A Friendship Begins
The stillness of the ocean floor is broken as unknown sea creatures flee from a single beam of light cutting through the darkness. The light is coming from a lone submarine traveling the lonely waters, exploring the depths of the ocean. As the light sweeps from side to side, it illuminates strange fish and exotic plant life going about their lives, normally unseen by humans.
"See anything yet?" asks the pilot.
"Just a whole lot of fish and water, same as everytime we go down here." snorts the co-pilot.
"Just keep an eye our for any signs of contamination or anything unusual. Mr. Stark wants us to make sure his company isn't damaging the environment."
No sooner have the words left the pilots mouth does the light land on something in the ice that neither of the men ever expected to discover on their day's journey.
"Whoa. Is that what I think it is?" whispered the co-pilot.
"I'm glad you're seeing it too. At least if I'm going crazy I'm not going crazy alone." remarks the pilot. "We gotta call Mr. Stark. Now!"
The next day the once quiet ocean is buzzing with submarines and drones cutting through the ice all to release one small section of the iceberg. Gently and carefully the drones pull out a small square of ice as it slowly raises it into the launch bay doors of a nearby submarine. Onboard the submarine is just as busy as the ocean surrounding it as the block of ice is rolled into the medical bay. Scientists and doctors are running around attending beeping machines and alarms all surrounding the block of ice. Slowly, the ice begins to melt under the huge heat lamps positioned above the frozen block. As the water drains on the floor the prize the ice was holding begins to unfold. Slowly the colors of America begin to show through, battered and worn, but still vibrant and proud. Here lies the man who was the first Super Soldier and a WWII hero: Captain America.
"What's our status?" Tony Stark asks, watching from behind the glass window as the scientists and doctors work around the frozen hero.
"We are almost finished melting the ice," replies Dr. Petersen as he jots down a few notes on his file. "It is quite an amazing discovery. The man who the whole world knows to have made the ultimate sacrifice to save his country and who was lost to us for decades is found on a random oceanic expedition to study the effects of Stark Industries impact on the ocean. The one and only Captain America. It's simply remarkable."
"Stark Industries prides itself on running a successful business without harming our planet," Stark replies with the charisma of a man whose been through countless media conferences. "I was excited to fund this expedition, but I never dreamed we would end up making history by the end of it."
The hustle and chaos inside the lab suddenly halts as everyone stares at a monitor that suddenly lights up and makes a beep. One beep, and then a few seconds later, it beeps again. Slow, but steady it begins to beep and the pace slowly increases.
"What's going on in there?" Stark asks as he focuses on the monitor. "What are they all looking at?"
Suddenly, a scientist in the laboratory waves his hand to signal the on-lookers to come into the lab. Stark and Dr. Petersen quickly throw on their lab coats and surgical masks that everyone is wearing and enter the awe-struck laboratory.
"What is it?" asks Dr. Petersen. "What have you found?"
"The heart rate monitor, Dr. Petersen," the scientist replies in a whisper, "It's reading a heart beat."
"What? That's impossible," snorts Stark. "There's no way! There's got to be some kind of malfunction with the monitor."
"Dr. Petersen," another doctor gasps as she jumps away from the table holding the body of Captain America. "I think,... I think he's breathing!"
Everyone turns their attention from the heart rate monitor, which is still beeping, to the frozen hero on the table. As they watch they see the slow and shallow rise and fall of the star that is emblazoned on the chest of this American hero. Immediately, Dr. Petersen's medical instincts kick into gear and he begins to do what he does best as he gives orders to the medical staff in the room.
"I need an IV placed - that's priority. I want oxygen administered by mask now. Get a heart, respiratory rate and a blood pressure. We need to get him warmed up quickly. Turn up those lamps as high as they will go."
Tony stands by watching in amazement as Dr. Petersen's skilled hands work the life saving procedures he had performed a hundred times before. The medical staff carry out his orders and repeat readings and vitals to him as they change. They continue to try to warm up Captain America with heat lamps and blankets.
The medical staff continues to monitor Captain America as his vitals continue to rise when, suddenly he gasps in air as though he had just emerged from the ocean. Out of instinct, he jumps up off of the table, knocking the nurses and doctors out of his way as he runs for the door. Through the shock and chaos, one of the doctors hits the alarm to signal the crew that there was an emergency. Just as quickly as the button was hit, a security crew begins to flood the doorway. Captain America doesn't even flinch and takes out the first one with a quick right hook as he pulls his iconic shield off of his back. With a strong flick of his arm the shield is sent flying into an unlucky soldier as he begins to advance toward the defensive Captain. The shield lets out it's iconic ring as it hits its target, sending him flying to the ground, and returns smoothly to the Captain's hand. He continues to take out the security team swiftly and efficiently as though he had been up and fighting yesterday. His smooth and calculated movements manage to evade the onslaught of attacks aimed at him by the dozen or so soldiers surrounding him. Each punch and and kick that Captain America throws is deliberate and purposeful. He makes it through the door and runs down the corridor, leaving a path of battered and bruised soldiers in his wake.
"Hm, pretty good for an old guy." Stark remarks as he presses a button on his seemingly ordinary watch. "JARVIS, I'm going to need my party clothes."
"They're on their way, sir, " the artificial intelligence known as JARVIS replies through the watch. "Do try not to break anything sir."
"Who, me?" Tony asks with a mischievous tone. "JARVIS, you know that I work with the utmost subtlety and restraint. Besides, this guy is an antique. Didn't even have cell phones, let alone Iron Man armor, when he was alive. This will be over before it even starts."
"Of course, sir" JARVIS replies with as much sarcasm as an artificial intelligence can.
As fast as the button was pushed, pieces of armor begin to fly toward and surround Stark's body until the Iron-Clad Avenger is battle ready. As the last piece of armor locks into place he rockets down the corridor after the stray Captain America. He touches his comm link on his helmet and issues a ship wide announcement.
"Attention crew, Captain America is loose on the ship. He is confused and may be injured. Contain him with as little force as possible. Set your rifles on stun and use them as a last resort.
Iron Man finally catches up to the raging Red, White, and Blue Avenger as he is engaging a group of soldiers trying to keep him from making it to the launch bay.
"Geez, this guy is going to get himself killed," Ironman sighs to himself. "He has no idea what he's facing with our specialized training and tech advancements we've discovered since his lifetime in the dark ages."
"Don't hurt him!" Iron Man shouts as rifle fire begins down below.
"Don't hurt HIM?" a soldier exclaims as he narrowly dodges a shield to his face. "Are you watching the same fight here Iron Man? Tell HIM not to hurt US!"
As Captain America is making his way through the horde of soldiers to his goal of the launch bay and escape, Iron Man drops in right behind him and manages to lock the American hero's arms behind his back.
"Cap! You're not in any danger here. We're not your enemy. You're safe!" Iron Man pleads as he struggles to keep his arms behind him. "We need to get you back to the medical bay to make sure you're alright."
Without saying a word, Captain America shifts his weight and throws the Iron Avenger over his back and into a group of soldiers standing by, freeing his arms, and runs through the launch bay doors. On his way through he hits the control to close the doors as rifle fire follows him in.
"Well that was embarrassing" Tony remarks no on in particular as he struggles to his feet.
"I believe that you just got served, sir." JARVIS remarks over his helmet comm.
"Thank you for your commentary, JARVIS. It was a lucky move," he sighs as he rushes into the launch bay as the doors begin to close. "Keep those doors open, JARVIS!"
"Sorry Sir, but it appears that the controls have been damaged from rifle blasts. There is no way for me to keep the doors open. Might I suggest you step on it."
"You got it JARVIS"
With that Tony rockets his way into the launch bay just as the doors close behind him. The empty launch bay echoes as Captain America runs across the floor toward one of the escape pods. Stark hovers above the Super Soldier as he runs across the bay when he sees 3 rogue soldiers pursuing him. But something's not right. Two have broken pursuit of Captain America and are running toward the external launch bay doors instead. The other one makes his way up a cargo bin and takes aim at Captain America with a rifle that is for sure not standard Stark Industries issued.
"Cap! Look out!" Iron Man yells as a blast is sent right at him from the rogue soldier.
Captain America turns and raises his shield with lightening reflexes right at the last second, deflecting most of the blast, but still taking a hit in his side. The force of the blast knocks him back into one of the neighboring cargo bins. Iron Man sends out a well aimed blast from his repulser ray and takes out the sniper before rushing over to the injured Captain America as he is struggling to get back on his feet.
"Cap, take it easy," Tony says as he catches the struggling hero. "You dodge all those shots from those soldiers only to get hit by one yahoo hiding on a cargo box?"
Captain America quickly spins around and strikes Iron Man with the back of his shield as he backs away from him, hiding his plasma burn from the rifle strike with his shield.
"Listen mister," Captain America says in a voice that can't help but command respect. "I don't know who you are or what you want with me, but because you gave me a heads up with that sniper-fella I'm going to give you 60 seconds to explain yourself before things get unpleasant. So who or what are you? Some kind of Hydra drone?"
"Hydra? What? No," Tony stammers. He raises his face shield from his helmet and looks Captain America in the eye as he struggles to find the words to say. Thoughts begin to swirl in his head. How to tell this man that his whole world doesn't exist anymore, that he's missed the last 70 years. He doesn't want to freak the guy out. He doesn't want to overwhelm him with the situation. Would he even believe him? Tony was in the situation and he still wasn't sure he believed it. In typical Stark style he decides the direct approach is best.
"Look, my name is Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man. Here's the deal; This might be hard to believe, but we pulled you out of the ice about 12 hours ago. You've been sleeping for the last 70 years, Cap. We all learn in grade-school history how Captain America gave his life in service to his country. They searched for your body for months after you went down, but they never found you. We stumbled upon you during an oceanic expedition and were shocked to find out you were alive. I know this is a lot to take and probably a pretty big shock, but right now there is something fishy going on here and I need you to stick with me so I can figure out what exactly is going down. That guy that took a shot at you, he's got a couple buddies running around in this launch bay and my men can't get in here because the controls to open the door are fried. So how about we work together and figure this thing out and then I will help you in anyway I can."
Tony is a little shocked to see that Captain America hasn't even flinched at the news he just told him. Although his demeanor is showing unwavering confidence, Captain America's mind is racing with questions. Is this really Howard's son? He looks like him and for sure acts like him. How is it even possible that he could have survived in the ice that long. Where is he right now and how is he going to get out of this. He pushes those questions aside, stands his ground and weighs his options and whether or not he can trust this armored man.
"Alright soldier," he says as he stares Tony down. "That's a pretty tall tale. I'm not saying I believe a word you're saying, but I'll help you catch these guys…"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Tony interrupts, "I just need you to stick with me so you don't get hurt, okay? Just let me handle this."
"Alright, I will stick with you, but know this," Captain America replies as he takes an aggressive step closer to Tony. "I trust you about as far as I can throw you and this is your one and only warning: If you are some kind of Hydra goon, don't even think about double crossing me because you will live just long enough to regret it."
"Well, you already threw me once and you threw me pretty far, so that must mean that you trust me a little." Tony replies cheekily through a crooked grin.
Captain America, not quite fully appreciating the Stark snark yet, walks away, as serious and stern as ever.
"Hey! Wait! You're supposed to stick with me, remember?!" Stark remarks as he runs to catch up.
The mis-matched pair make their way to the other end of the large launch bay as they weave through boxes and escape pods. In typical military fashion, Cap holds up his fist to signal Tony to stop as he trails behind him. Cap carefully peers around the cargo bin and sees the two rogue soldiers working on a control panel. He moves so Tony can take a look. As he moves aside he braces himself against the cargo bin and tries to catch his breath as the adrenaline begins to wear off and the weakness combined with the pain of the rifle strike begins to set in.
"They're trying to access internal controls from that panel," Tony says trying to keep his voice low. As he turns back around he sees Captain America holding himself up against the cargo bin and catches a flash of the wound on his side.
"Cap," he whispers, "You're hurt. You stubborn old geezer, why didn't you tell me?"
"I'm fine," Cap groans as he turns and stands to face Tony. "What do you think they're trying to access on that panel?"
"There's any number of things they could be looking for," Tony answers trying to examine the wound as Captain America bats his hand away. "Look, lets just sit here for a second and think."
"I don't need to sit down Iron Man," Captain America insists. "We need to shut these guys down. The longer we wait, the more of an advantage we're giving them."
"Again, WE are not doing anything. You're a tag-along, remember? Now please, sit so I can figure something out here."
Captain America grudgingly sets himself down and leans against the cargo bin next to Tony, trying not to show what a relief it is to take the pressure off of his side. Iron Man decides to try to capture the soldier working on the control panel when the other soldier leaves to do his perimeter check.
"This is a bad idea," Captain America remarks. "Those weapons could do a lot of damage if they get the upper hand."
"What? This is a brilliant idea," Tony counters with confidence. "They might have some big guns, but we've got Iron Man. I stop this clown from doing whatever it is he's trying to do on that panel and we capture a prisoner and get him to tell us what the hell is going on here."
Cap reluctantly times his perimeter check of the first man and figures he leaves every 7 to 8 minutes for about 5 minutes and then returns. Not much time to work with, but hopefully enough. Once the man leaves to walk his perimeter, Tony makes his move and grabs the soldier working on the control panel from behind. He knocks his rifle out of his hand and sticks his hand in the mans face as his repulser begins to glow as it powers up.
"Alright buddy, what are you doing to my ship?" Tony asks, knowing he only has a short amount of time before the man's partner comes back. "Who are you working for?"
"Fool! You are too late!" the man cackles. "The wheels are already in motion, Heir Stark. Hydra will destroy you and Captain America before you have a chance to reach the surface!"
Just as Tony was about to ask another question, he hears Captain America jump out from behind the bin and the clang of his shield. Tony turns to see a rifle blast narrowly miss hitting him and hitting the control panel instead as Captain America jumps on the returning patrol soldier.
"Too slow," Cap replies as he limps past Tony to the control panel.
"You fried the control panel. And I told you to stay behind the cargo bin."
"I tried, but I had to jump in a save your behind. Better to fry a panel than your head"
"I had it under control! I knew he was behind me. I was just waiting for the right moment to strike."
"Sure, but you know, the right moment would have been BEFORE he fired his rifle at you."
"Was that sarcasm?" Tony asks in amazement. "Good for you old-timer."
Ignoring Tony, Captain America walks over to the remaining prisoner and grabs him by the collar and lifts him up.
"What were you and your little comrade planning? What are you up to, Hydra scum?"
No answer from the man. Just a smug smirk. In frustration Cap slams him against the wall. In a swift motion the rogue soldier breaks a capsule he was hiding in his cheek.
"You are both doomed. Cut off one head, two more shall take its place. Hail, Hydra" he chokes out with his last breath.
"Cyanide capsule," Cap sighs as he walks away. "You're going to have to figure out what he was up to on your own, Iron Man."
Tony heads over to the fried console and plugs in a few cords from his armor into the damaged panel.
"Uh-oh," Ironman says.
"What uh-oh," Captain America asks as he walks over to the sparking screen.
"The last command they punched in was to over-ride the safety lock on the launch bay doors," Tony replies as he continues to sort through the information displayed on his armor's screen. "They managed to turn off the force shields surrounding the launch bay doors and they've started a count down to open up the doors to flood the ship.
"What? Why?"
"That crazy Hydra soldier said that we would never reach the surface with you. They must have somehow found out that we found you in the ice and wanted to make sure that you were no longer a threat. You're very obviously are still alive and kicking. They must have been sent here to take you out, even if that means killing everyone on board this ship."
"How could they have known you found me? You said you pulled me in 12 hours ago and you didn't even know I was alive."
"Hydra has spies everywhere. I hate to say it, but it's possible they've even been able to infiltrate my company on some level. We pulled you out 12 hours ago, but we discovered you 24 hours ago. Plenty of time for Hydra to sneak a few of their spies onboard my ship and make sure you weren't going to be a threat and, if you were, to take you out."
"This is because of me," Cap says as the wheels begin to turn in his head as he tries to think of a way to fix this. "Is there any way to stop the doors from opening?"
"No, but I think I can turn the force shield back on the keep the water back. It's a temporary fix, but it will buy us some time. I need to climb into the vents below the launch doors and see if I can restart the shield manually. What I am going to need you to do is to stand here at this panel and keep your hand on this lever. It will keep the shield from turning on before I make my way out of the vents so it doesn't completely obliterate me and it will also divert power from the doors to slow the rate the doors open. So, it's a very important lever! Don't let up on it until I'm out."
"Alright, I've got your back Iron Man."
"Good. Here's a respirator just in case I don't make it back before the water is over your head, but hopefully the water won't come in too quickly. The air pressure in here should slow the flooding as long as the doors don't open too quickly. Hopefully I will be out before it has time to reach your waist. Once I am out, release the lever and brace yourself. The shield will hopefully only need a couple seconds to reboot, but I'll hopefully be back by then and can grab you before the water floods in and hopefully the emergency drains will release the water we take on before the room floods."
"That's a lot of "hopefully's" soldier."
"Would it make you feel better if I say "probably"?."
"Um, no."
"Don't worry Cap, I trust you about as far as I can throw you, and I could throw you pretty far," Tony remarks through another crooked grin.
"That's never going to happen," Cap says, still unamused. "You'd better get going. I don't really feel like drowning today."
"Remember! Don't let up…."
"...On the lever, I know, I know! Get moving!"
Without another word, Iron Man races into the vents under the door to try to find the panel he needs to restart the shields. He makes his way through 2 panels that are not the ones he needs as he moves on to the next panel. Ocean water begins to flood the vents. The doors have started to open. Tony knows he's running out of time. Tony checks the next panel and then the next and the next. He finally finds the one to turn on the shield. As he works on the panel, Captain America is holding his own against the icy waters, which have risen up to his thighs, and is quickly draining what remains of his strength. He struggles to keep his hand on the lever as the water is rushing into the room, threatening to sweep him away. The doors have risen about 2 feet since Tony left and they are slowly continuing to rise. The water continues to flood in and is now about to his waist, but he stands his ground, using every ounce of his wavering strength to hold onto the lever, knowing that Iron Man is counting on him. He quickly puts on the respirator Iron Man gave him and braces himself.
Down below Tony finally gets the shield rebooted and begins his trip back to the launch bay. Debris has fallen to block his path back as the water flooded in and his trip back is taking longer than expected.
Up above, the water level is now half way up Captain America's body as he winces in pain when the icy salt water floods his wound. The doors have now opened about 3 feet. He waits and watches for Ironman to emerge, unsure of how much longer he can fight the current of water continuing to rush in. The flowing water begins to bring chunks of debris flying past Captain America and one knocks the respirator off of his face and into the water. The soldier shakes off the impact of the debris and tries to refocus while holding onto the lever. At the very last possible second, Iron Man emerges from the water just as Captain America's strength is spent and he is swept away with the incoming current of water. The shield begins to show signs of trying to reboot after he releases the lever, but not before the launch bay doors fly open, flooding the room much more quickly than anticipated. Iron Man catches a glimpse of Captain America struggling to hold onto a piece of debris before is dragged under the water by the undercurrent.
"Cap!" Tony yells as he dives in after him realizing that he doesn't have his respirator anymore.
Below the water is a maze of floating cargo bins, escape pods, and other debris. The water is cold and dark and it's difficult to see. Tony flips on his search light and shines it into the dark waters, but sees only debris. Cargo bins and escape pods are swirling around and banging into each other as the emergency drains have kicked in to try to expel the water that has flooded the room. The shield must have kicked on because the water is beginning to drain, but not quickly enough due to the debris is blocking the drains. Iron Man knows that he's got to find Captain America soon before he runs out of air or is crushed between the swirling, gigantic escape pods and cargo bins. He frantically searches the dark waters. Tony begins to lose hope when he sees his search light reflect off of Cap's shield in the distance, his body pinned under a large beam. He propels himself over to him and grabs the beam and tries to lift it, but it's too heavy. He quickly takes in a deep breath and unclips his respirator from his helmet and places it on the unconscious Captain America, unsure if he is breathing. He grabs a nearby metal pole and tries to use it as leverage to lift the huge beam. An escape pod is quickly drifting toward the pair, threatening to crush them if they don't move soon. Iron Man gives a final push with the help of the jets on his boots and manages to lift the beam just enough to pull Captain America out from underneath the crushing weight. He wraps his arm around his chest and rockets out of the way just as the pod crashes into the floor space they were just occupying. Tony knows that Cap has been under the frigid waters for too long and he needs to get him to the surface.
"JARVIS," Ironman gasps as he reaches the surface with the half-drowned Captain. "Is he breathing? Is he alive?"
"I am not detecting any breathing patterns, sir," JARVIS replies. "And the Captain's core body temperature is dropping to a dangerous level.
"Dammit. I've got to get him out of this water."
The room is only about 1/4 of the way drained and there is still no way out of the room until the door is fixed. Tony lifts the lifeless body of the super soldier onto his shoulder and propels both of them out of the water and lands on the Cargo bin. As he tries to balance on the bin he pulls off his helmet and listens for a heart beat, breathing or any signs of life. There is a faint, slow heart beat, but no breathing. He quickly begins CPR, firmly pressing Captain America's chest, counting reps in his head. He tilts Cap's head back and breathes a few breaths into him, then returns to pumping his chest.
"Come on Cap," he yells as he struggles to do CPR on the unstable box. "Come on! You can't freeze to death and drown after surviving being frozen in the ice for 70 years!"
With a final breath Captain America jerks back to reality and coughs out a good amount of water and gasps for air as Tony turns him on his side.
"Easy buddy, I've got you. Just breathe. JARVIS, where are we at with Cap's temperature?"
"94.1 degrees and falling sir."
The water is about 1/2 way down the room and dropping when, suddenly, a pod crashes into their make-shift raft as the two are thrown back into the icy waters. Tony grabs onto Captain America and swims them both back to the surface and tries to keep Cap above water, weaving in-between bins and pods as the bitterly cold water continues to drain.
"Status, JARVIS"
"The water is nearly 60% drained sir."
"Ugh, that's not fast enough. What about Cap?"
"Breathing is still shallow sir. Internal temperature is at 94.0 and falling. Condition is critical. Hypothermia and possible coma will set in soon if temperature is not corrected."
"Alright, desperate times call for desperate measures."
Tony finds a large piece of wood floating on the water. He pulls Cap's body out of the water and lays him in the middle of the board. He blasts the surrounding debris away as best as he can before diving back into the frigid waters. Tony weaves his way through the debris and makes it to the bottom of the room where he begins to clear away the debris blocking the drains. The water begins to rush out the cleared port and Iron Man quickly makes his way back to the surface. The water level has already dropped significantly and he quickly rushes back to Captain Americas side, relieved to see that he has stayed on the drifting board.
Finally, the doors open and the rest of the water rushes into the corridor and continues to drain out the emergency drains. Quickly, Iron Man scoops up the injured Captain America and rushes him back to the medical bay, but finds that the room is empty.
"Where is everyone," demands Stark as he lays the critical Captain America on a hospital bay table. "We need help in here!"
"Everyone except security personal were evacuated after the launch bay was flooded," a soldier reports. "We've put in a call to Dr. Petersen to port over right away for a medical emergency, but he is dealing with other medical emergencies that occurred after the ship nearly rolled when the bay flooded."
"We don't have time for this!" Tony exclaims in frustration.
He quickly begins to try stabilize Captain America as best as he can until the doctor arrives. Cap is still barely breathing, so Tony places an oxygen mask as he tries to dry him off and begins to turn on any heat lamp he can find in the medical bay.
"JARVIS, update"
"Temperature is stabilizing at 93.8 sir."
"We need to get his body to kick in and warm himself up. He's too cold"
Tony runs and empties every drawer he can find and quickly covers the quickly fading Captain with blankets. All he can do now, is wait. Soon, after he covers Captain America he begins to shiver as his body finally kicks in to try to warm himself up.
"Finally," Tony says with a bit of relief in his voice. "JARVIS, status?"
"94.7 and rising sir."
"Good. Now that his body is taking care of his temperature, lets see what this wound looks like."
Tony proceeds to see if he can inspect the wound now that Cap isn't able to swat him away. He carefully peels back the fabric of Cap's uniform to see if he can get down to the damaged tissue. The heat has fused part of the fabric to the gaping wound on his side. He gently begins to peel the fabric back and cuts away the dead tissue that's it's adhered itself to. The unconscious Captain stirs and winces a little as Tony exposes the wound and gently pours saline over it to clean it out.
"Sorry Cap, but it's got to be done. Stay with me. You know if you had let me look at this an hour ago it might not hurt so much. Just saying, even though you can't hear me right now to know that I'm right."
Tony's no medical expert, but he knows that the wound is deep. He wraps it and binds it as best as he can and continues to monitor his internal temperature and heart rate over the next hour. By the end of the hour Cap's temperature has risen to 96.7 degrees, his color is returning and his breathing is beginning to improve. Tony begins to change the bandages as they have soaked through the ones he placed earlier when Cap reaches out and grabs his arm.
"I….t-told you….I'm…f-fine…," Cap shivers through the oxygen mask as he struggles to open his eyes.
"And I told you, you're a stubborn old man. Now, relax. You need to rest and save your strength. Dr. Petersen will be here soon."
"Tony….thank you."
And with that simple word of thanks, Captain America drifts back into a deep sleep as Iron Man watches over him. Tony replaces his bandages again and his temperature continues to improve.
After his patient seems to have somewhat stabilized, Tony hops into a neighboring bed to try to rest before he needs to change out the bandage again. After what only seems like a few minutes, Dr. Petersen wakes him and gets the full debriefing of what happened. He checks Captain America's vitals and examines his wound as Cap sleeps soundly, unresponsive to the activity around him.
"Well, you did pretty good here "Doctor Stark," Dr. Petersen jokes to Tony. "Overall he seems to be doing quite well. You've got his temperature back to an acceptable number, his breathing has stabilized, and his wound has been well cared for, but will likely need some surgical repair once he's recovered more. I am impressed Tony."
"Thanks doc, but I'm going to leave the medical business in your much more capable hands."
The next morning Captain America is still weak and exhausted, but the doctor is concerned about waiting any longer to repair the wound as it is beginning to degrade. Dr. Petersen decides the risk of waiting is higher than the risk of surgery. Cap is cleared for the procedure and they move him out to prep him for the procedure. The surgery is fairly uneventful and Cap is out and in recovery within a few hours. Dr. Petersen walks in to check on his sedated patient. He gently lifts up the bandage to inspect the incision, checks his pulse, and jots down a couple readings onto a chart. As he leaves, Tony walks in.
"He should be waking up soon," Dr. Petersen comments as he passes Tony and he gives him a nod.
Tony takes a seat beside the sleeping super soldier and waits for him to wake. They have the Captain propped up in his bed, breathing in and out slowly through an oxygen mask as he's recovering from his surgery. IV's are hooked to fluid bags and monitors are softly beeping as they read vital signs. Tony still can't believe he's sitting next to a man who was frozen for 70 years, nor can he believe that he had grown on him. There are not many people Tony Stark legitimately likes, but he liked Cap. Tony watches the stars come out as the sun begins to set on another day. Soon after he sits down, Captain America begins to stir.
"Good morning, old-timer," Tony chimes with a big smile. "Or more like 'good evening."
Slowly, Captain America struggles to open his eyes, squinting from the bright light streaming in through the harsh ceiling lights. His vision soon begins to clear as he wakes up to see Tony walking over to dim the lights, seeing that he was struggling with the bright lights. He returned to the chair with feet kicked up on his bed while he helped himself to the jello cup on the table.
Captain America groans as he comes to, half due to pain and half to annoyance. "How long was I out?"
Cap rubs his head, trying to bring himself to he senses, as he tries to sit up.
"In and out for the last 12 hours or so," Tony replies, placing a hand on Cap's shoulder, helping him to lay back down. "Relax, what do you have against sitting and laying down?"
"Too much to do," Cap says as he reluctantly lays back down, wincing from the shooting pain in his side from the freshly repaired wound. "But this time I might need to sit down."
"Hm, finally deciding to cut me a break and listen to me?" Tony asks as he sits back down in the chair and scoots closer to the bed.
"No, I just figured I would go easy on you," Captain America replies through half-lidded eyes. "It looks like you've had a long day. You look awful."
"Why thank you for your consideration," Tony says as he gives Cap a little nod. "We can't all be super soldiers, you know." There's a short moment of silence as Tony thinks, his mind going a million miles a minute. Finally he looks at Captain America, who is almost sleeping again, and breaks the silence.
"Cap, listen, I have a question."
"Tony, I think we're past being formal. Call me Steve." Captain America says as he stirs back to awareness at Tony's question.
"Steve, I know you've been through hell and back over the last 24 hours, but once you've had a chance to heal and adjust, I want you to join the Avengers team that we have put together."
Steve looks down at the IV in his arm and stares for a moment, lost in thought. Once again, Tony is a little shocked at how little this question has affected Steve. Finally, Steve answers, but without looking at him. He keeps is gaze down, as though he's ashamed. "Tony, I don't know if you remember who you're asking, but I've no idea what this world is like or if I can even be an asset any longer. Like you said, I'm a tag-along. Old fashioned. A man out of time."
"Listen, I don't say this often, so enjoy it now because it may very well never happen again, but I was wrong. You're not a tag-along."
"Tony, you don't have to…"
"Listen, do you trust me?"
"My memory of the last 12 hours is a little fuzzy, but if I am remembering yesterday correctly, I'd say you earned some trust."
"Good, I was hoping you would remember most of that. If you trust me, then trust me on this. I want you on my team. I wouldn't have asked you otherwise. You saved my life yesterday by putting your own at risk and we barely know each other. You could have let go of that lever any time after I reactivated the shield, but you didn't. You held on and almost died because of it. I've seen you fight and I've seen your loyalty and I don't' have any hesitations on asking you to join our team."
"Tony, I don't know what to say."
"Don't say anything. Just promise me you'll think about it."
"I can promise that," Steve replies quietly.
They both sit in silence for a few minutes. Not awkward or uncomfortable, but quiet and contemplative silence. Steve was so still and quiet that Tony thought he might have fallen asleep again.
"Steve?" Tony quietly asks, wondering if he was still awake.
"Yeah," Cap replies through closed eyes
"Have you thought about it yet?"
"You're ridiculous," Steve sighs quietly.
Another moment of quiet follows.
"Steve?"
"Hm?" Cap grunts, half asleep.
"I think we're going to make a great team."
"Mm-hm," Steve mumbles, not really listening anymore.
"Steve?"
"…."
"Goodnight," Tony whispers.