"Hello, Agent Donovan." I looked up from the machine to Mr. Howard Stark. He had his smug look on his face.
"Morning, Mr. Stark." I greeted him back, politely.
"Exciting, isn't it? This whole thing?" He looked around the room at the machines, scientists and doctors. I raised an eyebrow at him.
"Yes, quite." I agreed with him, going back to machine.
"Well maybe after this we can go dancing and after, a late night fondue?" He asked me. I thought about it.
"I would love too but I don't dance." I told him nicely.
"Well we don't have to-""Mr. Stark, we'll have fondue then maybe a walk in the park." I interrupted him.
"That sounds great." He agreed with me.
"Good. Now, don't you have work to do?" I reminded him of his job. He blushed and nodded. I looked up as I heard the upper doors open. Peggy and Steve stood there looking at all of us. Everyone in the room got quiet as they looked at them. Dr. Erskine appeared next to me and I walked with him to Peggy and Steve as they finished walking down the stairs.
"Good morning." He greeted Steve. Then a flash went off. Dr. Erskine glared at the man with the camera. "Please, not now." Steve worriedly looked at the machine.
"Are you ready?" I asked him. Steve nods slowly.
"Good. Take off your shirt, your tie, and your hat." Dr. Erskine instucted. Steve did what he was asked and gets up on the machine. He lays down and takes a deep breath.
"Comfortable?" Dr. Erskine asked him, standing next to him.
"It's a little big." He looked down at his feet. Dr. Erskine chuckled and I smiled.
"It won't be later." I stated to him. He looked at me then to the doctor.
"You save me any of that schnapps?" He asked. Knowing Dr. Erskine, he probably didn't.
"Not as much as I should have. Sorry. Next time. Mr. Stark, how are your levels?" Howard walked over to us and looked at Steve.
"Levels at 100%." Dr. Erskine looked at him.
"Good."
"We may dim half the lights in Brooklyn, but we are ready as we'll ever be." Howard glanced at me. I shook my head and started to strap Steve in as he glanced up at me.
"Agent Carter? Don't you think you would be more comfortable in the booth?" I heard Dr. Erskine ask Peggy.
"Yes, of course. Sorry." Peggy said. I glazed at her as she started to walk to the stairs. She looked back as Steve and I shook my head at her. Steve took a shaky breath and I rubbed his arm.
"It's alright. I'll be down here the whole time." I reassured him. He smiled slightly at me.
"Thank you." I smiled back at him.
"Do you hear me?" I turned to Dr. Erskine with a microphone in his hand. "Is this on? Ladies and gentlemen, today we take not another step towards annihilation, but the first step on the path to peace. We begin with a series of microinjections into the subject's major muscle groups." Dr. Erskine started to explaim. Steve grabbed my hand quickly.
"The serum infusion will cause immediate cellular change. And then, to stimulate growth, the subject will be saturated with Vita-Rays." I slipped my hand out of Steve's and grabbed the needle. I pushed it into his arm and his face scrunched up in pain. I pulled the needle out, placing it back.
"That wasn't so bad." He complained. Dr. Erskine walked up next to me.
"That was penicillin." His eyes widened at me. I laughed at him and wiped away the blood from his arm.
"Serum infusion beginning in five, four, three, two....one." Dr. Erskine placed his hand next to mine on Steve's shoulder. Both of us wanted to give him comfort. Then he was injected.
"Now, Mr. Stark." Dr. Erskine slowly pulled me away as the machine straightened and closed around Steve. Then he knocked on the outside of the machine.
"Steven? Can you hear me?" He asked.
"It's probably too late to go to the bathroom, right?" Steve guessed.
"We will proceed." Dr. Erskine walked over to me.
"That's ten percent." Howard said as light began to come out of the machine.
"Twenty percent. Thirty. That 40%." The light increased and I shielded my eyes.
"Vital signs are normal." A male doctor called out.
"That's 50%. Sixty. Seventy." Howard called out. Then a scream rang out in the room. My eyes widened at the machine as I heard his screams.
"Steven!" Dr. Erskine ran back to the machine. "Steven!"
"Shut it down!" Peggy yelled as she came out of the booth. "Shut it down!"
"Kill the reactors, Mr. Stark! Turn it off? Kill it! Kill the reactor!" Dr. Erskine demanded to Howard. Howard did was he was ordered and started to turn it off.
"No!" I turned back to the machine. "Don't! I can do this!" Steve cried out. I nodded towards Howard.
"Eighty. Ninety. That's 100%." Howard finished. I shielded my eyes more as the light increased. Sparks came from the reactors and Howard shielded be from them. Then the light disappeared.
"Mr. Stark?" Howard moved away from me and opened the machine. It opened and I stared in amazement. He did it. I ran over and helped Dr. Erskine get a sweaty Steve out of the machine. Then Howard helped too.
"I did it." Steve breathlessly said. I laughed at him.
"Yeah, yeah. I think we did it." Howard said. Then Peggy ran up next to me.
"How do you feel?" She asked him, reaching out to touch his chest but held herself back. She yanked the shirt from the nurse and held it out to him.
"Taller." He answered, standing straight.
"You look taller." Dr. Erskine rubbed my back before walking away. I watched Steve in all his glory. An explosion went off and Steve shoved me into him, protecting me from the glass. Pieces of glass goes into my neck and arm.
"Stop him!" I heard Dr. Erskine yell. A bang rang out and I looked to see blood coming out of Dr. Erskine chest. I shoved Steve away and ran quickly over to him, catching him as he falls to the ground.
Steve moved over to us and leaned over him. Dr. Erskine pointed at Steve's chest as my tears dripped from my cheek onto his bleeding chest. I hold his head as he slowly died. Then I was filled anger, and I looked up at Steve.
"Get him." I hissed. Steve looked at me before getting up, going after the man. Howard came over to me and started to pull me away from him. I pushed my face into his chest as I let out a loud cry. Howard combed his hand down my hair as he held me.
"It's okay. It's gonna be okay. Come on, let's get you cleaned up." He placed a hand behind my knees and picked me up. He took me into another room and held me as he waited for a nurse. One walked in and looked at us.
"I'm so sorry for your loss. He was a good man." She said. Howard placed me on the bed and the nurse started to wipe away the blood. She patched up my neck and arm. Howard kissed my head before leaving after his name was called. "Agent Carter and Mr. Rogers are in the next room."
I nodded at her before going into the next room. As I walked in, Peggy looks at me. She rubs my back as I leaned against the counter next to her. I watched as they took blood from Steve.
"Think you got enough?" He asked the nurse.
"Any hope of reproducing the program is locked in your genetic code. But without Dr. Erskine, it would take years." Peggy said to him. Tears slipped down my face. Steve stood up, looking at my neck. He touched it gently.
"He deserved more than this." He answered Peggy. But he was saying it more to me.
"If it could work only once, he'd be proud it was you." I stated to him. I wiped my tears away before walking out of the room with them falling me.
"Colonel Phillps, my committee is demanding answers." Brandt said. I noticed Howard working by a strange machine.
"Great. Why don't we start with how a German spy got a ride to my secret installation in your car? What do we got here?" Colonel Phillips asked Howard.
"Speaking modestly, I'm the best mechanical engineer in this country. But I don't know what's inside this thing or how it works. We're not even close to this technology." He answered truthfully.
"Then who is?" Brandt asked.
"Hydra. I'm sure you've been reading our briefings." Colonel Phillips stated.
"I'm on a number of committees, Colonel." Brandt reminded him.
"Hydra is the Nazi deep-science division. It's led by Johann Schmidt. But he has much bigger ambitions." I spoke up.
"Hydra is practically a cult. They worship Schmidt. They think he's invincible." Colonel added.
"So, what are you going to do about it?" Brandt asked, concerned about the plans.
"I spoke to the President this morning. As of today, the SSR is being retasked." Colonel answered his question.
"Colonel?" Peggy tried to catch his attention.
"We are taking the fight to Hydra. Pack your bags, Agent Carter, Donovan. You too, Stark. We're flying to London tonight." He ordered us.
"Sir? If you're going after Schmidt, I want in." Steve asked but more of demanded.
"You're an experiment. You're going to Alamogordo." Colonel answered.
"The serum worked." Steve argued with him.
"I asked for an army and all I got was you. You are not enough." He walked away without another word. Brandt walked over.
"With all due respect to the Colonel, I think we may be missing the point. I've seen you in action, Steve. More importantly, the country's seen it. Paper. The enlistment lines have been around the block since your picture hit the newstands." I looked at the paper held out.
"You don't take a soldier, a symbol like that, and hide him in a lab. Son, do you want to serve your country on the most important battle field of the war?" He asked Steve.
"Sir, that's all I want." Steve answered.
"Then, congratulations. You just got promoted." They shook hands and I walked over to Howard. He looked up at me.
"How are you-""Please don't." I pleaded. He nodded.
"I understand. Listen about that date, don't worry about it." He said. I nodded in agreement.
"I understand. We both have to focus on work. More importantly me. Try to find out what this thing is." I pointed at the machine.
"Of course. Might take a while to understand but I think I can take her." He patted the machine.
"I know you can." I said to him. He grabbed my shoulder and pulled me into a hug. A much needed one.
"Thank you." I whispered.
"You're my friend. I'll always be here. Now, go pack. We have somewhere to be."
