If you told Nina a few weeks ago, that the thing that finally drove her mad was the ghost of a man she'd technically killed singing a children's song over and over she'd most likely call you insane. But as she stood on the mats in the training room of the Bus, hands pressed firmly against her ears, she decided that maybe she was the insane one.
"God, shut up. Shut up!" Nina muttered through gritted teeth as the man continued to sing.
Pop goes the weasel.
She'd tried everything she could think of to silence the man but nothing worked. The more he sung, the louder he got and Nina was slowly losing it. Her lack of control had gotten so bad that she'd even gone as far as to ask Coulson to take her out of the field for the rest of the assignment because she couldn't trust herself.
It was a request that had immediately raised concerns and questions. Nina had answered all of them diplomatically, yet she felt utterly disgusting as she had used Trip's death as the ultimate reason for her stepping back. Coulson had granted the request after that, especially since Skye had asked for the same thing, the director clearly thinking survivors guilt was eating away at his agents.
That's the way the money goes. Pop goes the weasel.
"Shut up!" Nina snapped, loudly for the first time. Her gloved hand pulled a knife off her arm and threw it in the direction of the blue-tinted body. She wasn't surprised to see the weapon pass directly through the man and embed in the panelled wall, but she was surprised to see the man's blank face twist into a sickening smile before he went up in a puff of blue smoke.
A relieved breath left her mouth as he disappeared but she was still very paranoid. She didn't remove her gloves or look down at her exposed skin, not wanting to know if her veins were still black and instead she pulled the fabric of her turtleneck further up her neck, secretly thanking a god she didn't believe in that the veins in her face hadn't changed colour.
Nina honestly felt like she was dying, the longer her veins stayed in that state the physically weaker she felt. The added paranoia of someone other than Skye and Fitz seeing them was simply a torturous bonus.
"Hey, Nina."
That's why Mack couldn't pick a worse time to walk in. Before he even got the chance to finish his sentence, Nina had pulled a knife from her boot and thrown it in his direction.
Her eyes widened when she noticed that the person who had spoken wasn't a blue-tinted ghost out to haunt her, but the realisation hit her too late, the hilt of her knife already too far past her fingertips to halt the attack.
"Move back," Nina yelled at Mack, sliding her sleeve back down her exposed arm. The mechanic looked at her confused before he saw the blade rushing towards him at an inhumane speed.
He heeded Nina's warning and took a massive step back, the only problem with his movement was that he also raised his arm. The trajectory of the knife curved directly in front of his body and the blade, that would have impaled Mack in the side of the neck, instead slashed across his forearm before finding a home in the wall.
"Jesus Christ, Mack," Nina exclaimed as she jogged over to the man. She came to a stop in front of him, grabbing his large hand and moving it so she could see the tear in his sleeve and the cut now in his skin, "I said move back not raise your damn arm!"
"Hey, you just tried to stab me!" Mack yelled back, wincing slightly when Nina literally ripped his sleeve from his shirt, "you don't get to lecture me."
Nina glared at him before her features softened. She was mad at her powers and the lack of control she had over them, taking that anger out on Mack wasn't something she should do.
"You're right... sorry," Nina apologised letting go of his arm after she'd had a good look at the cut. It was a little worse than a scratch and wasn't bleeding much, "I was in my head and momentarily forgot other people are on this plane."
"Are you okay?" Mack asked concerned. It was one thing for Nina to explain her actions out in entirety but it was another thing completely for her to look so vulnerable.
She didn't answer Mack's question verbally and resulted to simply nodding. He watched as she walked towards the wall and pulled out her knife, his eyebrow raising in confusion as she pulled out a second one from a different section of the wall. Fitz had told Mack how much Nina treasured her knives, so seeing not one but two in the wall that would undoubtedly dent them, worried him.
"We're gonna need to treat that if you don't want it to scar," Nina said as she sheathed the knives and tucked them into her empty gun holster. Usually, she would reattach them to her body but she didn't want Mack to see her uncooperative veins, "I have the stuff in my bunk."
There was no question or command in Nina's words nor did she look at Mack as she walked past him and exited the room, yet the man turned on his heel and followed her out. They didn't talk as they walked through the plane, stray agents all turned to glance at Nina and Mack suddenly understood why she liked to spend her time either hidden away in her bunk, the lab or in the training rooms.
People looked at her like she was an exhibit in a zoo. They watched her every move, cataloguing the way she walked and interacted almost like they were expecting her to suddenly attack. There was a mix of fear and awe in the agents' eyes as they watched her move. And from the way Nina's fist clenched tightly by her sides, only relaxing when they entered the safety of her bunk, Mack knew she saw it all too.
"Take your shirt off," Nina said as she closed the door behind him.
"What!?" Mack asked, his eyes widened at the order. Nina turned back to face him, confused by the tone, before smiling teasingly when she realised where his thoughts went.
"Get your mind out of the gutter Mack," she laughed, "if I remember correctly, I stabbed you back in Puerto Rico as well... twice. They've probably scarred over already, I can help control the discolouration."
"Oh right," Mack whispered, thanking his melanin for the fact that he couldn't really blush. He pulled his shirt over his head, missing Nina's eyes wandering down his chest.
In Nina's mind, Mack was sculpted to perfection, his body could easily rival Captain America's and she wasn't afraid to admit he was a very good looking man. But before Mack could catch her gawking she spoke.
"What did you want to tell me?" Nina asked as she gestured for Mack to take a seat on her bed while she pulled out two bottles from a drawer. They were both unlabelled, though one bottle held oil and the other held cream.
"Huh?" Mack asked confused and Nina dropped the bottles on the bed next to him.
"Bobbi's your partner, isn't she?" Nina asked as she grabbed a roll of bandages and makeup pads, "you two only ever train together and since Bobbi was knocked out, I know you weren't coming in there to train. So what did you want to tell me?"
"Oh right, Turbo was looking for you. He wanted to fill you in," Mack answered as Nina focused back on him. She kneeled on the bed beside him and poured some oil on a makeup pad, "Coulson pulled him away so I said I'd do it instead."
"Alright, go ahead," Nina muttered as she applied the oil to Mack's cut. He winced slightly as it made contact before growing used to the feeling. She was surprisingly gentle with her application, gliding the pad across the injury and clasping her gloved hand around it to soothe the pain if it got too much.
Mack was honestly a little surprised to see such a change but once the fluster of Nina's touch wore off, he began speaking. He told her about how their unknown was really Kree and that the Kava, Lady Sif was looking for, actually referred to keys. Though keys in this case were a bunch of obelisks that had changed Nina and Skye, not that Mack knew about that yet. He'd concluded that they were on their way to Chaves, Portugal where they were certain this Kree was heading.
"There's never a dull day in SHIELD, huh?" Nina said softly as she finished treating Mack's arm and old wounds. She applied both oil and cream, as well as wrapping the injured area with a white bandage, "there, you're all done."
"Thanks," Mack said as he flexed the bandage slightly. Nina wasn't ashamed to say her eyes drifted to his biceps while he did so.
"It's the least I can do," Nina shrugged moving to put away her things, "hey, how is Fitz doing? Injury wise that is."
"He's doing a lot better than he was before," Mack said with a soft smile, "he can get through longer sentences without assistance and he's better with his hands now."
Nina smiled at that information. Fitz had been fussing over her and Skye so much lately, so it was nice to know that he had someone like Mack looking out for him. Though before she was able to share her gratitude, there was a knock at her door.
"Come in."
Before Mack had the chance to properly pull on his shirt, May opened the door and walked in. Her eyes immediately scanned the room, taking in the semi-shirtless man sitting on Nina's bed and the bedsheets Nina hadn't made yet. It took one look in May's eyes for the younger specialist to know what she was assuming.
"It's not what you think," Nina said calmly.
"I didn't say anything," May responded with a small smirk.
"But you're thinking it."
"Is it a crime to think?"
"When that's what you're thinking about, yes," Nina shot back. May rose an eyebrow before looking back to Mack, who was, unfortunately, no longer shirtless.
"We land in 5 minutes, get ready," she told him. Mack nodded, he thanked Nina by clasping her shoulder before walking out of the room. May's eyes followed him until he disappeared around the corner and she turned back to Nina, "I mean, you could definitely do worse but I thought you were with Fitz."
"I'm not with anyone yet," Nina sighed as she adjusted the fabric of her turtleneck, "I hurt Mack, I was just helping fix it. We weren't doing what you think we were."
May didn't give Nina a response, she simply hummed at the agent and turned around. Nina groaned loudly and rushed after her, trying to convince her of the truth. Unaware that the real reason she was pushing so hard was because the only person she wanted to be thought of in that way with, was Fitz.
*
Nina didn't check back into the assignment until the team captured their unknown and they'd landed back at the Playground. She didn't take part in the interrogation of the Kree, instead opting to take a shower and change into a blue hoodie, that she was sure belonged to Fitz. The first time she laid eyes on anyone from the team was a few minutes later, when she walked into the kitchen area of the Playground and watched as their captive kicked a small truncheon about of Coulson's hands.
"Hey!" Sif yelled before the Kree, now known as Vin-Tak, caught the truncheon and hit her in the chest with it.
The Asgardian was sent flying into a table while Coulson, Skye and May drew their guns. Nina knew she should've done the same but the mug of coffee in her hand was seemingly more important to her at the moment. She'd never felt so drained before and the idea of losing even a drop of its caffeine wasn't something she even wanted to think about.
She wondered if that was a side effect to her power as today was the first time it had been active for hours, instead of just minutes.
"Sorry," Vin-Tak said as he dropped the truncheon and held up his hands, "the argument was going nowhere."
"You back with us?" Coulson asked as he looked back at Sif, gun still aimed at Vin-Tak.
"Yes," she answered the director, "my memories have returned. I am Lady Sif of Asgard, friend of the SHIELD."
As Sif spoke she moved forward, stopping in front of the Kree and punching him as hard as she could. Nina laughed at the display, drawing attention to her presence, before drinking the rest of her coffee and setting down the empty mug. The liquid burned down her throat as Coulson moved between the two aliens.
"Asgardian," Vin-Tak spat, as he held his nose, "well that explains a lot."
"It is true, we do not trust Kree," Sif said giving Vin-Tak a look before focusing on Coulson, "that is why I am here. When Heimdall saw that one landed on your world Odin charged me with retrieving him."
"So you came to pick a fight."
"We know enough about Kree history to be concerned."
"Well, then, if you know Kree history perhaps you've heard the tale of Terrigenesis," at Vin-Tak's words Nina's eyes widened and she watched as Skye turned to look at her.
Nina was certain she'd never heard the word Terrigenesis before, but for some reason, it felt familiar to her. It echoed through her head, yet where her brain couldn't define it her heart did. She reacted by adjusting her hoodie, happy that her usual thick white bandage hid the veins in her neck and its sleeves were long enough to hide her hands completely.
"Of course," Sif scoffed, almost insulted that he had even asked, "ancient Kree descending on planets, altering the inhabitants to fight their war."
"And Earth was one of them."
The worry in Skye's eyes only seemed to grow at Vin-Tak's words and Nina had to look away from the hacker, her thoughts quickly growing out of control. She tapped a familiar pattern against her thigh, trying to keep her mind in line before the voices came back, the ghosts paid a visit or the room grew darker.
"Blue angels who fell from the sky," Skye whispered, quoting something Raina had said. Despite Nina never hearing it from the girl in the flower dress, it still resonated deep within her.
"Eons ago, the Kree waged a very long war," Sif explained, "the causalities were high and they needed more soldiers."
"We needed killers," Vin-Tak said, neither proud nor remorseful about what he was explaining, though the three agents did relax their aim, "one vicious faction among the Kree genetically modified other creatures' DNA. These modifications can be activated with Terrigen crystals."
Nina's face remained passive while her mind raced with activity. She remembered seeing blue crystals bloom out of the Obelisk like a flower and from the look on Skye's face, she did too.
"We know these tortured experiments failed."
"Not on Earth," the Kree corrected lady Sif, "here we had to shut them down. This faction had built a city. They brought with them The Diviners, which hold the crystals. Their plans were discovered and thwarted by the better of my kind, putting an end to that dark chapter of our past."
"Until now," Skye muttered, loud enough for the room to hear but no one other than Nina understood the words she hadn't said.
Until now, until us.
"When I saw that an ancient signal had been triggered, I knew it had to be a Diviner. If the Kree empire learned that these experiments were a success they would be likely to renew them."
"Why are you here?" Nina managed to spit out. Beneath the long sleeves of her hoodie, her hands were clenched into tight fists, her nails finding their second home in her palms thanks to the lack of leather gloves.
"These transformed beings are... abominations," no one noticed Skye and Nina wince at the description, "I knew that I had to find the remainder of The Diviners before another monstrosity occurred and erase any knowledge of it."
"How many Diviners are supposed to be in that crate?" May asked and Nina thought back to Fitz and Simmons, who were undoubtedly trying to open the box Vin-Tak had been brought in with.
"Enough to create an army," Vin-Tak said.
"Sir!" Simmons' voice echoed through the room, coming from the intercom in the corner, "the crate is empty."
The team looked to one another in shock and fear, though Nina and Skye also held concealed worry behind their eyes. This was bad, not only because two warriors had dropped by Earth due to this Terrigenesis, but because if Hydra had the other diviners... what was happening to Nina and Skye were the least of everyone's worries.
"My worst fear has come true," Vin-Tak announced, new determination in his voice, "we must find the remaining Diviners as well as anyone who's transformed."
"We drowned the temple where the Diviners were activated so, that's a plus," Coulson said, and Nina really hoped he stopped there but atlas he continued, "and we do know the woman who was changed."
"So, someone was transformed?" Sif questioned, "a Kree slave warrior created. Have you put it down?"
It? Is that what Nina was now, an it?
"She disappeared," the director said, "we don't know much about Raina's transformation. Skye and Nina witnessed it but they didn't see much."
"You were there?" Sif asked alarmed, turning to face Skye. Nina was quick to move by the hacker's side, her promise and natural protective nature of those important to her, kicking in, "what did you see?"
"I... I didn't- I mean..."
"Nothing, we saw nothing," Nina answered for the stuttering mess that was Skye. She was just as nervous but the last thing she was going to do was show that to the very people who were just talking about killing them.
"Were there others with you? They might be-"
"He's dead," Nina stated, cutting the blue alien off when the memory of Trip's was brought up.
"The changes may not be on the surface but buried inside," Vin-Tak continued. As he did so, familiar dizziness hit Nina and she took a step back to accommodate for her changed equilibrium, but not before catching a glass full of water shaking vigorously on the table, "you must understand, these creatures are weapons, abominations, even if they don't know it."
The shaking was quick to intensify, spreading from the mere glass of water to the entire base. Pots and pans hanging behind them began to fall to the floor and everyone, but Nina and Skye, looked around confused. The specialist was unable to reach out and calm down Skye, instead, gritting her teeth in pain as she doubled over panting heavily.
"Nina?" Coulson asked, he made a move to get closer to his agent but stopped when Nina looked up from the floor. The veins of her face were slowly growing black, prodding against her skin as the whites of her blue eyes darkened. May and Coulson gasped at the sight, missing the shadows in the room travelling across the floor towards Nina's combat boots
"Son of Coul, what is this?" Sif asked. She was yet to notice Nina's state, instead, focusing on the shaking in the base.
"Skye... Nina..." May said softly. Skye looked up at her with guilty eyes while Nina inhaled, trying to take deep breaths and retain some kind of control over her body, "you want to talk to us?"
"Nina, what's doing this to you?" Coulson gulped as he stepped closer to the agents, "Skye... what's doing this?"
The fear that had been accumulating in both Nina and Skye since they first found out they were different poured out of Skye's voice while she answered both the questions.
"We are..."
And Sif immediately lunged towards the pair.
Before the Asgardian could lay hands on either Nina or Skye, the executioner moved in front of the hacker, throwing her arms up in a desperate attempt of retaliation. Where she expected to feel the sharp sting of an Asgardian sword impaling her, she was pleasantly surprised to find herself in one piece.
Though the shadow wall, created from the shadows that had congregated at her feet shooting up into the air to protect her, was unexpected.
Nina stared at it in fear and trepidation, though the feelings quickly dissolved into a kill or be killed mentality when the wall faded back down into the ground and dark wisps swirled around her outstretched hands.
Sif lunged again, but this time before Nina could react, Skye screamed. She threw her hands over her head in agony and the pane of glass behind her shattered, raining shards into the room. Nina wanted nothing more than to turn around and check on Skye but she didn't, Coulson and May still had their guns drawn while Vin-Tak and Sif looked ready to kill them.
And as much as Nina didn't want to believe it, she didn't know if either party was on their side.
"I can't control this," Nina muttered as the wisps grew into ropes of shadow, twirling around her lower arms, "come after us and I can't guarantee I won't kill you."
Nina was too preoccupied with keeping a traumatised Skye, hidden behind her back and reading the emotions on Coulson and May's faces, to notice a blue-tinted body with familiar green eyes, that she'd waited years to see again, appear in the corner of the room.