She found their conversation end and she ran from her room as quickly as possible, she had to find Fury and demand that he let Rogers fight. Down flights of stairs, running into workers here and there... Xyta sniffed Fury out and found him back at his office, she bursting through the doors with a menacing growl on her lips.

"Captain America leads the team to protect my home if he truly desires to. No man declares to fight for what's right and is pushed away!" She growled, her bright blue eyes glowing like stars. Her demeanor then softened ever so slightly and Xyta placed her hands on Fury's messy, unorganized desk, a look of true sadness in her eyes.

"Steve Rogers is not dying, Colonel. I see something in him... Something that needs to be unlocked... It's a golden fire, a desire to stay living... It's the same thing my mentor saw in me before she died... Please, Colonel... Give him a chance."

How the #%$ did she just hear our conversation?

...was what Fury would've said, but he keeps his cool. It seems that Xyta is a lot like Wolverine. He would've read up on her listending powers, if only he managed to sniff out information on her. Fury is getting rusty. Either that, or these newly bred super humans are getting sneakier. This only makes Captain and Fury look even more like dinosaurs in the room.

Xyta isn't the only one who's stubborn. Captain turns his gaze away from the Amazon. It isn't anything towards Xyta. He's grateful for her genuine care. But he's still upset that she now knows about his condition. Don't ask, don't tell. Nobody finds out. Too bad that unwritten rule doesn't cover eavesdropping. How much has Xyta heard? If she listened to everything that had been said, she'd know of his burning desire to fight for her land-die for her land. But then, she also knows of his weakened state. Should he feel ashamed? Mortified? Captain only smiles.

"Thought I told you to address me as your Captain, ma'am."

He looks at her with a stern expression. But the look was immediately returned with a scowl she wore all too well. "I call you what I want. It's about to be 'jackass' in a minute." She hissed, placing her hands on her hips and looking up his 6'2 frame. Rogers justs rolls his eyes. She was relentless. Obstinate, at that.

"Colonel knows what's best. Just like how you, Xyta, have to respect me, I also have to respect the Colonel."

Captain walks up to her and rests a hand on her shoulder. He can see the wet glow of concern in her eyes. Has she been crying? No, can't be. Xyta had showed her teeth at him when he simply ordered her to properly address him in rank a few hours ago. This can't be the same woman who's showing compassion for him now. Can Taskmaster be that bad, maybe?

"Thank you for helping me."

Captain's voice is low. He steps in close and bows his forehead so he can match her gaze. Their foreheads almost touch-almost. A kiss of musk and fresh apples brushes against her face when he speaks.

"Africa's proud to have a young woman like you, and if your parents were still around, they'd be in tears from knowing that their child had grown up to be so strong. Do good, Xyta. I know you can."

Captain finishes his statement while looking into her eyes, as if he's trying to burn his words into the back of her brain. Why is he standing so close to her? Isn't he supposed to maintain his professionalism? Then it all makes sense when Captain turns to Fury and says...

"I'll step down from position and leave my complete faith in Taskmaster." Captain, now simply Steve, boldly strides out of the office. He's not donning the 'Captain' rank anymore, but he still marches off with the heart of a soldier. This leaves Fury and Xyta alone. Steve may not know women well, but Fury sure does, and he knows that Xyta is probably livid now. He just hopes his words can catch her before she blows the roof off.

"Look, Xyta, hold on. Please just understand. Making these decisions isn't easy. I'm doing what's best for your Captain. Believe me, I know you don't want to see him die, and neither do I."

Of course the woman was livid beyond belief. It was showing by the way she was gripping the windowsill, creating hand imprints that were near impossible to fix. Right now, all of the information was a bit too much for her, and so she had to simplify and make a decision based on what her instincts-and her heart-were telling her.

Fury swallows hard and studies the hurt in her expression.

"Now, Taskmaster is every bit as capable as your Captain is. Once the mission is over, I promise you that you'll return home and you can forget all about this. Leave this behind. I know this isn't what you want right now."

Fury does his best to placate the situation.

"His condition can't be reversed and can't be cured. The serum had been a part of his genetic makeup for decades now. Tampering with that is tampering with the building blocks that shape his body itself. Don't try anything...please."

"One thing is for sure, Taskmaster will not be setting foot in my jungle. You can take him off the poll for a leadership position right now, or I will sprout wings this instant and fly back to Africa, and I will take on Hydra myself!" she screamed, turning to Fury with her nails and teeth having elongated, like she was preparing for a fight.

After taking a few breaths, the woman calmed down and she turned back to the window, still shaking a little. Steve had been so close… she could smell his sweet breath and his hand on her shoulder before he had left the room, putting down the shield for good and leaving her in a fluster of anger, sadness, and utmost desperation to keep him here on the team!

Xyta has acute senses and can turn into animals. Who knows what else she can do? Fury sure doesn't, and that's why he wants her to stay as distant as she can from Captain. That's when Maria Hill shows up at the office's entrance, arms folded. She had been concerned about Xyta ever since she had seen her sullen attitude back at the female lounge.

"Xyta, you see his condition, you feel it…" began Maria Hill before Xyta lost control and lashed back at Maria, with her fangs bared and eyes glowing again.

"I WILL NOT DENY WHAT I SAW!" she roared, sending several papers spewing across the room and Maria stumbling a little from the forced wind of the scream. Damn, what could this woman not do? Was all the female agent thought as she adjusted her hair while keeping a considerable distance away from the angry guardian. Xyta managed to cool herself down, putting the teeth and claws away while hanging her head as she supported herself on the window railing, so many thoughts buzzing through her head.

"You think Steve is weakening because of some dumb serum that's been locked in his body for over 70 years…" Xyta began, still turned away from the director and his right hand agent. "From the moment I met him, I sensed something, SAW something burning in his bosom, something powerful, but it's contained…" Xyta explained, her voice much softer and quieter than it had been before.

"I would know, because I've seen it before. I've seen HIM, before…"

There's silence as the three stood there in the room, all churning thoughts. Maria Hill is the first to speak.

"I have an idea: pit Captain and Taskmaster inside the training room and I'll analyze Captain's condition to see if he's able to lead. If Task can't do it, we can always replace him with Xyta."

"Why Xyta?"

"She's on par with Wolverine, colonel. If Captain can still put up a stellar performance inside the Training Room, then we should reconsider...but..."

Maria Hill turns to Xyta and looks at her, while still talking to Fury.

"If my analytics tell me that Xyta is holding back for Captain's sake, then Captain stays off the team."

"So it's between her and Taskmaster, right?"

"Yes, colonel."

Fury looks at Maria, then at Xyta. "Well, what do you think about all of this?"

"Let us see what Captain can still do, but we can not put him up against Taskmaster… We must put him up against someone who will give him the chance to truly show what he is capable of…not try and kill him the moment the fight begins." she said. When Fury and Maria exchanged confused looks and were about to speak, Xyta slowly turned around with hope glimmering in her eyes and a gentle smile across her lips.

"…I will fight Captain America."