2014-01-15 - Cutscene: SDR - We Need A New Plan

Fury is furious.

Oh, the news had gone out to most of the SHIELD agents, if not formally for those of a high enough clearance, then informally in whispers. Damage done to the Raft-- though the joke was that happened every alternating Tuesday, with the helicarrier crashing on the ones in between.

Prisoners had been kidnapped. Agents injured.

A minisub missing or destroyed, depending on whom you heard it from.

And that minisub had been piloted by the Deputy Director and her pet Hawk. /That/, at least, everyone /knew/. Rumors had been flying around SHIELD all day regarding Fury's anger over it. They had been killed. They had defected to Genosha. They were dead. They had been kidnapped and were being held as bargaining chips. They had been the ones to leave the hole in the defenses in the first place. They had been sent on an infiltration mission. They were dead.

Fury's office door was open, the man himself standing in the doorway, chewing on a cigar.

Agent Grant Ward moves through the helicarrier with a datapad under his arm, pausing as he comes before the Director's office, and offering it towards the man, "Agent Coulson's report and statements from Captain America and She-Hulk, along with every scrap of video footage and sensor feed we could get from the Raft or the mini-sub telemetry before Magneto attacked it, sir." All in one relatively convenient package. "Operations has broken out every Genosha contingency plan we have and we're trying to work an extraction plan." He doesn't add the "but" because he knows that Fury already knows all the "buts" involved.

Fury takes the datapad, not bothering to look at it. Not yet anyway. Chances are he'll be pouring through it shortly.

"On the one hand," he says, "I'd assume they are able to get themselves off Genosha without issue. On the other..." he scowls. "There's been no telemetry or sign of the minisub, no communications, nothing, since right before Magneto disappeared with it."

No wonder the rumors of the two top field agents being dead were flying. Whomever had that information had obviously been speculating.

"And the UN is tying our hands on this. No military or special operations against Genosha without their go-ahead. Apparently they're gonna try negotiation first." His tone indicates exactly what he thinks of that. "I don't like it, Ward."

"None of us do, sir." Ward replies, "But I can't really blame them in this case. None of the contingency plans are likely to be anything short of a bloodbath at this point. The most viable idea I've heard is somehow trying to blast the whole island with the aerosol form of the Silencer agent, but it'll take weeks to develop a delivery method that they're not likely to pick up on too far in advance to do any good." Ward shakes his head, "There are just too many variables...we have no idea how many mutants Magneto has on that island, much less their capabilities."

Fury snorts. "I need another option, Ward." He gives the man a look. "And /you/ are going to find it for me. Something that doesn't piss off the UN or rile the mutants on Genosha." He sounds dead serious. "Work with Coulson. Figure something out. If I have to go around the UN on this one, I will, but come up with some way I can get my agents back in one piece." Assuming, of course, they still were.

"Yes, Sir." Ward says simply. No sign of complaint, incredulity or disbelief. "We'll let you know as soon as we have something." His head tilts ever-so-slightly, "Anything else you need?"

"That will do." Fury looks at the datapad under his arm. "Thank you for this, son. I will look over it and see what I can think of myself." And he steps into his office.