Hi guys! I'm pleased that there has already been such a positive response to this story! Enjoy the chapter!

And who's excited for the premier of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D? I am...

When Fiona was dragged from unconsciousness by the waves of pain, the first thing she noticed was the lack of a person next to her. She rolled over onto her side, her entire body screaming in protest. Frantically, she scanned the area, hoping for a sign of her brother.

But she was alone. She was stranded in the middle of the Afghan desert. Judging by the position of the sun, she been unconscious for at least three hours, likely more. She sat up, sending white-hot knives of pain stabbing along her leg.

And she was hurt, too. Of course she was hurt. She inhaled slowly through her nose, waiting for the pain to subside enough for her to function. Once she was able to think properly, she inspected her leg. Several spots on her right leg looked like they had been bleeding earlier and now were inflamed and oozy. Fighting the urge to throw up, she shrugged off what was left of her jacket, wrapping it around her leg and tying the sleeves in a knot, wrapping her hands around as much of her leg as possible. She didnt want to think about what injuries Tony must have sustained.

Injuries temporarily taken care of, she turned her attention to contacting someone. Her first thought was her phone, but something must have happened to it in the explosion because she had no signal (which never happened on the StarkPhone Tony had invented) and when she held it to her ear there was a weird buzzing noise. She looked around once more, taking careful notice of her surroundings this time. There were a few low mountains, a lot of sand, and the army jeep. There were the dead soldiers as well, but Fiona wasn't that desperate for company just yet.

The soldiers! They had radios! Fiona could have kicked herself. Slowly, she began to pull herself over to the nearest body, letting out involuntary cries as her leg was jarred with each movement. Finally, after four agonizing minutes, she made it to the body of the man who had been in the passenger seat. She found the radio in his belt and held the button on the side.

"H-hello?" she coughed. "Can anyone hear me?" She released the button. There was a hiss of static for a second or two, then, "I read you, who is this?"

"It's Fiona Stark. I-I need help. There was an explosion, and someone was shooting at us, and the soldiers in our car are dead, and-" she paused, trying to compose herself, "Tony's missing." There was silence on the other end for a moment, then a familiar voice.

"Fiona? It's Rhodey, are you all right? Where are you?"

"I-um-I don't know... My leg is pretty bashed up, but it's not life-threatening." Yet, she thought.

"Okay, Fiona, listen. There's a GPS transmitter on the dash of the humvee. It can send your location to us, can you get to it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I think so," said Fiona

"All right. Hurry, and contact us if anything happens. Over and out." Fiona tucked the radio into her pocket and began the journey to the car. She had to stop multiple times, taking almost half an hour to get to the car. She pulled herself up onto the seat, breathing deeply as she sat and let her leg hang out of the open door. She found the small GPS box and searched the display for the correct function. Her fingers were tingling as she touched the on-screen option and she was beginning to feel nauseous, worrying her that dehydration was beginning to set in. She lay across the front seats, suddenly exhausted. She could feel unconsciousness tugging at her brain, and she was so tempted to give in...

~.~.~.~.~.~.~

"Come on, stand up! Stand up! Just do as I do," hissed the man next to Tony. Toy struggled to hold onto the car battery as he stood next to the man and raised his hands. The door opened and several men came into the room brandishing weapons.

"Those are my guns. How did they get my guns?" Tony mumbled. The man at his side gave him a sharp glare.

"Do you understand me? Do as I do!" A large man sporting a thick black beard walked in, speaking in a Middle Eastern dialect. When he finished, he looked expectantly at the man next to Tony.

"He says, 'Welcome, Tony Stark, the most famous mass murderer in the history of America,'" the man translated quietly. "He is honored. He wants you to build the missile." The bearded man scowled, saying something else. "The Jericho missile that you demonstrated. This one." He passed a photo to Tony, showing the Jericho. Tony looked at it for a moment before looking up at the bearded man.

"Where is my sister?" he asked quietly. The man on his left spoke quickly to the bearded man, then began repeating his reply.

"He says...she was unnecessary to the plan. She was left in the desert." Tony's gaze hardened.

"I refuse," he said defiantly. A mistake, as it turned out.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~

"Fiona? Can you hear me?" Fiona's eyelids fluttered a few times before she managed to open them fully. She was no longer in the army truck; instead, she was lying on some sort of bed and looking up at a white ceiling. She could hear a quiet, steady beep somewhere. She turned her head slightly to the side and saw Rhodey standing at the side of the bed. "Glad to see you awake," he said. Fiona tried to say something but just ended up coughing because of the dryness of her throat. Rhodey helped her sit up a bit and then held a glass to her lips. She relished the wonderful feeling of the cool water in her throat. She cleared her throat one more time and tried again.

"Wh...what happened after I called you?"

"We got your signal and went to pick you up. You were in pretty bad shape when we found you, dehydrated and your leg was damaged in the explosion. You're at the base hospital." Fiona felt odd. Something didn't feel right. Then...

"Rhodey, I can't feel my legs." The beep that she had heard was increasing in tempo. Rhodey raised his hand in a calming gesture.

"They didn't have to amputate, if that's what you're worried about. But your leg did have several pieces of shrapnel in it. They had to do surgery to take them out. It's just the anesthetic."

"There's something you're not telling me, isn't there." Fiona could tell. She was an expert at reading body language, even a soldier had signs.

"Well-"

"Please don't sugarcoat it, Rhodey. Just tell me. Please."

"There was a piece of shrapnel in your knee and it tore through a nerve and your ACL. The physicians say that you might not get full functionality back." Fiona didnt say anything. "They said you'll probably need a brace to walk for some time." Fiona closed her eyes.

"Okay. That's okay. Rhodey...did you find Tony?" She thought she already knew the answer.

"Fiona...I'm sorry, there was no sign of him where you were." Fiona felt the prickling behind her eyes as she tried to hold back tears but it was no use. They burst from her in a flood and she sobbed. She felt Rhodey wrap his arms around her and she did the same.

"We're not giving up, Fiona. We've got people out looking for him and were not stopping until we find him." Fiona nodded and sniffed.

"Sorry I got your uniform all gross," she mumbled. Rhodey chuckled.

"It's fine," he said. A young man poked his head into the room.

"Colonel? You've got a call, sir," he said. Rhodey stood up.

"I'm sorry, Fiona, I've got to go," he said.

"That's okay," replied Fiona. "I'm all right. Go ahead." Rhodey gave her one last quick hug before leaving the room. Fiona watched him go, suddendly tired. She lay back and stared at the ceiling, and soon was asleep.

She left a few days later, getting on a plane back to Malibu. They touched down at an out-of-the-way airport, using a regular plane to avoid attention. Pepper was waiting for them on the Tarmac. Fiona limped down the steps, still getting used to the knee brace that she had to wear. She stumbled on the last step but Pepper was there waiting for her and caught her, pulling her into a hug as she did so.

"Fiona, Rhodey called and explained everything, are you okay?" Fiona nodded.

"Yeah. I'm fine." The two young women didnt say anything for a moment, then Fiona whispered, "I'm going to find him, Pepper. He's not dead, I just know it. I'm going to find him and bring him home."

"I know you will. If anyone can find him, you can."

I hope you guys enjoyed chapter 2, and if you have any requests story plot points in the story I will do my best to include! As always, please review and I'll see you next chapter (or maybe the other story I'm working on)!

~Ophelia