On Command ~ Sequel to Lost Heros

Not Your Hero or Avenger

"He's alive," I stated. "Just unconsciousness. He should go to the hospital quickly." She nodded rapidly and smiled at me, "Thank you so much! You are truly a savior!" Again I nodded at the complement and ran off to continue fighting against the aliens.

If that lady knew who I really was she wouldn't have called me that.

     In the next hour I kept fighting the aliens and kept saving people. I was beaten around my sides, and I had blood running down my forehead. But I made sure the bandana never left my face.
I was currently fighting one on one with one of the aliens when it suddenly just dropped. Confused, I looked around and saw the other creatures fall in the same manner.

Thank god, I was running low on ammo!
With that, I made a break for it. I walked rapidly away from all of the wandering people and toward my apartment building. Every time I saw people staring, I picked up the pace and turned the corner. Lucky for me, they were all busy with the more popular heroes to notice me. As I walked away from the center of the alien battle the amount of people on the streets grew scarce and no one looked at me too much anymore. From far away I could see my building and started to run for it when I saw that it hadn't been destroyed.

     I ripped of the bandana from my face and ran towards the entrance and made my way up the stairs to my room. A relieved laugh escaped from me when I saw my roommates inside huddling by the tv with the news on. They were too engrossed in it to notice that I had walked in.
I let my bag fall to the floor with a thud, "I almost died out there and you two can't say hi?" Jess jumped out at the sight of me and ran over to hug me. Hanna let out a sigh and joined in a second after. "Claire, you look awful," joked Jess, "but I'm glad you're okay."

     We all turned our attention back to the news. The new so called 'Avengers' were the main topic of discussion. It seemed that a lot of people thought they were a menace while others thought of them as heroes.
"It does seem though, that one of today's heroes does not want to be identified for her extraordinary work," said one of the news anchors. The news went to live footage of a man who was covered in dirt like everyone else in New York at the moment. It took me a while before recognition set in and I remembered him as the man who just stared at me in the alley. "She came out of nowhere and fought off the aliens like they were nothing!" He said to the man interviewing him. "Did you see what she looked like?"  He asked him. "No, sir. She was wearing a black bandana over the lower half of her face so I couldn't tell." The original news anchor came back on and switched the screen to a woman in a hospital. It was the mother of the boy I had saved. "She saved my little boy. As far as I'm concerned these heroes are a blessing." The video panned to the man interviewing the mother, "if anyone has any information on the masked hero feel free to call the station to send any tips."

     I felt a pat on the back and I grinned to myself. For the first time in what felt like a lifetime, I had actually helped someone and succeeded.

4 Hours Later

      It was late at night when I heard the knock on my door. Hanna had answered the door and told me wearily that a man was here to see me. I walked out of my room to see a dark skinned man with an eyepatch in our living room. He had an official look to him which made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
"Excuse me," he said to my roommates, "I'd like to have a word with Ms.Doyle alone." They both looked at me and I nodded to let them know I was okay. Both of them disappeared to their rooms.
I shifted uncomfortably, "Would you like some water?" He shook his head and sat down on the kitchen table. "Have a seat, Ms.Doyle," he ordered as he motioned to the empty seat in front of him. I did as I was told and tried to make myself looked as relaxed as possible.

"You know," he started, "You saved a lot of people today." I blinked a couple times, "How did y-" He cut me off, "Security cameras around New York. Simply tapped into them and led me straight to you." I stayed silent. "Don't worry," the man added, "We've erased those videos so only I now know where you live." I raised my eyebrow at the strange man, "Who are you?"
"My name is Director Fury and I am the head of SHIELD." I shook my head at him, "What the hell is that supposed to mean to me? What do you want Director Fury, head of SHIELD?"
"Before we get into that, let's talk about the technicalities," he commented not answering my question. "Based on heavy Intel we at SHIELD have managed to figure out who you are. You see have you ever heard of the assassin called the Nyx?" I only stared at him with confusion in my eyes. I felt a deep uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach. "That woman was known to kill over a dozen people in the last ten years but here's the kicker. All of a sudden, five years ago, her death count had stopped. It's as if she went off of the grid. Now we never really knew which grid she was on but we've always known she was there. So tell me, Ms.Doyle, do you know what happened to her?" I was staring daggers at that man now.

     "What do you want from me?" I spat. "I've hurt no one these past five years. I've done nothing to prove that I am a menace to society. I don't do what I used to do anymore." He nodded his head, "Oh I know. Which is why I've come to offer you something." Fury reached into his coat and pulled out a file. I grabbed it and flipped through the pages. "An Avenger?" I questioned. "You want me to be an avenger?" He nodded his head but I only shook mine in return and slid back the file harshly. "I'm sorry but I'll have to decline your offer. I'm done with agency work. I don't do this kind of stuff anymore."
"You did it today," he said. "Well, that's different. I had to get some of the past blood off of my hands, that's all," I mumbled quietly. "This is a very generous offer, Ms. Doyle. Because of your actions today you've proven that you are eligible for this kind of special tasks force. Not to mention it would erase your criminal record in the governments eyes." I scoffed and played with my fingers, "Director Fury, do you know what Nyx means?" He shook his head. "It means goddess of the night. I have brought darkness, fear and pain to so many. I have tortured, stolen and even killed for whoever told me to do so. Just because I save a handful of people does not mean that it will erase everything I have done. Just because you want me to join your club does not make it so that everything I did will magically be erased." Director fury stared at me as I spoke through my gritted teeth. "I have a chance to turn away from all of that. So I will not join you and the rest of the avengers to have a reason to kill more people. I am DONE with this line of work. I am not a hero, and I am definitely not an avenger."

     Fury took the file and put it back in his coat. He cleared his throat, "I see and completely understand your decision." I looked at him with a puzzled expression, "You do?" He stood up from his chair, "Of course, but I'm afraid that as a killer, I cannot just let you go." I stared with panic in my eyes. "So I will do something for you. I'll continue to let you live your normal life as is. But I will require a favor of you."
"What favor?" I asked. He turned to the door,"I'll let you know when I need it but you are not allowed to deny my favor. I have a feeling that your skill set will come in handy one day. Do we have a deal, Nyx?"

I sighed, "Deal."