Fic: A New Divide. Thor/Steve, Bruce/Tony
Title: A New Divide (3/?)
Author: winteraconite
Rating: PG-13
Prompt: From Anon @ avengerkink: Injured!Steve, Thor/Steve, Tony+Steve With everyone showing concern in their own way because who DOESN'T love, Steve? I say Tony+Steve because Tony obviously likes Steve, but its Thor who ultimately wins.
Summary: Steve is shot in battle, and the injury is far worse than any of them imagined.
Pairings: Thor/Steve, Slight Bruce/Tony, and blink-and-you'll-miss-it Clint/Natasha
A/N: Movie-verse. Takes place after they capture Loki in Stark Towers. Haven't written in ages (like...2 years?) and this is my first time writing in the Marvel Universe so bear with me.
Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel or the Avengers or any of its sexy characters. I just borrow them and make them do my nasty bidding. They like it. A lot. >:)
Part One
Part Two
Thor was the last to arrive, but Fury hadn’t said so much as a single word to any of the Avengers that had gathered. The mood was tense, and static seemed to crackle around each of them. The Asgardian could all but smell it in the air.
“Are you sure this was the weapon that shot Steve?” Bruce said without preamble and Thor didn’t have to look at the alien weapon twice.
“I am.”
Bruce and Nick Fury shared a quick glance before Bruce sighed and set his palms on the table. “This weapon appears to fire a concentrated pulse of radiation in a wavelength we humans haven’t even discovered yet. I’ve never seen anything like it. An ordinary human being would have been killed in an instant, and the super-soldier serum is probably the only reason Steve is still alive.”
He looked to Fury, but the Director’s face was impassive and Bruce continued. “But it has a double effect. The serum saved him, but it’s also killing him.”
“Killing him?” Tony repeated sharply and he sat up straighter in his seat. “What do you mean it’s killing him? The guy’s indestructible.”
“That’s not entirely true. Steve may be genetically superior to most of us in this room, but he’s still human. According to Dr. Erskine’s notes, for the serum to work Steve’s body needed to be saturated with vita-rays to stimulate the immediate growth of his major muscle groups. Normally, the amount of radiation exposure Erskine’s log says they gave him is more than enough to damage human DNA, but that’s where the serum kicks in. It altered his DNA and stabilized its reaction to the radiation.” Despite himself, Bruce shook his head in admiration. “One small miscalculation and Steve would have died seventy years ago.”
“But now because of that thing,” Fury jerked his chin at the alien weapon and finally spoke up from behind Bruce. “His cells are destabilizing. They’re undergoing a process called apoptosis or ‘programmed cell death’. This means the effects of the serum are reversing.”
Tony frowned. “So you’re telling me he’s going to turn back into the little guy he was before the super-soldier serum?”
“We’re telling you he’s going to die.”
Natasha gasped, but Tony didn’t miss a beat. “Not an option. What else ya got?”
“Is there nothing you can do?” Thor asked steadily. His face was stoic, but Bruce could see the storm brewing in his blue eyes and knew the Asgardian was fighting to remain calm. But this relieved Fury because he had been anticipating a much more violent reaction from the Norse Legend. Out of all of them, Thor was the one who understood the situation the least. He didn’t know about the super-soldier serum, Captain America or what happened to him in World War II. Fury had expected his response to be the most violent.
“His organs have already begun to fail,” he stated. “His body is literally shutting itself down. We don’t know how long he has.”
“This is bullshit,” Tony said and Fury sighed inwardly. He expected Tony’s reaction to be right up there with Thor’s. “There must be something we missed, something we haven’t thought of. We can try a different angle. Maybe counter the effects of the radiation with something-”
“Tony, I’ve tried every angle I could think of,” Bruce started to say, but Tony cut him off savagely.
“Well, maybe you’re not trying hard enough!” He yelled and Bruce stared at him in disbelief, stunned into silence. He looked at the man who had worked alongside him for hours, the one man who could keep up with him and not make him feel out of place among those who didn’t understand his work and his mind-the man who had somehow registered in the Hulk’s brain and made his alter-ego leap across buildings to catch him as he fell from outer space.
“Believe me,” Bruce said evenly, looking hard into Tony’s eyes. “I want Steve to live just as badly as you do, but you know the data doesn’t lie.”
Tony glared right back at him and the tension soared. Bruce felt anger stir within him; anger at Tony for daring to say that to him, at Fury who left him to do all the explaining when he didn’t have all the answers, at the aliens who attacked their planet, and at Loki who brought all of this upon them.
Then Clint spoke for the first time and what he said made the anger go out like a light. “We need to make him as comfortable as we can,” the archer said softly.
“Clint...” Natasha turned to him, shocked, and he shrugged.
“What? We do. It’s what I would want if...” He trailed off, unable to finish, and Thor slammed a fist on the table.
“Enough of this! I cannot stand idly by while a good man suffers a fate he does not deserve!”
“And what are you gonna do?” Tony challenged. “Take that hammer of yours and end his misery? Why don’t you leave the thinking to us, eh, big guy?”
“Everybody calm down!” Nick shouted before the situation could get any worse. “None of this is helping! Now I’ve taken the matter up with The Council, and there's something we can do.”
That got their attention and they quieted down immediately, but Fury shook his head and let the ax fall before they could get their hopes up. “But you’re not gonna like it,” he told them. “The Council thinks that Cap is a valuable asset to SHIELD-to the world-and there’s no arguing that. We cannot lose him.”
“So what?” Bruce asked. “They have a miracle cure? What’s not to like?”
“It’s not what you think. We all know the story of how we found Cap. When he crashed that aircraft into the ice almost seventy years ago the cold should have killed him if the impact didn’t. But he was alive; he’d been asleep the whole time. Surviving the shot fired at him with that alien weapon isn’t the first time the super-soldier serum saved him, and the Council thinks it can save him one more time.” He took a deep breath and steeled himself. “They’ve given the order to put him to cryosleep.”
Bruce blinked. “For how long?”
“However long it takes for someone to figure out how to save him.”
“And when were you planning on telling me this?”
Natasha shook her head. “He’s already lost all his friends-his whole life-once. What makes you think he’d want to go through that again?” Her face showed exactly how ridiculous she thought the idea was. “He’d never agree to it!”
“But you weren’t planning on telling him, were you?” Tony said grimly. He stood up and crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at the SHIELD Director. “So what’s the plan? Wheel him into the cryo-chamber while he’s sleeping? Or would drugging him be more convenient? You can’t do this! He’s-Christ, he’s a human being!”
“Weren’t you the one who said that everything special about Steve Rogers came from a bottle?” Fury countered. “The Council believes that any hope of reproducing Dr. Erskine’s serum is locked within Cap’s genetic code. That’s why SHIELD tried so hard to find him; that information is too priceless to let it slip away. Believe it or not, I don’t like it anymore than you do, but unless we can find an alternative this is going to happen!”
He raised his voice, as if volume could make up for the lack of reason. He expected their opposition, knew they would be against the idea from the start. He didn’t expect to empathize with them.
But Steve Rogers brought the Avengers together. He was the one man in the team they had all come to respect-even Tony Stark, despite his lack of demonstration of the fact. If Fury could name one good man left in this world, he would say it was Captain Steve Rogers.
He sighed and hung his head, shaking it. “Now I’m not one to beg; never even asked nicely, never had to." He looked up at them again and it seemed as if he had aged fifty years in just those few seconds. “I’m only gonna say this once so listen up. Gentlemen, please...Find. Me. A. Cure. You have 24 hours.”
Tony strode across the room, fully intent on giving Fury a piece of his mind, but Bruce grabbed his wrist and gave it a firm, almost painful squeeze that reined him in instantly. “Time’s running out,” Bruce said sternly and willed Tony to calm down. “Think of Steve,” he added and Tony visibly relaxed, though he was still glaring daggers at the SHIELD Director.
Behind them Clint looked around and frowned. “Where’s Thor?”
*
Steve’s face was ghostly pale and he was scarcely breathing. His closed eyes and cheeks were sunken. He looked almost nothing like the man who had fought by Thor’s side only hours ago. Someone had replaced his suit with a plain white hospital gown and the man’s tattered stars and stripes uniform was draped over the back of a chair beside his bed like a shroud of Captain America’s former self.
He is dying.
The thought came unbidden into Thor’s mind, and anger raged through the Asgardian. No! He thought angrily. He is young and strong. He must live!
Gently, he reached out and stroked Steve’s brow.
Steve stirred and opened his eyes slowly. “Who...?” A large hand suddenly clamped over his mouth and immediately tore him from his lethargy. He jerked and struggled weakly for a moment before he realized that it was Thor.
“Hush,” the Asgardian ordered, meeting Steve’s gaze. “Do not make a sound.”
Strong hands lifted Steve up to a sitting position, but his head protested the movement and he groaned. He was too confused to argue even when Thor removed the hand he had over his mouth. He had only enough time to register that he had been moved from the science facility to his quarters before Thor ripped his arms and ankles free from their restraints and hauled him out of bed.
“I’ve no time to explain, but you must trust me,” Thor said urgently. “We must leave this place. Can you walk?”
“What are you...” Steve grimaced from the pain even as his mind struggled to keep up with Thor. His body protested every movement he made and he felt even weaker than he had when he first woke up.
Thor carelessly tore the tubes and needles from Steve’s body and easily lifted him in his arms, but the smaller man cried out, his face contorting with pain. “Put me down!”
“I cannot,” Thor said resolutely. “We must go.” Ignoring Steve’s pleas, he quickly exited Steve’s quarters, stepping over the unconscious bodies of the guards who had been stationed outside his door.
In his arms, Steve clutched at the Asgardian weakly and struggled to stay awake. All he could see was glass, metal, and fluorescent lights as Thor quickly navigated the halls of the Helicarrier. It made him dizzier and he couldn’t tell where he was. He had to press his face against Thor’s chest to fight the pain and nausea that threatened to overwhelm him.
“What’s going on? Where are we going?” He asked in a strained voice. When Thor ignored him, Steve fought against the pain and pushed against the Asgardian’s chest with all his might. Even at his best Steve’s strength was nowhere near Thor’s, but his actions took Thor by surprise and the Asgardian stumbled and nearly dropped him.
“Have you lost your mind?!” Thor yelled at him, stopping in his tracks and glaring down at Steve angrily.
Steve returned the fire in his eyes with full force and struggled against Thor’s grasp, forcing the Asgardian to set him back down on his feet even if he couldn’t stand on his own, even if white lights danced before his eyes and the world spun around him. He was furious. He had all these questions; hell, he had nothing but questions. Why wasn’t anyone answering him?
He lost his balance and fell back against the wall, using it as support to keep him upright and yelling at Thor to leave him alone when the Asgardian reached for him. He couldn’t take this anymore-the dread, the uncertainty, the weakness.
“Enough!” He shouted and his hand shot out and pushed at Thor’s breastplate when the Asgardian tried to come closer. He knew he didn’t have the strength to really keep him away if Thor persisted, but he hoped his friend respected him enough to grant him this much. Thor stood as still as a statue. He towered over Steve but otherwise made no move so Steve slid his hand from Thor’s breastplate to his arm.
“Please...” he said softly, looking up at Thor. “What aren’t you telling me?”
The light in Thor’s eyes changed and he stepped back. Steve instantly recognized the look on his face. He had seen it when they first captured Loki and brought the Jotun back with them to the Helicarrier, when Thor had finally grown tired of glaring and glowering at his brother and had instead looked at him with sorrow and despair. The hopelessness in his eyes had been unmistakable. And he was looking at Steve that way now.
“There is much about the situation I do not understand,” Thor said slowly. “Now is not the time to talk of this matter.”
“Then when is?” Steve cried. He let go of Thor’s arm and wished he had the energy to walk away, to walk back to his bed, to walk back to his childhood home in Brooklyn, which wasn’t there anymore. He sagged against the wall and Thor caught him around his waist. The Asgardian gently lowered Steve to the ground and stayed crouched beside him.
“You do not understand. You must trust me,” Thor implored, repeating his words earlier.
Steve chuckled mirthlessly and looked away. “I do trust you, Thor. I trust you with my life,” he said earnestly. “But I understand more than you think. I...” Steve closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall. “I know I’m dying.”
The words hit them both like a ton of bricks and Thor took a deep shuddering breath. “You know not what you say,” he said, but Steve shook his head.
“Damn it, Thor, don’t,” he said in frustration. “Just don’t, all right?”
He knew in his heart that it was true. It explained the pain, the weakness, how it was getting harder and harder to wake up and stay awake, and how he didn’t seem to be getting any better. He wasn’t going to get better; he was going to die.
He wondered if his friends from the war, all of them dead now, felt this way as they waited for the inevitable. He hated to think of any of them had been in this kind of pain, had felt this kind of fear.
“I should have died all those years ago,” he whispered, opening his eyes and staring at the ceiling. A single tear fell from the corner of his eye and slid down his cheek.
Thor was staring at him silently and Steve turned his head to look at him. His blue eyes, though over-bright with unshed tears, were calm and steady-the exact opposite of Thor’s pained gaze. “Where are you taking me?”
“I do not know,” Thor said honestly. He hadn’t thought it through. He just knew he needed to get Steve out of here before Fury put the Council’s plan into motion, but how could he make Steve understand that when he didn’t understand it himself?
Steve nodded. “Then I’ve got nowhere to go,” he said softly, as if he was speaking to himself and not to Thor. Before the Asgardian could respond Steve reached out and took hold of Thor’s shoulder, using it and the wall as leverage. “Help me back to my room,” he said tiredly, struggling to get up. “And if you don’t mind, I want to be alone.”
Thor’s heart clenched painfully in his chest, but he pulled Steve to his feet without a word and held him at arm’s length by his shoulders. He regarded the young man with admiration and respect, but his eyes were sad. “You truly are the bravest of your kind,” he said almost reverently. One hand moved from Steve’s shoulder to his cheek, wiping the tear that escaped the dam in Steve’s eyes. Then his hand continued down Steve’s neck, gliding gently over the man’s skin.
“Forgive me,” the Asgardian whispered softly and Steve frowned.
Thor felt the brisk tapping of Steve’s pulse under his fingers and he pressed down on it firmly. Almost immediately Steve’s eyelids fluttered and he let out a soft sigh. His eyes closed and his whole body went limp against Thor who caught him easily and held him close.
It was frightening how much of the man’s vitality was already gone, and devastating how easily Steve accepted what was happening to him.
“There are things far worse than death, my friend,” he said sadly. Then he reached down and lifted Steve’s legs, cradling the man in his arms. He turned and looked down the long, dark corridor in front of him. Where will we go? He asked himself. Could he go to Jane? Coulson had shown him where she was. She was a woman of science and a good friend; she might be able to help.
But Dr. Selvig probably knew more than she did. He was her mentor and he was on the Helicarrier, too! But he was in the medical bay recuperating after his ordeal with Loki. Would he able to help in his state?
Before Thor could decide he saw something move in the periphery of his vision, and he stiffened and scowled. “How long have you been standing there?” he asked sharply and Natasha stepped out from the shadows and into the light.
“Long enough,” she answered, moving to stand in front of him and block his way. Her eyes darted from Thor’s face to Steve and then back again. “Don’t do this, Thor. You heard the Director; SHIELD needs him. He’s the only lead we’ve got on the super soldier serum.”
“And what about Steve?” Thor challenged. “Who is to see to his needs?”
“Tony and Bruce are working on a cure-”
“And if they fail? What becomes of the Captain?”
Natasha frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. “They’ll put him into cryosleep.”
“What does that mean?!” The Asgardian raged. It took all of his will power to stay where he was. He wanted to fly past her and escape with Steve, but he needed to understand just what these confounding humans had in mind for his friend.
“It means he’ll be in a state of suspended animation.” Clint suddenly appeared and stepped up beside Natasha. Now Thor was outnumbered. “He’ll stay alive, but only just. He’ll sleep for years, but he won’t age a day.”
“And you would subject him to this?”
“He will wake up again,” Clint said emphatically. “We just don’t know when.”
“He will wake to a world he does not know. And what if they never find a cure?” Thor argued and turned to Natasha. “You said so yourself. He will never allow it.”
She stared at him blankly for a moment and then quick as lightning drew her pistol and aimed it at his head.
No...she aimed it at Steve’s.
“Nat!” Clint barked and Thor felt an all-consuming rage burn through him.
“You dare threaten your Captain?!” He tightened his hold on Steve and prepared to jump out of the way, but there was nowhere to go. Natasha had a clear shot and the click of the pistol’s safety mechanism being disengaged stopped Thor from making any sudden moves. Thor then expected Clint to draw his own weapon, but the archer’s gaze only went back and forth between the two and he didn’t try to interfere.
“I can put two in his head before you can blink,” Natasha said simply. It wasn’t a threat, but a fact. Thor glared at her, his eyes promising pain and death if she pulled that trigger. Then to his and Clint’s surprise, she withdrew her pistol. “You can’t fight your way out of here and protect him at the same time,” she told him, and what had transpired in the last few seconds made Thor realize she was right. “You’ll have to get through a hundred trained agents and it will only take one misstep--one stray bullet-- and I guarantee you Cap will be dead before you reach the hangar.”
“Then help me,” Thor implored and Natasha shook her head.
“Not like this,” she said and walked quickly to where they stood. Thor stepped back immediately, but Natasha was fast and before he could get far enough she was pushing Steve’s blond hair back from his forehead.
Thor looked down and saw that Steve’s face was now bathed in sweat, and his breathing was laboured and shallow. Clint strode over and took one of Steve’s arms, examining the tiny red pinpricks on his skin where the needles had been.
“We need to get him hooked back up into those IV lines,” he said and Natasha nodded.
“Thor, we need to get him back to his room,” she told him.
“No!” Thor shouted, moving away from the two agents. “If you two are not with me then you are against me!”
“This isn’t about you!” Natasha shouted angrily. “Think about what you’re doing! You’re putting his life in danger and causing him a lot of pain!”
Thor stared at her, surprised at her uncharacteristic display of emotion. “I do not know what else to do,” Thor admitted quietly. “But I cannot let SHIELD have him. It is not what the Captain would want. You know this to be true.” He looked her in the eye then and she saw the turmoil in his gaze. “I say again, help me.”
Natasha sighed and glared at the Asgardian. “If you want my help you’ll have to trust me, and I’m telling you to put Cap back in his quarters.” Thor bristled, but Clint spoke up before he could.
“Those things on him were keeping him alive and comfortable, buddy,” the archer said. Then he reached out and took hold of Steve. “Relax,” he said when Thor started to protest. “We’re with you, all right?”
Thor scowled but carefully handed Steve over. Clint nodded to Thor and spared Natasha a brief worried glance before making his way back to Steve’s quarters. Natasha watched him leave before turning back to Thor.
“I am listening,” the Asgardian said impatiently, rounding on her.
Natasha took a deep breath and regarded him coolly. “He was shot with an alien weapon,” she reminded him. “Bruce and Tony are two of the smartest people I know, but this is way out of their league and they don’t have enough time. Cap doesn’t have enough time. Right now all we’ve got are questions none of us can answer.”
“What do you suggest we do?”
Natasha swallowed hard and her face seemed to darken. She lowered her voice. “We need to talk to someone who knows these weapons,” she said with finality, staring hard into his eyes.
Thor looked back at her uncertainly before realization hit him and he swore.
Loki.
They had to talk to Loki.
TBC.
Continue reading... Part Four.
Author: winteraconite
Rating: PG-13
Prompt: From Anon @ avengerkink: Injured!Steve, Thor/Steve, Tony+Steve With everyone showing concern in their own way because who DOESN'T love, Steve? I say Tony+Steve because Tony obviously likes Steve, but its Thor who ultimately wins.
Summary: Steve is shot in battle, and the injury is far worse than any of them imagined.
Pairings: Thor/Steve, Slight Bruce/Tony, and blink-and-you'll-miss-it Clint/Natasha
A/N: Movie-verse. Takes place after they capture Loki in Stark Towers. Haven't written in ages (like...2 years?) and this is my first time writing in the Marvel Universe so bear with me.
Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel or the Avengers or any of its sexy characters. I just borrow them and make them do my nasty bidding. They like it. A lot. >:)
Part One
Part Two
Thor was the last to arrive, but Fury hadn’t said so much as a single word to any of the Avengers that had gathered. The mood was tense, and static seemed to crackle around each of them. The Asgardian could all but smell it in the air.
“Are you sure this was the weapon that shot Steve?” Bruce said without preamble and Thor didn’t have to look at the alien weapon twice.
“I am.”
Bruce and Nick Fury shared a quick glance before Bruce sighed and set his palms on the table. “This weapon appears to fire a concentrated pulse of radiation in a wavelength we humans haven’t even discovered yet. I’ve never seen anything like it. An ordinary human being would have been killed in an instant, and the super-soldier serum is probably the only reason Steve is still alive.”
He looked to Fury, but the Director’s face was impassive and Bruce continued. “But it has a double effect. The serum saved him, but it’s also killing him.”
“Killing him?” Tony repeated sharply and he sat up straighter in his seat. “What do you mean it’s killing him? The guy’s indestructible.”
“That’s not entirely true. Steve may be genetically superior to most of us in this room, but he’s still human. According to Dr. Erskine’s notes, for the serum to work Steve’s body needed to be saturated with vita-rays to stimulate the immediate growth of his major muscle groups. Normally, the amount of radiation exposure Erskine’s log says they gave him is more than enough to damage human DNA, but that’s where the serum kicks in. It altered his DNA and stabilized its reaction to the radiation.” Despite himself, Bruce shook his head in admiration. “One small miscalculation and Steve would have died seventy years ago.”
“But now because of that thing,” Fury jerked his chin at the alien weapon and finally spoke up from behind Bruce. “His cells are destabilizing. They’re undergoing a process called apoptosis or ‘programmed cell death’. This means the effects of the serum are reversing.”
Tony frowned. “So you’re telling me he’s going to turn back into the little guy he was before the super-soldier serum?”
“We’re telling you he’s going to die.”
Natasha gasped, but Tony didn’t miss a beat. “Not an option. What else ya got?”
“Is there nothing you can do?” Thor asked steadily. His face was stoic, but Bruce could see the storm brewing in his blue eyes and knew the Asgardian was fighting to remain calm. But this relieved Fury because he had been anticipating a much more violent reaction from the Norse Legend. Out of all of them, Thor was the one who understood the situation the least. He didn’t know about the super-soldier serum, Captain America or what happened to him in World War II. Fury had expected his response to be the most violent.
“His organs have already begun to fail,” he stated. “His body is literally shutting itself down. We don’t know how long he has.”
“This is bullshit,” Tony said and Fury sighed inwardly. He expected Tony’s reaction to be right up there with Thor’s. “There must be something we missed, something we haven’t thought of. We can try a different angle. Maybe counter the effects of the radiation with something-”
“Tony, I’ve tried every angle I could think of,” Bruce started to say, but Tony cut him off savagely.
“Well, maybe you’re not trying hard enough!” He yelled and Bruce stared at him in disbelief, stunned into silence. He looked at the man who had worked alongside him for hours, the one man who could keep up with him and not make him feel out of place among those who didn’t understand his work and his mind-the man who had somehow registered in the Hulk’s brain and made his alter-ego leap across buildings to catch him as he fell from outer space.
“Believe me,” Bruce said evenly, looking hard into Tony’s eyes. “I want Steve to live just as badly as you do, but you know the data doesn’t lie.”
Tony glared right back at him and the tension soared. Bruce felt anger stir within him; anger at Tony for daring to say that to him, at Fury who left him to do all the explaining when he didn’t have all the answers, at the aliens who attacked their planet, and at Loki who brought all of this upon them.
Then Clint spoke for the first time and what he said made the anger go out like a light. “We need to make him as comfortable as we can,” the archer said softly.
“Clint...” Natasha turned to him, shocked, and he shrugged.
“What? We do. It’s what I would want if...” He trailed off, unable to finish, and Thor slammed a fist on the table.
“Enough of this! I cannot stand idly by while a good man suffers a fate he does not deserve!”
“And what are you gonna do?” Tony challenged. “Take that hammer of yours and end his misery? Why don’t you leave the thinking to us, eh, big guy?”
“Everybody calm down!” Nick shouted before the situation could get any worse. “None of this is helping! Now I’ve taken the matter up with The Council, and there's something we can do.”
That got their attention and they quieted down immediately, but Fury shook his head and let the ax fall before they could get their hopes up. “But you’re not gonna like it,” he told them. “The Council thinks that Cap is a valuable asset to SHIELD-to the world-and there’s no arguing that. We cannot lose him.”
“So what?” Bruce asked. “They have a miracle cure? What’s not to like?”
“It’s not what you think. We all know the story of how we found Cap. When he crashed that aircraft into the ice almost seventy years ago the cold should have killed him if the impact didn’t. But he was alive; he’d been asleep the whole time. Surviving the shot fired at him with that alien weapon isn’t the first time the super-soldier serum saved him, and the Council thinks it can save him one more time.” He took a deep breath and steeled himself. “They’ve given the order to put him to cryosleep.”
Bruce blinked. “For how long?”
“However long it takes for someone to figure out how to save him.”
“And when were you planning on telling me this?”
Natasha shook her head. “He’s already lost all his friends-his whole life-once. What makes you think he’d want to go through that again?” Her face showed exactly how ridiculous she thought the idea was. “He’d never agree to it!”
“But you weren’t planning on telling him, were you?” Tony said grimly. He stood up and crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at the SHIELD Director. “So what’s the plan? Wheel him into the cryo-chamber while he’s sleeping? Or would drugging him be more convenient? You can’t do this! He’s-Christ, he’s a human being!”
“Weren’t you the one who said that everything special about Steve Rogers came from a bottle?” Fury countered. “The Council believes that any hope of reproducing Dr. Erskine’s serum is locked within Cap’s genetic code. That’s why SHIELD tried so hard to find him; that information is too priceless to let it slip away. Believe it or not, I don’t like it anymore than you do, but unless we can find an alternative this is going to happen!”
He raised his voice, as if volume could make up for the lack of reason. He expected their opposition, knew they would be against the idea from the start. He didn’t expect to empathize with them.
But Steve Rogers brought the Avengers together. He was the one man in the team they had all come to respect-even Tony Stark, despite his lack of demonstration of the fact. If Fury could name one good man left in this world, he would say it was Captain Steve Rogers.
He sighed and hung his head, shaking it. “Now I’m not one to beg; never even asked nicely, never had to." He looked up at them again and it seemed as if he had aged fifty years in just those few seconds. “I’m only gonna say this once so listen up. Gentlemen, please...Find. Me. A. Cure. You have 24 hours.”
Tony strode across the room, fully intent on giving Fury a piece of his mind, but Bruce grabbed his wrist and gave it a firm, almost painful squeeze that reined him in instantly. “Time’s running out,” Bruce said sternly and willed Tony to calm down. “Think of Steve,” he added and Tony visibly relaxed, though he was still glaring daggers at the SHIELD Director.
Behind them Clint looked around and frowned. “Where’s Thor?”
*
Steve’s face was ghostly pale and he was scarcely breathing. His closed eyes and cheeks were sunken. He looked almost nothing like the man who had fought by Thor’s side only hours ago. Someone had replaced his suit with a plain white hospital gown and the man’s tattered stars and stripes uniform was draped over the back of a chair beside his bed like a shroud of Captain America’s former self.
He is dying.
The thought came unbidden into Thor’s mind, and anger raged through the Asgardian. No! He thought angrily. He is young and strong. He must live!
Gently, he reached out and stroked Steve’s brow.
Steve stirred and opened his eyes slowly. “Who...?” A large hand suddenly clamped over his mouth and immediately tore him from his lethargy. He jerked and struggled weakly for a moment before he realized that it was Thor.
“Hush,” the Asgardian ordered, meeting Steve’s gaze. “Do not make a sound.”
Strong hands lifted Steve up to a sitting position, but his head protested the movement and he groaned. He was too confused to argue even when Thor removed the hand he had over his mouth. He had only enough time to register that he had been moved from the science facility to his quarters before Thor ripped his arms and ankles free from their restraints and hauled him out of bed.
“I’ve no time to explain, but you must trust me,” Thor said urgently. “We must leave this place. Can you walk?”
“What are you...” Steve grimaced from the pain even as his mind struggled to keep up with Thor. His body protested every movement he made and he felt even weaker than he had when he first woke up.
Thor carelessly tore the tubes and needles from Steve’s body and easily lifted him in his arms, but the smaller man cried out, his face contorting with pain. “Put me down!”
“I cannot,” Thor said resolutely. “We must go.” Ignoring Steve’s pleas, he quickly exited Steve’s quarters, stepping over the unconscious bodies of the guards who had been stationed outside his door.
In his arms, Steve clutched at the Asgardian weakly and struggled to stay awake. All he could see was glass, metal, and fluorescent lights as Thor quickly navigated the halls of the Helicarrier. It made him dizzier and he couldn’t tell where he was. He had to press his face against Thor’s chest to fight the pain and nausea that threatened to overwhelm him.
“What’s going on? Where are we going?” He asked in a strained voice. When Thor ignored him, Steve fought against the pain and pushed against the Asgardian’s chest with all his might. Even at his best Steve’s strength was nowhere near Thor’s, but his actions took Thor by surprise and the Asgardian stumbled and nearly dropped him.
“Have you lost your mind?!” Thor yelled at him, stopping in his tracks and glaring down at Steve angrily.
Steve returned the fire in his eyes with full force and struggled against Thor’s grasp, forcing the Asgardian to set him back down on his feet even if he couldn’t stand on his own, even if white lights danced before his eyes and the world spun around him. He was furious. He had all these questions; hell, he had nothing but questions. Why wasn’t anyone answering him?
He lost his balance and fell back against the wall, using it as support to keep him upright and yelling at Thor to leave him alone when the Asgardian reached for him. He couldn’t take this anymore-the dread, the uncertainty, the weakness.
“Enough!” He shouted and his hand shot out and pushed at Thor’s breastplate when the Asgardian tried to come closer. He knew he didn’t have the strength to really keep him away if Thor persisted, but he hoped his friend respected him enough to grant him this much. Thor stood as still as a statue. He towered over Steve but otherwise made no move so Steve slid his hand from Thor’s breastplate to his arm.
“Please...” he said softly, looking up at Thor. “What aren’t you telling me?”
The light in Thor’s eyes changed and he stepped back. Steve instantly recognized the look on his face. He had seen it when they first captured Loki and brought the Jotun back with them to the Helicarrier, when Thor had finally grown tired of glaring and glowering at his brother and had instead looked at him with sorrow and despair. The hopelessness in his eyes had been unmistakable. And he was looking at Steve that way now.
“There is much about the situation I do not understand,” Thor said slowly. “Now is not the time to talk of this matter.”
“Then when is?” Steve cried. He let go of Thor’s arm and wished he had the energy to walk away, to walk back to his bed, to walk back to his childhood home in Brooklyn, which wasn’t there anymore. He sagged against the wall and Thor caught him around his waist. The Asgardian gently lowered Steve to the ground and stayed crouched beside him.
“You do not understand. You must trust me,” Thor implored, repeating his words earlier.
Steve chuckled mirthlessly and looked away. “I do trust you, Thor. I trust you with my life,” he said earnestly. “But I understand more than you think. I...” Steve closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall. “I know I’m dying.”
The words hit them both like a ton of bricks and Thor took a deep shuddering breath. “You know not what you say,” he said, but Steve shook his head.
“Damn it, Thor, don’t,” he said in frustration. “Just don’t, all right?”
He knew in his heart that it was true. It explained the pain, the weakness, how it was getting harder and harder to wake up and stay awake, and how he didn’t seem to be getting any better. He wasn’t going to get better; he was going to die.
He wondered if his friends from the war, all of them dead now, felt this way as they waited for the inevitable. He hated to think of any of them had been in this kind of pain, had felt this kind of fear.
“I should have died all those years ago,” he whispered, opening his eyes and staring at the ceiling. A single tear fell from the corner of his eye and slid down his cheek.
Thor was staring at him silently and Steve turned his head to look at him. His blue eyes, though over-bright with unshed tears, were calm and steady-the exact opposite of Thor’s pained gaze. “Where are you taking me?”
“I do not know,” Thor said honestly. He hadn’t thought it through. He just knew he needed to get Steve out of here before Fury put the Council’s plan into motion, but how could he make Steve understand that when he didn’t understand it himself?
Steve nodded. “Then I’ve got nowhere to go,” he said softly, as if he was speaking to himself and not to Thor. Before the Asgardian could respond Steve reached out and took hold of Thor’s shoulder, using it and the wall as leverage. “Help me back to my room,” he said tiredly, struggling to get up. “And if you don’t mind, I want to be alone.”
Thor’s heart clenched painfully in his chest, but he pulled Steve to his feet without a word and held him at arm’s length by his shoulders. He regarded the young man with admiration and respect, but his eyes were sad. “You truly are the bravest of your kind,” he said almost reverently. One hand moved from Steve’s shoulder to his cheek, wiping the tear that escaped the dam in Steve’s eyes. Then his hand continued down Steve’s neck, gliding gently over the man’s skin.
“Forgive me,” the Asgardian whispered softly and Steve frowned.
Thor felt the brisk tapping of Steve’s pulse under his fingers and he pressed down on it firmly. Almost immediately Steve’s eyelids fluttered and he let out a soft sigh. His eyes closed and his whole body went limp against Thor who caught him easily and held him close.
It was frightening how much of the man’s vitality was already gone, and devastating how easily Steve accepted what was happening to him.
“There are things far worse than death, my friend,” he said sadly. Then he reached down and lifted Steve’s legs, cradling the man in his arms. He turned and looked down the long, dark corridor in front of him. Where will we go? He asked himself. Could he go to Jane? Coulson had shown him where she was. She was a woman of science and a good friend; she might be able to help.
But Dr. Selvig probably knew more than she did. He was her mentor and he was on the Helicarrier, too! But he was in the medical bay recuperating after his ordeal with Loki. Would he able to help in his state?
Before Thor could decide he saw something move in the periphery of his vision, and he stiffened and scowled. “How long have you been standing there?” he asked sharply and Natasha stepped out from the shadows and into the light.
“Long enough,” she answered, moving to stand in front of him and block his way. Her eyes darted from Thor’s face to Steve and then back again. “Don’t do this, Thor. You heard the Director; SHIELD needs him. He’s the only lead we’ve got on the super soldier serum.”
“And what about Steve?” Thor challenged. “Who is to see to his needs?”
“Tony and Bruce are working on a cure-”
“And if they fail? What becomes of the Captain?”
Natasha frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. “They’ll put him into cryosleep.”
“What does that mean?!” The Asgardian raged. It took all of his will power to stay where he was. He wanted to fly past her and escape with Steve, but he needed to understand just what these confounding humans had in mind for his friend.
“It means he’ll be in a state of suspended animation.” Clint suddenly appeared and stepped up beside Natasha. Now Thor was outnumbered. “He’ll stay alive, but only just. He’ll sleep for years, but he won’t age a day.”
“And you would subject him to this?”
“He will wake up again,” Clint said emphatically. “We just don’t know when.”
“He will wake to a world he does not know. And what if they never find a cure?” Thor argued and turned to Natasha. “You said so yourself. He will never allow it.”
She stared at him blankly for a moment and then quick as lightning drew her pistol and aimed it at his head.
No...she aimed it at Steve’s.
“Nat!” Clint barked and Thor felt an all-consuming rage burn through him.
“You dare threaten your Captain?!” He tightened his hold on Steve and prepared to jump out of the way, but there was nowhere to go. Natasha had a clear shot and the click of the pistol’s safety mechanism being disengaged stopped Thor from making any sudden moves. Thor then expected Clint to draw his own weapon, but the archer’s gaze only went back and forth between the two and he didn’t try to interfere.
“I can put two in his head before you can blink,” Natasha said simply. It wasn’t a threat, but a fact. Thor glared at her, his eyes promising pain and death if she pulled that trigger. Then to his and Clint’s surprise, she withdrew her pistol. “You can’t fight your way out of here and protect him at the same time,” she told him, and what had transpired in the last few seconds made Thor realize she was right. “You’ll have to get through a hundred trained agents and it will only take one misstep--one stray bullet-- and I guarantee you Cap will be dead before you reach the hangar.”
“Then help me,” Thor implored and Natasha shook her head.
“Not like this,” she said and walked quickly to where they stood. Thor stepped back immediately, but Natasha was fast and before he could get far enough she was pushing Steve’s blond hair back from his forehead.
Thor looked down and saw that Steve’s face was now bathed in sweat, and his breathing was laboured and shallow. Clint strode over and took one of Steve’s arms, examining the tiny red pinpricks on his skin where the needles had been.
“We need to get him hooked back up into those IV lines,” he said and Natasha nodded.
“Thor, we need to get him back to his room,” she told him.
“No!” Thor shouted, moving away from the two agents. “If you two are not with me then you are against me!”
“This isn’t about you!” Natasha shouted angrily. “Think about what you’re doing! You’re putting his life in danger and causing him a lot of pain!”
Thor stared at her, surprised at her uncharacteristic display of emotion. “I do not know what else to do,” Thor admitted quietly. “But I cannot let SHIELD have him. It is not what the Captain would want. You know this to be true.” He looked her in the eye then and she saw the turmoil in his gaze. “I say again, help me.”
Natasha sighed and glared at the Asgardian. “If you want my help you’ll have to trust me, and I’m telling you to put Cap back in his quarters.” Thor bristled, but Clint spoke up before he could.
“Those things on him were keeping him alive and comfortable, buddy,” the archer said. Then he reached out and took hold of Steve. “Relax,” he said when Thor started to protest. “We’re with you, all right?”
Thor scowled but carefully handed Steve over. Clint nodded to Thor and spared Natasha a brief worried glance before making his way back to Steve’s quarters. Natasha watched him leave before turning back to Thor.
“I am listening,” the Asgardian said impatiently, rounding on her.
Natasha took a deep breath and regarded him coolly. “He was shot with an alien weapon,” she reminded him. “Bruce and Tony are two of the smartest people I know, but this is way out of their league and they don’t have enough time. Cap doesn’t have enough time. Right now all we’ve got are questions none of us can answer.”
“What do you suggest we do?”
Natasha swallowed hard and her face seemed to darken. She lowered her voice. “We need to talk to someone who knows these weapons,” she said with finality, staring hard into his eyes.
Thor looked back at her uncertainly before realization hit him and he swore.
Loki.
They had to talk to Loki.
TBC.
Continue reading... Part Four.