He was having one of those days. That kind of day you misplace your keys and no amount of time searching for them will bring results. A day where your wallet was supposed to be in your nightstand, but somehow wandered into your work clothes. The sort of day where you put a notebook in your pocket but it somehow winds up under the couch, and it's only found after three hours.
Steve Rogers was having that kind of day. Except instead of something small and easily missed, it was a bright white, two-hundred-pound wolf with a tendency to draw attention with her antics. If it weren't for the fact that Ammy had been seen working with the Avengers and now had a substantial media presence, Steve was certain people would be up in arms at the thought of a wolf on the loose in the city. The lack of any sort of muttering about the magical lupine had him confused.
His trip through the city and all his searching took him far and wide. Of course, he first went to check out the hot dog cart that Ammy had dragged him to once. The gruff veteran hadn't been harassed by Ammy at all that day, and Steve bought a hot dog for bothering the man. His next location had been to check the arts and crafts store that the pair had visited to get the materials for the mural. Still nothing.
A quick check in the library, and a stop by several hospitals revealed much the same. There wasn't any sign of the wolf. However, he did end up getting a hug from one of the receptionists at the hospital he and Amaterasu had visited with Amelia and Terry. That was a nice little bright spot in his day. He had asked the woman if she or any of her coworkers had heard anything about Ammy, but she shook her head. She even asked her coworkers and pulled up news sites to look with him. Still nothing.
There seemed to be a significant lack of Amaterasu around the immediate area. The lack of answers is what brought him back to the SHIELD HQ the following morning. It had been twenty-four hours on the dot when Steve walked into the building once again.
The building seemed a little more populated today now that everyone was back to their normal routine. Steve gave the security a little nod as he walked by, quite happy they responded in kind. He gave the receptionist a little wave as he passed by as well, just a little more confused when she glanced at him, then returned to her computer, typing something out quickly.
Onward he went, taking the elevator to one of the computer rooms. He set himself down in one of the chairs, logged in, and immediately went to navigate to Amaterasu's file. It's never taken longer than maybe a day tops to have requests dealt with, so he fully expected the minor issue to be resolved.
Request Denied.
Access Denied.
Steve gave a frustrated groan and clicked the prompt multiple times, hoping for another result each time. Nothing changed. He was still prevented from Ammy's location tracking, and he didn't have another option to make an additional request to access her location. Confused, a tad frustrated with technology, and a little more worried about Ammy, Steve logged off and left the building.
Well, he had tried the conventional methods and worked through all avenues he could. He followed standard operating procedure and even waited a full day. No one could claim he didn't try to follow the standard operating procedures first. So, he went to the next logical step.
Call Fury.
He punched in the number from memory into his SHIELD given device, and waited. Then waited some more. He pulled the phone away, only to see that his call hadn't gone through. He tried once again, making sure he hit the 'call' button on the screen. It took a moment, before the line automatically cut.
Maybe Fury was busy, or his device was dead. It was unlike the Director to be that dismissive of his own personal belongings or unable to be reached. Still, he had other options. Time to call Coulson, he hadn't seen the man for a couple weeks, and seeing as Coulson was Ammy's 'official' handler, he should more than have access to it all.
He punched in the number from memory once more, and kept an eye on the screen. The same thing happened though, the phone refused to even connect and attempt to dial. Maybe Coulson was busy as well. So, on he went, trying different numbers. Maria Hill; it wasn't working. Natasha; unreachable. Clint; still nothing.
Steve grumbled and glanced up at the city skyline, his eyes locking onto the newly rebranded Avengers Tower steadily being rebuilt. He began his way toward the building. As far as he was aware, Stark should still be operating out of the tower for the time being, until the point that the project was able to be passed along to someone else.
Even though he was walking toward the building, he felt it necessary to try and call Tony anyways. Of course, that didn't go through either, just confirming his suspicions. Tony was always available, or at least JARVIS was. But to not go through, and have a communications lockdown on his devices?
Steve had a feeling something was off. Sure, maybe the requests to access the information were denied for good reason. It was possible his phone wasn't working either, technology could be finicky, he had learned. But both at the same time? The same day Amaterasu just happened to go missing without a trace? It didn't take an expert entrepreneur/billionaire/mechanic/philanthropist to put two and two together.
Something was going on, and someone was trying to keep it quiet. That, or he just had the absolute worst luck with any sorts of technology, and he should just give up on learning now. Still, he figured he'd attempt to speak with someone on the bleeding edge of tech development. As aggravating as Tony could be sometimes, he was a good man.
He just hoped that his hunch was wrong, and that Ammy was alright.
~{O}~{O}~{O}~
Amaterasu was far from alright. She was struggling. It was difficult, insanely so. She tried to keep going, she really did, but every moment that passed by was absolute agony. She couldn't think, couldn't focus, and found herself very nearly passing out on more than one occasion. This was a true test of her resolve, strength, endurance, and compassion for others.
Ammy clenched her teeth, and forced her gaze upward again, trying to concentrate. She was certain they'd stop soon. There was no way they could continue forcing her through this. They had to get bored, and give up. It was impossible to think that humans could continue with this absolute torture. She had to keep going, it was important. She couldn't give up now!
…
But after nearly fifteen minutes of listening to Maya ramble on and on about science, cell structure, DNA changes, the age of cells, and the natural healing process of the body, Ammy was done. She couldn't do it.
It didn't help that the woman wasn't even talking to her, Maya was talking at her. In the wolf's general direction, instead of focusing on the lupine and explaining things properly. Instead, Maya and about a dozen other people in lab coats had gathered around a computer, looking at the results of Maya's data collection. They were chattering away, throwing around big science words that Amaterasu was absolutely certain were made up.
Then again, all words are made up.
Seeing as the group of science nerds were pretty busy, and barely paying attention to her… Ammy left. Sure, maybe it wasn't the most polite way to excuse herself from a conversation, but if she had to hear the word "mitochondria" one more time she was going to throw the paint cans she had across the room. Granted, it would have been a waste of the lovely paint Steve bought her, but the bright splash of colour would be infinitely more engaging than this.
While the group were busy chatting away to one another about some "miracle of science," Amaterasu just stood up and crept away. She didn't need to use an illusion to be stealthy, she was clearly a master of the arts of deceit and sneakiness. She crept up the stairs to the main floor, then down a hallway, her paws quiet on the carpeted floor. Then came the challenging part.
Stone flooring. Truly a devious opponent.
Using her skills as a master of stealth, Ammy flexed her toes upward to keep her claws off the floor, ensuring she was silent as she snuck her way across the house. Step after step she moved, keeping her ears perked, listening. Her tail just barely brushed the floor as she moved along, the soft fur whispering across the stone.
Then, footsteps to her left! Without hesitation, the wolf jolted to the right, diving around a corner with barely a sound. She heard the footsteps following, though she wasn't being chased. She ran ahead anyways, the carpeted floor providing more than enough sound muffling and traction for her paws.
Onward she went, taking twists and turns, throwing off any pursuers that she imagined would be following her. She was swift! Faster than the wind! Stronger than the mightiest river! More silent than falling snow!
She was Amaterasu, Goddess of—
"Where do you think you're going?"
The voice jolted her out of her thoughts, causing Ammy to notice she was barrelling toward none other than Eric Savin, one of Killain's bodyguards. She tried to stop herself, noticing the scowl on the man's face, and the holstered firearm. Ammy planted her paws firmly on the carpet and her feet stopped moving.
Unfortunately, she happened to forget about momentum. Sure, her paws were planted firmly on the carpet. The carpet continued on though, sliding across the hardwood floor of the hallway and carrying her with it. Ammy flailed a little to try and stop. Nothing happened. The Goddess of the Sun was now at the mercy of physics and reality, something she frequently tried to spite.
Physics and reality were out for revenge now.
Ammy somehow ended up on her back, all four paws in the air as she slipped and slid across the floor, her momentum slowly coming to a halt in front of the bodyguard, who was standing before a door. She stopped right at his feet, angled sideways to the scowling man.
"Really? Running around?" Eric grumbled out. "Were you trying to make a mess of things? That's rather rude for a guest, don't you think?"
"Awoof?" Ammy tried, tilting her head a little, bringing her forepaws up to her chest. Maybe she could cute her way out of this.
"You can't cute your way out of this."
Dammit!
"Come on, get up, fix the rug. I don't care if you're supposed to be some important guest or not," Eric Savin spoke.
Ammy complied, a quick flex of her magic and a swipe of her tail had the rug back to normal and the scratches on the wall from her flailing vanished. Eric was quiet for a long moment, looking at the suddenly pristine hallway, then glancing back down to the wolf, who hadn't moved a muscle.
"…You're not that imposing for the so-called 'Goddess of the Sun', you know that?" Savin commented, shaking off his surprise with cold indifference and a small insult.
Amaterasu was taken aback at the sudden comment, but wasn't all too surprised. It's not like she wanted to be some big, imposing deity that terrified mortals or demanded sacrifice. She was just… Ammy! That's all she needed to be, and it seemed to be working out so far for her.
"Come on, you're not allowed back here, this area is off limits," the man continued. "We're gonna go to the yard. No one's called about you on the radio, so I take it you've done whatever you need to for the moment."
Ammy gave an affirmative bark and stood up, shaking herself off in the process. Eric nudged the back of her leg with a foot, urging her onwards, while he followed behind her. He grabbed his radio soon after, speaking into it.
"I'm gonna need a replacement in the hall, I'm taking the wolf to the yard and giving her some babysitters," he grumbled. An affirmative response was heard through the radio, and by the time the duo had reached the end of the hall, there was already someone walking by the pair, going to take up guard for the apparently off-limits area.
Oh, did that just make Ammy want to explore it more. It was an itch she had to scratch now, and she decided to check it out later in the night when everyone was asleep. For now, she had to follow along with this Savin character. She didn't want to upset her hosts on the very first day. What kind of goddess did that?
"So, what do you do? I take it something like fetch is too demeaning for you," Eric spoke as they made their way outside. She didn't comment; she wasn't particularly enjoying his attitude.
The sun was lower on the horizon now, casting a soft orange glow over the trees and tinting the few puffy clouds with soft pinks and oranges and reds. It was a rather nice time in the evening, with the heat of the summer dropping a little, and allowing a nice cool breeze to weave its way through Ammy's fur.
Coming around the outside of the house, they walked into a large grassy area that wasn't visible from the other side of the building. Out and about were about eight other men and women, five of whom were eating barbecued burgers, two playing tug-of-war, and one standing in as referee. One of the men glanced at the approaching duo and stood up, beer in one hand, burger in another.
"Finally decided to join us? Taking the evening off to socialize?" the approaching man asked.
"Not a chance, Mike," Eric snapped back, "keeping her busy." He gestured to Amaterasu.
"Well, I was going to offer you a drink, but you're a dick," Mike returned smoothly. He then glanced down at the wolf, and frowned. "I'd offer you a drink but I think alcohol is poisonous to dogs. No offense."
Ammy replied with her own version of a shrug, and a flick of her tail. It seemed as if everyone here had at least been told about her, so there were no surprises or weird looks. A few of the others glanced over, pausing the observation of the tug-of-war match. Poor timing from them all, as one of the participants finally heaved hard and dragged the other person forward, causing them to fall flat on their face. Laughter and cheers went around the small group.
"Still playing games?" Eric commented with a dismissive huff. "Whatever, just keep an eye on her."
"Oh, piss off, it's fun. Did it all the time on duty, and the local kids loved it. It's a good bonding exercise and gets the heart going," Mike returned with a cheerful grin, entirely brushing off the scowl Savin sent him. "Hey, why don't we get… Is it Ammy?" He paused for a moment, and continued with a nod from the wolf. "Why don't we get you and Ammy in on this? Can't be boring and professional all the time."
"No, that's—"
"Scared you'd lose to her?" Mike interrupted.
Eric paused, his expression set in a scowl. He glanced down at the wolf to his left, and then to the inch thick rope laying on the ground, then to the shit-eating-grin of Mike. Amaterasu met the scowling gaze with her own gold eyes, somehow looking smug in the process.
"As if," Eric replied. He clenched his hand, and the faintest glow of orange rippled up through his forearm, much to Ammy's interest. It looked surprisingly similar to the orange glow of the Extremis enhanced plants earlier. "Me against the wolf? No chance I'd lose, especially now. I could win against any of you."
"Well, then go ahead. Prove it."
Amaterasu was absolutely loving this back and forth; the playful attitude of this Mike character contrasting with the overly serious Eric. The latter looked conflicted, as if wondering if he should entertain the idea. Mike just continued to smirk, taking a sip of his beer.
The 'especially now' comment caught her attention though. Had he done something that made him stronger? Working out more, perhaps? Yet, he didn't look like he was all too muscular, something that would lend him well to a physical game.
Ammy decided to make the decision for them all by darting around the table and coming to stand at one end of the rope. She gave a playful little growl and gripped the rope in her jaws, giving it a playful shake. She then turned her gaze to Eric, and gave a muffled "wuff" around the rope.
"Oh, are you gonna take that?" A woman commented from her spot at the table.
"I think she called you a little bitch," another man ribbed.
"Nah, he won't do it. He's too professional, and he's allergic to fun," a third replied.
Eric Savin, the normally calm and smug looking individual, grit his teeth. There was another glow of orange as his eyes flashed briefly, in a blink-and-you'll miss it moment. That only solidified Ammy's determination though.
Clearly something was going on. If they were all volunteers to the Extremis experiments, did it stick around in their bodies after? Were there some additional effects she hadn't been told about? Suddenly, the wonderful sounding healing procedure was beginning to seem like it was more than just an innocent medical treatment.
No better way to find out than getting into the thick of it though.
Amaterasu gave another bark, louder this time, catching the attention of everyone in the little group. When she was certain she had all eyes on her, she locked her eyes on Eric. Then, she lifted her head and turned her nose away, snubbing him. She even lifted a paw and made a motion to shoo him away, just for that little extra impact.
She had never heard a human make that kind of snarl before, and failed to hide her smirk as Eric took a deep breath, walking to the other end of the rope.
"You're gonna regret underestimating me." It was a statement he was certain of, she could tell. Normally, Eric might even be right. If she were a normal dog, hell, even a normal wolf, maybe he would have had a chance. With the "especially now" comment, she was certain he would be able to put up a decent fight.
Amaterasu definitely wasn't normal. Not in the slightest.
She gripped the rope in her jaws and stepped backward, while Eric grabbed the rope with both hands and stepped back as well. His knuckles tightened, veins popping out on his hands and forearms as he gripped the rope. Ammy did the same, getting in a low crouch, taking her own stance opposite of Eric.
"Ready?" A woman asked, watching from the wooden table.
A nod from both participants confirmed their state. They were both fully prepared.
"Then… Go!" She shouted.
Eric Savin tightened his grip a little further, braced his legs, and heaved. He looked upward as he pulled, leaning into it. He pulled hard, feet digging into the ground, shoving backwards as he took step after step. He looked down from the sky, trying to see how much effort he would need to put in to pull the wolf over the finish line.
Amaterasu hadn't moved.
Eric's eye twitched, and he put more effort into it, his knuckles and eyes flashing an orange as he threw himself backward. He clenched his teeth and closed his eyes, straining hard, allowing Extremis to fuel his body further. Inhuman strength pulled at the rope, and he knew he was making progress, feeling the ground beneath his feet shifting, working himself back further.
He looked down.
Amaterasu hadn't moved.
He was digging trenches into the ground with his feet, kicking up dirt and mud. Instead, he was making a complete mess of his clean shoes and nice pants. Eric gave a growl and pulled harder still. All modesty and restraint he had was gone, replaced with furious attempts to move Amaterasu even an inch.
Amaterasu did move, much to the surprise of the onlookers. She moved backwards. One step at first, then another. Gradually pulling Eric Savin across the grass while he dug in his feet, tearing trenches into the ground in a last-ditch attempt to win against the wolf. At this point he was shamelessly glowing an orange-white, the rope in his grip smoking a little as his body temperature rose.
Ammy tugged her head and caused the man to stumble forward, landing flat on his face. She stood still and watched the furious Eric Savin lift his face from the dirt, her eyes flicking down to look at his palms. She squinted, watching some rather rough looking rope burn and scrapes healing over in a moment, the heat from the action causing some grass to wilt.
There was silence at the display of strength from the wolf. That is, until someone else immediately stood up, and cried out an excited "I'm next!"
"Nah, two at once. That was effortless for her."
"Fuck it, lets go for three, I'm curious."
Ammy sat down, still holding the rope in her jaws, tail wagging happily behind her. She looked down at the still slightly warm Eric Savin, the normally smug expression on his face replaced with mud and grass. That, and a furious scowl, his eyes glowing a heated orange. There were no parting words, congratulations, or good sportsmanship. He pushed himself to his feet and stalked off, ignoring the goodbye's and parting shots from his fellow 'volunteers' and 'coworkers'.
Amaterasu didn't pay him much heed, for she had seen everything she needed to. It was clear there was something else going on. She suspected it with how the plants continued to grow back time and time again. Something was being permanently changed and adjusted in these plants. Now, she could confirm it was in these people too. He had visibly grown hotter, and was clearly stronger than any normal person should be. The burn marks on the rope told her as much.
Briefly, she wondered if it was still called rope burn if it were the rope that was damaged in the encounter.
The thought was dashed when someone else captured her attention, stepping into view and grabbing hold of the rope. A quick swipe of her tail had the ground repaired and grass grown, looking like nothing had happened to it. The person at the other end looked unphased. A second person joined soon after, and then a third.
Amaterasu took a step back and braced herself once more, teeth digging into the rope and preparing herself to actually work harder for this win. Clearly, they were strong, and looked the part. They probably were skilled and powerful before whatever they took gave them additional enhancements. Extremis was being used with something to make them stronger, and she was going to find out what it was.
…
After a few games of tug, first. She had to show them up, obviously.
~{O}~{O}~{O}~
He was Eric Savin, the former Lieutenant Colonel for the United States Army. One of the agents most trusted with Aldrich Killian's terror campaign against the United States. One of the strongest Extremis users in the world. He could shrug off bullets to the chest and walk off a bomb being set off near him.
Yet, he was shown up by a wolf. He could throw a grown man over a dozen feet with his bare hands, and some flea-ridden dog beat him in front of his peers. No, not just beat. Humiliated him. She had made it look effortless, and the only reason he wasn't raging was because of the scene he was watching through the window.
He was watching five of his Extremis enhanced peers playing tug-of-war with Amaterasu. They were winning. Barely.
The great white wolf was starting to slide along the ground, her claws digging into the grass and dirt, while the people on the other end of the rope strained hard. Their jaws were clenched, fingers tight, forms covered in various energy ripples of Extremis, shamelessly displaying their enhancements. Still, so had he; he lost badly. Idly, he brushed a blade of grass from his head, his heated gaze watching it flutter to the floor.
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Eric frowned as he observed Amaterasu suddenly pull back, shifting sideways and digging her paws into the earth below. Then, with a heave, the wolf wrenched the rope toward herself. The person at the front fell forward face-first, much like Eric had. The next two stumbled forward, and the final two slid in the dirt. Amaterasu pulled her paws from the dirt and began her steady march backward, dragging one, two, three, four, five Extremis enhanced people along the ground as they struggled against her.
She won, just like the last few times. She looked no worse for wear, save for a few dirty patches in her fur, which seemed to bleed from that white coat. In moments she was back to her pristine condition, while the rest of the group were laid out on the ground, covered in dirt and grass.
Eric locked his eyes on Amaterasu as she trotted up to one of the fallen soldiers, and dipped her nose to nudge at them. Coincidentally, the soldier was also healing some scrapes on his arm, the same arm the wolf was poking at. It was obvious she was aware that something was happening.
"Fucking bitch is going to be more trouble than she's worth," Eric muttered.
He stepped back from the window, and sighed, before making his way through the mansion. His steps carried him through the house and then down the driveway, all the way to his sports car—working for Killian had some perks. Eric hopped into his car, then pulled out his phone, dialing up his boss. There was one ring, two, before it was answered.
"Savin," Killian greeted, "is there a problem?"
"Might be," Eric grunted. He shifted the car into gear, and began his drive away from the mansion, a particular destination in mind. "I think the mutt is getting a little too nosey."
"How nosey?" Killian huffed. "Do we need to bring her to the tanker for a little more discrete care?"
"Not yet. Though she got close to the drug addict's room, and I think she's trying to feel out what Extremis can do."
"Oh? Why do you think that?"
"She was paying close attention when people were healing. Took her outside to get away from the druggie, and wound up playing with some of the others. She's… strong. Troublesome."
"Do we need to put her down now? I'd prefer to wait until Maya confirms the results with Extremis."
"Not yet. I don't think we could right now anyways. She's strong, surprisingly so. She can throw around five of our guys with a bit of a struggle. Toss in those healing abilities, and we're looking at a real problem if we start something without being prepared."
"I see," Killian hummed, taking a moment to respond. "Go to the warehouse; get those injection rounds, and the rifle—you know the ones. Put the unstable variant into them, and keep those around just in case. We're going to need something that can pierce thick ice."
"Already on my way," Eric replied. "C'mon, you should know me by now."
"Think you can hit her if it comes down to it?"
"Oh, easily," Eric chuckled. "Trust me, that won't be a problem at all."
~{O}~{O}~{O}~
Tony Stark grinned as he pushed the new thrusters a little faster on his suit, not nearing the new theoretical maximum on them quite yet. He was waiting for the good part of the song so he could speed up and break the sound barrier.
Instead, he let gravity take over the flight for a moment, dipping forward and down. He did a slow, lazy front flip in the air, before kicking in the thrusters on his boots once again. A smile graced his face at the feeling of adrenaline thrumming through his system, assisted by the slowly building pace of Free Bird playing in his suit.
"Sir, Captain Rogers is attempting to contact you," Jarvis spoke, lowering the music volume. "He's in the conference room at the moment." Tony narrowed his eyes at the interruption, frowning.
"Not now Jarvis, I'm getting to the good part," came the reply. "Gimme five minutes." With the interruption gone, he cranked up the volume a little more.
There was the tone shift. Almost there…
He picked up the pace a little more, pushing more energy toward the thrusters. Some of the new ones on the side flared out, and began glowing. He could feel the growing pressure on the front of his suit, the familiar resistance he had broken before. It never got old feeling his personal tech break the barriers of nature.
Here it comes…
The energy built up further, his speed just on the edge of the sound. Here we go, guitar solo time.
Three…
Two…
One…
Go! He hit the thrusters hard, feeling the stresses on his suit resist for the slightest moment, before they started giving way. Power rushed toward the thrusters all at once, glowing bright, and jolting him forward. The sounds of the guitar solo only enhanced the feeling of speed. The grin on his face stretched as he shattered the sound barrier and—
"Stark, I've got a bit of a problem." A face popped up in the corner of his HUD.
The music cut off all at once, leaving Tony in complete silence, listening to the voice of none other than Steve Rogers. He faltered, losing concentration, the power cutting out to his thrusters for a brief moment, dropping him back down on the other side of supersonic once more.
There was a long, unpleasant silence, as Tony tried to think of the proper words to explain his frustration. To explain his discontent and the unpleasant feeling of interruption at one of the greatest pieces of musical emotional evocation in existence.
"Tony?" Steve asked again.
"Rogers, you blue-balled me," Stark spoke. "You actually just blue-balled me. What the hell?"
"I what?" Came the confused reply, complete with scrunched eyebrows.
"I can't believe you did that. You just interrupted the Free Bird guitar solo," Tony griped. "You never interrupt the solo!" He muttered something rather impolite under his breath, and continued on with a grumble. "—even was nice and made sure to be in the middle of nowhere for it."
"Sir, this matter is rather important," Jarvis interrupted Tony's griping and grumbling, "Captain Rogers believes he's being targeted by a cyber attack."
"Jarvis, you already enabled the conference rooms faraday cage?" Tony asked. He lazily drifted side-to-side while flying, not very concerned with the proceedings.
"Yes, Sir, all incoming and outgoing signals have been blocked."
"Faraday cage?" Steve asked.
"Jarvis is hardwired into the building, but that's not important," Tony dismissed. "So, Capsicle, what made you worried enough to come to me? Please tell me you checked YouTube and watched 'Cell Phones for Dummies' first. Though the library might be more your speed."
"Tony, please be serious. Besides, I'm pretty sure it's got nothing to do with that," Steve huffed. "The phone is unable to call anyone, or receive calls. No information going in or out."
"Did you—" Tony was interrupted.
"Yes. I turned it off and on again…" Steve rolled his eyes hard, and Tony swore he could feel the motion through the call. "There's an information block on the SHIELD database too. Requests for information are denied and nothing is going through."
"Captain Rogers is correct, Sir," Jarvis supplied, with Steve thanking the ever-helpful AI in the background. "I attempted to access information that required repeated updates through his account. Nothing managed to get through."
"Wait, you did what on my account?" Steve asked, looking a tad disgruntled.
"Alright, screw it. Let's say I believe you," Tony began, "why do you—Woah!"
Tony jolted and barreled out of the way, tucking his arms in and dipping several dozen feet in the air. Flaring out his arms, he stopped his plummet and continued, barely a breath wasted. "Sorry about that, almost splattered an eagle. I'd rather go to prison for a more exciting federal crime, thank you very much." He turned himself around, flying backwards, and gave a sarcastic little salute to the bird. "Hey, Rogers, you ever commit tax evasion?"
"Tony…" Steve planted a palm on his face, and groaned. Stark snickered in response.
"Right, right. Killjoy. Why is this a big deal?" Tony asked. "Why would someone want to lock you out?"
"It started the same day Amaterasu disappeared," Steve replied, "yesterday morning actually. I tried to find her with the tracking collar but couldn't access it. I could the day before, though."
"Wait, what? Space Dog is gone? I thought she kept to New York." Tony frowned, and adjusted his course a little, flying higher. "Hey, Jarvis, have you tried getting into the file system and finding Laika?"
"Yes, Sir, her location is blocked. I can get access to it, but that may take some time," Jarvis answered.
"Nah, sounds important. Call Fury, better not wait on this," Tony spoke.
There was an awkward silence as they waited for the connection to go through. Tony picked up his pace a little bit, flaring the thrusters on his suit. He started pushing against the sound barrier, before smashing through it with a sudden jolt of energy. He grinned as he sped up, momentarily distracted by pushing the new thrusters harder.
Then, Fury's face popped up on his HUD. The neutral expression was familiar to them all and sucked every ounce of joy from the situation.
"Hello, Director Fury," the AI started.
"Jarvis," Fury replied.
"Fury," Steve greeted.
"Rogers," Fury returned, furrowing his brow in confusion.
"Heya, eyepatch," Tony smirked.
"Stark," Fury sighed, "what do you want?"
"You look grumpier than usual, so I'll stick to the cliff notes," Tony spoke before anyone else had the chance to. "The boy scout was having tech problems; it turns out it's not just him being old—"
"Tony," Steve sighed.
"—So Jarvis tried to get to Space Dog's location, but couldn't immediately access it, which is a surprise considering how poor SHIELD's cyber security is—"
"Sir," Jarvis protested.
"—So we decided to call you," Tony finished. "Oh, right, and Air Bud went missing around when this all started."
There was a long pause as Fury took in what was said. He fiddled with something just out of sight, before his face disappeared, replaced by a screen with Amaterasu's information file pulled up. He tapped on the location ping, only to be met with a rather concerning message.
Access denied.
"Excuse me?" Fury ground out. Tony figured there was a swear missing somewhere in the middle of that. "Override."
It took a long moment, as if the software was struggling, before the location ping for Amaterasu's collar finally went through.
"California?" Steve asked, furrowing his brow. "Why would she be all the way over there?"
"Hey, that's a lucky coincidence, I'm already heading there. That's about…" Tony had Jarvis pull up the location on a map. "Eh, fifty miles out from where I was heading. I'll check it out and see if I can't find our mascot."
"Keep me updated," Fury spoke. "Oh, and Stark? Make it quick, something's not right." He went back to the main file, and highlighted a section for everyone to see.
Mission Status: Standby.
"I didn't clear Fido for anything," Fury said. "That should be unauthorized until I say otherwise."
"Hmm… Hey, Cap?" Tony began. "Might wanna let Jarvis purge and destroy your device. Someone could know something is up once you leave the room."
"You think someone's actively monitoring us?" Steve asked.
"Someone's going through a lot of trouble to keep Fido's location from being accessed," Fury growled out. "If they weren't trying something, I'd be disappointed." There was a pause as the three thought for a moment. "Rogers?"
"Sir?"
"Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary with Fido at all?"
"Not really. The only thing was when she was swarmed at her shrine. She didn't leave until late the next morning, after I checked the tracker. I ran into her talking with Rumlow, and he said something about meeting someone at noon. She looked fine that evening." Steve explained it all, trying to recount as much as he could that seemed important. "She wasn't in my apartment the next morning; I haven't seen her since."
"Having a sleepover and you didn't invite me? I'm hurt, Rogers," Tony tried to ease the tension.
"I'll get in contact with Rumlow and find out who he was talking about," Fury ignored Tony's comment entirely. "Stark, get your ass over to California and find Fido," Fury spoke. "Rogers, go and check out the locations she was at previously. I'll get Hill to check the surveillance cameras for the wolf in the meantime. I expect you both to keep this quiet for now."
"Already checked," Steve replied, "but I can go over them again. Could have always missed something."
"Sounds good. I'll call if I see anything," Tony agreed. "Oh, and reach out to me through Jarvis, he's encrypting everything and running the calls from private satellites." He took a moment, and then added, "Cap, go down to the basement, I think I left an earpiece down there. Should let you access Jarvis and contact us."
Steve nodded, while Fury frowned in approval, giving a slight nod of his own. The man couldn't do anything without looking pissed off, could he? Tony brushed off the thought.
"Keep in contact and report anything you find," Fury ordered. "Find Amaterasu, and try to do so quickly. I'm sure she can take care of herself, but she seems eager to please. I'd prefer she not help the wrong people."
The call ended after that, leaving Tony in silence once more. He flew quietly for a long while, cruising along, gradually increasing the power to his thrusters. The ground below passed by at a faster rate with each second.
"Sir?" Jarvis finally asked, the silence clueing the AI in that something was wrong.
"Jarvis, do me a favor and keep an eye on who tries to access Laika's file. Also, keep trying that ping, and try to do a slow creep through SHIELD's system. We don't need them knowing you're still in there."
"Yes, Sir. I'll let you know if I find anything."
"Oh, and Jarvis?" Tony started to shift his armor once more, the little side thrusters poking out of the armor, and the glowing from his repulsors grew. "Turn the music back on, and rewind to four-and-a-half minutes."
The muffled sound of the wind was immediately replaced by the familiar and comforting sounds of guitar and drums, a common background to almost anything he was doing. It helped pull him from his concerned and contemplative mood.
"Alright, here we go. Full thrusters, just gotta time it," Tony rambled. "Everything always works out with a badass soundtrack." He conveniently ignored all the problems and failures he had to deal with while said soundtrack had been playing throughout his career.
There was the tone shift again.
And…
Three…
Two…
One…
His thrusters glowed a brilliant white, flooding them with power once more. A smile graced his face as he hurtled forward through the air, watching his speed rapidly increase. Tony took in the sound of music pumping him up as he flew faster and faster, passing Mach 3 and rapidly approaching Mach 4.
He began to slow down when warnings began popping up on his HUD, keeping himself balanced on the edge of dangerously fast. It was just stress testing, that's all. Though, he made a mental note that he needed to develop a high velocity suit. A project for later, perhaps.
~{O}~{O}~{O}~
It was exactly 11:47 at night when Amaterasu opened her eyes. Being Goddess of the Sun had some great perks, such as wielding powers that could create entire galaxies and manipulate the very heavens. That, and an immaculate sense of time. Some were more convenient than others at certain moments.
The wolf gave a long, drawn-out yawn, and stretched herself out, shaking out the dredges of sleep. Ammy rolled onto her back and curled herself around to the left, then to the right, working her sides. Her paws reached for the roof, toes splaying out and legs shaking as she got in a really good stretch, back arch and all.
Finally warmed up and all relaxed, Ammy rolled back to her side, and… promptly fell asleep again. Only for a few minutes though! Just a few dozen minutes. Maybe an hour. She had a long day, cut her some slack!
When she finally woke up that second time though, she was ready to go. She glanced around the room she had been given, and flicked her left ear in thought. How should she go about this?
Ammy grabbed several of the blankets that had been laid out for her on the mattress, and started bunching them up. She pushed and shoved and moved them around with her head, nosing the covers into the proper position. More than once did she get a blanket stuck on her muzzle, forcing her to pull back and shake herself free.
Eventually, with a little effort—she cursed the lack of opposable thumbs—Ammy managed to lay everything out just as she wanted on the bed. She lay down beside it, and with a flex of her will, froze reality, viewing herself from outside of her own body. Luckily, the blankets lined up just right to sit in what looked to be the rough shape of her form.
With a huff she stood, and leaned in to press her nose against the blanket pile. Immediately reality shimmered and shifted, a wave of light working over the blankets. Then, in seconds, laying there was a fake Ammy! She may have cursed and grumbled about the demon fox—Ninetails—from her past life for tricking her with illusions, but she had to admit they were pretty useful.
The lack of sound from the fake wolf wouldn't alert anyone that anything was wrong. After all, she definitely didn't snore. Absolutely not. She was a Goddess, she was prim and proper and polite at all times, even when sleeping! She didn't drool either, probably. Or shed. No, this disguise was perfect.
Prop set and illusion in place, Amaterasu turned and trotted over to the window. Drawing on her ability gained from that spicy blue space cube, she pulled on her magic, and teleported through the wall.
She wasn't expecting the drop, however, forgetting she was on the second floor. The ground hurtled toward her, and in an attempt to avoid making noise, she merely pushed off the air before she hit the grass. Silent landing, perfect and stealthy as always—
Oh, she forgot to cloak herself in an illusion! With a tug of magic, she vanished. Flawless.
Amaterasu began her silent creep through the dark yard of Killian's mansion, the world illuminated only by the bright moon overhead. Sure, if she really wanted to show off, she could just make it daytime. Disturbing the whole world just for a nicer stroll felt a tad selfish, however.
The wolf kept her ears perked as she made her way around the building. She spotted multiple armed guards standing in position or making slow looping laps around the property. Only a truly skilled and sneaky individual could make their way past them all.
Luckily, that's exactly what she was. Master of Stealth.
Narrowly avoiding tripping over some potted plants on multiple occasions, the large lupine made her way right underneath the window to the room she was told she wasn't allowed into. Silly humans. Rules are for people that want to listen to them! Not for the Goddess of the Sun with an intense curiosity that needed to be sated.
Ammy crouched down, and then launched herself up into the air, sailing over twenty feet high with just a single jump. Then, when she reached the peak of her jump, she angled herself and pushed forward, just enough to plant her forepaws on the window ledge, and press her back paws against the wall.
She peered through the window, squinting at the bright lights in the room. There was nothing she could see that indicated it was being watched, just a lot of books and clothes on the ground. She cocked her ears as well, and listened closely. Still nothing.
Good enough for her! Ammy tugged on her magic, and popped into existence on the other side of the wall, still completely invisible. She glanced down at the carpeted floor, and smirked. This place was too easy!
It was then that she inhaled, and nearly wretched from the sudden influx of scents. None of them were pleasant, save for the thinly veiled attempt to spray something flowery over the absolute filth. She took a moment to gather her wits, fighting back the urge to throw up the nine barbecued hot dogs those lovely volunteers had given her earlier—tug-of-war contests were fun!
Amaterasu shook off the disgust and near physical punch to the nose that was the smell of the room, and crept her way forward. A way to describe it: well lived in. Another would be pure filth. Still, despite the conditions, she wasn't too sure why they'd want to keep her from it.
She made her way forward, creeping her way around large paintings, thin wooden walls, and stands holding various items. A glance to the wall displayed a large ring, made of what appeared to be smaller rings, with swords crossing in the middle.
Suddenly, there were footsteps. Despite being invisible to the naked eye, Ammy found herself ducking around one of the wooden walls and poked her head out. Someone walked by, dressed in a fancy green garment wrapped around their body. He moved with purpose, strong, steady strides, and took a deep breath. He made his way over to a rather regal looking chair, and sat himself down, his jewelry clinking with the motion.
"Hello, America," the man began, in a deep, powerful voice. "I'm sure you all recognize me by now. I'm but your humble teacher, bringing to you another lesson."
Ammy crept closer, keeping herself hidden, her paws silent on the floor. She couldn't sense any magic from this man, nor could she see anything on his person that would make him dangerous. Still, the presence of the man had her on edge. Something wasn't quite right.
"Did you know, Jesus Christ, your 'Lord and Saviour,' isn't even European? Despite your attempts to defile and corrupt this historical figure, the truth is, he was born in what is now known as the Middle East." There was a pause, as if to let the information sink in. "That's right. The birthplace of your beloved Saviour is the same area that your greatest tragedy was born."
Ammy narrowed her eyes, her tail flicking side to side as she watched. What was he talking about? A sudden gust of wind within the room weaved through her fur, leaving Ammy feeling chilled.
"Coincidentally, you seem to have picked up a new saviour. Someone you all seem to be counting on. Some sort of 'miracle' here to save you. Amaterasu." He said her name with such disgust that she shuddered. "She comes from the same place your second greatest tragedy occurred: Japan. Do you see how there might be a problem with that?" The man frowned and narrowed his eyes.
Amaterasu was taken aback. Did she do something to him? Who was this other person? What was this tragedy he was talking about? What could she do to help? She crept forward further, ducked herself underneath a table, and watched from the side.
"So, being the gracious teacher you know me to be, I fixed your little problem." A pause. "I'm sure you've seen it by now: I blew up Amaterasu. Her, her shrine, and everything about your little knockoff that you so loved. After all, why have one beloved savior dead without the other? Now, no need to thank me. After all, I am but your humble teacher."
Ammy was shaken. Was she being targeted? Had someone else died in her place? Who was this man? Thoughts swirled and shifted and raced through her mind. Was her shrine okay? What should she do?
"Here's your lesson today, America: Gods die for your sins."
…
"No, no, what the hell? Who wrote that line? That's bloody stupid, it is. I can't read that drivel, I am a professional." His entire demeanor changed in an instant, as did his accent, the entire presence of the man before vanishing. "I swear, they have no respect for the arts. None!" There was a moment, and he reached into his pocket for a remote, and hit a button. The chill breeze in the room immediately faded. "Bloody air-conditioner, I had it set for an hour later, not ten minutes."
A sudden move had him standing, casting off the rings on his fingers and letting them land on the floor with a hollow plink. The lovely regal robe was yanked off and hurled overhead with a grunt, fluttering to the floor. Revealed beneath was a stained grey sports t-shirt, and some generic black sweatpants.
Amaterasu reeled back in shock, the whiplash from the sudden change catching her off guard. The imposing, dangerous man before was now long gone, replaced by this rather unique individual. In fact, she was so surprised and thrown off by the change, that she knocked her head against the bottom of the table.
That little bump against the table caused an empty glass bottle to fall over. It rolled across the table, gaining both Ammy's and the man's attention. Then, the bottle fell. It plummeted, hitting the edge of a hollow movie prop bust. Momentum from the bottle made the bust fall to the floor.
A sharp crack rang out, the head of the fake bust breaking free from the body. The spherical head of the decapitated plastic man skittered across the floor, impacting what appeared to be a five-level pyramid of beer cans. The structure of cans collapsed, one of the cans landing in a pocket of a sweater. Unfortunately, that sweater was hanging on the corner or a precariously balanced prop wall.
That wall tilted, then fell, hitting another thin barrier with a splintering crash. The other tipped soon after, falling like the world's most flimsy domino set. It crashed down near the table Ammy was under, the edge of the falling wall catching a plank of wood that lay sideways across the surface.
Ammy stepped out from beneath the table, her eyes following the arc the wood traveled through the air. It sailed straight for what looked like a paint bucket suspended from the roof with a string and pulley system. Then, it hit, and the bucket plunged straight towards Ammy! The wolf only had a moment to close her eyes, scrunching up as the rope drew taught, and dumped the entire contents of the bucket onto her.
"Oh, bloody hell, Trevor. You took too much again," the man muttered to himself. "Lovely, now I'm hallucinating glitter demons when I'm supposed to be rehearsing."
Amaterasu opened her eyes, and looked down. There was glitter everywhere. The upended bucket dangled above the wolf, trickles of thin glitter still flaking onto her. There was no saving the room now. The floor was covered, as was the table she had been under previously. A pool of glitter extended outward several feet in every direction. Ammy glanced back over herself, and huffed through her nose, the action sending more of the shiny powder outward with a puff of air. It had completely ruined her illusion. Now she was just coated in sparkly stuff and it showed off her hidden form.
"Hey, hey you," Trevor called. "Psst! Psspspspsps! You, spooky sparkle ghost."
Amaterasu took the moment to turn and face Trevor once more, cocking her head to the side.
"Yes, you! I don't need your help today, you can shoo. Go on now, get going. I expect you to be gone by the time I close my eyes and count to three."
She remained unmoving as the rather confusing man raised both hands up to his face, and covered his eyes. He peeked through his fingers, and gave her a look, before closing the gap once more.
"Alright, here we go, this usually works. One… Two…" Trevor peeked through his fingers again, still looking at the unmoving form of an invisible yet glitter-covered Ammy. "Two and a half… Two and a quarter… Wait, uh, two and three-quarters. Er… Two and, uh, uhm." He struggled for a moment. "Three!"
Amaterasu decided to just reveal herself fully at this point. There was no use in hiding anymore, and this man hardly seemed like a threat. Instead, she stood in her full glory: brilliant white fur; sharp red markings; blazing gold eyes.
And a whole heap of glitter.
"Oh, well that didn't work. That usually does the trick," Trevor commented. The man hummed in thought, and paced for a long moment, before turning back to Ammy once again. "Hey, you. You, uhm. Uh—" He snapped his fingers, pointing at Ammy. "I'm asleep! Yes! Yes, that makes sense! I was reading the script, and, being a brilliant actor, I'm dreaming up the whole thing right now. What do you think?"
"Woof!" Ammy offered, her tail giving a wag. That had the unfortunate effect of sending an arc of glitter behind her and across the room, just adding to the pure chaos.
"No, no. Trust me, I've had my fair share of knocks about the head. I would be crying far more if that were the case. Good try though!" Trevor replied. He paced back and forth in front of the wolf, not at all concerned with the apparently magical talking wolf in the room.
Suddenly, he turned. He pointed at Ammy, eyes wide. Realization crossed his features, and it took him a moment to form his proper words.
"Oh! Oh! How could I have been so stupid?" Trevor grumbled. "Hello, my name is Trevor. Trevor Slattery, actor extraordinaire. Well, sort of. It's, uh— Eh, potato tomato." A brush of his hand through the air dismissed the whole thing.
Amaterasu tilted her head. Those words didn't even rhyme. Po-tay-toe? Ta-mah-toe?
"Arf!" Ammy replied. She padded forward and, with a mighty shake from head to toe, tried to dislodge the glitter from her fur.
It worked! A little too perfectly, unfortunately. A massive cloud of glitter exploded from her fur and shot across the room, a veritable explosion of sparkly dust spreading out to cover every single surface.
"Oh, that's a hilarious coincidence!" Trevor continued, merely spitting out any extra glitter that wound up in his mouth. "I was just rehearsing a script that has a character with the exact same name as you do! Small world, hey?"
Amaterasu could not get a read on this man. Not in the slightest.
"Oh, right, where are my manners?" He shuffled his way over to the recently overturned table, and started rummaging around. "Excuse me, I am a terrible host. Would you like a beer, Ammy?"
Ammy shook her head.
"Oh, hey, no worries at all. I've got plenty more, like, uh… I have some 'substances' too, or—Oh! I have Jaffa Cakes, if you'd like! They're quite delicious though hard to find here. I'm sure I can find them if you give me a moment."
"Awoof?" Came the curious reply.
"Oh, that? That was just practice. I—Well, I'm not supposed to share," Trevor trailed off, standing up straight and wiping off various spilled substances from his palms onto his pants. "Though, I suppose a little wouldn't hurt. It's a role. I'm supposed to play a villain, a really scary one. This team from the BBC approached me, and said I'd be perfect for the spot! I've always wanted to be an actor. Ever since I was a boy, actually! I still remember it clearly. I was with my mum, I was. 1968, Planet of the Apes. I still—"
"Arf!"
"Oh no, no not at all. Safe as can be, no one's hurt in the slightest." Trevor took a moment as he walked toward his bed, and brushed more glitter off of it with a sweep of his hand. He turned and sat down, facing Ammy once again. "Well, that's not true, there was this one guy. Stage light fell on him, hit him right on the head. I think they were still new to setting things up to be honest. But he was fine! He did this weird little glowy thing and was good as new. Now that's movie magic."
This was getting too weird for her. Amaterasu huffed and sat down, watching the man. She blinked as she watched him stare at her, his eyelids drooping. Then they slipped closed. There was barely a moment between that and when he fell backwards onto his bed, a cloud of glitter rising from the impact.
Concerned, Amaterasu ran forward, preparing to use her magic on the man, and—
A deep snore left the man. He fell asleep. Just like that, he was out like a light. Oh, how Ammy wished she could sleep that easily sometimes. She was actually a little jealous.
Footsteps and voices outside of the door alerted Amaterasu that someone was coming. She looked at the absolutely destroyed room, and then to Trevor who was splayed out across the bed. There was no way to fix everything in time.
So, she didn't. With her newly de-glittered coat, Ammy cloaked herself in an illusion again, and ducked herself behind the overturned table. She sat and peered over the edge, her eyes on the door as it swung open.
Oh! It was that grouchy guy she beat in the tug-of-war earlier on! She watched Eric take one look into the room, before pausing. He blinked, looked around at the absolute mess of the living area, and then glanced to the still-snoring Trevor.
Quick, heavy footsteps brought him to the bed in moments. A quick shove to the shoulder and a nudge to the shins had the actor awake once more, sitting upright and back into a perfectly aware state.
"Oh! Hello, is it morning already? I feel like I haven't slept a wink," Trevor commented.
"Trevor," Eric asked, his tone flat. "What happened?"
Amaterasu's ears fell at that, and her stomach clenched. She didn't think this through. She should have made an attempt to hide things better, or be more careful, or should have just restored the room to its former state. Now she'd be found out and—
"Oh, well, you see. I was practicing the script you gave me—side note, there's some suggestions I need to make for that. But!" Trevor began his genius reply. "But, I decided to have some, er, substances before reading the script. Then I read it, and I think I did a splendid job, but some words need to be changed. Oh, but then, I saw it. A magic glitter demon. I tried to shoo the thing away, but I—"
"Know what? I don't care. I've heard enough," Eric interrupted. "C'mon, we're taking you to a new filming location."
"Right now? Well, I haven't even packed yet, I need to—"
"Now, Trevor."
Properly interrupted and directed out of the room, Trevor and Eric both disappeared when the door clicked shut. Amaterasu was left alone in the room, surrounded by the absolute chaos that her presence brought. Sparkles and shattered props were strewn about the place and matched her thought process perfectly.
What the heck was going on?