"You're telling me there are drugs out there that can make you a Super Soldier?" Sam asked.
"Besides PCP, yeah... Made in courtesy by IGH...A secret genetic research lab that saved my life at a young age, and turned my sister into a power hungry addict...Someone has rediscovered the stuff and improved on it." Jessica said.
"Any Ideas who or where?" Bucky asked.
"Not sure who, but I have a trail to find out where...Their HQ was originally in NYC, but it's long been abandoned for years... Nothing but squatters based on my sources..." She responded.
"Maybe one of those squatters knows something more...Mack, I'm hoping SHIELD has the resources to convince them." You asked over the comms.
"SHIELD!?" Jessica, Sam & Bucky said in disbelief.
"You guys are with SHIELD?" Jessica asked.
"SHIELD still exists?" Sam asked.
"Free from Hydra?" Bucky asked.
"Who's Hydra?" You asked.
"Yes, yes, yes & we'll brief you New Guy..." Mack said, appearing from behind you all.
"Who the hell are you?" Jessica asked.
"Alphonse Mackenzie. Director of SHIELD." He introduced himself.
"What happened to Fury?" Sam asked.
"Retired... For a long time... Right now we have more pressing matters... Wherever these people got these inhalers, we need to stop it... I managed to get custody of the folks you all fought... If we can interrogate them, we can find out who's supplying them." Mack explained.
"You think Fitz & Jemma can sniff out a lead with their science?" Daisy asked.
"Maybe... Maybe they can develop a counter active for this stuff... Unfortunately, the Flag Smashers aren't the only one who have access to this stuff... Mr. Wilson, Mr. Barnes, Ms. Jones...We'd welcome the help." Mack said.
"I don't really do groups... Last time I did, one of my own got buried under a skyscraper..." Jessica said.
"You need someone watching your six." Daisy said.
"Fine...but only until we stop this stuff from being made anymore." Jessica said.
"I'm in. This stuff needs to go." Sam responds.
"Sam's right. Power like this shouldn't be bought on any street." Bucky said.
"Good. Quinjet is ready to take us. We have a facility there to conduct business." Mack said, turning to lead you all to the Quinjet.
You all enter the Quinjet. Apparently, this is a newer model than the previous ones. Synthesized vibranium hull, better arsenal, and some quarters for personnel.
"May, we're all aboard. Head to the Helicarrier." Mack said.
"Helicarrier? I remember when Steve & I had to fight a few of those, remember Buck?" Sam said.
"I remember... Mostly fighting Steve..." Bucky said in a somber tone.
"So, Ms. Jones... Can you tell us about your sources?" Daisy asked Jessica, pouring her a glass of water.
"Malcolm J. Ducasse...Former addict rehabilitated to a business partner at Alias Investigation, the detective agency I founded... He keeps tabs in New York for me since I left and did some soul searching... It's been years since I left..." Jessica said, sipping her water.
"Is that the only source you have?" Mack asked.
"Two others... Daniel Rand of Rand Enterprises, assuming his number still works...And Luke Cage...An old friend who has deep ties in Harlem... Maybe Danny can help with breaking down this new combat enhancer stuff..." She elaborated.
"And this Luke Cage?" You asked.
"He's... Sorta in charge of Harlem..." Jessica said.
"Like a crime boss?" Elena asked.
"Yes, technically... Officially, he inherited the Harlem Paradise from it's previous owner... She was just true crime boss... Luke... He said he's trying to control the crime in Harlem... Control it to the point where no one in Harlem gets hurt... Assuming he didn't get blipped for 5 years..." Jessica said.
"We'll go to this IGH place and comb it for clues...Bribe a local for information if we need to...Speaking of which, we've landed on the Helicarrier." May walked in and notified everyone.
"Thanks May...Alright people...The Helicarrier is much more roomy than here...We'll be at New York before you know it..." Mack got up to leave.
Everyone exited the Quinjet and walked apprehensively atop the Helicarrier before getting inside and settling in a Recreational Room.
"So...How'd you get your powers anyways? Mad science experiment? Magic? Supernatural mumbo jumbo?" Captain America asked.
"You wouldn't believe me... It's stupid." You said.
"A kid got superpowers from a spider bite, can't get much stupider than that." Bucky said.
"20 bucks say it could." Quake said.
"Deal." Same & Bucky agreed.
"Count me in too." Jessica said.
"Yo también. For Daisiy's side though." Elena said.
"Ditto." Mack said.
"Apparently, I got my superpowers from eating bad sushi." You said, dead serious.
Sam, Bucky & Jessica laughed their asses off.
"Okay, for real though... How?" Jessica asked.
"Daisy, Yo-Yo...You know more about this inhuman stuff than me...Could you explain? Maybe I'll learn something." You asked them.
"It might make a little more sense if we get a doctor to help explain... Jemma?! Can you explain inhumans to our guests?" Daisy called for Dr. Simmons.
"Of course... I'll get my PowerPoint ready." Jemma responded.
One PowerPoint later.
"And as you can see, though the terragen mist has contaminated a portion of marine life, this form is harmless to non-inhumans, but still triggers terragenisis in dormant inhumans." Jemma concluded.
"So, he ate some bad sushi, got changed because of this terragen contaminant stuff, which gave him these powers?" Sam asked in disbelief.
"To put it bluntly, yes." Jemma responds.
James, Jessica & Sam all handed $20 bills to the SHIELD operatives.
"So is that Spider kid an Inhuman?" Bucky asked.
"Not likely. Based on his claims, he'd be what me and Fitz call a Mutate. Since his powers had been granted through mutagenic means. Had he never been bitten by that particular spider, he'd likely live the rest of his life a normal man... We'd consider you a Mutate too, Ms. Jones. Assuming the procedures you underwent weren't deliberate to giving you powers. If so, you may be considered a "So what would you call someone who has powers naturally, but they're either from birth, or develop laterlife with no outside factor?" Jessica asked.
"So what if a human is born with powers, or develops them later in life with no outside factor?" Sam asked.
"We have no idea if such a case for a human to have such a mutant physiology that it could happen." Jemma responded.
"We're entering New York City airspace. Docking in Westside Manhattan." A voice announced.
"That's our cue people. Ms. Jones, contact your friends, we're going investigating." Mack said.
You all exited the Helicarrier and onto the docks, waiting for Jessica Jones contact.
"Jessica... It's been...It's been many years...You look good... How can I help?" A black man asked.
"Good to see you too Malcolm... Me and my new friends are looking into some combat enhancers used by some terrorists... Trying to find a lead, hopefully at IGH...Maybe a local saw something. Maybe my friends here can buy that info off of them." Jessica said.
"Alright, but your friends might want to wear something more casual... If the people think you're cops in any which way, they'll scatter & bite their tongues." Malcolm warned.
"Plain clothes it is then." Mack said.
With a quick wardrobe change by everyone, you all head to an abandoned facility.
"You! What're you doing back here?! And who are your friends? Cops?" A homeless man confronted Malcolm.
"Nah man, they just want any info on the people who used to own this place. It's important... Like global threat important." Malcolm said.
"Fine. Henry over there has been here longer than anyone... He'd be your best bet." The man conceded.
You all walked up to Henry. An old black vet who was bundled up in a heavy coat to fight the winter cold.
"Hey there friemds. How can I help you?" The man asked.
"We're looking for anything about the folks who used to run this place...Back when it before this encampment... We have reason to believe that those people developed drugs capable of granting temporary superhuman abilities... We've found that stuff across the country and are trying to find out who could've expanded it." Mack said.
"Hmmm... That don't sound good at all... Years back, I saw some guys grabbing CPUs & file boxes when I was scouting this place out... They even tried entering a secret trapdoor, but couldn't get past its locks. I even paid a few locksmiths to take a crack at it, but they couldn't do anything. It's behind my tent, under my grill." Henry said.
"Thank you. For your help." Mack said, handing him a check.
"5 mil? Hope this doesn't bounce." Henry said, pocketing the check.
After removing the grill, you all noticed a biometric locked trapdoor.
"Fitz, can you bypass this?" Mack asked.
"It's could take days to get past this lock. Time we might not have." Fitz said.
"Maybe you can shrink down and slip through the gaps." Daisy asked you.
"Let's see." You said, shrink down to the point you can shimmy down the gaps in the door.
You ran into a seal, which halted your progress. Through further shrinking, you managed to slip past the seal and down into the underground room. Growing back to normal size, you saw an emergency lever to disengage the lock, opening it for everyone.
"Good work Stu. Everyone tread carefully. We don't know if this place is booby trapped." Mack said, turning on a flashlight.
"There's power somewhere in here." You said, seeing the flow of electrons all around the room.
Malcolm found a light switch, illuminating the entire area.
"We've got computers here." Fitz said, booting up a CPU.
"Look for anything from Karlin Malus, or Miklos Kozlov... Especially the latter." Jessica said.
"I think I found some of those combat enhancers... Or at least their prototypes." Quake said.
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