Vengeance [Avengers Fanfiction]

[Chapter 13]

[Quinn]

    A brief and uncomfortable silence fell over the room the moment after Agent Crowe left. Steve fidgeted in his chair, and Dr. Banner nervously cleaned his glasses with a handkerchief.

    "So...Fury...," Tony leaned back in his chair while casually twirling a ballpoint pen in his fingers. "Did you find anything on Phanty?" He nodded towards me, a curious glint in his eyes.

    "Really, Stark? You couldn't think of anything better than Phanty?" Barton snorted.

    Tony rolled his eyes. "That's not the point right now, Legolas. Fury?"

    Fury nodded to Agent Hill, who then pulled something up on the screen.

    "The death toll has been rising. At least one-hundred civilians are now dead, the cause of death unknown." A female newscaster who had bright, platinum blonde hair and who was clutching a stack of papers reported. The Fycon City News symbol was shown in the bottom right corner.

    A male reporter wearing a gray suit and who had thinning brown hair was now shown on the screen.

    "The death toll is now one hundred and thirty nine. Fifteen people have been reported dead in just these past two days. This morning, local police officers found a victim clutching a video camera and recovered the footage. This chilling video of the man's last moments is what they found."

    A dimly lit alley at night was shown, the camera wobbling as you could hear the man's pounding footsteps and ragged breathing. A shriek from behind him made him spin around and nearly caused the camera to slip from his grasp. The camera caught a glimpse of a demon as the man screamed and dropped the camera, the lens cracking slightly as it hit the pavement.

    A picture of the demon taken from the video popped up. The photo was blurry and dark, but the figure of the demon, hunched over with wings extended, mouth agape and claws drawn, was clear enough to partially make out what it was.

    "Officials are still investigating into what this gruesome creature is, but until then all citizens are advised to stay indoors."

    Another clip of a news report was shown, this time of the woman from before.

    "Another three civilians were attacked and killed by a demon, as the monsters have become to be known as, last night. But this time, a man by the name of Jeffrey Wallas has the first tale of his survival from a demon."

    A man in his late thirties or early forties was shown. He had auburn hair, a short beard, and wore a white t-shirt and black pants.

    "Last night, my two daughters -they're nine and twelve years old- heard some noises coming from outside of the apartment we live in. We live on the bottom floor, close to where the dumpsters are kept, and my apartment's been known for having a raccoon problem. I went outside to check it out, and out of nowhere a demon attacked me and slammed me to a wall. I- It was the scariest thing I've ever experienced in my life. I really thought I was going to die. Then, out of nowhere, the demon screamed and died. It kind of turned into ash or something, I don't know. I looked up and this guy was standing there, wearing all black. I couldn't see his face. Before I had time to thank him for saving my life, he was gone, like a ghost or phantom of some sort. Wherever he is now, I just want to thank him. I owe him my life."

    "Who is this mysterious man, and how did he kill the demon? The police department is still looking into this incident. All citizens are still advised to stay indoors at night." The newscaster said matter-of-factly while ruffling through some papers.

    Fury turned away from the screen and faced the room. "There have also been many reports of mysterious muggings, drug busts, and criminals who have been found tied up in front of the police department." He sent me an accusing glare.

    "Muggings?" I scoffed. "I may be a bad-ass vigilante who beats the shit out of criminals, but I don't mug people. Most of those are just fake reports filed by the Police Department that try to turn citizens against me."

    Agent Romanoff cut into the conversation. "Let's get to the point. Fury, did you find anything else or not?"

    "No." Fury admitted. "But Agent Crowe is working on finding more."

    Crowe. Something about that man sent all of my senses on high alert. I would have to be careful around him.

    The doors opened and someone strode into the room, walking with an air of importance and grace.

    "Fury, how nice to see you again." The man smiled, the white in his salt-and-pepper mustache and hair contrasting with his light brown skin. He wore a tweed, expensive looking suit with a plaid shirt and a tie.

    "Mr. Fox, you're late." Fury commented.

    Lucius Fox strode across the room to stand beside Fury and shook his hand. "I had some urgent business to attend to." He turned to the room and gave a nod to everyone, then his eyes slid over to me.

    "Phantom." He acknowledged, a small smile playing on his lips.

    "Lucius." I greeted, my voice a little less monotone. I hadn't seen him since he gave me my daggers, chips and jacket. I was glad to see him, but there was no chance at all that we would be able to talk in private.

    Fury's eyes slid in between us in slight disbelief.

    "You two are friendly?" Steve Rogers asked, slightly bewildered.

    "I made Quinn her daggers, which I've heard she's been putting to good use against the demons."

    "Or rather, not heard." Barton muttered. I could tell he and Romanoff were slightly miffed that no real information was found on me. I could understand why though, since they were master assassins and spies and were used to easily getting all of the information they needed about their target.

    "S.H.I.E.L.D hired Mr. Fox to make all of you your weapons. They would have been made sooner than this, but it was rather difficult to get someone to accept." Fury explained. "Stark, Banner, you two are going to help him with designing and making the weapons."

    Banner nodded and Tony smiled and cracked his knuckles. "When can we begin?"

    "Right now, if you'd like. I slept on the plane ride here." Lucius said.

    Tony and Bruce stood, both shaking Lucius's hand before they left the room.

    "I've heard a lot about you, Mr. Fox. I think this project will be fun." Tony's voice trailed off as the three walked further down the hallway.

    "Phantom, I'm putting you back into the fighting arena, if you're not too tired."

    I snorted. Of course Fury knew that I wouldn't turn down a fight. It wasn't like I was actually going to get any sleep if I had the chance. I usually avoid the nightmares by going as long as possible without sleeping, usually distracting myself with street fights and killing demons.

    "That goes for everyone else, too. You'll meet Coulson down there in fifteen minutes, who'll explain everything." Fury stalked towards the door and pushed it open with one hand, then turned over his shoulder.

    "Let's see how good you are compared to Hawkeye, Phantom." He called.

    Barton's eyebrows rose and he sent a glance over towards me, as did everyone else. Romanoff was slightly smirking, already knowing that her partner would be the victor.

     I could clearly read the look on everyone's faces. I didn't have a chance. Well, I really hoped that they were wrong. Apparently Hawkeye was very good, based on the silent respect the rest of the agents in S.H.I.E.L.D gave him.

    "This shall prove to be quite interesting." Thor mused.

    There was a silent agreement between all of the Avengers.

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[A/N]: Thanks for reading this! Comments and votes are appreciated! Oh, and did anyone recognize Lucius from anything? Batman perhaps? :)