<br/><div class="floatleft">(http://www.esquire.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Avengers.jpg)</div><br/><br/><hr/><br/><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 12pt;"><span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: georgia;"><strong>Name:</strong> Maria Hill<br/><strong>Title:</strong> Director of S.H.E.I.L.D. <br/><strong>Location:</strong> Higher Offices of the Helicarrier<br/><strong>Time:</strong> 4:20 PM EST<br/><strong>Tags:</strong> No one</span></span><br/><hr/><br/>Maria found it fascinating, the elevator ride up to the top of the Helicarrier, where Fury had been given access. She was going four stories higher than she had ever been. The odd part was that the Helicarrier on it's own was almost a full two miles above Lake Superior. She could still feel the elevation. 'Must be mental,' she told herself as the bells<em>dinged</em>the doors open.<br/><br/>Ms. Hill wasted no time, her boots were slim, and thin around her foot, but they were hard, and they clicked like high heels would if the woman walking inside of them was terribly upset.<br/><br/>The hall on either side of her looked no different then it did on the bridge, or on the levels reserved for scientific facilities. It looked the same as the armory, and the engine rooms. 'The uniform of the design is a marvel, really.' She held pride in herself, intuitively aware that she was up this high for a very good reason. S.H.E.I.L.D. was truth to her, God in a sense. They had all pulled together, and done the right thing. Ethics were always cloudy, control is constant, and S.H.E.I.L.D. knew how to sustain that tone. So did Maria Hill. It was in the bottom of her bootstraps, and the tips of her fingers. It lived so deeply within her sense of being, that she no longer bothered to put it to words. S.H.E.I.L.D. was no different than she was. She made almost no distinctions between herself and the organization, perhaps that was why they had called her up. Scuttle-butt had been loud. Fury was in hot-water.<br/><br/>Met in the hallway by a uniform, the young man attached to it gave Hill a sharp salute and straightened his joints.<br/><br/>"At ease, soldier." Maria didn't move a single muscle his direction, she lacked respect for him, and he could feel it. She charged passed him with the audacity of confidence. Dropping his arm he stowed up behind her, and rattled away in her wake.<br/><br/>"Ma'am, Private Rutherford, Ma'am. I've been instructed to guide you. I was told that you've never been to see the council, or at leas- Take a right here." Maria stopped suddenly, and glanced at him for a moment before turning down the hallway. It was getting darker, as if she was walking into a cave.<br/><br/>"You don't have to follow me Rutherford, a set of instructions will do just fine." Hill forced him to stutter before he picked up where he had left off, or at least, where he thought he had.<br/><br/>"Right. Continue down this hall, it's only a few feet away, now, the door at the end of the hall."<br/><br/>"Thank you, private. As you were."<br/><br/>Rutherford slowed to a stop as Hill accelerated in front of him, and failed to miss a step. She marched into the conference room, as if she knew what the meeting was about. Speaking to the ship's computer for a moment at the door, and passing a set of identification scans. Maria pressed her thumb against the wall, and spoke her name, clearance code, and authorization pass-phrase. Rutherford felt soiled, dirty, used, and uncared for. Maria's coldness had nearly choked him. She didn't even look at him once. He watched her disappear behind the door, and exhaled loudly before continuing about his business.<br/><br/><hr/><br/>"Maria Hill, Director of Communications for three years now. Active duty, exemplary awards, and recognition, talented mind, and an even more talented feel for battle." One faceless man spoke through the screen at a statue of Maria Hill, her shoulders and legs at ease, safely secured in proper military holds.<br/><br/>"You're loyalty is most exceptional. If we chose to ignore you in such a precarious situation. We would not only be fools." This man came from the other side of the room, still a shadow, only a screen.<br/><br/>"It is True Ms. Hill. We've had our eye on you for a while, and in addition to careless fools, we would also be hypocrites." One of the faces in the middle of the room spoke, now, and his voice sounded like it was full of glee, but decrepit, and rotten, like a pest among the garbage.<br/><br/>The council had paused, and one man hadn't spoken yet. It seemed like he was waiting for Maria to respond. She didn't have to clear her throat, "I don't understand. As much as I love being treated like a child." Her lip quivered up towards a smile, but she caught herself, and her eyes twinkled shut, only to open again, void of feeling. "I only know that our situation is improving, councilor. I've heard ill accounts of Tony Stark's integrity. But nothing more is clear to me now."<br/><br/>"We know." it was the pest again. "apologies for our cryptic tongues, Ms. Hill. but all of that is about to change."<br/><br/>Finally the voice in the center of the room spoke up, and Maria's eyebrows drifted into an intimidated frown. The news was good, but the burden of responsibility settled on to her slowly, and it never stopped building, even after he was finished talking. "The attack on New York by the Asguardian prince Loki may have seemed like a conclusion. The end of a war. You know as well as I do, Maria, that that just isn't true. We scraped by, and an emerald of our culture was nearly reduced to rubble. We have entered the dimension scale of civilization, now. We are in more danger now than we have ever been. There is a war, it's only starting, and we are prepared to a fraction of the degree that we need to be. This is something you understand, yes?"<br/><br/>Maria almost didn't answer. "Yes, Sir. It is."<br/><br/>He paused for a moment, measuring the volition in her eyes. "Good. Because it's something that Director Fury didn't. As of now, Ms. Hill, Nick Fury is on a suspended leave of absence. His position will be filled by you. In this position, we expect you to pull this planet together. We expect you to wrangle in the<em>Avengers</em>and keep them under your control. We expect you to work with tact and efficiency. But, most of all, we expect you to stay as loyal as you've always been. Your predecessor was a bit of a visionary. We don't need a visionary. We need some one who can get the job done the way it's supposed to. Does that sound like something that you can do?"<br/><br/>"Yes, it is... sir." She hadn't even realized that she rephrased her last response. Her eyes were dull with restrain. She wanted to smile, and unzip her jumpsuit. She wanted to shout and laugh. She couldn't. she had to swallow everything. It made it very difficult to speak her mind. "Nick Fury was sick with intention. He played this organization, and we played this planet like a game. I am humbly at your command, sir." She inhaled, finally able to breathe.<br/><br/>"Good, we expect you to get started as soon as possible, but we do not need you to rush. You're at a higher level clearance now, feel free to look over any files that were... not there...before. We've sent you all relevant paperwork in hard copies to your new sleeping quarters. Check your personal files for updated codes, pass-phrases, and of course, the location of your room is there. You'll recieve instructions soon. Please see yourself out Director Hill."<br/><br/>Maria nodded and turned away without military protocol. she hardly noticed it, the lazy turn, and the caveman walk out of the conference room. 'this is real.' Her hands were shaking. the panels, and pipes on the walls were vibrating too. Rutherford was nearby already, she wasn't even walking down the hall. Her eyes were wide, and she looked happy to see a familiar face. She was only coming to terms with had just happened inside.<br/><br/>"Director Hill, if you'll follow me, I can direct you to your private office."<br/><br/>Her eyebrows went up. 'Fury never had a private office.' She must have looked puzzled, because Rutherford wasn't turning around to leave yet. He knew that she had a question: "I get an office?"<br/><br/>"yes, ma'am you do. It's rather large, and it has a stereo, satellite radio." His finger pointed toward her, as if that was the selling point of her new position. Maria scowled a bit and shook her head.<br/><br/>"Did Director Fury have an office?"<br/><br/>"Yes, he did, the same one, except Fury never used it."<br/><br/>Maria finally took a step forward, and Private Rutherford led her back toward the elevator. "He never used it? Why not?"<br/><br/>"Ma'am, he always said it was because his ears popped in the elevator when ever he went up there." That wasn't true. "But who knows why. You probably have a better guess than I do, ma'am."<br/><br/>Maria had hardly listened, she was expecting a straight answer, not a joke. It took her a second to register what the young soldier had said. They stopped in front of the elevator. There were no buttons to press, it knew that some one was readd to ride. "Wait a minute." Maria stopped him with her voice as the door opened. "We're going higher up...! right now?"