Natasha came out of her stupor as she moved to mount the jet.
"The hell is the steel bird?" one of the demons muttered.
"Probably what puny humans use to fly around..." the other replied.
"Shut the hell up before I shove you both in a donkey ass," Dave snapped, finally tired of the constant chatter between the two demons.
'Now I understand why Dante demanded their silence as a condition to accept them,' Dave thought, glancing at the anklets on Natasha's hands. They fell silent upon hearing his warning.
Natasha looked down at her wrists and then back at Dave. "Thank you," she said softly, deciding she'd deal with it once she returned to S.H.I.E.L.D.
***
"Y'know, Dave did mention that Trish is a devil," Clint said, as Maria focused on the anklets.
"I've heard that," Fury nodded, once again thinking, 'Maybe demons or devils are just aliens. Those Skrulls do seem like the doppelgangers from myths.' He made a mental note to label Trish as a potential alien.
****
After half an hour, Dave returned home.
"You know, it took us almost an hour to reach the S.H.I.E.L.D. base, but we got back in just half the time," Dave said as he stepped off the jet.
"You said it yourself—it's an airborne base," Natasha smiled, waving goodbye before the jet lifted off and she flew away.
"You sure it was a good decision giving her those scimitars?" Trish asked, watching him.
"I just wanted a little chaos," Dave replied with a smirk, glancing back at her.
Trish smiled knowingly as they both headed inside, while Diana watched them, puzzled. She wondered what Dave meant by "chaos."
'Hmm, anyway, my job with S.H.I.E.L.D. is done after investigating James' death,' Diana thought. She had already handed in her resignation letter to Fury during their recent visit.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had lost her but gained another agent—Maya—but Fury would definitely appreciate the gifts Dave had given Natasha.
***
As Natasha arrived back at the Helicarrier, she swiftly made her way to Fury.
"Can you use them?" Fury asked, glancing at the scimitars and the anklets she wore.
"I can try," she replied, looking at the anklets.
"Can you two turn back into swords?" she asked.
"Shut up, puny human. You don't command us," Agni growled.
"Wait, brother," Rudra chimed in. "Dave said to give her a chance."
"Very well, but I still say this is a waste of time," Agni grumbled.
"We'll see," Natasha replied, as the anklets shimmered and, once again, transformed back into the scimitars in her hands.
Fury observed them carefully. "Did Dave tell you what they can do?"
"This one dares speak to us, one eyed baldy. Who do you think you are?" Agni sneered.
"Yes, we can grant this mortal great power, but not for you, Baldy," Rudra added.
"Touch me, and you'll burn in hellfire," Agni threatened.
"Touch me, and you'll be torn apart by hell's winds," Rudra echoed.
Fury looked at the scimitars and then nodded to Maria Hill.
"So, it's hellfire and hell winds," he said.
"This human manipulated us... US!" Agni growled furiously, the red scimitar erupting in flames. Natasha's eyes widened as she instinctively moved it slightly away.
"Brother, stop! You might hurt this one," Rudra interjected, releasing calming winds that quelled Agni's rage. The flames slowly receded, and Agni fell silent.
Seeing this, Natasha stepped back cautiously. "I'll... train with them in the training center," she said nervously, moving away quickly, afraid that if anyone angered them again, they might truly burn or tear her apart too.
"At least this human has some brains," Agni nodded approvingly as Natasha backed away.
"Yes, now we should give her a chance to prove her worth," Rudra agreed, accepting her.
A while later, Clint approached Fury after Natasha had left. "By the way, you should consider choosing your successor, you know, for those 'what if' scenarios," he said seriously.
Fury shot him a glance, and Clint shrugged before leaving.
"Are you alright?" Maria asked after Clint had gone.
"Hmm, I'm fine... it's just, those anklets gave me a feeling—like they seem similar to someone else," Fury said thoughtfully.
"You mean that Hell Rider?" Maria Hills asked, remembering the only other Demon in Shield files.
"Ghost Rider. And yes," Fury corrected her with a nod.
"So, they really are demons or devils... and Trish has killed them," Maria said, raising Trish's threat level in her mind.
"If we get her on the Avengers Initiative, nothing can threaten Earth," she added.
Fury nodded but inwardly muttered, "You have no idea."
"I'll go check on how Agent Romanoff's training is going," Maria said, getting up from her desk and heading out the door.
Fury stood quietly for a moment, his mind racing as Maria left him alone in the dimly lit control room. He knew that dealing with demons, or whatever Trish and these weapons truly were, was far more complex than Maria realized. S.H.I.E.L.D. had faced extraterrestrial threats, but this was something else—a darker, more ancient power.
Fury sighed, turning his gaze to the window. He could still hear the faint voices of Agni and Rudra from earlier. Their power reminded him too much of a force he'd encountered before.
He tapped a button on his wrist communicator. "Agent Coulson, bring up all the files we have on Ghost Rider. And… pull the occult archives. I want to know everything we've got on demons."
"On it, Director," Coulson's voice came through, steady as always.
As Fury turned back to his desk, a shadow passed over the room, and for a brief moment, he thought he saw something—someone—moving in the darkness. He blinked, and it was gone. His instincts told him it wasn't just his imagination.
'What was that?' he thought, sitting down and pretending nothing had happened. 'Was that Dave or Trish? Did he leave something here to spy on us?'
His fingers hovered over the secure communicator on his desk. 'Nothing important leaves this room without strict clearance from now on,' he decided.
****
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'My Charity System Made me Too OP'
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