Man Out of Time - A Captain America / Avengers Fanfiction

Chapter 51

Chapter 51

"I can't tell you how pleased Mr. Stark was to receive this information." The cheerful twinkle in Dr. Nyi's eyes matched the reflection of the fluorescent lights off his cue ball of a bald head. "Even as we speak, word is being spread to all units of the military how to distract the enemy so our soldiers have a better chance of winning."

It always struck Bernice how much Doctor Nyi looked like a broody hen, clucking at one engineer, pecking at another, to get the very best out of them. The next door neighbor had a small flock when she was a kid, six pretty little golden Austrolops, a gentle, good-natured bird, and a single golden rooster. It had been a weird backyard hobby for the suburbs of New Jersey, but the kids in the neighborhood used to sneak through the fence and feed them. Right now, Doctor Nyi reminded her of a proud hen who'd just laid a big, fat egg.

"It was Bernice's idea," Huojin said.

"Yeah … Bernice made us do it!" Ralph said.

"Brain fart!" The rest of the engineers shouted in unison. There was lots of high fives and sticking of hands under armpits to make farting noises, behavior more befitting nine-year-old boys than the largely middle-aged group of highly-educated engineers.

Bernice blushed.

"I was just at the right place at the right time," Bernice said. "It was something Steeee…. um … uh … it was something a friend of mine said that got me thinking."

"You mean it was something that hot boyfriend of yours said that we all know you're not supposed to talk about," Ralph whispered.

"I said honky tonk…."

"Badonkadonk."

Several of the engineers pantomimed Steve's stiff performance on the dance floor while another pretended to be Bernice swooning after a dance. Bernice's cheeks turned hot pink. She still hadn't told anyone...

"It was all Ralph and Huojin," Bernice said, trying not to stutter. "I just noticed a pattern, that's all. They're the ones who backed it up with data."

"Well I'm sure Mr. Stark will thank us all once he gets back," Doctor Nyi said. "Each and every one of you. By the bags under everyone's eyes, I can tell you have all gotten about much sleep as I have the last twenty-four hours. Ralph and Huojin … even less. Are those the same clothes you had on yesterday, guys?"

"Friday." Bernice pretended to sniff her armpits and wrinkled up her nose. "They've been here since Friday. And those are definitely the same clothes."

"Hey … we took showers!" Huojin protested. "That's why Mr. Stark built shower and rest facilities into every lab."

"Yeah," Ralph said. "The Iron Man isn't the only wirehead to pull an all-nighter when he's on the trail of a technological breakthrough."

The engineers slapped each other on the back. Bernice did her best to fade into the nearest wall, her white lab coat conveniently blending into the plain white paint.

"Back to work, everyone!" Doctor Nyi said. "Staff meeting is over. You have your goals for the day. Bernice … S.H.I.E.L.D. has released some footage taken from inside the Triskelion during the last attack. They want those sharp eyes of yours taking a second look. See if you can pick out anything they might have missed."

"On it," Bernice said. The engineers poured out of the conference room, everybody in good spirits after their morning briefing to face the day. Although it wasn't quite Orville and Wilber Wright taking their first flight, it gave Bernice an idea of how other great minds might have felt after flying, splitting the atom, or discovering the cure for infection. Every person in the lab today felt a buzz of elation.