.
“It’s no problem.” Donnie assured.
---
Ward, Coulson, and Kellerman climbed through the wreckage onto the second floor of the mayoral building.
“Who blows up a building with an alien bomb just to take the mayoral staff of one city hostage for ransom?” Coulson wondered aloud.
“I don’t think this is just about the ransom money.” Kellerman stated as they made their way to the stairwell. “If I were planning something like this I’d blow up something in DC not Chicago.”
“Sir there’s five heat signatures on the fifth floor.” Fitz stated over comms.
“Could be hostiles.” Kellerman guessed.
“Or civilians stuck here that weren’t rounded up.” Ward suggested.
“Fitz do we have visual?” Coulson asked.
“Getting it now.” Fitz replied. “Okay there’s one pair by the stairwell exit with two machine guns, another pair patrolling the hallway and a fifth guy with a handgun also patrolling the hallway.”
“Hostiles then.” Kellerman nodded. They made their way up to the fifth floor door. “Care to do the honors Agent Ward? I here you picked up a new trick.” Ward smirked and handed Kellerman his icer. Creating a ball of fire, he blasted the doors down. The two gunman were stunned, allowing Kellerman to take advantage of the opportunity to ice them both. “You never disappoint.” Kellerman chuckled, handing Ward his icer. They heard the sound of footsteps racing towards them. When the two gunmen rounded the corner, Coulson and Ward shot them both with icers.
“Four down, only one more.” Coulson stated. Suddenly Ward was grabbed from behind and a gun was pressed against his temple.
---
Kara made her way through the ground floor to the location of the first bomb. Fitz had said there were three total. He also stated that if the bombs went off it would bring the whole building down. Working quickly, she was able to disable it.
“Fitz, I got the first bomb and I’m bringing it to you.” Kara stated. Using Lash’s powers, she tore open a portal to the staging area and jumped through with the bomb in hand.
“Good good.” Fitz stammered. “Bring it here.” As Kara put the bomb on the table, Fitz began taking it apart to see how it ticked. Suddenly all the color drained from his face.
“What’s the problem?” Mahone asked.
“It appears all the bombs were… were linked.” Fitz groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “It must’ve been a failsafe. When Kara disabled the first one, it set off a timer for the other two.”
“How long do we have?” Kara asked.
“Ten minutes.” Fitz answered.
“What happens if you don’t shut them down in time?” Mahone asked.
“If even one of them goes the building will collapse.” Fitz said. “They placed the bombs at strategic locations. Structural supports that if blown up will take the building down. I think they might’ve been planning to collapse the building regardless.”
“How long did it take you to disable the bomb?” Mahone asked Kara.
“Three minutes.” Kara answered. “But it’ll take me probably three just to get to the second bomb. And it’d take another three to get to the third.”
“There’s not enough time.” Fitz realized.
“What about the kid with the ice powers?” Mahone asked. “Can he disable the bomb?”
“He’s a tech wiz so yeah he should be able to do it.” Fitz nodded. “I’ll stay on comms with him to walk him through what Kara did.”
“Okay.” Kara nodded. She raced off back to the structure and into the debris.
“Donnie!” Fitz called to him on comms.
“Yeah what’s up?” Donnie asked.
“I need you to go to the location of one of the bombs.” Fitz stated. “If it goes the building will collapse. Kara has the other one.”
“Got it.” Donnie nodded. “Send me it’s location.”
---
“Drop the weapon.” Kellerman ordered. “Now.”
“What the hell are you doing here?!” The man with the gun to Ward’s head hissed.
“Could ask you the same thing now let him go!” Coulson ordered.
“Guys. Relax.” Ward said calmly. “He’s not gonna shoot me.”
“What the hell makes you think that?!” the man demanded.
“Don’t be stupid you kill him you die.” Kellerman stated coldly.
“This is stupid just put the damn gun down.” Ward sighed.
“Shut up!” the man snarled.
“You’re not gonna do it and you’re wasting time.” Ward stated.
“I’ve got time enough for this!” the man spat.
“Drop the weapon and let him go now!” Coulson ordered.
“The longer you dick around with me the more likely my boss shoots you and the less time we have to save the hostages so for fuck’s sake Tommy drop the goddamn gun!” Ward exclaimed.
“Wait Tommy?” Coulson frowned. “As in Thomas Ward?”
“Yes Coulson this is my little brother.” Ward answered.
“You think I won’t kill you?” Thomas snarled. “Like you killed Mom and Dad and Christian?”
“No I don’t you don’t have the stomach for fratricide.” Ward stated in an almost bored voice. “Besides if you shoot me Rose is gonna be kinda pissed. You know she’s the one who called me right?”
“Look you two can sort out your family bullshit later but can we go deal with the hostage situation first?” Kellerman sighed.
“God I would love that.” Ward said. “So how bout it Tommy? We gonna table you pretending like you’re gonna shoot me for later?” Thomas’ face contorted with anger until he finally shoved Ward away.
“You and me? We’re not done.” Thomas snapped.
“What no ‘thanks Grant for setting me up with a new identity so I don’t get murdered by Hydra, SHIELD, or whoever else and making sure our shitty family can’t find me’?” Ward scoffed. “You know when you and Rose had to leave Texas last year it was because I called in some favors to have you relocated after someone went through a lot of effort to try to find you.”
“All I see is me and Rose having to pay for the choices you’ve made!” Thomas snapped.
“So you gonna tell us why you’re here?” Kellerman asked.
“I’m investigating the mayor for corruption, fraud, murder, money laundering, and a litany of other crimes.” Thomas explained.
“Why is it always stamping out corruption when we work together?” Ward chuckled to Kellerman.
“That explains all the spectacle.” Kellerman said. “The mayor must’ve hired them to do some big flashy crime to distract from the fact that they’re probably destroying any evidence of wrongdoing on his part.”
“How’d the investigation start?” Coulson asked.
“One of his staff came forward and blew the whistle on the whole thing.” Thomas answered. “I don’t think he knows who.”
“Oh shit.” Ward groaned. “That means he’s probably taking out anyone who knows about what he’s doing. The hostages being executed are the people who know about all this.”
“All the more reason to take care of this quickly.” Kellerman stated.
“Where’re the hostages?” Coulson asked.
“Seventh floor.” Thomas answered. “The Mayor’s office is on the tenth.”
“Coulson, Ward, you two go deal with the hostages.” Kellerman ordered. “Thomas and I will stop these guys from destroying the evidence.”
---
“We’ve got less two minutes.” Simmons said as she looked at the monitor
“We’re approaching minimum brain activity threshold.” Radcliffe stated. “Lincoln get ready.” Lincoln nodded and got into position. Once Radcliffe gave the command, he used his powers to shock May back to life. She opened her eyes and began coughing.
“Ugh where am I?” May panted.
“Radcliffe’s lab.” Lincoln smiled.
“Get this crap off of me!” May ordered as she struggled against her restraints. As she did, Simmons rushed over to give her a hug.
“Welcome back Agent May.” she croaked out joyfully.
“Did I miss something?” May frowned.
“We may have had to kill you in order to stop you from having a heart attack.” Lincoln said sheepishly.
“I got killed by you two?” May frowned in Lincoln and Radcliffe’s direction? “You couldn’t at least have Ward do it? Then I’d at least get to say I got killed by a lethal opponent instead of… you two.”
“Sorry. All the ‘lethal opponents’ are on a mission in Chicago.” Lincoln shrugged.
“What’s going on in Chicago?” May frowned.
---
“You didn’t mention your brother didn’t like you.” Coulson said as he and Ward arrived at the seventh floor.
“Didn’t seem relevant.” Ward shrugged.
“Really?” Coulson frowned. “We’re on a mission to rescue your brother and you didn’t think it was important to mention he might pull a gun on you?”
“I mean to be fair I didn’t think he’d pull a gun on me.” Ward replied. “I figured he’d be one of the hostages and we could get in and out without having to make a big fuss about it.”
“Alright fair enough.” Coulson shrugged. “Fitz how many guards are in that room?”
“Ten.” Fitz answered. “Looks like some of the hostages are already dead as well.”
“Damn.” Ward muttered. “Hopefully one of them isn’t the whistleblower.”
“How many are still alive?” Coulson asked.
“Looks like there’s thirty six in there and since you already ran into Ward’s brother so they’ve either killed two or three depending on if the mayor is in there.”
“Alright let’s do this quick and clean.” Coulson ordered. “That way nobody else has to die.” Ward nodded and they kicked down the doors. The gunmen were taken by surprise and Ward and Coulson managed to ice seven before anyone managed to get a shot in. Ward grabbed the gun of one of them and landed a strike to his head, ripping the gun from his grasp and swinging it hard into his head. Meanwhile Coulson landed several punches to one of the gunmen, knocking him out. He spun around to see the last one taking aim at Ward and quickly shot him with his icer.
“Thanks.” Ward said. “Now let’s get these people outta here.”
---
Kellerman and Thomas made their way up to the tenth floor, ready to face whoever stood in their way.
“So how did a US Congressman come to be acquainted with my brother?” Thomas asked.
“That actually happened before I became a Congressman.” Kellerman replied. “It was back in 2005 when I testified in court to save someone from going to prison and ended up in the back of a prison van…”
---
2005
“In the French resistance it was considered a high honor to face a Nazi firing squad.” Kellerman said to the guard across from him as he sat in the back of the prison transport.
“I thought I told you to shut up.” the guard snapped.
“That you did you job.” Kellerman continued as if he hadn’t been interrupted. “The highest honor was to smile when they shot you.” The doors were ripped open and two men in suits and black ski masks holding shotguns were standing outside the van. “Took you long enough.” Kellerman quipped, smiling. The two men opened fire not on Kellerman, but on the guard, killing him.
“I’ll deal with the other one.” one of the men said in a gruff voice.
“Who the hell are you?” Kellerman frowned.
“I’m Agent Grant Ward, with SHIELD.” the man answered, pulling off his mask and grabbing the keys to free Kellerman. “My partner over there is David Kebo. We’ve been assigned to get you out of here and help you bring The Company down.”
“I’ve heard about you guys.” Kellerman said. “Wasn’t entirely sure you actually existed.”
“The fact that SHIELD is so top secret is probably why The Company hasn’t managed to infiltrate it.” Ward replied. “We’ve been trying to bring them down for years. But with everything that’s happened in the last couple months, we’ve got almost everything we need to bring them down. You, Mr. Kellerman, have the final piece of the puzzle.”
“Really?” Kellerman chuckled. “And what’s that?”
“Scylla.” Ward answered.
---
Present day
“SHIELD was in the process of planning an operation to steal Scylla from The Company but then someone else beat us to the punch. So instead we made a deal with him and his compatriots. Their exoneration for all their past crimes in exchange for Scylla. Your brother helped secure that deal.” Kellerman finished his tale just as they arrived outside the mayor’s office. There were two gunmen outside and Kellerman quickly iced them. They approached the door and Kellerman quickly kicked it down, icing the four men inside with the mayor, who was wearing some kind of backpack and standing near a broken window.
“Don’t move.” Thomas ordered. “Step away from the computer.”
“Detective, Congressman, what’s the meaning of this?” The Mayor demanded.
“Do it.” Kellerman ordered, moving over to the computer to see what was on it. It was evidence of a number of things. Embezzlement, fraud, and money laundering to name a few.
“Is that the evidence?” Thomas asked.
“Yep.” Kellerman nodded. “Mr. Mayor here is going away for a long time.”
“The hell I am.” The Mayor snarled. He took a remote out of his pocket and pressed down on a button.
“What did you just do?” Thomas demanded.
“I just set my bombs to go off in two minutes.” The Mayor grinned. “That should be enough time to get out of the building. Provided you let me go. Otherwise I’ll just set it off right now.”
“Coulson have you and Ward gotten the hostages out?” Kellerman asked on his comm.
“We’ve got ‘em on the third floor.” Coulson replied.
“Shit.” Kellerman groaned.
“You’re willing to die just to avoid prison?” Thomas scowled.
“Oh I’m not gonna die.” The Mayor chuckled. “I’ve got a contingency plan. I’m gonna jump out this window and parachute to safety. I should have enough lead time to get away before anyone gets wise.”
“If I shoot you you die anyway.” Thomas countered.
“But if I take my thumb off this button, the bombs go off.” The Mayor smirked. “Would you let all those people die just to take me out?”
“Coulson what floor?” Kellerman hissed.
“We’re at the second floor.” Coulson answered. “Near where we entered.”
“Get them out as fast as you can.” Kellerman ordered. “You’ve got maybe a minute before this whole building starts coming down.”
“What do you mean?” Ward demanded.
“The Mayor set off his bombs.” Kellerman explained. “They explode in about forty five seconds and when they do you’ll be buried in the rubble if you don’t get out right now.”
“What about you two?” Ward asked, dreading the answer.
“We’re not gonna make it out.” Kellerman sighed. “But we’ll make sure this sonofabitch doesn’t either.” Ward didn’t say anything for several seconds. Finally he said, “Give Tommy the comm.” Kellerman complied and handed it to Thomas.
“Grant?” Thomas said softly.
“Tommy I know I wasn’t the best brother.” Ward sighed. “But I hope you know I think the world of you. You are everything I’m not and I’m so sorry I couldn’t protect you. Not when we were kids and not now. But Tommy I’m so proud of you. I love you little brother.”
“I know.” Thomas nodded. “Despite… everything, I love you too.” A few seconds later, there was an explosion. But there was something not quite right. The structural stability of the building hadn’t been compromised.
“What the hell just happened?” The Mayor demanded. The only response he got was a fist to the face from Thomas.
---
Two minutes earlier…
“Alright Fitz I found the bomb.” Donnie said. “It’s got a timer on it.”
“Okay how much time does it say you have?” Fitz asked.
“Five minutes.” Donnie answered.
“Oh bloody fantastic.” Fitz breathed a sigh of relief. “Kara said it took her three minutes to disable it. Should have plenty of time. She’s halfway done with the second bomb”
“Okay walk me through this what do I need to do?” Donnie asked. Right as he said this, the timer went from having five minutes to having two. “Uh Fitz something just happened.”
“What?” Fitz asked.
“The timer just jumped to two minutes.” Donnie said.
“Bloody hell.” Fitz groaned. “Okay if you work fast maybe you can disable it in that time.”
“No Fitz we don’t have enough time.” Donnie shook his head. “If it goes off here it’ll kill everyone in the building.” And then Donnie realized what he had to do. “So I need to move it somewhere else.” Before Fitz could protest, Donnie ripped the bomb off the wall and took off running towards the middle of the building, using his powers to glide over the debris. Once he was far enough away from the supports, Donnie dropped the bomb and ran like hell as far away from the bomb as he could. He managed to make it to the way he’d come in and crawl out through the rubble just in time for the bomb to go off, sending him flying out through the hole into the pavement. Fitz, Kara, and Mahone rushed to pull him to his feet.
“You okay?” Fitz asked.
“Yeah.” Donnie panted. “Ho my god that was fucking crazy.”
“Donnie what the hell?” Kara exclaimed. “You can’t die before we get our team back.”
“I’ll do my best not to.” Donnie nodded, clearly shaken by what had just happened.
“Good job kid.” Mahone said. “You managed to get the bomb far enough away from any supports. Good people are alive today because of you. You should be proud.”
---
Kellerman, Mahone, Coulson, Ward, Thomas, Fitz, Kara, and Donnie all gathered for a debrief before the SHIELD team returned to base.
“My agents are rounding up the gunmen.” Mahone stated. “And The Mayor is gonna be enjoying a nice cozy cell in Fox River.”
“My whistleblower is still alive so he can testify though honestly at this point I doubt It’d even be necessary.” Thomas stated.
“Looks like you’re gonna get your good press Kellerman.” Ward chuckled.
“And so are you.” Kellerman added. “After this, I can endorse SHIELD to the public. But I want a sit down with your Director.”
“We can make that happen.” Coulson assured. “I think we can call today a win. Saved most of the hostages, caught the bad guys, and we all live to tell the tale.”
“I’ll drink to that.” Kara chuckled.
“Here here.” Fitz agreed.
“Well I mean I’m only twenty so I can’t actually drink to that.” Donnie said sheepishly.
“Eh you were the hero today.” Kellerman shrugged. “I’d say you’ve earned a beer.” As they spoke, a black haired woman raced from the crowd towards them and barrelled into both Wards.
“I’m so glad you’re both okay!” Rose cried.
“Yeah well thank the kid here.” Thomas chuckled. “Otherwise I’d be about as dead as you can get.”
“We’ll give you guys a moment.” Coulson said. Everyone left the Ward siblings by themselves.
“So.” Ward sighed. “Are we about to finish that conversation?”
“Yeah.” Thomas nodded. “‘Thanks Grant for setting me up with a new identity so I don’t get murdered by Hydra, SHIELD, or whoever else and making sure our shitty family can’t find me.’”
“Oh okay I was expecting more yelling.” Ward chuckled.
“Look I don’t know if I can really forgive you for murdering our parents and Christian but you’re still my brother.” Thomas sighed. “What you said when I was gonna die, it meant a lot to me. And I meant what I said. Despite everything you are, I still love you.”
“Thanks Tommy.” Ward smiled. “That means a lot to me.”
“Aww you guys!” Rose beamed happily. “My two favorite people are talking again! And for the record Grant I don’t approve of you murdering our parents or Christian but I’m not really that broken up about it like Mr. Grumpypants here.”
“Honestly I find that a little concerning.” Ward frowned. “Tommy had the normal reaction.”
“Tommy didn’t watch Christian chuck him down the stairs into a bookcase that crushed his leg.” Rose retorted.
“Fair enough.” Ward shrugged. “By the way I could have Fitz make you a better prosthetic. One that’ll work like a real leg. Coulson’s left hand is robotic.”
“Really?” Thomas raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah I don’t see why not.” Ward shrugged. “Fitz can probably crank something out over the weekend. Just gotta come in for a bit of surgery.”
“I’ll think about it.” Thomas decided.
---
As Fitz and Donnie were packing up their gear, Mahone walked over to them and asked to talk to Fitz.
“Yeah sure.” Fitz nodded.
“I just wanted to tell you how much I appreciated working with you today.” Mahone smiled. “You remind me of a friend of mine. The one I mentioned earlier when you asked me about English, Fitz, and Percy. Guy was smart as hell and a good man. Would do just about anything for the people he cared about. I think you guys would’ve gotten along.”
“Thank you.” Fitz replied, flattered by Mahone’s complement.
“Of course.” Mahone nodded. “Agent Ward is lucky to have a friend like you.”
“Oh yeah how do you and Kellerman know Ward?” Fitz asked. “I mean I know it was a SHIELD mission but what was it?”
“Look up the Fox River Eight.” Mahone replied. “It’s quite a story. Most of the people involved aren’t aware but Ward helped give the story a happy ending.”
---
Daisy was sitting in her van when Coulson’s Quinjet lowered into the hanger bay. She got out and saw Mace waiting to receive the team.
“Agent Coulson. Welcome back.” Mace greeted.
“Thank you Director.” Coulson replied. “The mission was a success. And we have more good news. The presidential frontrunner has agreed to offer SHIELD his endorsement.”
“That’s fantastic!” Mace grinned.
“Yes it is.” Kellerman said as he stepped off the Quinjet. “You must be Jeffrey Mace. I’m Paul Kellerman.”
“Good to meet you.” Mace replied. As Kellerman made his introductions, Daisy noticed Ward and Fitz leaving the Quinjet. Before she could make her escape, Ward spotted her and called out to stop her.
“Ward. Fitz.” Daisy said, crossing her arms. “How’d the mission go?”
“Went well.” Ward answered. “Resolved a hostage situation and captured a corrupt official.”
“Yea we saved the day.” Fitz grinned. “Donnie was the real hero though. I’m gonna go see how everything with Simmons went.” He clapped Ward’s back and left.
“Did you manage to keep your brother out of trouble?” Daisy asked Ward once Fitz was gone. When Ward raised an eyebrow she added, “Mack told me.”
“Yes Thomas is fine.” Ward nodded. “Almost got killed by a collapsing building but Donnie saved him. Fitz was right. You did good taking a chance on that kid.” Daisy’s eyes dropped to her feet. Before she could respond, Mack rushed into the hangar.
“Coulson good you’re back.” he said.
“What’s going on?” Coulson asked.
“You know that guy Robbie’s uncle put in a coma?” Mack said. “He just woke up.”