With his family safe on Rhy'Din, Steve Rogers had returned to Earth, to rejoin the small but determined team of friends who were trying to pinpoint Hydra's main bases and their intentions toward the global community at large. It was a very small team at this point - a handful of extraordinary friends, pooling what resources they had and trying to avoid the interest of S.H.I.E.L.D. at the same time. But finally, they had something to share, which was why Steve was back in New York. Stark Tower had become their base of operations, and Natasha Romanoff was waiting for him when he arrived, the only one of the group who had volunteered to share what they had learned thus far.
Steve was dressed as a civilian, even wearing a Yankees baseball cap to cover his head and help him blend. He felt almost naked without his uniform and shield, but dressing like Captain America would only paint a target on his back, and he needed to remain as incognito as possible. He didn't have any trouble getting into Stark Tower, though he was fairly certain the place was being watched. It's what he would have done if he were the mole.
Natasha, too, was in civvies, her uniform abandoned. She knew she was being watched, but she was one of the best in the world. She could shake a tail easily enough, and plans had already been laid to get Steve safely back to Rhy'Din if he chose to return there before starting on the self-imposed mission in front of them. "Hey, old man," she greeted him as he arrived at the right floor. "Storm's coming."
"I assume you don't mean Johnny," Steve replied, with a straight face. He didn't bother pointing out that they were actually about the same age, if you didn't count the nearly seventy years he'd been kept on ice.
She tilted her head with a wry smile, shrugging one shoulder. "Not this time." Pushing out of her lean, she started to walk away from the elevator, assuming he would fall into step with her. "Everything settled over there in Neverland?"
"For the most part," he replied, as he fell into step beside her. "Lucy's on edge. She gave up a lot to come here, and now we're back there. She probably feels a little like a ping pong ball getting bounced back and forth, and I can't say I blame her."
"Well, things are moving," Nat told him. "They're in the best place right now - we can't predict where Hydra's going to drop the hammer next. There are noises in Europe, in D.C., in London. Without direct access to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s databases and network, we're having to piece it together by hand, and we're missing a few puzzle pieces."
Steve knew that in a way this was all because of him - or more accurately because of the Super-Soldier Serum - but he'd rather do something about it than brood or feel guilty about it. "What do we know for sure?"
"S.H.I.E.L.D. is compromised, and Hydra is a definite presence on the map," she told him. "We're getting hints that Hydra is trying to break the bonds between the CIA and MI6, shutting down co-operation and essentially blinding both sides of the Atlantic, and it seems to have something to do with this man." She handed him a pad, on which was displayed a photograph of a man in his mid-forties. "Doctor David Chandler, leading bio-geneticist who pioneered a way to correct genetic deficiencies in the womb. According to Croft, the CIA and MI6 stole him back from a hostage situation within what they believe to be an unnamed faction, and since then, Hydra has been working on silencing both agencies."
"Chandler," Steve said as he took the pad and looked at the photograph. "Where is he now?" he asked, further. He assumed the man was safe for now, but if Hydra had infiltrated the CIA or MI6, that might not be the case for long.
"MI5 took custody of him and his husband when they were returned to the UK," Natasha told him. "As far as we can tell, MI5 hasn't been infiltrated yet, but it's only a matter of time. Clint's working on getting in touch with a couple of old friends over there, see if we can extract the Chandlers and hide them somewhere a little more secure."
"Where?" he asked curiously, wondering if there was such a place. He had chosen to take his own family to Rhy'Din. It was the safest place he knew, but he didn't think it was a good idea to hide everyone who might be in danger there. "Why him?" he asked further, wondering why Hydra would want this man in particular. What had he been working on that made Hydra want him so badly' Did they just think that with his knowledge, he might be capable of reproducing the serum' Or did they have something else in mind"
"We've got a few safe houses between us," she assured him with a faint smirk. "Not as secure as this place, or Neverland, but secure enough to keep him out of trouble while we break any hope Hydra has of ever replicating that serum." She lead him into what had become the briefing room, where a couple of familiar faces from past missions nodded to acknowledge them, and hurried left the room. "He's a bio-geneticist, Steve," she pointed out with a raised brow. "Who developed a technology that can correct genetic deficiencies in unborn children" Don't you think that would be kind of useful in trying to create a serum that changes people at a genetic level?"
"Yeah, but they'd need more than that, Nat. They've tried to recreate the serum before, and it's always failed." As far as Steve knew, the closest they'd come was at the Arctic facility where they'd rescued the children being experimented on there, but it that might not be the only facility. "Did Croft say what that unnamed faction might be?"
Natasha shook her head. "No," she said, and the frustration showed in her voice. "All he's got is what he's been told, and his source isn't privy to the top level information. Well, not yet, anyway. Apparently they're going to start snooping - something happened internally to get them worried, and now there's a minor faction within the CIA who might be worth recruiting once we're up and running, independent of S.H.I.E.L.D."
"We need to talk to Chandler. Find out what he knows," Steve said, despite the fact that the CIA and MI6 have probably already done that. Information directly from the source was always better than information that's been passed along. They needed to know what this unnamed faction wanted with him and who they were.
"Like I said, Clint's on it." Natasha leaned back against the table. "I've been calling in a few favors of my own," she added. "Gotta liberate some tech from Fort Meade for an old acquaintance before he's on board, and I might have a lead on an enhanced out of Sokovia who's been done wrong by Hydra. Need a little more time on that one. Stark's having fun annoying Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D.; Banner's gone AWOL. Can't say I blame him."
"I need to get to Washington," Steve said, after a moment's thought. He'd been intending to go there for a while now, anyway. Nat had suggested he look up an ex-military vet named Sam Wilson, and he wanted to talk to the agents in the CIA who had helped rescue Chandler. He trusted Clint to handle the Chandlers; after all, Steve couldn't be everywhere at the same time.
"Figured you'd say that." She smiled her sardonic smile, watching him in that unnerving way that suggested she was seeing a lot more than he wanted her to. Then she adjusted her lean, reaching over to tap on the pad in his hand. The display changed, this time showing pictures of four people - two men, two women. "You'll be looking up Mitch Johnson, Amanda Drew, and Andrew Doyle of the CIA. They don't know what they're into, but they're looking to poke at a very angry dragon without being prepared."
Steve was dressed as a civilian, even wearing a Yankees baseball cap to cover his head and help him blend. He felt almost naked without his uniform and shield, but dressing like Captain America would only paint a target on his back, and he needed to remain as incognito as possible. He didn't have any trouble getting into Stark Tower, though he was fairly certain the place was being watched. It's what he would have done if he were the mole.
Natasha, too, was in civvies, her uniform abandoned. She knew she was being watched, but she was one of the best in the world. She could shake a tail easily enough, and plans had already been laid to get Steve safely back to Rhy'Din if he chose to return there before starting on the self-imposed mission in front of them. "Hey, old man," she greeted him as he arrived at the right floor. "Storm's coming."
"I assume you don't mean Johnny," Steve replied, with a straight face. He didn't bother pointing out that they were actually about the same age, if you didn't count the nearly seventy years he'd been kept on ice.
She tilted her head with a wry smile, shrugging one shoulder. "Not this time." Pushing out of her lean, she started to walk away from the elevator, assuming he would fall into step with her. "Everything settled over there in Neverland?"
"For the most part," he replied, as he fell into step beside her. "Lucy's on edge. She gave up a lot to come here, and now we're back there. She probably feels a little like a ping pong ball getting bounced back and forth, and I can't say I blame her."
"Well, things are moving," Nat told him. "They're in the best place right now - we can't predict where Hydra's going to drop the hammer next. There are noises in Europe, in D.C., in London. Without direct access to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s databases and network, we're having to piece it together by hand, and we're missing a few puzzle pieces."
Steve knew that in a way this was all because of him - or more accurately because of the Super-Soldier Serum - but he'd rather do something about it than brood or feel guilty about it. "What do we know for sure?"
"S.H.I.E.L.D. is compromised, and Hydra is a definite presence on the map," she told him. "We're getting hints that Hydra is trying to break the bonds between the CIA and MI6, shutting down co-operation and essentially blinding both sides of the Atlantic, and it seems to have something to do with this man." She handed him a pad, on which was displayed a photograph of a man in his mid-forties. "Doctor David Chandler, leading bio-geneticist who pioneered a way to correct genetic deficiencies in the womb. According to Croft, the CIA and MI6 stole him back from a hostage situation within what they believe to be an unnamed faction, and since then, Hydra has been working on silencing both agencies."
"Chandler," Steve said as he took the pad and looked at the photograph. "Where is he now?" he asked, further. He assumed the man was safe for now, but if Hydra had infiltrated the CIA or MI6, that might not be the case for long.
"MI5 took custody of him and his husband when they were returned to the UK," Natasha told him. "As far as we can tell, MI5 hasn't been infiltrated yet, but it's only a matter of time. Clint's working on getting in touch with a couple of old friends over there, see if we can extract the Chandlers and hide them somewhere a little more secure."
"Where?" he asked curiously, wondering if there was such a place. He had chosen to take his own family to Rhy'Din. It was the safest place he knew, but he didn't think it was a good idea to hide everyone who might be in danger there. "Why him?" he asked further, wondering why Hydra would want this man in particular. What had he been working on that made Hydra want him so badly' Did they just think that with his knowledge, he might be capable of reproducing the serum' Or did they have something else in mind"
"We've got a few safe houses between us," she assured him with a faint smirk. "Not as secure as this place, or Neverland, but secure enough to keep him out of trouble while we break any hope Hydra has of ever replicating that serum." She lead him into what had become the briefing room, where a couple of familiar faces from past missions nodded to acknowledge them, and hurried left the room. "He's a bio-geneticist, Steve," she pointed out with a raised brow. "Who developed a technology that can correct genetic deficiencies in unborn children" Don't you think that would be kind of useful in trying to create a serum that changes people at a genetic level?"
"Yeah, but they'd need more than that, Nat. They've tried to recreate the serum before, and it's always failed." As far as Steve knew, the closest they'd come was at the Arctic facility where they'd rescued the children being experimented on there, but it that might not be the only facility. "Did Croft say what that unnamed faction might be?"
Natasha shook her head. "No," she said, and the frustration showed in her voice. "All he's got is what he's been told, and his source isn't privy to the top level information. Well, not yet, anyway. Apparently they're going to start snooping - something happened internally to get them worried, and now there's a minor faction within the CIA who might be worth recruiting once we're up and running, independent of S.H.I.E.L.D."
"We need to talk to Chandler. Find out what he knows," Steve said, despite the fact that the CIA and MI6 have probably already done that. Information directly from the source was always better than information that's been passed along. They needed to know what this unnamed faction wanted with him and who they were.
"Like I said, Clint's on it." Natasha leaned back against the table. "I've been calling in a few favors of my own," she added. "Gotta liberate some tech from Fort Meade for an old acquaintance before he's on board, and I might have a lead on an enhanced out of Sokovia who's been done wrong by Hydra. Need a little more time on that one. Stark's having fun annoying Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D.; Banner's gone AWOL. Can't say I blame him."
"I need to get to Washington," Steve said, after a moment's thought. He'd been intending to go there for a while now, anyway. Nat had suggested he look up an ex-military vet named Sam Wilson, and he wanted to talk to the agents in the CIA who had helped rescue Chandler. He trusted Clint to handle the Chandlers; after all, Steve couldn't be everywhere at the same time.
"Figured you'd say that." She smiled her sardonic smile, watching him in that unnerving way that suggested she was seeing a lot more than he wanted her to. Then she adjusted her lean, reaching over to tap on the pad in his hand. The display changed, this time showing pictures of four people - two men, two women. "You'll be looking up Mitch Johnson, Amanda Drew, and Andrew Doyle of the CIA. They don't know what they're into, but they're looking to poke at a very angry dragon without being prepared."