"Sic transit gloria mundi," Latin for "Thus passes the glory of the world".
I suppose most people would panic if they awoke with a thick sheen of blood covering their tongue, but all I managed to do was laugh, if not weakly. My vision was blurred; the already fuzzy details of the world seeping together beyond the point of recognition. It felt like I'd been crushed - not once, twice, but over and over and over and over. To the point that I couldn't tell what part of my body had been struck. My torso? My legs? My head? Everything? Was I even alive at this point?
I didn't know, I didn't care, and there wasn't an entirely high likelihood that a convenient ambulance was just going to come by, pick me up, and I'd wake up to breakfast in the hospital later on. Was there insurance in the afterlife? Would I get a better post-death living space if I had been a good person? Had I even been a good person?
"Oh my god, shut up. You're fine," An exasperated, and exhausted, voice sounded from my left. Was it my left? "I'm on your fucking left. Stop talking, you're making it worse." Had I been talking out loud this whole time? I figured it was a bad sign that I couldn't even tell that I was speaking, but I managed to function long enough to regain control over my vocal cords.
"What happened?" I croaked, my words strained and dry. It was as if I'd gargled with a jug full of sand, and then made a smoothie of wet cement.
For a few moments, I didn't get a reply, just an elongated sigh. Whomever this was, they were less than helpful with my situation. I was entirely in the dark here - I couldn't even see. "Aliens," The masculine-sounding entity from the World of the Left said, his answer clipped and lifeless.
It took me a few seconds to process this information, before I finally got angry at his mocking. Who was the injured one here? Me! Though I guess he could be injured as well, and I just wasn't aware of it… "Stop dicking around, I want to know what's going on," I tried to shout, only getting as far as a half-whispered yell.
"I'm being completely serious, hun. You didn't see the spaceships materialize out of the goddamn sky?" They continued gruffly. Sorry my memory isn't entirely functional after getting the shit taken out of me, asshole. "It was quite a sight to see - be a pity if you didn't remember it."
I kept my mouth shut for a while, taking in the information slowly. Aliens, huh? That's… Interesting. I guess. Was it like E.T or was it an Autobots vs. Decepticons type of thing? Considering the damage to my body, I assumed it was the latter. "What in the hell do I have to do with aliens?"
"... Did you hit your head that hard? You should remember these things, Cal, you're a full-fledged S.H.I.E.L.D agent… Just got promoted, too," They quipped as a hand, assumably theirs, grabbed at my arm and began wrapping it in gauze.
Shield? Like - the thing you use to protect yourself? What kind of agency uses that as an name? As if that's not conspicuous. Whoever made that one up should be fired, rehired, and fired again. "Shield? Really?" I asked after having been forced to sip from a bottle of water, halfway amending my dry-mouth problem.
"Yeah, they had to use some big words to get 'shield' to be the acronym, but that's besides the point. I'm gonna have to put you under for a while. You've got some breaks we'll need to set when the paramedics get here," My savior said, too little life in his voice for me to feel comforted. They sounded like they'd been to hell and back. Humor could only cover up so much pain.
Suddenly, I was scared. As if my unfamiliar situation was bad enough, I was being anesthetized just minutes after having woken up. I still could barely see, though the world was beginning to be a little less fuzzy. A small prick on my arm made me tense further, and the normally caustic voice I'd been hearing became soothing, as if he was truly sorry for my suffering. Maybe he was. I wasn't coherent enough to tell.
"It's okay, Cal. You'll be alright. I promise you'll remember everything when you wake up," They reassured, rubbing the inside of my elbow as if it made me feel any better. As if it made me any less afraid of the unknown. As if it made me any less afraid to die.
"Please don't leave me."
"I'm not going anywhere, hun."
AN: Hahaha, was that not the most unspecific introduction you've ever read? I guarantee whatever you're thinking it is, that's really not what's going on. Though I suppose it gives a little insight into the character, and a bit of the storyline, but it's pretty much worthless to you. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoyed this little snippet.
If you haven't already figured it out, I was mostly inspired by Captain America 2, so if you haven't been to the theater to see it yet, I wouldn't read this. Though I'm not sure how many spoilers will be in the story… I'll stop blabbing before this author's note becomes longer than the intro. Also, don't be swayed by the Latin at the top of the page. I'm not that sophisticated. Leave a review, my boos. - Marina