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Daisy rehearsed the mission details in her head as she and Daniel left the zephyr.
Reports of a powered individual in the city Brisbon on the planet Temelachus.
First step is to obtain legal jurisdiction from Brisbon authorities.
Identify the powered individual.
Prevent and contain further damage to the city or citizens.
Obtaining jurisdiction was easy enough. They had gathered a reputation as space ambassadors so all it took was flashing their badges at the Brisbon law enforcement office.
Identifying the individual wasn’t hard either. Brisbon was a small city. After asking around the center of town, Daisy and Daniel found a location thought to be where the person lived.
The final part of the plan proved more difficult.
The two of them stood outside a rickety shed on a dirty, unkempt road. Daisy turned to Daniel
“Okay, this is the place. Are you ready?”
“Always,” Daniel replied. Daisy exhaled deeply before knocking on the door. She heard shuffling inside and then the door cracked open slightly. The face of a middle aged man appeared.
“What is it?” The man spoke, not opening the door any further than a few inches.
“Hello sir, I’m Daisy Johnson and this is my partner, Daniel Sousa. We’re investigating some disturbances in the area. Is there anything you know that might be helpful to our investigation?”
“What type of disturbances?” The man asked cautiously. Daniel started to answer
“Some unexplained explosions and-”
“Those were on accident… I heard” The man responded quickly. Daniel raised an eyebrow at Daisy who spoke.
“Would it be alright if we came inside to ask you a couple more questions?”
The man answered by attempting to slam the door shut. Daniel stuck his foot in the way at the last second and pushed his way inside.
It was dim. The only light inside trickled in from the holes in the walls. Daisy stepped through the doorway and was hit by an immense blast of heat. It was just one room with a tiny kitchen shoved into one corner and two beds shoved into another.
Two beds? Daisy wondered as her eyes scanned the room. They fell upon a small figure moving under a blanket and it clicked.
“You’re not the one responsible for the explosions, are you?” She turned to the man. His eyes flashed with panic.
“No it was me. I swear. I’m sorry I lied!” He blurted out.
“I don’t believe you” Daisy shook her head and knelt down next to the trembling blanket. The heat inside the room seemed to be getting worse. She gently lifted a corner of the blanket and was met with a pair of terrified eyes.
They belonged to a young girl. She couldn't have been more than eight. Her skin glowed a soft orange color and seemed to be growing brighter.
“Stop!” The man yelled. He lunged toward Daisy but Daniel restrained him. The man pleaded, “Don’t take her.”
“We’re here to help” Daniel grunted, struggling to keep the desperate man under control.
“Hi there.” Daisy spoke to the young girl. “I’m Daisy, what's your name?”
“Please go away.” The girl mumbled.
“It’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you or your dad”
“I don’t want to hurt you.” The girl whispered.
“Don’t worry about me. I’m here to help you, okay?” Daisy smiled softly. The girl nodded and pushed the rest of the blanket away.
“I’m Lana. I don’t mean to but when I get scared I make things blow up” Her skin seemed to dim and Daisy felt the room cool down slightly.
“That’s a pretty name. I think I have something that will help. It’s a bracelet that can stop the explosions” Daisy held out her hand. A metal cuff shone in her palm. Lana smiled shyly and reached to take it.
“Don’t!” The father yelled. “Don't trust them Lana! They’ll do to you what they did to your mother.”
Lana jerked her hand away and backed up against the wall. The temperature in the room rocketed higher than it was before.
“Sir, stop yelling. You’re overwhelming her” Daniel attempted to quiet the man but with no success. He didn’t even seem to hear Daniel but appeared to thrash even harder.
“Daniel, call for backup” Daisy tried to keep her tone even but her stress was evident. Sweat dripped down into her eyes and she blinked the sting away.
“Lana, I need you to calm down.” Daisy spoke softly.
“I want my dad” Lana whimpered, frantically looking for a way around Daisy to the exit.
“I’ll take you to him but first can you take a couple deep breaths for me?”
Lana gulped instead and her breathing came out quick and uneven. Her father continued grappling in Daniel's grasp. She curled into a ball with her hands pressed over her ears and yelled.
“STOP!”
Time seemed to slow. Daisy felt the temperature spike higher than she had ever felt in her life. A light burst out of Lana so bright Daisy was almost blinded. Daisy sent a quake strong enough to throw Daniel and the father out the door, away from her and the girl before turning around. She lunged forward, desperate to put the inhibitor bracelet on Lana before the entire house exploded.
Then, everything went black.
--
It was midnight when Mack got the call. He was just about to crawl into bed after a long day of bureaucratic meetings when his phone rang. He groaned inwardly until he saw it was from Sousa. Sousa never called him, only Daisy.
“Agent Sousa.” Mack tried to keep the worry out of his tone. Daisy’s crew wasn’t supposed to be back for another month.
“Director” Sousa’s voice was quick and frantic. “It’s Daisy. She’s hurt. We’re landing at the lighthouse in ten.”
“Daisy?” Mack shot up. “How bad is it?”
“I don’t know.” Mack could tell Sousa was struggling to keep an even tone. “It happened just a few minutes ago. We got her on the ship and jumped immediately.”
“Understood. I’ll prepare for your arrival” With that, Mack hung up and set off to ready the base.
--
Daisy groaned. Her head pounded and every part of her body felt like it was on fire. A fog surrounded her head. Forming simple thoughts seemed like wading through chest high molasses, slow and tiring.
What happened? Daisy struggled to piece it together. I was talking to… the girl! Where’s the girl?
She fought to open her eyes but was met with blinding lights. She tried to shield her face with her hand but found it tangled in wires of some sort. Daisy was trapped, drugged. Panic shot through her body. A high, constant beeping noise sounded.
I need to get to the girl! With every movement, some part of her body screamed in pain.
“The girl” Daisy murmured, out loud this time. “I need to get to the girl.”
Suddenly, a large figure loomed over her.
“Hey Tremors” The voice was deep and strong but familiar. Daisy slowed. A firm hand steadied her shoulder while another brushed hair out of her face.
“The girl” Daisy protested quietly.
“It’s ok Tremors. You did good. You can rest now.”
She sluggishly reached with her free arm to grasp the man's hand. It was rough and calloused but his grasp was gentle. She stopped resisting the lull to sleep.
“Don’t leave” Daisy whispered.
“I won’t”
--
Mack had just dismissed Jemma, ordering her to rest once Daisy was finally stable. Sousa left on his own to comfort Kora who felt guilty for not going with them. This left Mack alone with Daisy when she first stirred.
“Don’t leave” She had asked when she finally calmed down.
“I won’t” Mack promised, hoping she heard him before she fell back asleep.
Once he was sure she was out, he sighed and dropped his head to his chest, tired and worried.
When the zephyr arrived, it was worse than Mack could ever have imagined. Daisy was bruised all over and countless cuts ripped their way through her. Blood was flowing steadily from a laceration on the back of her head. She had lost so much blood her skin had turned pale and pasty. The worst was from a piece of shrapnel that had embedded itself deeply into her stomach.
It took hours for Jemma to stop all the bleeding and remove the shrapnel. During this, Daisy danced dangerously near hypovolemic shock. But eventually the bleeding came to an end and there was nothing more anyone could do except wait.
Mack stared at Daisy’s limp figure. Every once in a while a small quake would shake Daisy’s body and she continued murmuring in her sleep about a girl.
Mack had gotten the story from Sousa when they arrived. Daisy had succeeded in getting the inhibitor bracelet on the girl's wrist and prevented any future explosions but was too late to stop the one that had already started. Daisy was found at the bottom of a crater, unconscious, barely breathing and covered in rubble.
It pained Mack to see his former partner in distress. He smiled, remembering the days when they would run around after inhumans together. She’s the muscle. Mack laughed at himself. And I’m the teddy bear. He was happy and he knew Daisy was happy. Still, every once in a while he would wish they could go back to being partners, just for a day.
Daisy muttered something Mack couldn’t make out. He reached forward, trying to comfort her out of whatever nightmare plagued her.
--
Daisy’s sleep wasn’t restful but more of a light drug induced unconsciousness. She felt like a disembodied mind fluttering in and out of different dreams. Some nightmares. Some fantasies. All equally confusing.
Eventually Daisy surfaced from sleep. She blinked the drowsiness out of her eyes. Some of the fog from before remained but mostly her mind was clear. However, with the drug wearing off, she felt all the pain more.
“Hey Tremors.” Daisy noticed Mack staring down at her.
Daisy couldn’t help but give him a small smile. “Hey Mack” She managed to rasp out
“Nice to see your eyes” Mack returned Daisy’s smile.
“Same to you Director”
“Don’t call me that. I’m always Mack to you”
“Understood, Director” Daisy gave him a cheeky smile. Mack was unable to resist the urge to smile back.
After a few seconds of silence, Mack ventured forward with a question.
“Do you remember what happened?”
Daisy paused for a second, closing her eyes to think. Images flashed through her head. The dirt road. A rickety shed. An explosion…
“Daniel” Panic flared. She shot up but immediately regretted it when pain flashed in her chest. “Ow!” She winced and doubled over, cradling her injured stomach.
“Slow down, Tremors” Mack's voice rang in her ears. “Take it easy.”
Daisy was blinded by the pain. She gasped for breath which only worsened the burning in her chest and stomach. A strong hand rubbed gentle circles on her back.
“I’ll get more pain medicine.”
“Don’t!” Daisy gasped in between breaths. “I can’t– Messes with my head”
“Okay Tremors. Slow, deep breaths” Daisy closed her eyes, concentrating on settling her breathing. Eventually she had composed herself enough to repeat her earlier question.
“Where's Daniel?”
“He’s ok. Kora too.” Relief washed over her. Her body still ached and hurt but at least her panic was under control. After a moment, Mack continued.
“They’re asleep right now. I can go get them” Mack stood to leave but Daisy caught his hand.
“No. Let them rest.”
Mack nodded and sat back down.
“The girl? Lana?” Daisy tried to keep the anxiety out of her tone but failed.
“She’s safe. You got the bracelet on her. We have her and her dad. He’s calmed down from what Sousa said.”
Daisy nodded and leaned back, closing her eyes. The relief she felt was overwhelming and a tear slipped down her cheek.
“You did good, Tremors. I’m proud of you”
Daisy nodded again as another tear fell.
“I was just… so scared for Daniel, for the girl, for the father. But I wasn’t allowed to be afraid. I had to save everyone.”
Mack sat on Daisy’s bed and gently pulled her into a hug. Daisy had missed his hugs. His big arms circled her tiny frame completely. She felt sheltered and protected from the world.
“You can be afraid now, Tremors. I’ve got you.”
With that, the dam broke. Tears spilled uncontrollably from Daisy’s eyes. Sobs wracked her body, each one introducing a new spike of pain. She clutched Mack's shirt in her hands and cried like she hadn’t been able to in a long time.
Eventually her tears dried and her sobs quieted. Mack didn’t lessen his hold. She didn’t mind. She felt safe in his arms.
--
Daniel woke early the next morning, before the sun had risen. He immediately made his way to the med bay. There he found a sleeping Daisy nestled in the arms of the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Mack looked up from Daisy. “She woke last night and asked about you”
“Thank you, for keeping her company.” Daniel responded cautiously. He always made an attempt to tread carefully when it came to the director and Daisy.
“I didn’t do it for you” Mack’s tone was honest but not hostile. “She’s like a little sister to me” Daniel nodded in understanding. Mack gently released Daisy and stood. Daisy rolled over and let out a muffled sound but continued sleeping.
“She cares about you, a lot.” Mack paused to study Daniel. “I know you care about her too.”
“So much” Daniel confirmed “She’s everything to me.”
“Then what are you waiting for?” Mack gestured to Daisy “Get over there.”
Daisy woke up that morning next to Daniel. He smiled at her from the chair by her bed. She smiled back.
--
“Okay Daisy, you've definitely improved over the night.” Jemma spoke without looking up from Daisy’s charts.
“See Jemma, I told you I was fine”
“You are far from fine. A soft poke in the stomach could result in you bleeding out.” Jemma pointed out.
“Agree to disagree,” Daisy joked. Jemma elected to ignore her. Daisy turned to Daniel who was faithfully sitting in the chair next to her bed.
“How are you really feeling?” Daniel asked
“It hurts. Only a little though” Daisy’s smile didn’t waver. Daniel nodded but Daisy noticed his head seemed somewhere else.
“I’ll be okay. Don’t blame yourself. I don’t need you to protect me” Daisy spoke pointedly.
“I can’t stop you from running into brick walls but I’ll do everything I can to pick you up after.”
Daisy smiled “You’re so square. I love it” She grabbed his chin and pulled him in for a kiss. They broke apart and Daniel spoke.
“Now, in my experience, the best remedy for running into a brick wall is a whole bunch of Jello.”
“I agree” Daisy grinned “Red please?”
“Absolutely” Daniel went off on a search for red Jello, leaving Daisy alone. She saw Mack walk past the doorway.
“Hey Mack”
Mack poked his head through the door. “What wrong? Do you need anything?”
“No, Nothing” Daisy paused, not knowing what she planned to say.
Mack seemed to understand. He entered the room and sat by her bed. After a few moments of silence Daisy spoke.
“Thank you Mack. For staying with me last night” Daisy looked Mack in the eye with an earnest, meaningful gaze.
Mack smiled in return and responded with equal sincerity.
“I’m always here when you need me, Tremors. No matter where you are.”