Disclaimer: One does not simply own the MCU or its characters. However all OCs belong to me.

A/N: Begins during the events of Iron Man 2.

Call To Action

Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. ~Helen Keller

May 2011
Columbia University
New York

Mutation is the changing, but not necessarily evolution, of the structure of a gene. It is caused by the alteration of single base units in DNA or in larger sections of genes or chromosomes, the results of which are a variant form that may be—

"Dr. Halloway? There's someone here to see you."

Of course there was. Sighing in defeat, Adina Halloway pushed away from the monitor she'd been staring at for the past hour. An entire hour spent trying to think of how to start a simple dissertation on a subject she was supposed to be an expert in. Don't lie to yourself, Addie, she thought, you weren't even thinking about the paper. Well, maybe not, but it would figure that the moment she actually got to writing the thing she was interrupted; at this point she should have expected it.

Never used to have all these interruptions. God, I miss that. Ever since she had published a paper on the potential medical benefits of the mutant gene, she'd barely had a moment to herself. People were constantly trying to debunk her claims while others were curious to know more. They would come into her office and badger her with questions, eager to discover just how she intended to achieve what her paper spoke of. The point was that, whether or not they claimed to believe her, they were skeptical. And with the base of her research lying so heavily in the taboo subject of mutation, they were no doubt suspicious. But what she hated most about her newfound fame was within the very walls of Columbia University: guest speaking. There was a reason she had chosen the position of Research Professor – little to no speaking duties. Sure, she had to do a few seminars at the medical school, that was just fine. Adina loved the students and was always happy to impart her knowledge to them should they ask for it. What she couldn't stand was being summoned to a lecture hall to speak about her unfinished work, only to have curious students visit her later and prevent her from ever completing said work. Hence the lack of dissertation, which she was technically supposed to start two days ago.

She looked back up at the Assistant Research Professor waiting patiently at the door. At least the young woman hadn't just let the person into her office. Of course, it wasn't Lily's job to do such things in the first place. She was a new Assistant Research Professor that had somewhat been placed under Adina's supervision while she got used to the university, but she had quickly been made into a part-time bodyguard/secretary for the newly popular Dr. Halloway. Lily didn't seem to mind warning her whenever she was about to lose a good half hour of work to a curious visitor, and Adina certainly didn't take her kindness for granted. She liked to know what she was dealing with beforehand, and Lily allowed her just that.

"Who is it, Lily?" she asked. Please, for the love of God, not another student. Not today.

"I don't know."

Well, so much for knowing what she was dealing with.

Dr. Halloway removed her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. "At least tell me what he looks like." She could at least figure out if it was a student. Perhaps it was even a personal visitor, though she hadn't had one of those in quite some time.

Lily was somewhat caught off guard. Understandable; she probably hadn't expected an impromptu visual memory test. "Oh, uh, middle-aged white guy in a suit, really serious and professional looking, maybe works for the government?"

Government? That could be a problem. What could the government want with her? Though her work had been drawing a lot of attention lately, it had mostly been from students, scholars, members of the scientific community; never the government. Of course, they could always be here to ask a few questions, just like all the others, but the fact was that she simply didn't trust government officials. The very few that she had met had only ever given her trouble, and she certainly wasn't ready to deal with them at the moment. This is ridiculous, she thought, I'm making huge assumptions of someone I've never met based on a physical description given to me by a woman I've known for a month. This guy might just want to ask about my research.

She could see Lily getting increasingly more uncomfortable as she waited for an answer at the door. Adina sighed and replaced her glasses on her face. "Send him in."

Lily nodded and left to retrieve the visitor. Seconds later, the man entered and Adina felt her stomach sink. She knew him – not well, but she remembered his face. And although he wasn't government, he wasn't exactly a welcome sight either.

He came to stand in front of her desk. "Dr. Halloway, my name is Agent Coulson, I believe we've met before."

"Yes, a few years ago, I remember," she said, rising to greet him. She shook his hand with a firm grip and watched as he remained impassive. Huh, hard to get a read off this guy. "You're with the Strategic Homeland—"

"Actually, we just go by S.H.I.E.L.D. now," he said with the ghost of a smile. "Takes a lot less time during introductions."

"That it does. So what can I do for you, Agent Coulson? This isn't about—"

"Not this time, Doctor," he replied, already knowing what she was about to say. "We've got that situation covered for now."

Adina breathed a sigh of relief. She was dealing with enough stress right now; she didn't need S.H.I.E.L.D. asking her to help them hunt down her former colleague again. Then again, 'got that situation covered' is pretty generic. Let's just hope that they dealt with it in a civilized manner.

As if reading her mind, Agent Coulson spoke up. "There's no reason to worry, we're keeping an eye on him but we're keeping our distance. This is something entirely different. S.H.I.E.L.D. requires your assistance with a medical issue."

Great, here we go again. "And what kind of assistance are you looking for exactly? I assume it has to do with my mutant gene theory."

"Not at all, Dr. Halloway." She was surprised at this. Every visitor she had had for the last few weeks was only concerned about that paper. Agent Coulson continued. "Although it is a fascinating theory and we do see the benefits of it, we understand that your research is still in its early stages and is not at all ready for actual medical practice. We wouldn't ask that of you."

Well that just might be the most sympathy I've received all year, Adina thought. She didn't let the agent in front of her know this, though. She was still wary of him, and certainly didn't want him thinking he could get the upper hand by sympathizing. "So what exactly is this 'medical issue' that S.H.I.E.L.D. can't deal with on its own?"

"We have a client that we believe is very ill," he replied. "A very rare metal poisoning, by our guess, and his condition seems to be progressing rather quickly now. We need you to help us isolate the issue and cure it, if you can."

"I'm sorry, 'by your guess'? You aren't even sure what's wrong with this person and you just want me to come up with a cure? I don't know what you've heard, Agent Coulson, but I'm not a miracle worker."

"No, but you are a specialist, and this is a very special case."

"There are plenty of other specialists that I'm sure would be qualified to help you. If you'd like, I can speak to some friends down at Culver University. Their science department has some of the most advanced equipment and faculty in the country. I'm sure Dr. Ross could—"

"We've already considered Culver's faculty," he interrupted, "but we believe you're the best person for the job. You have an outstanding background in chemistry and medicine, plenty of experience and the most promising practical results we've seen. You'd be doing us a great service, Doctor. We don't know how long this person has before their body gives out, it could be a matter of days. We need someone efficient, someone who knows what they're doing. We can't take any risks with this."

Agent Coulson fell silent and simply watched her, obviously giving her a moment to let the information sink in. Adina closed her eyes in thought, weighing the options. She barely knew what she was supposed to be treating, she was dealing with a secretive organization that most of the world didn't even know existed, and apparently she had an entire life in her hands. But then who was she not to try her best to save that life? At that, she thought of her mentor's words:

It is simple to take a life; it is far more difficult to save one. Not many can do it, and those who can are not always successful. You have a very special gift, Adina, because you can so easily save lives. That is something that the world sorely needs, and so I hope you will take every chance you get to share it.

Who was she kidding? Of course she was going to help.

"I'll do what I can."

But she was probably going to regret it, too.

A/N: And so it begins. This mammoth undertaking shall span across the entire MCU and beyond. You heard me, BEYOND. Fear not, for all shall be explained eventually. In the meantime, keep your eyes peeled for all of the Marvel cameos and Easter eggs within. Can you spot the ones in this chapter?

Because it will be so vast, I will include general dates and locations at the beginning of each chapter to help in your navigation of the story. 'Tis my first fanfiction, so please review! But be gentle, I bruise easily.