Agents of SHIELD Hawkeye, Grifter, the Black Widow and Mockingbird face resistance when investigating a terrorist break-in at Stane International.

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Outside, the van’s side door slid open. From his vantage point on the rooftop across from the Gordon office, Hawkeye could see the end of a rocket launcher extending from the opening.

He prepped an arrow on his bowstring while making the computations for the trajectory and speed of the rocket against his angle of fire.

If Hawkeye pulled off the shot he was planning, it’d be the kind of shot bards sang about in ballads.

Down below, Grifter started up the car while drawing one of his hi-tech handguns. He was on the wrong side of the van to stop whatever was coming out, but he damned sure could make sure the van didn’t go anywhere fast.

The owner of the launcher fired. In the second before its rocket payload appeared over the street headed for the Gordon building, Hawkeye let his arrow fly. Just as the rocket was inches from the building front, the arrow struck it, setting it off.

The building’s windows instantly shattered, as did a few from buildings across the street and the cars parked in front.

Luckily, the location wasn’t populated; there’d have been a hell of a mess. That mess would be even worse if that rocket had exploded inside the building and taken it down.

Grifter slammed the gas and steered the sedan straight into the parked van. He smashed into the front of the van; the damage was cosmetic, but the van wouldn’t be driving forward through Grifter.

Shots rang out from inside the Gordon building. Hawkeye saw the rocket launcher fall out of the van. The women must’ve taken the shooter out of play. It was enough to spook the van’s driver. They slammed the thing into reverse.

Obviously confused, he rammed the van’s back end into a telephone pole behind it. The pole bent, threatening to come down on the van.

Black Widow emerged from the smoke and took up a position of cover behind one of the damaged cars. She aimed a handgun at the van, waiting for anything. Mockingbird followed suit, holding the Widow’s other gun as she found cover.

Hawkeye knew shooting wasn’t Mockingbird’s thing; not that she wasn’t good at it; she just preferred the intimacy of smashing a goon in the face.

Grifter threw open the door of his sedan, stepping out with his gun blazing. The driver took a hit, but Hawkeye couldn’t tell if it was enough to keep him down.

As a precaution, Hawkeye attached one of his special arrowheads to his next arrow. He drew a tensile-strength wire from the arrowhead and attached it to his bow.

On the street, the bad guys returned fire at Mockingbird and Black Widow. Mockingbird took a hit to the shoulder. It didn’t stop her from returning fire. Widow backed her up with a few rounds.

And then a round of automatic fire sprayed the cars the ladies used for cover. Mockingbird took another hit, falling back behind cover. Bullets bounced off the front of the car Widow hid behind.

Hawkeye fired his arrow at the building across from him, which was four stories taller. The wire trailed out behind the arrowhead.

A second later the head stabbed itself into the wall of the building in front of it. Hawkeye leaped from the roof, swinging down to the street on the side of the van opposite from the shooters.

The arrowhead drew the wire into itself as Hawkeye swung down to the street below, the wire remaining taut, so he didn’t smash himself against anything.

Meanwhile, Widow fired again.

Grifter checked the driver. He was out. Grifter drew his second handgun and leaned with his back against the side of the van.

Glancing at Hawkeye, Grifter motioned for the bowman, who was now on the street, to go around the back of the van. Hawkeye acknowledged with a nod as he readied another arrow.

“All of you stand down!” came a woman’s voice from inside the van.

For a split second, Hawkeye felt a murmuring in his head, as if something was telling him to obey the command from the unseen woman. He quickly shook it off and moved to the back of the van.

As he did, he caught a glimpse of Grifter. The man’s hands fell to his sides; he slumped to the ground.

“Grifter!” Hawkeye yelled over the com.

Grifter didn’t respond.

“Widow! Grifter is down!” he said.

Hawkeye didn’t get a response.

“Mockingbird! Talk to me!”

Nothing.

Bow at the ready, Hawkeye ran around to the open side of the van.

The butt of a rifle clocked him in the jaw.

Hawkeye fell back, but not off his feet.

When he looked back, he saw a blonde woman in a black bodysuit with an assault rifle running away from him. He reset his arrow and prepared to fire —

But then he heard the murmuring again. The point of his arrow dropped. The last thing he saw before passing out was the woman rounding a corner toward freedom.

To be continued… next year! Y’all have a safe rest of 2017 and we’ll see you back January 4th, 2018!

Copyright Info

DC Adventures, Copyright 2011, Green Ronin Publishing; Author Steve Kenson. It’s now Mutants and Masterminds, 3rd Edition

Advanced Player’s Manual, Copyright 2005, Green Ronin Publishing: Author Skip Williams.

Proteus Plot, Copyright 2006, Green Ronin Publishing, Author Steve Kenson.

The characters Hawkeye, Nick Fury, Mockingbird, the Black Widow, Arnim Zola, the Red Skull, HYDRA, SHIELD and Captain America are Copyright Marvel Comics

The character Grifter is Copyright DC Comics

None of the characters (or the plot, for that matter) belong to me as this is fan fiction, done for fun and as a creative exercise.