Avengers: Reforged (Discontinued)

Avengers: Reforged V: Wreckage 

Earth- 199 621, 2023

The New Compound 

Natasha felt her ears ringing, ringing, ringing so ferociously her entire head was shaking. Her ears were practically bleeding, the ringing was so bad. She heard the dull banging on gunshots, but her ears were too occupied to react. She felt a stinging pang ring through her leg, but it was tolerable enough thanks to her adrenaline. She vaguely felt a pair of strong arms bring her behind a side-flipped table as more dull shots rang out. She managed to shake off most of the dizziness, but her eyes remained clouded by a haze. A glint of silver on a blotch of black told her it was Steve. He engaged his other shield and vaulted over the table valiantly.

 Beside her lay Bruce, hands over his ears and dizziness racking through him. She suddenly felt her blood run cold when she thought he would turn to the Hulk, but his skin wasn’t at all changing, remaining the tanned shade as before instead of swapping to olive.

Natasha felt her side instinctively for her gun, but her fingers only found the puffy waistband of her sweatpants. She shook her head, her magmatic hair fluttering along with it. She cursed herself for being unprepared while the cold voice laughed. She peeked her head over the lip of the table only to duck back down to narrowly dodge a bullet biting a chunk out of the lip of the thick, sturdy wood.

She moved her head to the staircase that led below when a flash of glowing red illuminated her blurry- but clearing- vision. Wanda had her hands outstretched, dancing with red flames, casting her magical essence to their attackers. Vision ducked in front of her as bullets rained down, cutting off Wanda's links. Bucky came valiantly from behind the two, his machine gun at the ready. Despite that, he had to guard himself with his invincible false arm. Seven bullets ricocheted off the black surface before Rogers reached the one firing at Barnes and swept his legs out from under him before he punched him in the throat. Rogers kicked the mask off, revealing an aged, battle-hardened face. The attacker had his hand around his own throat, trying to regain oxygen. Steve kicked him in the nose, breaking it and knocking him out. 

Countless shots bounced off the shields Steve raised defensively before the bang of a revolver blasted from beside Vision. Peggy stood alongside the witch and the android, dressed in a tight navy blue t-shirt and black leggings as she fired another shot. It hit one of the other four remaining in the thigh and brought him down. She reloaded her revolver with special hollow-points, intent on causing as much damage as possible.

Bruce finally shook off the dizziness and moved next to Natasha as a bullet bit out a solid chunk of the table beside him. She looked to him as he looked to her, laughing as she said,

“The moment was kinda ruined,” Bruce peeked over the table and narrowly dodged a bullet. “You wouldn’t happen to have something big, would you?” She asked loudly.

“He’s gone!” 

“What do you mean ‘he’s gone’?”

“I mean he’s gone! I don’t know either!” Meanwhile, Bucky had the opportunity to open fire, but hesitated as Steve fought downrange. Peggy fired another shot but missed her opponent narrowly, narrowly missing Steve’s hip along the way. Bucky cursed under his breath and took aim at the furthest attacker, only for them to be hollowed out from the chest by a bright yellow beam, buzzing with power. Vision suddenly flew into the fight and threw another of the attackers out of the hole in the wall, firing another beam. Wanda sent a needle of red straight through the heart of one taking aim at Bucky, sending the attacker hurtling back with an erupting gun. Bucky turned to the Sokovian girl and nodded in thanks, which she responded with in turn, a small smile on her face.

The last one of the attackers began backing to the door, his gun pointed and shooting at a shielded Steve Rogers, who was quickly approaching. As if a reflex, Steve brought the shield from his left arm and threw it at the attacker, hitting him just below the chest and stunning him for just a moment. 

A moment is the only time needed.

Steve rushed the attacker and jumped before kicking him with both his legs, sending him against the wall. Steve turned in the air and landed on his hands and knees before using his weight and momentum to turn and tackle the attacker, discarding his gun and holding the remaining shield against the final man’s throat. He struggled for a moment before he realized it was hopeless.

Bucky approached, his machine gun on top of his shoulder and pointed to the ceiling. Wanda and Vision came behind, Vision’s stone glowing ominously and Wanda with a sparking ball of red between her hands. Bruce and Natasha emerged from behind the hole-riddled table, threateningly serious as they approached as well.

The man spoke, more of a hoarse whisper, “Damn circus animals.” He had a slight accent, but the slight was incredibly recognizable: This man was Sokovian. Wanda was taken aback by the accent ever so much.

“You’re Sokovian?” Bucky asked slowly. The man scoffed as the shield against his throat restricted further. He managed a passionate nod, but not much more.

“Of course I’m Sokovian. Not many enemies of yours aren’t these days. That event caused a lot of issues, you know,” He looked to Wanda judgingly. “And it’s all because of you-” Steve cut off his speech with the tightening of his arm and whispered into the groaning man’s ear,

“That’s enough. Why are you here?” The man laughed shortly, enjoying the question. Wanda extended her powers and twisted the man’s arm, cutting his laugh short.

“Gah,  you’re so naive, Rogers. Cut off one head…” Steve visibly recoiled from the speech and released the man, throwing him to the ground. 

“Two more take its place.” Steve rolled the man over and faced him as he finally laughed.

“Hail. Hydra.” With that, the man worked something out of his gums and bit into it, a slight pop coming. A second later- Steve did his best to stop the man, but he kept his mouth firmly closed- his mouth foamed up and the smell of very bitter almonds came from it. The attacker sputtered for a moment before finally succumbing to the mysterious liquid foaming from his mouth.

Cyanide molar, the emergency escape method of Hydra spies and agents in the ‘Nazi’ run of their career back in the forties.

Bucky nudged his friend’s shoulder, looking to him disparagingly. Steve nodded wordlessly, worry painting his face. They all knew what this meant.

The attacker Peggy had shot groaned weakly, lying in a pool of his own warm blood, sticking and squelching as he moved. He shakily raised his gun and fired one round before he collapsed and blacked out from blood loss. In a second, Vision tucked Wanda behind him, Bucky shielded his head with his left arm, Bruce and Natasha hit the floor, and Steve leapt in front of Peggy, his shield at the ready. The single bullet missed them all and hit the wall behind the group pathetically, not even a sound coming. 

At least, that what they thought until Peggy coughed lightly. Steve's head snapped to hers and she smiled shakily. She looked down to her abdomen, where a small patch of shiny blood was growing. She looked to the wall, seeing no hole remaining. The bullet was still inside of her. She sputtered a slight laugh before she collapsed against Steve. They both slid to the ground and Rogers laid Peggy on the floor, pressing against her wound. She recoiled in pain and squeezed her eyes closed.

Vision' eyes quickly flashed yellow as he contacted an ambulance, blood pooling up around Steve’s fingers with a squelch. Peggy grit her teeth and groaned as her head shot up from the pain, but Steve held her in place.

"I thought-" She tried, but her wound simply wouldn't allow it. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she whimpered. Steve held the back of her head.

“Hey, Peggy. Don’t quit on me. We-” A sudden pain went through his body, causing him to look down. In a similar spot on his own abdomen, there was a red patch of blood. The bullet had gone through him and into Peggy. 

At least he had managed to block her. 

He ignored it and put more pressure onto her stomach as she sobbed, her eyes rolling into the back of her head in pain. The others were standing nearby, tense as they waited for the whine of the ambulance. Peggy’s gasping sobs were unnatural and surreal, as was the fact that one of their own was currently bleeding out on the floor.

Vision suddenly spoke, “Ambulance will arrive in approximately five minutes, Captain.” Steve nodded frantically, rubbing Peggy’s shoulder when she opened her eyes. She stared up at the ceiling as her wound burned, searing as she felt her vision slowly go dark. 

No. 

She fought, opening her eyes and flexing her fingers, anything that would help her concentrate on her body. Her eyes were blurry from pain and blood loss, and everything she did hurt. Breathing, crying, moving- everything. She tried to keep her breaths short and subtle, but her practice only lasted maybe thirty seconds before she had to go back to normal. It was getting harder to focus on anything.

Steve kept his hand on her wound, pressing down almost suffocatingly hard. He felt his own wound burn but his accelerated healing was dampening it to tolerable levels, nothing he hadn’t felt many times before. Bucky had his hand on Rogers’ shoulder, doing his best to comfort his friend as he held his dying lover.

“Steve.” She whispered.

“No. No talking. Just- just look at me okay?” Peggy indeed looked to him, her vision somehow staring at him yet not, like she was looking deeper into the universe than was possible when stable.

“It’s happening, Steve. I’m… No, I-”

“Peggy, stop. Stop talking, focus on me. Focus on- on living. Breathe, okay? Can you do that? Just… Just breathe for me…” He was getting desperate now as Peggy sighed shortly, gritting her teeth in pain. She nodded once, concentrating on her breathing. Steve teared up when he heard the ambulance siren in the distance.

“Ambulance arriving now, Captain,” Vision sighed, holding Wanda as she kept her head in his chest, too scared to look at Peggy and shaking as the older woman sobbed in fragments. There was a small pool gathering beneath her as Rogers tried to quell her bleeding. The sirens were now practically outside the base and brakes squealed. Vision fired two beams at the main door, melting it off its hinges. The metal slab fell forward with a bang as two nurses came with an emergency stretcher.

“Medics, make way!” One of them shouted with an odd European accent. Everyone spread clear from Peggy except for Steve, who stayed with her as the emergency workers hoisted her small frame onto the stretcher and lifted her, bringing her hurriedly to the bulky ambulance with Steve close behind.

Bruce watched as Peggy was shut into the vehicle before it drove off, a sick feeling bubbling in his stomach when he pictured Natasha in the same way- bleeding out in his arms. It scared him- no, that wasn’t even accurate, he was frozen. He was fucking paralyzed at the concept of the powerful Black Widow, his lover- Hell, his best friend- bleeding out hopelessly in his arms while he was powerless to do something on his own. Except in his mind, there was no ambulance, no stretcher, no teammates, only him and Natasha as she begged him to stay with her as her sight faded to black before going limp in his arms. He shook her, but there was no response, no movement, only a single, small exhale came from Natasha as her moss eyes flashed open and stayed open. He subconsciously pulled her closer in his arms, feeling the warmth of her body pour against his own. He heard, strained, as she whispered,

“Bruce…” He closed his eyes tightly and rocked with her body in his arms, hearing her whisper, “Bruce…” again.

“Bruce?” He snapped out of his vision when Natasha nudged his arms. He looked into her eyes and she looked into his before she rested her head against his shoulder, her magmatic hair flowing over his shoulder. She sighed, looking to Steve as he reentered the base, his hands dripped with crimson blood. He looked back to the four attackers, all dead in the large room. His mouth turned down into an evil snarl before he threw his last shield at the attacked that had shot Peggy. 

As usual, Steve’s shield was perfectly on target as it wedged itself into the man's neck, decapitating him. Wanda screamed in surprise at the sudden sound and everyone else took a step back. Rogers looked to his hands, before turning to the kitchen, turning on the faucet to scrape the blood off of his hands.

Natasha looked to Bruce, worried for Steve. She had never seen his like this and a random decapitation was definitely not in his character. Wanda kept her head in Vision’s chest, scared to look to the bodies around her. Bucky looked to his friend with a look of pained understanding before looking to the wall- or rather, what was left of it. 

A hole about five meters wide rested, floor to ceiling, revealing the innards of the wall. A layer of concrete, a layer of old insulation from what could only be the nineties and then the innermost wall of concrete. As Bucky studied the hole, there was a metal clang outside of the warehouse, one that was all too familiar. It was lighter than usual, meaning Tony was still not awake. 

Pepper, still dressed in her purple Rescue armour, looked in horror at the base as she walked through the door frame. There was a hole in the wall, five bodies strewn about as well as blood and bullet holes everywhere. Wanda, the Vision, Bruce, Natasha, Captain Rogers and Sergeant Barnes stood, not a scratch on any of them. F.R.I.D.A.Y.’s initial environmental analysis of the air showed a warning of cyanide somewhere nearby, and when her mask rose it hit her like a truck. She asked the only question that could form within her mind,

“What the fuck happened?” She shouted, her voice showing her strained sanity. Just ten minutes ago, she was with Happy and Morgan in the hospital, talking in a one-sided conversation with her comatose husband when F.R.I.D.A.Y. had alerted her to an explosion in the Avengers warehouse. Reluctantly, she had gotten in her suit and flown to the warehouse to… this. This mess.

Natasha looked to Pepper with a disgraced look and shouted at an equal volume, “We were attacked!” She wrapped her arms around herself, the prospect of an attack on their base leaving her feeling uncomfortably exposed and vulnerable- especially with the recent events in her life. Bruce wrapped his arms around her, bringing her closer in an attempt to calm her. She gave Pepper another indignant glare before surrendering herself to her lover, feeling the desire to just curl up like a kitten and fall asleep. She closed her eyes as Bruce pet her hair gently.

Pepper rolled her eyes at Natasha’s outburst before quickly realizing her headcount of six was off. Sam and Rhodey had gone home obviously, as had Thor, Loki and Valkyrie to New Asgard, Peter was at May’s after giving Pepper what she had requested from the labs and saying a bittersweet hello to Tony, Scott and Hope were resting at the new location of ‘X-Con Security’ Luis, Kurt and Dave had managed to open up in New York before their flight back to San Francisco, but she had no clue where Peggy- the new brunette Rogers had stolen through time- was, though her stomach dropped fast when she realized why they needed an ambulance, as it was surely not for the five dead laying around the large room.

“Oh God, she was hurt? How bad?” Pepper asked, her voice filled with as much compassion as she could spare for someone other than her husband. Natasha gave an evil glare from Bruce’s arms but she nodded slowly, her green eyes swelling with tears again. Steve forcefully shut off the water, his hands clean again. He collected the shields that were on the floor and re-equipped them, groaning in disgust at the blood on his left. Some of it spattered off when the shields shrunk into bracelets.

“She’s bleeding out, probably going to need a blood transfusion. We’re matching blood types, so I’m going to give some of mine.” He said with a near hurtful tone of finality. He walked across the fallen door and outside, callously mounting his motorcycle parked just beside the warehouse and before he peeled off towards the nearest hospital. 

“What am I doing with these?” Pepper whispered to herself, looking around at the bodies surrounding her.

Peggy’s Hospital, Four Hours Later

Steve sat in a waiting room reading a magazine, even though his mind didn’t allow any of the information to enter. He was concentrated on the clock, waiting for Peggy’s operation to end. She had been in the ER for damn well over four hours now and he was getting impatient. He understood that this was no small operation and the doctors needed- and were going to take- as much time as possible to preserve her safety, but he was impatient regardless.

He perked up when a doctor exited into the waiting room, his scrubs covered in blood. His face was blank and unreactive as he quickly reached his hand to Steve’s forehead, moving so quickly even he couldn’t react. That was when Steve suddenly felt his body removed from him. Or, the other way around, perhaps, but the feeling was almost too odd to explain. Steve saw the entire room become dark and a mysterious, translucent figure that exuded some sort of blue light appeared before him.

The figure’s face was thin and aged, an oddly familiar curl of silvery hair coming down onto a thin, high-cheekboned face as a red cloak flowed behind him, decorated with gold trims around the bottom. The sharp collar was popped up dramatically. The man also wore a grey beard and mustache, both rather thin. His eyes were void and empty, yet filled with mysterious and mystic wisdom. His body was covered in odd blue flowing robes and yellow gloves with dark red boots coming up to his knees. Around his neck was a small, golden necklace with an eye-shaped pendant attached.

“Strange?” He asked, looking closer to the doctor’s features. A sly grin crossed his face as he nodded, looking to his hands. They were entirely still as he sighed. A dull, quiet boom rippled through the air before a subtle, uncontrollable shaking reentered his hands. “How… I thought you were guarding the Sanctum.” Strange nodded before replying, floating to a window in his odd ghost-like state. The doctor willed Rogers to follow him, his body remaining where it was as his spirit followed.

“Wong and a few other sorcerers from London and indeed New York have agreed to guard Sanctum in my absence, but I decided to help your friend, Miss Carter. I still have all of my medical knowledge, even if I lack the… Ability to operate as myself,” He sighed, looking down to his hands through his yellow gloves. 

“You’re not you, are you?” Steve asked.

“No, I’m me,” Strange reassured.

No, out there. That’s not you?” He asked, thumbing back to the doctor outside of this odd realm. Strange nodded as he understood.

“No, that’s a friend of mine. Cashed in a favour. So, I used my powers to help save your friend, but she needs blood, and her blood type is-”

“A. She’s type A. I came to donate, I have A blood.” Strange looked to him oddly, as if to ask him how he knew Peggy’s blood type so specifically. “Back in the war, there were exercises to make sure we could save each other on the field, so we all shared our blood types. She and I were the only A-bloods.” Strange nodded curtly. “Though, back then I hardly had any blood to give.”

“Into the office, we go, then.” Quite quickly, Strange moved himself and Rogers back to their bodies- well, the doctor moved back to his loaned body- before replacing his hand to Seve’s forehead. He was sucked back into his body and almost fell back, but Strange steadied him with an arm. A red coat on a nearby hook shifted at Strange’s quick movement, though it was steadied with a look from the doctor. “Let’s get you ready.” As they both moved into the ER, several other doctors and nurses moved away from the operation table. Steve’s breath caught when he saw Peggy laying on it.

There were several tubes leading both in and out of her, and a heavy mask was over her small face. A blue sheet was thrown over her body from the shoulders down, though a large rectangle was cut in the sheet showing a portion of her toned belly, where a huge, nasty, red, freshly-sown scar rested, just left of her belly button. An IV hung from a rack nearby and a huge machine stood nearby with a sturdy chair beside it. Strange motioned to the chair and said,

“Captain.”

An Hour Later

Steve sat at the edge of Peggy’s bed, waiting for any sign that the transfusion had worked. Strange, still within the other doctor’s body, reentered the room to check on Peggy’s vitals, having deemed her stable enough to move to a hospital bed, though she was still wired up to every medical machine in mortal knowledge, a heart monitor beeping quietly.

“Pulse has strengthened, she’s definitely balancing out again. Though, this is odd- her white blood cell count is skyrocketing,” he whispered, looking at a blood test for her. “I’ve never seen anything like this, it’s like her body’s having a reaction to something that’s making it heal faster.”

Steve smiled as he realized what it was. “It’s the serum in my blood- the super-soldier serum. It’s affecting her too.” Strange nodded, looking over and arm that rested outside the thin blanket that rested over her. She felt abnormally warm, but not dangerously so. “She’s warming up again, the blood is not affecting negatively-“

Strange’s word stopped when Peggy’s arm twitched. The twitch rippled through and her fingers curled in response. Her skin began to flush, and her heart rate was also climbing, as the steady beeping was now becoming an erratic screaming from the machine. The slight twitching in her fingers quickly evolved and spiralled out of control as she began seizing suddenly, the tubes and wires attached to her jiggling and bouncing as her body spasmed. 

“She’s seizing, hold her down,” Strange said quickly. Steve stood and held her right shoulder and her leg while Strange held her other side. A thin layer of sweat was beginning to cover her body, sheening in the sterile white light of the hospital room. In her rest, Peggy groaned in pain, almost like she was waking.

“Lift her shirt, I need to see her scar!” Strange shouted. Steve grabbed the hem of her hospital shirt and lifted it to reveal the scar, which was slowly but noticeably sealing itself. The serum was taking hold, and Steve remembered the pain he had felt inside Stark’s chamber when Doctor Erskine had initiated the serum process over eighty years ago.

Peggy’s arms twitched again through her seizing before shadowy lines slowly began appearing along her biceps. Her stomach, which was still available to open air, began defining further past her slight muscles. Her flesh pressed tighter as her abdominal muscles slowly grew, tightening and strengthening in response to the serum. Her seizure suddenly stopped, and her face that was just covered with a decoration of pain became soothed once more.

“Peggy?” Steve asked after a moment. Her heart rate began slowing again, and Strange moved over to her vital display, almost enamoured with the results.

“Her pulse is way stronger. Her heart rate is good- What just happened?” He asked, looking to Peggy. She was noticeably stronger, her skin was its normal shade of slightly flushed pink. Her hair was longer as well as a more rich shade than previously, and her cheeks were blushing. A deep breath entered her before her hazel eyes suddenly snapped open and she shot up.

Both Strange and Steve were at her side when she held her stomach in pain. Her breathing was heavy and her eyes were seemingly unable to focus. She looked in confusion at her arms when she felt her wound calm down again before choking out a question.

“How long ago was the shooting?” She asked uncertainly, looking to Steve. He looked to Strange who nodded,

“Maybe five, six hours ago?” 

“No, that’s not… What happened to me?” She asked, lifting her shirt to see her scar, surprised by her newly formed abs as well as the pinkish scar, the seams of her stitches tight against her new body. “That is not six hours old, not even close.” Her voice was slowly becoming surer as she quickly woke from her anesthesia-induced sleep.

“Rogers gave you some of his blood, which carried some of Erskine’s formula, but… Didn’t you're transformation need gamma rays?” Strange asked, looking to the Captain.

“Yeah. I don’t know how she got… This.” Steve responded, motioning to Peggy’s stomach. “And I don’t think the blood she took unlocked the actual formula.” Peggy waved them both away, flipping her legs over the edge of her bed. She dropped to the floor, steady and sure-footed, despite her injury. Her shirt dropped back down and her blue-green hospital gown fluttered with her movements. 

A mirror rested on the wall opposite, and Peggy stared as she absorbed her new appearance. She was significantly taller- now just three inches shorter than Steve- her shoulders were wider and thicker, her arms were strong and sturdy. Her breasts had definitely grown, as told by the unusually heavy- well, heavier- feeling of weight on her chest. Her midsection had grown stronger and thicker as well, her hips were wider and her legs, though covered by her gown, were stronger and more defined. Her visible skin was shiny and smooth, having taken on a gentler shade of blush over it, her chest moving up and down with her breathing. Her hair, even though a more heavy shade of her usual chestnut, was longer and thicker, just past her shoulder blades now.

“I think we’re gonna have to get you some new clothes,” Steve commented. Peggy, still amazed by her transformation, simply nodded shakily.

Avengers Warehouse

Wanda and Vision stood before the large hole in the wall, a large, blue tarp covering from the outside air. The smell of a harsh, powerful deep-cleaner permeated the air like the scent of decay and a few dark-orange, faded blemishes spattered the false wood patternings of the floor. Dawn was breaking, and the lovers stared as the blue tarp began glowing orange, lit by the blazing ball of yellow in the far distance. Wanda sighed when her eyes fell to a very specific bloodstain on the floor, one that had contained her attention almost as much as the sunrise.

Vision had noticed his lover’s attention turn back once again to the spatter beside her, and he knew the reason that specific stain took her eyes more than the others.

That one had been her kill, with the little red needle of her powers.

Vision looked to Wanda as she quickly turned back to the sunrise through the tarp. “Wanda, I feel there is something you are neglecting to mention,” Wanda flicked her pink tongue out of her mouth as her breath hitched in surprise. He turned to her and continued. “And I feel that it is impacting your mind, as well as your enjoyment of the sunrise.” Wanda nodded and crossed her arms and squeezed herself, almost like she was cold. Vision wrapped his arms around her, holding her soft body close to his sturdy one.

“Vizh, I killed him. I didn’t hesitate, I didn’t think about his family, or his life or-” Vision suddenly dove against her lips and kissed her, earning himself a brief high-pitched squeak of surprise from Wanda. Before she had the chance to consider the kiss and kiss back, Vision separated and put his forehead against hers.

“Wanda; we know that even if he had survived the others, he would have committed suicide-”

“Vizh... I don’t kill, I can’t kill- I did enough of that with Sokovia-”

“Sokovia was not your fault, Wanda. Even if you cannot console yourself with killing, he was aiming to Sergeant Barnes, so find solace in the fact that you saved his life. Surely that has to be worth something, Wanda,”

“Yes, it’s worth something, but not a life! You said yourself that ‘we don’t trade lives’, so why is an opponent any different?” The way her accent rolled off of her words made Vision sigh in contentedness, in simple adoration of her voice. It housed such an innate purity and blessedness that it was hard to believe she had seen as much as she had in her short life- though, he was certainly not one to speak on the terms of short lives.

“While I may have said that in the past, I was evidently wrong: Sometimes, the sacrifice of a life is worth another’s, or… Many others', I suppose. Wanda, I know that, were you to be taken from me, I would trade any life necessary to get you back.” Wanda looked up to Vision with surprise in her eyes. “I’ve lived without you before, Wanda, and I know that it was a mistake- it could barely fall under ’living’.” Wanda gave him a look of mild questioning through her surprise, prompting him to elaborate.

“When Dr. Cho… used my remains Mr. Stark had delivered to her to try and revive me- which she managed to accomplish over only a few months thanks to her incredibly advanced bio-robotics work in the Cradle- she insisted that I remain within her lab until she deemed her replicated Mind Stone ready for battle. When she realized the effects of The Blip, she had sent me immediately from Korea to the Compound, which is why I arrived after all was said and done. Wanda- I begged her to tell me if you were alive, but she was insistent that she didn’t know. I worried for you for five years- worried you were gone, worried that- that you were…” His voice was speeding up as he looked to the floor himself. He looked back to her quickly after a moment, tears of love dotting her eyes.

“Wanda, I could barely function without you; Without your stares, your kisses, your… Intimacies,” He whispered, his eyes falling to the slight gap between her breasts her red sweater generated. He shook his head to clear his thoughts before continuing.“It- it’s irrational, yes, but I love you too much to let you go, to let some other… lesser life take you from this world.” While she spoke, he swept her into his arms and looked into her olive eyes. She gasped at his actions, not breaking eye contact with him as he continued.

“I will kill for you, Wanda. No life is more valuable to me… Than yours.” He stared- almost angrily- into her eyes as he brought her left hand up and kissed it gently, yet incredibly passionately. Even though she should've been appalled, maybe even outraged at his quite serious and almost frightening admittance, she couldn’t help but be touched. The way his voice was: deep, sultry and low as he put forth such a grim sentence- as well as his accent, Lord help her- it all committed the words to such an intense truth that she couldn’t help but realize he was being entirely honest and promising in his ultimate vow.

“If it came to it, Wanda, I would give my own life. You are so much more than you allow yourself to think due to your actions, and if my life is what it takes for you to realize that…” Wanda shook her head in denial that she was more valuable than her synthetic lover. “It would have been a very worthy sacrifice.” He leaned her back further, keeping himself perfectly above her. His mechanical muscles kept her steady at an inhuman level, his strong arms around her back and at her waist.

“Vizh…” She was crying, her eyes wet and now overflowing with tears as they rolled down her face. She put her hand to Vision’s cheek, allowing him to kiss her wrist. “I would die for you too. I love you too much to let you go again.” Vision closed his eyes in contentedness.

“Wanda…” His breathing hitched for a moment before he continued with, “May I ask you a question?” His lover nodded fervently. He smiled at her eagerness, but suddenly there was a disturbance. A distant motorcycle approaching broke their moment, and Vision stood the both of them up as he realized that the Captain was arriving, apparently already returning from his hospital trip. Wanda looked to Vision questioningly before wiping her tears away and clearing her throat.

“Vizh?” She asked, her voice cracking with her tears. He shook his head subtly, putting the question off until they found themselves alone again. She nodded, doing her best to mask slight disappointment at the stunted curiosity. The sound of a motorcycle became louder, eventually leading to just outside the blue tarp, casting shadows through the yellowing glare of the sunrise. The engine died, silence overtaking it until two sets of heavy footfalls reached inside the warehouse. They circled around the warehouse until they reached the new door at the front of the base, creaking open on its new hinges. Steve spearheaded the two of them, his brown leather jacket benign on his… Bare chest? He led Peggy into the warehouse, and the lover couple then realized why Steve was lacking his shirt.

Peggy was wearing his white shirt, the once-loose-fitting article now fairly fitting around her figure, and her leggings that were once perfectly her size were now tight and constricting, the material translucent- bordering on transparent- as she entered. Her shoes were bursting at the seams as Peggy held herself as if self-conscious of her new, muscular appearance. Steve had her carefully by the shoulders as he led her quickly downstairs, Vision looking to the tarp again, avoiding Peggy’s new appearance. Wanda followed Vision’s gaze, smiling in the corner of her mouth at his chivalry.

When the two others had left downstairs, Wanda and Vision shared a look of wide-eyed, smiling ‘what the hell’. 

Steve’s Room

Steve stood against the doorframe to his room, allowing Peggy the privacy to change into some better-fitting clothing. Though, he couldn’t deny the very intense erection he had felt press against his jeans when he saw Peggy’s refined body press against her old leggings in the hospital. It was like something out of a perverted fantasy he found himself entertaining. The worst part was the longer he thought of the fantasies and the more he tried to shake them off, the dirtier and cruder they became- though, deep down, he had no objections, really- despite how much he was trying to convince himself he did. He shook his head and ran his hand through his beard, contemplating telling Peggy. Maybe she’d be angry, maybe she’d be flattered. He’d given up, long ago- probably when Howard told him not to in the War- at trying to guess what any woman was thinking. Natasha- God, if he’d tried to guess what she was ever thinking, he’d lose his head- Wanda and even Peggy herself to a certain extent. It was all pointless to even try, and he had simply let it pass.

Peggy knocked on the door twice, signifying it was okay for him to enter. He sighed in an attempt to ward off his haughty thoughts before he twisted the knob and entered his room, closing it behind him. Peggy sat before him, her left leg tucked under her right one at the ankle as her hands rested on the bed behind her, unknowingly pushing her already- even more so now- prominent breasts out, bringing forth Steve’s impure thoughts back to the forefront as if he hadn’t even pushed them to the back just now. 

Her breasts had only inflated marginally, but that small amount was added onto an already above-average pair, therefore creating only more alluring shadows and lines along her figure. She smiled warmly at him, sitting up straight and putting her arms in her lap. She wore one of his shirts- another white one, actually- and an older pair of jeans, though even those were tight on her wide hips and strong thighs. Though, they teased his mind far less than her poor-fitting leggings, thank God.

“Better?” He asked quickly, leaning against the metal door and crossing his arms in hopes of hiding his growing erection. She nodded slowly, looking away from his face and biting her peach lip- which only worked to tease his mind more as his subconscious worked overtime to find other ways to make her bite her lip. He shook his head and did his best to distract himself.

Why the Hell was he so horny all of a sudden?

“So, you… You’re different.” He nodded, looking a bit too intensely at her newly defined biceps, doing his best not to focus on her other new enhanced features. Specifically, the two on her chest, though with the way his shirt lifted off of her torso ever so slightly from the roundness of her breasts to reveal a small slip of her blushing flesh and her shadowy, muscular abdomen also tempted his view. Peggy, still looking to the wall smiled at his professional and almost formal speech. She looked to him with a look of love, yet showed a slight amount of mild frustration at his sexual lack of knowledge.

“Oh, for Lord’s sake!” She sighed loudly, quickly moving her hands to the hem of the white shirt that covered her chest. In a swift, fluid movement she tugged it over her head and threw it onto the pillow to her left. Steve’s already-stiff half-erection sprang up fully formed when her hefty breasts bounced from their drop, her rosy pink nipples stood soft in her light areolas. The two organs were round and they appeared soft and squishy yet firm and fleshy. Steve almost stopped breathing when Peggy stood up, his eyes somehow glued to hers as his pants tightened unbearably.

“Can you just admit that I turned into any man’s sex idol?” She whispered, almost angrily, like she was angry with the serum had affected her body. Yet she smiled as if she had a secret that he would have to drag out of her. “Can you just admit that something that was already hard for me to deal with has gotten even worse?” 

“What do you mean, Peggy?” He asked sympathetically, ignoring his screaming erection as well as Peggy’s wildly varying tones. Her voice radiated anger and contempt, but her body language, smile and her hardening nipples threw waves of erotically desperate sexual energy.

“What do I mean? I mean they were already large enough! I don’t need them any bigger! It was hard enough to gain any kind of traction back when I wasn’t some kind of super-sex idol! I’ll hardly be taken seriously now, even in a casual setting- even you couldn’t keep your eyes off of them!” She seethed with a glaring smile, turning her newly toned back to him. Her shoulder blades emerged further when she tried to censor her breasts from herself, enhancing the added curvature of her back. Her spine pressed against her back’s flesh and her hips widened before being cut off and leading under her jeans. Steve looked down at the floor and nodded subconsciously, despite her turned back to him. He couldn’t deny it. Her new stature was something devilishly alluring and attractive, and it was dragging even him down with thoughts he’d rather not have her know.

“Peggy, the world is different. Women, they aren’t really disadvantaged anymore- Hell, look at Nat or Wanda, they’re… Very attractive, and they’re some of our strongest-” He tried to reason, but Peggy cut him off as she turned back to him. Her face was running with enjoyment, her eyes already shining with arousal, desire peeking around from the edges of her eyelids.

“Yes, and they have the skills to compete! Hell, Wanda even has her magic-red streams-” She moved her hands around wildly for emphasis, her bare breasts waving and jiggling with her motions, though he managed to keep eye contact, if only simply to maintain their tense charade. “- thing! And what do I have, Steve? Hm? Strength? Speed? Something you don’t? No! I have no purpose in this time. All because you wanted me, but couldn’t leave your friend! Cause you- Are a selfish, dickhole of a prick!” She shouted, accusedly pointing her finger at his chest while he remained painfully emotionless- yet underneath he was wildly aroused and excited. He looked to the floor as Peggy turned back to his bed and grabbed her shirt, slipping it back on over her chest that was flushed with carnal passion, arousal and emotion. She rolled it down her body and turned back to him, her horny-hardened nipples poking against the fabric.

“I’m leaving. Follow me, and you’ll never be found.” She swore with a hot smile, shunting him out of the way with her new strength. She reached for the door, but that’s when Steve finally felt his facade break down. He grabbed her wrist and threw her back to the bed, her new stature keeping her more sturdy and steady when she hit the comfy mattress. She had a shocked look on her face, but it was combined and complemented with a look of happy surprise and a thick jolt of arousal- so much she actually had to close her legs and rub her thighs together to try and pleasure herself.

“Something you should now; The serum increases your stamina. We’re gonna be here for a while if we are doing this,” Steve warned, removing his own shirt, revealing his carved pectorals, chiselled abdominals and his distracting hip bones that led teasingly below the beltline of his beige jeans. Peggy sucked in a breath through tight lips when she was reminded about Steve’s post-serum body. She loved Steve, and she loved him for who he was, but when his godlike body came into the picture, everything only got better. Steve smiled at her reaction before nodding to her and repeating, 

“You ready?” 

Peggy opened her legs and nodded, her puffy brown hair fluttering with her movements. Steve grinned alluringly before sauntering to his time-disoriented lover. As he came close, Peggy’s new strong hands undid his jeans’ button and the fly almost flew down as Steve’s dick squished against the dark grey fabric of his underwear. She almost choked on her breath when the organ pressed towards her. She looked up to his righteously blue eyes and developed a slightly surprised grin in the corner of her mouth and a very warm furnace below her own beltline.

“At ease, soldier!” She said excitedly.

Three And A Half Hours Later

Steve and Peggy laid on the bed, both breathing steadily, their strong bodies sheening with thick layers of sweat. They both stared at the ceiling in awe and afterglow, silent for what had to have been almost ten minutes now. They’d done it. For real. Not a fantasy. Not imagination. They’d really, truly had sex. Finally. Steve swallowed before whispering,

“For my first time, I don’t think I was that bad.” Peggy turned to him, keeping his comforter above her chest. Her thighs were just a little sore from the battering and the beating they had just received- her vagina felt an odd combination of burning pleasure, pounding achiness and saturated soaking, and it kept any words she thought she could formulate in the back of her throat. All she could do was nod as she struggled to think how their sex would have been had she not had received any superpowers.

She shivered from… Well, she couldn’t tell if it was in aroused curiosity or petrified fear in the prospect.

“And it was my best.” She managed to choke out. Steve smiled as he turned over to her, meeting her eyes. They twinkled with amazement, love, adoration and wonder. She smiled sweetly before she did her best to sit up, groaning slightly. She allowed the comforter to fall off of her chest and rest around her waist. Her breasts were blushed and reddened, her nipples specifically red and almost sore after Steve’s rough lavishing of them both. Peggy cracked her neck and looked to Steve, running a hand down his chest and feeling the bumps and swells of his muscles. She flashed a toothy smile before looking to Steve lovingly.

“Really? Better than Stark?” Steve asked with a false smugness, causing Peggy to gasp with an equally fake tone of audacity. “Were you two ‘fondueing’ more than I thought?” Peggy ran her tongue over her bottom lip and laughed dryly.

“Captain Rogers, I will kill you if you mention that man ever again!” She shouted, despite the fact that she was laughing through it. Steve laughed alongside her as he roped her strong body against his own in a hug, privately relishing the feeling of her warm body against his own. He felt another spark of arousal light in his loins when he felt the warm, squishy side of her heavy breast rub against his solid pectoral. He couldn’t help as another erection began growing under the blanket, a specifically arousing twitch attracting Peggy’s eye.

“Stamina, Captain!” She cried seductively, smiling before flipping her hips over his, putting two layers of blanket between them now. She pulled the comforter towards her and Steve’s boner flipped before her eyes once again. Though, this time, she was simply going to help him, not quite ready to feel her legs go fully numb. She pushed herself down and lied her body on Steve’s legs and positioned her mouth near his twitching cock. She kissed the tip, attracting a heavy twitch from the veiny, thick organ. She smiled again, staring deep into Steve’s eyes as her tongue flicked out and covered the tip, taking in the small bead of bittersweet precum that had emerged from the small eye.

Steve sighed in awe as she licked her lips before she engulfed the head and swirled her tongue around the sensitive point, moaning as her mouth was filled. Steve threw his head back in pleasure.

Tony’s Hospital

Pepper walked into her husband’s hospital room, her sleeping daughter in the deep windowsill in the room. Happy Hogan was keeping a close eye on both Tony and Morgan, but Pepper turned back to the door and opened it, her purple suit waiting loyally just outside,

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., sentry mode.” She commanded tiredly. The Irish girl confirmed the command, and the suit raised its right arm, the repulsor as well as the two eyes igniting white. She returned back to her husband’s room, patting the family’s loyal bodyguard on the shoulder. He nodded softly, slowly allowing his eyes to close. She smiled before taking a seat next to her husband’s right side. In the past few weeks, his healing had come a long way.

They had bitten the bullet early on and amputated his arm almost immediately, but luckily it was only up to his elbow. Definitely not a worst-case scenario, and the minor burns on his neck and his face were healing quite well too. She sighed as she settled into her seat next to Tony, slowly allowing her eyes to close as well. The only sounds she could hear were the snoring of Happy, Morgan and Tony, the machines Tony was hooked up to and a quiet rerun episode of Downton Abbey.

Pepper sighed when she let her head back in relaxation. The music on the show swelled as Pepper felt sleep overtake her. The room was quiet as they all slept. Morgan with a light blanket over her, Happy and Pepper within the crappy hospital chairs and Tony within his hospital bed. That was until Pepper felt a hand on her bare knee. She shot from her light sleep and gasped- waking both Morgan and Happy- looking to her leg in panic. A scratchy, dry voice choked, “Hey Pep. How long… Have… ” It was quiet, but Pepper’s world melted at the noise. She looked to her husband, and…

Tony’s eyes were cracked open, his right hand on her pale knee. His eyes were glazed over, but he was smiling through splintering lips. “Where’s…” He slowly turned his head when Morgan, tears streaming down her small face as she screamed, “DADDY!” She hugged his left side, and he used what was left of his arm to wrap it around her small frame. 

“Hey, Morgoona, How you doing, Pep?” He asked slowly, gently squeezing her knee. She couldn’t even move, her body entering a state of paralysis at the sight of her husband moving and waking. Happy stood from his seat behind Pepper and looked in sheer awe at Tony.

“Boss?” He asked, almost silently. Tony looked to him and smiled, nodding as much as his body would allow, still hugging a crying Morgan tightly. Happy laughed quietly and put his hand on Pepper’s shoulder, bringing her gaze to him.

“He’s awake.” Happy smiled as Pepper turned back to her husband. She leapt forward, hugging Tony with everything she had. She placed kiss after kiss on his lips as tears began flowing down her face- even Happy was crying a little bit. Morgan laughed and made a faux disgusted noise when Pepper held a kiss against her husband for what seemed like far too long for any human. She separated and sobbed happily against his dry mouth. She didn’t care that he needed a shower. She didn’t care he was missing a hand. She didn’t care that he tasted like days’ old vomit- she only cared about the fact that Tony- her Tony, the one that saved the world from the terrors of Thanos- was now awake and hugging his child and kissing his wife. Happy laughed to himself when Tony looked to him.

“Come on, Hap.”

“No, I can’t, boss.”

“Just one.”

Happy smiled and approached Tony, circling around from Pepper’s right to her left. He awkwardly hugged Tony’s side, at which he sighed. Tony released his daughter, throwing his arm around Happy’s neck and tugging him close. “Thank you, Happy. For watching them.” He whispered to Happy’s ear. He separated from the hug and nodded, tears cutting in the corners of his eyes. He stepped back and allowed Pepper her husband once again. She smiled when Tony smiled at her, his face tired but happy. Morgan curled up against her father, falling asleep again.

“How are they, Pep?” Tony asked quietly. Pepper’s smile fell a little. Tony looked concerned as Pepper responded. “They… Um,” she sucked her lips in and wiped her tears of joy and relief before finishing. “I have the set up in an updated warehouse in Flushing, but without you…” She paused again and broke their stare. Tony was silent, allowing her to find her words. “Laura… Killed herself.” Tony’s face was shocked when Pepper said that. 

“What?”

“Yeah. Nat’s… Shaken. God, some shit’s going down, Tony,” She whispered, not caring if Morgan heard her curse. “Steve… Steve brought someone through the tunnel- that Margeret Carter that worked with your father and she was… she was shot.” Tony’s face turned to one of a smile. “What?”

“He brought someone back? Like, back from another dimension?” Tony asked, a smile still decorating his face. Pepper nodded slowly, not catching her husband’s joke. “Yeah, no wonder she was shot: You mess with time, it messes back- that’s the one rule we do know!” He laughed, his belly shaking with genuine laughter. He pinched the bridge of his in frustration and his laughter began to calm down. “Okay, so, where are the Barton kids?” He asked, trying to ignore his own laughter at Steve’s idiocy.

“No one knows. Lila, Cooper and Nate- we can’t find any of them. They went missing just after we got news of Laura-” She choked on her words, unable to finish her sentence. Tony patted her arm in consolation as she looked down.

“How was Peggy shot?” He asked. Pepper shook her head. 

“Someone attacked the warehouse.” Tony went silent- almost morbidly so. His gaze turned deadly silent as he asked,

“Who.” It wasn’t as much a question as it was a demand. A demand to know who exactly was attacking his team. Pepper shook her head, despite knowing what Steve told her. 

“No. I just got you back, you’re not going there- not yet,” Pepper argued. Tony had just woken up, and she was not allowing him to go back and fight, not in his condition. It would be bullshit if she gave him up and she was going to keep him safe until he was actually ready to fight- even then, he would only join back in the fight with her by his side.

“Pep, please. Who?” He asked, his voice quiet. Pepper shook her head again, tears streaming down her face at the tone of his voice. She wasn’t ready for him to seal himself inside the basement and work on thirty-plus suits, not so soon after waking up. She squeezed his hand desperately, not ready to lose him so fast.

“Pep…” He begged.

“Hydra.” She couldn’t take it. His voice was so quiet, so hurting that she couldn’t stop the words. She sighed and looked down, now silently despairing as she thought of her husband sealing himself in the basement to build suits. She felt a quiet, gentle sob hit her when she felt Tony rub her arm lovingly as he spoke four words she never thought he would ever say in her presence.

“Pep, I’m not going.” She looked up to him in a shocked confusion. “I can’t. I am in no condition, and even then... I got you guys to worry about. I’m not going back until you are.” He promised, rubbing her leg slowly. She looked to him with a slightly surprised face. “I’m done fighting without you, Pep. I need… Someone to keep me in check, not all of us, but… You. I need you, Pepper..” He nodded before allowing his eyes to close. She smiled as he used her words from their talk back in the cabin. A new set of tears began down her face, but she smiled through the tears. 

"Pep… Come here…" Tony sighed scratchily. She opened her eyes and put her face close to Tony's. He smiled tiredly, because he loved her so much. She was his reason for fighting now. Before, he fought for redemption- redemption for his weapons, for his stupidity in the past, for his apathy towards those affected by his weapons. But over the last five years, he had realized that even as far back as 2012, he was no longer fighting for redemption. He was no longer fighting for himself. He was fighting for his family- both families- he was fighting to protect Pepper, Morgan and Happy, sure, but the two years when the Avengers had split, it caused a huge rift in his life. Rhodey's… incident, Steve's instinct to defend his best friend, the criminalization of his own friends- the time he had spent thinking about how he could've stopped everything that had gone wrong was more than was healthy. And it all fell back to one thing.

Pepper. If he had managed to keep them together in 2016 then she easily could have made him realize that he was making mistakes. Signing the Accords, the airport fight, Siberia… He wasn't blaming her- not by a long shot. He was blaming himself for being so unstable with every relationship he'd ever had. But now, they were married. They had a daughter. They had afamily. He needed to keep them safe. He needed to keep everyone safe. He and Pepper were the face of stability, and he knew he would kill to keep it that way, and he would especially kill to regain a similar sense of stability with the entirety of the Avengers.

Pepper stared into her husband's eyes and she knew he was thinking. She had seen his look so many times, she could picture it perfectly: His eyes unfocusing, his jaw tightening, his throat jumping with dry swallows. She smiled forlornly. She knew he needed rest, even after his two weeks of recovery. She smiled as she spoke.

"Go to sleep, Tony. Rest. I need you as you, because I know I'm going back." Her words broke his trance as he nodded and looked to her.

"Only if you rest too, Pep. Promise me,"

"I promise, Tony." He was still for a long moment before he nodded and slowly closed his eyes. Before she could move, though, he had thrown his arms around her neck and was kissing her ferociously, making up- more like making out- for his two weeks of missing out on her. Missing out on her lips, soft and gentle, but with a sense of fury and passion. Her eyes, steely and calm, yet possessing a brave, strong disposition. 

Pepper felt her chest swell as her husband kissed her, his mouth grappling onto hers in a desperate series of grabs and holds. She felt her pulse shoot up as she pressed her body onto his, making sure to be as gentle as her emotions allowed. Tony was rubbing her back up and down passionately as if he hadn't just woken from a coma. She felt his hand run into her butt, squeezing it ever so gently. She gasped into his mouth when he massaged the flesh, but her lungs were beginning to ache. She pulled away to catch her breath and stared into her husband's eyes.

Not now… Public… Rest…" She tried, her brain failing to make the words she wanted to say. Not here. Not now. Definitely not with Morgan and Happy in the room. Oh, but she wanted it. His touch was like an electrical wire spreading fire through her body- stinging, pulsing, burning fire. She knew she that this was a problem- it had only been, what, two weeks, and she was starved for his touch, for his kiss, for his words, for anything and every little thing he could give her.

"Yeah… Right… Not, not with Morgan." He sighed, allowing Pepper to sit down. His chest was rising and falling rapidly, as was hers. Pepper felt a weight on her chest- a weight of need. Not necessarily sexual, it was definitely more emotional because she could feel, physically feel, that she needed him. For as much as he insisted that she was all he had, it was almost truer for her. Without Tony, she could barely function- as the last few weeks had proven, she was a mess without him. Had Morgan not been with her over the last two weeks, Pepper knew she would not have been able to keep sane or any sort of collected.

She looked at Tony as he allowed his eyes to close, feeling her smile almost break her face. He was back- he was really back, he was alive, and as the realization sunk in, Pepper felt more tears come to her face for what felt like the too-many-th time. She wiped them away as Morgan sighed in her sleep. Tony kissed the top of his daughter's head and smiled, sighing in peace alongside her. Without words, he motioned Pepper towards him with his hand. He lifted the hospital blanket and moved himself and his daughter to the side. Pepper silently laughed to herself tearfully before standing and carefully lying next to her husband, feeling his warmth exude into her cool body.

Maybe, together, they could keep this family safe. Keep it whole. Keep it together.

Keep it their own.

To Be Continued...