2012-09-15 - Invader Skrull: Invaders Assemble

Tony Stark and Kyle have been in his lab for two hours straight. Stark is talking Greek and Kyle is needing his ring to translate. It all has to do with theories on how the Skrull technology could be getting blocked! Iron Man is no where to be seen, and Jarvis has left to go shopping, to restock and to go visit Sawyer's aunt to discuss baking tips.

About thirty minutes ago, Hawkeye showed up, and is currently chilling in the Sitting Room and eating popcorn.

No one knows what the cat or in this case, Black Widow is about to drag into the door.

What there is a moment later is the sound of a SHIELD hovercar flying towards the front lawn at near mach speeds. It's Natasha, who is using her priority access card being a member to not be shot on over by the security system. She intends to just smash it down over to the front lawn with a loud -THUMP- with her two green passengers still in the backseat all nice and napping.

The protective layers of the lab below, prevent Stark and Kyle from being distrubed, but Hawkeye? He tilts his head, and puts his popcorn aside. He then stands up and starts to head toward the foyer or front hall, moving to open the front door to peer at what is going on. He yawns, covering his mouth with his hand, and purposely appearing very bored and uninterested though he got his ass off the couch for this.

Black Widow has her guns out and aimed, and glances at Barton, "Where's the Tin Man? I need him up here NOW." She has her weapons out and covering Clint. Just in case. Paranoia dies hard, upon finding half your base staff has suddenly been replaced. The car goes to a stop outside and she keeps her two guns out and ready.

Kyle Rayner sits across from Tony, using the universal translator to understand what the billionaire/playboy/genius/philanthropist is actually talking about. He leans back in his chair with his arms crossed. "Stark, is any of this stuff useful? I have a good understanding of tech in general, but man this is completely over my head."

Clint looks confused, "Ummmm....I don't know. What is your /issue/?" He then grins, "Come on baby, chill out." He sees something move in the back seat of the flying car. "What you got in the flying car?" He starts to edge toward it. He doesn't seem armed at first, no bow and arrows...but he has a SHIELD issued gun hidden on his person.

Stark blinks. Poor Kyle, two hours later! "Oh," his smile fading. "Sorry, I forget myself sometimes. Times like this, I really miss Giant Man," and he sighs softly. He looks at the time, "Wow, you have some major patience if that wasn't

English to you Greenie," sounding impressed. "Or did you go to a happy place?" His tone teasing.

But Stark suddenly pushes off on his stool with wheels, and slides across the lab to another console. "And it is useful! Once Reed has the thing smaller and more easily moved about, I can actually make adjustments and test out these theories, and see if we can pick up a Skrull," he advises Kyle. "Basically, it is by process of elimination!" And yes, this is exciting to Stark.

Kyle Rayner was leaned back in his chair, snoring softly when Stark spoke and woke him up two hours after he asked his original question. Kyle sits straight up in his chair and tries to look like he was neversleeping at all. "Huh? Oh..right, right. I'm sure you know what you're doing, Tony. Just let me know when you're ready to test it."

Sometimes, Stark is oblivious. This was sadly one of those times, to poor Kyle's suffering. He is working away, hrming softly to himself. "Oh, went over all the past footage between the time when the security system was brought back up after the return from the Labyrinth, and just have about a week to go." He flicks something on the controls, and it shows footage being fast forwarded through. "I have a program to pick out anything suspicious." Liar, he is actually reviewing it in his head for anything suspicious.

In the meantime, Hawkeye gets closer to the flying car and manges to see inside. Two SHIELD agents is what it looks like. But..., "Natasha, why are you kidnapping S.H.I.E.L.D. agents?" He eyes her with his own suspicion. But what more is going on?

Natasha snaps over at Barton, "Clause Seventy-Four B-Delta." She keeps the guns up and aimed at him, "INfiltrators present and I'm passing them over to him so he can see how they slipped past security and identification."

Kyle Rayner eyes Tony for a moment and then pats him on the shoulder. "Stark, sometimes I think there is another level to you that I just don't understand. But there's no doubt that you're a freaking genius. Okay, how can I help with this. If there's a machine that you don't have here, I can create one for you. It'll work the same." His constructs were fully functioning afterall. He stiffles a yawn, obviously feeling a little bad that he fell asleep while Stark was working.

"Whao?! Inflirtrators?! Look, let's just get them inside right now, alright?" Hawkeye moves toward the car, "And put the guns down Natasha! Geez, how long have we known each other? These guys wear S.H.I.E.L.D. uniforms, but who are they?" Course, Hawkeye is coxing Natasha down to lower her guard. "You going to help carry one of these guys in girlfriend? Geez!" He rolls his eyes heavenward.

Keeping her guns on Clint, Natasha goes, "Call for the Tin Man. And you know the drill. When security is breached, you call in an outside contractor to analyse how." She has her guns trained on Clint, a crashed SHIELD car with a pair of tied up SHIELD Agents in the back seat of it that have been pumped up with enough drugs to render them sleeping till Doomsday. "And how long have we known one naother? Since that incident in Belarussia?"

Stark hrms, and tosses the diagrams and details on the frequencies and scanners used up on another screen. "That is the device," and it is large, about Volkswagon sized. "Can you recreate that?" With another few strokes on the keys, he m

oves it to a 3-D display in the center of the lab. He wheels on over to it with another kick and starts pulling it into pieces, and putting things together to better show how it fits together off of a flat screen.

Hawkeye had picked up one of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents passed out in the back of the flying car, carrying him over his shoulder. "I don't know where he is, I asked when I got here, no response from anyone. It was thirty minutes ago, and my communicator is inside. And it was a retorical requestion Natasha!"

In the background of where Stark works, and Kyle tries to stay awake, the videos for the last week are going rapid motion and Stark is viewing them in a segment of his head for anything suspicious. He is up to two days ago now, still rapidly going through the video data through most of the Avengers Mansion.

Yet, that is also when Hawkeye responds, and he tosses with strength he should perhaps not have the passed out S.H.I.E.L.D. agent at the gun totting Natasha even as he pulls out his gun with a quick speed to shoot Natasha. He knows the one in the back seat of the flying car and he just threw are Skrull, and he is going to silence Natasha before the Avengers return.

The fast drawn pistol, the peeking into the car.. Natasha is on edge, and Clint's motions are enough to give it away. She dives over to the side, tucking and rolling, and firing both her pistols in quick bursts fo three bullets apiece over at Clint. Hisisng over at him, "You're too slow! He's a faster draw anyways."

The body flies past Natasha when she dodges it, and Hawkeye twists and flips backwards, soon using the car as cover before he twists around the edge of the car to shoot back at Natasha. "He is not!" Oops? Hawkeye-Skrull sort of realizeswhat he did just now, he could have played it off that he thought she was an inflirtrator, but oh my!

Kyle Rayner nods to Tony. "I can give it a shot." He watches as the model is put together, making sure to commit the image to memory. After he feels like he's got it, he lifts his ring and creates a constructof the very device that Tony showed him. "Okay, it's done. It'll work as long as I concentrate on it. But I think you should go ahead and test it now."

The two exchange fire, Natasha firing quick bursts up at Clint, "Grow some! NOt like he ever had any either!" She goes to try and charge over towards Skrull-Hawkeye, intent o n using the car over as a blocker between her and him, going to then leap over the hood, flip over it, and try to get to hand to hand range!

"Alright, change the frequency to," and Stark is running lists as he starts going over possibility #1.

In the meantime, Hawkeye-Skrull has his gun up as Natasha comes over, but it gets kicked out of his hand. He just grins though, "I'm better at hand-to-hand," he sneers and goes to attack Natasha. He moves his hand that wasn't holding the cut to catch her ankle and actually give her a 'toss'.

As Stark is talking away, he suddenly pauses in his talking and looks over at the screen that is up and moving through the footage. It is paused as Natasha comes flying in with a flying car. "Kyle...," he says, and it zooms in to revealtwo passed out S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in the back seat, fully garbbed. He then starts playing the footage at normal speed. The strangest thing?

This is all done without Stark touching something, he forgot to hide his special abilities, not something he is used to doing in the lab anyway.

"This footage happened ten minutes ago," and it is starting to play out as Hawkeye comes out and Natasha pulls guns out on him as she lands. "Shit! The videos don't have verbal! I can't hear what is happening." He also can't pull out Iron Man without spilling his secrets. He is already standing up.

Natasha is grabbed by the foot and flung away from the car. As she hits the ground, she lands over in a handspring, whipping up to her feet as she whirls around and grins, "Actually, you're not. And you're welcome to the present." Her normal trick in this case is to palm a hand grenade on someone. Which she's expecting the Skrull-Hawkeye to know as well. So his first motion will probably be to whip around to evade the grenade he'll hopefully assume she put on him.

Which is when she'll try and blast at him wtih both her Widow's Bites on full power right when he's in that momant of 'where did seh put the boom boom'!?

Kyle Rayner stops concentrating on the construct and it fades out of existence. He does notice what Tony does and blinks. "How..how did you do that?" But he doesn't really have time to hear the answer as he notices the screen himself. All he says to Tony is. "I'm going. Have Iron Man meet me there." And then he is zipping out of the lab.

As Tony and Kyle rise the sound of a the Quinn Jet can be heard in the distance roaring toward the mansion. It was coming back earlier than it should be. Captain America had borrowed it and a pilot for a personal mission. It involved trying to track down the whereabout of the Red Skull. His voice crackling across the com, "Avenger's Mansion this is Captain America. Please respond any full members respond. I have a secruity issue."

Hawkeye-Skrull does move instictively when Natasha fients, but he keeps moving! He whips his body up into the air and twists, before landing on his hands and rolling back to his feet to just barely dodge her widow's bite. He grins, "Humans are so amusing. I'll enjoy taking you down." Did some of Hawkeye's personality rub off on this Skrull?! But he then starts to run toward Black Widow, his arm whipping out like Mr. Fantastic's to try and catch her arm with the widow'sbite to try and pull her toward him and prevent her from activating it. A talented shape-shifter.

Tony Stark nods at Kyle, "Get going, and watch long enough to try and figure out which one is the traitor for sure before attacking anyone or pickin sides." He then mentally picks up Captain America's transmission and curses. As soon asKyle is out of his lab, he runs to the Iron Man armor. The exit is the landing bay where the Quinjet will land, but he can go out the back of the mansion and take to the air to assist. The armor floats even as Stark strips down to his under-roos. Pours opening large on his skin and letting out a liquid gold metal that coats his flesh. It is only then that the armor soon settles about him. It will take him a few moments even with his quick speed however, and Kyle will get there first.

Listening in on the comlink though if Kyle is, he will hear Iron Man's response: << I am listening Captain America, what is this security issue and where are you right now? >> And that is when Stark remembers to forward through the restof the footage in his mind to see if he can pick out which one is the Skrull.

Natasha is caught by surprise by the arm thrashing, and is hit across the torso and sent flying as she hits the ground, rolling up to her feet, and she shoots out, "Thanks, by the way." She's got a dislocated jaw and a fractured rib, "Any chance they might have remotely missed that you were a Skrull just went out the window, so thank you for saving me an argument if they didn't have audio." She goes to whip out a pair of concussion grenades over at the Skrull-Hawkeye'sfeet.

It doesn't take Kyle long to get there, but when he does, he floats high above the grounds, looking down to see who is who. When Hawkeye extends his arms towards Natasha, he speaks. <Hawkye is the Skrull, unless he can elongate himself like Plastic Man...or Elongating Man..ah, nevermind. I got this." Creating a construct of a bow, he draws back an arrow with a boxing glove on the end of it. "Oliver would be so proud." He comments before letting it fly towards Hawkeye.

Captain America looks at the knocked out Skrull in the cockpit next to him,  He says as he goesto bring the Quinn jet in for a landing.

< I just got the feed from the video feed on that, > Iron Man states. < Let us hope that is all Captain America. > And that Captain America is speaking the truth. Iron Man is ready now and leaving his lab, to head upstairs and to the sitting room to escape out the back door.

In the meantime, the Skrull transforms into something hard and rock-like the Thing?! The gernades are harmless to him then. This one is better trained than the ones Natasha faced previously in combat, but not as much in subterfuge. However, when the green light arrow connects, he is still knocked back and slides across the ground. He growls.

"Lantern, I will take your head and ring, and bring it back for study." Well, Skrull are so friendly! Aren't they?

There's a hiss from Natasha, "Spasebo." Seeing it shift over. Then she goes to bring up her Widow's Bites, and takes careful aim. Her blasts won't harm it's hard hide, but she can perhaps target a vulnerability.. In this case, now having a few moments to aim, she goes to fire off both Bites, again full power, but carefully aimed over at the eye sockets of the beast.

Kyle Rayner smirks at the Skrull and his new rock-like body. "Better beings have tried..and failed." There is a green glow around his body as twin mounted sonic blasters appear on his shoulders. "Eat on this,rock-boy!" He begins firing sonic blasts towards the skrull. 

The Thing-Skrull suddenly transforms as the widow bits are let loose, and Kyle may think of Beast Boy. Because this thing becomes some sort of alien-monsterous serpeant, and goes to lash out at Natasha first to bite her with poison dripping fangs.

Iron Man is in the air now as well, "Miss me?" That is definately Iron Man's computerized voice. "I see asking nicely is not in your book either Green Lantern as he goes to send out repulsor shots toward the snake-like Skrull. "They do not usually shift this fast." And that is where it leaves a cold chill in Iron Man's belly. He hopes it isn't a Super Skrull.

The snake-like Skrull hisses, unable to get ahold of Natasha as attacks come from Green Lantern and Iron Man. It twists about and soon takes to the air as a larger Phoenix-appearing creature. This is as the Quinn-Jet is landing and it sends a fire ball toward the jet, or rather fire breathe. This is not a copy of the Phoenix cosmic entity, but some alien creature.

Kyle Rayner lifts his ring, shielding the Quinn Jet in a shimmering green bubble that repels the fireball. The shield drops right after the creature attacks. "That's it. No more mister nice Lantern!" He firesa shimmering green laser at the beast, seeking to disrupt it at the molecular level. It's a tactic that he was loathe to use, but in this case it may be the only thing that /might/ disrupt it's shapeshifting abilities long enough for someone to actually land an attack that might hurt it.

Captain America is about to come in for a landing when out of no where a flame bird appears. The Avenger quickly hits switche and takes over manual control of the Quinn Jet. Then he finds the Quinn jet encased in a bubble. He begins to try to figure out what's going on when he remembers Green Lantern. So the Quinn Jet goes back to hover mode.

Natasha goes to duck back, cursing then. And goes to take all the remaining grenades on her belt, then goes to quickly tie them togetherover with a legnth of rope. Then, adding some open ended duct tape on the outside, she goes to whirlthrough the air and launch the grenades through it over like a bolo. The pins falling, hopefully landing on the 'face' of the flying Phoenix-thing and sticking to it from the tape, and then detonating to hopefully stun it to add to the molecular diffusion by the Lantern!

< Captain America, you alright? > Iron Man sounds concerned, shooting his repulsors at the flamebird and not having a large effecto him him, but the bird does scream in pain and tries to shoot a fireball at Iron Man, which has him flying about. Even the gernades do little to phase the half physical creature.

But it is the laser attack, affecitng him at a molecular level that causes the creature to really cry out in pain! The thing starts to shift again, going to an easier form. It soon starts to fall down to the ground, eyes closed in a green humanoid form, with wrinkled and large chin.

Captain Americacalls back through the com  Then quick as that the bubbles gone and CaptainAmerica goes back to his emergency landing proceedures. Though trying to land on the front law now.

Iron Man lowers himself from the sky and peers into the car. He does a scan of the two agents, and comes back with..., "Medical scan reports human." He is far from happy. But he then scans the obvious Skrull and says, "He comes back as Skrull however. Let's find out what is going on. I believe we will need to use one of the sub-level empty labs as a holding facility for now. Black Widow, update us and then go to the medical bay for a scan and treatment. Green Lantern, strip them of anything, but their essentials so we can find out what is interfering with the Skrull scanner." Then toward Captain America, "Can you retrieve the one in the plane?" He is still wary of Captain America a little bit, not sure if he is a Skrull or not. But they now know Hawkeye is missing and who knows how long.