On the way back to the helicarrier the scientists examined the suit they made wanting to see first hand the damages and what parts need reinforcing. They said it was nothing they weren't prepared to fix and insisted on seeing me run an obstacle course built for a superhuman back at base before turning in. Nothing too difficult, they wanted to see how far I could jump for example and write down if they thought the suit reduced mobility while coming up with ideas to improve it later on.
I removed the suit in private this time putting on the clothes I had before. It was laid out orderly in the changing room with the X-phone the X-men gave me on top. By fate's design it turned on when I finished changing.
"Anyone there?" a voice came on that I believed belonged to the girl named Jean.
I picked it up to my ear, "Jean?"
"Hey! I–Charles and the gang wanted to check in. Make sure you're alright. Are you…alright?" She asked in a smooth tone.
"Yes." I answered when a bang at the door happened, "you done kid? I got dinner ready." said Clint.
"I'm done just tidying up." I replied, "Goodbye Jean." I said to the X-phone.
"Wait a minute. We just wanted to invite you to the mansion, well school actually. Just for a visit, nothing Fury wouldn't like. I'm sure he could spare a quinjet for an afternoon field trip. Well you coming?" Jean asked in a hopeful voice.
In an emotionless tone I responded, "I'm busy. I have a mission tomorrow. I need to go now Jean, and rest for it."
"But it's so soon, and you're just a teenager–" her voice cut off when I closed the X-phone.
I walked outside the change room seeing Clint carrying two plates with some sort of food on it with a bag filled at his side with white pieces of a fluffy substance, "it's a hot pocket and popcorn. Come I'll show you the age old American tradition of late night movies. Tonight we'll watch Terminator."
He took me to his room where he pulled out a laptop on his desk and two chairs for us to watch said movie. It reminded me of the last time I watched a movie but I couldn't place the memory of when I did in fact watch one, felt like a lifetime ago. I liked the hot pocket. After it ended I went to my room where I couldn't sleep until a knock to my door ended my boredom once morning came again.
I opened it and Fury walked in with a folder on today's mission. He said, "Hawkeye already read it so I'm here to give you the run down and clear out the air of what I expect from you." He motioned for me to sit on my bed to review the document while he leaned on the desk.
The mission was placed in the middle east, eight bases. They had to be destroyed along with everyone who was a part of them. I looked at Fury, "this isn't HYDRA."
"No, it's not. And quite frankly I doubt anything will come up so soon. Listen kid they were thought to be finished from a war that ended 58 years ago that brought the world to the brink of destruction. That base you were found in was two decades old is what my people are saying. Not one hint of its existence came from it until they slipped up taking Charles pupils. I have my most trusted agents searching for any trace of HYDRA. Till then, forget about them, not one peep from that mouth of yours. I fear if they even hear me sniffing around they'll hide before I even see a hair of theirs. As a consequence I have you to take care of, and I don't allow freeloaders. Since we're at this point I'll tell you what's going down here. We're a multi-national, world-spanning intelligence and espionage group called SHIELD and answer only to a group called the World Council. Our purpose is to deal with threats to the Earth that you're a part of. I already spent considerable resources creating that suit of yours and my word to the council on a return for their funds. If you are who I believe you can be then I ask that you work for SHIELD while I find out where the rats are hiding. You have my word that you'll be the first to know when it comes to them. Do we have a deal 626?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.
I thought it over. All I cared for was eradicating HYDRA. In my mind I owed nothing to this god forsakening world after all those years on a table with my insides writhing in agony. But I know my limits, and I wasn't trained to spy or gather intelligence.
"I'll do it." I said.
"Good. Clint will give you, your agent documents and everything we have on you so far. Including your family. Your codename is Elite, sort for our Elite enforcer. With Hawkeye and Elite, I expect this mission to be finished by the end of the day. I'll make sure to have dinner ready by then. Do well here and you'll have a bright future 626, you should even pick a name, a number isn't what you are to me." He said walking out.
When he left the same group of scientists from yesterday entered handing me their fixed suit. I told them to leave so I could put it on but they handed me three new objects they made for me to test. Two pistols that they said would store heat and use it for ammunition, I thought that impossible and a military grade combat knife, all of which were made in the same material of my suit. The addition of these items carried a couple of changes to my suit, at the sides of my pants two closed hoisters for the guns that opened when I needed them so as to not be damaged in combat with the knife in a similar manner tucked under my jacket behind me.
I walked to the open deck of the roof top of the Helicarrier to find Clint while earning glances from the agents of SHIELD who saw me in my outfit. Outside Clint waved at me behind a quinjet. Inside the quinjet were two other pilots who would join us on today's mission. Clint sat next to me while he handed me two folders. The first had my information as an agent. Nothing out of the ordinary I thought, access to SHIELD facilities with a certain clarity that certain areas were out of reach for me. Permission to use vehicles under them such as a quinjet, pay and time off. I looked at my ID as an agent, Name: to be decided, Age:13, Size:6'1,Code name: Elite.
"I'm 13? I feel a lot older than that." I said speaking more so to myself than Clint.
Clint spoke looking at the floor of the quinjet, "I hoped you would have rejected the offer to be honest kid. If it were up to me I would have sent you to live with the X-men than stay with SHIELD."
"I want revenge against the person who did this to me Clint, that's all I want right now." I replied.
He looked me in the eye, holding my gaze he said, "you're living as they wanted, not as a kid but as 626. A weapon to be used. Trust me kid, that's a life you'd rather not have. It's harder to sleep at night."
"I don't sleep at all." I said.
"ETA, an hour until arrival at our destination. Lift off in five." Spoke one of the pilots.
Clint tilted his head to the exit of the quinjet, "last chance to get off this boat."
I remained seated, "I guess as the adult here it's my responsibility to bring you back in one piece." He said.
"I'm the one with the suit." I replied.
"Ha, you mean life jacket. We're going to the deep end now boy. Anyways since you've decided to stay for this joyride here's the folder on your history, your family." he said.
I looked at the folder and spoke thinking it over, "I rather not. Not until I'm done with this."
He nodded in understanding, "it's always there, filed away if you need it just ask Coulson and he'll get it."
The quinjet took off and Clint started to explain what we'd be up against. In his words he'd be taking control of the situation from range, said he was a good shot and I'd be in charge of clearing out the bases with brute force. My powers however had one rule that Fury placed, feel free to go from level 1-5 depending on the situation. Level 6, the same level that created the blast in yesterday's testing he now named Scorched Earth and that I needed permission directly from him to use.
In an hour we arrived and the quinjet dropped us off a distance away from the target. A couple of field agents were there with a jeep for us to use. Before we got off Clint pulled out a box from the quinjet that held a bow and quiver filled with arrows.
"Trust me. Even Fury saw the vision in my skill." He said with a smirk after seeing my confused expression.
Clint drove us close enough for us to scout. It was a small town that was taken over a month ago by the group we were sent to eliminate. Of the residents that lived there, according to the mission file they were all executed.
"You see that building over there, I'll make that my nest. Once you see me in position feel free to start blasting. The reports said there's forty of them but be prepared for more and remember, they're heavily armed." he ordered.
With my superhuman vision I watched as he took down four of them discreetly while he made his way to his 'nest'. It only took him five minutes. Seeing this I made my move. One of the armed men I saw was carrying a strap on his chest filled with hand grenades. I started to run faster than a car at him using level 3 of my power. He heard me and was about to start screaming when an arrow killed him out of nowhere. All doubt on Clint's skill vanished in my mind but I didn't have time to admire his work and removed the man's strap of grenades.
Using my hearing I started removing the grenades arming them and threw them at the homes where I heard a dozen of them eating lunch or other endeavors. Once the explosions ended there was only silence. Before the dust settled I received gun fire. I took out the pistols on my hoister to take aim at their direction when Hawkeye spoke through my mic, "on your six, a truck with a machine gun attached to it."
I turned to see said truck when the machine gun started blasting. Raising my heat level I resisted the attack and tried to take aim at the man firing but found it difficult. The bullets were blocking my view like a storm of water had rained down on me. Instinctively I moved my arm towards what I believed the man firing would be and fired, a beam of red shot forth from the pistol ending the barrage of bullets. I saw a hole burned through the machine gun and the man behind it. The driver however pressed the gas peddle aiming the truck at me. Aiming the pistol at him I fired and nothing.
One shot before recharge? They could have told me beforehand. Seeing the truck coming full speed I raised my level once more to brace for it. The impact moved me a couple of inches backwards as my feet slid across the ground. However the driver hit his head on the dashboard. I thought him dead until he pulled a gun firing at me despite seeing they were ineffective. Heating my left hand I punched right through the front of the truck exploding it.
I walked out without a dent from the fire and looked around seeing no else alive. Clint spoke through the mic, "I got the stragglers by the way. Also you're welcome. One of them was aiming a rocket launcher at you and I graciously took care of him. What did it take? Like 10-15 minutes to wipe out the town. That's a new record."
The quinjet roared overhand landing in order to take us to the second base, "think we could beat our record?" said Clint.
By the end of the day all eight bases were burning with no survivors. We boarded the quinjet but it left us at a military base on the ground with soldiers from the United Nations running the place instead of SHIELD.
Before getting off I spoke, "why are we here and not at the Helicarrier?"
Clint got off the quinjet and turned around with arms spread out to the skies with a grin, "we're stuck here with military rations, the big MRE! Welcome to SHIELD. This was just one mission, not the end of the operation. If we're lucky we'll be home in a week's time with those guns of yours. But probably shipped off the next day since we are the best of the best, at least that's what Fury tells me to boost morale