The man, not the legend.

Steven Grant Rogers
Canon is Marvel Cinematic Universe, I play Steve from multiple eras depending on setting.
Mun and Character are over 21.

[OOC]
Backtagging: Absolutely, and I've been known to backtag for super long times. No worries there.
Threadhopping: Clear it with the other player too and it's fine
Fourthwalling: As long as it's not disruptive to plot, go ahead.
Offensive subjects: I'm pretty open to most things, but I'd prefer anything that gets pretty hardcore violent or graphic be discussed oocly first so everyone knows what's comfortable. I'd also prefer to keep stuff like that in protected threads if possible, so other readers are warned/don't have to see it.

[IC]
Hugging this character: I'd like there to be a reason for it but yes.
Kissing this character: Same as above, if it makes sense go ahead.
Flirting with this character: He's gonna think you're teasing him, but go ahead.
Sex/relationship/shipping with this character: Discuss it with me first, please. But yes.
Fighting with this character: Go right ahead!
Injuring this character: Clear it with me and it's probably cool.
Killing this character: Nothing Permanent unless it's a big damn hero thread and that's kinda the point.
Using telepathy/mind reading abilities on this character: I'm fine with this, but please talk to me ooc so we can figure out what will be gained from it.

Guys I just want to RP with everyone so poke me anytime. Let's have some fun!

The room is dark and smells horrible. It smells of Death but there is nothing dead inside. (He knows that this smell is Death but not why he knows it. How is that right?) He is slow to feel out the room around him. Hesitant fingers reach out into the darkness to trace the slab of a table he has been laying on, to pat himself down to make sure he's all there. After a few moments a stream of blue tinged light shines out from a tiny floating thing. He winces at its brightness at first, but it's helpful for getting his bearings. The floating thing slowly traces out every inch of this small room for him to see where he is. Only he in his pristine clothing and this little floating thing (machine) exist. She doesn't smell bad. He doesn't think he does.

Why would he be left to sleep in someplace that smelled so wrong? How long has he been here? Who..? He startles visibly when the little machine speaks. "Listen. You're one of the luckiest Guardians I've ever met. It's safe here. Get your feet underneath you and we can take a look around." She's direct, but not unkind. Patient but not soothing. He finds himself following her directions. Clinging to any semblance of structure he can.

While the human struggles to find his bearings, his Ghost is scanning the terminal by the exit. There are instructions in place already in the event this happened. There's a frequency she needs to reach out to. Another Ghost who wants to be alerted if any of them were to find this human worthy. She almost doesn't bother--whoever this human Was is pointless now that he's been risen. He's under her watchful care now, not some other Ghost who has a Guardian of his own already. But even a cursory glance at her Chosen and a read of his vitals tells her much.

He will need a teacher.

[REDACTED]'s Guardian is a Titan as well. Her ward will not struggle out there alone. It's a better lot in their return to life than most of their kind get.

"A Guardian? Of what, exactly?" There's so much he doesn't know. Interlaced with the fabric of his clothing are reinforced sections protecting his vital organs. Those shouldn't be necessary. Unless... "This place is dangerous, isn't it."

"Outside the Tower, yeah. Don't worry. You'll see soon enough." She flits between her Guardian and the terminal a few times before bobbing once and turning back to it. The message she composes is brief. All that should be needed. It's more of an afterthought anyway. Most of her attention needs to be here. With the human staring up at her with wide blue eyes.

I'm with him now.

She turns gracefully in the air to face her new partner. Her arc is steep as she swoops up to scan him once from toe to head. Her bright blue optic flits over his face. "You've got me with you."

Far away on a jumpship a certain Ghost will receive a message from one of his own...

When Steve had woken up to 2012 New York he’d wondered for the first time in years how his friends from the Nexus had been getting on without him. So many of the fanciful inventions and concepts of the Nexus seemed to have bled over into this so-called modern world. But now, going back to 2012 New York is almost even more weird.

“See you in a minute.” Natasha quipped with the slightest hints of a smile before they’d all sealed their masks and descended down into a rabbit hole of the bizarre and indescribable. The actual journey through quantum spacetime felt less uncomfortable than the shriek of the Chi’Tauri their ears are met with the moment Steve’s team regains normal size back into the past. Of the four of them, only Scott is a newcomer to this battlefield though he manages to avoid flinching as the noise of the attack echoes down the streets in a horrible alien battlecry.

Steve’s stomach clenches knowing that less than a block away he’s fighting for his life. Not some other world’s version of him. His actual self with his actual friends, three of which are also here now with him. No amount of planning can prepare anyone for this kind of sudden terrifying deja vu where he knows he’s in danger even if he also knows that being here means they managed alright. He shoots the smallest of glances back at Tony to try and get a sense if he’s the only one feeling so uncomfortable but it’s not exactly much consolation to see everyone else on edge as well.

It’s clearly worked. They’re no longer at the complex (which doesn’t even exist yet, truthfully). They’ve gone back to the past.

Now comes the hard part.

“Alright, you all know your assignments.” The crumbling wall of the alleyway they’ve dropped into is quickly becoming cover while Steve shoots a glance around the corner to make sure they’re where they ought to be. It seems superfluous considering the overturned cars and rubble all around them but decades old habits are hard to break. He tries not to think too hard about the gear he hasn’t worn in years--restored now for just this purpose. This way if he’s spotted he’ll at least look like the man out of time they’re expecting to see. “Two stones Uptown one stone Down.”

His heart’s jackhammering out of his chest. They’re actually about to do this.

“Stay low, don’t draw attention. Keep an eye on the time. We need--” Steve jumps back into the shadow of the alleyway as a car is crushed as easily as an empty cola can by the Hulk rampaging past and then utterly flattened for good measure. Right, this is long long before Banner had any real control or cooperation when it came to all things Code Green. As soon as he’s moved on Steve chances a glance over his shoulder to where Tony and Scott are also hiding. They chose to hide behind the current Hulk. Honestly the safest place to be.
“M..maybe smash a few things along the way.” Steve offers hesitantly. The grin Hulk gives him is as though Christmas has come early.

“Hulk blend in while getting stone.” It’s reassuring to see what Tony had often referred to as a Towering Green Rage Monster seemed to be on board with the Plan. It’s a huge risk letting Banner and Hulk go, well not alone exactly but without anyone there to try and rein Hulk in if things get out of hand. Unfortunately they don’t have time to do anything else. Steve tries not to think about it as a motorcycle goes flying past back down the street after Hulk takes off.

He’s got to get to Avengers Tower. Stark Tower, really. They hadn’t really become the Avengers yet, after all. Strange to think that a place he’d thought of as almost home for a couple of years had at first been nothing but an eyesore when Steve had been trying to reconcile this new New York with the one he’d grown up with. It’s nerve wracking running through the empty streets trying to look as though he belongs here. Tony’s calling out each moment as it passes by, watching themselves round Loki up and finish their very first mission together. Steve needs to be in position by the time they’ve got it finished but slipping through the SHIELD perimeter isn’t exactly easy.

Steve’s not terribly proud of the agent he knocked unconscious and laid down somewhere out of the way so he could sneak in through an already broken window near enough to the entrance. Scott’s hitched a ride with Tony though which means there’s no one about to help Steve get inside. Tony calls out that they’ve all gathered on the open level where Loki was finally beaten down but Steve’s nowhere near ready to be in position.

Damn it. He has to hurry. Without arousing suspicion or turning heads. Years of working alongside Natasha are paying dividends now. He’s making his way to the stairwell by keeping to peoples’ blind spots and watching where he steps. With all the broken glass scattered about that’s not exactly a small feat, either.

”Better hustle, Cap. Things look like they’re just about wrapped up here.” Steve has to stop himself from swearing aloud at Tony’s warning in his earpiece. Half in case it draws attention while he’s jogging up to the agreed upon floor and half because it’ll just give Tony something to joke about for the whole rest of the mission. Which, honestly, won’t be long. God willing, at least.

This is it.

“Got it. I’m approaching the elevator now.” Stepping out of the side hallway he’d thrown himself into to hide to head over to wait by the elevator. They picked someplace that should be empty of all or at least Most of the agents swarming the building and would give him more than enough time to take a little bit of pleasure of a payback so very long overdue. Even if it hasn’t happened yet, here. The suit hides the fact he’s sweating bullets, thankfully. Distraction comes in through his earpiece though and Steve’s not sure if he wants to hug or throttle Tony.

”Ugh. ‘Mister’ Rogers, I’d almost forgot that suit did Nothing for your ass.” Do not flush Steve. Do not smile. Do not grimace. Keep walking. There will be time to kill Tony later.

“No one asked you to look, Tony.” Humor has always been Stark’s way of keeping calm during tense situations and whether Steve realizes it or not it’s helping distract him from the myriad of things that could go wrong in this moment. Frankly, it’s doing him a favor in making him look pissed off and absolutely Done with everything around him. Which he very much would have been considering the battle they’d just finished surviving.

”It’s ridiculous.” This can’t possibly get any worse.

”Don’t listen to him. I think you look great, Cap.” It’s getting worse. Why is Scott so earnest about this? ”As far as I’m concerned, that’s America’s Ass.” How can he say that with a straight face? Maybe he’s not. Scott at least has the benefit of no one being able to see him. Steve fights the urge to bury his face into his hands and groan. When this is over he’s going to have Words with some gentlemen. It’s practically like old times without him even realizing it. Memory makes the heart grow fonder and all that. He’s nearly forgotten this kind of stress headache that tends to blossom up whenever Tony’s coping mechanisms don’t quite mesh with his own. Scott’s additions are only making things worse.

Steve really really hopes his time spent practicing this with Natasha and Clint pays off. Otherwise, they’re all in a whole world of danger.

”Little Buddy’s in position. Hope you’re ready to get things shaking, Cap.” Scott’s in the briefcase, ready to go. This is happening. The rest of it’s on Steve. ”Scepter’s in the elevator now, just passing the eightieth floor.” Only seconds for Steve to wipe his face of any and all emotion before the elevator dings cheerfully opening the doors to a handful of Steve’s personal worst enemies. Sitwell, Rumlow and all of their cronies. His blood’s pounding in his ears as eight faces turn his way in surprise before Steve steps calmly into the elevator.

Scott’s with the Tessaract and Tony’s heading to the lobby just in case Steve doesn’t manage to get the scepter in time. There’s no backup for this. Honestly? Steve doesn’t want it. A minute and a half alone with these hidden HYDRA operatives has been the only part of this mission he’s been looking forward to. It’s not as though he can use his knowledge of who these people really are to his advantage. Not without putting his past self in a lot of danger and drastically changing history. Steve weaves his way into the center of the enclosed space, watching the tension ripple across every single body surrounding him. They’re suspicious.

“Hey. Cap. I thought you were touching base with search and rescue.” Rumlow doesn’t turn back all the way to watch Steve but his hand is ever so slowly inching toward his handgun. As if Steve wouldn’t notice.

“Mm. Change of plans.” His speech drawls ever so slightly and though Brock Rumlow is a man Steve will remember past his grave he doesn’t call the man by name. It’s only going to make them all more suspicious as looks start being exchanged. It’s Sitwell who risks making eye contact with Steve first, the weasley HYDRA spy who worked as Steve’s handler the entire time the soldier operated as a SHIELD agent. Steve imagines every time he’s ever beaten Bucky in a game of cards back in their tiny Brooklyn apartment. He imagines Peggy punching out the soldiers who so much as tried to sass her during Basic. But mostly he imagines just how much this is going to hurt when he gives his very best attempt at mimicking Loki’s flair for the dramatic as Steve unfurls a wicked grin with a gleam in his eye to match. “I thought this face might put all of you more at ease, gentlemen. I’ll have to ask you to return what is mine at once.”

It’s not going to convince any Asgardians, this accent of his, but for a group of battle weary HYDRA operatives trying to slide under the radar Steve’s impression of Loki is close enough. Steve waits just long enough to see them make their assumptions and for panic to set in before he slams his shield into Sitwell’s face. The ruthless flash of teeth his grin takes on when he hears cartilage snap really only sells his act more. By the time the doors slide open Steve has the briefcase with the scepter in hand. Every HYDRA agent is a bloody crumpled mess on the ground though to abstain from changing the past Steve has left all of them alive as well as mostly intact. It’s not what he assumed Loki would do in the same situation but it’s the best he can manage.

By the time anyone notices what’s happened they’ll be long, long gone with everything hopefully returned to its proper place.

“Thumbilina’s got the cube. Tell me you’re packing heat, Cap.” Steve honestly can’t blame Tony for not sounding relieved when he barks out a laugh over the feed.

“We’re all set. HYDRA thinks Loki just set them up and by the time I get up here to help out we should have this back. That’s how time travel works, right?”

”Questions later. Get clear and get back to the complex.”

Steve Rogers has never in his life been so glad to follow an order. This time, when the three of them shrink down and the world of the past crumbles away, they’ve got their prizes in hand. That much closer to fixing what Thanos took from all of them.

[Meant to follow this piece on Natasha's journal. Keep an eye on these and Thor's journal for updates!]

It's Okoye who notices it first.

Two weeks after The Snap the worst of the emergency broadcasts have stopped. Hospitals are still short staffed dealing with those who were injured in the chaos Thanos' cruel wish unleashed upon those who were left, especially in urban areas. For much of the United States, roads have only been cleared one lane each way and usually by those trying to make the journey less than any official order. Far too many places still have debris clogging the streets that will linger for so much longer than anyone thinks normal. Waiting for someone to have the time to clear it away.

All of this infrastructure work, as well as advising on what's left of the government and law enforcement has kept Natasha busy. Anyone who volunteers, who needs something to do with their hands for a short while, will be sent out. Rhodey goes more than the rest of them. Thor has left the complex entirely and while Steve worries after him he also hasn't quite worked up the nerve to get out and do much just yet.

"You have a signal along your southeastern coast sending an unknown transmission into space, Agent."

What would have once been accusation in the Wakandan warrior's voice has softened since she's come to know Natasha. Considering all of the trouble that befell their world (their universe) came from elsewhere in space it's not the sort of thing that they should really leave. Rocket climbs onto Steve's back with a full pack of dangerous weapons when Steve takes a bike to make the hours long drive down to the capital. Rocket's pretty sure Steve took the bike so he wouldn't have to talk but that suits him just fine. He didn't see any of them lose their goddamn kid to Thanos.

(And he knows, they've all lost so much but the wound is so raw yet. It's easier to say he's lost more. Keeps people from arguing with him. But he is trying, as much as the rest of them, to make what's left feel like a team. No word from Quill or any of the others, yet. Then again, no way for them to contact Rocket, either. Maybe this space doohickey is his ticket out of this place and back to the sky where the world makes a bit more sense.)

There's no enemy to face when they arrive in yet another crumbling urban locale and have to swap from the bike to walking the rest of the way. Natasha's in their ears the whole way via comms guiding them closer to the signal. On a holoscreen across from her desk Okoye watches with lips thinned. She too wants to know what they will find. No trace of Thanos or his minions. No downed alien spacecraft.

"Just a bunch of crashed SUVs." Steve lifts one off the body of an unlucky pedestrian and grimaces. Wishes he wasn't so numb that he barely processes the death more than this. He's close, right on top of it so far as Natasha can see. Rocket's climbing through busted windows carefully amid shattered glass, rooting around through anything he can get his paws on.

"Oi! Rogers! You Terrans usually carry armor piercing rounds in yer cars? I thought Road Warrior was just Quill bein' full of shit as per frickin' usual."

"Nat--"

"Fury. Steve please tell me there's people there." Natasha knows there won't be. And Steve doesn't reply. Not right away. There are no bodies they recognize here. Just more ash stuck in the nooks and crevasses where it hasn't been blown away.

"I'm sorry, Natasha. He's not here." They suspected Nick Fury was gone, of course. It won't take Steve long to confirm this is his ride with Natasha over the comm. She knows his gear better than almost anyone. And next to the SUV, laying in the street... "I think I found the device. It's. Nat I'm not sure what this is." Pagers weren't a thing in 2014 when he was brought back and they sure as hell didn't exist in 1941. "I thought it might have been a phone, but it looks...more like a beacon."

"Bring it back, and both of you be safe. Don't go trying to take it apart until we can get Bruce to look at it."

"...Yeah. Take whatever you can carry, Rocket. We're heading back."

Steve's always had a rough time with his dreams.

( Read more... )

In the aftermath of the Nightmare incident in the Nexus, Steve knew the most important thing in the immediate was making sure people were okay. Hell, he'd spent most of his time tending to Amelia's wounds such that by the time he was finished most of the cafe had cleared out. He's glad the rogue got the care she needed but he hasn't seen her since.

In fact, he's not seen most of them since. He waited a bit to see if he'd spot familiar faces in the Nexus, but with things quiet he takes matters into his own hands and sends out a message to several of his friends.

Hey, it's Steve.

I know you were involved in the mess during the Halloween party and I really want to make sure you're alright. I'm sorry I haven't reached out sooner. I wanted to make sure you got the time and care you needed after everything that happened. The coordinates to my apartment are listed at the end of this message.

Please let me know you're okay.

Steve's apartment is a sixth floor walk up in a tan brick building near the edge of the Plaza and the Wilds. The area is quiet with a nearby park that is well maintained even in Winter. All the paths are shoveled and it's impossible to miss the slightly eerie statues on either side of the front entrance at the top of the steps.

The directions Steve had given Adia were easy enough to follow even in a place as shifting as the Nexus. When she reaches the right number the entry looks plain, though there is a rather plain 'Welcome!' mat in front of his door. She'll hear shuffling when she knocks and the sound of some kind of animal's nails skittering across the hard wood floor toward the door.

Steve appears a moment later, smile huge on his face. The smell of coffee and some kind of baked good exudes from his apartment.

"Glad you made it Adia. Come on in. I hope it wasn't much trouble?"

There were no fireworks, no parades, no flags waving when Steve was out in the Nexus. Why would there be? It's a day like any other here. One more summer day of decidedly nice, if not a bit warm, weather and people strolling about living their lives as though nothing were different.

It should be special, though. A birth of a nation. His home. The same home that for all he knows is still caught up in a terrible war. He wonders if the parade still went by his old apartment. If Missus Johanessan upstairs is wondering where he is when she bakes that swell cobbler of hers and tries to invite him up for dinner like she always does on his birthday.

Even if he was home, it wouldn't be the same. He'd be alone. Wouldn't be worth going out to the dance halls, or down to the pier by himself.He'd probably be doing what he is now. Sitting on the steps out front of the apartment complex with his sketchbook in his lap, idly drawing memories.

He's drawing the parade he remembers today, trying to remember what it would be like if he were home on this holiday.

Some days Steve wondered if winter would ever end in the Nexus.

( Read more... )

Steve is much more careful in the way he eats than Harrow was, mostly because Viatorus' clothes are very nice and he doesn't want to make a mess of them. The soup is as good as it smelled, and Steve is glad Harrow liked it. Having working taste buds again must be weird for him.

When he's finished, he looks between Harrow and Viatorus carefully. They have a point. It has gotten rather late since all of this started. Between the panic and the running around, Steve hadn't really noticed it. But it was already dark when he'd gone to get the udon.

"What would you prefer I do?" He asks Viatorus quietly. "If it were my body, I'd grab a shower and get to bed, but...is that allowed? Would you rather I didn't?" To Harrow, Steve nods.

"You don't get a choice in the matter with all the soup. You need to give my body at least a wash." He's laughing while he talks though, so it's clear Steve isn't upset.