"Steve" Bruce gently shook the sleeping man's shoulder, feeling a little guilty for rising him from his healing sleep. But adding to Bruce's frustration, the man didn't even stir still caught completely in his drug induced slumber.
"STEVE!" he tried more vigorously and started to tap the Captain's face. The Vision had already caught up to him and was hovering above the ground, waiting to lay down his burden on the still occupied cot. He had refrained from walking, trying to make sure that the unconscious team member cradled in his arms wouldn't be jostled unnecessarily.
After a few moments of slight tapping, Cap slowly started to come around and Bruce decided to give him a minute to adjust. The others, who had become aware of the hushed voices and general urgency in the air, were approaching the medical bunk from various sides now.
"What happened?" Rhodey asked with a harsh voice that cut through the silence like a knife. Bruce ignored him at first and instead turned around to feel for Tony's vital signs.
Bruce was getting more and more worried when he found his pulse fast and thready under cold and clammy skin. Tony was in shock and they needed to act immediately, even if he still wasn't quite sure what they were facing. He faced the Captain again, just in time to see his eyes blink open and fix him with a confused stare.
"Hey there, Steve. I am sorry, but I need you to get up and make room for..." he tried to say in a low and soothing voice. He was betrayed by the green flashes underneath his skin and his eyes and saw the Captain's eyes go wide in surprise and agitation.
"Wha..." the Captain's gaze suddenly dropped on the Vision and his limp charge "What!"
Before he could even think about it, Steve had already swung his feet off the bunk and taken a step to the side. He almost smashed bodily into Hawkeye, who caught him with two steady hands and stabilized him.
Vision laid the dark haired man down on the cot and stepped aside to leave Banner to do his work. He took up a vigilant position at the side and observed as the scientist quickly grabbed a pair of scissors and started to cut away at Stark's flight suit revealing a mass of colorfully bruised skin.
"Holy sh..." Hawkeye started to curse when he caught sight of the deep purple lacerations across Tony's chest and stomach. At least two ribs looked broken and from the evidence of dried blood on his face, there was a chance that they might already have pierced a lung.
Bruce had come to the same conclusion as he ordered Clint to immediately grab a breathing mask and fit it over Tony's mouth and nose.
"Tasha, lift his legs" he ordered.
"Rhodey, get a couple of blankets!" he didn't even look up.
There was a quick moment when timed seemed to stand still and nobody moved, trying to comprehend what was going on and how the serene and quite atmosphere had completely vanished within minutes.
"Now!" Bruce yelled with barely contained rage and a green tinge in his eyes until everybody jumped into action.
"Somebody please take a look at the suit... or what's left of it. I need to know what hit him like this." He snatched the blankets provided by the soldier.
"Rhodes?"
Rhodey's gaze lingered on his unresponsive friend.
"Can you do that for me?" Rhodey gave a curt nod and went off to retrieve the Iron Man suit from the belly of the jet.
"Dr. Banner, may I remind you that the integrity of Mr. Stark's chest cavity was highly compromised after the removal of the arc reactor. Imminent lung collaps is to be expected."
Banner blinked and twisted his head to face Vision with an expression of awe. The polite, cool and collected demeanor with which he had just spoken about Tony had him think for a second that it was actually Jarvis.
"Wha... How...! Never mind! Give me a hand then!" He waved Vision over before he turned around to face Steve again, who still seemed dazed. The Captain had approached the injured engineer already, one supportive hand on Tony's shoulder and his gaze fixed on the mess that was his torso.
"Captain how do you feel? Are you well enough to help us out?" Bruce asked without looking up while he once again checked Tony's pupils.
Steve's voice sounded hoarse when he answered with a quiet "Yes, of course"
Vision obliged immediately when Bruce asked him to gently lift Tony up again.
"Steve, we need to sit him up, can you keep him upright?" Bruce motioned for him to sit down against the headboard, legs dangling from booth sides, before Vision sat Tony down against Steve's chest. The second the Vision let go, Tony's head limply rolled to the side.
"Steve, …" Bruce started but the Captain had already caught on and pressed his large right hand against Tony's forehead and gently pushed his head against his own chest. Bruce nodded approvingly.
When Bruce tried to cover the enginer up with the dropped blankets again, Tony suddenly moaned and grimaced. His restlesness only intensified when he realized that he couldn't move. He started to struggle against Steve's grasp.
"Tony" Steve murmured in a soothing tone, very much aware of the fact that he was only going to injure himself further if he fought them "Shhhhh, everything is alright, ssshhhhh. You're safe!"
Tony seemed to call down immediately and when Bruce met Steve's eyes he gave him a solemn thumbs up, before drawing out a blood pressure cuff and wrapping it around Tony's upper arm.
If Tony's increasingly labored breathing was any indicator, Vision had been right and the pressure in his chest was causing his lungs to collaps.
"Jar-Friday, how long to base?"
"54 minutes and 30 seconds, Sir" the computer answered.
It was going to be a long hour.
