Summary:Jimmy returns to SHIELD after the 'fair ground' and is rushed to medbay Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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During the battle at the fair ground, most of the SHIELD team needed to extract in a hurry. Jimmy had ended up on a hilltop miles away… but they can soon banish any worries about one of the clockworks ending up loose.
Because, dropped off by Priscilla Kitaen, Jimmy stumbles into the Triskelion. "Consultant Baxter here, reporting in." He's in bad shape: left arm off a little above the elbow, the right at the shoulder. Neither is bleeding anymore, but it's clear he's weak from damage both physical and psychological.
Jimmy's arrival at The Triskeilan had caused quite a stir given everything. Jemma had just been given the all clear on her own … little … problem when he'd arrived. "Baxter. Medbay, now." One of the Doctors takes control immediately and ushers Jimmy along - getting him into a bed and under observation just as Jemma arrives, to look the man over.
"Jimmy, let me look at you and then we'll need to know what happened." It's all business, but he can tell that she's worried as they examine his arm to begin with - triage first and then the rest.
Jimmy almost loses his footing, but the doctor catches him. In his foggy state, he doesn't even notice moving. One moment he's at the entrance; the next he's in a bed, with his arm in Jemma's hand.
That arm looks like a clean sever: like it had been surgically amputated and then had weeks to heal. Underneath, there are still hints of brass and bronze… but the clockworks are just remnants, broken-off gears caught between muscle tissues. He's Jimmy again. "Jeez, where to start? With what happened at the fair grounds, or—" A haunted look passes briefly over his face. "…before that?" Sarah has briefed them, right? He won't need to go through a debrief about that, not yet.
Sarah had provided some briefing, another team had been working on that. "Agent Simmons…" the Doctor begins as they examine Jimmy's arm. "It's like he's still got some of particles in him."
"Get a sample, Doctor Rogers. We'll want to examine them against anything we've recovered from the fair grounds."
"Let's start with what you remember. I know this must have been traumatic for you and we're getting the counsellor up here. Right now, we need to make sure your stable and … safe and honestly, I'd like to work out what happened to you during that fight."
"Counsellor…" Somehow, that amuses him. "That's what I'm supposed to be for." He actually laughs, shaking his head. He shifts modes, just so he can speak in the dramatic, booming voice. "Physician, Heal Thyself!" During that brief flash, his wings spread behind him, and Jemma can see the ghost arms glimpsed at the fair grounds.
But Jimmy can't just humour his way out of it. He slumps back, sitting at the bed's headboard. "Agent Harman and I had previously encounterd an animal, a ferrer 'changed' like what happened to us. We returned to the scene with Sarah, to investigate further. It…"
He looks off to the side. "It was a trap. They were ready for us, specifically for us. They hit us with some kind of toxin, something that overwhelmed all our healing — all our healing, me and Harman and Sarah — and left us paralysed. And then…" He shivers. "There was a coccoon, and after it was done, we were those… things.
"There was still a lot of 'ourselves' in there. To me, it felt like all my feelings were… miles away. All I really had to go on was what other people were feeling, around me. I still had my powers." He closes his eyes. "Spider-Man. I'll have to thank him. He wasn't even thinking about me, but it still broke through."
"For others yes but now you need help and we going to make sure you get it." Jemma says seriously. Rogers and the orderlies all take a step back as the wings flash behind Jimmy. Jemma starts but holds her position, staring at the arm … "Can you feel your arm, Jimmy? And … you have wings."
She gestures for the others to return and continue their work. It takes a bit to get the clockwork samples but they're soon secured and sent back to Jemma's lab.
"Were you those things? Blacks report is a little unclear on that and there's a report that Blacks doppelganger was taken down a bit earlier than her escape."
Clearly it's something though and Jemma has to wonder. She'll get Harmans chart when it's available and compare that as well.
"Your empathy helped you do … what … exactly?"
Jimmy blinks, glancing over his shoulder. "The wings are standard. I've had them for years — they're… well, I don't think they're exactly how I fly in an aerodynamic sense, but I can't fly witohut them." The other question, though… he takes a breath and changes again, arms sprouting. "But This Is New. I've Never Lost A Limb Before. I Can Feel Them, But…" His fingers plunge inside the bed, intangible. Infra-red shows that the arms are warm like his wings, but they're not solid at all. He runs his hands over each other, and they seem to interact. "Hey, Maybe I Can—" He claps his hands together… but there's no sound, no displacement of air. He shifts back with a sigh. "Or not."
He chews his lower lip. "It… I'm not sure, exactly. I got control back. And then, there was this… feedback. It felt like the same process, in reverse — like whatever had changed me into the clockwork was changing me back. To say 'it hurt' would be putting it mildly — like every tissue in my body was growing in overdrive, and either 'eating' the clockwork inside, or rejecting it, pushing it out like some regenerators do with bullets. When it was done… here I am."
Jimmy himself doesn't notice. Jemma only sees it because of the precision of her visual implants. But while he's glowing, Jimmy's arms grow. It's just a few microns, but it's more than he'd had when he came in. If he stayed in that mode…
"The limb … isn't there and yet it is. It's like your body is projecting what it needs. And it's only doing that when you glow …" Jemma's fascinated and Jimmy see's her eye switch from red to blue and back again as she scans the infra red and x-ray spectrums.
It's a nice trick to have, she'll admit.
Rogers takes a blood draw and displays the results on the 3D display above one of the work tables. "Slightly elevated white blood count, Agent Simmons but that could be the bodies natural response to trauma and the clockwork implants. I'll start the DNA sequencing."
"Thank you Doctor Rogers and please get Consultant Baxters original files up, we'll want to compare them."
Jimmy looks down at his 'hands'. "I Can 'Feel' It, But… These Hands Can't Hold Anything." Please stop him before he starts reciting Unlimited Blade Works. His head tilts as he looks towards Doctor Rogers. "White Blood Count? Like An Immune Response?" He nods to Jemma's instructions, and settles back more into the bed. "While I Was… Like That, I Could Feel The Drive From Elsewhere. Whoever That Was, They Wanted Information, More Than Anything Else. Information About How Powers Work." He shakes his head. "I Don't Think It's Over."
Jemma sits on the bed and tries to take the 'ghost limb', her own hand moving through it as well. "It's fascinating, Jimmy. Has anything like this happened before? Your file doesn't suggest that regeneration was part of your abilities but then again, losing a limb isn't all that common."
She looks down at her own cybernetic hand for the moment, a look passing through her one good eye fleetingly. In agencies like SHIELD, it's more common but still not common.
"There's mention of an enhanced healing factor, maybe this is an extension of that. Tell me how it feels - does it tingle? Itch?" She's distracting him as much as anything. "And how long can you keep glowing for? But yes, an immune response - it's impossible to tell if it's the regeneration though or the fact you've foreign matter in your body."
"Someone is trying to replicate powers, using … clockwork?" That's what he just implied, isn't it?
Jimmy flexes his not-really-there fingers while he watches, trying to get the best feeling possible. "It Feels… Warm. And Hollow. Like I'd Imagine It Would Feel To Have Bones Like A Bird's." He holds the arm out for her to eamine however much she likes. "The Closest To Anything Like This Is The Wings. But I've Never Been Missing A Limb Before, For It To Fill In." He shakes his head. "I Don't Know If I Could Always Do This, Or If Being Converted — Having So Much To Heal From — Kickstarted Something New."
He chews his lip. "Something Like That. Sarah Followed Magical Signatures While We Were On Our Way In, And It Replicated Her Portals. Maybe There's A Magical Component, As Well As The Mechanisms? A Kind Of Magitech?"
"Warm and hollow…" Jemma watches Jimmy as he talks. His voice is so different like this, like there's someone else speaking with him, just slightly out of time. A resonance, almost. "Heat often accompanies healing in general, so that's not surprising. I guess I'm wondering it's like ingesting Skele-Gro from Harry Potter. Rowlings made out that was painful and itchy."
She smiles then, to show she's joking, trying to ease the situation as she can.
"Your biometrics are all reading a little higher than normal but then … you've just through major trauma. I'm a little surprised they're not reading higher, to be honest."
The news though that has her frowning. "We've got a SHIELD team securing the fair ground and collecting all the evidence they can. Eventually, we'll investigate this further but it will be noted as a threat. Maybe WAND will want to pick it up. We're just so stretched here at the moment."
Belatedly, Jimmy realises he's been asked about his duration. "I Don't Know. It's A Strange Feeling, A Little Like Holding A Muscle A Little Bit Tense. It Doesn't Hurt, But It Takes Some Attention. I've Never Just… Left It On. I Keep It On While I Need It, But…" He gestures to his throat and gives her a self-deprecating smile. "The Voice Makes Me Feel Awkward." He shakes his head. "No Itch Or Pain… Not Now. There Was A Lot During The Re-Conversion, After I Left The Fair Grounds." After Hulk grabbed him and jumped away. "Maybe It's…" He sighs, shaking his head. "No. I Just Don't Know About The Medical Science Behind All This. I Just Do It."
He purses his lips. "Do You Think I'll Be Able To Help? Even With…" He waves his hands. He's not exactly in the best of shape.
"If you start to tire, I'd like to know, Jimmy." Jemma answers quietly, considering the breadth of the mans abilities. It will probably end up on his file - Jemma tries to find a balance there but SHIELD does like its data after all.
"Awkward? Or does it hurt? If it hurts, we don't have to talk more. If it's awkward, would it help if I said that I like it?" It's a small amount of light teasing, trying to lighten the conversation a little.
"I'm sure there's some medical science behind it, but it's something we've not discovered yet." The biochem tilts her head as she looks at Jimmy "Help do what exactly? You'll be on best rest for a while and I'm recommending light duties until the counsellor clears you."
Of course, if Jimmy is like Barton, he'll … do as he pleases. Heaven help Jemma if London is ever incapicitated - she'll probably tranq him to give him time to heal.
Jimmy nods. "I'll Let You Know. I… Honestly Don't Feel As Tired As I'd Expect, After Everything." He shakes his head. "It Doesn't Hurt. I Just Feel Weird Talking Like A Damn Hurricane Or Earthquake. I Feel Like I Should Be Warning A Prophet About Powers And Principalities Or Something. It Feels A Little Wrong Even To Use Contractions." He still does, but it feels weird.
He sighs and shrugs, his face lowering. "I Don't Know Yet. Maybe I Could Help With Tracking. Right At The End There — After The Explosion — I Could Still Feel The Watcher's Anger. It's A Setback, Not The End."
"We'll monitor you too, but I'm relying on you being honest about what you're experiencing. It's not going to do you any good if you're not recovered before you go haring off." It's a mix of humour and seriousness that Jemma adds to that statement.
The DNA sequencing is going to take a little while longer and when they get it, Jemma will have a better idea of what's happening.
"I'll make you a compromise while you're laid up here. I'll get you the analysis from the site and you can review it. Black and Harman, when she's recovered, can visit and you can share notes - put a report into command with a plan. If you want to pursue it, I don't think you should on your own and with the right justification, SHIELD will likely support a task force."
"How does that sound?"
Jimmy sighs, nodding his head. "I'll Be A Good Patient, Promise." Lord knows she could use more of those. Even if he is apparently going to pout about it. It looks a little weird, how he folds his arms over his chest while he doesn't have any. One of them even clips slightly into his chest, like he's from a Bethesda game. He wrinkles his nose. "My Sense Don't Work Well For Looking Over Reports, I Need To Be There In Range To Sense Anything. But, Alright." He nods. "I'll Stick With That Until I'm Cleared." He chews his lip. "And… Are Visitors Allowed? There's A Civilian, Darcy Lewis, Who Will Probably Try To Come See Me."
Pouting is normal. Jemma's used to that. She's even used to be cursed for being a witch - lovingly, of course. "Just get better, Jimmy.That's all that I ask." She winces as his arm clips into his chest and gestures "Ah, Jimmy … the rendering doesn't support that."
"Your senses might not but your brain does and who knows what you'll see when you read them." She'll not force him though she suspects he will read them.
"Visitors are, we'll need to clear them and they'll be escorted at all times. You know the drill. Is there anyone else you want us to contact? Family, perhaps?"
Jimmy hms? when Jemma gestures at his arm, and he looks down— "That Is Weird." He lets his arms hang at his sides, which results in one hand instead clipping through the bed. He nods. "I'll Read Through And See What I Can Help With." He nods.
"No." The word is hard and sharp, like a knife in the ribs, when she suggests contacting family. He shakes his head. "Just… No Family To Contact." Or no family worth contacting, his tone might say.
"Then we'll be your family, Jimmy. Call Darcy, get her to visit. Miss Potts, perhaps? Anyone else?" Jemma doesn't ask anymore than that. Family is often a difficult subject amongst the powered.
"Let me get the rest of your results and I'll be back in a little bit. I think there's cheesecake in the Cafeteria, shall I bring you some?"
Jimmy relaxes, letting the subject drop, smiling. "Thank You. For Now, Just Darcy. I'll Wait To Recover A Bit More Before I Get In Touch With Others, Like Ms. Potts Or Isis." Pause. "That's Isis Marik, A Friend Of Mine. Not The Islamic State." And the poor girl is stuck with that name. He considers the cheesecake… and his hands. "I Would, Ah, Need Some Assistance. If A Nurse Isn't Too Busy, Maybe? If Someone's Available, Then Yes, Please. Though I'm Not As Hungry As I'd Have Expected." Given how much of his body he's had to regrow.
"Not a nurse, Jimmy. I'll come sit with you, of course." Jemma can work a bit from the medbay and she'll happily keep the consultant company while she can.
"But for now, try to … well, maybe not rest … heal. And I'll see you later."
Jimmy blushes at the offer from Jemma herself, his chin ducking. "I-If You're Sure, Then… Thank You. I appreciate It." He nods, looking down at himself. "I'll Heal As Much As I Can. And I'm Not Leaving This Bed Until You Say So."