They next morning the four were in the lab under an antique shop with Howard putting the finishing touches on the machines and Lily talking to Dr. Erskine.
Maria and Nikko were watching people for anything suspicious.
Everyone stopped what they were doing when they heard the doors open.
The saw Steve walk in "that's the person that's going to undergo the serum" Howard asked Lily who was now standing beside him "he's skinny"
Lily glared at him "he's also my cousin" she said causing Howard to apologize.
Steve and Peggy headed down the stairs to where Dr. Erskine was waiting.
"Good Morning." he greeted as they shook hands. A flash bulb went off next to them, "Please, not now!"
Steve stared at the metal bed, obviously nervous. "Are you ready?" Erskine asked, to which Steve nodded slightly. "Good, please take off your shirt, your tie, and your hat." Steve complied nervously, handing the clothes to a scientist behind him before climbing on to the bed.
Dr. Erskine came up to Steve's side as he was shifting around. "Comfortable?"
"It's a little big."
The doctor laughed slightly.
"Save me any of that schnapps?" Steve asked.
"Not as much as I should have. Sorry, next time." He turned away. "Mr. Stark?"
Maria gave him a look that said 'be nice'
Steve's head jerked over at that, his interest peaked at the name of the famous inventor.
"Levels at 100%" Howard answered, walking up to the machine.
"Good," the Dr. stated, fidgeting with his glasses.
"We may dim half the lights in Brooklyn," he stated, looking Steve over, "But we are ready…as we'll ever be."
Steve looked a little worried about Howard's last statement.
Lily placed a hand on Steve's shoulder "don't worry they know what they're doing" she assured him.
Steve smiled at that as Dr. Erskine turned to Agent Carter. "Agent Carter, Colonel Steward, Agent Nikko don't you think you would be more comfortable in the booth?" he looked towards the observation room
"Oh, yes, of course. Sorry." Peggy left reluctantly, looking back at Steve in concern.
Dr. Erskine picked up a microphone and tapped on it a few times, drawing everyone's attention.
Over by the machine Maria stood by Howard tense in case someone got in that wasn't supposed to. Howard looked at her "hey ease up it's going to go alright" he said and Maria nodded un-tensing a little.
Up in the observation room Nikko was also standing tense beside Lily while fingering her collapsible bo staff hidden by her skirt.
Lily was gripping Peggy's hand
"Is this on?" Dr. Erskine asked into the microphone. Several people grumbled their affirmative, and Nikko nodded. "Ladies and gentleman, today we take not another step towards annihilation, but the first step towards peace. We begin with a series of microinjections in the subject's major muscle groups. The serum infusion will cause immediate cellular change. And then to stimulate growth, the subject will be saturated with vita rays."
The whole while he was talking, nurses were placing large pads over Steve's major muscle groups and strapping him in.
Erskine finished his speech and came over to Steve who turned his face away from a needle going into his arm. Once it was pulled out, he said, "That wasn't so bad." to which the doctor gave an almost pitying look.
"Zat vas penicillin." He sighed, but announced, "Serum infusion beginning in five...four...three...two..." he hesitated and rested a hand on Steve's shoulder before saying, "one."
The vials of fluid drained, levers were pulled by gloved hands, and Steve tried not to let the pain of the infusion show, but let out a groan.
"Now, Mr. Stark," Dr. Erskine said.
Howard gripped a red lever and slowly lowered it, the machine Steve was laying on slowly raising into the air and closing, leaving only a pod looking thing when it stopped.
Dr. Erskine stepped up and looked through the small window of the pod. "Steven? Can you hear me?"
"It's probably too late to go to the bathroom, right?" Steve's voice asked from inside the pod.
Maria chuckled at that and put on the sunglasses Howard handed her.
Lily was leaning closer to the window along with Peggy.
Ab nodded and looked back down at Howard. "We will proceed."
Howard nodded and placed a pair of goggles over his eyes before moving to the turn wheel.
The window of the pod glowed bright, several of the others looking away or shielding their eyes.
"That's 10%," Howard said, continuing to move the wheel. "20%. 30. That's 40%."
"Vital signs say normal," one of the doctors stated.
"That's 50%. 60. 70."
Steve's yell of pain broke through the pod, alerting everyone around him.
"Steven!" Ab yelled, running up to look down through the window.
Lily and Peggy both were out of their seats and running to the catwalk "Shut it down! Shut it down!" they shouted
"Shut down the reactor, Mr. Stark!" Ab yelled. "Kill it! Turn it off! Kill the reactor!"
Howard moved to do just that when he was stopped by Steve's voice.
"No!"
Everyone turned to look at the pod, eyes wide with disbelief.
"Don't! I can do this!"
Maria traded looks with Lily and she nodded reluctantly "Howard do it" Maria said to him
Howard hesitated for a moment before turning back to the controls, continuing to shout out percentages.
"Eighty. Ninety. That's one hundred percent!" The humming noise increased, the light grew brighter, and sparks exploded from the controls along the walls before the machine powered down. Everyone stared for a moment, until Erskine turned around.
"Mr. Stark?"
The cocoon opened, revealing the formerly ninety pound weakling, breathing heavily and now sporting a brilliant set of muscles.
Everyone came down to the main floor and the four friends stood beside each other
Maria and Nikko looked at him shocked "Holy shit" they said "he's hot."
Howard pouted at Maria while Peggy glared at Nikko "don't worry Peggy he's not my type" Nikko said throwing her hands up.
Howard and Ab helped Steve stand
"I did it," Steve gasped, still out of breath.
Ab nodded. "Yeah, I think we did."
"You actually did it," Howard said with a marveled tone.
Peggy then walked up to Steve
"How do you feel?" she asked.
He was panting, but he stood tall, looking over the heads of those who were taller than him mere minutes before. "Taller."
"Um... You look taller." She reached out as if to touch his chest, then seemed to think better of it and handed him a t-shirt, watching him.
Steve put the shirt on and the girls pouted just then there was an explosion and Maria was quick to stand in front of Howard pulling out a dagger that was hidden under her skirt.
Nikko pulled Lily behind her and pulled out her bo staff.
The stranger shoot the Dr. then took the last vial of serum and took off running. Peggy began shooting at him then ran after him.
Lily pushed Nikko away and ran over to Steve who was checking on Ab. When she got there she felt for a pulse then shook her head at Steve.
Steve got a look on his face then took off running.
Nikko walked over to Lily and put a hand on her shoulder "come on let the others take Ab" she said and Lily nodded.
A few hours later Lily was sitting on a chair examining the foam that appeared around the Hydra soldier's mouth room as Howard looked over the submarine that the Hydra agent tried to escape in.
Maria and Nikko were peaking in on Steve hoping to see him without a shirt on again "Maria I need your assistance" Howard called; Maria pouted as Nikko grinned.
Maria walked down to the submarine and looking over it "I haven't seen anything like it" she said just as the senator appeared
"Colonel Phillips, my committee is demanding answers."
"Great. Why don't we start with how a German spy got a ride to my secret installation in your car?" Phillips said before turning his attention to Howard. "What have we got here?"
Howard let out a sigh. "Speaking modestly, I'm the best mechanical engineer in this country. But I don't know what's inside this thing or how it works. We're not even close to this technology."
"Then who is?"
"Hydra." Maria said looking at the symbol on the side of the sub
At that Peggy, Nikko and Steve walked down to them as Lily finished her examination of the form and walked over to them
"I'm sure you've been reading our proofs."
"I'm on a number of committees, Colonel."
The Mayor removed his hat when the ladies appeared
"The Nazi's deep science division, much like the SSR is to the Allied forces," Peggy explained to the people who didn't know. "It's led by Johann Schmidt, but he has much bigger ambitions."
"Hydra's practically a cult," Colonel Phillips spat "They worship Schmidt, they think he's invincible."
"and it seems that are willing to die for him to" Lily said "that foam was cyanide"
Colonel Phillips nodded
"So what are you going to do about it?" Senator Brandt demanded.
"Spoke to the president this morning," Colonel Phillips grunted. "As of today, the SSR is being re-tasked."
Every one looked at him surprised
"Colonel?" Agent Carter didn't even bother to mask her surprise,
"We're taking the fight to Hydra. Pack your bags, Agent Carter. You too, Stark, Carbonell, Felix. You're flying to London tonight. Colonel Steward, you're being stationed with the one-oh-seventh."
Lily smiled at that "yes sir" she said
"Sir," Steve interjected. "If you're going after Schmidt, I want in."
Phillips turned and addressed Steve with a look "You're an experiment. You're going to Alamogordo," he stated with a dismissive tone.
"The serum worked," Steve stated, confused
"I asked for an army and all I got was you," he said. "You are not enough," he told him before walking off.
Lily walked towards Colonel Evans "sir Colonel Medic Steward" she saluted.
Colonel Evans looked up "you're a woman" he said.
Lily jaw clenched "is that a problem sir" she asked "no but it might be for the other soldiers" he responded.
They talked for a while and Lily "sir if I may ask is Sergeant James Barnes on base as of now" she asked.
Evans looked at her "let me guess you're the fiancée that he brags about" he asked and Lily nodded with a blush.
Evans nodded "yes he is and he's up for his evaluation today if you don't mind" he smirked. Lily smirked "not at all sir" she responded
A while later Lily was in a med-tent getting things ready for the evaluation. She had her hair up in bun knowing it would be harder for Bucky to tell it was her since she rarely had her hair up around him.
The tent flap was pulled back "hello" he said "remove your shirt and sit on the bed" she said getting the last things she needed. She turned around with her head down looking over his chart.
When she got to him she looked up and smiled "hello Bucky" she said.
Bucky looked at her shocked "Lily when did you get here" he asked "today" she responded "but you really do have a check"
Over the months passed with Lily meeting all of Bucky's team and them asking why a beautiful woman like her was with a tool like Bucky; those comments results in a chase.
One day Lily was patching up one of the soldiers who has a deep cup "how did you get a cut this deep on base" she asked. The soldier didn't answer so Lily shrugged and finished.
She put the supplies away just as she was attacked from behind "Lilykins" Nikko said. Lily sighed at that "Maria come get your person off of me" she said and a second later Nikko released her.
Lily turned around to see her best friends standing there "when did you get here" she asked. Maria smiled going to hug her "a few hours ago" Maria replied. Lily smiled sadly at her "what's wrong" Peggy asked.
Lily looked down at her ring and started messing with it "do we have to have a talk with Mr. Barnes" Nikko asked seeing her playing with her ring.
Lily shook her head "no it's not that" she responded pulling a letter out of her pocket and handed it to Peggy.
Peggy gasped then passed it to the others "they march last week and Hydra attacked he was on the fronts lines when it happened" Lily explained to them.
The girls hugged her at that "come on let's go help take your mind off of it" Nikko said which is code for 'I'm getting you drunk whether you won't to or not'
Lily took the letter back and followed the girls. Maria went of to get some of Howard's alcohol
Sorry it's not very long but hopefully the next chapter is.
