Jemma Simmons is a terrible liar (needanewplan) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2015-09-04 08:14:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | !complete, jemma simmons, natasha romanoff (black widow), peggy carter |
Who: Peggy Carter, Jemma Simmons, and Natasha Romanoff
What: Peggy has gone a little rogue
Where: The Agency
When: During the Shattered Sight Plot
Rating: Some violence
Status: Log | Complete
Peggy had finally reached her breaking point. Her annoyance level had been rising steadily over the past few days and she just couldn’t hold it back anymore. Everyone was getting on her nerves and it seemed like she was running an agency full of incompetent idiots. The break came when she had been called down into the labs to speak to some of the agents. They were explaining a recent botched attempt at spying on Cerebus and Peggy had enough of that - this group had consistent fails on their record and she was beginning to suspect them as traitors. Her hand reached out to slap one of them and the melee had started.
One really shouldn’t take Peggy Carter on in a fight because she was incredibly well trained, which included real life training and training from her Dreams. It made her a force to be reckoned with and the agents really didn’t stand much of a chance. There were five of them and Peggy had managed to take down a couple of them of them down when a door opened behind her.
Jemma wasn’t entirely certain what to make of everything that was happening. It was almost as if most everyone had gotten ahold of one of the berserker staffs from her dreams. Another alien artefact which brought more pain and danger. Only there would have been reports, right? She didn’t know, and honestly between projects at the Agency and then trying to find a cure for Cosima even knowing that it would probably come from her girlfriend’s dreams and she was (once again) powerless to actually help… It was exhausting.
All things considered after everything she had witnessed the past few days, it had made sense to keep an icer on her. There were some very impressive people she was around who with added anger could be quite deadly. Or...deadlier than they already were. So when she heard the commotion in the lab, Jemma did the very logical thing and went to investigate, icer prepared. Just in case.
Only to see the Director fighting people.
“Director?!” It was..just so unexpected. She knew it was possible given everything going on. But it was something else entirely to see the woman attacking people in the lab for...who knew what. She’d been in a different one and out of the loop on the current situation.
It was a bit of a mess in the lab. Papers and glass were strewn everywhere and Peggy was looking at a hefty bill for new glassware when she finally got back to normal. But for now she was currently trying to pry the hands that were clutching her hair apart. Using a lab notebook didn’t work as well as using a briefcase had in her dreams. But, these scientists were actually trained for fight to an extent, so Peggy knew vaguely in the back of her mind that something was most certainly up.
The voice calling through the lab stopped her opponent briefly and Peggy seized the opportunity to sent a right hook into their jaw. That effectively unattached the hands and Peggy turned her head to see who had assisted her. A frown appeared on her face when she saw Jemma, “Jemma? What are you doing here? Are you part of this?”
“A part of what?” Jemma was so confused about what was going on. And also not looking forward to the clean up that would take place in the lab once.. whatever had just happened was over and done with. What she could tell was that the commotion that had caught her attention was indeed a physical altercation.
Thank goodness no chemicals had gotten used in the process. Biohazardous concerns on top of whatever was happening really were just a headache waiting to happen.
“I was in the other lab and heard the commotion, so I came to investigate… is everything okay?”
Yes, she was concerned. And she didn’t know who was the aggressor, if any of it was self defence or if she was walking into a war zone. (It looked like a war zone, she was pretty sure it was a war zone.) So she just remained alert and ready to defend herself, eyes flickering between those in the lab.
“I think they might be Cerebus, or Hydra, or whatever you want to call it,” Peggy explained as she flexed her hand muscles a couple times. She would be bruised the next day most likely, but right now it didn’t matter. And right now she honestly had no idea if she could trust Jemma or not, but she was certainly seeing red. Explaining why she had attacked her agents didn’t seem like something she wanted to do, “Although, come to think of it. I believe your name may have been attached to some of the files.” Not an outright accusation, but certainly flirting with one.
It was during that comment that Peggy took another step towards the young girl in the doorway. It was a pity that her rational reasoning was shot because normal Peggy knew better than to try and solve a problem with her fists unless absolutely necessary. Her eyes stayed on Jemma, but she was certainly doing her best to see in her peripheral vision and find an available weapon.
Cerebus, yes. The organisation Natasha had read her in on at the beginning of the month. Jemma had made her peace with the idea that there was a similar group to Hydra here, and was relieved that she wasn’t being looked at for undercover work. She could do it, she would just prefer not to. She was much better off in the lab. So the fact that Peggy seemed to think that they had moles in the Agency wasn’t terribly shocking in theory. However, given the way people were acting….
And then seeming to think her name was on files. What files?! That wasn’t unnerving. It was clear the director wasn’t thinking rationally. Because oh right, she was fighting people. And that was just way too blase to be said. Nope. She wasn’t about to be accused of being a mole when she wasn’t. Okay so when she’d been undercover in Hydra she would have denied it as well, but this time it was absurd.
“I can’t imagine why that would be.” Even as she made sure to focus her breathing and remain calm, Jemma was ready to reach behind her and grab her Icer if it was the only option available to her.
Whatever was going on was making Peggy see red. All rational thought had left her mind the moment her hand connected to that poor scientist’s face. The bit of paranoia she had about Cererbus/Hydra being around was finally catching up to Peggy and she wanted to try and get the upper hand in this situation. She did not want this to end up like SHIELD in their Dreams. Silent enemies were still an enemy that needed to be exterminated. Unfortunately, these scientists were the first casualty of a slightly insane Peggy Carter and Jemma was walking a thin line.
Her eyebrow raised when she caught a slight twitch in Jemma’s arm. “Do you have something? Nothing you have could possibly take me down,” granted, Peggy had no idea about the Icer, but she was still confident in her ability to take the smaller woman down. She grabbed a beaker off the table, “I need to take you in for questioning.”
Being paranoid about Cerebus/Hydra being implanted in the Agency? That was a logical thing to worry about, especially given what had happened with SHIELD. Jemma could appreciate that. But given the way things were currently going with everyone in Orange County, and the fact that everyone was irrational at the moment? (Or most everyone, god Jemma hoped she wasn’t the only person unaffected at the Agency, that would be quite horrid.) This was not the time to root out any potential moles.
Or she could see Peggy go for the beaker and it was easy for her to see where that would lead. Jemma herself was quite proficient with the use of found objects as weapons and given she knew Peggy’s training, at least from the dreams? There was no way that would end well for her. Not with the way she was already reacting. So Jemma did the logical thing and pulled out the Icer and shot the Director.
It wasn’t ideal, but at the moment, it was necessary for her to defend not just herself, but the other scientists in the lab. It would knock her out and that was all that mattered. Too bad the other scientists decided that getting out of there was more important than helping Jemma with the body.
“Are you bloody kidding me?!” Of course they ran. At least they didn’t try to fight her as well. Then again she imagined that her shooting the Director might have freaked them out because who knew what Jemma was capable of. Did it matter that it was only something to knock her out? No.
“Okay. What would Skye say in this situation…. Go find May. Well, May’s not here so…” That meant Natasha. Most likely. Unless she was also affected. “I’m going to be fired for sure…” Looking around, Jemma placed a lab jacket on Peggy as if a blanket before going in search of Natasha, and prepared to shoot anyone with the Icer in defence if she had to. Thankfully she managed to get to Natasha’s office uninterrupted, where she knocked on the door frame. “I shot the Director. Help?” No preamble, just straight to the point.
Nat had been reading the network and growing more and more worried. A message to Kitty had gotten a vividly angry response, and she wasn’t sure who else was affected. If someone with their finger on a trigger or access to a super power lost their cool, a lot of people could get hurt.
She’d issued icers to several field agents and told them to shoot anyone who looked really pissed off and powerful, and they could sort the rest out later.
When Jemma came in, those words were the last words she expected to hear. She sighed, heavily, and leaned on her desk. “Tell me we don’t have to hide a body.”
“No, no hiding of a body. But getting her locked up where she can’t attack anyone else when she comes to? Yes. That I need help with.” Were she still earlier on her in dreams, and all of this, Jemma knew she’d be a lot more freaked out than she was. But between having shot Sitwell and then the fall of SHIELD, then going under cover, well.. Jemma was more sure of herself and she knew it had been the right call. Awkward as it was, and knowing the potential backlash that would come.
Really, this was a nightmare, but Jemma knew it could have been much worse. Like if she hadn’t been prepared with an icer. And if she hadn’t anticipated the use of the beaker.
“I still might have to hide a body if Peggy gets ahold of you,” Natasha pointed out. She came round the desk. “We need to get her into an elevator and down into the holding cells. Without anyone noticing or asking questions.” She was reluctant to evacuate the building, so she considered other ways. “I think I have an idea.”
Okay, so Natasha had a point. Because there was a very good chance that the Director in this state would come after her. Especially since she seemed convinced there was a mole in the science division and then Jemma shot her. With an icer, and in self defence, but logic and things of that nature didn’t seem to matter at the moment. Which just caused the biochemist to wince.
“Touche. And well, the scientists she’d been attacking in the lab saw, but they also just ran away once she was out…” So much for keeping it quiet. But given they seemed more scared than anything, probably of Jemma as well at the moment, she hoped. “So I don’t think they will be a problem?”
Because obviously Jemma was the most terrifying person ever. Though with the state of everything, they could think of her as someone not to cross and keep it quiet. “But yes. An idea is good.”
“We’ll explain to everyone that it was an exercise. But I’m going to put the building on a state of alert, everyone to their stations. An emergency drill.” She stepped out of the office, pulling out a radio, to issue the alert and request a clear corridor between the labs and the holding cells. She called it a ‘readiness’ test.
Hopefully they would buy it. At least those in the lab who had actually seen it, been attacked and accused of being potentially Hydra/Cerebus. That would be a bridge they crossed once they got to it. So Jemma just nodded and once the alert was in place and it was safe, Jemma led Natasha to where she had left Peggy, lab jacket covering her and all.
Now the fun part. Getting Peggy, who would currently be dead weight, to the holding cells.
Hopefully Peggy was still there when they got there. Natasha wouldn’t have been surprised to find that she’d somehow become a super soldier after the war. The woman was practically a one-woman army and some of her exploits were legendary among agents with the higher security clearances. “If anyone can shrug off an icer, it’ll be Peggy Carter.”
“I know.” But hopefully for their sake, the icer would keep her knocked out until they got her locked up. Then they could deal with whatever it was Peggy threw their way as it would be nothing but words. In theory. Current rage issues at hand, who could really tell.
Seeing Carter laying on the floor bothered Natasha, but she hid it well. This was just another mission, a distasteful one, but she’d done worse, much worse even here. Maybe some day the FSB would come for her blood. Yet somehow seeing Carter like that…
Maybe it was worse, in some ways. “I’ll get her shoulders, you take her feet.”
Jemma was doing her best to compartmentalise. She was good at compartmentalising. She didn’t like what she’d needed to do, but it was that or be attacked and who knew what after that. Tortured for ‘information’? She would feel guilty later. Right now it was getting the director into a holding cell until whatever it was wore off.
She should probably feel weirder that this wasn’t the first time she’d been in such a situation. True, the time with Sitwell had been at the Hub and in the dreams. But still. So she went and got a hold of Peggy’s feet, waiting for the cue to lift so they could move her.
Nodding, Natasha lifted. “Oof. This is all muscle, isn’t it.” Bodies were always dead weight, but Nat was a master at using humor to deflect an uncomfortable situation. Still, it would be an awkward few moments of grunting to the elevator, and then….
The elevator music just made the whole situation surreal.
“It is… though much easier with two of us.” Because Jemma had needed to drag Agent Sitwell by herself by his feet. That had been awkward. This was also awkward, but at least it was the two of them instead of one of them alone trying to get this done. And when awkward, she rambled. Which really was why the comment about it being easier was even said. Oops?
But it was just a completely different level with the elevator music.
“You’ve done this before,” Natasha noted. “How many people have you iced?”
“Agent Sitwell at the Hub once. That was embarrassing. And then having to get him hidden so I could get May.” Sighing, Jemma thought back. “Myself after jumping onto a grenade thinking it would protect Fitz and Skye… I think those are my only incidents with icers though. At least when it comes to using them or having it used on me and not coming up with the composition of the dendrotoxin. It was what managed to help keep Mike Peterson from exploding though as it stabilised the blood plates from when the Centipede Project.”
“Sitwell? He deserved it. Too bad it didn’t malfunction and put him out of our misery.” Natasha sighed, looking at the readout on the elevator. It was taking an eternity and she really hated this song. “You did good, Jemma. Don’t forget that.”
“Oh, did he? Well. That’s reassuring to know I suppose.” Not that it did much good here, nor would it have ended well for her had she not shot him and May help with the body. But it was at least reassuring to know that she hadn’t shot someone loyal to SHIELD? At least who was in their right mind given she had shot Peggy Carter.
Or Natasha could say that she did good. “What? Oh. Yes, well.. thank you.” That wasn’t really something she was used to hearing, or expected. All she did was her job, it was all she knew in the dreams given the tension with everyone. And her own issues on top of that which never were dealt with. If this elevator ride could end, that would be brilliant. The song was getting tiresome. And really, this was amazingly awkward.
“Half the county isn’t in their right mind. I’m glad you’ve got your head and I’m sure you’re glad that I have my head.” She smirked over Peggy’s head. “It could be worse - she could have locked us all up in the holding cell.”
It would have been funny. Frustrating. But funny. The elevator dinged, and before they could get out, they startled an intern.
“Uh.” He looked at them, and then at the director, wide-eyed.
“Readiness exercise,” Natasha said, expression serious.
“I’m fairly certain that was her plan for me. Along with--” And then the elevator door opened, there was an intern and things just managed to get awkward. Or more awkward. But Jemma knew to let Natasha handle it, even if she was better at lying. Those half truths. If she was asked, she was there as emergency medical in the case that there was no one else available. Which did fall to her and so wouldn’t be a complete lie.
The intern looked at them again, then at Carter, a terrified expression on his face. “Readiness exercise?”
“The alarms?” Natasha provided, helpfully. “You need to get to your post. If you can get there in two minutes I won’t write you up.”
He rushed past them and the elevator door slid shut. Nat breathed a sigh of relief. “Almost there and we can put Peggy down for her nappy nap.”
Jemma just kept an eye on the entire situation and was relieved when the terrified intern seemed to accept what Natasha said and ran. Because it was just one less thing to worry about. Letting go of a breath she didn’t realise she’d been holding, Jemma nodded and went to pick up Peggy’s feet again, waiting for the cue so that they could get the director in a cell until this whole thing was over and done with.
The cells had been designed for a variety of powered individuals. Metal (at Kitty’s insistence) was nonexistent and there were a lot of different hyperstrong non-metallic materials, as well as a whole section powered by forcefields.
Then, a floor down, were the heavy duty ‘oh shit it’s the hulk’ type cells.
But Peggy wasn’t the Hulk (thank god), so Nat guided Jemma towards one of the cells with a clear material. “Almost there.”
Clear material worked. There was the type of hold they had in her dreams but from the looks of it, there was no need for that. It was something she’d mention to Kitty later, after the insanity though. Just as a potential in case of necessity. Better safe than sorry, after all. Still not having to go down another level for the hulk level containment was always a good thing.
So far, so good. Now to see if their luck would hold out.
Don’t wake up don’t wake up, Natasha thought, the mantra running through her head as they laid Peggy on a bed in a cell. “Okay, lets lock her up.”
The girls were incredibly lucky that Peggy remained knocked out for the entire trip to the cell, but their luck would run out the minute her back hit the hard surface of the ‘bed’. And that was when Peggy’s back arched in a gasp and her eyes shot open. Her body followed suit and she came up swinging against the hands on her body. She hadn’t even given her mind time to process everything, but she had only a memory of what happened last and she was angry.
Of course their luck ran out. Because that was just their luck. Really that they had gotten this far was probably a good thing. Crying out in shock as Peggy came up swinging, Jemma jumped backwards.
“Bloody hell!”
Now what?! She had her Icer, which would make her an automatic target, but no matter, time to put the Director down again if necessary. (It probably was.)
Nat grabbed for Peggy, heedless of the inevitable black eye or bloodied nose. “Shoot her or run!” It risked hitting Nat, but she didn’t see much of an alternative right now! Her best case scenario was being knocked out with Peggy. Second worse case scenario was Jemma locking the two of them into the cell. Worse case….
The hold only allowed Peggy to attempt to swing at her and she only made slight contact with Natasha’s jaw. Not enough to break anything, but it was going to hurt and probably bruise. She was beginning to wrestle to get out of the hold when she heard the words, which made her stop momentarily. Getting hit with that gun again was not on the top of her list of things to repeat, which only made her squirm a little more as she tried to get out of Natasha’s hold and out of the cell. “Let me out of here!”
Jemma was not about to just leave Natasha in there. And she did have the Icer on her still since it had been necessary in getting to Natasha in the first place on the off chance she needed to once again defend herself. So she once again aimed for the center mass of Peggy.
“Sorry, Director.” And she once again shot given the fact that well, even with her squirming, aim for center mass and there’s a better chance of hitting the mark and not accidentally hitting Natasha instead.
Peggy really did hit by a truck, if that was a glancing blow. She was going to be sporting a large bruise, assuming she made it out of this situation alive and coherent. Stunned only momentarily, it was still enough to lose her grip on Peggy. Recovering quickly, Natasha made a dive for Peggy’s legs. “Oh no you don’t!”
Peggy was going to have to give Jemma an award for good shots from the two times the girl had fired that Icer. Because once again Peggy was hit and while she was almost on her way out of the cell it didn’t mean anything when she began to seize up. It took a moment for the tranqs to take effect but Peggy’s expression turned into one of annoyance. “You are -- fired,” she managed to slur out before slumping down since Natasha had hold of her legs.
One good thing about no one expecting that she could actually shoot was that, well, it came as a surprise. Jemma remained poised and ready to fire again if necessary, though in the end it worked out just fine. Mostly. Because suddenly she found herself without a job. Well, that was just bloody great. Especially with Cosima’s health and her needing access to the labs. Though if she was still jobless after this whole thing wore off, perhaps she could get her job back at Stark.
Shoulders slumping once the Director was once again unconscious, Jemma went to help Natasha get her situated. “Once we secure her, I’ll take a look at your jaw.” Just in case.
Nat groaned, letting Jemma help her up. “That woman fights like a cement truck.” She worked her jaw, testing to see if it was broken. It didn’t feel like it. Not taking any chances, she dragged Peggy far enough into the cell so that the field wouldn’t close on her, then walked out of it.
Once the Director was safely behind bars, as it were, Nat put a hand on Jemma’s shoulder. “Good work. If science doesn’t work out for you, you’d make a crack shot.”