Thunderbolts #23- On Arrival
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Thunder Hawk, Bolivian Air Space
"And so after the celestial weapons landing in the Bolivian Jungle, the government has closed it's air-space to all foreign super-human groups until the landing site has been secured." The reporter stated, as footage from the stone sword's flight was shown. "Both the Inhumans and Asgardians have denied responsibility of this bizarre event leaving one question on everyone's mind. Who is behind this, and what does it mean for humanity?"
"Yes what does it mean Doctor?" Valerie asked coldly, her eyes boring into the Hogan Supreme meditating in the jet's cargo bay. While the team had no reason to worry about Doctor Voodoo's coming, they were still on edge after he had arrived unannounced in Abe's garage.
"The coming of the Sword of Xibalba was long foreseen by the ancient Mayans who marked a possible date for its arrival." Doctor Voodoo explained. "They predicted it would land on the 21st December 2012, they were off just a bit with the date and even more with how it arrived."
"Meaning?" Melissa asked from the jet's cockpit.
"Meaning it was summoned to this date and time." Doctor Voodoo replied. "A man called Doctor Emil Kreagen found the summoning spell that activated the blade and sent it to Earth."
"Okay so why make it land in Bolivia?" Rock Python mused, as Nightshade injected his broken arm with a quick acting calcium fortifier.
"I'm not sure." Doctor Voodoo answered as Atlas walked past him into the cockpit. "I would have assumed Mexico would have been a more logical place." He added, as Melissa threw up a sound dampening field around the cockpit.
"He knows why." Melissa hissed bitterly. "He just doesn't want to tell us because he doesn't trust us."
"Not just him, the Avengers as a whole." Abe added as he brought up a schematic of a European style castle sitting in the rainforest. "Even Clint was on the fence when it came to anything to do with Zemo and us."
"Something tells me this isn't a Zemo plan." Erik sighed, as he looked through the cockpit into the green carpet below. "If it were crazy science then yes, but this feels wrong for him."
"Plus SHIELD reported that Helmut was recently killed in one of their operations although I doubt it since they were unable to secure his body." Abe replied, as Melissa lowered the field. "If he is though we'll stop him." He added as Erik left the cockpit.
"You ready to do this Abe?" Melissa asked using a directed sound beam , as a clearing became visable on the horizon. Nodding Abe pressed a button and left his chair, as Melissa wrapped a sonic field around the jet's black-box. Seconds later an explosion ripped the jet in two, the emergency crash capsule in the cargo bay jettisoning as Melissa pushed herself out of the cockpit, her wings sending her soaring westwards towards the nearby bluff and the camouflaged castle hewn from the stone sitting atop it.
**
The door of the crash capsule smashed open as Erik slammed his shoulder into the ceramic plating. Taking a step into the forest, he heard a click as a man dressed in grey armour walked out of the tree-line armed with an assault rifle.
"Who are you, put your hands up!" The man ordered, as he trained his weapon on the Thunderbolt.
"Great classic goon." Erik sighed as he slammed his foot down, shock-waves radiating from his step knocking the man off his feet. Walking over Erik grew slightly and picked the man up, before crushing the weapon under his feet. "Huh this looks new." He mused as he looked at the insignia on the mercenaries wristband. "Who are you working for? Is it Zemo?" He asked, as wisps of smoke erupted from the corners of the goon's mouth.
"Atlas drop him now!" Doctor Voodoo ordered, as he emerged from the capsule as the man burst into flame. Cursing in pain Erik dropped the man, his body incinerating as it hit the ground. "Someone rigged these mercenaries with a hell-fire counter measure in case they were caught."
"These guys are outfitted like Zemo's men, save for their sigil." Atlas announced as he traced a symbol consisting of a skull surrounded by a pentagram. "I never saw anything like that when I worked for either Zemo."
"I have," Abe answered as he and Rock Python helped Nightshade out of the wreckage, "during that business with the hammers I saw that symbol on some Hydra agents who attacked the Raft. They called themselves the Department of Occult Affairs but you already knew that." He said before turning towards Doctor Voodoo, his eyes narrowing. "Didn't you?"
"I suspected." Voodoo answered. "Last time the Sword of Xibalba descended it caused droughts that wiped the majority of the Mayan civilisation from the face of the Earth. I tried to stop Dr Emil Kreagen from completing the summoning ritual but was interrupted when his bodyguard arrived and almost froze me to death with a single touch."
"So why come to us?" Erik asked. "Why not go to the Avengers?"
"Because I hoped your past experiences with Castle Zemo would lead me to a way to bypass security and reach Kreagen before the sword was activated." Voodoo replied, as Abe took off his helmet, his face drained of colour.
"Where is Kreagen based?" Abe asked through gritted teeth.
"Castle Zemo why?" Voodoo answered. "Wait where is Songbird?"
"Flying to Castle Zemo," Abe replied grimly, "and towards danger!"
**
The man standing on the bluff dressed in a black bodysuit with religious symbols decorated across his mask and arms, a sword slung over his shoulder looked out across the the forest with his scoped rifle. "The American super heroes have landed after their ship was scuttled," he stated bluntly to the three people standing in the doorway, "I recommended that you send more men to the dig-site and complete activation as soon as possible Doctor."
"You recommendations are noted Mr Medvedev." A deep Scottish accent announced as its owner, an elderly gentleman with a long white ponytail draped over his shoulder, placed a coat over his naked torso. "Radio Impact Command, tell them to prepare for assault, you and I will reinforce them, you two guard the prisoners until we need them." He added, as he and the first man headed for the path down towards the impact site. As they retreated a figure clinging to the face of the rock, pink hair blowing slightly in the wind. Silently Melissa climbed the rock face, her hands feeling the vibration of the guards and vehicles heading for the landing site. As the area above her cleared Songbird pulled herself up and scurried over to the castle wall, a pink aura running over a series of bricks.
"Have you heard," A voice stated from the other side of the wall, "some of the others have reported seeing the boss skulking around the lower levels of the building,"
"Who Kreagen?" Another asked.
"No not that batty old nut, they're talking about the Baron." The first corrected. "And they say he killed some of the guards the Halloween Parade brought with him."
"Isn't he running Hydra? Why would he attack his own men?" A new voice asked, as a door closed on the other side of the wall.
"Who cares, those Hydra guards are filth." The first voice announced. "Besides who can tell what the Baron's thinking, what with all that Thunderbolts c**p he pulled."
"Yeah there the worst." A forth voice announced, his words accompanied by a woman's voice protesting in Spanish. "Check out what I booked for the afternoon." He added as the woman screamed, a sound echoed by Melissa as the bricks she had been listening through were sonically propelled at the guards to create an entry point.
"Who...who are you?" The latino woman dressed in a cotton blouse and cargo pants gasped as she grabbed a pistol from one of the unconscious guards.
"I'm here to evacuate any survivors while my team-mates attempt to secure the sword." Melissa lied, as her powers reassembled the wall behind her. "My name is Songbird by the way."
"I'm Elena." The woman answered. "Are you...are you with Citizen V? She tried to get us out but was captured by the invaders. We thought that with Zemo gone, people like these dogs would leave us alone."
"Have you seen Zemo? Is he involved in this invasion?" Melissa asked, as she gently pulled the pistol away.
"No I haven't but the American that came with the others is worse than Zemo." Elena replied, terror evident in her voice as Melissa headed for the door. "Wait where are you going?" She asked.
"To free the others." Melissa whispered. "Stay here, I'll be back for you later." She added as she took to the air, gliding silently above the heads of the remaining garrison, her ears trained to listen for the sounds of the prisoners. After fifteen minutes she eventually found what she was looking for in the form of two Hydra agents standing in front of a locked metal door.
"So you freaked out by all the metas running around this place?" One of the guards asked.
"Nah only the boss, you can tell he wants you dead when he looks at you." The other guard replied as a sonic set of chains wrapped around them, knocking them out as they feel to the floor. Rolling her eyes Melissa turned a sonic key in the lock, before dragging the bodies inside.
"Citizen V I assume?" Melissa asked, as she looked the woman dressed in a blue bodysuit with a red V coming down her shoulders to just above her breasts, her plated blonde hair slung over her shoulder.
"Oh hilarious, your profile didn't mention your terrible sense of humour." Citizen V sighed in German accented English before cracking a grim smile. "But there are whole chapters dedicated to your good timing." She added as she looked at the metal chains binding her arms and legs.
"Anything you can tell me about the people holding you here?" Melissa asked, as she summoned up a pair of sonic bolt cutters to snap the chains.
"Emil Kreagen is in charge at least it seems that way at first glance but you can tell from his behaviour that he's second fiddle to the witch he brought with him." Citizen V explained as the first chain sparked and hissed before snapping. "They have mercenaries too, loose affiliates to the DOA such as the Confessor, Yuki Ona, the Blood Brother and..." Her words were cut off by a gunshot and a grunt from Melissa as she hit the floor from the bullet impacted in her shoulder.
" You know what I love most about meeting old employers again?" A cruel mocking voice announced causing Melissa to turn and look at the shooter, his face covered with a black and white ballistic mask, his chest emblazoned with a white cross. "How everything I do, such as putting a bullet through your skull, is personal."
"...Crossbones." Citizen V finished as Crossbones aimed his weapon at Songbird's forehead. "The man who is going to kill us."
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