Tony Stark was finally getting ready to hit the sack, after quite a few hours of non-stop tinkering in his lab. Yeah, it probably wasn't very healthy, staying up all night just to see if he could build a suit with a pedometer, but…why the heck not, right?

He turned off the final computer, and then trudged up the stairs to his bedroom. Sure, he could use the elevator, but his room was conveniently only a floor above his office. That way, he could always be near his precious suits. And no, that didn't make him creepy. It just made him very dedicated to his work. And what if someone tried to steal the suit? At least he'd be nearby to try and stop the thief.

Tony crawled into the not-so-empty bed. Pepper was already there, and of course, fast asleep. Tony felt kinda guilty for that…but he'd make it up to her, somehow. He was nothing if not resourceful. But he would think about that in the morning. As he closed his eyes, the alarm rang.

No. Just no. This had to be a sick joke. No one would call this late (early?), not right when Tony was about to count armor. Sighing, Tony got up, and went to pick up the phone.

"Hello? This better be good, because I am five second away from hanging up," Tony said, trying to put some sternness in his tired voice. The yawn that followed wrecked the effect, though. Darn.

"Tony, this is the emergency line. I wouldn't call if it weren't very serious," a commanding voice replied. Tony knew who it was. Nick Fury, the stiff-backed head of S.H.I.E.L.D. But even Fury didn't usually call after five A.M. Something must be up.

"Okay, I'm awake. Not that I want to be, but whatever. I'll nap later. But Fury, please, tell me the Earth is in danger. If it isn't, there is no way this is worth it," Tony replied, trying not to nod off.

"This is of the highest priority, Stark. Report to the helicarrier, now!" came the yelled response. Tony resigned himself to the fact that he wouldn't be sleeping anytime soon. He just hoped that Pepper would forgive him!

After putting on his standard armor, Iron Man flew to the Helicarrier, knowing that if he was late, Fury would probably scold him, as usual. It wasn't that Tony even cared, but it did get old after a while. Fury would yell at him, Stark would pretend to listen, Fury would make a threat, Stark would roll his eyes, etc. Not much variation there.

Upon arriving at his destination, Stark let the facial part of his armor retract. It was easier to talk to people that way. Iron Man entered the conference room, where he met up with some of his team-mates: the patriotic Captain America, the pretty (and lethal) Black Widow, and the archer, Hawkeye. They were all sitting at the round table.

"Hey, guys. How come you don't look tired at all? And where are Blondie and Always Angry?" Tony rapidly questioned.

"Unlike you, we get our daily amount of rest," Widow dryly replied. She had little patience with small things like that. In her professional opinion, it was dangerous to get any less sleep than needed. Being sluggish on a mission could lead to your death. That wasn't an option for a S.H.I.E.D. agent.

"As for Thor and Hulk, Thor went to Asgard last week. He wanted to spend some time with his family," Captain America said.

"He wanted to spend time with Jane too, I wager," Hawkeye snickered. Black Widow hit him on the shoulder.

"And I figured that waking Bruce this late might not be a great idea".

The group turned towards the door, as Nick Fury stepped in, followed by Maria Hill.

"But rest assured, we will need their assistance down the line. When that time comes, I will have them brought over. But at the moment, you are all that are necessary. I will brief you on this mission now, but be warned – there is no going back." Nick Fury had a way with words.

The group sat up and grew serious. They were ready to hear about the crisis…

TO BE CONTINUED


Author's Notes

And the first chapter of my first Avengers fan-fiction is up. Not much has happened yet, but I have plans. I'm not sure how frequent I'll post updates, but I don't plan to be one of those "updates every six months" people (no offense to people who do, as long as you're busy).