Ch 75 infrared goggles

Clint Barton.

Marksman. Killer. Hero. Criminal. Avenger.

A man among gods.

Why was he here? What place did he have in a group of people who could level buildings and shoot lasers out of their eyes? Over the years, many people had asked that question.

But Barton knew why. He was here because the Avengers was a place for Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the people who were the best there is at what they do. And there was no better archer than Hawkeye.

"Hawkeye," The voice came through his comlink, cutting through his thoughts. "What's your status? Still waiting and watching?"

"Yep," Barton replied, aiming his bow at the road below. "Listen Stark, I gotta say, this is nowhere as fun as it should be. How many times have I had to sit in a tree waiting for the target to arrive?"

"There are worse jobs, Clint," Tony Stark replied. "At least you don't have to sit in your office all day, waiting for someone to call you in as backup."

"I don't even have an office," Hawkeye grumbled. "And you get coffee. And heating. Do you have any idea what I'd give for some heat right now?"

"Tony, Clint," Captain America's voice broke in, also over the comlink. "I thought I asked you to keep this mission as quiet as possible. Remember Clint, no one knows you're here. We want to keep it that way."

"Fine," Hawkeye sighed. "Excuse me for wanting a bit of human interaction."

"Just keep you mind on the mission," Cap instructed. "When this thing arrives, I want you to spot it."

Clint squinted. That would be easier said than done. He had seen a few blizzards in his time, but this one had to take the cake. He could barely make out his own bow in this white mess, much less find his intented target.

"Canada sucks," Hawkeye muttered to himself, turning his comlink off. He hated this mission already. Why couldn't Cap have sent Stark, or Thor, or really anyone who didn't rely on total visibility to get his job done?

"Grr..."

Hawkeye tensed up, looking around. Nothing there. He switched his comlink back on. "Uh, Cap?"

"What?"

"The thing you sent me to take down... What was it called again?"

"Wendigo."

"Uh-huh. And would this Wendigo happen to growl a lot?"

"A fair bit. Why?"

Hawkeye opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off by another growl. There was definitely something there. "Well, I'm hearing growling. What colour is the Wendigo?"

"White."

"You serious?" Hawkeye cursed. "You sent me to a forest in Canada, in the middle of the winter, to fight a white monster? And you didn't even give me infrared goggles?"

"Wait, you don't have goggles? You're supposed to."

"Yeah, that one's my fault," Stark spoke up. "I guess I forgot to give you those things. Sorry about that."

"Damn it, Stark!" Hawkeye exclaimed. "How am I supposed to fight this thing if I can't even see it?"

"Relax, we'll send someone," Tony replied. "Let's see, Thor? No, he's fighting Frost Giants. How about Vision? Oh, he's unavailable, too. Hm..."

"Just go yourself! Cap, can't you get him to-"

Suddenly, the tree started shaking, almost making Barton fall off entirely. "Whoa!"

"What?" Cap asked, the urgence in his voice obvious. "Clint, what happened?"

"I think the Wendigo's got my tree," Hawkeye replied. Another shake. "Yep, there he goes again."

"Raaaar!"

The tree shook again, and again, and again, each time causing Clint to clench his teeth. If this kept up, he might just have to jump. Shake. Shake. Sha- Wait a minute. The tree had stopped moving. That couldn't be right.

Then it dawned on him. The Wendigo hadn't stopped shaking the tree: It had started lifting it. He could feel himself moving slowly, almost too slowly to really notice. Time to go.

Jumping up from his crouching position, Hawkeye bolted to the end of the branch, not caring that it was probably going to break. The tree was moving faster now, almost too fast. Damn it. He paused for a second, almost overcome with uncertainty. Did he actually want to do this? Probably. Barton grinned, closed his eyes, and took the jump.

"Staaaaark!" He screamed, flailing wildly as he fell. He knew he shouldn't have picked one of the higher branches.

Wham! He slammed into something hard. Probably the ground.

"Ugh," He rolled onto his back, just absorbing the pain for a second. It probably would have been even worse, if not for the snow.

"Gr..."

Crap. Hawkeye opened his eyes to the sight of two giant, bloodshot eyes. The Wendigo.

Scrambling backwards, he pulled out the first arrow that he could get his hands on. Net Arrow. It'd have to do. Notching it in his bow, he pulled back the string. "Open wide, ugly."

With that, he released, watching the arrow fly forward, opening into a net that covered the monster's head, which was all he could see through this snowstorm. That wouldn't hold him for long. Hawkeye tapped his comlink. "Guys, I'm gonna need that backup now."

No response.

"Guys?"

Still nothing.

Clint cursed, making his way to his feet. He must have damaged his comlink in the fall. Putting his hand back to his quiver, he felt around until he found what he needed: An explosive arrow.

"All right, big guy. Let's see how you deal with this little sucker."

He shot the arrow, smiling as it blasted the Wendigo with enough force to take out a tank, lighting up the entire area in the process. He'd have to thank Stark for helping get the funding for all these things. After he strangled him for not giving him the goggles, that is.

Just as he was about to turn and leave, though, a sound from somewhere in the blizzard from him on the spot. Another growl.

"No," Hawkeye said, grabbing another explosive arrow. "There's no way..."

"Grooaaaarrrr!"

Before he could really process what was happening, the archer went flying backwards, slamming into a nearby tree. "Ow."

His mind started racing, trying to figure out what was going on and what to do about it. It was the Wendigo again, that much was for sure. But how? Nothing should have been able to take that arrow and keep standing. Nothing short of a Hulk, at least.

He reached for another arrow, only to find his hand touching nothing but air. Where was his quiver? He looked around in desperation, trying to make out any sign of it. Nothing. He had lost it in all of the damned snow.

The Wendigo, on the other hand, didn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. It had moved closer now, much closer, so he didn't have much problem seeing it. Those eyes gave it away.

"You think I'm not going down without a fight?" Hawkeye asked, trying (and failing) to stand up. "No way."

In response, the beast simply raised its head and roared, beating its chest like an ape. Barton gulped. In a few seconds, it would turn back to him, and then he was screwed. Oh well. There were worse ways to go out than fighting a giant, super strong monster in Canada. There were better ways, too, but he'd rather not dwell on that.

Suddenly, something landed on the Wendigo, crushing it into the ground instantly. Something red and gold.

"Well, that was easy," A metallic voice rang out. "How did you have so much trouble with this thing, Clint?"

"Stark?" Hawkeye asked. "Took you long enough. Help me up, will ya?"

"Sure thing," Iron Man replied, extending his hand to the archer. "Cap? Stark here. I just dealt with our little Wendigo problem."

"Yeah, we get it, you're amazing," Hawkeye complained, grabbing his friend's hand and dragging himself to his feet. "Except for when it comes to handing out the right equipment."

"Oh yeah, that reminds me," Stark said, holding out his other hand. "Here you go."

In his hand sat a pair of infrared goggles, brand new and ready to use. Hawkeye took them reluctantly, strapping them around his head. "Fine. But I'm keeping these ones for the next time you forget."

"Be my guest," Iron Man replied, grabbing Clint's arm. "Now come on, we've got places to go, things to do, and girls to kiss."

Then he took to the air, carrying Barton along with him.

Hawkeye smiled. The Avengers were the best there is at what they do. Unfortunately, what they do did not involve handing out infrared goggles.