Elaine heard the muffled shriek and the thump.

"What just happened?" she asked. "I need the world narrated for me, someone speak."

"It would seem that the master has managed to attach a sensory system into the artificial leg he created," JARVIS narrated.

Which only made Kae jump even more, her eyes huge. "What the hell, Tony?!"

"Relax. That's just JARVIS. He helps with things."

"What is he?!"

"A computer program, basically. Well, it's much more complicated than that, more like an AI system in a computer program, but something like that." Tony waved a hand like it wasn't important.

Elaine, however, was even more freaked out, and she clutched Kae's crutch tightly.

"That was a voice that came out of nowhere, from everywhere," she said faintly. "Don't do that to me again, please."

"Are you alright?" Steve asked Elaine after a moment.

"I will be when Stark stops trying to make my heart stop."

Tony rolled his eyes. Really, these two were so much trouble...

"Sir, perhaps now would be a good time--"

"I know," Tony said, cutting off the program. "I take it you did feel that, then," he said, looking at Kae again.

"Yeah," she said, her voice higher-pitched than normal and a little wild. "I felt that."

"Hmm. Too much, maybe?" Tony frowned at the artificial leg, which she'd practically clawed off in her haste. Maybe he should turn the sensitivity down a bit, at least until she adjusted.

Elaine had jumped again at the AI's voice, but she managed to keep her startled squeaking to a minimum. Disembodied voices made for bad juju as far as she was concerned, especially because she couldn't pinpoint a source. At least human voices came from one place or another, the AI came from everywhere.

"Oh god that's going to take getting used-to," she muttered as she cautiously settled back in her chair.

"You'll get used to it," Steve replied. "Eventually."

It took Elaine a moment to remember that it must have bothered him, too.

"I guess things were a bit more simplistic back then," she said.

"That's one way of putting it."

Tony didn't even bother going back into his workroom this time, instead just tinkering with something, crouching on the floor in front of Kae. "Okay, that should be better."

"No way. I'm not putting that one." And Kae sounded just a little freaked out, her voice almost squeaking.

"Kae, don't be such a wimp. It's just a leg."

"Just a leg?!"

"Really, it's the best you're going to get. I even turned down the sensitivity so it won't bother you so much."

Kae looked like she was debating between throttling him and hiding somewhere.

Elaine wasn't entirely sure who to side with on this one. On the one hand, Kae was kind of being a pansy, but on the other hand Elaine could totally understand.

"Tony, give the lady a break," Steve said, effectively severing the Gordian knot. "I know 'technology shock' is a foreign concept to you and all."

Tony snorted his disbelief but backed off. Mostly because he knew if he didn't he'd either end up being whacked with a cane or Steve would yet again prove to be the valiant knight in shining white armor.

"Fine, fine. Take your time." He strode across the room. "Anyone else want a drink?"

"I suppose that depends," Elaine replied carefully. "What do you have, and how strong is it, typically?" Because something like Bailey's, she was fine with. Straight vodka or scotch, on the other hand, was beyond her.

"Lots of things." Tony snorted, getting two scotches ready, one for himself and one for Steve. "Depends how strong you want."

"Something like Kahlua or Baileys would be good." Kae was still eyeing the leg distrustfully, but she figured once she'd had a drink or two to fortify herself she'd try it again.

Steve accepted the scotch, but didn't immediately have a go at it like Tony. Instead, he took a sip and set it aside for the moment.

"Kahlua or Bailey's," Elaine agreed, settling into her chair a bit more. The excitement sounded like it was over, for now, so she was relaxing just a bit.

Tony came up with Baileys and pressed a glass into each of their hands. Then he sighed and took a seat, lounging there like he was completely comfortable.

"Got any new bright ideas on our newest issue, Cap?" Tony turned his attention to Steve, since they'd recently been hearing about people suddenly starting to do crazy things for love. Like kill other people and totally abandon their lives. Not that it would concern them normally, but Fury suspected the Romans were doing it, and they just had to figure out how, what, and why.

"Not yet," Steve sighed. He would admit, he wasn't all that good with mythological things. As Tony was so fond of teasing him, 'he personally knew two gods and still claimed there was only One.' "It's like we can't get anything substantial."

Kae blinked, looking between the two of them. "What's going on?"

"Probably shouldn't involve you. Fury might try for my head if I tell you." Tony grinned briefly. "Then again, who better to ask than two librarians with an admitted interest in mythology?"

Steve shot Tony a Look that clearly said 'I know you planned this.'

"Fury is already giving us hazard pay, what's a little more?" Elaine said dryly. She still grinned, though. "What is it you need?"

Tony outlined the problem briefly for them, getting up to get himself another Scotch.

Kae blinked. "Huh. So people doing crazy shit because they say they're in love?" she summed up.

"Basically."

"And Fury thinks this has to do with Romans?" Elaine pressed. She was already running through Roman mythology in her head.

"Apparently," Steve replied.

"Well," Elaine said after a moment, "the names that come to mind, then, would be Venus and Cupid." She nudged Kae. "What do you think?"

"That sounds about right to me." Kae shrugged. "I don't think any of the other Roman gods were ever up to mischief like that. Not according to the legends, anyway."

"Venus and Cupid." Tony snorted after a moment. "Seriously?"

"Yes. They're really not to be trifled with. They may sound cute and fluffy but when you get into the actual myths they're both kind of freaking scary."

"Discordia was," Elaine pointed out. "She liked to screw with things. But this doesn't sound like really her stye. She's more into starting catfights and such."

"Yeah. Plus this is couples and love and crap. It's right up their allies." Kae shrugged. "They make the most sense, at any rate."

"So we have a tentative identification, then," Steve said. "What next?"

"Find 'em," Elaine promptly replied.

"And how do you propose we go about doing that?" Tony leaned forward, genuinely interested to see what they'd come up with.

Elaine paused for a second, thinking that over. She had an automatic retort ready to go ("You're the genuis here.") but she bit it back.

"Well," she said after a moment, "how do you usually track down Thor?"

"We don't," came the very dry reply. "He still doesn't know how to use his cell phone properly, and short of putting a tracking device in him I don't think we can track him. Usually there's much yelling involved before we actually get his attention."

"There's got to be a way," Elaine prodded. "SHIELD has to have some method. I can't imagine anyone as paranoid as the Director not knowing exactly where all of his people are at any given moment."

Steve just snorted slightly at Tony's answer. He still really didn't know how to use his cell phone properly, either, and he knew Tony would mention that sooner or later.