The Armorer

"What do you mean?" Natasha asked sharply.

"I mean that now I have a photographic memory and an ability to make good alloys," I say, underselling myself by quite a lot.

She looks concerned. "That might be dangerous for you if your abilities become known."

I raise my eyebrows at her. "If there's a leak, it comes from your side, because only you guys know what I can do." I think about that for a minute, then amend, "And Heimdall knows I can do something, but I don't think I told him just what. Otherwise, that is information only I have."

"But the work you did on Mr Roger's shield has been noticed; there is speculation on the internet and in other groups about the difference between his current shield and his vibranium shield, not just the color scheme change to a solid silver color. If people are interested enough--and there are those who would like very much to exploit that alloy--they will track you down," T'Challa said slowly.

"They probably think it was made by whatever unit Stark's got working on Avengers gear," I shrug. "I can probably color it to match his old one."

"You can?" Cap asked alertly. "Because I gotta say I like the old design--"

"That's not the point. The altercation in that port city was recorded on cell phones," Natasha said immediately. "Steve was seen in the company of a white haired woman and Thor was recorded as taking you both with him."

"For all anybody knows, I'm still on Asgard," I point out. And I wonder if I can't figure out how to get my hair to regrow my former natural dark brown.

Cap huffs a breath and leans forward. "The point is that there are some very bad people who would like to make a profit and it looks like you might be able to provide them with things like unbeatable armor. I'd be very surprised if they weren't investigating right now. They won't give you a choice."

"It doesn't sound like you're really giving me a choice here, either," I tell him baldly.

"Don't be stubborn," Natasha breaks in over whatever Cap was going to say. "Frankly, we can't take the chance that our enemies would be able to exploit your abilities."

"Are you going to kidnap me and force me to work for Stark again?" I ask, anger starting to burn at the edges of my words. "Because that doesn't sound any better than these other people you're talking about."

"It doesn't have to be like that," Cap says soothingly. I look at him in dislike.

"It apparently means nothing to you, but I'm considering my options. Maybe going back to school and studying something new. My association with various Avengers hasn't done me any good at all, and now you're saying I'm in danger because I found Cap up in one of my trees one day. Maybe I'll buy a damned island and stay there for the rest of my days being a dilettante and going from one enthusiasm to another. Now you're saying that I don't in fact have any options. I have to work for you 'or else.' Well, fuck that." I grabbed my purse off the table, extracted a bill and threw it at Cap. "Out. Get out."

"Emma," Natasha said coaxingly. I shook my head.

"Out."

Reluctantly, they got to their feet and filed out. I locked the door behind them and leaned against it, thinking. What if they were right? Shit. I went to my computer and started doing some research. Where could I go to disappear?

I was considering some options when there was another knock on the door. I looked through the door to see an African-American man on the doorstep. Just as he raised T'Challa's half of the vibranium ingot so I could see it clearly, I noticed he wore an eyepatch on his left eye.

"Ms Harrington, I know you're in there," he said in a really nice voice. I took a minute to unlock and open the door, keeping my foot against the door to prevent him from just pushing his way in. My temper was getting pretty short. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"Nick Fury," he said, not one bit fazed by my rudeness. "I came up with the Avengers Initiative. I'd like to talk to you about it. I'm not here to make you go some place you don't want to be."

Grudgingly, I let him in, gesturing him toward the living room, following him. I didn't want to turn my back on anybody right now. He sat on the sofa and waited for me to perch warily on my chair.

"I used to be the director of SHIELD, before Cap destroyed most of the arsenal and Natasha dumped all our secrets onto the internet," he said, and if all that bothered him I couldn't tell. "When HYDRA's involvement in SHIELD became known, we had to burn it down to remove the corruption. But the Avengers, which I conceived as a way to fight threats that conventional methods couldn't, didn't stop with the end of SHIELD. Fast forward to the current day, where the world seems to be in an uneasy detente with superheroes. The Avengers have been in talks with the US government and the UN regarding their place in the world. With the rise of superheroes, we also have the rise of juiced-up villains. While the cause of these superpowered people is debatable, it's usually put down to the rise of technology--"

"You can't say that for sure," I objected. "Nobody knows what mutations might have occurred in the past because smart people would keep that to themselves where possible. Plus, Natasha, Hawkeye, Falcon, War Machine don't have superpowers. The first two don't have mutations or a lot of technology. The latter two just use technology. Technology only enables people to do more with what they have."

"I'm not here to debate that," he said, not terribly bothered by my outburst. Points to him; I'd have been grinding my teeth. "What I am saying is that although SHIELD is defunct, superpowered people are not, and governments are having to deal with them. Stark's got lawyers at the table with the UN as we speak to work out a situation that everybody can live with. Last night they were instructed to sweeten the pot with a promise that non-destructive technology would be researched heavily, but it's tempered with a statement of the obvious: that on balance, having good people out there who can actually battle the bad people is a public good and prevents damage and death in the community as a whole. What has been agreed to so far is not public and won't be until the major wrinkles are all ironed out. Essentially, the US government will recognize the Avengers as a peacekeeping force operating in its borders but not under its control. The Avengers will not be employed but will be allowed to operate as a force not politically driven. There will be a claims board set up that will be funded in part by the Avengers and part by the US budget, but the new understanding will be that damage is going to happen. Insurance companies will not be allowed to deny claims because the loss was caused by superpowered individuals. That means the rates will be going up for all of us," he sighed. "But essentially, the position represents the new normal. The bad guys can't be allowed to use chemical or biological weapons for their own ends, slaughter people, engage in wholesale destruction, or attempt to rule the world. That's something all of us but the bad guys can agree on. And that stopping them will also cause loss. That's unavoidable. It looks like the UN will remain officially neutral on the subject, allowing individual nations to make their own rules, but in recognition of the common good, would have an official policy that superheroes be allowed to operate unrestricted as long as their actions are against terrorists rather than established governments." I settled back in my chair.

"I can verify that there are people looking for you." He leaned forward and gave me a flash drive. I took it over to my computer and was soon clicking through dossiers of over a dozen individuals, all of whom didn't seem like they'd care whether I wanted to come along with them or not. I looked at Fury, keeping a blank expression on my face.

"This is what the Avengers would do if you agreed to join us. You would be given a workshop of your own, fully equipped to allow you to continue your work. As I understand it, you have an ability that allows you to create on a small scale. So what you'd do is pass along research to the development team, who would try to find ways of replicating what you can do on a larger scale. You personally would work on individual projects like a backup shield for Rogers, things that only you can do. You would have the freedom to explore new avenues of research as well; I understand that you have an interest in studying new fields. How do you feel about fibers?" he asked suddenly.

"I don't have strong feelings about them. I personally prefer the breathability of natural fibers when I think about it."

He smiled slightly. "What if somebody gave you a new fiber to play with? Could you develop some sort of coating for it to give it a special property? Not just, say, increasing its strength, but maybe something different, like a way to make them shed sweat and dirt so they don't start to smell? Maybe stiffen a couple layers of fabric so that it provides customized bulletproof protection?" My eyes narrow as I start to think about that.

"You could go back to school part time and study textile technology, if you wanted to go in that direction, for example, or you could stick with what you know. Stark funds the Avengers these days, but you would not be under his authority; you would be independent. You would not be working as an employee of Avenger Tech, Stark Tech, or any of its subdivisions, as it has been noticed that you two don't play well together. Stark has spun off Avenger Tech; he stays out of it and does his own work separately. You don't like that he's not like his dad, he resents you for being closer to his dad than he was. It's for the best, actually, that you don't work together, I think. You could choose the site for your lab. There would be some meetings where other scientists would interface with you to provide synergy between your work and theirs, however that works out. We're looking at a bicoastal presence anyway, an Avengers headquarters that has a museum component where people could come in, get to know the Avengers. PR. Get people on our side for a change, as well as providing a second staging ground for actions across the Pacific. There might be merchandising opportunities, which would help pay for everything, make us less reliant on Stark's bank account, make the Avengers more accessible. There are indications that Black Widow action figures would be very popular. Anyway," he said, shaking his head slightly to get back on track, "if you joined up, we could help preserve your private identity and provide protection. We've had people down to your former home in the jungle and while your defenses were impressive given the circumstances, we can do better.

"Think about it." He got up and handed me a card. "Call that if you decide to take me up on my offer. A word of advice. If you decide against joining the Avengers, consider taking T'Challa up on his offer. Wakanda is pretty secure." With that, he turned and strolled out of the room. I got up when the door shut and locked it behind him.