May 4th, 2013
"My name is Dooku of the nation Serenno/Denmark and I'm speaking out against the corruption within the United Republic. Our world was forever changed by the terrorist organization Hydra and its leader the Red Skull. I proudly served the Jedi Order at that time as a young man alongside my former apprentice Qui Gonn Jinn. His murder at the hands of a cloaked assassin hurt me deeply.
Therefore I left the Jedi Order and reclaimed my birthright as the head of the House of Dooku. Using my family's vast fortune I sought to help the less fortunate all over the planet. In my travels I realized how corrupt the planet became due to the influence of the United Republic. Shield are the United Republic's lackeys and the Avengers are their pawns. Shield cannot be trusted and aren't held accountable by the United Republic.
They keep secrets from the people and use weak justifications for this behavior to maintain power. They're no different than Hydra the organization that plagued the world nearly a century ago that my former apprentice and I risked our lives to defeat all those years ago.
By calling the movement I represent a pejorative such as Separatist even the media is culpable in the corruption inside the government. We aren't Seperatist but freedom fighters seeking to fight for the poor, the non human, and non conforming galactic humans.
We are the Confederacy of Independent Nations and we want to be free to govern our respective territories in a transparent, fair and just manner as we see fit not the way the United Republic does. Using Loki's attack on New York City last year to make the public fear us will not deter our dream of making sure our citizens have justice and freedom. We will use whatever military measure to prevent the United Republic from destroying our movement."
Introduction
And there you have it. Former Jedi Master Dooku is now known as Count Dooku and is leading the Confederacy of Independent Nations as Chancellor. Dooku has formed an arrangement with rogue former members of the Trade Federation to build a droid army to fight a large scale war against the United Republic and its allies. The Jedi despite a lack of formal military experience are tasked via an agreement with Shield to lead an army of clones based on bounty hunter Jango Fett to combat the Seperatist droid army.
Meanwhile Dooku operates secretly as Sith Lord Darth Tyranus who is the apprentice to Sith Lord Darth Sidious. Tyranus has an assassin who is a former Jedi and is now a student of the Dark Side of the Force. In response to this secret development Nick Fury, Grandmaster Yoda, and Master of the Jedi Council: Jedi Master Mace Windu task recently ressurrected Shield Agent Phillip J Coulson in forming a joint task force of elite Shield Agents and elite Jedi to find and stop Dooku's secret plans and schemes in order to bring a swift end to the Clone Wars. A lot of responsibility rests on the shoulders of this newly formed team.
Skye sat in her van across a comic book store and watched construction worker Mike Peterson and his son Ace. She smiled as the young boy admired all the action figures of the superhero team the Avengers on a display inside the store window. Ace stared in awe at Captain America, Iron Man, Thor and the Incredible Hulk. Skye wondered why Black Widow and Hawkeye weren't included in the display. Skye shook her head in disgust. It was just like Shield to fly under the radar. To act like their secretive way of operating wasn't tyrannical and destructive.
Skye knew it was only a matter of time before someone as connected and influential as Count Dooku would challenge Shield. The fact that he used to be a Jedi made it more obvious to Skye that Shield was secretly using the Jedi as a clandenstine army to protect secrets and weapons. Skye's investigation into Shield also exposed their operations that focused on targeting innocent men like Mike. Skye concluded Shield's goal was to kidnap him and use his gifts to fight in the Clone Wars against Dooku's forces. They didn't care about his son and they definitely didn't care about keeping the truth from the public.
Mike and Ace continued walking down the street until Ace pointed at the sky. A building nearby was on fire and Mike leapt into the upper window of the building and retrieved a red haired woman who was coughing violently from the smoke. A crowd of people stared in awe at the sight and some of them started taking pictures. Mike smiled and picked up his son and placed him on his shoulders. The woman named Debbie profusely thanked Mike by shaking his hand vigorously.
Skye grinned at the sight. She was confident there was no possible way that Shield could abduct Mike. Skye decided to send Shield a message to let them know she and her fellow hackers Rising Tied would protect ordinary citizens from Shield. She turned on her computer and faced the camera on top of the computer screen.
"The secret is out. For decades your organization stayed in the shadows. Hiding the truth. But now we know...they're among us. Heroes...and monsters. The world is full of wonders. We can't explain everything we see. But our eyes are open. So what now? There are no more shadows for Shield to hide in. Something impossible just happened in plain sight today and the frequency of that statement being said is increasing. You teaming up with the Jedi means nothing. Soon we'll learn the Jedi Order's secrets too. So, what are you going to do about it? What now Shield? What now Jedi Order?"
The van door opened and four people stood in front of her. A teenage alien girl with orange skin and long bright white hair with blue horizontal streaks. Next to her stood a tall handsome young man with brown hair and blue eyes and next to him stood an even taller and just as handsome Shield Agent with dark hair and blue eyes. Rounding out the quartet was a middle aged man with brown hair and sun glasses who was also a Shield Agent. Skye was shocked to be found so quickly by two Jedi and two Shield Agents and was at a loss for words.
"Your days working for Count Dooku are over Skye. And Rising Tide is finished." The teenage Jedi said with a smirk
She brandished her lightsaber at Skye and Skye promptly raised her hands in surrender.
"Do you always have to snip and joke every 5 seconds? I should call you snips from now on." The male Jedi groaned
"What? I can't celebrate a successful end to the mission Master?" She argued
"We still have to interrogate her." He said with gritted teeth
"Oh...I knew that." She replied with a sheepish grin
"So...is this a we can do this the easy way or we can do this the hard way situation?" Skye asked jokingly
The middle aged Shield Agent placed a bag over Skye's head. Skye was grabbed and placed in a plane of some sort. They flew to a hidden base and when the bag was removed from Skye's head she was in an interrogation room. The three men sat across from her but the teenage girl was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's the girl? Did you people get rid of her for knowing too much? Is that what you're doing to me? Am I that much of a threat to your little Shield and Jedi alliance?" Skye questioned
"I'm Phillip Coulson and this is Agent Grant Ward and the Jedi is Anakin Skywalker. We need to know if you or your group of hackers are allied with Count Dooku and the Seperatist." The middle aged Agent explained
"We don't want to hurt you. Also Ahsoka is fine just a little enthusiastic for interrogation work." Anakin explained
"Is she your protégé?" Skye asked
"She's my Padawan or in layman's terms my apprentice and I'm responsible for her training in the Force and the Jedi way." Anakin answered
"Oh..ok. Um...I still don't trust any of you. I know you'll torture me to get the information that you want. So just get it over with. I know what kind of organization you are." Skye accused
"Shield isn't perfect and neither is the Jedi Order. But both of our organizations genuinely want to keep people safe. Words aren't going to convince you of that. So I'm going to use a different tactic and don't worry it's not torture."
Skye started to panic as Coulson pulled a small black briefcase from underneath the table. He opened it and inside was a syringe. He held it up in front of Skye and Skye eyed the syringe in fear.
"This is QNB-T16. It's the top-shelf martini of sodium-pentathol derivatives. It's a brand-new and extremely potent truth drug. Don't worry. The effects only last for about an hour." Coulson explained
"This is a much more effective way to extract the truth from you than torture." Anakin added
"And then you'll have a nice little nap. And we'll have all the answers to our--" Ward began to explain but Coulson injected Ward with the syringe.
"Gah! What the galaxy?!" Ward yelled
"I'm sorry, did that hurt?" Anakin asked
"No. But Coulson's lost his mind. He should never do that to a member of the team. And yes, it did hurt a little bit. But I always try and mask my pain in front of beautiful women because I think it makes me seem more masculine—my goodness this stuff works fast."
"Ask him whatever you like. Hopefully that'll allow you to trust us." Coulson said as he leaves the room
"Wait a minute. You can't just …" Ward started to say
Anakin stood up to leave as well and both he and Coulson observed the reverse interrogation by Skye. Anakin wondered if this new arrangement would lead to a swift end to the war. He was not working with the Avengers and no longer serving as Obi Wan Kenobi's Padawan. Weeks after Loki's defeat by the Avegers and the Jedi, Anakin endured the Jedi Trials. He emerged from the ordeal as a newly recognized Jedi Knight.
He and Obi Wan worked well under this new arrangement even though Obi Wan was newly recognized as a Jedi Master and was inducted into the Jedi High Council an order of highly respected Jedi Masters that advise the Master of the Jedi Order which was Jedi Master Mace Windu. Six weeks ago things changed. Anakin was given a Padawan named Ahsoka Tano. Ahsoka recently passed her Jedi Order trails and was now a member of the Jedi Order with her own lightsaber as a Padawan. Soon after this revelation Coulson requested himself, Ahsoka and Obi Wan to be the Jedi that make up his special joint Shield and Jedi task force.
While watching Ward under the influence of the truth serum Anakin thought back to how Ward joined the team. Like Anakin Ward was not enthusiastic about this new team. Unlike Anakin Ward always operated alone. Ward worked at Shield as a field operative specifically a retrieval specialist. He recovered dangerous Hydra weapons still in circulation on the black market and prevented them from falling into the wrong hands.
Ward's espionage skills were superb as good as Jedi Master Quinlan Vos and legendary Shield Agent and Avenger Natasha Romanoff. This skill made him one of best field operatives in Shield. However Anakin found very quickly Ward didn't play nice with others and got testy when asked certain questions.
Coulson's second in command Maria Hill once asked Ward, "What does S.H.I.E.L.D. stand for, Agent Ward?"
Ward replied, "Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division."
Hill added, "And what does that mean to you?"
Ward irritably responded, "It means someone really wanted our initials to spell out "Shield."
Anakin wondered why Agent Melinda May was recruited to this team of Coulson's. Ward and May both functioned as field operatives and even though May was a tactical team leader not a retrieval specialist it still seemed redundant to Anakin. Even more unusual was the fact May hadn't worked in the field since 2010. She'd been an information analyst within Shield for 3 years due to a mysterious mission gone wrong in Bahrain.
May was nicknamed the Calvary and was an Agent with a legendary reputation equal to Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow and Clint Barton aka Hawkeye. Yet Coulson recruited May specifically to pilot the fancy airship Fury commissioned to be built for Coulson nicknamed the bus. All of this seemed weird to Anakin as Anakin watched Ward pass out in his chair due to the truth serum drugs.
"He'll be fine Anakin. FitzSimmons will help him deal with the side effects of the serum." Coulson explained
"So is FitzSimmons a he, a she, a they, or a droid?" Anakin asked weary of another unknown person joining the team
"FitzSimmons are two people. Brilliant scientists who have...um...well they've never..."
"Are you saying that you brought in two scientists with little experience in the field. Count Dooku is dangerous. When I fought him I lost a hand and my master was almost killed by him. Without Master Yoda's intervention I wouldn't be standing in front of you! And you think it's a smart idea to send in kids with little experience to dismantle his military operation from the inside-out?" Anakin yelled holding up his artificial hand
"Hey FitzSimmons don't have little experience. They have zero experience but they're the youngest graduates from Shield's science Academy in history. They are actually junior level instructors at the school under the guidance of Academy Director Agent Weaver. They're talented enough to handle the scale of this operation...trust me Anakin." Coulson reassured
"Oh my goodness this airship is brilliant. I cannot believe we're gonna be living here Fitz!" Simmons shouted with joy
"The amount of functions this airship has is incredible. The sheer amount of laboratory space and the equipment to build more equipment with precise design capabilities is something I couldn't even imagine doing in my wildest dreams. And we're going up against an army made up of advanced Androids of a design that no non galactic human researchers would have created for another 100 years after the end of World War II. Thanks to the dimensional rift created by the Red Skull's experiments with the Tesseract in 1942 galactic humans and galactic non humans have introduced so many incredible ideas in technological development. To see most of it on this aircraft is beyond exciting." Fitz rambled ecstatically
Simmons shouted with joy when she saw Ahsoka.
"Oh my goodness. Its a galactic non human Jedi! I'm standing next to a non human Jedi and she's a girl! Remarkable! What species are you? Can I examine you in the laboratory space? Simmons asked
"I'm Togrutan but I have a name you know." Ahsoka challenged
Anakin and Coulson made their way to the main deck of the airship. Anakin groaned and placed his hand over his face in disappointment. FitzSimmons arrival signaled the embarrassing truth that this team wasn't a well oiled machine. Now Anakin wished he was in DC Coruscant with master Kenobi. Instead he and Coulson were going to be glorified babysitters.
"Master, Simmons says she likes my lightsaber. Can she hold it Master...please?" Ahsoka asked
"No. Ahsoka you know what Master Kenobi told me when I was training under him? He said Anakin this weapon is your life. Ahsoka you can't give away something that precious even for a second."
"But master..."
"Ahsoka please stop. This is a serious spy operation. There's no room for childishness. Wow is that a flying car."
R2D2 Anakin's blue and white astromech droid rolled up to a classic red sports car. He stared in awe at the vehicle alongside Fitz.
"I would love to work on this vehicle and test its flight capabilities." Fitz gasped
"Are you an engineer?" Anakin asked
"Not just an engineer. Physicist, Mathematician and Inventor. What would a Jedi know about that stuff anyway? You guys are just warriors." Fitz replied
"You see that astromech droid next to you...I built him when I was 9 years old. He's been my best buddy ever since." Anakin explained
"Fascinating." Fitz said as he stared at R2D2 more closely
"Um...Master I thought you said no childishness." Ahsoka said
Anakin and Fitz ignored her as they excitedly talked about machines.
"You have a lot to learn about men." Agent May said with a smirk
"Woah you snuck up on me without even trying." Ahsoka gasped
"Of course. Coulson will be conducting out first briefing in just a few minutes. If this mission is successful we could do a lot of damage to the Seperatist army before they launch their first large wide scale attack." May explained
"Sir with all due respect Skye isn't qualified to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent." Ward whispered in Coulson's ear
"Agreed. That's why I've invited her on as a consultant. S.H.I.E.L.D. does it all the time. Technically, Tony Stark's a Shield consultant." Coulson argued
"And technically, Skye's a member of the Rising Tide. She hacked our RSA implementation to intimidate us." Ward replied
"Twice. From a laptop. Imagine what she'll do with our resources. Besides this isn't up for discussion. The matter is settled." Coulson said
Ward frowned as he stood against the wall. Coulson cleared his throat.
"Skye will be joining us on a temporary basis. I spoke with her privately and I'm convinced Rising Tide has no affiliation with any government involved in the Clone Wars. Also Skye understands the potential threat Dooku poses if he gained access to technology that gave him a decisive advantage in the upcoming war.
Dooku has recruited a different organization. One called Project Centipede run by a mysterious individual known only as the Clairvoyant. The Clairvoyant has provided Dooku and his allies with classified Shield documents on persons suspected of having extraordinary abilities. Shield calls them gifted. They're not Jedi obviously but they're potential recruits to join the Seperatist army.
Skye will be tasked with making contact with the Seperatist latest potential recruit Mike Peterson. She'll be backed up by Anakin and Ahsoka while the rest of us will monitor their progress from the bus. The goal is to ensure Mike and his son are protected and safe within Shield custody. Are their any questions?"
"Ooooh oooh I have one sir. Are we going to be able to study Mr. Peterson's abilities here on the bus?" Simmons asked enthusiasticly
"Absolutely not. I reassured Skye we wouldn't be utilizing Mr. Peterson as a recruit for the United Republic military. The focus would be to ensure the health and safety of Mr. Peterson and his son." Coulson replied
"What do we do if Mr. Peterson joins Dooku? Do we cross him of the list sir?" Ward asked
"What? No we can't do that he has a son!" Skye protested
"Skye's right there has to be another way if it comes to that. We can't murder an innocent man if he's deceived by Count Dooku." Ahsoka argued
"Ahsoka please..." Anakin started
"Listen if Mike demonstrates fanatical devotion to the Seperatist cause then yes Ward we will have to terminate him. However I'm confident it won't come to that. Mike Peterson is a good man and he wouldn't join the Seperatist unless deceived."
"Good then it's settled. We save Mike and his son Ace." Skye said boldly
****
"Deborah what is taking you so long to win over Mr. Peterson over to our side. He's the only successfully enhanced specimen. Your boss the Clarvoiyant promised you'd develop specimens like Mr. Peterson in numbers around the thousands."
"I'm sorry Count Dooku. I've been struggling to cover up the experiments from the public. They can't know the full extent of Seperatist operations within the United Republic. We'd lose a major tactical advantage in the war." The red headed woman rescued by Mike explained
"Leave the logistics of the war to General Grevious and my apprentice Asajj Ventress. Just ensure that the experiments that I've funded using CIN financial council credits are successful. Or else your employer's partnership with me will cease to exist and the funding they so desperately need will disappear. Is that clear?"
"Very clear," Debbie replied as Dooku ended the holo vid call, "Did you get all of that Clairvoyant?"
"Yes. Reestablish contact with Peterson and convince him that Shield is after you and you need his protection. If we play our cards right we can eliminate Coulson's strike force and prove ourselves to Dooku and the Seperatist at the same time. Then our organization will replace Shield as the global clandenstine operation." The Clairvoyant explained cloaked in shadow