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"Skye's been compromised. We're under attack."

My body freezes, heart rate picking up at Hunter's words. "Is she okay?"

Jemma's gone deathly pale, her eyes wide with fear. "She's been shot in the leg. It's just a flesh wound, but she's having trouble standing -"

He's cut off partway through his sentence and I hear the distant but tell tale sound of a gunshot. "And I could really use some backup right now."

I glance across at my protégée, who's looking like a deer caught in the headlights. I really don't want to leave her alone in here, but if Hunter and Skye are in mortal peril I have to do everything I can to keep them safe.

I bite my lip and close the cabinet I had been searching in. "Copy that. Jemma, I really don't want to do this, but they need me back there. Keep searching, I'll come back as soon as I can."

She nods stiffly and I take the gun from my belt and click the safety off. My feet pound against the concrete floor as I run out of the lab, retracing my earlier steps through the corridors and following the ringing sound of gunshots. It doesn't take me long to reach the hall where Skye is crouched on the ground, fingers covering the wound in her leg stained crimson, her gun shaking in her other hand. I immediately move to shield her from our attackers, standing slightly to the side of Hunter.

There's seven men before us, draped in heavy black armour. They all have a gun in each hand. Everything starts to move in slow motion and I can feel the rush of adrenaline that accompanies a fight. I fire a couple of shots in quick succession at the men nearest to us before swinging a roundhouse kick at the closest one, my upper body manoeuvring around the bullet shot at me by another. He drops to the ground with a heavy thump.

Hunter hits the next one in the space between his helmet and breastplate and the man falls like a sack of bricks. Another attacker knocks my gun out of my hand and it skids along the floor with an unpleasant scraping noise; he then punches me in the face with a sloppy right hook. They're not trained well. I let myself be knocked to the floor, then sweep his legs out from underneath him with my foot. The armour is heavy, when they lose their balance it is hard to regain it. Use their own centre of gravity against them. Simple physics. Hunter shoots the exposed skin where his helmet has been knocked askew.

A bullet skims past my ear and I crawl over to where my gun lies on the concrete. In one swift move I twist my body around and shoot behind one man's knee. He crumples to the floor, screaming in agony.

Hunter's not doing too badly, taking out another oppressor while I stand up. I cartwheel over to one of the two remaining attackers, knocking the gun from his grip with my foot and smashing my elbow into his neck. I drive my knee into his groin and he falls to his knees. Hunter finishes him with a well aimed bullet.

The last one is sluggish, his movements slow and weak. He takes a shot at my chest but I sidestep it and rush at him, spinning on the spot and aiming a high kick at the crook of his neck. The impact whacks his helmet to the floor and I bring the barrel of my gun down as hard as I can on his head. He keels over, unconscious.

"Call Coulson, get help for Skye. I'm going to get Simmons," I say, putting my gun back in my belt. Hunter bends down and Skye slips her arm around his shoulders as I turn to go find Jemma. She must be terrified.

But before I can go anywhere another shot whistles past my ear. I whirl back around, momentarily stunned by the sudden attack. We are no longer alone in the corridor; a squad of soldiers faces us, machine guns held at the ready.

There's no way we can take these men. I slowly raise my hands in surrender; Hunter and Skye do the same.

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