CHAPTER 21

*Please note that Elliot Dawes is an OC of mine and that this happens after Avengers Assembled and before Captain America 2, carrying on into that timeline.*

The next, Steve got deployed to go hunt down The Red Skull. I found the visitors becoming less and less frequent. Within a week I felt like I was slowly losing my mind. The nightmares were still there and I still freaked out whenever somebody screamed from somewhere in the hospital. Bodies got carted past my window in all sorts of state. After three weeks off not hearing from anyone, Coulson paid me a visit.

"Glad to see you're well," he said.

"What's happened?" I asked sharply.

"We've lost track of Captain America," Coulson told me, not beating around the bush.

"Give me my computer and I can find him," I said quickly.

"We have a team-," Coulson began.

"Which won't find him," I said. "Coulson, you've been watching me for years, you know I can do it,"

He nodded. By evening, I was being snuck out and lead to a large office building. There I was put in a room by myself and my computer. I raked through my precious bag. Everything was there. I pulled out my tablet and began searching. It didn't take me long to find out where the Red Skull was. I hacked into their security system and it wasn't long before I found Steve. For someone who could heal fast, he was badly beaten up. He slouched in the corner of his empty cell, looking hardly alive. Christ, at least I was given a bed, I thought in horror. I got up and tried the door of the room. It was locked. I banged on it loudly.

"I'VE FOUND RODGERS!" I yelled.

Next thing I know, I'm boarded onto a plan and flown out with a bunch of special agents, including the Black Widow. I was pretty excited about that.

"There's three entrance into the base and two that are disused," I said. "The entrance via the river under the mountain seems like your best bet"

I showed the map I had constructed.

"There's around three dozen guards on each floor, more where Rodgers and the Red Skull is," I continued. "Everything's automatic and powered by the computers. If my calculations are correct the tunnel should lead to the main computers. Get me there, I can shut down the entire base but it will trigger and alarm. That I can dismantle but only after it's gone off,"

The agents began protesting at once about me coming. They liked to remind me I was on SHIELDs watch list, not an agent and that I wasn't trained in anyway.

"She's coming," Romanoff decided.

Nobody argued with her. Next thing I knew, I was given a tight black, one piece costume and a gun. I suited up (man that sounds so cool to say) and joined them in the loading cargo off the ship. The outfit was tight around my metal leg (which was chunkier than the rest of me) and threatened to rip. I was given a parachute and shoved out the plan. I screamed most off the way down. I followed everyone else upon pulling the chord. We floated down and landed in some trees. The par we moved silently along the river and into the tunnel. I kept my tablet out and directed them. We reached a set of rusting, ringed stairs that lead into the base. We got into the base via that way. Romanoff and another agent took out the two guards patrolling. My tablet warned us off any upcoming danger. We reached the computer room in no time.

"This is my stop," I hissed. "Rodgers is on the fourth floor unless they move him,"

An agent was left to protect me as I hacked into the computers. I sat there and ran my very own decrypting programme. I got into their systems and shut the entire thing down. An alarm began buzzing and the programme was more complicated than I imagined (not to mention it was done in German) but after five minutes the alarm ceased as well. Three guards burst into the room and began firing. A bullet struck my metal leg it rocketed off and struck the guard that shot it. The agent took out the other two. Together we left and hurried up to meet up with the others. Silently we formed a pretty decent team. I would kick with my leg and he'd shoot. It wasn't long before we found Romanoff with Steve. He wasn't stirring.

"I can't get him to wake," she said.

I pulled out a syringe and took a blood sample. I loaded it up onto the computer than was my satchel and the computer scanned his blood. It found some sort of sleeping drug in his system. I quickly made up a solution off strong adrenaline. I put it into the biggest syringe I had.

"Stay back," I warned them.

I slammed the syringe directly into Steve's heart and injected him with it. He jolted awake, leaping to his feet.

"WHOA!" he cried.

It took him a moment to come to his senses. He was perfectly okay, his wounds healing at expected rate. Someone found his suit and shield and he pulled them on. He, Romanoff and the rest went to find the Red Skull. I quickly modified the heel off my leg, slipping in a syringe with the same sleeping solution Steve had in his system.

"You are proving quite a difficult person, Miss Dawes," came the familiar, horrible voice.

I winced at the voice as it filled me with dread. It didn't stop me turning around to face him. The Red Skull stepped into the room, his hands clasped behind his back. It was so tense in the room you could have sliced it with a butter knife.

"I like to think I'm just plain old stubborn," I responded.

"You still have not learned to keep your mouth shut." The Red Skull accused me off.

"And you still haven't learned that good always wins," I replied.

The Red Skull whipped a gun out from behind his back. He pointed it directly between my eyes and slowly clicked the safety off. My heart began to hammer, he got ready to fire. I kicked out with my metal leg, knocking him backwards.

"Thanks for the upgrade," I said, flicking my ankle. "Now, time for a nap,"

I stabbed him with the syringe in my heel. The effect was instant. He collapsed the ground, in a deep sleep. The others appeared, running up to me.

"What happened?" Steve asked.

"Let's just say he got a taste off his own medicine," I said brightly.

The Red Skull got carted off to be locked away for a very long time. Steve hugged me tightly. I hugged him back, just glad he was okay.

"Thank you," he muttered.

"Are we even now?" I asked him, laughing.

"We definitely are,"

Together we clambered into the plain. Director Fury had appeared out of nowhere. He stood into the middle of the cargo bay, looking half amused half unimpressed. He was an intimidating figure. I gazed down at my feet, one bare and metal, and the other hidden by a boot.

"You really are proving to be a problem, aren't you, Miss Dawes," Director Fury commented.

"What can I say, I like to keep life interested," I replied with a shrug.

"We need to keep you under constant surveillance," Director Fury informed me. "Lucky for you, Stark has offered you a place as one of his scientist,"

"Well it ain't Disneyworld," I responded. "But it'll do,"

ELLIOT DAWES WILL RETURN!