"Also," Nathan added, "I'd like to borrow your tool shed to start crafting a Vibranium shield."
Klaue's brows lifted with pleasant surprise. His shoulders, once tense, finally relaxed.
He had personally witnessed Nathan's capabilities. Though the young man's combat style was still unrefined, his physical prowess, reflexes, and instincts were inhuman—a walking super soldier prototype.
A part of Klaue had feared that once Nathan secured the Vibranium, he might turn on them. But when he saw Nathan gently drape his coat over Elizabeth earlier, he realized the truth: Nathan was not someone who broke promises.
Small actions often revealed the most about a person. And this stranger? He was someone worth keeping close.
Klaue chuckled and patted Nathan on the back. "Use anything you need, brother. The shed is yours."
He added with a grin, "By the way, are you hungry? I can whip something up."
As if summoned by the word, Nathan's stomach gave a sharp grumble. He scratched his neck sheepishly. "Yeah… actually, I could eat a mountain."
Klaue burst out laughing. "Say no more. I'll take care of it right after I give my little princess a massage. She's been glued to that motorcycle all day."
As Klaue left, Nathan rubbed his stomach with a groan. "Hang in there… food's coming."
He turned his attention to the Vibranium chunk resting on the workbench.
"First, I'll build a steel prosthetic arm for Klaue," he muttered. "Then I'll forge my shield."
He tapped the metal thoughtfully.
"In the meantime, I'll need to train—hand-to-hand combat, marksmanship, shield throwing."
Nathan frowned slightly.
His physical advantages had gotten him through most fights. But during recent skirmishes, he'd felt the gap—a lack of combat finesse, missed shots, and awkward maneuvers that could've cost him his life.
"If I come face-to-face with another Winter Soldier," he said aloud, "I won't stand a chance unless I sharpen my skills."
His mind drifted to Captain America's shield. "There's a reason Howard Stark designed it round. The ricochet potential, the aerodynamic balance—it's genius."
He ran a finger around the curved edge of a plate nearby and smiled. "I guess I'm really becoming a second Captain America."
But beyond combat, there was something even more pressing.
Wolverine.
Nathan would eventually need to face or work with the mutant, and to do that, he'd need to transplant Wolverine's healing factor into himself—a feat of advanced bioengineering.
"Wolverine's physiology is… complex," Nathan murmured. "And the only people who've ever pulled off something like that were monsters like Stryker."
Stryker's research had been supported by Tesla, the father of the Sentry Project, and a brilliant but controversial biologist. His experiments had led to the creation of Deadpool, among other horrors.
Nathan, by comparison, had been a nobody scientist in a failing research institute in his previous life. "My knowledge base is far from enough," he admitted.
But he had a plan.
HYDRA's stolen research, now in his possession, combined with modern online bioengineering resources, could help bridge that gap. He would immerse himself in data, absorb it like a sponge, and slowly reconstruct a safe version of the healing factor.
He set the Vibranium aside and began preparing materials for Klaue's prosthetic arm.
It wouldn't be just any arm.
This would be a state-of-the-art mechanical enhancement, designed to integrate seamlessly with the user's nervous system. A perfect blend of human intuition and robotic strength.
"The sensors need to read neural signals in real-time," Nathan muttered, pacing.
"Every movement, every thought must be transmitted and executed with zero latency. One millisecond too slow, and it becomes a liability."
The microprocessors would need to operate on an unprecedented level—thousands of data points per second, interpreted, converted into mechanical motion, and executed perfectly.
Coincidentally, the Chitauri's tech had cracked this challenge. Nathan had studied the scavenged remnants and now planned to implement similar tech for Klaue.
With the tools, instruments, and raw materials stacked across the shed, Nathan gave an approving nod.
"This place is practically a small laboratory. Klaue really is thorough."
He grabbed a soldering tool and began working.
Wires glowed. Circuits sparked. Microprocessors clicked into place. Slowly, the skeletal frame of the prosthetic arm began to take shape.
Just as he was calibrating the sensor array—
Knock, knock.
A soft voice called through the door, "Big brother, dinner is ready!"
Nathan set the microchip down carefully and opened the door. Elizabeth stood there, grinning, hands behind her back.
He smiled at her, "Thanks. I was starving."
The moment he stepped into the main room, an aroma so rich and inviting it could make angels cry hit him like a wave.
On the dining table sat beef stewed with potatoes, grilled steak seared to perfection, and roasted vegetables glistening with butter.
Nathan blinked. "Klaue cooked this? I didn't think mercenaries learned French cuisine."
Elizabeth puffed up with pride. "My dad's cooking is as good as a Michelin chef!"
Klaue chuckled as he brought over a plate. "Let's not get carried away, sweetheart."
"Humility, remember?"
The little girl crossed her arms defiantly. "But it's true! You're amazing."
Klaue ruffled her hair. "That's my girl."
He turned to Nathan. "This here is Elizabeth Klaue, my daughter and personal cheerleader."
The girl extended a tiny hand. "Nice to meet you, big brother!"
Nathan smiled and shook her hand gently. "Nice to meet you too, Elizabeth. I'm Nathan."
Elizabeth tilted her head and studied him with the curiosity of a scientist observing a rare creature.
"Big brother, why don't you ever smile?" she asked innocently. "Is it because you don't have a girlfriend?"
Nathan's smile faltered, his expression freezing like a glitching hologram.
Klaue burst out laughing, nearly choking on his drink.
"Sweetheart, we don't ask those kinds of questions!" he said, coughing.
Elizabeth shrugged. "Just curious!"
Klaue wiped his mouth, still chuckling. "Alright, let's just eat."
Nathan dug into the stew. The beef was tender, rich with flavor, practically melting in his mouth. The vegetables had absorbed the broth perfectly, every bite a comfort.
He looked up and nodded. "This is... really good."
Klaue smirked. "Told you."
As the three of them ate together under warm lights, a strange calm settled over the bunker. For the first time in what felt like weeks, Nathan felt normal. Safe. Maybe even... happy.
But that happiness was only a brief stop on a much longer road.
In the back of his mind, he knew the storm wasn't over. Not by a long shot.
Winter Soldiers were still out there. HYDRA was hunting. And Wolverine... was waiting.
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