Providence (Part 2)
Skye's POV
"Coordinates are about a seven miles hike from here. Terrain's pretty rough, even if it wasn't covered with snow," Coulson told us as we geared up.
"Agent May and I can lead a scouting party first, make sure this isn't a trap," Trip offered.
"There's no time. In less than eight hours a NATO satellite will pass directly over us. If The Bus is still here, they'll know. I've been doing this long enough to know that something's up there. But this mission, has to be your choice," Coulson said, looking specifically at Fitz-Simmons. "A lot has changed in the last few days. I know you all have your doubts about what we've been doing, about me." I watched as he glanced around at everyone else and then over to May. But something about the way he looked at me told me that at the very least he knew he could count on my support. "But I don't. Which is why I'm going to find whatever Fury has waiting for us...with you or without you." He hit a button on the wall opening the hatch as I looked at the others.
Coulson pulled out his badge and a compass looking at them both. The hatch opened completely and he started walking. I lifted my backpack up higher on my shoulder and immediately followed. Smiling to myself as I noticed the others slowly begin to follow as well.
*****
I found myself extremely grateful for my fire powers as we continued to walk through the snow, which allowed me to heat up my body temperature and stop me from freezing to death. I sped up and I noticed May sighing every now and then, wanting to get her take on things. I trusted Coulson but that didn't mean I wasn't worried about him. And she had known him longer than anyone else on the team.
"You think he's okay?" I asked her.
"It's been a rough couple of days," she replied.
"That's not what I meant," I told her.
"Don't act like you know what Fury had me do," May scoffed. I rolled my eyes. Was May ever going to not be standoffish with me? There were brief moments where I thought we were making progress and then she would go back to being cold and distant.
"Well, he had you spy on him for a reason. So what was it?"
I stopped walking as May turned to look at me with a sigh.
"Fury was concerned about Coulson finding out the truth. The doctors thought it would have negative consequences," she said.
"Like what? Like he'd go crazy? Spontaneously combust or something?"
May shook her head.
"It's not clear. All I know is he seemed stable until today. And now he has us in the middle of nowhere, chasing ghosts," May grumbled.
"That's because his whole world fell apart," I reminded her.
"He's not alone in that," May said and I suddenly felt bad as I realized that May must be handling the downfall of Shield hard as well.
May started walking again and I quickly followed.
"This is it! There's got to be something here!" I heard Coulson shout out.
Everyone entered the clearing looking around.
"There's got to be something here. Stay alert, eyes open," Coulson said.
"How long should we look before thinking about heading back?" I asked him as I walked over.
"We're not going back, not until we find whatever Fury has waiting for us," Coulson replied stubbornly.
"What about the satellite?" Trip asked.
"It doesn't matter. The Bus used all its remaining fuel just to get us here," Coulson informed us.
Fitz-Simmons looked at him with shock but I just sighed and glanced over at Coulson. I could tell the others were worried he was losing his mind and for all I knew he did have us chasing ghosts but I also knew what a good man he was. He was the first person to give me a real chance and help me find answers about my past and I refused to let him down when he needed my help.
"Did you know this before flying us out to the middle of nowhere?" Jemma asked.
"It was the right play. Fury sent us these coordinates for a reason," Coulson said defensively.
"And what reason is that?" May sighed.
"I don't know, May! I don't know! There's got to be something here!" He looked down at his badge then used it to point at May. "This means something! This has to mean something!" I looked down at the ground as my heart broke for Coulson. I really hated seeing him like this. "The world needs us! Hydra is out there! We cannot let them win. We – we cannot let them define us. Do you understand that?"
None of us said anything and even May dropped her eyes.
"We are not agents of nothing! We are agents of Shield and that still carries weight! It – it has to carry weight! After everything we've been through, that carries weight!"
I could tell he was trying to convince himself just as much as the others. No one said anything and continued to look away from him. Though I watched out of the corner of my eyes as he looked down at his badge taking a deep breath then looked back up at us. His eyes lost focus somewhere between the two and he grimaces at his words.
"I'm sorry." We all nodded.
With a yell of anger he tossed his badge into the air. A gun turret suddenly popped up from the ground and fired on his wallet. Coulson and the rest of us ducked for cover quickly with surprised yells.
"Well, it seems like we found it!" Fitz shouted. I grinned as I looked over at Coulson who smiled at me.
"Nobody move!" May warned us.
"I really don't think that's going to be a problem!" Jemma called out.
"This is a Shield facility," Coulson said looking around.
"Shoot first, ask questions later? Doesn't sound like Shield to me," Trip replied.
"It's not Hydra. This is Fury reaching out," Coulson argued.
"There's no way to know that for sure," May said.
Coulson looked at her then back to the gun.
"There's one way," he told us.
He stood up from behind his cover and though May tried to grab him, she missed.
"Phil! Don't!" I heard her cry out.
"Hey – no!" I cried out fidgeting in my spot, debating whether it was worth using my powers in front of the others in case I had to stop the idiot from getting shot.
He was clearly not listening and continued walking until the gun pointed at him. We then heard a robotic voice being fed through a speaker on the gun turret.
"Identify yourself!" The robotic voice said.
"I'm Phil Coulson, Agent of Shield," Coulson said firmly.
The gun panned to the sky and the turret went down.
"Welcome, Agent Coulson. We've been expecting you," I grinned at Coulson as I inwardly sighed in relief that I hadn't had to save him from a bullet.
Coulson and I looked over to a see what was causing a sound to his right. We watched a stone wall, a panel on the stones slide apart revealing a doorway the lead into a hall. The rest of the team stood astonished that it opened.
"What is this place?" I asked as we entered the hallway and the door shut behind us.
We heard a voice of a man we did not know.
"One of Fury's secret bases," the man said.
We all stopped walking and a man walked out of a intersecting hallway finishing putting on his tie.
"Uh, I call it Providence, although technically it doesn't have a name because technically it doesn't exist, it being a secret base and all," the man said. I grinned at him. I liked him. He seemed fun. "If everyone would follow me," he said.
Coulson turned and looked at us then started forward, after a second the rest of us followed. The man opened a set of double doors into what looked like a dining hall. He stopped in the middle of the room and extended his arms out showcasing the room with a smile.
"Pretty cool, huh?" He said. I couldn't help but smile at the proud look on his face.
"I'm sorry. Who are you, exactly?" Coulson asked.
"Eric Koenig, Agent of Shield. Level 6," the man replied. He held up an identification badge hanging around his neck and showed it to Coulson.
"Phil Coulson," replied Coulson.
"I know, I know!" Eric smiled and held out his hand to Coulson and they shook hands. "It is an honor to meet you, Agent Coulson. And I apologize for the kerfuffle outside. The precision remote system was designed to destroy any rapidly moving metallic object."
"It was my badge," Coulson told him.
Koenig looked surprised by this. And I chuckled.
"It was – okay. That's gonna be, tough to replace...but very soon you're gonna be issued your very own lanyard!" He said excitedly. He held up his identification badge proudly, then looked around Coulson to the rest of us. "Lanyards for others will be distributed on a case-by-case basis."
"What happened to Director Fury? Is he alive?" Coulson asked.
Koenig's face closed down.
"Fury...didn't make it out of D.C." he replied but I got the sense that he was covering up. "It's been rough. We're all a little shaken up, especially now that The Fridge has fallen."
I frowned as I looked upped out the cellphone from my pocket. I walked away with a glance at Coulson as I began dialing.
"Ward? Oh, thank God!" I cried out when he responded. I filled him in on what we had discovered and then sent him the coordinates. But for some reason I made sure to follow Eric's lead and confirm that Fury was dead. The man had to have a good reason for wanting everyone to think so. And considering all of Hydra would be after him if they found out he was still alive I could understand the need for secrecy, especially considering Hydra was technically looking for me as well.
*****
I sighed in relief as the door opened to reveal a bloody and beaten Ward.
"Thought you might have given me bad directions," he said as he smiled at me.
"At least the machine gun outside didn't start shooting at you," I told him with a grin. I put a hand to his chin turning his face. "You okay?"
"Oh, it's just a scratch," he replied. I watched as he reached up to take off his backpack and grimaced. "Maybe a broken rib or two."
"Come on," I said as I rushed to help him take his backpack off. "Jemma should take a look at you. Then maybe we can get that drink?" I said with a small smile.
"Deal."