I was picking up strands of grass from the dirt out of boredom when Steve's voice came out of the Omnitrix. I scrambled up to my feet, looking over at Tony and Rhodey. With a whir of noise, they stepped forward.
“Okay,” I said softly. “Let's go.”
------
Sam Wilson/Falcon
Sam turned towards Steve, ready to say something. Then Steve began to speak into the intercom. And Sam stopped to listen in silence.
“Attention, all SHIELD agents. This is Steve Rogers. You've heard a lot about me over the last few days, some of you were even ordered to hunt me down. But I think it's time you know the truth. SHIELD has been infiltrated,” Steve looked over at Maria, who nodded. “HYDRA has infiltrated SHIELD. Alexander Pierce is their leader.”
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Natasha Romanov/Black Widow
Black Widow, disguised as Councilwoman Hawley, looked at Pierce at the same time as the other Councilmembers did. Pierce looked back at them. The man smiled slightly as Steve continued to speak. He had the audacity to shrug slightly, an 'aw shucks' sort of shrug.
She almost smiled at that. As much as she couldn't wait to kill him, she had to admire how calm he was. Not as much as she admired the calm smooth tones Steve used to speak over the intercom, however.
As she shared a look with Councilman Yen, who winked at her. All the while, Steve continued to speak.
“The STRIKE and Insight crew are HYDRA as well. I don't know how many more, but I know they're in the building.”
------
Sharon Carter/Agent 13
“They could be standing right next to you. They almost have what they want with the help of the Insight Helicarriers: absolute control.”
Sharon listened to the voice of Captain America with horror and sadness filling her. Unlike the others in the room, SHIELD wasn't a job or even a duty. It was her legacy. Something her great-aunt, Peggy Carter, had believed in with all of her heart. Sharon couldn't count how many times Peggy had spoken about founding SHIELD, of the pride and joy she'd felt building the organization.
To know how her pride was torn apart would break her heart.
Sharon focused, looking around quickly.
“As of now, all loyal SHIELD agents should be getting a program on their phones,” Steve said.
Sharon blinked when the phones of every person in the room began to buzz. Including her own. Everyone took out their phones, Sharon included. She blinked at the screen on her smartphone. “Hercules?” She asked herself. The words were in big letters. As she watched, it flashed into the SHIELD symbol, then showed a photo of a man. Rumlow, leader of STRIKE team. Other began to flash, person after person. Apparently the app not only had files on all HYDRA, but would flash green near SHIELD members and red near HYDRA
“The app will show you every member of HYDRA as we discover them, with evidence to back it up so you know I'm not simply spreading dissent in the ranks. The threat is real. HYDRA is among us. They shot Nick Fury. And it won't end there.”
Sharon shared looks with other agents in the room. Almost as one, they all raised their smartphones. All had the Hercules app flashing green, something that visibly relieved her. SHIELD. Everyone in the room, down to the skinny technician sitting at the computer in front of her. Now to see about the rest of the base.
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Robert Gonzales/Commander of the Iliad
Gonzales had been working for SHIELD for decades. The only time he'd ever stopped was when his wife died, only to return to service three years later. He was proud of the work he'd done. He worked on the Iliad now, an aircraft carrier built for SHIELD to do its work across the world. He had seen many strange things in that time, sitting at the bridge of the carrier.
And yet, he had never heard of anything like this.
When the voice of Captain Steve Rogers suddenly began to come out of the intercom of his ship's speakers in the middle of a routine patrol, he didn't know what to think at first. It was clear he was in the Triskelion based on what he was saying.
He stood on the bridge of his ship, listening as Steve Rogers explained that HYDRA had infiltrated SHIELD. HYDRA, the boogeyman that was supposed to be dead.
When Gonzales received the Hercules app. So did ten others in the bridge. Six crewmen, however, very obviously did not. For a moment, everyone looked at each other. The Hercules app helpfully flashed photos of the six, apparently basing the decision on proximity.
Then Gonzales reached for his sidearm. The six tried to do the same.
And all over the world, the same thing repeated itself again and again. Some HYDRA surrendered. Others died. Some escaped. But no agent of HYDRA was immune to Hercules' sight.
------
Sam Wilson/Falcon
“If you allow the Helicarriers to launch today, HYDRA will be able to kill anyone that stands in their way, unless we stop them,” Steve breathed deeply. “I know I'm asking a lot... but the price of freedom is high. It always has been.”
Sam watched as Steve spoke. For a moment, Steve Rogers seemed to... to shrink. As though he had taken on so much, too much, as though he realized how much he'd been through. Steve Rogers staggered under the weight as Sam watched.
But before Sam could say anything, before he could step forward, the man raised himself up. Steve took a deep breath, and Captain America spoke.
“And it's a price I'm willing to pay. And If I'm the only one, so be it.” He looked at Sam and Maria. The pair gave him determined nods he returned. “But I'm willing to bet I'm not.”
Steve turned off the intercom. Sam stepped forward, smirking at Steve. “Did you write that down first, or was it off the top of your head?”
“I was an actor once,” Steve said with a smile. They stepped towards the window. High in the sky, two dots could barely be seen, one slightly larger than the other. Both flew towards the hanger bays of the Insight Helicarriers. “Now, let's watch for a bit. According to Mahmoud, this will be quite a sight,” Steve held a hand to his ear. “Dial... shut'em down.”
------
Mahmoud Schahed.../Dial
“Got it!” I yelled. I didn't have to yell, technically. While I didn't have a comm link, the Omnitrix was advanced enough to pick up my voice with ease. But when you're soaring through the air at high speed, yelling is just the only way to speak.
“Sorry if the rides a little rough,” Rhodey said.
“Nah, this is awesome!” I was behind held under my armpits by War Machine as Iron Man flew next to us. We were crossing hundreds of feet over the water, my legs dangling in the air.
“Focus up!” Tony said. “Jarvis, we good?”
“Yes sir,” he said. “X and I have sent the Hercules app throughout the world, shut down HYDRA communications devices, and begun stage 2 of our attack.”
“Okay,” I breathed in the cold air. “Drop me!”
“Good luck!” Rhodey let me go.
Just like that, I was falling through the air at high speed. For a moment, all I could see was the hangers below. Three of them, hiding under the water, but visible from above. A glint of sunlight shone off the river, forcing me to squint.
Then the roaring noises of rocket boots came close. Iron Man flew by on my left, zooming towards the hangers. War Machine passed on my right. The two men of iron opened up shoulder hatches on their suits, firing rockets at the hangers on the left and right. When the explosions opened holes in the hanger bay doors, water from the river began to rush inside, creating waterfalls into the hanger. Rhodey and Tony flew into the openings they'd created.
Which meant it was my turn. I reached for my the Omnitrix and activated it. Flesh and bone became shining blue-green crystal.
“Diamondhead!”
I pointed my hands at the ground, and turned my arms into cannons. As I dropped towards the earth, I started shooting crystals at the hangers bay doors. Each one the size of a knife, they sliced easily into the steel doors. Hundreds, covering every surface I could shoot of the doors.
And as I fell towards them, I made them grow.
Like a fast-motion video of water freezing, the crystals grew at a rapid pace. They joined together, then got bigger. Soon the three doors were covered in crystals dotting their surface, each the size of a car or bigger.
Not good enough.
Bigger, bigger, bigger. I stopped shooting the crystals, instead focusing on their growth. They shot upwards to meet in the middle towards where I was falling. One of the crystals shot directly at me as hundreds of spears rose up into the sky, glimmering beautifully in the light.
Just before I would have landed on one of my own gems, I shifted it to become a ramp. I still slammed into it hard enough to shatter human legs, but Diamondhead's durability made the impact negligible and let me slide down along the crystals to the center of the middle hanger. I turned my left arm into a razor sharp blade. It took three cuts to slash my way into the hanger. I dropped in, slamming into the asphalt of one of the Insight Helicarriers below. I bent by knees on impact, a crater getting created by my drop. I looked around.
The Insight Helicarrier had crates, Quinjets, and men dotting its flight deck. The 'island', or command tower of the ship, was across from me. I stood on the middle of the ship. I took in my position, ignoring the stunned HYDRA agents around me. Then I rose up and lifted my hands to the sky, closing my eyes. The sunlight outside came in through the hole I'd created, letting a beam of light into the dark hanger. As the mountain I was creating outside grew, the yellow light became a sea green. Then the hole was covered in crystal.
“Kill it!” One man cried out behind me. He fired a handgun. The bullet slammed into the back of my head. I ignored it, and the bullet fell to the floor with no effect. “Come on, shoot that thing!”
More men, about fifteen, came up and started shooting as well. I grunted in annoyance, but ignored the useless bullets bouncing off me.
The Omnitrix on my chest spoke then, Steve's voice coming from it.
“All right, Dial. It's perfect. Neutralize the crew.”
I opened my hands and ran at the men shooting me. All wore black uniforms and helmets, the gear I always saw HYDRA's men wearing. But now I know who they were.
I leaped at one man and bunched him in the rips. He flew back twenty feet and slammed into a crate. I turned, ignoring the hail of bullets being shot at me.
“This is Dial,” I said as I stalked through the bullets. “Engaging.”
“What happened to his voice?” Tony asked. “Did he go through puberty again?”
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
I ignored him. Instead, I grabbed a soldier by the front of his uniform and kicked his right kneecap in. As he screamed, I lifted him up and threw him at one of the other men, sending them both to the ground.
Just then, a Quinjet roared to life, one of a few resting on the flight deck of the helicarrier with us. It rose up, aiming it's gun at me. I leaped towards it instead, jumping onto the cockpit. The aircraft rose up towards the doors above us, the pilot staring at me while I climbed on top. My feet shot out crystals from my heels to slice into the Quinjet and give me footing. I snapped my hands out to the side, my arms becoming twelve foot long blades.
“Raagh!” With a quick downward slice, I chopped off the wings of the Quinjet. It plummeted out of the air, slamming into the flight deck. I hopped off the Quinjet and looked at the pilot, who stared at me in horror. I responded by kicking the Quinjet away from me, sending it skittering across the concrete until it was out of my way.
The soldiers, seeing they couldn't hurt me, tried to run for cover. I tapped the Omnitrix symbol on my chest.
“Fasttrack!”
As soon as I became the blue furred speedster, I was moving. I sped up to one man and kicked him in the back as he ran. I landed and ran to another, grabbing him by the chest of his uniform and spinning to throw him as fast as I could. He hung in the air when I let go, slowly flying away. I ran to another bunch, about five men, and began hitting them. I kicked one in between the legs at super-speed. One I punched in the chest quickly Ip Man style. Another got a superman punch. One was thrown at a Quinjet. For the last, I swept his legs out from under him. I watched as he slowly floated in the air before slapping the Omnitrix on my chest.
As my perception of time slowed, the effects of my run took place. The man I'd kicked flew forward ten feet, rolling to a stop. The one I'd thrown sped up in an instant, slamming into a crate. Another man fell to his knees clutching his devastated groin. The guy I'd punched in the chest grunted in pain as his broken ribs caught up with him. Another man spun in the air before he slammed into the ground from the force of my superman punch. A Quinjet shuddered when a human man was thrown into it. The guy whose legs I'd swept hit the ground. He looked up at me and released a high-pitched scream at my visage.
“Blitzwolfer!” I howled. My voice crying my name echoed through the hangers, then into the hallways.
“The hell was that!?” Rhodey said from the Omnitrix.
“Me,” I leaned towards the guy on the ground. He screamed again. I punched him in the face, and he fell unconscious.
I ran towards the command tower/island on all fours. I needed get inside and stop the crewmembers from doing anything. Tony and Rhodey had the same goal. While Black Widow and Captain America lead their teams in the Triskelion, the three heavy hitters took out the crew of the helicarriers.
I loped along the flight deck. Six men popped out from behind cover and started shooting at me. My mouth opened into four parts.
"▅▄▅▂▅▄▄▅▂▃▅▅▅▃▄▄▅▅!"
As the inhuman sound erupted from my lungs as though it was rending at reality, a sonic wave of noise slammed into the six men with physical force. The crates they were using as cover slid back from the attack. They fell to their knees, blood pouring from their ears to spill down their neck.
And then I was among them. I shoulder tackled one into a crate, then back-fisted him in the face, sending him unconscious to the ground.. His friend shakily raised a gun at me. My claws slashed out, slicing through kevlar to cut into his chest. The man shrieked in horror. I let out my own noise.
“▅▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"
He was thrown by my sonic blast, rolling to a stop on the pavement. I leaped over another crate and kicked a man in the face with a pawed foot, the crack of a broken jaw following. I heard another gunshot, then felt an pain in my shoulder. I barked in pain, spinning around. One of the HYDRA men who I'd deafened shakily aimed a Glock 19 at my face. Blood poured from my wound. It hurt, but only enough to enrage me. I was on him in an instant. I bit into his arm and began to shake my head furiously, savaging his arm. When he dropped the gun I let go of his arm and grabbed him by the front of his uniform, lifting and throwing him away dismissively.
The sound of a Quinjet brought my attention closer to the command tower. The aircraft lifted up and aimed it's guns at me in a repeat of last time.
“Not happening! ▄▅▂▃▅▅▅▃▃▄▄▅!”
The sonic blast slammed into the Quinjet, shaking it. I leaped upwards and gripped the damaged aircraft by the underside, then fired a point blank blast. The Quinjet shook, twirling in the air for a moment.
Then I saw a massive cannon turn towards me. Apparently, I'd finally pissed HYDRA off enough that I was now worth the big guns. Anti-aircraft guns began to turn on me. I leaped away as the Quinjet began to crash, only for the aircraft to get hit by massive bullets, turning it into shrapnel.
I needed a way to shut down the Anti-aircraft weapons as well as the Quinjets, and Bliztwolfer wasn't going to cut it. I needed more ranged firepower.
I slammed the Omnitrix on my chest.
My fur turned into rubbery black skin. My eyes merged into the center of my forehead. My ears and tail grew from wolven to long tendrils with plus at the tips. My five claws became four fingers with more plugs on each fingertip. I rose to my full height and grinned as I lowered my hand from the Omnitrix on my chest.
“Feedback!”
A Quinjet flew close and fired on me. I pointed my hands at the ground. The energy in my body, a storm of power like none of my other aliens could even think of matching, fired from the plugs in my hand and launched me into the air one electrical streams of power. I flew on the blast of blue energy and landed on the Quinjet's cockpit as it continued to fire. I held a hand up and grinned at the pilot.
“At some point, you guys are gonna run out of Quinjets for me to destroy!”
I felt the power running through the Quinjet. Advanced fuel cells running through the aircraft to the powerful rotors in the wings and the jet engines in the back.
Feedback could feel that power. And I could take it. Electricity flowed from the steel of the Quinjet, entering into my fingertips. The Quinjet's rotors slowly faltered. I turned away from the Quinjet to point at another one that was lifting off the helicarrier. As I turned into a living conduit of energy, shooting the energy I was siphoning from the Quinjet I was on top of to hit another with a beam of blue energy.
The Quinjet I was on smashed into the pavement as the one I was shooting did the same, it's wings exploding. I fired at the Anti-aircraft gun trying to kill me, my energy blast turning the massive cannon into scrap. I leaped off the Quinjet and ran towards the control tower. I felt the power flowing through it from below deck, more than I'd ever felt. This helicarrier had more power in it than New York City.
I stole electricity from one more aircraft gun, blue energy flowing into my tendrils as I ran past, and fired another blast as a ball of power that exploded against the next, destroying it in a wave of power. Soldiers firing at me were blasted as well. I leaped into the air, pirouetting and firing lightning from my fingers into them. I ducked a grenade and ran faster. I summoned a ball of electricity into my hand and tossed it into a group, where it exploded and sent the soldiers into fits of shaking as thousands of volts flew through them.
I blasted the floor and flew upwards. I released the blasts and began shooting as I dropped. Lighting arced from me to slam into the men on the flight deck in a dizzying display of light, my fingers and tendrils shooting as fast as I could. I landed, then used another jet of power to get out of the way of of more gunfire.
Then I was at the control tower. I tried to open the door, but they had electronically locked.
No, seriously. It was electronically locked.
I absorbed the power running through it, then slammed the door with an energy blast. “Can't blame them I guess,” I said, as the dor was sent flying off it's hinges. My next words were directed to the Omnitrix. “Maria, I'm in the helicarrier. How do I get to main power from the flight deck?”
“It's in the lower levels,” she said swiftly. “Head down the hallway, then turn to your left, I'll guide you through.”
A man came out of a side room with an assault rifle up. I fired a blast into his chest, sending him flying, then tapped the Omnitrix.
“Goop!”
Turning into the green goo alien was the best choice for the tight quarters of the ship. With the Anti-Gravity Projector floating me through the halls, I flew through the gray rooms at high speed. If anyone snuck up on me, I couldn't be hurt, and I could slide around obstacles with ease. Still, I was pushing it. I had rarely transformed this much before. I'd been reckless at the start of the battle, something to watch out for. Right then however, I focused on getting to the power source I'd felt as Feedback.
“Down the stairs,” Maria said.
Another crewmember tried to stop me. I flew right him, ignoring the bullet that flew through my floating form, then turned bipedal to roundhouse kick him into a wall, shooting adhesive that attached him there.
“Heading down!” I told Maria, turning into a floating ball again and shooting downwards.
Level by level I went. More men tried to shoot me, bullets flying uselessly into me. I responded by flying over and punching them, kicking them. At one point five guys were running at me down a hallway. I fired a stream of acid goo at the floor and watched as the metal floor melted in seconds to drop them a level below, then leaped after to shoot them with adhesive as they lay there.
From there, Maria walked down another level.
“Okay, you're there!” She told me.
“I can tell,” I said, my form solidifying into my biped form once more.
It was a big ass engine room. Very cool looking. More crewmembers tried to shoot at me, which I responded to by shooting streams of adhesive, attaching them to the walls, floor, or just covering them in sticky fluid until they couldn't move.
Of course, it was right as the gunfire got really heavy that I heard a familiar beep.
“Shit!”
I leaped behind a massive piece of machinery just in time for the red flash of light to come. Just like that, I was a normal human. Bullets slammed into my cover. I reached for my leg and pulled out the Glock 19 I'd been given.
“Gonna be a slight delay!” I yelled into the Omnitrix. “How is everyone else doing?”
"Been an interesting day!" Sam yelled back, giving me a brief overview as I tried not to get shot.