Hello everyone! Sorry for the massive delay. After flipping my car (which is how I got the concussion if you wanted to know because I'm sure you did) I felt pretty crummy for a while there. It was an aweful experience and whouldn't wish it on anyone. Only plus side to my little vacation was I found a new fandom. Down side that show was canceled so... :/
I am going to write a lot this weeked to catch up on some chapters. If there is anything you would like to see PM me of review all that fun jazz. I will also be editing this and the last chapter so be sure to look out for that.
This is the last time I add a chapter without it going through my beta promise.
Chapter something: Do As I Do
Phil shook himself slightly in his wheel chair as Pepper wheeled him over to where Clint had been sitting. He had been glad to run into Pepper as she stormed through the Helicarrier (and many agents had been too because as soon as she saw him her war path died… at least until they neared the conference room but her idea to spit fire at anyone disappeared as soon as she caught sight of the television).
He sighed slightly and made himself relax into the wheelchair as he looked steadily at the TV. He knew Tony hadn't told him the full story (on record at least but after a couple of years their tentative friendship grew and Tony let things slip). But the stubborn man never even hinted at this and absolutely refused even from the time of his rescue to be treated or act like a victim. He was goddamn Tony Stark!
"Well now that the gang is all here can we start with this shit already?" Fury snarked sending a hard look at the security camera in the corner of the room.
"Certainly sir." Jarvis said sounding flippant.
Tony appear on screen, raged, dirty, and very worse for wear.
The teams eyes widened. They had seen him in a previous scene but he didn't look as bad as he did here. Most of them had never seen Tony in anything other then his expensive suits and always perfectly put together.
He started to come to slowly, eyes blinking hazily as he rolled his head around slightly. His breaths came in short gasping rattles as he coughed weakly and reached up to his nose to feel what was there. Discovering the small nasal tubing, he wrapped shaking fingers around it and started to pull. He gasped at the length but kept pulling at it until it finally was gone.
"Uh… That's disgusting." Clint said.
"At least it was done properly," Bruce piped in.
He dropped the tube and reach up to pull off the remaining bit of tape. When he got it off he laid back on the cot tiredly. His eyes looked around the ceiling tiredly before he looked to his left. There was a small table next to the cot he was in and there were various odds and ends but Tony only say the cup of water. He slowly reached for it, fingers stiff and shaking but as he touched it and tried to get a grip on it, he ended up knocking it to the floor.
He coughed again, hunching in on himself slightly, still reaching toward the table. There was another bottle sitting there just a bit out of his reach. He shifted closer and reached out again.
"He must be a prisoner as well." Steve said quietly, and his tone was tinged with… worry? And it made those in the room glance at his in well hidden surprise
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A voice came as the screen changed to show a man looking at him through a dirty, cracked mirror as he shaved.
Tony stopped and rolled back onto his back, turning his head to the right to see what had stopped him.
"A battery?!" Clint exclaimed. "A BATTERY!"
Pepper looked ready to burst into tears again and faint at the same time while everyone else had looks of visible shock and horror on their faces.
Tony looked down at his gauze covered chest, a frantic look crossing over his face as he started to grasp and rip at the bandages. With heavy labored breaths, he finally got the area uncovered, revealing a piece of black metal sitting in his chest connected to the wires.
"Good, God," Bruce and Phil both breathed.
"There's rust on that metal." Natasha observed sounding slightly detached (though no one planned to call her out on that).
Even Fury looked rightly horrified as he gazed at the screen. But none of them could find their words.
The scene changed to a small fire and pot cooking beans. Tony was sitting on a work bench, looking down at the other man as he tired to pot. He looked away, back to staring at the lump of metal in his chest.
"What the hell did you do to me?" he asked, voice quiet and shaking even with his attempts at sounding stronger.
"What I did?" asked the man before he chuckled slightly, looking up at Tony. "What I did is save your life. I removed all of the shrapnel I could, but there's a lot left and it's heading for your atrial septum."
Clint, Steve, and Thor automatically glanced to Bruce for the English translation.
"What is this septum the man speaks of?" Thor questioned.
Bruce took off his glasses and fiddled with them. "It's the wall of tissue that separates the left and right atria of the heart." he rattled off weakly. He knew this. He knew that this man had almost died, so why was this so hard?
Clint nodded in understanding. Steve and Thor though still looked confused, only getting that it had something to do with the heart, but they nodded anyway.
Tony stilled looked slightly sick as he stared down at it.
"Here," the man said, "want to see?" He picked up a small glass jar, shaking it slightly so Tony could here all the tinkling of metal. "I have a souvenir," he said, voice sounding slightly taunting. "Take a look." He tosses the jar to Tony who caught it and looked at it.
Bruce tensed slightly at the tone of the man's voice as he spoke to Tony.
As Tony looked at the shrapnel, the man continued on. "I've seen many wounds like that in my village." he said now grave. "We call it the walking dead."
Trying again to lighten the heavy atmosphere, Clint decided to chime in. "Hey I love that show. We should get Cap to watch it. Hey Jarvis can you remind me of that when this is all over? You can put together a list of all the things we need to show Cap."
"Certainly sir." Jarvis said, and though Clint smiled at the yes he received, he missed the slightly vindictive tone that entered the AI's voice. Only Pepper and Phil caught it.
Natasha reached over and snacked the back of Clint's head. He pouted, rubbing where he would surly end up with a bruise.
"-because it takes about a week for the barbs to reach the vital organs."
"What is this?" asked Tony, sounding drained.
"That is an electromagnet, hooked up to a car battery," he said smoothly. "And it is keeping the shrapnel from entering your heart."
The man turned back to the beans he was cooking for their meal. Tony moved his shoulders about uncomfortably, looking around the cave, before he stopped and zipped up the jacket, covering up the magnet. The man looked up at him before looking at the camera mounted on one of the cave walls.
"That's right," he said with a sarcastic smile. "Smile."
Phil let out a harsh breath. "Why is this man so patronizing?" He was honestly to tired to keep cool calm collected right now.
His question was however only met with shrugs and curious looks.
"We met once you know." the man continued, looking at Tony, "at a technical conference in Bern."
Pepper groaned and slapped a hand to her forehead.
"I don't remember," muttered Tony, glancing at the man.
"Why doesn't he remember Mrs. Stark?" Steve asked curiously, but Pepper only shook her head.
The man grinned. "No, you wouldn't. If I had been that drunk, I wouldn't have been able to stand, much less give a lecture on integrated circuits."
"It was on New Years." Pepper said. "We had a little to much to drink before his lecture. He doesn't drink as often as people think…" Pepper began to babble, red touching her cheeks.
The team shot looks at Natasha and Steve, waiting for something to be said. But neither said anything.
"Where are we?" Tony asked, not in much of a mood for small talk.
Before the other could answer there was a bang and the sound of sliding metal before a voice started shouting in a foreign language.
"Come on stand up!" the man urged, motioning to get up quickly. "Stand up!" He grabbed Tony's arm as he stood. "Just do as I do," he hissed.