The cover art belongs to Vylla in deviantART.
Stephanie Rogers slowly opens her blue eyes. "Becky, no!" She screamed, suddenly recalling her fallen friend. She finds herself awake on a bed. As she sits up, she sees herself wearing a blouse, a skirt, pantyhose, and heels. She looks around, she appears to be in a normal-looking hospital room, somewhere in a city. He can even hear cars from outside the window. But somehow she sense something is off. She noticed her blonde hair not only grew, but it's loose. She feels her bra not fitting properly, and can see the edge of the cups through her blouse.
She also noticed a radio is turned on, talking about a baseball game. A game between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Brooklyn Doggers...
A man in a U.S. Army general uniform comes in through the door. "Morning." He said with a smile, removing his hat. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. Stephanie also noticed his haircut that she doesn't see in many other generals she's met before. "Or should I say afternoon?" He corrected, trying to lighten up the mood. "I trust that you're doing well."
"Where am I?" Stephanie asked.
"You're in a recovery room in New York City." He answered.
She looks around the room again, then looked outside and noticed the proportion of a building outside looked odd. She then looks back at the general with a glare. "Where am I really?"
"I'm sorry, I afraid I don't understand what you mean." He said, apparently confused. She knows he's lying.
"The game." She gestures her head at the radio. "It's from May 1941, I know because my friend took me there." She sees the eyes of the "general" widened in a subdued panic. She then stood up and walk over to him. "So I'm going to ask you again. Where am I?"
"Ms. Rogers..." The "general" tried to calm her down as he secretly pushed a button on a small device in his pocket.
"Who are you?!" She demanded. Then heavily armed men in black uniforms suddenly walk through the door.
She threw two of them into the wall, which suddenly broken through. She discovers that the room is fake and runs out of the room. "Ms. Rogers, wait!" The "general" yelled, as Stephanie barged through the door. "Wait! Damn it!" He pulled out his walkie-talkie. "All agents, this is Shane Carter! Code 13!"
"Shane Carter?!" Stephanie thought as she ran to the lobby with several people noticing her.
"I repeat! All agents, Code 13!"
She pushed her way out of the building and find herself in Time Square where several people stare as she looks around shocked at how the entire world is different and nearly futuristic in her eyes. Just then, black cars surround her and the armed men were about to apprehend Stephanie when a female voice yells, "At ease, soldier." The armed men stand down.
Stephanie turn and look at a woman with long brown hair with a grey streak, an eyepatch on her left eye, a blue spysuit and a black longcoat. Stephanie's surprised to see a woman is apparently leading the soldiers. "Who are you?" she asked, wanting some answers.
"I suppose introductions are in order, Ms. Rogers. Or should I say, Captain America?" she said with a brief smile. "I am Nicole Fury, director of the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division, otherwise known as SHIELD. You can call me Fury, everyone else does." she introduced herself. "Look, I'm sorry for that little show back there. We thought it'd be best to break it to you gently." she explained.
"Break what?"
"You've been asleep, Ms. Rogers. For almost 70 years."
Stunned by this revelation, Stephanie began to tear up.
"Are you going to be okay?" A concerned Fury asked.
"Yeah, I just..." Stephanie said, as she sadly looks on in the distance, thinking about her love Percy Carter. "...never got that dance."
Author's Notes:
Based on the ending of Captain America: The First Avengers movie.
This takes place in a genderbend universe I designate Earth-81723. It takes elements from the mainstream comics, Ultimate Marvel, the MCU, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, Fox's X-Men film series, the Sam Raimi Spider-Man film series, The Spectacular Spider-Man, and the 2010-2017 Marvel Animated Universe. My other short story The Kiss also takes place in this universe.
Stephanie Rogers is based on the one from Michael Weyer's Brothers of Thunder, a spin-off tie-in to his Infinity Crisis. She also mentioned Percy Carter, male version of Peggy Carter, as her lover in Brothers of Thunder.
Becky is the genderbend Bucky Barnes, named Rebecca Barnes, based on the one from Earth-86315, who first appeared in Exiles #3 (May 2018).
Shane Carter is the great-grandnephew of Stephanie's lover Percy, and thus the genderbend version of Peggy's niece Sharon. The idea of him pretending to be a general came from my early assumption that the female agent who was checking up on Cap at the end of The First Avenger was Sharon Carter, and that "Code 13" was a reference to Sharon's moniker Agent 13.
The idea is that Stephanie was wearing a similar outfit to the female agent. While Shane is wearing an old general uniform from the 1940s, but didn't exactly gave himself a haircut most military men wore back then.
The "friend" Stephanie mentions is Barry Ross, the genderbend version of Cap's first girlfriend Betsy Ross aka Golden Girl in the comics. In this universe, Stephanie and Barry's relationship is platonic. He's also the great-uncle of Benny Ross, boyfriend of Betsy Banner aka the Hulk.
Nicole Fury is based on the female Nick Fury from Earth-81114 who appeared in New Exiles #17 (Jan. 2009). She's a female version of the original white Nick Fury.