After rescuing Captain America, Clark brought him back to the S.H.I.E.L.D. camp.
At that moment, Coulson and the team had just set off and hadn't gotten far. One glance told Clark they hadn't taken his advice and had stayed put, waiting for him to return with the Captain.
"Is that… Captain America?"
As Clark landed near the perimeter, Coulson immediately recognized the man in his arms. As a long-time fan of Captain America, he had seen his image countless times. So the moment he laid eyes on the real deal, he knew instantly.
"That was fast. We—"Coulson paused and looked out toward the group still less than a hundred meters away, barely having started their trek. He felt a little awkward. After all the prep and planning, it had ended… so easily.
"What do you think?"
"Alright, bring the stretcher over." Coulson waved to the two men holding a makeshift stretcher.
After placing Steve on the stretcher, Coulson called for his assistant to begin salvage operations on the plane wreckage. Meanwhile, Clark helped carry the unconscious Captain back onto one of the aircrafts. After all, Steve had been asleep for nearly 70 years, and no one knew what kind of shape his body was in.
Given that cryogenic freezing was still experimental even in modern times, Coulson wasn't nearly as certain as Fury that Steve would even wake up.
The team boarded a supersonic Quinjet and flew back to New York. Several hours later, as they landed, they were greeted by a crowd of black-suited S.H.I.E.L.D. agents—at the head of them stood Nick Fury.
Fury first approached the stretcher, studied Steve's condition, then gestured for the medics to take him away. Then he turned to Clark.
"Wanna come inside for a chat?"
"Sure. I've never been to your place before."
Though Clark said that, Fury didn't give him a tour of S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ. Instead, he led him straight into his private office.
"What would you like? Tea? Coffee?"
"Got Sprite?" Clark asked. He was craving something cool and refreshing.
"Nope." Fury poured him a cold drink. "Here. Looks the same."
"Lame." Clark frowned at the plain cold water in his glass. No Sprite? Even Tony's place had Sprite. What kind of top-secret agency was this?
"Figures." Seeing Fury's stony silence and unreadable face, Clark gave up hope.
"Is this about HYDRA? Is that why you're suddenly looking for Steve?"Clark tried to break the awkward silence.
After all, last time his mother had been kidnapped, Clark had revealed what he knew—that S.H.I.E.L.D. had been infiltrated by HYDRA. Funny how in Chinese, it only takes dropping one letter to go from S.H.I.E.L.D. to Snake-S.H.I.E.L.D.
Ever since discovering that the people who'd deceived him were Hydra operatives, Clark had been burning for revenge. But aside from knowing that former director Alexander Pierce was one of them, he didn't have much else.
And after Clark rescued his mom, Pierce vanished completely—Fury couldn't even track him down.
"Yeah... at this point, I don't even know how many people I can still trust in this place."
Just then, Fury's radio crackled to life.
"Director, Captain Rogers saw through the ruse… and escaped."Upon hearing that, Fury rushed out of the office.
"That's why I'm here," Clark muttered to himself. He wanted to see the moment when Captain America realized he'd only taken a nap, yet 70 years had passed.
Clark used his telescopic vision to spot Steve and quickly flew after him.
At a crossroads, Clark saw Fury and his agents confronting Steve Rogers.
When Steve was cornered, he looked at the black man walking toward him with complete confusion. To him, it had only been a short nap. How had the world changed so much?
At first, he thought Hydra had captured him, maybe to extract intel about the Tesseract. When things started feeling off, he bolted from the fake hospital.
But now, seeing the city around him—the towering skyscrapers, the clothes people wore—Steve began to get a terrible feeling in his chest.
"Sorry about the fake hospital… we just thought it would be better to ease you in."
"Ease me into what?" Steve asked, not following.
"Captain, you've been asleep. For 70 years." Fury said after a pause.
Steve's heart clenched. The unfamiliar environment told him the bald man probably wasn't lying, but it was still a truth he didn't want to accept.
"You okay?" Fury asked, worried Steve might snap.
"I'm fine… I'm fine. I just—"Steve's mind flashed back to that conversation before the crash.
"Next Saturday, at the Stork Club…""I had a date…"
Steve looked around, quietly muttering to himself.
"Captain, let's get you out of here. Too many people. You understand."Seeing that Steve had more or less accepted the truth, Fury motioned for his men to escort him back. After all, being swarmed in the street was the last thing they needed.
Back at S.H.I.E.L.D., Steve requested to be alone. He needed time to reflect—on his life, on his future, and how to live in a world 70 years beyond his time.
He wasn't sure he could belong here. He feared a world that had no use for a man who only knew how to fight, yet he cherished peace more than anything. That contradiction gnawed at him.
More than anything, he dreaded hearing about his old friends. Especially her—Agent Carter. He hadn't dared ask.
"You're just walking around here like this? Not worried Tony will find out?"After Steve shut himself away, Clark ran into Natasha at S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ. She'd just returned to report in.
It was only after their last meeting that Clark finally understood why she hadn't embedded herself near Tony earlier. With a company as huge as Stark Industries, it was nearly impossible to reach Tony directly from the bottom.
So the best strategy was to wait for the right moment—and approach him under a compelling identity. That way, she'd easily catch Tony's eye.
"You going to turn me in?" Natasha gave Clark a teasing smile.
"Why wouldn't I?" Clark grinned, flashing his pearly whites.
"And what will you do to make sure I'm not exposed?"
"Obviously…" Clark leaned forward a little. "Teach me how to fight."
Right now, Clark had two great options—Natasha or Steve Rogers.
He knew Steve wouldn't refuse if asked, but the Captain was still processing everything. Not the best time.
And frankly, even though both mentors were well-endowed, Clark figured he'd enjoy Natasha's lessons more. After all, coed training was just... less exhausting.
"You want me to train you?" Natasha raised a brow, amused. She honestly didn't think someone like Clark needed hand-to-hand training—but as an exchange, she wouldn't refuse.
"Alright. But not right now. I'm going to Monaco with Tony tomorrow."
"No problem. I'm going too."
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