Chapter Text
When Coulson stopped breathing so did Fury.
Twenty years of working with a man gave you a certain connection. A rhythm that made you work in synch to an extent most people never experienced. A few people who didn’t value their lives likened it to a couple, married so long that neither had secrets from the other. Phil Coulson knew what he wanted before he wanted it, knew how to make whatever twisted black-ops dreams he concocted a reality. He knew when to give Phil his head, let him run an op his way even if that way gave the WSC fits and threatened the sovereignty of several nations. The man also did what most people would have considered impossible: he made Fury his friend. It was a friendship that Nick returned.
“Sir,”
He didn’t need to be told anything else, just moved aside as the EMTs did their work. Phil’s suit, deceptively plain and very expensive, was slit at the site of the wound, the hole assessed by one as another opened a line and started a plasma infusion. He stood silent for tense minutes as the three worked, until Phil’s chest moved on its own with a bubbling, ragged breath.
“Stabilize him if you can, but his survival as of this moment is level seven security.”
The EMTs snapped their eyes to him for all of two seconds before returning to their charge. With the precision of long practice they had Coulson strapped to a gurney and moving to the infirmary.
The clatter of something hitting the floor was almost swallowed by the sound of the gurney locking into place. Once the EMTs were clear Fury squatted down.
The cell phone wasn’t one he recognized, not SHIELD issue. A black Samsung, screen streaked with blood. Fury picked it up and swiped a thumb across to reveal a passcode screen. He thought for a moment and typed in a series of numbers. 7*4*1920*3*15*1942, the two birthday’s of Captain America. One was known by just about any school kid who developed an interest in the first real superhero. The second was only known by those who waded through the old SSR files in storage.
The phone opened onto a text conversation, and Nick hung his head. Stay safe!!!! From SexyD was the last received message.
Phil never got a chance to send his.
Fury turned off the phone and slipped it into his pocket. There was shit that needed doing, and he was the one to do it. With his dying breath Phil gave him the key to getting the Initiative off the ground.
This was never gonna work, if they didn’t have something to…
If they didn’t have something for them to rally behind.
“You have to stay for at least twenty four hours for observation, Mr. Stark.”
Tony ignored the doctor giving him her best ‘I’m the adult you need to listen to me’ face and pulled on his battered clothes.
The doctor kept talking, despite his pretending she wasn’t there. “From what we were told…I can’t even begin to imagine what you’re experiencing right now, but you need to stay under close observation. There is no way to know what traveling through-”
“I have someone smarter than you who can watch me twenty-four seven without blinking an eye,” he mumbled into his shirt. The metal of the reactor case pulled at his chest. “Besides, someone needs this bed more than me.”
The doctor looked torn. On the one hand he needed medical attention, but it wasn’t pressing. On the other there were people still pouring into Mercy General with life-threatening injuries. “Constant supervision,” she said quickly. “Any dizziness, sudden fatigue, hemorrhaging, and you go to a hospital immediately.”
“Will do.”
She was gone before the ‘will’ was all the way out.
Tony jumped off the gurney where he’d spent the last six hours. He had no idea where the rest of the team was. He imagined Clint and Natasha were in some SHIELD controlled medical bay judging by the way she limped out of the Shwarma Palace and Barton’s dead-eyed stare. Rogers, ever the faithful soldier, was probably with them; and if Bruce had any sense he was crossing the border into Canada.
“Boss?”
“Tony!”
A white blur barreled into his arms, and he could just make out Pepper’s smell through the scent of astringent and blood. “Pep.”
“Are you all right? Have they cleared you to leave? What are you doing up?” Her eyes searched the crowds around them, no doubt looking for a doctor to get a full rundown on his condition.
“Hey…look…it’s okay…I’m fine,” he cupped her face. She looked so worried, her features pale and drawn, her eyes shadowed. “Doc just gave me the all-clear.”
Pepper hugged him again, and he soaked it in. He hated worrying her like this.
“We saw the Tower on the news,” she whispered to him as her hands ran through the hair at his nape. “No one knew if you were alive.”
“How did you-“
“We were able to assist Ms. Potts in getting through the general cordon around Manhattan.”
Tony looked past Pepper and Happy to a short, dark man with glasses and a plain suit. Even in the hospital he couldn’t get away from SHIELD.
“General cordon?”
“All bridges, tunnels, and ferries have been shut down to nearly all incoming traffic. The only ones allowed onto the island are emergency personnel. Refugees are allowed to exit to stay in several emergency camps being set up by FEMA.”
Refugees. In America. He shook his head to clear it. “Is Stark Tower all right?”
Pepper dug out her phone and dialed JARVIS.
“Ms. Potts.” The AI greeted. “I trust you have entered Manhattan safely?”
“Yes.”
“J!” Tony forced cheer into his voice. “How’s it going?”
“The arc reactor has restarted without difficulty sir and is currently at ninety-eight percent capacity.”
“How’s the Tower doing?”
“Aside from cosmetic damage my systems report that the building remains structurally sound, sir.”
He rubbed a thumb over his eyebrow and winced when it caught on one of his stitches. “Good. How much empty space do we have?”
“Floors 1-12, 16, 22, 39, and 67 through eighty remain completely vacant, sir. All other floors have been leased out.” Before he could ask something else the AI continued. “Of those leased, only twenty percent have been moved into. Would you like me to provide a list?”
“Yeah, J.” He did some calculations. Judging by the destruction he saw there would be thousands of people without a place to stay once they started letting civilians back in. “I need cots. Cots, dividers, chairs, blankets...” He could coordinate with FEMA, get some of the people out of temporary shelters and into a place with walls.
“I will contact Mr. Fugate with your offer as soon as I have compiled the required lists, sir.”
“Thanks, J. Families first, though.”
“Of course. Should I also offer rooms in your subsidiary hotels free of charge?”
Oh yeah, those. They would be more comfortable. “Sure J, go nuts.”
“Mr. Stark,” Agent Glasses started once JARVIS hung up. “Director Fury would like you to come in for debriefing as soon as possible.”
Tony sighed. “Couldn’t he wait…like… a day? Maybe two?” He flew a damn nuke, one of their damn nukes, into a wormhole and saved a city. If that didn’t earn a person downtime…
Glasses didn’t frown. He tried to pull a poker face, but it was nothing on Agent’s.
Phil.
“Tony?” Pepper’s eyes searched his.
He blinked. Pepper and Phil were friends, he knew that. Teased her about it at times when he found out she’d met with the enemy over lunch. “Pep…Phil…” Phil died. He tried to take on a god alone and it got him killed. Tony felt her shoulders tense, her hand clench around his. “Loki…he…” stabbed him in the back, left him to bleed out while he made his escape. She raised a hand to his cheek and he closed his eyes. He knew that gesture. He liked it. It was her you don’t need to say anything touch.
“Mr. Stark?”
Oh…right… they had a non-Happy audience. “You should get back to the Tower, Pep,” he said offhandedly. “Sit down, watch out for the Loki-hole in the floor.”
“Loki-hole?”
“I’ll explain when I get back. In fact, have JARVIS show you the footage. Happy?” Make sure she gets home safe. Take care of her. Kill anyone who tries to hurt her.
“Will do, boss.”
He watched as Pepper dodged through the sea of gurneys and people towards what he assumed was an exit. When he couldn’t see her hair anymore he turned to Glasses. “Shall we?”