Chapter 22

Zaria flopped onto her bed and took long, slow, deep breaths as she tried to keep everything regulated and even. She had done well with Peggy and Steve but even she had limits and she was certain she had just past them. Part of her understood that Steve really wasn't doing it to be rude or mean, but sometimes she really just didn't understand how he thought; what made him think what he was asking for was okay?

"Should I call for Ms. Davenport or Mr. Banner?" J.A.R.V.I.S.'s lightly accented A.I. voice echoed into her quiet room. "I've noticed that your pulse it elevated and you seem to be holding your stomach.

"I'm fine." Zaria gritted out as calmly as she could.

"I would have to disagree with that statement."

"I don't care if you agree with me, J.A.R.V.I.S., I said I was fine." Zaria snapped as she tried to relax her now tightening muscles.

"If you insist."

"Oh I insist…" Zaria muttered to herself as she tried to settle more comfortably into her bed, eyes shut, and the lights down low. Long moments of silence passed as she carefully breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth in an attempt to keep herself from going out and strangling Steve, Peggy, or both. A knock at the door startled her so badly that she nearly fell off the bed. Pain twinged in her abdomen as she sat up too quickly; her heart raced wildly.

"Your heart rate is elevated again." J.A.R.V.I.S. pointed out.

"Shut it." Zaria snapped as she slowly got off the bed and went to the door. Light flooded in as she opened the door making her blink rapidly before she realized who was standing there before her. "Bruce?"

"Hello Zaria, I thought I would check up on you and see how you were holding up." He said with a smile.

"Did J.A.R.V.I.S. tell you he thought I was in need of assistance?" Zaria questioned, trying to keep the accusation out of her voice.

"He did mention something, but I had already been on my way over to see you. I had wanted to discuss something with you and Director Fury if you don't mind joining me."

"Uh… Sure…" Zaria answered as she stepped out of her room and into the bright hallway. She rested her hand almost absentmindedly on her stomach.

"Are you alright?" Bruce questioned as he noticed where her hand was.

"I'll be fine." Zaria answered after a moment of hesitation. "It'll pass."

Bruce held out his arm to her. "Take my arm and we'll go slowly until you feel better."

Zaria stared at him in disbelief before she slowly took his arm. "Thank you." She mumbled.

"You're very welcome." Bruce said warmly as he led the way down the hall.

They walked in silence for a while before Zaria asked. "Are we going up to the Helicarrier or is Fury coming down to Stark's tower?"

"He's actually here in the tower discussing with the others about finding your- finding the Winter Soldier so I thought this was a good time to talk to both of you about the issue at hand."

"Issue at hand? You mean my pregnancy or my missing grandfather?"

Bruce flushed slightly. "Your pregnancy. The Director thought that it would be best not to discuss the on goings of that investigation. It was determined that it might be safer for your health if you didn't know."

"Who decided that?"

"Ah… Doctor Davenport and I." Bruce answered slowly.

Zaria chuckled softly. "Yes, I didn't think Fury would be too concerned with that, when was this decided?"

"Just after you were stabilized. Doctor Davenport and Director Fury had a very heated argument about including you in the investigation."

"I assume that Fury wanted me included as basically bait but that Samantha did not."

"Yes, that's the gist of it."

Zaria smiled. "Well thank you."

They exited the elevator and entered what looked like a war room. Chairs looked recently vacated and, if she strained, she could just make out the high and low pitches of a female and a male voice discussing something; probably Clint and Natasha. Bruce guided her through the large room and into a small side room where Fury was already sitting in a chair at a small table.

"So what was it you needed to discuss in private?" Fury was direct to the point as usual.

Bruce declined to answer until he had helped Zaria into her seat and sat down himself. "Well it has to do with Zaria and her pregnancy. As you both know I have been taking regular blood samples from Zaria throughout the stages of the pregnancy that we have been aware of. I was testing to see if there were any changes in her when I realized that, for some yet unknown reason, the separation of the normal human DNA and the enhanced DNA has become more pronounced making it easier to separate the two. I have been pulling out Zaria's enhanced DNA in hopes to possibly make a serum out of it. Now, I do not know for sure if the serum will even work, but I was possibly planning on using it on Zaria herself after she gives birth in an attempt to… help her system stay alive. Since this is extremely sensitive information, and, if it works, could become a potential danger to anyone who learns about it I thought it would be best to only tell a few people. The only people who know at this point are Zaria, you Director Fury, Samantha and I."

Fury sat there processing the information that Bruce had just figuratively laid on the table before them. No one seemed inclined to say anything yet.

Zaria spoke up first. "So this could save my life?"

"Potentially, yes. But as I have no way of testing the serum it could also have the adverse effect and destroy any chance you possibly had at surviving. It also could only be temporary, which is all I'm really looking for at this stage, or it could become permanent. I really have no way of knowing as there isn't a safe way to test it."

"So I'll basically become a guinea pig."

"Only if you agree to take the serum after giving birth. I would never allow you to be given the shot without your express permission."

"And if I say no?"

"Then we will let your body decide if it can survive the fight between your dominate human DNA and your more recessive enhanced DNA."

"And what if I say that she doesn't have a choice in the matter?" Director Fury finally spoke up.

Bruce turned his attention to Fury. Outwardly he seemed calm and collected, but the intonation of the words that left his mouth clearly said otherwise. "Then I will destroy all the work I have done up to this point. I am the only one who knows exactly how to extract that DNA from her blood without it splitting apart and all but self-destructing. I will not allow Zaria to become an unwilling test subject, nor will I allow you to use this serum on anyone else as it is only made from her unique mix of DNA."

Zaria opened her mouth to respond before Bruce cut her off.

"I do not expect an answer now as I did just drop this on you, but I thought that it was best you learned this information as soon as possible so that you have some time to process it and make the best choice for you." Bruce smiled lightly at Zaria.

"Is this something I can discuss with anyone?" She asked.

Fury leaned forward in his chair. "I think it would be best if you only discuss it with those who already know. As of right now, I don't believe anyone else needs to know about this. If it's a success then I will consider explaining it to the rest of the team."

"With all due respect, if it works you're not going to be able to consider anything. I will basically be a superhuman just like Steve. I don't see how you could explain that away in any other way but telling them what happened." Zaria responded.

"We'll deal with that when we get there." Fury said "If that's all you're excused."

Zaria's figurative feathers ruffled at Fury's dismissal of her response and complete shut down when he told her to leave, but she bit back the snide remark that wanted to make its way out of her mouth and got out of her chair and out of the room.

Bruce joined her, walking with her back to the elevator. "I probably should have discussed this with you first in private before bringing it up to Director Fury, but you were both here at the same time and-"

"It's alright." Zaria cut him off as they made their way down to the floor that hard her room on it. "It's understandable."

They walked in silence to her room where they stopped.

"If you need anything or start having any pain, don't hesitate to call for either Doctor Davenport or I." Bruce stated.

"I won't." Zaria answered as she opened the door to her room and went in; Bruce made his way down the hall again and disappeared from sight.

Sighing, she laid down on her bed again and stared blankly at the ceiling. There was now possible ways to save her life, or completely and utterly destroy any chance she possibly had at surviving through giving birth. On top of that, they had been keeping her out of the loop on finding her grandfather. Pursing her lips she rolled to her side and stared at the computer that had been left on her room.

"J.A.R.V.I.S.?"

"Yes, Zaria?" J.A.R.V.I.S. answered.

"Does that computer still work?"

"Yes it does."

"Is it in any way connected to you and the rest of the mainframe?"

"That it is."

"Can you get me any and all files S.H.I.E.L.D. has on James Buchanan Barnes A.K.A. the Winter Soldier and put them on that computer so I can look at them?"

"You're asking me to hack into S.H.I.E.L.D. to get you files on this person?" J.A.R.V.I.S.'s lightly accented voice came across as snide and condescending.

"Yes, if that's what you need to do then yes I want you to hack them. They won't let me see the files and I am the best person suited to finding him."

After a moment of silence where Zaria started to think that he wasn't going to do it J.A.R.V.I.S. answered.

"I will do my best to get you all the files you have asked for."

"Thanks."