Tidal Wave [Peter Parker]

Part 17- The Procedure

They trained for the next two days without Thor until one morning, Shuri declared that she was prepared to do the procedure. They'd done the biometric scan the day before and now, everything was ready- except Sage. She spent twenty minutes in her room with King until she finally felt stable enough to go to the lab. King went with her and watched while Shuri hooked her up to a large mechanized table. Shuri explained the process again, Sage's body would be immobilized through the whole process but her mind would be awake. It was a controlled form of anesthesia awareness but she wouldn't feel pain. If something went wrong on a molecular level, her body would wake up and cause several malfunctions, meaning that they had one shot to save her. Sage understood the risks and was grateful when Shuri handed her a purple liquid to drink. She laid back on the table and let her body fall asleep. She could hear Shuri work but couldn't open her eyes. "Sage, I know you can hear me," Shuri said. "This process will take several hours. Visitors are not permitted until the third hour but you should know that your parents really wanted to be here."

Parents plural? Sage thought.

"Beginning the process now."

***

Sage didn't feel anything, she didn't have a sense of time either. She knew that they'd hit the third hour mark when she started to hear people talking.

"Hey Shuri," Peter said.

"Peter!" She cheered, clearly glad to see him.

They did some kind of secret handshake and Peter said, "How's it going?"

"Everything is on track, her Palladium should be completely replaced in two hours."

"Is this really going to work?"

"Absolutely," Shuri said. "Unfortunately I can't completely undo what the accident did, she will still be a human arc reactor. She will still be able to control water and pump electric shock waves through the current she creates. When I'm done, she will be able to safely use her powers even without her suit. In truth, the suit only slows the effects of the Palladium. This will be a permanent solution."

Peter was quiet for a moment, "Do you think she'll be able to stop Njǫror?"

Sage listened intently.

"When I am done, she will be roughly three times as strong as she is now. I believe she is completely capable of doing what is necessary."

Sage was sure that Peter was holding her hand now. He had pulled up a chair and was sitting beside her. He whispered so Shuri couldn't hear. "I'm not afraid of you, I love you."

Shuri leaned down next to Peter while she worked. She definitely heard him despite his whispering. "You know she can hear you right?"

Peter jumped back, "She what?"

Shuri laughed, "Peter, of course she can hear you. You love her? Oh that's adorable."

"I gotta go, please don't tell anyone."

Shuri rolled her eyes as Peter left, she looked down at Sage, "He already told the one person who needed to hear it."

***

At the four hour mark, Tony and Pepper came in to check on her. They both pulled up a chair and sat down next to their daughter.

"Tony, what are we doing here?"

"Shuri, go ahead and tell her."

Shuri perked up, "Ms. Potts, Sage can hear everything you say. I have experienced minor complications during the procedure but if anything more goes wrong, Sage will wake up, terminating the procedure. Results will be detrimental and likely lead to Sage's death the moment she uses her powers again."

Pepper nearly burst into tears. 

"Shuri, you need to work on your bedside manor." Tony said as he tried to comfort Pepper.

"Wha- Sage already understood the risks," she said.

"I was talking about her mother."

Pepper was ignoring all of them, she'd been turning a blind to Sage's powers as if it would make them go away. Her eyes started to water as she leaned toward her daughter. "Sage, if you really can hear me, I am so sorry that I wasn't there for you. I'm sorry we sent you away. I'm sorry you grew up without your mom." Tears started to roll down her cheeks. "Please be okay, I need you to be okay."

Tony pulled Pepper back and wiped her tears. He tried to reassure her. He turned back to his daughter and held her hand. "We love you."

***

Finally, her eyes opened. Shuri was in the chair next to her, a smile plastered on her face. "Welcome back to the world of the living."

"What?" Sage said, her voice weak.

"When the procedure was complete, you went into cardiac arrest. You were dead for almost a minute until Tony arrived."

Sage turned around and saw her dad. He smiled at her.

"Tony was modifying the arc reactor he made for you while I worked. He knew about the risks and the complications we faced during the surgery."

Sage looked down at her chest to see a glowing blue arc reactor shaped like an upside down triangle. She took a sharp breath and Tony stepped forward. "Don't worry, it's removable. I modeled it off your new suit. It's just a housing unit for nanobots and synthesized Vibranium molecules like your own." He sat on the table next to Sage. "Your cells are stable now but I want you to wear that until the fight against Njǫror. Think of it as a backup, an insurance."

She nodded, "But I'll be okay?"

They both turned to Shuri, "What are you looking at me for? I did my job." Tony and Sage laughed. "Sage, you will be fine. The arc reactor your father made will just help keep you stable until your body completely accepts the new Vibranium. Afterall, you've been living with Palladium in your body for eight years."

Sage began thanking the two of them profusely when Thor and Loki both entered the room. They looked stressed and were both in their Asgardian apparel. "Sage," Loki said. "How did the surgery go?"

"I mean, I'm going to live so pretty well I'd say."

"That's good," Loki said. "Because it's time to go."