The Siren's Song

Chapter 3

Shield Research Facility - Three months later

Agent Coulson leads Director Fury and Maria Hill through the Shields Research facility, heading deeper into the facility even as controlled chaos occurs around them as scientist, lab assistants, and guards all assist in packing valuable research and carrying it to the waiting trucks.

"Doctor Selvig read an energy surge from the tesseract 4 hours ago." Coulson explains.

Fury glances at the agent. "NASA didn't authorize Selvig to go to testing phase."

"He wasn't testing it." Coulson explains. "He wasn't even in the room. A spontaneous event."

There is a catch in Maria's step at this. "It just turned itself on?"

"Where are the energy levels now?" Fury continues over his righthand, he's seen too much to let himself be distracted by the unexpected.

"Climbing." Agent Coulson says. "When Selvig couldn't shut it down we ordered evac."

Fury nods in something close to approval. "How long until we get everyone out?"

"Campus should be clear in the next half hour." Coulson says.

Fury stops for just a moment to look back at Coulson. "Do better."

Coulson nods in understanding and leaves to oversee the evacuation as Fury and Maria start down the stairs to the subbasement research lab.

"Sir, evacuation may be futile." Maria points out as they descend the spiral stairs around the interior edge of an underground missile silo.

"We should tell them to go back to sleep?" Fury says flippantly.

"If we can't control the Tesseract's energy there may not be a minimum safe distance."

"I need you to make sure the Phase 2 prototypes are shipped out." Fury says, glossing over her concern.

"Sir, is that really a priority right now?" Maria asks as they make their way to the stairs into the lab.

Fury stops and looks at her evenly. "Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it continues to spin on. Clear out the tech below. Every piece of Phase 2 on a truck and gone."

"Yes sir." Maria turns away, walking past two guards on her way. "With me.

###

Fury enters the underground lab, scanning the space for Doctor Selvig and spotting the older man on the platform, studying the Tesseract.

"Talk to me, doctor." Fury says

"Director." Selvig says, stepping down from the platform.

"Is there anything we know for certain?" Fury asks.

Selvage crosses the space between them. "The Tesseract is misbehaving."

The Tesseract rejects the device a scientist attempts to introduce to its surface with a loud sound that Fury might have thought sounded angry if it wasn't an inanimate object.

"Is that supposed to be funny?" Fury asks.

"No, it's not funny at all." Selvig assures the Director. "The Tesseract is not only active. She's behaving."

"I assume you pulled the plug."

"She's an energy source." Selvig points out. "We turn off the power, she turns it back on. If she reaches peak level..."

"You prepared for this, doctor." Fury interrupts. "Harnessing energy from space."

"We don't have the harness. My calculations are far from complete." Selvig explains. "She's throwing off interference, radiation. Nothing harmful. Low levels of Gamma radiation."