DEMONS.
( chapter four. )

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Edited 04/19/2016 @11:17 AM
Edited 11/15/2017 @12:58 PM

[ THE MISSION. ]

  "ANDREA, ARE YOU LISTENING?"

  The brunette lifted her eyes from where she'd just finished strapping a gun to her thigh. Her gaze met Rumlow's impatient one easily, but she would be lying if she said she'd been paying attention. She didn't particularly see the need, considering she had already gone over their file.

  It was bad enough that their jobs were nearly always accompanied by the S.T.R.I.K.E. team. Andrea didn't want to have to listen to Rumlow's voice any more than necessary. It had a rather grating effect on her nerves.

  The Jones girl liked to think that she had good reason for her distaste. Rumlow made it clear what he thought about her. Making it a point to publicly call her out, like he had just now. If he was waiting for Andy to slip up, he was never going to get the chance. He liked to push her buttons and, while that might have been admirable to some in a leader, it did little to impress her.

  Andrea stood and crossed her arms over her chest, "I've already gone over our mission objective. We infiltrate quietly, rescue the hostages, and arrest Batroc. Your job is to brief your men, not me."

  Rumlow did little to hide his annoyance, taking a daring step closer. "And what exactly is your job, Jones?"

  Andy inhaled slowly to quell her annoyance. Perhaps it was Rumlow's scruffy-looking face that made her so irritated, or the hard-ass exterior that could have rivalled even Steve's. She wasn't really sure, but there was something about him that always set her off.

  It was a certain kind of feeling that told her not to trust him, and Andrea rarely doubted her own intuition.

  She rose a brow, "Call me your insurance policy— for when you encounter the things you can't handle." Andy grinned, though she made sure it lacked menace as she wiggled her fingers, set alight in a blue hue.

  Rumlow curled his lip, but said nothing as he turned his back on the brunette. She rolled her eyes as soon as he was gone. It was always a relief to be rid of him.

  At the head of the room, closest to where Rumlow had finished briefing everyone, Andy watched as Steve remarked to Natasha about being Fury's janitor. She sighed, immediately turning her attention away. She was already annoyed as it was— and getting involved with Steve while he was just as irked wasn't a smart idea.

  They were more likely to clash heads when they were upset. This mission may not have been what he imagined, but it was a fairly easy one and Andy appreciated that. For now. At the very least, it meant not having to worry about whether or not she would see her friends again every time they split up.

  Andy began to pick at her cuticles in an effort to amuse herself. Her focus only half-hearted as Steve and Rumlow continued to talk over their hostile situation. It wasn't until the Rogers man began to assign their different jobs did she finally turn and give him her complete attention.

  Steve took to adjusting the cuffs of his suit, "I'm going to sweep the deck." He nodded in her general direction. "Natasha and Andrea, you're going to kill the engines and wait for further instruction."

  Immediately, the Jones girl decided that she didn't like the sound of that and not just because he had used her full name.

  Andy furrowed her brow, standing upright from where she'd been sitting, "You're going going to take that entire deck and then Batroc alone?"

  Steve glanced at her approaching form, "Is there an issue with that?"

  Andrea gave a huff, "Yes. I get that you have confidence in yourself and that's admirable, really." She gave him a pat on the shoulder. "But, you should be taking someone with you as backup."

  Steve gave a slow nod. Feigned contemplation. The look in his eyes was returned with suspicion from Andy. She didn't like that look.

  "And I'm assuming this back-up is you?"

  She shrugged at the inquiry, "If you're offering."

  Steve's expression hardened, "I'm not. I can handle this on my own. This needs to be done quickly and that can't happen if there's someone behind me slowing the process down." His tone left little-to-no room for argument.

  But, the stubborn part of Andrea refused to take no for an answer. "It wasn't exactly open for refusal, Rogers. If even one of those pirates alerts Batroc of our presence, it's over. This is about more than just the risk it has for you." Andy took a moment to admire the firm stance of her argument.

  Steve, on the other hand, didn't seem to appreciate the opposition. "We don't have time for this. You either go with Natasha or you stay behind as back up." There was finality to his tone as he glared down at the Jones girl.

  Andy happily returned the gaze. Who died and made him God? Hearing him talk down to her with such condescension was irritating.

  "Don't treat me like a child. We don't need to be reckless," she insisted, holding Steve's angry gaze with cool eyes. The on-looking agents watched the scene play out in silence. Andy wished she could say this was an unusual chain of events for the pair, but it wasn't.

  They both had their own, set views of how things should be carried out; both natural leaders. Where Andy was more meticulous and careful, Steve took risks and was more daring. Their friendship balanced each other out in natural settings. But, when placed in leading positions that required their skills, it meant that they were constantly butting heads with each other.

  It was probably why Director Fury had been separating their missions more often— and Andrea wasn't obvious to Natasha's watchful gaze on them either. Likely, she had been tasked with overseeing how their compatibility was doing. How disappointed Fury would be when he discovered how little they had changed.

  With that thought in mind, Andy felt her shoulders sink in defeat. In spite of how it stung her pride, she had to admit that Steve was right. She was only delaying what little time they had left and for what? The Rogers man was perfectly capable of handling himself. She had to trust him on that.

  Andy opened her mouth to voice her compliance, but Steve's sharp smile made her hesitate. There was a certain intensity behind it that felt different from any argument they'd had before. He thinks I'm going to keep pressing it, she realized.

"Well, you could have fooled me," Steve told her. "Given how much you act like one."

  Andrea was struck by his coldness. She swallowed back any biting words she felt tempted to say. It was easier to give in, now that she'd been thoroughly embarrassed.

  But, Steve wasn't done. "You're already slowing us down. We don't need you causing anymore trouble. But, you always seem to find a way into that. Don't you, Andrea?"

  Steve's voice was challenging. Andy felt her fingers curl into weak fists, but any fight she had left seemed to fade out of reach. This wasn't what she had wanted. Still, there must have been some small anger in her eyes that Steve quickly mistook for resolution.

  "You know what." He gave a shrug, "Fine. Whatever the consequence, it's your problem."

  Andrea inhaled sharply, but gave no outward reaction. Steve turned away, but she caught the wince on his own expression. We can fix this later, Andy thought to herself.

  But, at that moment, she didn't even want to look at him, never-mind thinking about just how much his words stung. The space between them felt ice cold and Andrea refused to venture any closer than necessary. She took up post beside the hatch door, shoving down her emotions while she waited for the signal.

  Andrea didn't like fighting with someone so close to her. But, the tactics that Steve reverted to whenever she tried to offer her assistance was irritating. He would completely overlook her skill, regarding it as unnecessary. As if he knew her so well.

  Andy been with S.H.I.E.L.D. longer than him, but still he insisted on holding her back. Not that he ever truly succeeded. Andy had always been stubborn.

  Steve seemed to put her under so much scrutiny that he lacked the ability to recognize his own mistakes. Which, often included him underestimating both his opponents and the people around him. Andrea was growing tired of it and she was growing tired of the way he treated her.

  "Five minutes," Rumlow called out as Steve made his presence known in the corner of her vision.

  Andy said nothing, summoning the energy inside her instead. It replied in eager anticipation, no-doubt fuelled by her simmering emotions. She took a calming breath, focus sharp. Losing control was a dangerous thing where it concerned her powers.

  At Rumlow's signal, Andy opened the hatch door. Without another word, Steve jumped out of the jet— gone without even a parachute. Andrea sighed at the idiot's actions, rubbing her forehead as she tried to recall why she'd befriended such a fool in the first place.

  "Did he take a parachute?" Came a voice of disbelief from one of the S.T.R.I.K.E. members.

  Andy gave a half-hearted smile before replying, "No, he didn't."

  She closed her eyes, gathering her energy and spreading the sensation throughout her body. Andy channeled her concentration onto the ship deck below and, within the space of a moment, she'd arrived. All weapons were immediately pointed on her and Andrea grinned.

  Her eyes locked onto each person in quick calculation, studying each guard as she made up a plan of attack. There were only five of them on deck and none proved to be as big of a threat as they appeared with their weapons. They left their backs open for attack and each man carried only a rifle for protection.

  The only real risk was having one of those guns fired; it would instantly alert everyone on ship. So, eliminating their weaponry would be the first step. Andrea reacted before anyone else could, teleporting behind one of the men. Her speed left the rest of the group stunned, giving her the enough time to deliver a blunt kick to her first target's head.

  Given that her body was well-trained in using her strength in combat, the first pirate was down in a matter of seconds. His gun clattered to the floor before he'd even fallen over, leaving the Jones girl with only four more opponents to take down. She watched as they raised their weapons in preparation to shoot. But, with her power, Andrea had the advantage.

  The brunette flung out her hands, fingers outstretched. She focused on connecting her telekinesis with their weapons and her hands lit up in a brilliant blue. Before anyone could pull the trigger, she curled her fingers into fists before pulling her arms back towards her body. It was as if she had taken grip on every single gun, sending them flying from their hands and clattering to the floor of the deck.

  From there, the weapons were pulled out of reach, moved by an unseen force orchestrated only by Andy. The Jones girl smiled then, ignoring the exhaustion that seemed to slam into her body. The hard part had only just begun. She took the opportunity of their surprise to slide between one of the guard's legs, spinning around and swinging out her foot to swipe his feet out from under him. He fell to the ground, head slamming into a metal bar. He was out cold.

  Andrea smirked, it was almost too easy.

  Unsurprisingly, Steve made his sudden appearance, knocking out the rest of the men with his shield. Andrea left it for him to take care of and avoided his gaze when he was done. Though, from the corner of her eye, she could see him gesture for them to move on.

  They made their way silently along the sides of the ship. Steve stayed further ahead while Andrea kept back. From where she stood, she watched with a raised brow as he knocked a pirate over the railing and into the water.

  A few seconds later, he fell into step beside her. "I don't like fighting." It wasn't much of an apology, so Andy refused to acknowledge his words. Instead, she ran forward and kicked off the nearest wall to give a powerful blow to another one of the pirate's jaw. She dodged the punch he threw back at her, but winced as he opted for head-butting instead.

  She collapsed against the railing, features drawn up in a deadly glare. Andy reached out and wrapped her arms around his jacket collar, clutching tightly as she ducked and launched him over her shoulder. She ignored his cries as he fell towards the water. Turning around, her fingers drew one of the knives from her belt before throwing it at the hand of a guard reaching for the alarm.

  His exclamations of pain were silenced as Andrea abruptly slammed his head against the wall. Steve looked like he wanted to say something more, but Andy pretended not to notice. It wasn't the time or place. She ventured closer to the end of the ship, taking cover behind a wall. They took a head count as to how many men were left and made their decision as to how this would be completed.

  Andrea decided to take the farthest group, relaying this to Steve non-verbally before she teleported towards them.

  Her reappearance behind one of the men was silent, but before she could take him down, Andy paused. Something about his stooped gait and ducked head wasn't right. He looked almost nervous. As if he were expecting an attack. Andy told herself it was just paranoia as she quickly captured him in a tight head-lock.

  Still, with the little effort he put into fighting back, she couldn't help but feel suspicious.

  When his body fell limp, she let him drop to the ground. The sound of the other men crying out was heard as Steve made his appearance known. Andrea jumped into the fray, ripping a gun out of the grip of a pirate before proceeding to strike him with it in a violent swing. He collapsed backwards and Andy flipped the gun around.

  Gripping the barrel, she shoved the end of the weapon into the pirate's face. Andrea turned then, using the gun once more as she ducked down and swung it out. The attacking opponent tripped up as his feet were swiped out from under him. With a few strikes to the face from Andy, he was out.

  Steve cleaned up the rest of the situation with his shield, while the brunette took the opportunity to reach out to Natasha through the communications unit. "Position?" Andy questioned, flipping up a hand and easily catching the punch of another pirate. Her wrist and palm smarted at the action, but the pain was minimal.

  She rose a brow, "Were you not taught your manners? I'm talking to someone." Andy tsked before kicking him back towards Steve, who knocked him unconscious.

  "Deck secure—" Andrea was quickly silenced by the loud click of a gun. She felt the barrel being pressed against the back of her head. Andy's whole body seemed to pull taut then as her heart kicked up pace. She cut her gaze towards Steve, whose stern look commanded her to be still.

  Andy looked to the sky, relief washing over her upon seeing the dark moving figures among the stars. She closed her eyes, hearing the almost silent hiss of a bullet as she did so. The cool metal of the gun against Andrea's head disappeared and she opened her eyes. She didn't bother turning to confirm the body lying limp on the ground behind her.

  Instead, Andy focused her eyes on the smirk Natasha shot her way. Her muscles relaxed and she breathed a sigh of relief, "Thanks." Andrea wasn't going to lie and say that she wasn't scared. Any person in their right mind who stood seconds away from death should have been. But, a part of her was glad for the encounter; it gave her the rush she would need to keep going.

  Natasha chuckled, "Yeah, you seemed very helpless without me." Andy felt herself relax as she smiled. In seconds, they were joined by the rest of the S.T.R.I.K.E. team. Natasha glanced over at the Rogers man, who stood off to the side, "So, Steve, what's this I'm hearing about the nurse across the hall from you? She sounds kind of nice."

  Andy shot the red-head a pointed look. Certain things had certain times and places, and this wasn't one of them. Steve's gaze was the least bit amused as he glanced over to Andrea. She raised her hands in poor defence, as if to say, "Not my problem."

  Natasha laughed and the ice between Steve and Andy seemed to defrost as they both smiled. The Rogers man shook his head at the pair, "The two of you secure the engine room, then find me a date." Andrea chuckled at that.

  "I'm multitasking," Natasha replied with a shrug. In the next second, she disappeared from sight as she jumped over a railing and onto the lower deck. She could've used the stairs, Andy thought with amusement before turning to look at Steve. He was already watching her with a careful gaze.

  "You know I can help you with Batroc," she offered, but there wasn't much conviction to her voice. This wasn't an argument she wanted to start again. Though, there was still a part of her that was determined to prove her skill. She knew Steve could take care of himself, but she wanted that same vote of confidence from him in her own abilities too.

  Steve cracked a soft smile, "Andy, you could take on Batroc blind-folded." She gave a soft smile at that and didn't deny the way it warmed her to hear the words from him.

  "You know, this was never about me underestimating your skill. I know you're more powerful and capable than I can understand." He hesitated a moment. "I just don't want to risk you getting hurt."

  Andy pursed her lip, but let him continue. "I made a promise to someone a very long time ago that I would keep you safe and this is me keeping that promise."

  Steve's words registered with a slow understanding. A promise? Before Andrea could open her mouth to ask questions, Steve was already leaving.

  Andy exhaled slowly, taking a second to recover from this sudden revelation before she finally followed after Natasha. Steve's words filled her with confusion, but she knew any questions she had would have to wait for later. Distractions were unacceptable.

  The female put her focus on the last leg of their mission and soon found herself falling into step with Natasha. She wrapped her fingers around the handle of her knife, pulling it from the holder on her thigh. They entered the engine room with care and Andy watched as Natasha approached a man with his back turned to them.

  Before he could even register what was happening, the Romanoff woman had secured a cable around his throat. She jumped over the stair's railing, sliding down the cord with shots ringing out after her. Andrea rose a brow and put her knife away.

  Clearly her own work wasn't necessary. Still, this was all strange. These were top mercenaries and they were dropping like flies. Andy expected more of a challenge. She followed in Natasha's wake, but took the stairs. There weren't many people Nat had missed, but Andrea made sure they stayed down.

  The pair ran the rest of the way to the engine room and upon reaching it, both women made quick of their work. "Andy, Nat, what's your status?" Andrea grunted as she was slammed against a wall. With both her and Natasha occupied with their opponents, neither could offer Steve much of a reply. The brunette quickly dodged the punch that was thrown at her.

  She gave the man a hard swing to the gut before shoving his head down into her knee just as he doubled over. Andy grinned in accomplishment as he crumpled to the ground, but the victory was short-lived as a gunshot rang out. The female cried out as pain ripped through her left shoulder. She reached up to clutch the wound, collapsing back against the wall.

  Whirling around, Andrea narrowed her furious glare on the man responsible. She kicked the gun from his hands before making her attack. The anger that flowed through her was energy enough to finish the man off as her fist broke skin with each furious strike.

  Each punch was a hard blow, but not hard enough to knock the man out. When she was satisfied with the shattered jaw she'd given him, Andy finally pulled back her bloody knuckles from his face. Her anger felt nauseating.

  "Engine room secure," Andrea breathed out just as Natasha's final target collapsed at her feet. The red-head cut the Jones girl a worried glance, but Andy shook her head. As much as the wound hurt, they had to move on. She kept pressure on her shoulder and followed Natasha to what she thought was the rendezvous point.

  However, Andy found that the two were now in a control room. She rose a brow at Nat as she collapsed in a nearby chair. Natasha simply shrugged, "You have your mission and I have mine." Andy said nothing. She couldn't be bothered to demand further information. What Natasha did was of little concern to her.

  Andrea trusted that whatever Fury had set her up for was in good reason.

  "How's the wound?" The red-head questioned after a couple beats of silence passed. Andy knew that Natasha was trying to distract her from the throbbing pain in her shoulder— not to mention the amount of blood she was losing by the seconds. But, between having used too much of her power and the fresh bullet wound, focusing was hard.

  Andy chuckle dryly, "It hurts like a bitch, but this isn't exactly my first time getting shot." The words were spoken with a smile, but it was bitter. She was grilling herself for not being more careful. The wound wasn't Andrea's main concern; it was her pride. What kind of agent got shot on a clean-up job like this? But, that was the thing, it had all seemed too easy from the start.

  Before she could berate herself any further, there was a loud crash and Andrea jumped up in surprise. She watched as Steve got up from where he'd tackled Batroc through the door and pressed her lips into a thin line. She tried to suppress the annoyance that began to build up at the sight of him. His lower lip was split and, although it was only a minor injury, it made the female narrow her eyes.

  "Well this is awkward," Natasha spoke up, shooting a smirk towards Andy and efficiently catching Steve's attention. The brunette gave Natasha a sharp jab in the rib, accompanying the gesture with a quick glare. Though, she doubted her jab did anything. Already, she could feel her knees going weak beneath her.

  "What are you doing?" Steve demanded, not bothering to hide the irritation in his tone as he approached.

  "Backing up the hard-drive," Natasha replied, giving a nonchalant shrug that only proved to irritate Steve further. Andy sighed, collapsing back onto her chair as another wave of exhaustion set in. She didn't have the energy to deal with another argument.

  "Rumlow needed your guys' help, what the hell are you two doing here?" Steve wasn't letting up, glaring down at the both of them until he finally took notice to the way Andy clutched at her shoulder. Well, this is going to be good, the Jones girl thought as he became visibly angrier. "What the hell happened?"

  Natasha finally turned to him, "To answer your first question, I'm saving some S.H.I.E.L.D. intel. Or, whatever I can get my hands on. To answer your second one, she was shot, if it wasn't obvious before." The Romanoff woman was only digging a deeper grave for herself, both she and Andrea knew it.

  "Your mission was to rescue hostages," Steve stated, glancing at Andy before turning his glare to Natasha. The brunette scowled. Of course he'd blame the Romanoff woman. But, it had been him to suggest Andy go with her in the first place. It irritated her to know that his annoyance was directed to someone who'd done nothing wrong.

  Why was it that pointing out the mistake of others came more easily to him than realizing his own?

  "No, that was your mission and you've both done it beautifully─ especially you, Andy. Way to take one for the team." Natasha gave her a wink and Andrea couldn't help but give a small laugh in return. Steve shot her a glare, but Andy could only roll her eyes. She wished the uptight Super Soldier would just relax just for once.

  When she was done, Natasha grabbed her hard-drive before attempting to walk away. Though, Steve wouldn't let her leave so easily as he made a grab at her arm. "You just jeopardized this entire operation, especially you for not trying to stop her." Steve directed his accusations to both Natasha and Andy respectively.

  The Jones shot him a furious glare, jabbing a finger at her wound. "If you haven't noticed, I'm too busy bleeding out to stop anyone from anything. The hostages are safe with the S.T.R.I.K.E. team. You're overreacting," she snapped at him. Andrea was seething with frustration. Steve looked like he was going to say something more, but Andy wasn't listening as she watched a figure near the door rise to a stand.

  Andrea felt her expression fall as Batroc pulled the pin on a grenade. "Look out!" She hardly registered that the words were even her own before she was ducking for cover. Steve reacted quickly, turning just as the bomb was tossed. With his shield, he deflected the bomb back towards the door. In the next instant before the explosion, both he and Natasha dove through a window and into the next room for cover.

  Andy, however, was unable to do the same.

  The Jones girl threw herself against the ground just as the bomb went off. She cried out in pain as she landed against the wound on her shoulder. Her head was swimming upon the explosion that ensued and a resounding ringing filled her ears. She was overwhelmed with heat, choking and coughing as smoke filled her lungs.

  With spotted vision, she could just barely make out the colours of Steve's suit as he gently picked her up. "Okay, that one was on us," she heard Natasha say, but the words seemed muted somehow. Andy could hardly concentrate as exhaustion washed over her in one, final onslaught.

  Slowly, her eyes began to flutter shut, and then darkness was all she knew.

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