Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"And Fitzsimmons, you really want to risk their lives again? They've been through enough! And you want to send Simmons in after whats just happened?" Daisy yelled at Coulson.
"Daisy they aren't going to be alone. A team, including myself is going with them."
"Fine. Just promise me you will look out for them. They've been through so much already AC."
"I promise. They will be fine." Daisy nodded and left the office. The two scientists were like siblings to her and she was extremely protective over them.

A knock on the door made Jemma look up from the book she was reading.
"Come in."
The door opened slightly and Daisy stepped in.
"Daisy." Jemma smiled.
"Hey do you mind if I come in."
Jemma smiled, moving over and patting the free spot next to her, leaving the invitation open for the younger agent. Daisy smiled and went to lie next to her. They were both pretty small so it wasn't too hard to fit together on the small bed.
"We're going to be okay. Me and Fitz."
"You heard that?" Jemma nodded.
"I was coming back from the kitchen.”
"I can't loose you Jem. You, Fitz, May and Coulson have become the closest thing I have to a family. You are my family."
"You wont loose us. Any of us." She knew Daisy didn't fully believe her. How could she? Their line of work was risky and unexpected at the best of times. Almost getting shot was a good day. She felt Daisy nod regardless.
"How are you feeling, after the whole, other planet thing?" Jemma tried to smile to mask her fear. The Monolith had only dragged her through for Two days before Fitz had managed to bring her home. Those two were some of the most terrifying she had endured. Alone, vulnerable not knowing if anyone was coming to save her. She still hadn't told anyone about what she had seen. The thing. Whatever it was its evil intentions radiated off it in waves. It sent a chill through her spine.
"Better. Fitz is helping. He won't leave my side. Worried I will disappear again."
"How is your other half?" Daisy joked and Jemma smiled.
"He's good, we're going out for dinner tomorrow night."
"What! He finally asked you out!?" Daisy's voice rose an octave as she sat up quickly, a shit eating grin on her face.
"Yep. I'm looking forward to it." Daisy let out a soft laugh.
"You two are soulmates, I'm just saying." Jemma let a comfortable silence fill the air, a small smile appearing on her own face. They sat in silence for a little while longer before Jemma had to get up and ready to leave.
"Stay safe Simmons. And keep the idiot safe too." Daisy joked as she reached the door and Jemma quirked her eyebrow in response, letting a playful smile pull at her lips.

Jemma walked over to the Quin-jet to find Fitz standing waiting for her, his own rucksack slung over his shoulder. He smiled when he saw her. The mission was simple. An easy in and out. Nothing too concerning. Well it should have been anyway.

Once the Quin-jet landed, Fitzsimmons were the first to depart, the midday heat hitting them like a brick to the face. There was an uneasy feeling that had settled in both of their stomachs. Working with SHIELD usually leaves a sense of anxiousness anyway but this, this felt dangerous. Like something inevitable was going to happen. It left a sour taste in both of their mouths. They had a team that was watching their back but when Ward and Fitzsimmons were involved, it never ended well for one party, usually for the latter.
"Fitzsimmons you, Agent Piper and Agent Davis will be heading in first. Once you give the word, we will head in behind you. In the meantime we will cover the surrounding ground."
They nodded and began heading into the abandoned warehouse, making sure to keep their cover by crouching and hiding behind whatever they could. Fitz reached behind him to hold Jemma's hand, as if sensing her nervousness. Maybe the whole psychic link thing wasn't a too far fetched idea. They all took a breath before bursting into the warehouse, their guns drawn. After doing a sweep of the room and confirming there were no HYDRA agents hiding to gun them down or technology that was rigged to kill them they let their shoulders relax. Once everything was double checked to make sure, Jemma nodded at Piper who gave to signal that it was safe for the others to join them. Jemma's anxiousness didn't ease up, things were too easy. Everything was going according to plan. As if reading her thoughts, all the glass that was in the room and sat in the window sills exploded and a high pitched ringing caused them to cover their ears and double over in pain. Jemma looked up to see an all to familiar face walking towards them.
"N No. Lea-Leave. Us. Alone." She managed to choke out in pain.
"What? Not happy to see me Simmons?"
"You're. A, A Mon ster."
"Now thats not very nice. You know, you two should be thanking me. I made you stronger."
"We didn't need to be stronger. We needed someone to protect us and instead you tried to kill us!" A rage swept through Jemma that shocked her.
"It's fine. I'm not here for you. We just need Fitz this time."
"If you so much as touch one hair on his head I swear to everything that is good in this world that you will regret it." Her new found anger and confidence made the ringing lessen slightly, allowing her to get her sentences out in full. He just laughed and signalled with his hands.
"Take them both. Malick will find a use for her." Men dressed all in black came over to them. They both tried to fight but the pain in their head made them weaker than normal. Piper and Davis tried to get shots off but the drumming in their skulls made it feel like someone had taken a hammer to their heads. Bags were placed over Fitzsimmons heads and they were thrown into what they guessed was a van. Once the engine was turned on and they were a far enough distance from the warehouse, the bags were removed from their heads. Their arms had been tied carelessly behind their backs and they were sat on the left side of the van while the three men were sat facing them on bench like seats. Fitz found a way to intertwine his hand with Jemma's hoping to bring her a little bit of comfort. The ride was spent in silence, the sound of the engine and tires heading along the tarmac being the only sound filling it. Jemma closed her eyes and rested her head on Fitz’s shoulder. Maybe if she hoped hard enough, this would all be a nightmare she would wake up from.

The Van headed down a gravel path before coming to a stop. The tree masked men jumped out before dragging Fitz and Simmons out with them. Jemma looked up to see Gideon Malick waiting for them.
“I see you brought the other one too.”
“I thought as she was so intent on trying to protect Fitz, she could be patient 013.”
“Good. You’ve known them the longest, What do you recommend we do with them.”
“Split them up.” His smile was mean and Jemma's confidence was now replaced by complete and utter fear of the men in front of her.
“No please.” She heard Fitz beg from her side but he was ignored.
“Fitz.”
“We will get out of this Jemma.” They didn’t get to say much else before they were dragged away from each other.

Fitz struggled against the Zip ties that had him restrained to a cold metal chair in the middle of a brick room. There were unopened creates filling the open space and a small Pc setup to the right of Fitz. The room had hardly any light, the only source coming from the small windows that lined the top of the wall and the small lamp in the corner. Fitz looked up to see Ward walking in, a smug grin on his face.
“Where is Simmons?”
“Always looking out for her aren’t you? She’s okay. For now, although I can’t promise she will stay that way.” Fitz knew how this was going to go down. They needed him for something and Ward knew the one way to make him open up. He knew that hurting Fitz physically wasn’t going to make him talk but if he hurt Jemma, the the story was completely different. Fitz mind was turning into a raging War. Half of him knew that he couldn’t do what Ward wanted. It would be destructive and potentially the end of the world but if he didn’t, he didn’t know how he would be able to live with himself knowing he could have prevented Jemma getting hurt.
“What do you want Ward?”
“You act like you’re not scared but I know you are. And all we want is some information and help.”
“With what.”
“The Monolith.” Things clicked into place, like putting in the last piece of the Puzzle. Ward, or Malick, wanted whatever was on Maveth, to crossover. Jemma hadn’t told him about what she had seen yet but he had been there when she awoke, screaming from the night terrors and he had read the books. He knew what was on the other side of that portal.
“I can’t.”
“You can’t or you won’t?”
“If you bring that thing back, it would be the end of humanity.” Ward just looked at him with a blank expression.
“Fitz. You know what happens if you don’t comply right?”
“I’m not going to help you Ward.”
“Fine, then what happens next is on you.”
Fitz gulped and he hoped the team would arrive soon. He didn’t know how long he would last before giving into Ward. Ward lifted his phone to his ear and spoke to whoever was on the other line.
“Start with phase one. After we move to phase two.” He put his phone down and sat on the desk, leaning his back against the wall as if watching a play at the theatre. Maybe that’s all this was to him. Entertainment for his sick and twisted mind.

Jemma looked up to see Gideon Malick walking in. The room she was being held in looked like an abandoned surgery room. Her hands were bound behind her back and around the leg of a table. In the middle of the room was a surgery hospital cot with leather restraints hanging off the edge and a machine at the head of the cot that looked like the one they had found Coulson in all that time ago. To the side of the cot was a metal table with a dirty green cloth over it, different instruments lining the top of it.
"Where is Fitz?"
"You know, thats the first question he asked too. He's fine."
"What do you want with us?"
"We need Fitz to tell us how he opened the Monolith and managed to come back with you in tow." Jemma was silent. She knew why they needed to open the portal, opening the portal meant bringing It back through with them.
"He won't tell you."
"Perhaps not. But if he doesn't comply, then what happens next will haunt him until the day he dies." "What are you going to do?" There was no reply to her question and Jemma was finding it harder and harder to keep up her confident facade. Malick picked up some instruments and knelt down to face her.
"This, this is definitely going to hurt."
He injected something into her neck and moments later her body felt like it was burning from the inside out. Every cell in her body screaming and it became harder and harder to hold in her cries.
"That is a serum that lasts about an hour and trust me when I tell you, that pain you feel, the burning, it's only going to get worse." Against her will, a scream tore through her, shredding her lungs as it freed itself. The pain was like something she could never describe. Like a thousand tiny knives slowly peeling at her skin.
"Now Miss Simmons, what shall we try next."

Fitz's body flinched at the sound of Jemma's scream. He could literally feel his heart tearing in two. Her screams felt like death to him. This was his fault, Jemma was getting hurt because of him. Tears pooled in his eyes and he tried his hardest to hold them back.

Time had lost all meaning to him. Ward was sat in front of him again, grinning like a mad man.
"I'm curious which is worse for you; those moments when Simmons screams, or is it the long pauses when she doesn't? You know, if you don't talk soon, I give the word and we move to phase two and believe me when I tell you, the scars from that will never fade." Fitz tried to block out Wards words.
"Don't say I didn't warn you."

Jemma finally allowed herself to take a breath. The affects from the serum had worn off but her body was still achingly painful. Sweat was rolling down her forehead but se was still trying to be strong, she didn't want them to see her weak. The radio buzzed to life next to Malick.
"Fitz still wont say anything. I don't think he is going to either. Move to phase two."
"Phase two?" Jemma muttered out weakly.
"It's best you don't know what we're about to do." He undid the tie that had her bound to the table leg and picked her up. Putting her on the surgical bed and doing up the restraints. He put her head in the machine and restrained that too. She tried to fight against him but her body was too tired.
"The pain you got from that serum is about to get a hundred times worse. You will never be the same Miss Simmons."
The machine turned on and once again, a scream tore through her body. The pain was indescribable. It felt like someone tearing her mind out.

Fitz wanted to cry, to run to Jemma's side and assure her everything would be okay but he couldn't. He was stuck, bound to a chair, listening to Jemma's heart wrenching screams while Ward looked at him like it was the most entertaining thing in the world.

They injected her with so many different things, turned the setting on the machine to different levels, it all hazed into one before everything fell away into darkness.

The silence was worse than the screams. His mind went to the fact she was dead.
"I can see what you're thinking, she isn't dead. Just unconscious." The sound of commotion and gun shots travelled down the hall. Ward swore under his breath, pulling the gun from his trousers and going to find the intruders.

Davis and Piper dragged a handcuffed Ward to Z1, locking him in the containment pod. The rest of the team tried to find their way through the maze of hallways. They came to a set of double doors and hesitantly pushed them open. Finding Fitz inside. "Fitz!" Daisy was instantly at his side.

Fitz looked up to see the team walking in along with another woman who looke- No. It couldn't be.
"Daisy, I. Am I seeing things." She looked to where he was staring at, or who.
"You're not seeing things." Undoing the last of the zip ties she pointed at Peggy.
"Agent Carter, Agent Fitz."
“Please. Find Jemma.” Fitz voice was broken beyond means. It chilled Peggy and she nodded, taking May and Daisy with her, they went off to find the other Scientist. They passed by empty rooms before they came to the one Jemma was in. The sight made Daisy nearly vomit and even May and Peggy had to take a second before entering. They headed over to the scientists pale and fragile body. Peggy felt her heart drop and instantly checked the girls pulse, breathing a sigh of relief when she found it.
“Her pulse is weak but it’s there.” Daisy nodded as May gently brushed Simmons hair from her face, her maternal instincts kicking in.
“Simmons? Jemma. Can you hear me?” There was no visible response from the girl. Daisy carefully undid the restraints that had the scientists body pinned down. Once they were all off, Peggy picked her up bridal style, wrapping her jacket around Jemma's shoulders and carrying her out to the awaiting Quin-Jet.
“May?” Jemma mumbled into her shirt.
“It’s gonna be okay Jemma. We’ve got you. You’re safe.”

Chapter Text

There was a tense silence the whole way back to the base. Fitz wanted to be by Jemma's side but he wasn't able to while they patched him up. She had lost consciousness while Peggy was carrying her onto Zepher 1, Fitz still had no idea how she was with them but he hadn't had time to ask questions. His worry was for Simmons. He had caught a glimpse of her as she was carried onto Z1 and the imagine was still haunting him. He couldn't stop his thoughts, this was his fault. He was the reason she was in so much pain. Daisy placed her hand on his shoulder once she was done patching him up.
"This isn't your fault Fitz."
"It is. If i'd of just told Ward what he wanted to know, Jemma wouldn't be hurt."
"You don't know that. And even if you had of told him, the entire world would have been at risk."
"Maybe so, but my entire world was at risk, and i couldn't do anything to stop the pain. I could hear her screams Daisy. They play on a constant loop in my head, it's tearing me apart." Daisy pulled him into her as he sobbed, just wanting to be by Jemma's side, to know she was alive, that she was still with them. With him.

Peggy stood in the corner of the loading dock where most of the agents were sat, her eyes darting over to where Fitz and Daisy were. Her heart broke for the scientist. Both scientists. May was currently with Jemma and a few other Medics, trying to work out the full extent of her injuries. The sight of the biochemist had made her heart break for those around her and for the girl herself. Only her, May and Daisy had been in the room she was kept in and none of them has said a word about it. The sight haunted all of them in different ways. For Daisy, it was seeing her best-friend, her sister trapped, bound and broken. For May, it was having to see the girl she cared for as a daughter in so much pain and for Peggy. For Peggy it was seeing how cruel the world could be to someone just trying to do good, to someone who had by the sounds of it, already been to hell and back. After carrying Jemma to the Zepher, May had taken her to the med pod and agents had immediately rushed over, doing whatever they could to keep her alive. Fitz sob had ripped through the room when he caught sight of her and against all of their best interests, they had to keep him away. They had no clue what had been done to Jemma in the hours she was kept there and Peggy didn't want to think about it.

Once May was happy with Jemma's stats, she left the Med Pod and headed out to where everyone else was located. She wanted to beat the ever living crap out of Ward but that wasn't going to do anything now. All they had to do was hope that Jemma would make the journey home and eventually be okay. The only sound that filled the loading dock was the sound of Fitz's muffled cries. The journey back felt like forever and the minute they landed, Jemma was rushed off on a gurney to the Med Bay for a more in depth examination to make sure her wounds were properly cared for. Fitz tried to go with her but agents held him back. They had to keep him away while they checked up on her. He lashed out, trying to free himself from their grasp, his sobs freely ripping through his body, shattering the hearts of those that were around to hear. May gave a nod and Piper gently injected him with a sedative. His body slowly became limp and he was carried off to another Med Bay until it wore off. May, Daisy, Coulson, Piper, Davis and Elena all watched as Bobbi and hunter dragged Ward off the Zepher and into the awaiting cell.
"You all need to be debriefed when you're ready." Coulson spoke up.
"What if. What if we can't find the words?" Daisy muttered, her thoughts still plagued by the initial sight of the biochemist.
"You will, in time." Daisy couldn't hold back her tears anymore. She had tried to stay strong, for Fitz's sake but he wasn't there anymore. May pulled her into a hug, wrapping her arms tightly around the younger girl. Daisy didn't even think about the shock of may hugging her, she just melted into the hug.

The first thing Jemma took notice of when she woke up was the pain, still coursing through her body. She could feel her hands trembling as her vision cleared. The lights in the room were dim, just barely lighting up the space around her. Rationally she knew she was just in the SHIELD med-bay but it looked too much like that place. It was too much. A crash from outside sent her into a panic and she looked around for something, anything she could use to defend herself. Quickly grabbing a needle and positioning it in her hand, she sat on the floor in the corner, ignoring the pain that went through her body as she brought her knees to her chest, trying to make herself as small as possible. She was safe. She knew that but her fear was winning. All she could think about was the pain, and the look on their faces as they used her as their guinea pig. She started to take notice of how different her body felt, something was very different but she couldn't pinpoint it, she couldn't think. The door opened and she tried to sink further into the corner.
"Simmons?" The voice was warm, and friendly but she didn't want to take the risk.

Daisy stepped into the Med-bay, the bed empty.
"Simmons?"
"Stay away from me." The broken voice of her best friend, drew her attention to the woman curled up in the corner. Still, she took a hesitant step forward.
"I said stay away." A force erupted from the scientist, sending Daisy flying back into the wall. Jemma stared down at her hands in shock, and then back up at the hacker. Daisy groaned, slowly standing up.
"How'd- how did you?" She looked at her friend and at the dent in the wall, she hadn't imagined it. Simmons had somehow thrown her back wards. But she wasn't inhuman, a previous test had shown that the scientist was 100% human.
"Stay away from me." The woman cried again, seeming to curl further in on herself. Now drowning in the guilt of hurting her friend rather than the fear of someone hurting her.
"Okay, okay. I'm stepping away." Daisy slowly walked backwards until she was out of the room, slowly pulling the door shut. Bobbi, May and Elena running down the hallway together.
"What happened, we heard a bang?" May inquired. Daisy couldn't say, she was too stunned to think.
"Discreetly call a team meeting. Us four, Coulson, Hunter, Mack, Peggy and Piper and Davis." Daisy ordered, her eyes still glued to the door of the med bay Jemma was in. Luckily May didn't question it, she just nodded and the three left to gather the other members of their team.

"Daisy, why have you called us all here?" Coulson asked, watching the inhuman pace back and forth at the head of the table.
"Jemma, she." The words got lost in her throat. Seeing Daisy so panicked worried the team greatly. The woman took a deep breath before starting again.
"The crash you heard, Jemma threw me into a wall." A collective gasp went around the group.
"She pushed you into a wall?" Bobbi questioned.
"In a way."
"What do you mean, in a way?" Piper asked.
"I mean that." She stopped for a second, the implications of what she was about to say making her sick to her stomach.
"She didn't physically throw me into a wall. She somehow managed to throw me back with an energy force or something." No one spoke, so she hesitantly continued.
"We ran a test on everyone when people were turning inhuman. Jemma was 100% human. But now, now she- " She let the sentence hang.
"So, whatever they did to her in that room." Peggy spoke up.
"Turned her inhuman." A queasy feeling passed through everyone at the idea.
"How is that even possible?" Elena enquired.
"My only guess is that they experimented on her, and physically we wrote her DNA." Nothing was said as the team tried to let the words sink in.
"So what do we do?" Hunter spoke up eventually.
"Right now, we support her as much as we can, not only is she suffering with trauma from what they put her through, but now she has to deal with also being inhuman." The team nodded.
"I'm going to beat Ward within an inch of his life." May muttered angrily.
"I'll join you on that." Bobbi and Hunter agreed.
"What do we tell Fitz?" Davis questioned.
"I'll tell him." Daisy replied.

Fitz woke up, his memories still a little hazy. He pulled himself into a sitting position and looked around, finding himself in one of the Med bays.
"You're awake." Daisy said with a smile from the end of the bed.
"How long have I been out?"
"Only a couple of hours." His memories came rushing back.
"Simmons, where is she?"
"She's safe. But Fitz, we need to talk." Fitz nodded, his demeanour calm but nervous.
"Simmons, she. Fitz, she isn't human anymore."
"What do you mean?" His voice was panicked.
"Whatever they did to her, it changed her DNA. She's an inhuman." Fitz didn't say anything, he just covered his mouth with his hand.
"Can I see her?"
"I don't think thats best right now, she threw me into a wall when I tried to talk to her."
"Let me try?" His eyes pleaded with her and Daisy knew he needed to see her as much as she needed to see him. He needed to know he was safe, needed to see it for himself. She nodded and stood up, waiting by the door for Fitz to join her. They walked down the hallway in a silence but Daisy spoke up as they got to the door.
"Just be gentle. She is very easily startled." Fitz nodded and took a breath before slowly opening the door. Jemma was still in the same position Daisy had left her in. She looked up and her eyes locked with Fitz's. Her shoulders relaxed just slightly. Her eyes were red and puffy and her tears had dried to her cheeks.
"Fitz?" Her whisper was so soft he almost missed it.
"I'm here." He slowly took a step forward and her body tensed again.
"Don't come near me, please. I don't want to hurt you." Fitz nodded seeing Jemma so broken was tearing him apart. He could see the scars and marks on her skin and it made his blood boil. They had hurt her. They had used her as an experiment.
"Jemma."
"Please." A cry broke through her body. Her lungs aching from her sobs and her head aching. The room started to shake slightly.
"Jemma." Fitz said gently but with a warning. The objects in the room started to float and Fitz carefully took a step back. Jemma looked up at the things floating around her and she started to panic even more. Her breaths came fast and hard.
"Stop. Please, make it stop. Please. I'm scared, make it stop." The way she pleaded made Fitz want to curl up with her and tell her that it would all be okay but he couldn't. The door swung open and Daisy stood looking worried.
"The weather is going haywire and a bunch of objects have started floating." Daisy looked over at Jemma and stopped talking. Fitz nodded and Daisy gently pulled the ICER from her waistband and made her way over to the scientist. With each step, the floating got worse and the storm outside got louder and louder. Daisy got close enough to aim it and Jemma's shoulder. She pulled the trigger and she went limp in the corner. All the objects fell to the floor with a crash and the sound of the storm started to fade.
"We need to get her to the Containment Chamber" Fitz nodded and he slowly picked her up bridal style and they headed toward the chamber.

Once they were in there, Fitz gently laid her down on the bed and secured a blanket around her body so she wouldn't get cold.
"She'll be okay Fitz." Daisy said, trying to be positive, but all Fitz could think about was Jemma and the screams he'd been forced to listen to. The noise would haunt him until he died.
"Until we know the extent of what her powers are, there isn't much we can do okay?" Fitz nodded and took a seat in the Containment Module.
"I'm staying here until she wakes up, I don't want her to be alone." Daisy nodded and took a seat next to him.
"How and why is Peggy Carter here?" He asked after a few moments of silence.
"Monolith I think? We haven't had chance to talk about it. She just appeared, said that she'd been brought here by a white rock that had turned to liquid and once we told her you two had been taken, she offered to help get you back."
"Sounds like a normal day at SHIELD then." They both smiled slightly before returning to silence, waiting for the biochemist to awaken.