Special Agent Loki Laufeyson

Chapter 76

Gibbs barely had a moment to breathe before the Chitauri rushed towards them, their weapons leveled at the small group of Avengers. Everyone turned to face the warriors, readying their weapons to deal with the aliens.

"Form up!" Rogers shouted. "McGhee! Watch my six!"

"Copy that," McGhee responded.

"Stark!" Gibbs called. "You need to get Barton and I up top so we can snipe these –"

"On it!" Stark answered, grabbing Gibbs' arm and taking off. Depositing the former Marine on the roof of a nearby building, Stark zoomed back down to the ground, blasting at a Chitauri as he returned for Barton.

Slinging his sniper rifle down from his back, Gibbs quickly settled it on the edge of the rooftop and lay down behind it. Adjusting his sighting, he placed the scope on a Chitauri's helmet, tightening his finger around the trigger.

The back of the Chitauri's head exploded as the bullet pierced through its helmet and the alien toppled over. Settling his crosshairs over another Chitauri, Gibbs fired again, the powerful bullet eliminating another foe.

Stark flew back up to the rooftop, dropping Barton while they were still a few feet above the structure. The archer rolled as he hit the roof and came up on one knee beside Gibbs, surveying the scene below them.

"A couple arrows should straighten this crowd out," he muttered, placing an arrow on the string, drawing it back to the corner of his mouth, and letting the projectile fly. The arrow landed in the center of a thick group of Chitauri and exploded.

Down below, Rogers threw his shield, taking out one Chitauri as he kicked another in the abdomen. McGhee watched the captain's back, firing into the mass of aliens as Hulk went on a rampage, smashing the warriors into pulp left and right. Stark swooped down from above, firing lasers and missiles into the crowd. Gibbs and Barton continued to rain arrows and bullets down at the Chitauri, helping to thin the herd.

As the Avengers fought fiercely, the aliens began to scatter, some retreating rapidly while their companions covered their escape. Soon the only aliens around the team were dead ones.

"Agent Gibbs!" Thor's voice came over the earpiece. "The Chitauri are scattering throughout the city, past our perimeter. McCallan's still eliminating the behemoths and Colonel Rhodes and I are going to need assistance on the ground."

"I hear you, Thor," Gibbs answered.

"ETCD is on it," Drift's voice said. "We have a pack at twelve o'clock."

"Boss?" DiNozzo's voice echoed in his earpiece. "We've got Leopard in custody. Romanoff and I are bringing her in to the Yard. Loki has the scepter in his possession."

"Not again," Barton muttered.

"Good job, DiNozzo," Gibbs said, breathing an internal sigh of relief. "Barton and McGhee, rendezvous with Bishop. Help eliminate the rest of the Chitauri."

"Right," Barton responded. "Stark."

"I got you, Barton." Stark flew up to the roof and grabbed Barton before taking off.

Wait a second.... Gibbs looked up, realizing that something rather important had slipped his mind in all the chaos with Sharpe and the Chitauri. Agent Sniper is still at large. He touched his earpiece.

"Stark –"

Gibbs never got a chance to finish his sentence.

Agent Sniper came flying across the rooftop so swiftly Gibbs almost couldn't roll out of the way of her downward spinning rifle in time to avoid a nasty blow to the head. He lost his grip on his own rifle, Sniper kicking it further away from him as she leapt for a second attack.

Gibbs drew his gun and fired, forcing her to pause briefly to deflect the bullet. Using that pause to catapult to his feet, Gibbs fired again, taking a step backwards only to realize he was at the rooftop's edge.

"Gibbs!" The former Marine risked a second to glance down to see Rogers poised to throw his shield, the captain removing one hand from his earpiece. "Catch!"

The red, white, and blue shield arced through the air, straight towards Gibbs. Reaching his right arm out, Gibbs snatched the weapon out of the air and whipped it before him as Sniper brought the rifle crashing down towards him.

The rifle and the shield met with a resounding noise, vibranium on vibranium.

Sniper recoiled from the blow, eyeing up Gibbs' new weapon. Gibbs came at the assassin, hurling the shield at her and catching her in the shoulder. The woman staggered backwards, reeling from the blow, and Gibbs caught the shield as it flew back to him and jumped, bringing his gun up to fire.

Agent Sniper flipped her rifle up, deflecting the bullet down into the roof as she regained her balance. Gibbs flung his arm out, slamming the shield into her and sending her falling over as he fired with his gun, hitting her in the side. Sniper flinched away from the gunshot, rolling across the rooftop with her sniper rifle clutched to her chest and spinning up onto her feet.

Leveling her gun at Gibbs, Sniper fired, but the agent blocked the bullet with the shield. As he ran forward, Gibbs hurled his shield again, but Sniper struck it with her rifle this time and sent it skittering across the rooftop. Gibbs fired again, but she deflected it as she lunged forward, striking Gibbs in the diaphragm with the butt of her rifle.

Gibbs went down, gasping as all the air was forced prematurely out of his lungs. Grabbing his gun as it left his hand, Sniper aimed it at his head, ready to put a bullet through his brain and finish him off.

Lashing out wildly, Gibbs kicked Sniper in the leg and brought her down onto one knee, forcing her off balance. She jerked back, readjusting her aim, and Gibbs reached up again, grabbing at the mask on her face.

Sniper whipped back as soon as his fingers closed around the rim of her mask, sitting back as the strap holding the concealing cover snapped from the sudden force and the mask came off in Gibbs' hand.