HADES // T. STARK DAUGHTER // MARVEL I.I

17 ~ AGENT ~ 17

HARLEY RAY STARK
LOVING DAUGHTER
1996-2010

I turned around in the graveyard, scanning over the gravestones. All of them said the same thing- my name, my birth, my apparent death, with some sappy description between them. I felt dizzy, and for some reason, I kept tripping over myself trying the stand. I looked down, only to fling backward in fear, in disgust. Bodies, everywhere. I had been kneeling on dead people.

And, I knew them all. The people I killed at Hydra, Pepper, Happy, Zeus, Ares, Uncle Rhodey, Hermes, Harry, Dad. They all lay lifeless, dead eyes staring at me. A scream ripped from my throat, and I used a headstone to push myself up, running away, over all of them, tears pricking at my eyes. And then-

I woke up with a gasp, covered in a cold sweat, my surroundings blurry. A pair of arms reached for me and I shoved myself back, slamming against the wall. The dark room was hit by bright light and I thrashed until my eyes focused.

I wasn't there. I was at Shield, in my room. The things trapping my legs were my blankets, the arms reaching for me were a doctor's. I waved the woman away, taking in shaky breaths and bringing my knees up to my chest as I found my voice. "I . . . I'm fine,"

The woman waited a minute before nodding, more to herself than me, and leaving. I felt like a child- needing someone to check on me and make sure I was alright when I had a bad dream. And, just as usual, one thought went through my mind- Fuck Hydra.

Standing, I fumbled for my watch, checking the time with dreary eyes. 4:47, early even for Shield standards. Nonetheless, I moved to the bathroom, knowing I wouldn't get any more sleep in the next few hours. I had roughly four hours before I would report to Fury's office for a debrief. Apparently, there was someone he needed to recruit for the mission- and I was supposed to help him do it.

I ran a hand over my hair, the short patches of hair slick with sweat. I walked into the bathroom, flinching as the lights flicked on. Fumbling, I turned on the sink, leaning down and gulping water from the faucet. Once I had enough, I drenched my head, the cold droplets dripping down my neck. 

I stared in the mirror, tense and breathing heavily. The large shirt I wore was stained by sweat and sink-water, my shorts creased and twisted. My eyes had heavy bags under them and were tinted with red, my skin pale and holding small patches of cold, death. Flashes of my nightmares slowly drifted to the back of my mind, as I struggled to calm my breath.

A knock rose me from my stupor, and I forced a calm look onto my face before leaving the bright bathroom, becoming bathed in darkness once more. A figure was sitting on my bed, back straight, something in her lap. I jerked forward, flicking on my bedroom light. "Doc?"

The young doctor turned to me, looking as dazed as I felt. "Agent Wilx, I- I, uh- this, this is for you . . . uh, it's, er-"

I took the box from her outstretched hand warily. The young doctor was only a teenager, maybe a year older than me. But, she was one of Shield's brightest, and from the times I had seen her, she was as smart as I used to be, probably smarter. This was the first time I had actually spoken to her, but something felt off. Setting the box aside, I took a step back. "Listen, Doc, why don't you go to the break room and take a nap or eat something, yeah? Looks like you had one too many Redbulls-"

"You don't understand!" She suddenly shouted, grabbing at my arm. My bare arm. After I had just woken up, after I had just had a nightmare. When I wasn't prepared. A yelp left me as I tried to jerk my arm from her hold. I felt the cold seeping into my skin, but I couldn't stop it. The girl in front of me was in too much of a frenzy to notice as her skin became paler and colder.

"Let go!" I screeched, pulling back with wide eyes. Her eyes flickered down to where she latched onto my skin, and she sluggishly retreated, falling to the ground. Without hesitation, I slammed my palm over the security system next to my door, triggering a silent alarm. They installed that in case I hurt someone, but right now it was saving us both.

I yanked at my door, throwing it open and tumbling out. I knew how to fight. But, I didn't want to, just then. I didn't want to hurt her. And that terrified me.

~

(A/N: So, this is the end. HADES is finished. As you read, I've stopped right before Avengers, and I will continue the Avengers portion in the next book. However, although I have a few chapters of the next book completed, I will not be uploading parts to PLUTO, the next book with Harley Stark, just yet. Instead, SIGIL will be published next. Right now, I have around 2 chapters ready for that part, and once I have 5, I will start posting weekly, so that I don't have such awful gaps between chapters. The next book is not following Harley, but instead will follow two characters- Narvi and Torrun, on Asgard. More details will be on SIGIL, and I will be uploading a cast list for PLUTO and SIGIL within the next few days. Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoy the next book. ~Tae)