Chapter 15.
Steve stood against one of the walls on the hospital floor, watching a slew of doctors bring in a dozen unconscious civilians. Tony had recruited help from the surrounding hospitals.
Sam joined him, his suit still attached to his back. "Crazy, right?"
"All of these people are Enhanced?" Steve said. "It makes you wonder how many people with powers are in the world that we don't know about."
"I guess not everyone makes as big of a splash as you guys," Sam said.
Steve was already tired. He had been milling around, waiting for these people to arrive, but his legs shouldn't already be aching. It must be a side effect of the gas. When he was still a weak kid from Brooklyn, before the army, before the serum, he could at least keep himself together. Now he felt weaker than he had ever been, like his body was a few steps from falling apart all the time.
He pretended he could live like this, that he might be able to adapt, but in reality he would wither away. If he couldn't be a hero, he wasn't sure who he was.
It was like Sam could read his mind.
"Look, don't let this whole thing get you down." Sam nodded toward the other hospital rooms, four beds each, spread out in a hexagon around them. "You got a lot of people in the same boat. We're gonna find a cure."
"The gas was the cure," Steve pointed out.
"Yeah, well, I'll become your personal trainer if I have to."
Steve wanted to let his thoughts out for once. He said, "I can't live like this, Sam."
"You won't have to," Sam said.
"If they-"
"Positive thoughts," Sam cut in. "I've never seen you give up on anything. Maybe I haven't known you that long, but it's not your style. And you know what? It doesn't matter. As far as I'm concerned, no one holds a candle to you, with or without the serum."
Steve said nothing, falling back into his thoughts.
Bruce was weaving through the rooms, surveying the unconscious people, taking notes and drawing blood. He returned to a mobile work station over and over, giving assignments out to doctors and sending them to the lab downstairs.
Steve did what he could. He passed out blankets, towels, searched for identification. Sam went off to join the others at the airport, maybe the hideout for Freeman and his goons. Thor arrived and hovered by the work-station, watching Bloom work silently. He was sullen, mad he wasn't invited to the airport, still depressed because he had lost his powers.
Was that what Steve looked like?
He tried to perk up. Sam was right. It wasn't his style to give up.
Half an hour after the arrival of the patients, Bloom gathered the providers and the powerless Avengers around his work-station.
"I believe the gas is targeting anyone with a genetic anomaly, not just the Enhanced." He gestured behind him, to room 4, "One of the people who came in has Downs syndrome, which made me wonder if there was anyone else here with something similar. So far, at least three of the other patients have genetic disorders – blood disorders, invisible to the eye. I'm not sure what it's done to them yet, whether it will reverse those disorders or… kill the victim."
Steve looked around at all of those faces – twelve people. Could be dead by morning. So much could change in a day.
"But this discovery might help me find the antidote," Bloom added. "It means the gas is more generalized than I thought. Jarvis is going through names and the local police are working on contacting families. So, everyone, keep the patients comfortable and report any changing symptoms immediately."
The doctors dispersed.
Steve, Thor, and Bruce remained.
"I'm going down to the lab to look at these samples myself," Bruce said. "I'm assuming you're ready to… trial some formulas, Greg."
Thor perked up, "You have something that could fix us?"
"Maybe," Bloom qualified. "I'll need the two of you to take some risks, though. It could-"
"I'll take it," Steve said immediately.
"As will I," Thor said.
Bloom looked between them, nodding, appearing weary. "Okay then. Let's get started."