Bombshell [B. Barnes]

Prologue

It had felt like any other day at the Hub the day S.H.I.E.L.D. fell. Nobody would've imagined that the infamous was Hydra even still standing, let alone strong enough to infiltrate the world's foremost intelligence agency, and yet, that's what Agent Christine Harris found herself up against that fateful evening.

The British agent had reported to the Hub as usual, swiftly making her way to her cubicle to check for any new assignments. She may have had a desk, but her job was far from a desk job, usually involving her jetting around the world on dangerous missions or organizing and executing extraction plans. However, that day had been a desk day, no missions, just paperwork; Christine got restless on desk days, unable to stay in her cubicle for long, so she often wandered. As a Level 7 agent, she had access to most of the Hub, something she often took advantage of. Her ability and need to wander had probably saved her life that day.

A graduate from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Academy of Operations, Christine was first and foremost a field agent, and a good one at that. She'd been assigned to the Hub immediately following her training; she knew exactly how everything was run and she knew when something was going on, so when she noticed the number of soldiers running through the corridors as she left the indoor tack late that afternoon she became immediately suspicious. However, she returned to her cubicle in accordance with S.H.I.E.L.D. protocol; if her presence was needed she would've been informed. Her cubicle was part of a larger room full of identical office spaces, it was always bustling with noise and movement as agents worked, but when she approached it was silent.

And then she heard gunshots.

She flattened herself against the wall, listening for anything that would let her know what was happening. She crept closer, simultaneously thanking and cursing the eerily empty corridor for making it easier to hear but providing her with no cover.

"Hail Hydra." She heard a chorus of voices shout and her blood ran cold.

She managed to peek into the office, though she immediately wished she hadn't. Bodies of her colleagues littered the ground and in the middle stood about ten agents, dressed in S.H.I.E.L.D. uniforms with their fists raised in the two-arm Hydra salute. She thought she might vomit but she pushed the feeling down just as she was trained to, focusing only on her new mission: to make it out alive and save as many people as she could.

The brunette ran to the first place she could think of: the Holobox. Hopefully, she could use the secure line to reach the Triskelion and get help. She rushed through the corridors, staying out of sight of the soldiers, having to assume they were Hydra. When she reached the room where the Holobox was kept she slipped inside, quickly shutting the door behind her and pressing her back against it, gun pointed out into the room.

"Agent Harris?"

There were two others in the room with her already using the Holobox to contact what sounded like the Academy of SciTech's director, Agent Weaver. She recognized the others as well, Jemma Simmons, youngest Academy graduate to date, and Antoine Triplett, fellow Operations graduate and occasional colleague in the field.

"Agent Triplett," Christine acknowledged in her clipped British accent, not lowering her gun. She had been about to interrogate the two when Agent Weaver's voice cut through.

"Have your commander report the Academy is under siege." Gunshots could be heard in the background. "Don't know how long Hydra's been inside S.H.I.E.L.D. but they're taking over."

Agent Simmons didn't even appear to have noticed Christine's presence, her attention focused solely on the Holobox transmission, but Triplett's attention on her became even sharper with the announcement of the Hydra takeover.