I'm Grant Ward

Chapter 132: Painful Revelations

Skye was focused on her computer screen, her eyes darting from one line of code to the next as she tracked every transaction that Lloyd Rathman, a Centipede financier, had made. Her connection to the organization was about to be exposed, and she knew that if she could access her accounts, she could follow the money trail back to Raina and find out where Coulson was being held.

"I did it!" Skye exclaimed, her face lighting up with excitement as she saw a series of transfers pointing to a remote location.

Ward and May were right behind her, watching as the coordinates appeared on the screen.

"This has to be it," Ward said, checking the location. "If this is where Raina is holding Coulson, we need to move fast."

May was already in position, preparing the plane for takeoff.

"We're leaving now. Skye, keep monitoring the accounts as we head there. If there's any suspicious activity, let me know," she said, ever practical and focused.

Skye nodded, continuing to type furiously as the team prepared for yet another rescue mission. This time, the target was someone everyone on the team considered indispensable: Phil Coulson.

Meanwhile, Coulson was trapped in a sterile, artificially lit room, feeling increasingly weak. Raina stood in front of him, dressed in her typical impeccable white outfit, her voice soft, almost seductive, as she tried to convince him to cooperate.

"I know this is difficult, Agent Coulson," she said, a slight smile on her lips. "But you have to understand. Everything we're doing is for your own good. For your future. If you get into this machine, you'll finally be able to remember everything that really happened when you died."

Coulson looked at her, his face etched with tension. He knew there was something wrong with his memories, especially the ones related to Tahiti. And while a part of him wanted to know the truth, another part was terrified of what he might discover.

"I don't need this," he replied, his voice hoarse. "I already know enough. Fury brought me back, and that's all that matters."

Raina leaned in, her eyes shining with a mixture of fascination and curiosity.

"But don't you want to know how he did it? What he sacrificed to keep you alive? There are things you can't remember. Things you deserve to know."

She pressed a button, and a large machine beside Coulson began to hum. It was a strange device, full of wires, flashing lights, and a metal dome that would cover Coulson's head. He felt a shiver of panic run down his spine.

"No," he whispered, trying to resist. "I don't want to remember."

But two guards entered the room and grabbed his arms, forcing him into the machine. The dome was placed over his head, and he began to hear a high-pitched sound that made him close his eyes in pain.

Inside his mind, memories began to surface, fragmented and distorted. He saw flashes of when he had been killed by Loki, the blood splattered on the floor of the Helicarrier, the looks on his colleagues' faces as he died.

Then the memories shifted, and he saw Dr. Streiten, the doctor he vaguely recognized, standing next to a surgical table. Streiten's voice was monotone as he explained the procedure.

"Director Fury ordered us to do whatever was necessary to bring you back," Streiten said. "That included procedures that had never been tested on humans."

Coulson saw himself being injected with strange chemicals, his body reacting violently as they kept him alive artificially. He watched helplessly as they opened his head, exposing his brain for a series of experimental surgeries.

Inside the machine, Coulson began to scream, the horror of the memories too much to bear. He saw himself begging to die on the operating table, begging for it all to end. But they didn't stop. They continued the process, ignoring his screams.

"Please let me die!" he screamed, both in memory and in reality, as tears streamed down his face.

Suddenly, the sound of gunfire and explosions brought Coulson back to the present. The team had arrived.

Ward, May, Skye, and the others stormed the building where Raina was holding Coulson. Centipede's super soldiers began to attack, but Mike Peterson was with them, fighting alongside the team to protect his allies. He took down one soldier with a powerful blow, but he was clearly in pain, his body still weakened from his previous wounds.

"Ward, I'm coming for Coulson!" May shouted, as she took down another enemy with a swift kick.

Ward nodded, covering her with precise shots as she ran to the room where Coulson was being held. May entered, destroying the machine and ripping the wires from Coulson's head, who was still shaking, tormented by the memories he had relived.

"Coulson, it's okay. We're here," May said, her voice firm but with a gentleness she rarely showed.

Coulson opened his eyes, still dazed and confused, but relieved to see May. She helped him to his feet, and they left the room as the sounds of battle continued outside.

Raina was captured by Skye and Ward, who took her into custody. As the team finished the operation, the immediate danger seemed to have passed, but what Coulson had learned about his own resurrection weighed on his mind.

Back at base, Coulson met with Dr. Streiten, the man responsible for the procedures that had saved his life. But now, knowing the truth, Coulson wanted answers.

"You need to tell me everything, Streiten," he said, his voice tight. "What really happened to me?"

Streiten sighed, clearly uncomfortable, but knowing he could no longer hide the truth.

"It was Director Fury who ordered us to do what we did," he said slowly. "You were dead, Phil. Really. What we did... it wasn't natural. We used chemicals and technologies that had never been tested before. And to ease the trauma of it all, we implanted false memories of Tahiti. It was a way to give you peace. But deep down, you always knew something was wrong, didn't you?"

Coulson felt a weight on his chest, the truth hard to process.

"I begged you to let me die," he murmured, pain in his eyes. "And you forced me to come back."

Streiten nodded, unapologetic, but also unapologetic.

"We did what we thought was right. Fury believed the world needed you. Maybe it was a mistake... but you're here now, alive, and that's what matters."

Coulson was silent for a moment, taking in the magnitude of what had been done to him. He finally shook his head, letting go of Streiten and leaving the room without another word.

At the end of the chapter, we see Mike Peterson, badly injured, opening his eyes in a dark room. He was hurt, confused, and as he tried to move, he realized that his leg was missing. Panic rose within him, but before he could react, an electronic voice echoed in his head, coming from an implant in his eye.

"Await further instructions."

Mike looked around, unsure of what the future held, but aware that his life would never be the same again.