Marvel Iron Age: Lady Deathstrike # 14
New Latveria:
Ngumi lied in bed struggling to get some kind of sleep. Her slumber interrupted up from Kiki or Kylie’s crying or to a nightmare of her own. Since Leann’s death the nightmares just kept rolling in; all of them, every bad memory and ever failure. Some of them she knew weren’t under her control and others she felt she could have prevented.
They started with her sitting waist deep in a pool of blood, she was soaked in it. Withered hands with the flesh of the dead reached and grabbed her. Pale faces would come out of the pool, crying tears of blood and whispering accusations at her.
Ngumi we can’t hold the carrier anymore!
Don’t look at me! I know what you did!
It hurts Ngumi make it stop!
We needed you and you abandoned us!
When she would try and answer these voices only blood came out of her mouth. The pool of blood and the dead began to bubble and swirl around her like a red tornado.
Ngumi I can hear them. They’re coming!
Why didn’t you save me? Why did you leave me?
Will you come back to me?
Will you… die for me?
The cries of an infant broke the whispers and she was swept away in blood and corpses. “Aunty Gumi!” She heard as she awoke from her nightmare. It was Kylie and was screaming about something in the living room. Without a second thought Ngumi jumped out of bed and darted into the living room.
“Whats going—“Ngumi stopped herself as soon as she saw the girls safe on the couch watching the holo-screen. “On?”
“Look you’re on the screen!” Kiki said excited about what she was seeing.
Ngumi looked on the screen it was a New Latverian news special on the latest suspected Iron Army activity. This time they had in very large bold lettering Traitor? On the screen were blurred images of a woman engaged in a fire fight against mercenaries in San Francisco, the Tokyo Iron Hall being lead against the traitorous Hand. A woman wielded a sword into the building and twenty Iron soldiers behind her. The words “A real hero” highlighted over an enlarged image of her with a sword in hand and with an old American flag in the back drop. It was Ngumi.
The woman in these new images in Iron Army propaganda has been confirmed to be Major Ngumi Takada of S.H.I.E.L.D! We have not received word from our new Queen Carol Danvers as of yet, but we have been notified an investigation into Shield and the New Latverian military is pending review.
<What in hell is this shit?> Ngumi growled in Japanese.
“Ms. Takada!” She heard yelled from behind the door as someone took the time to bang on the door.
Castle Doom:
“Do you mind telling me why the Iron Army is promoting you in their newest propaganda campaign?” Carol asked. She stood tall in front of Ngumi. This time she wasn’t wearing long flowing robes or sitting in her throne. She was dressed in a military uniform that was neatly put together and resembled the uniform she wore as a shield agent.
“No idea, though when I went up against the Hand I did sort of put together their falling out with the Iron Army.” Ngumi answered sternly. “Maybe this is a thank you.”
“Or a big damn headache for me!” Carol growled. She backed off and put her hands on her waist. “You know the San Francisco Iron Hall sent you a Medal?”
“Are you going to award me it?” Ngumi asked with a kind of whimsical smile on her face.
“Hell no. I had it sent back and I told General Ahern where he could shove it.” Carol answered. “That would be funny to you wouldn’t it?”
“Are we done my American Queen?” Ngumi asked with her arms folded to her chest walking up next to Carol.
“Not even remotely.” Carol said in an irritated tone. “You know along with the bugs in your apartment I’m going to have to put a security detail on you and man outside your door?”
“You have the apartment bugged?” Ngumi asked suspiciously.
Carol chuckled a little bit and turned to Ngumi. “I thought that blonde wig and black costume crack was really cute.”
“You heard all that?” Ngumi asked taking a step closer to the queen and giving her look that seemed to dared here to do something about it. “Then you saw,,,”
“You should stop drinking, Ngumi. Dismissed agent.” Carol said walking away from Ngumi with her fists clenched tight.
Ngumi took a deep sigh and slouched slightly. “That almost went bad.” She thought, walking in the other direction.
Ngumi’s apartment:
Ngumi was driven back to the apartment by an armored convoy. Along with the thought of being a parent and the increased security her world seemed to be crashing all around her. “I really need…” She began to think but quickly put out of her head. Though the dark thoughts still lingered and could be ignored for so long.
She walked down the hall to her apartment and dragged her feet through the door. Ngumi’s eyes as she turned in the direction of her living room. She heard the girls laughing as she walked in. Something she hadn’t heard in a week since picking them up. “Oh!” A female voice Ngumi didn’t recognize exclaimed.
. Kiki and Kylie sat on the floor in a circle with an unknown woman. She wore tight jeans and a leather jacket that hugged her body. She had short brown hair and green eyes, also distractingly attractive for Ngumi’s taste. “Hi, I’m Janis Snow.” The woman got up and introduced herself.
“She’s really funny Aunty!” Kylie and Kiki giggled.
“Is she?” Ngumi said as the approached Janis.
Janis’s smile brightened her face as she and Ngumi stood in front of each other. “Queen Danvers assigned me to council the children and assure your mental health.” She said cheerfully.
A quick stir of anger lit up in Ngumi. “She sent a shrink?”
“A what?” Janis asked with a confused expression.
Ngumi rolled her eyes and sighed. “Old expression. Thank you but we don’t need a psychiatrist.”
Janis shrugged and seemed incredulous to Ngumi’s statement. “From what I’ve read about you Major I think I may be out of my depth.” Janis turned around and crouched low to the children’s level on the floor. “I’ll see you two next week.” She said sweetly.
“Uh huh!” They said.
Janis turned around and walked by Ngumi, “You I’m going to visit tomorrow.” She said with a wink in a low sultry voice.
Ngumi couldn’t help but turn around and watch Janis walk out. She examined her her walk. It was strong and confident. Also a little sexy which added to Ngumi’s distraction when she was around. “It’s official.” Ngumi exhaled and palmed her forehead. Finally letting herself think about the dark thoughts screaming for acknowledgement in her mind.
“I need to kill someone!”
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