VITALITY ↝ B. BARNES [1]

[5]

"This is your home." Tony reminded her, a concerned look in his eyes. "I know what it's costing you to be here, Sparks, but you can't let one screw up keep you out of the game forever when there are people that need you. I do still need you." he assured her, gesturing back to the room where they were keeping the Winter Soldier, Steve still conversing with his old friend, though Barnes was becoming more and more aware of those watching him through the window. His eyes locked with Elysia's briefly, as if the super soldier was studying her, before she broke the uncomfortable eye contact and looked back at Tony.

"What do you still need me to do?" she finally asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Are there any more villainous headquarters you need me to storm, or is that part covered already?"

"I have one more job for you to do, but it doesn't require any work out in the field." Tony continued on. "Cross my heart. Barnes has a code embedded in his brain. If it's read to him, it re-brainwashes him. All the work we'll have done here to turn him back into a civilized human being will be for nothing. I have two scientists coming in from the city first thing in the morning to start working with him, but you're a whiz when it comes to computers and coding. There has to be something you three can do to crack the code that's buried in his brain."

A silence spread between the two as Elysia looked back up in Barnes's direction. Steve seemed much more relaxed as the conversation progressed, now sitting on a chair and wearing a small smile on his face, though she could see the exhaustion in his gaze after the long night they'd had. Barnes still kept glancing over in Elysia's direction, Steve's eyes eventually following before landing on the woman on the other side of the glass. He gave her a grateful smile and a brief wave before turning back to his best friend to continue their conversation.

"I'll make you a deal." Tony offered. "If you help us save Barnes, and stay here for the summer, then when it's time to go back I'll take you off my reserve. You're free to live a life of normalcy, and I swear you'll never hear from me again. New York can be a distant memory, and you'll never have to come back here. What do you say?"

While at first the deal seemed rather tempting, Elysia had to take a moment to consider his offer. While she never expected Tony to actually need her to return in the first place, a small part of her was glad he called, even if she'd never willingly admit it. As if the call had finally awakened the abilities she spent so many years trying to lock away, and now they were once again in the driver's seat, taking control of her instincts.

On the other hand, a lifetime of normalcy was all she had ever dreamed of, and here it was, right in front of her face. There was no guarantee that she'd manage to free Barnes anyway, but to Tony and the others, all that mattered was that she tried, and he'd give her the freedom she so desperately craved: a chance to make her life her very own.

"Alright," she said finally, extending a hand. "You've got a deal."

"Good," he said, reaching a hand out to meet hers. "I thought you'd see it my way." Unable to resist, Elysia sent a tiny shock his way, not enough to hurt him, but he jumped back in surprise, a scowl taking over his features. "Very funny, Sparky." he said, shaking his hand out to get rid of the spark, and his eyes moved down to where she still held the uncomfortable part of her ribs, no doubt bruised from her fall. "Dr. Helen Cho's up on the seventh floor, in the medical wing. You should go see her before turning in for the night. I'll have F.R.I.D.A.Y. direct you up to her."

Elysia nodded in agreement, finally stepping around Tony to exit the room, and instantly the lit pattern on the floor illuminated once again, leading her to the nearest elevator. Inside the number seven was already lit up, indicating her destination, before the path lit once again to take her to the medical wing of the Avengers Compound.

The room was extensive, rows of empty beds lining the walls to make up the sickbay, and at the end of the room, a woman leaned over a desk, scribbling something down onto a piece of paper. At the sound of the doors opening, she looked up to see Elysia in the doorway, and rose from her chair, gesturing for the young woman to come inside.

"You must be Elysia Sparks," the woman said, stepping closer to her. "My name is Dr. Helen Cho. Tony said you were on your way up, took a bad fall earlier tonight?"

"Yes," Elysia confirmed, nodding as she reached back up to cradle the ache in her ribs. "HYDRA soldier pulled me down, I hit the snow pretty hard."

"Come have a seat." she instructed, patting the nearest bed, and Elysia did so, hopping up onto the bed as Helen lifted the hem of Elysia's shirt, revealing the dark purple bruise that had already bloomed across her side. "Might be looking at a broken rib or two, here, but we'll do a scan just to be sure."

Helen walked over to grab a tool from her desk, returning to Elysia and pressing a button to emit a bright blue light over the pained section of her ribs. Helen studied the screen of the tool as it passed over, and when the scan was complete, a faint beeping sound emitted from the device.

"Looks like we just have some bruising." Helen said with a relieved smile, setting down the device. "We'll get it wrapped and get you something for the pain, and you should be good as new in no time."

"Thanks, Dr. Cho," Elysia said as Helen reached for the wrap, beginning to apply it around her ribs.

"Anytime, anytime," the woman assured her, crossing to a cabinet full of medical supplies and grabbing a jar full of small blue pills and a bottle of water, passing them both over to the pink haired woman. "We'll try not to need it next time, though."

As Elysia took the pills, she instantly began to feel relief from the ache in her ribs, and hopped up from the bed before pulling her shirt back down to her waist. "Doctor's orders, just take it easy for a few days, but there shouldn't be any lasting damage. As long as you're not on field work, you should be just fine to resume normal activities."

Elysia chuckled softly. "No worries there."

"In that case, I would advise you to go get some rest." Helen instructed. "You've all had a long night retrieving the Winter Soldier. Go rest up."

"Will do," Elysia agreed. "Thanks, Doc."