The doctor guided Matt into a separate examination room, and the door slid shut behind him with a soft hiss.
Through the thick glass, Kora and Phil could see Matt lying down as machines moved into place around him—scanners lowering, lights sweeping across his body.
Wires connected. Screens lit up.
Matt gave a small, awkward wave from inside the room.
Kora forced a smile but felt her chest tighten.
"Is this… dangerous?" she asked quietly.
Phil folded his arms.
"Not the tests," he said. "What we're trying to find out is."
Inside the room, the scanners began to hum louder.
Lines of data started filling the monitors.
The doctor's expression slowly shifted.
"…That's not normal," she muttered.
Kora's smile faded.
Phil leaned forward slightly.
"What is it?" he asked.
The doctor's eyes stayed locked on the screen.
"His cells," she said slowly.
"They're… stabilized by something."
"Stabilized how?" Phil pressed.
The doctor swallowed.
"As if his body is constantly correcting itself—repairing damage before it can fully happen."
Phil frowned.
"What are you trying to say?"
"I mean…" the doctor hesitated, then continued, intrigued as she looked at Matt through the glass.
"He's not aging. Or rather—he is, but not at a normal human rate."
Phil remembered the moment Matt had shown his regeneration earlier.
"Is that bad?" he asked.
The doctor shook her head immediately.
"No. It's extremely good. Given the rate of his cellular rebirth and death cycle, I can safely say he could live ten times longer than a normal human."
She paused, then added carefully,
"Possibly close to a thousand years."
Phil went very still.
"That's… incredible," he said quietly.
"It's a miracle, honestly," the doctor continued, then turned to him.
"Where is the 0-8-4 he came into contact with?"
Phil glanced toward Kora.
"Matt said the stone disappeared," he said.
Kora nodded.
"He said it faded after he landed here. That it was no longer with him."
The doctor frowned.
"Are you sure?" she asked.
"We didn't find any foreign objects in his body. No implants, no residue—"
She stopped, glanced at another screen, then continued,
"There were signs of recent sexual activity, but nothing unusual otherwise."
At the word sexual, Kora's face turned bright red.
Phil shot her a sideways look.
She immediately looked away, mortified.
"Yes, she's his girlfriend," Phil said dryly.
"That explains that."
He looked back at the doctor.
"But you're certain there was nothing left behind? No trace of the object?"
"I'm certain," the doctor said, then added,
"Still, I'd like to be thorough."
She turned toward the equipment.
"I'm going to run deeper tests. Blood, hair, skin samples. If the stone altered him at a fundamental level, it might've rewritten his biology instead of staying behind."
Phil nodded.
"Do it."
The doctor moved into the room. Automated arms took samples—blood drawn, hair clipped, tiny pieces of skin collected.
Matt winced slightly.
"Don't tell me I have to eat hospital food from now on?" he joked.
The doctor shook her head.
"No," she said. "You're perfectly fine—more than fine."
She studied him for a moment, curiosity clear in her eyes.
"Can you tell me what the object that caused this looked like?" she asked.
Matt nodded.
"It was a white stone," he said. "Almost like limestone, with a red strip running through the middle."
The doctor's eyes look interested as she continued to look at him,
"And what did it do when you touched it?"
"It dissolved into liquid and seeped into me," Matt replied.
She froze for half a second.
"Seeped inside you?"
"Yeah. Through my skin—through my hand," Matt said.
"It spread through my body, and then I started feeling nauseous and weak. I took a day off from college and told my uncle."
He sighed.
"Turns out my uncle is a secret agent," Matt added dryly. "So yeah… really weird day."
The doctor let out a quiet breath.
"I've worked with S.H.I.E.L.D. for years," she said, taking more samples.
"But I've never seen a case like yours."
She glanced at him again.
"And how are you feeling now?"
Matt thought about it.
"Honestly?" he said. "Fine. Better than fine, actually."
The doctor nodded slowly, clearly unsettled—but fascinated.
"Your data supports that," she said.
"Whatever that stone did… it didn't harm you."
She paused, then added quietly,
"If anything—it perfected you."
Matt blinked… then smirked.
"So," he said, "what am I—Captain America now?"
The doctor huffed a small laugh despite herself.
"Maybe," she replied, adjusting her tablet, "but we'll need to run a few more tests to understand it fully."
Matt nodded, then leaned back against the hospital bed.
"Great," he muttered.
Inside, though, his mind was racing.
Seems like I'm getting into S.H.I.E.L.D. way earlier than I thought…
Through the glass, Phil stood with his arms crossed, watching the monitors scroll data far beyond normal human limits.
Regeneration.
Cell stabilization.
Near-perfect homeostasis.
Phil exhaled slowly.
The doctor turned to him.
"Agent Coulson," she said quietly, "whatever that stone was… it didn't just enhance him."
She glanced back at Matt.
"It rewrote him."
"…Keep this contained," he ordered.
"Level Ten clearance only."
"Yes, sir."
As Matt stared at the ceiling, unaware of the decision being made outside the room, Kora stood beside his bed, fingers wrapped tightly around his.
She leaned in and whispered softly,
"You okay?"
Matt grinned sideways at her.
"Yeah," he said. "Just wondering how long it'll take before someone asks me to save the world."
Kora smiled faintly.
"So, what will be your superheor name?" She asked.
Matt chuckled, turning his head slightly on the pillow.
"I don't know," he said. "But clearly not something as tacky as Captain America."
Kora laughed softly, nudging his shoulder.
"Hey, don't insult legends," she teased. "But still—you need something."
Matt pretended to think hard, staring up at the ceiling.
"How about… Captain Cool?" he offered.
Kora burst out laughing. "Absolutely not."
Outside the room, Phil watched through the glass and sighed softly.
Beside him, a tall man with an eyepatch came and stood near him.
"So this is the kid?" Fury asked calmly.
Phil nodded."Yeah. He's my nephew."
Fury studied Matt through the glass for a moment, his single eye sharp and calculating.
"Don't worry," Fury said at last. "I won't let S.H.I.E.L.D. exploit him."
Phil let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.
"Thank you, Director."