Choices

Chapter 124
The blaring alarm made Cephera's head shoot up. Something was happening.
She glanced at her guard who was stationed at the door of her office. He had his head titled away, his finger pressing his ear-peace further into his ear. His mouth moved in response to something said to him.
Cephera looked away before he turned his attention to her.
"You need to come with me," he told her as she pretended he caught her attention away from the alarm.
"But I'm not done," she protested.
"There's been a security breach. Mr. Pierce wants you kept safe." Cephera didn't want to argue, at least not yet. She followed her escort from the room and back up the elevator to the fourth floor.
"What's happening?" She asked.
"Steve Rogers has escaped the building," his lips turned up into a snarl when he chanced a look at her.
"Escaped? Why was he a prisoner?" Cephera didn't like this.
"He wasn't. He was brought in for questioning regarding the incident with Director Fury and refused to answer. He's now an accessory to the conspiracy."
"There is no way Steve would be involved with anything like that," Cephera was beyond suspicious now, she was ready to leave. This was insane.
"Director Fury will clear all of this up once he's out of the hospital." She declared seeing no need for all of the fuss.
"The director died during operation." Cephera stopped walking and froze in the hall. When her guard noticed he turned and made a grab for her arm.
"Come on," he said during the movement.
Cephera jerked back and glared. "Do not put your hands on me." She warned.
"You're slowing us down." He complained and made to grab her again. It was not safe here, not for her or the humans who should try to keep her a prisoner as well.
She would not be captured leaving Ikol without a father or a mother. Loki had always told her, quick thinking and using fast spells were better in a fight than channeled spells.
Cephera looked right at the man attempting to subdue her. "Sleep," she told him, a spell falling from her fingers like dust and overcoming his face.
It wasn't not a practical spell to use if she'd been actually fighting, you needed to hold eye contact for it. She wondered why Loki never used it on Earth, although it seemed he enjoyed playing with the mortals from what she'd heard.
The man fell to the floor and Cephera turned back around. She needed to head to the lobby and get home. She wished she had a way to contact Steve, but she'd never thought to get his number.
As quickly as she could, Cephera found the lobby only to realize it was sealed. To hold people in or keep them out she wasn't sure. Maybe Steve was still in the building?
Cephera whipped out her cell phone to call Tony and paused. From the corner of her eyes she noticed people moving into the room. Looking around her there were Agent's fully geared for battle cautiously surrounding her.
She had no doubt at that point she was being watched on camera.
"I'm going home," she told them. "I won't stay here for this madness." She added.
"We can't let you leave," the guard who looked to be in charge, told her.
"I can, and I will." She responded making to walk for the front door. They tightened their circle intent to keep her there.
She wished she could talk to her sister from there, but she was too far away to make the ring connection. "Stand down." He warned her.
"I don't want to hurt any of you." She replied counting at least five on either side of her not counting behind her, or in front of her. She couldn't put that many to sleep, it would take too much energy. Magic always came with a price.
She hated to fight. She didn't know why, but it wasn't built in to her like it was the rest of her people. She enjoyed being peaceful, so she did what she didn't best. Looked for an alternate escape.
The doors might be sealed but they were made of glass. Easily teleported through if she could get close enough. Knowing they wouldn't back down Cephera took a good inhale of air.
She made two copies of herself so that three of her we're now in the room. She'd taken them off-guard. Maybe they didn't think she could do the same tricks her husband used, or at least some of them.
Two recovered from their confusion fast and fired their weapons. Cephera dodged them and kept herself focused on keeping her copies up. She just needed to get close enough to touch the door, that's all.
While her other forms caused confusion, she grabbed the person closest to her and tossed him backwards while knockin the feet out from under the next.
Nothing to harm them, but she needed them out of her way. She was happy the dresses on Earth came in short varieties, otherwise fighting might have been very strained.
She flipped the next agent, a woman, onto her back, her weapon skidding across the floor. Cephera felt the sting of at least three bullets hit her left shoulder from behind. She jumped out of the way before anymore could strike her.
It was enough to cause her concentration to deplete, her copies disappeared.
Blood oozed down her back, staining her dress. She ignored the pain as she'd always been taught to do. Truthfully, she'd felt more pain going head to head with her combat instructors back home.
She made a neat tumble and when she landed, she cut into a quick leg swipe taking another off their feet. Of course the others she'd knocked down where on their feet again, but she was almost to the door now, even one of the windows would do.
Two hits to her person, one to her belly and the other to her chest only startled her, but the human wasn't strong enough to wind her. She hit back winding them instead and knocking them unconscious with her fist.
All she could think of now was to get home. Back to her sister and her son. Her son needed her.
Thoughts of Ikol kept her going. The idea of having him safe in her arms overrode her usual kind tendencies. She attacked those around her with a different sort of vigor than she'd started with.
Most of them seemed to rely on their weapons, but she could be faster when she wanted to be. She unarmed at least six of them before the rest decided to go full combat on her ass.
They were trained and trained well. She had trouble keeping up with the blows, but then again she'd never taken on so many before. She also was a little scratchy, she didn't practice like she should. If Seraphina were there, she'd probably have them all knocked out by now, or dead if need be.
Cephera dodged the swipe of a double edged blade and nailed him in the face with her forehead breaking his nose. He stumbled backward and she took her break.
She ran for the doors glass and put her hand to it. Bullets hit the window beside her, but didn't break it. Any bullet that might have hit her was left inside as she teleported just outside the glass.
She watched the stunned expressions for just a moment before she ran for it.
XxX
"What in the world happened to you?" Seraphina asked taking in Cephera's disheveled look.
"Truthfully, I'm not sure. Get these out would you." Cephera turned to allow her sister to see the bullet wounds.
"Shit, what a mess." Her sister replied. "We'll need something to fish them out with,"
"Tony's workshop, he should have something." They headed downstairs where Tony and Bruce were still overlooking the blood samples and other things they'd collected.
"Not cool. Blood on the floor. You're cleaning that up." Tony told Cephera pointing. Cephera cracked a smile. Leave it to Tony to make jokes.
"Are you alright?" Dr. Banner asked coming to her aide.
One of the Mechanovian woman was behind her inspecting the wounds. "A minor scratch. She'll be fine. We are built to withstand more than this." She was smug about it.
"Tony give me some pliers." Seraphina demanded.
"You're cleaning those too," he remarked. "Rough day at work?" He asked while Seraphina pulled out the bullets.
"It worries me how calm you are that this happened at work." Cephera noted.
"It's SHIELD. Nothing surprises me." He shrugged. "So what happened?" Cephera explained what she knew. Really, it was all very strange. She had no idea what they wanted with her although being Loki's wife probably had something to do with it.
"Just the usual day working for SHIELD then." Tony commented after she'd finished.
"The amount you mistrust SHIELD by is astounding." Cephera frowned. "We need to help Steve," she added.
"We have no way of finding him," Tony said. "Besides, he'll come to us if he needs us. No one came to help me when I was attacked by the Mandarin." Cephera felt Tony was a little miffed about that.
"Mother," Rorik's voice made them all turn their eyes to him.
"Rorik?" Seraphina clearly hadn't been expecting him. "I thought you were staying in Asgard for a bit."
"I was helping father, but then Asgard was attacked." He frowned and worry crowned his handsome features. "The attack left many dead inside the city...,"
"Loki?" Cephera asked immediately when Rorik paused.
"He's fine, but... I'm sorry. Frigga was faced with the madman and his crazy pumped up minion, she didn't survive." Cephera forgot her day completely. Forgot about Steve and whatever might be happening to him.
"No," she uttered the word low. "She can't be," she shook her head, unwilling to believe it.
"I'm sorry," Rorik repeated. He knew how much Frigga meant to her.
"I have to go to Asgard," Cephera moved to go and Rorik stopped her.
"You can't. Odin's sealed off Asgard and has sent the Mechanovians home. He says this is not a war he needs help with." Rorik frowned. "I was the last one through the Byfrost. Heimdall was kind enough to send me here but the bridge was sealed behind me."
"I'm assuming your father is unhurt," Seraphina said and Rorik nodded. Cephera noticed the tiny hint of relief cross her sisters face.
"If anyone wants me, I'll be upstairs with Ikol." Cephera pushed past her nephew and left everyone behind.
'Frigga...' She thought, drowning in overwhelming sadness.

Notes