A/N: Thank you readers one and all for your continued support! RKF, what you've been waiting for is coming... soon. Not this chapter but possibly the next if I can get back to writing. Anyone else- please please review! You have no idea how reviews can spur a writer to action!

When Stephen entered the Command Bay of the Helicarrier, Maria was waiting for him. The agents stood in attendance near their Director, keeping their guns leveled on his form. Stephen took all this in quickly, releasing a sigh as he raised his hands in a show of surrender.

"After all this time, you still don't trust me Hill?"

Maria's gaze slid away from his, guilt flickering in her eyes. "I can't risk you turning against me."

Stephen laughed dryly, the sound empty of mirth. "What? Like a dog and its master? I wouldn't dream of it."

She stared in silence for a moment, flicking her gaze downward when she gave a silent and hesitant command for half of her 'army' to lower their weapons.

"I appreciate it," he said sternly, boldly passing by the armed men to step up beside the Director. He surveyed the ongoing preparations for the impending battle with a cold sweep of his gaze. "Have you heard from the general yet?"

She held her arms behind her back, nodding once before saying, "I have. The conversation was recorded and put on file due to the needless threats we received from him. At this point he's less than half an hour away."

"Good. Let's get this over with then." Stephen planted his palms flat on the surface of the desk, glancing briefly over at Maria from the corner of his gaze. "Are you ready? This won't be easy, even by my standards."

Maria crossed her arms and lifted an eyebrow cautiously. "SHIELD is accustomed to handling a militia attack. If you find this challenging then you're in the wrong business doctor."

"No. I know what I'm doing, trust me. I'm taking into account the safety of everyone on this ship, what I'll need to do should the engines jam…" Countless other things that could go wrong. It was his responsibility to make sure everyone on board got away safely. He'd follow through with his mission, being beyond feeling at this point so focused and intent was he on enacting justice.

Maria refocused ahead of her, sighing lightly over his somber demeanor. "Is there anything else you think I should to do to prepare for this?"

Stephen pondered her question, frowning slightly as he turned to face the director. "Not that I can think of at the moment. First we need to get an idea of Ross's plan of attack… Maria as of now you and I must have complete trust and confidence in one another. There can be no secrets between us, understand? Any move you make I've got to know about."

The woman kept a stern look over her face, making direct eye contact with his expressive grey orbs. "Likewise. I couldn't agree more."

"Director Hill!" An agent ran up, looking harried in his expression as he quickly relayed the information. "General Ross has been sighted on the western horizon. He will be landing on the Helicarrier in two minutes flat, and he says he's coming alone…"

Grinding her teeth over one another in agitation, Hill nodded after a moment in thought. "I don't trust him. Keep all the agents and systems on high alert. I don't want a bird getting past this ship without us knowing."

Stephen watched silently, remaining in the background as the agents bustled around in preparation for the general's arrival. Mentally he reached out to scope the surrounding area, a deeper instinct of his not entirely trusting the loaded technology that most others so blindly put their faith in.

Maria frowned, noticing how the man beside her appeared to be in a haze. She kept quiet for an extra moment before a nervous fear set in. "Strange, what are you doing."

"… I'm checking the peripheries for any unexpected 'guests' we might have," he murmured pensively, closing his eyes in brief irritation. "I've found nothing new as of yet…" But this was all a part of Ross's scheme, undoubtedly a trap. He'd pull a left-hand feint on them. The sorcerer pressed his mind further, grinding his jaw in angst when a pounding started at the back of his head, forcing him to withdraw slightly from the mental excursion.

Hill felt her heart drop as she picked up on the manner of her unlikely partner. Her facial features softened almost instinctively, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Dr. Strange? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," he shrugged out of her grip, giving her a sharp glance and uncertain over the sudden contact. Stephen hesitated, noticing a commotion on the deck of the ship.

"Ross is here, Director," a bland-faced agent reported dutifully. "What are your orders?"

Maria turned her head towards the agent, taking a step towards him. "Send the General in. I'll have a talk with him personally. I want all agents on standby and ready to fire when I give the word."

They waited in tense silence. Agents shifted on their feet, glancing nervously about as some checked and double-checked the gauges on their weapons. Ross entered the Command Bay momentarily, his gaze narrowed in cold suspicion as he looked over the gathered agents.

"Director Hill!" he barked, striding up the steps to look Maria square in the eyes. He jabbed a finger at her chest, pushing her back slightly as he growled, "Just what kind of tricks do you think you're pullin' on me?"

Stephen tensed, disgusted with Ross's treatment of the woman and stepped up beside her protectively as he glared the other man down.

Maria remained calm despite her restless nerves, trying to feel out Ross with her firm comments. "I beg your pardon General. I'll be willing to talk when you keep your hands to yourself."

The general's face visibly reddened, though he straightened with his hands clasped behind his back as he stared at Hill, his gaze barely glancing at her companion. "And who's this? Your bodyguard? Tell him to stand down Hill, this is between you and me."

Recognition briefly flitted in Ross's mind, though at the moment he couldn't place where he might have seen the vaguely familiar figure standing beside Maria.

"He will be staying right where he is. Anything you have to say, you can say it right here, right now." Maria swallowed dryly, trying hard to keep her composure between the two men she found hard to trust.

"Fine, it hardly matters anyways," Ross growled, glaring at Hill and her companion, whom he just now recognized as being the Strange fellow. The general's hands clenched into fists at his sides, his form visibly shaking. "There's no way you're getting out of this mess. You're dead Hill, out of commission. And I'll find Banner, I swear to God I'll track him down and tear him apart."

"After everything you've already done to the doctor, the only place you're going is behind bars. Ross if you'll come with me for questioning we can do this the easy way." Maria slid her fingers over the hidden pistol in her pocket for safety reasons, picking up on his tone and visible nodded towards her fellow agents to stand closer to them.

Stephen was only just keeping his temper in check, inwardly every instinct of his strained towards the death of the man before him. He breathed evenly, allowing no traces of his emotion or inner turmoil to show through as he watched the interaction between Ross and Hill. Behind bars was where the general belonged… but Stephen could sense the burning plans of betrayal swirling through Ross's broken mind. Something was up, it didn't take a genius to figure that out.

"How do you plan on getting me behind bars Director?" Ross sneered. "You've got nothing on me that you yourself aren't guilty of."

Maria shook her head as though his threats hardly phased her. "There's footage of your abuse of Dr. Banner with no rhyme or reason to it and this isn't the first time something of this extent was added to the records. There have also been reports of ill treatment of your employees, blackmail, the purchasing of illegal weaponry… any of that sound familiar? SHIELD may have a past that's tarnished but yours is completely screwed up. You can follow me General, cooperation is advised."

The general took a small step back, shouting orders for his men into the mouthpiece at his collar. Maria's eyes widened once she heard the militia surrounding them, startled when officers stormed onto the ship, accosting her soldiers. Her eyes roved about with shock, reaching for her pistol just as Ross slipped out his own gun and fired twice. The director dodged behind the computers, aiming her weapon only to find the general missing.

"Damn it! Strange!"

Stephen was already running after the general, narrowly dodging the bullets that flew past his shoulders. They rounded a corner and the sorcerer threw his hands out straight in front of him, commanding a force field to halt the escaping Ross.

...

Maria peered cautiously over the desk, listening to the bullets being fired all around her. She slid her knees out into the open, firing towards the uniformed officers who tried going after her fellow agents. She clenched her teeth, eyes catching sight of Strange who had successfully caught up with Ross. Releasing a quick sigh, Maria glanced once more over her shoulder before dodging forward with the intention of catching up to her unlikely companion. The breath was forced from her lungs as she gasped. She staggered as a bullet went straight through her shoulder.

Ahead of her, Stephen deflected a bullet fired from Ross, then sent an energy blast in the man's direction that caused the general to go sprawling back into the wall. The sorcerer took a step forward, another spell already rolling easily off his tongue when he heard a sharp cry from behind, the sound of a woman in pain. He turned in time to see a stray bullet shoot through Maria's shoulder. Then she collapsed against the wall for support while clutching her wounded arm. Dark red bloomed on her uniform, slowly seeping outward.

An explosion rocked the ship, causing alarms to sound and echo loudly off the walls. Stephen hesitated, caught between chasing after Ross and helping Maria, who was completely vulnerable in the state she was in. With a discontented growl Stephen chose the latter, striding over to her fallen form and scooping her easily into his arms, in spite of her vicious protests.

"I'm taking you somewhere safe so we can get that looked at," he said quietly.

Maria closed her eyes, gritting her teeth over the pain and discontent of being carried by Strange, of all people. She cringed, voice cracking from her current state, "Safe? Good luck with that."

"You must not know me very well Miss Hill. If I promise you 'safe', you'll get safe. Even if I have to take you off this ship to get you there. Unless you'd rather I left you with Ross?"

Maria swallowed hard, working to hide her emotions, full of frustration while she was in his arms. "Just get us away from the chaos."

Stephen chose not to reply, looking pensively out towards the entrance to the Command Bay. Literally every SHIELD agent on deck was locked in combat with a number of Ross's men. Realistically, there was no way they'd get through that mess unharmed.

"Whatever you do, don't move." Stephen closed his eyes, weaving the spell needed for transport. Before the woman could say another word the air shifted and folded around them, swallowing them up in momentary blackness. The next second they emerged into a quieter part of the Helicarrier, the hospice level that he'd encountered during his previous stay.

"Ah, I remember this place," he said dryly, setting Maria down on the table. "Fond memories."

Maria nodded, fidgeting uncomfortably on the table she'd been laid on. "Glad you enjoyed your stay." Her hand flung over towards her shoulder, tearing the rest of the rip in the fabric open for a personal examination of her injuries. She laid her head down once dizziness set in, limply clutching the clothing scraps over the wound.

Stephen grunted in disapproval, completely unimpressed with her poor efforts at treating her injury. "Let me see that." His hand was already moving hers away, the other gently probing the shoulder area for any additional damage such as bone fractures or bullet shards that were possibly lodged in the flesh. Satisfied, he moved away to find a clean rag and ran it under some warm water before placing it over the bloody wound. A distracting thought flitted through his mind, wondering if Ross might still be on the ship and what he'd have to do if the general wasn't. Stephen glanced over at Hill sharply when he asked, "Do you have a radio on you? Some way to contact your men?"

The director ground her teeth out of frustration, pulling the damaged micro-communicator from off of her collar. "Whatever's left of it," she replied tersely.

"Doesn't matter," Stephen muttered in frustration as he tore some dry cloth into strips to apply pressure over the wound. "This'll be a quick fix. It's a clean wound, the bullet went right on through. It'd be faster if you just let me heal you my own way… but do you trust me enough to do that?"

The decision was entirely up to her. It almost didn't matter one way or another to Stephen what her response would be, since it was a non-lethal injury and would take minimal effort to bandage should she refuse his offer.

Maria narrowed her focus in his direction, uninterested in his type of 'healing'. Her mouth opened slightly, ready to refuse just as a new shot of pain rolled up her arm and neck. "Yes," she gasped, forcing her eyes shut. "Yes, I trust you." Her lips thinned to a straight line, matching her firm expression. She breathed steadily, finding it hard to believe she had just accepted help from someone she still faintly considered an enemy.

The sorcerer took a moment, his gaze studying hers thoughtfully before he placed one hand on her forehead and the other gently over her now bare shoulder. A feeling of empathy for her pain briefly welled in his chest, furthering his efforts toward healing and renewing the torn flesh. A faint glow surrounded his hands as the energy flowed from himself to her, encouraging the healing processes until there was nothing left but a scar over her shoulder as a reminder of the ordeal. When the spell was complete Stephen breathed a sigh of relief and stepped back, removing his hands from her head and arm.

Maria watched him as he worked, her brows drawn down slightly in a frown of confusion. Her gaze fixed onto the scar as a feeling of relief spread over her frame. She stood up slowly, a sense of gratitude filling her for the help he'd given before she banished the feeling. Shaking her head she said, "Alright Stephen, we need to make our way to the control panel. I can contact my men from there."

"Think you can handle that on your own?" He asked absently, leaning out the doorway to check for any approaching soldiers. He swayed slightly, the spell having drained him of energy and leaving him a little off balance.

Maria glanced over her shoulder towards the sorcerer and nodded for him to follow her. "You can stay with me Strange, we're heading towards the control panel together."

"Whatever you say Maria," Stephen sighed heavily, moving aside for her to pass him. He supposed he'd have to get used to taking orders from her. Unsettling thought that was.

She pressed forward, heading down the hall with her pistol in hand, walking quietly as she aimed her weapon towards a potential threat before firing twice. After checking that the coast was clear she made a sharp left.

"I'm going to pull up the intercoms so I can communicate with my agents, and then survey for a damage report. If things get any worse we might need a little outside help." Hill lowered her brows after her monologue, unsure why she felt the need to explain her plans to Strange. As if some form of camaraderie existed between them. She scoffed silently to herself at the thought.

Stephen nodded at her words, standing beside the door to keep a vigil in case anyone thought to sneak up on them. While Hill went about her business the sorcerer enacted a series of spells in order to gauge the number of human souls left on board and the extent of the damage to the Helicarrier.

Maria snuck into the room, hacking one of the computers to access the reports. She typed frantically, trying in every way possible to get in touch with other agents. Another blast rocked the ship, followed by the floor shifting downward in one direction by several degrees. Stephen's concentration broke immediately, but before gravity got the better of him he gripped the doorway for balance.

"This is just a guess… But I think we just lost engine 1. Can we hurry up Hill?!"

She grit her teeth and shifted her weight, agitated as she hit the emergency button to the right of her that would alert her men to get moving, and moving fast. Maria dashed forward, swaying along with the movement of the Helicarrier.

"And I just had this thing repaired. Come on."

With his longer stride Stephen was able to surpass Maria within moments, veering to the left when they came to a crossroads.

"What are you doing?! The deck is this way!" Hill snapped, hesitating from behind him.

Stephen turned slowly to meet her gaze, somehow remaining easily balanced despite the shifting state of the ship. "I'm out for Ross's blood Maria. He will never give up in this fight so someone has to stop him. Don't get in my way."

Her eyes widened. "Don't tell me what to do Strange, you're under my commands whether you like it or not!"

The sorcerer smirked and shook his head, turning to stride down the corridor. "Just try and stop me."

Grumbling under her breath, Hill stormed after him as if it were a challenge. Maria figured Ross should pay, but at the hands of the proper authorities. She strode up beside him, grinding her jaw in irritation. "I'm coming along then."

He remained silent for the time being, though he couldn't help the slight smirk that twitched at the corners of his mouth. Fine, she could come along if she liked. That way Stephen could keep an eye on her.

"So, have you given any thoughts as to our future together?" he asked conversationally, choosing to word it in such a way on purpose. A part of him hoped he'd elicit some sort of reaction from her.

Maria gasped, eyes widening over his outrageous remark. She stumbled over her words, completely caught off guard as she snapped, "Excuse me?!"

Shrugging, the sorcerer replied nonchalantly, "Oh you know, the future where I stay here with SHIELD. Just wondered if you had any plans for that."

The helicarrier groaned, a loud humming noise emanating from the bowels of the ship as it shifted back into its proper position, the floor evening out. Thankfully, the temporary backup system had been activated.

Maria exhaled a heavy sigh, shaking her head as she ran ahead of Strange, shouting orders to the few agents she came across. "Get in touch with headquarters. Locate the nearest base for possible evacuation!"

Stephen paused in his tracks, something holding him back from following Hill down the corridor. Ross was nearby, hiding out somewhere, the sorcerer knew that much was certain. The general had yet to leave the vicinity. He sidestepped a SHIELD agent, narrowly missing some jutting shrapnel as he ran past in his search. A jagged piece of metal ground into his arm when he made a sharp turn, the metal slicing into his skin and drawing blood. He barely noticed the pain, so focused was he on everything else going on around him.

No matter that Hill didn't reply, he'd have plenty of time later to needle the director of SHIELD. In the meantime he could go after Ross, just as he'd planned.

Maria grunted in frustration as she ran through the halls, keeping an eye on Stephen almost nonstop. "How do you even plan on locating the general? There are hundreds of people on this craft right now," she said sarcastically.

"Do you really need to ask that question?" Stephen shot back as he dodged around the scattered debris of the hull, not caring at this point whether Hill followed or not.

"You consider yourself some sort of magician… There are plenty of armed officers around and yet you're one hundred percent sure you'll find the General." Maria shook her head, knowing her comments were more of an instigation than anything else. She was frustrated to be relying on his abilities, abilities that she personally could not comprehend.

Stephen abruptly stopped in his tracks, turning around so fast that he startled Hill. Agitation was visible on his angled features as the sorcerer took a step forward, grabbing Maria by the shoulders and glaring her in the eyes. "I know what I'm doing Maria," he said lowly, voice almost trembling from the effort of trying to control his tone. "It's time you leave me to it."

Her eyes stayed wide, frightened by the look on his face and his tone of voice. She stared blankly, mouth closing abruptly rather than replying. With a silent nod of approval Stephen turned and disappeared down the hallway, his thoughtful gaze still haunting the back of Maria's eyelids as she watched him go.

She remained frozen in place for an added moment, and then the rush caught up to her and she turned away, having her own destination in mind. The ship gave a sudden lurch and she banged into the wall, leaning hard into it for support.

"Damn engineering!" she spat.