The Battle of Serenity Valley. Six years ago...
Gunshots and explosions echo throughout the valley. Sand and dust coat everything; weapons, clothes, skin... Soldiers fight and die side by side; day and night, the fighting never stops. There are casualties on both sides, but it's Hydra who have the upper hand now. Stars shine in the sky, providing the only reliable light source; fires burn, scattered around the landscape, adding soot and smoke to the already hard-to-breathe air. There are few of them left; but they will fight until the last man stands... Hydra ships fly overhead, shooting rapid-fire as Shield fight to hold their position. This battle could win them the war. Their air support is coming; they just have to hold on a little longer and the dead bodies that surround the trenches will have at least died for victory.
Sergeant Steve Rogers is the highest in command now, his superiors on this battlefield have all succumbed to death. He is tall and muscular, blond hair kept short. His second in command, Corporal Natasha Romanova is busy; an expert in hand-to-hand combat, she takes care of the Hydra soldiers who think the few remaining Shield at their location are easy pickings, and approach on foot. She is slim and easily underestimated; with a coy smile and flick of red curls, almost everyone wrongly assumes she is not a threat... Natasha returns to the trench and rejoins Steve, discussing their tactical plans. With them, a young, nervous soldier, Blake and radio officer, Wesley, sit in the mud, both waiting to die.
"Sergeant, Command are assessing our status before they send in air control" Wesley calls over a new round of gunfire. The group of soldiers duck under the spurts of dust the gunshots showers over them as they hit the wall of rock behind them. "Our status is that we need some gorram air support!" Steve shouts back; his patience is wearing thin. There are a groups of soldiers fighting all around the valley, but he knows it won't be long until the four of them are the only ones left. "That Skiff is shredding us" Natasha updates the Sergeant, watching the gunship that flies overhead. She was the only member of his team who could scope out the outskirts, take out their snipers and never let Hydra know she'd left the trench. She'd heard Hydra talking; the Skiff is what they're counting on to win them this battle, they're also counting on Shield's air support being too late to help... Steve knows what Command are about to demand and moves past Wesley, ripping a rank and serial number patch from their former Lieutenant. "There's your authorisation code, now get us some support" he instructs Wesley, handing it over. This situation was getting out of hand, fast. He's frustrated with Shield Command making their decisions from the safety away from the battlefield, not to mention the seemingly never ending resources of Hydra... This is the battle that could win them the war. They hadn't fought for so long to lose like this. Steve turns to Blake and lists out orders, instruction on how they'll survive the next few minutes until Command get off their asses and give them some help. The young man nods determinedly, wiping his dirty, sweaty face with his equally dirty hand; leaving it no cleaner than before. "Aye, Sir" is his response before he pulls on his helmet and runs off towards the nearest group of Shield to lay out the plan to them. Natasha provides cover fire so he can reach them safely, before turning to raise an eyebrow at Steve. She's worked beside him long enough to know what he knows; they're beat. He knows it. She knows it. Command knows it. So do Hydra... But their men do not. So they continue to fight like they have a chance...
"You ready?" Steve questions the red haired woman stood by his side, though he already knew the answer. "Always" she nodded, giving Blake the signal. The small platoon headed by Blake open fire on an approaching Hydra cruiser; drawing attention and focus from the two figures running across the open high ground in order to reach the abandoned weaponry that had been an early target of their enemies. Natasha takes the lead as they approach, taking on the task of fighting of the men who surround their target, shooting two in the head while the third becomes a victim of her knife. Steve bypasses the fighting and takes control of the large, mounted gun with both hands, peering through the scope and cursing under his breath as it calibrates. Natasha watches impatiently as their distraction platoon are wiped out in one swift aim by the Skiff. It's her turn to curse, watching the fire burn as she holds her gun out behind her and shoots the man and woman attempting to sneak up on them without removing her gaze from the spot where her men burn. A moment later, it's eventually ready and Steve fires the anti-aircraft gun with a satisfying laugh, finally bringing down the Skiff... Steve watches for a moment in delight as the large ship explodes and fragments in the air. That is, until the smile is wiped off his face. He runs straight at Natasha who is too busy fighting once again to notice what problem he had just caused them. His large, muscular body slams into her slim frame, knocking them both to the floor just as the engine of the Skiff flies overhead, crashing into the landscape behind them and bursting into flames...
The two of them return to the trench; a little dirtier and a little bloodier than before but both a little more hopeful. "Nice cover fire" Natasha reports, slapping Blake on the back, a little surprised to see he'd survived the blast. He groans, clearly injured, but alive. She sees the look on his face and turns to follow his gaze, Steve is stood by Wesley's dead body. He takes the radio from his corpse, passing it to Natasha as he tries to forget the fact Wesley had a wife and two young children. Other soldiers begin to arrive back at the trench, understanding that it is once again safe to move now the threat of the Skiff is gone. For now. There's a low grumble overhead and several of their heads snap up, unsure whether it meant rescue, or more danger... "You hear that?" Steve announces, turning back to Natasha and Blake with a grin. His smile falters as he see's Natasha's face. "They're not coming..." she announces, clutching the radio "Command says it's too hot. They're pulling out. We're to lay down arms" she completes their message. She's angry, Steve can see that from the tension in her body and the grip she has on the radio. Steve stares at her in disbelief, before following her line of sight to watch their air support fly overhead, leaving them behind as the sky fills with Hydra ships...
Deep space. Six years later. The wreckage of The Triskelion.
Steve peers out from behind the smeared, dirty visor of his space suit. The door he examines had remained intact and sealed despite the obvious structural damage to the ship. The Captain holds out his hand to the two hovering figures in matching space suits behind him. Natasha passes him the tool she knows he's after without him having to ask, as Thor watches on. Thor Odinson has been a part of their crew for years now. Taller and more muscular than Steve, but happy to follow his lead. He works well for jobs requiring a lot of muscle, or someone physically intimidating. Over the years he's learned to never underestimate Steve and Natasha's ability to silently converse.
Steve works, and a few moments later, the lock melts away and the door is wrenched open; allowing the three people to gaze into the hold at their latest cargo haul...
Another ship sits above the wreck; older, a little battered. It's definitely seen better days but it's still flying. On the bridge sits the pilot; Clinton Barton. Messy, sandy brown hair sticks up at odd angles as he drinks crappy coffee and messes with a dinosaur bobble head that sits stuck to his dash. He smirks to himself as he takes another drink before he is interrupted by an alarm blaring. Barton drops his feet from the console while he sits forward and his focus moves to the radar screen next to his controls. A deep frown setting in on his face as he reads the information. "Oh motherless son of b-" he hits the com controls that link him to the space suit headsets. "We have incoming. Hydra cruiser, bearing right down on us". Natasha swears in Russian as Thor reaches to grab the first crate of cargo; there's no way he's leaving it behind. "Have they spotted us?" Steve asks, resting a hand on Thor's shoulder in a move to get him to stay still, but Clint's reply isn't what he wants to hear; "I can't tell-" "have they hailed us?" Thor sighs as he grips the large box tightly as if it can provide some comfort. If they weren't in zero gravity, it'd be damn heavy. "If they find us with the salvage, we're humped", "If they find us at all, we're humped" Natasha mutters in reply to Thor. "Barton, shut it down. Everything but the air" Steve instructs, holding a hand up to the two members of his crew, instructing them to remain quiet.
Clint works on the bridge, flipping switches, turning off every system one by one, stopping at life support. "Tony, go to blackout. We're being buzzed" he calls over the com system. Tony, the ships mechanic responds in the affirmative before abandoning his dinner to run to the engine room; jumping over the pile of books at the entrance and sidestepping the tools that litter the floor. He sets to work, flicking switches too, until the ship plunges into darkness.
Natasha glances at Steve and whispers something - "капризный ребенок?" The Captain nods in reply, "Barton, where's the crybaby?" "Right where we left her. You want her?" "Not yet. They do a heat scan, you holler" "Gotcha, Cap" Clint nods, priming their distraction as he keeps an eye on the readings Serenity is compiling for him.
The Hydra cruiser, I.A.V Modok, had been patrolling the edges of civilised space. The wreckage it came across was a cargo carrier; it had blown out a few months ago, no reported survivors. They pass slowly, until they pick up the heat readings left by Serenity hovering within the wreckage. Back on the bridge, another alarm sounds downs Clint's ear, "Aiya Huaile- Cap, we're humped" he informs the three members of the crew still off the ship, hitting the button to activate the crybaby. Natasha and Thor don't wait for Steve's instructions; they grab the cargo and begin to make their way home, leaving Steve to follow with the final crate.
The crybaby comes to life and emits a distress signal; claiming to be a personnel carrier in urgent need of assistance. A genius decoy Natasha had thought up years ago. Tony had built a new one whenever they'd had the parts and Serenity had been littering them around space over the past few years... The Hydra cruiser chooses to abandon their search and move on to investigate the SOS call, much to the relief of Serenity's crew. "Tony, fire it up" Clint calls again over the PA as Steve, Natasha and Thor reach the safety of Serenity's airlock. The doors shut, reinstating the gravity and causing the three people to land on their feet while the crates slam loudly to the floor. Barton receives confirmation that everyone is back onboard and the ship is instantly in motion, putting as much distance between them and the Hydra agents as possible.
Back onboard the Modok; the agents watch as Serenity appears and flies away. "It's a transport ship, Firefly class" one of the agents informs his commanding officer as their scan report comes back. "They still make those?" he asks, surprised. "Illegal salvage, lowlife vultures picking the flesh off the dead. Put in a bulletin on the cortex and flag interpol: a Firefly with possible stolen goods onboard... Maybe someone will step on those roaches... Okay, let's go help these people" The Modok takes off in the opposite direction of the Firefly, with a heavy sigh from its Captain.
Clint joins the rest of the crew in the cargo hold as the goods are inspected, brushing his hand over Natasha's lower back, coming to rest on her hip as he pulls her close for a kiss. "We look good" he informs them all, peering over Steve's shoulder to glimpse the bars inside the crate. "I'd say worth a little risk" "Yeah, that was some mightily risky sitting you did" Thor teased with a light hearted grin. "That's right, 'cause they wouldn't arrest me if we got boarded. I'm just the pilot. I can always say I was flying the ship by accident..." Clint retorts, earning himself a playful nudge from Natasha. "Buzui-" Steve hissed, silencing his crew. "Problem, Cap?" Natasha asks, slipping back into her Corporal persona as she watches him concerned while he examines a piece of the cargo. "Couldn't say. But we'd best be rid before we run into another Hydra cruiser" he mutters, shoving the bar back into the crate and sealing the lid while Thor and Tony help him move all three crates into a hallowed out section of the wall. A useful store for stolen goods... Steve doesn't like to burden his crew. Whatever's wrong, and Natasha knows theres something, he's keeping it to himself for now.
"How long to Persephone?" Steve asks Clint, interrupting a private conversation between him and Natasha. "Three or four hours" he shrugs. "Can we shave that?" "Doubtful. We're down to the wire on fuel cells.." Steve sighs and Natasha notices the tension in his shoulders. "You think that cruiser ID'd us?" "Gotta hope not" is Steve's unhelpful reply. "Barton, contact Osborn, tell him the jobs done. Don't go to mentioning the cruiser, keep it simple" the Captain instructs as he walks away, leaving the couple to offer each other wary glances.
Natasha and Clint take their leave from the rest of the crew and head up to the bridge. "I know something's not right" Nat sighs as they walk, hands loosely gripped. "Sweetie, we're crooks. If everything was right we'd be in jail..." He grins at her and draws a small smile from his wife. "We all need a break. A few days leave..." Clint summarises, pulling the small redhead towards him. "We still got to drop the goods" Nat reminded him, a raised brow on her face as she rests her hands on his chest with a small smile, regardless. "And when we do, we'll fly off to Boros rich and prosperous..." A look from Natasha causes Clint to change his statement. "Okay, less poor... But with enough to find a sweet little getaway. We could have a meal that includes some form of real food. Just a few days, lying around... You could have a real bath. I could watch you bathe..." He grins mischievously and Natasha can't resist but lean in to kiss him as he paints a perfect picture.
Steve enters and the couple ignore him, he waits patiently but raises his eyebrow at them when they finally separate. An expression Clint blames Nat for teaching him. "Has the Executor checked in yet?" Steve asks, straight to business as he stands, clearly uncomfortable with the display of affection he'd just interrupted. "Not yet. I think she had a pretty full docket" Clint answered, sliding into his seat, hand still entwined with Natasha's. "Well, after you talk to Osborn, let her know we'll be leaving in a hurry" "Pepper knows our schedule, she'll be checking in" Natasha comments, a little unnerved by Steve's behaviour. She glances to Clint who seems to have picked up on her concerns. "I can ask her to cut it short if we're-" "No. No need for that. Someone on this boat has to make an honest living..." Steve replies, though they can see him considering Clint's offer. They watch him leave and glance back to one another, knowingly.
The Eavesdown Docks, Persephone.
Clint guides Serenity down into port by the Eavesdown Docks. Away from the inner bustling cities of Persephone, the Docks weren't where you'd find the upper class and the rich. Surrounded by a bazaar; market stalls, food carts and ships side by side, selling everything from fruit and vegetables, cloth and second hand books to travel and passage to other moons. These were the corners of the universe where the crew of Serenity felt most comfortable. Surrounded by every race, every language, every back story you could think of. People doing whatever they could in order to get by...
The crew disembark and everyone has their assigned job. Tony moves to log the details of the passage they're offering; attracting paying passengers is another way they earn money between jobs. He does this as he complains to the Captain about needing a few new parts for the ship. He stops at the look Steve is giving him, giving him one last warning before he walks away; "Compression coil busts, we're drifting..." "Best not bust then" Cap calls over his shoulder as he walks off with Thor. Natasha moves to follow, until she hears her husband call her back. "Nat, zhu yi". She nods and smiles, red curls bobbing around her face "we will" she promises, grazing a kiss to his lips before she turns to catch up with Steve and Thor. Clint's gaze lingers on her until he loses her in the crowd. It's only then that he goes about his task of refuelling and restocking.
Tony sits outside the ship and waits for people to approach. He's never been too much of a 'people person'. Natasha teases that he's not much of 'ship person' either with the amount of problems they've had with Serenity over the years. He bitterly points out that the Firefly class had been discontinued for a reason and grumbles about his lack of budget to replace broken parts, but he loves Serenity and he'd be pissed with Cap if he ever replaced her. He sits on a deck chair in grease-covered overalls, occasionally crossing out and 'correcting' parts of the Firefly handbook Nat had bought for him as a joke. After a few minutes, he catches the eye of a man peering up at his ship. He watches for a moment before walking down the ramp to join him. "You're going to come with us" he tells the younger man confidently. The man he is speaking to is relatively well dressed and has two suitcases laden with belongings. More than any of the crew own anyway. He raises a brow at the ships mechanic, "excuse me?" "You like ships" Tony summarises simply with a smug smile at knowing he was right. "Don't seem to be looking at the destinations. What you care about is the ship and mines the nicest" "Doesn't look like much" the man shrugs, giving Serenity another glance over. "She'll fool you" Tony promises and sees the decision forming behind his eyes. The man offers him his hand and introduces himself. "Name's Sam. Sam Wilson" he grins. "Tony Stark. Welcome aboard, Sam Wilson". With that, Tony takes one of Sam's bags and helps him onto the ship. And they officially have their first paying passenger...
Meanwhile; Steve, Natasha and Thor reach their destination; hidden away under the subway, Osborn's 'office'. The link between the rich and the poor parts of this moon. Osborn is not a pleasant man; Natasha in particular has an unfondness for him. He's a thug, he works on their side of the law and has money to pay for their sort of services. "You're late" he hisses as the three of them enter. "You're lying" Steve answers immediately, drawing a glare from Osborn as he sits behind his oversized desk. "You're later than I'd like" Osborn corrects. Natasha notices the paper lying on his desk and sighs. "If you'd have gotten here sooner, you might've beaten the bulletin that came up. Rogue vessel. Firefly. Illegal goods" he holds up the paper and waves it at them. "They didn't ID us. Doesn't lead to you" Steve reasons. "No, but the government stamp on every molecule of the cargo just might" Natasha glares at Steve. This was why he'd been so worried. So tense. He'd noticed and not told the rest of the crew... "Noticed that, did 'ya?" Osborn growls, noticing the look on Steve's face. "We didn't pick the cargo. You did" Steve replies, ignoring the glares both Osborn and Nat are aiming at him. "And I didn't flash my ass at the gorram law. There's no deal" Osborn informs them, standing and slamming the bulletin back on his untidy desk. "That ain't fair" Natasha hisses. "Crime and politics, little girl" Osborn shrugs, and Natasha steps forward; reaching for a knife attached to her belt. She doesn't take kindly to the nickname he'd assigned her years ago. And he knows it. Steve steps in front of her to prevent a situation occurring as the several guards around Osborn's office raise their guns. Steve puts some gentle pressure on her shoulders and whispers something in Russian until she backs down. "You do not act with honour" Thor hisses angrily and now Steve has to glare at him too. His crew aren't helping their current predicament. Steve takes a moment to weigh his options. He knows Natasha will back his play. Knows Thor is itching for a fight. But it's close quarters and there are civilians around. Not to mention the fact that they certainly don't want any unwanted attention. He opts to leave. "Wheel never stops turnin', Osborn" he calls on his way out. "That only matters to the people on the rim!" Osborn calls back, watching as Natasha follows and Thor makes his way out after them.
Thor catches up to the his crew mates in three long strides. "I don't understand! Why didn't we leave the man in a pool of his own blood?" he asks, genuinely confused at his Captain's decision, "We'd be dead. Can't get paid if you're dead" Steve replies, rubbing his head. Today has been a lot harder than he'd planned it to be. "Can't get paid if we walk away either..." Natasha chooses to spare the Captain and interrupts Thor's comment. "Think Osborn will sell us out to the feds? If they catch us with government goods we'll lose the ship..." Not to mention be thrown in jail. "Not gonna happen. And we ain't dumping the cargo either" he answers before Nat can voice her next suggestion. "We got nothing saved and taking on passengers won't help nearly enough. We don't get paid for this job, we won't have enough to fuel the ship. She'll be dead in the water" Cap points out and Natasha sighs. She knows he's right. They need this money, but the risk of carrying stolen government goods is high... Higher since that bulletin is now circulating. "We can hit Whitefall, talk to Sharon" Steve decided, much to the dismay of Natasha and Thor. "Cap, we don't want to deal with Sharon again" Nat answers, crossing her arms as they continue back towards Serenity. "Why not?" "She shot you" "Yeah, well. She did. A little bit..." Steve shrugs and Natasha rolls her eyes. "Horowitz?" "Can't afford it" "Holden boys?" "Wouldn't touch it" "Gruviek?" "Dead" Natasha and Steve work through their list of possible contacts and the reasons why they won't or can't pay for the goods. The three of them reach Serenity as Steve lays out his plan for Whitefall one last time, all of them falling silent as they watch several passengers board their ship.
With the crew and passengers all on board and Pepper's shuttle recently docked, they're ready to leave ahead of schedule. "So now we got a boatload of citizens right on top of our stolen cargo... That's a fun mix" Natasha whispers to Steve. Steve glares and Clint smirks. "There's no way in the 'verse they could find that compartment even if they were looking" "why not?" "..'cause" Steve shrugs. "Yeah this is gonna go great..." she deadpans in reply. "If anyone gets too nosey, just shoot 'em" "Shoot them, Cap?" Nat asks, eyebrow raised again, questioning his seriousness. "Politely" Steve replies before moving off to take the passengers on a tour of the kitchen and passenger dorms. He keeps the rest of their home off limits to strangers.
Their new 'friends' consist of Sam Wilson, Dr Bruce Banner, Wanda Maximoff and Jasper Sitwell. Sam Wilson, as it turns out is a former Falcon Flier for Shield's air force. Natasha appreciates having a someone else onboard who understands what it was like during the war. Steve, as it turns out, isn't so pleased. FF Wilson was part of the air support which withdrew from the battle of Serenity Valley, leaving the soldiers stranded and with no chance of victory. Sam claims to have followed Commands instructions, that they were told the battle was already lost. No survivors. Command lied. And it was that battle that lost them the war... The discussion gets heated and Clint loudly asks Dr Banner about his work, obviously drawing the attention away from the building tension. Pepper soon joins them, pouring herself what counts as a cup of coffee around here, moving about the ship like it's her home too. Which it is. Half the time... She sits in Tony's lap and listens to the introductions of the newbies. Natasha secretly wonders how long she waited outside the dining area to purposely miss Steve and Sam's disagreement.
Pepper finishes her coffee and moves silently to begin preparing a meal. Clint heads back to the bridge to check the flight path as a gentle chatter breaks out between the group. Natasha is laughing at something Tony is saying and he's giving her a grin like he takes pride in getting a laugh out of her. Wanda is disagreeing with a story Bruce is telling Thor and Jasper, though she's smiling at the same time. Sam falls into a rhythm of helping Pepper and the two of them move effortlessly around each other as smells of actual food begin to fill the dining room. Steve sits back and watches, smiling a little to himself as Natasha gently hits Tony over the back of the head at something he's said and Pepper is encouraging her to hit him harder over her shoulder.
The meal is served and Nat dishes some up to take to Clint while everyone else digs in. Steve takes the silence while people eat as an opportunity to deliver some news. "Now I have to tell you all something and I apologise in advance for the inconvenience..." Natasha rejoins them and slips into her seat between Steve and Tony, grumbling to herself that all the good food has gone in her brief absence. "Unfortunately-" Steve continues, ignoring her as she steals something from his plate. "we've been ordered by Hydra to drop off some medical supplies on Whitefall. A bit out of our way but we should have you on Boros no less than a day behind schedule" Steve lies easily, giving them the story he and Nat had concocted earlier. "What medical supplies?" Bruce asks, stumping Steve who hadn't expected anyone to question a Hydra order. "Didn't ask" he answers. "Hydra says jump..." he sums up with a shrug when there are no further questions, taking his seat again and refilling his now empty plate as she shoots a look at Natasha, who smiles at him innocently.
Following their meal, Bruce and Thor tidy up while everyone retreats to their rooms or jobs. Natasha joins Clint on the bridge and sits cross legged on the seat beside him, reading in silence. He always used to ask her why she doesn't find somewhere more comfortable than the barely-used co-pilots seat. She'd always shrugged and answered that she prefers silence filled with him.
Steve is in his room, lying on his bed and rubbing forcefully at his temples. He was already fed up with today and his mood didn't improve when Clint's voice sounded over his comm. "Cap, you might wanna get up here..." He's there in seconds, alarm on his face as he glances between the pair of them. "What is it?" "Signal. Someone went on the cortex and hailed the nearest Hydra cruiser" Clint answered. "Tell me you scrambled it?" "All to hell, but I don't know how much got through" Steve sighs, as if his day needed another twist... "Ni ta ma de. Tianxia suoyoude ren. Dou gaisi" Natasha raises her brows at their Captain's use of language as Clint summarises; "We got a mole on board"
Bruce was in the cargo bay, searching through his case when he looks up to come face to face with an angry Steve Rogers pointing a gun at his face. "Are you out of your mind?" Bruce demands, clutching a notebook in his hand. "What did you tell them?" Steve asks, keeping his hold on his weapon. "Tell who?" Steve cocks the gun, "I have exactly no times for games. What do they know?" "You're a lunatic!" Bruce shakes his head in disbelief. "And you're a gorram fed" the Captain accuses. "I hate to say it, Cap. But you've got the wrong man" Sam interrupts, appearing in the cargo bay behind them. Both Steve and Bruce look to Sam, initially confused, before following his line of sight to see Jasper Sitwell aiming a gun at Steve...
"Drop the weapon, Captain Rogers" he demands, which he eventually does, hoping Natasha or Thor or even Clint will eventually get off their ass and join them... "This is not my best day ever" Steve mutters, trying to keep track of the jobs he'd given out to various members of his crew and estimate how long it'd be before they appeared. Suddenly, and much to Steve's surprise, Jasper no longer has the gun trained on him, but on Bruce. "Bruce Banner, you are bound by law. Stand down" Bruce and Steve give each other confused glances before Steve drops his arms and Bruce regretfully raises his.
Raised voices fill the cargo hold; tooing and froing between Jasper and Bruce as Bruce tries to convince him that he has the wrong man and Jasper shouts at him to get on the ground. Tensions are rising and Steve isn't sure he likes this playing out on his ship. "I think everyone could stand to calm down a bit" Sam comments, shooting a meaningful gaze at Steve as he takes a step toward the situation to try and help defuse it. "This isn't your business, Falcon!" Sitwell hisses, becoming more and more unnerved. Steve begins to move toward his own gun, sat on the floor just a step away. "Get the hell away from that weapon" Sitwell yells, and Steve can't help but hope that draws some attention from the rest of his crew. "You're carrying a fugitive across interplanetary boarders and you actually think I believe you're taking medical supplies to Whitefall? As far as I'm concerned, everyone on board is culpable" The fed glares at Steve, hoping his threat will make him fall in line. "Well now. That has an effect on the landscape..." Steve comments to himself more than anyone else. "We're very close to true stupidity here" Sam warns as Sitwell's gun moves from himself to Bruce, to Steve and back to Bruce again, who looks ready to run. Run to where exactly, he's not quite sure...
"I got a cruiser on route. Talk all you want. You got about twenty minutes" Sitwell spits out angrily. "You might have less than that" Steve comments calmly. Sitwell doesn't appreciate the threat and moves to fire at Steve. The Captain moves, lunges forward and throws Sitwell to the ground...
In the commotion, no one had noticed the arrival of Tony and Pepper, who stood in silent shock as the fight unfolded. The gun went off as Steve runs at Sitwell, and a moment later; Tony fell to the floor. Pepper and Bruce rushed to him as Natasha finally arrived from the bridge; she'd been scanning Hydra communications to try and discover what they knew. Thor arrives a moment after her, alerted by the sound of gunfire. Sitwell rushes for his weapon, which had slid across the floor when he'd been tackled. He turns to fire on Steve, but Sam is already there and knocks him out in a single punch. Steve is beginning to change his mind about him... Thor secures Sitwell while Natasha collects up the scattered weapons, including Sitwell's which Sam had picked up. Wanda arrives, eyes frantically taking in the scene that plays out before her. She'd boarded with Bruce; whatever was going on, she probably knew about too.
Bruce is seeing to his patient as Pepper cradles Tony's head in her lap. Tears streaming her face as both Sam and Natasha arrive to offer help. They both have minimal medical training, and ample experience from the war. Combat injuries and gunshot wounds are, sadly, nothing new to either of them. "He's going into shock" Natasha comments, moving to her knees beside her friend and taking his hand. They're about to move him to the infirmary when Clint's voice sounds out across the intercom; "Captain, we've been hailed by a Cruiser. Ordered to stay on course and prepare for prisoner transfer" Bruce glances to Wanda and suddenly steps back from Tony, releasing the pressure he'd been holding over his gunshot wound, gently guiding Natasha to take his place. "Run. Change course" Bruce states, looking at Steve. He sounds confident in his demand, but his face is filled with sadness and desperation. "Hell with you. I'm dumping you with the law" Steve hisses, glancing to Tony. In his mind, this mess is as much his faults as Sitwell's. "He's dying" Bruce points out, indicating Tony who's lay behind them bleeding out despite Natasha's best efforts. They both know that even with Steve, Sam and Natasha, Tony's chances are better with Bruce... "You're not going to let him" Steve orders. "Cap, no way the feds'll let us walk" Natasha reminds him, eager to get Tony moved as his blood soaks through her pants where she's knelt beside him. "We'll dump him in a shuttle and leave him for them" Steve decides, eyes still on Bruce. "Do you know what a stomach wound does to a person? You know how crucial the next few minutes are?" the doctor points out for the Captain, playing the only card he has to get him and Wanda out of this. "You let him die you'll never make it to the feds" Natasha mutters to Bruce angrily, furious at the amount of time being wasted. "But he'll still be dead" Bruce point out, drawing a glare from everyone present. Pepper begs Steve to see sense as she feels Tony struggle. "Do your job!" Steve yells, unable to even glance at Tony or Pepper. "Turn this ship around" Bruce repeats and waits. The Captain takes a second before giving a nod. Natasha moves so Bruce can take up his position again before hitting the com; "Clint. Change course and go for hard burn. We're running"
Thor takes control of Sitwell while Bruce, Pepper and Steve take Tony to the infirmary. Wanda and Steve hover nervously outside, watching. Natasha goes to change out of her blood soaked clothes and takes her frustration out on an old punching bag before taking comfort in joining Clint on the bridge. Everyone is on edge. Waiting for new on Tony. Waiting to see if Hydra follows...
Hours later, and all that's left for Bruce to do is wait and see if Tony stabilises. "I want to know what's going on here" Pepper comments, reappearing in clean clothes. "Why don't we find out?" Steve asks, pushing past Bruce to head back to the cargo bay. Pepper and Sam follow, as does a slightly shocked Bruce. The group run into Natasha and Clint on their way to see how Tony is doing, though their direction quickly changes with the look Steve has on his face. Bruce tries to stop Steve digging through his cases, but Thor appears and holds him back. Wanda peers round the corner and watches silently as the exchange takes place. Steve knocks over a crate and sends papers flying all over the bay. Steve glances at Bruce who winces, leaving Steve and the others wondering what the big deal is with some bits of paper. The crew members each pick up various pieces of research and notes, all turning to Bruce for an answer.
Bruce is allowed to return to the infirmary to check in on Tony before he meets everyone in the dining room to share his story. He tells them all honestly about the experiments which made him 'different'. About the dangers he posed... He'd been arrested; taken to a government facility which could supposedly 'deal' with him. It's where he'd met Wanda. She too, was seen as a danger to Hydra and had been rounded up and kept captive against her will. Eventually, they'd managed to escape together. But they were seen as such a threat that Hydra had hunted them down every move they made. They thought they'd shook their tail in Persephone which was when they'd seen Serenity and thought Boros might have been safe for them... "Apparently, even then we were being followed..." he sighed as he finished his tale, holding his glasses in one hand while he rubs tiredly at his eye with the other. Wanda had sat by his side, silently throughout, observing the reactions from the others as Bruce laid out a brief overview of their history. "That's quite a story" Sam comments as the others trade glances with each other. "Yeah, it's a tale of woe, that's for sure. But in the meantime you've heaped a world of trouble on me and mine" Steve says, standing up with his arms folded while he considers the information he's just received. "I never thought that-" Bruce began to apologise but was interrupted by the Captain. "No. I don't supposed you thought. In consequence of which we got a kidnapped federal agent on board, we got Hydra hard on our tail. And Tony..." he stops himself and Nat takes over the conversation. "How much does Hydra know?" she asks, directing the question at her husband. "Can't say. I killed the signal pretty quick, so they might just have had our position-" "or they might have personal profiles on each and every one of us. Until that fed wakes up, we won't know" Steve completes for him. "What do we do, Captain?" Thor asks. Steve's blue eyes take a moment to look over his crew. To look to Pepper and consider Tony, laid up in the infirmary. "The job" he answers simply, "we finish the job. I got word from Sharon, she's waiting for us" Natasha looks less than impressed with this information. Steve continues regardless, "We circle round to Whitefall, make the deal, get out, keep flying" he tells them all, as if it's that simple...
"We need to deal with the Fed" Thor comments, an undertone in his voice no one can miss. "Kill a fed? Can you think of a stupider thing to do?" Natasha points out. "He can I.D us all" Thor argues back and everyone begins to throws in their opinion. "Can we maybe vote on the whole murdering people issue?" Clint asks, looking from Steve to Natasha. "We don't vote on my ship" Steve reminds everyone, "this is insanity..." Pepper hisses, "I think we're a way past that now, Cap" Clint comments before turning to Natasha, "come on, we're going to talk this through, yeah?" he prompts, knowing if anyone can get Steve to discuss this, it's her. Nat looks to Steve but before she opens her mouth, Steve shuts everyone up; "Ta ma de! Nimen de bizu!.. Way it is, is the way it is. We got to deal with what's in front of us" and with that, he leaves.
Sam joins Bruce in the infirmary while he watches over Tony. "What made you pick this ship?" Sam asks out of curiosity, wondering if it had anything to do with the destination, or if he had other reasons for boarding Serenity. "It looked disreputable" Bruce answered honestly, small crinkles in the corner of his eyes appearing. They both smile, though one is considerably bleaker than the other. "Didn't happen to look at the name, I suppose?" "Serenity, right? That supposed to be a joke?" "You should look it up..." Sam suggests, taking a seat by Tony as Pepper joins them.
Bruce goes back to the now deserted dining room and pulls a tablet out of his jacket pocket; doing just as Sam suggested. He searches and eventually finds the right page; 'Serenity, Battle of'. His tablet begins to read outloud: 'In the war to unite the planets, The Battle of Serenity was among the most devastating and decisive. Located on Hera, the valley was considered a key position by both sides and was bitterly fought over. The Shield Faction, with sixteen brigades and twenty air-tank squads, held the valley against the Hydra Forces for almost two months, until superior numbers and a brilliant deep-flank strategy developed by General Johann Shm-'
"What does it say under 'bloodbath'?" Natasha asks, interrupting Bruce's research and making him jump. "I was just trying to-" he tries to explain, and Nat shakes her head. "We're not in there. The book, I mean. We're not generals or diplomats. We didn't turn the tide of glorious history or whatever that thing is supposed to spew..." "You know what they say. History is programmed by the winners" Bruce smiles, a little sadly. Natasha sighs and takes the seat opposite Bruce. "Nearly half a million people lay dead in that field at day's end. About a third of them 'winners'. Can you imagine that smell? Can you imagine piling up the bodies of soldiers- of friends- to build a wall, 'cause you got no cover? Blood just kept pouring out of them, you'd slip in it half the time, find out bloodbath is not just a figure of speech..." Natasha laments, thinking of Tony's blood soaking through her clothes hours earlier. And she thought those days were over... Bruce pulls her from her thoughts with a simple question. "Steve was there with you?" "He was my Sergeant. In command of thirty-odd grunts. Five days in, there were so many officers dead he commanded two thousand. Kept us together, kept us fighting, kept us sane. By the time the fighting was over he had maybe four hundred still intact..." "Well, that's a hell of a-" Bruce stops as Natasha shakes her head. "I said the fighting was over. But you see, they left us there. Wounded and sick and near to mad as can still walk and talk. Both sides left us there while they 'negotiated the peace' for a week. And we just kept dying... When they finally sent in the Medships, he had about a hundred and fifty left, and of our original platoon, just me..." Natasha stands up to leave, having shared more than she'd initially intended. She pauses before she exits; "mercy, forgiveness, trust... Those are the things he left back there. What he has now is the ship. The ship and us on it. You get Tony through this and I think he'll do right by you. He won't kill unless he's got no other option" And apparently Natasha knows about Steve's threat to throw him out the airlock if Tony dies... Bruce looks surprised but Nat ignores it. "And what if he tells you to kill me?" he asks, watching the woman carefully. "I kill you" she answers simply and Bruce gives her a grim smile. At least she's honest... She goes to leave but Bruce has one last question; "if that battle was so horrible, why'd he name the ship after it?" Natasha considers for a moment; "Once you've been in Serenity, you never leave. You just learn to live there"
Steve rushed back to the bridge at Clint's insistence, "How the hell did they find us?!" he demands, "It's not Hydra" Clint informs him. "You're sure?" "It's a smaller vessel. Commercial. Older, I read it as a Trans-U" "I didn't think Trans-U still operated" "They don't-" The Captain and pilot exchange wary glances. "Get me a visual?" Steve requests. "They're too far out-" "Get me something!" Steve's worried and they both know it. Clint hits some buttons and reads the resulting information from his screen. "I'm picking up a lot of radiation... They're burning without core containment. Well, that's, kwonh-juh duh, that's suicide" Steve drops into the co-pilot's chair, usually only ever occupied by Natasha. "Reavers..." "Oh god... Oh god oh god oh god..."
[Steve over the PA] "This is the Captain..."
Natasha pauses on her way out of the dining room, taking note of his tone of voice. Her posture calls Bruce's attention to what is being said. In the infirmary, Sam looks up from his book as he sits beside Tony. Pepper pauses in her shuttle as she digs through a draw of belongings... Everyone can hear the slight shake in Steve's voice as he delivers the following message:
[PA] "We're passing another ship. Looks to be Reavers. From the size, probably a raiding party. Could be they're headed somewhere particular, could be they've already hit someone and they're full up. So everybody stay calm... We're holding course, should pass them in a minute; we'll see what they do... Nat, you come up to the bridge."
Natasha steps to leave again when Bruce stops her, the worried look in his eyes makes her take pity and stay to answer... "I don't understand" "You never heard of Reavers?" "Campfire stories?.. Men gone savage at the edge of space, killing, and..." Natasha interrupts; "They ain't stories" Bruce looks at her, surprised and stutters over his next question "What happens if they board us?" Natasha sighs before she has to answer; "If they take the ship, they'll rape us to death, eat our flesh and sew our skin into their clothing and if we're very very lucky, they'll do it in that order" It's grave, but it's the truth and Natasha would rather be honest with him about the way he might be about to die.
Following his chilling discussion with Natasha, Bruce heads back to the infirmary to busy himself with something. Thor sits guard over Sitwell and loads a gun; he'd rather die at his own hand than at the hands of Reavers. Natasha steps silently back onto the bridge, resting her hands on Clint's shoulders as the three of them watch the passing ship...
"They're holding course. I guess they weren't hungry" Clint informs them after a few, very long minutes. Steve lets out a breath of relief as Natasha leans over to kiss her husband. "They're pushing out further every year" she comments as the tension in the room fades. "It's getting awful crowded in my sky" Steve sighs.
Now one crisis is over with, Steve turns his attention to another. He joins Thor and the pair stand over Sitwell, watching him carefully. The Hydra man is bound and gagged, watching the two blonds angrily. "I'm in a situation. I think you're aware. Got a boatload of terribly strange folk making my life a little more interesting than I generally like. Chief among them, a Hydra mole who likes to shoot at unarmed men when he's nervous. Now, I got to know how close Hydra is, exactly how much you told them before Barton killed the signal. So I've given Thor here the task of finding that out" Steve smiles at him as Thor adjusts his grip of a large hammer; his favourite weapon, however obscure. "He was nonspecific as to how" Thor tells Sitwell with a grin.
Steve leaves and Thor removes the gag. The information he needs is better obtained sooner rather than later... "Do you have any idea how much trouble you're in?" Sitwell asks, watching the tall, muscular blond with trepidation. "Like I haven't been in trouble with the law before?.." Thor shrugs, sitting opposite their prisoner. "Not like this. They're going to come after the doctor. And the girl. They'll never stop. Long after you bury me they'll be coming" Thor interrupts him with a laugh and Sitwell looks at him, confused. "I'm not going to kill you. I'm just going to hurt you until you tell me what they know" Thor is well spoken, with a posh earth-that-was accent and cheery smile, starkly contrasting the words he uses to threaten the fed. He's spent enough time around Natasha and Stark to learn some choice words and phrases for exactly this occasion. Of all the crew; Thor looks the most physically intimidating. Sitwell seems to weigh his options for a moment, glancing back to the hammer in his hand before he answers; "They know everything! Every name, every record. They know how many nose hairs you've got" Sitwell blurts out quickly and Thor sighs, "They don't know a damn thing. It's all over your face. Aren't you an officer of the law? Don't they teach you how to withstand interrogation? Can't even tell a damn lie..." He mutters as he leaves.
"Tony's awake" Pepper informs Steve with a bright smile. She's on her way to his room to collect a list of things he's asked for, including the Firefly handbook he'd been correcting earlier. Steve nods and heads to the infirmary to check on his mechanic. His crew has become his family, and even his cocky, pain in the ass mechanic is important to him. "Hey, Stark. What's the news?" He asks, lingering in the doorway for a moment. "I'm shiny, Cap. A-okay... Peachy. Top tip. No, tip top" Tony grins, and Steve can't tell if he's exaggerating, or if he really is as high as he seems. "Rest up, Stark. Somethin' on this boats gonna break down real soon, and who else do I got to fix it?" "Don't worry. Doc fixed me good" Steve just nods and pats Tony on the shoulder. The dark haired mechanic falls back to sleep and reminds Steve he has another crisis to deal with; Bruce.
Steve encounters the doctor as he heads back to the infirmary to check in on his patient. Cap decides not to deliver the news about Tony and teach the doctor a lesson he ought to remember for some time. Pepper walks past and nods at the two men, Steve watches her leave before speaking up to the Doctor. "You'll ruin her too, you know?" Bruce looks confused and Steve continues, "Everyone on this ship, even a legitimate business woman like her, their lives can be snatched away because of that fed. You got a solution for that? You got a way round?" He asks and he can see emotion flicker across Bruce's face; regret, concern, grief, realisation... "I don't-" "Comes time, somebody's gonna have to deal with him. That should be you, but I don't think you have the guts. And I know you don't have the time" Steve almost feels a little guilty, but he's beginning to think about keeping Bruce around. If he wants, that is. And he needs to ensure Bruce can consider his actions in relation to the impact they have on his crew, as well as just himself. "W-what do you mean?" Bruce asks, panicked. "Tony's dead" the Captain informs him before he backs out. Bruce stares after him, frozen in shock, before he runs off, tripping and stumbling on his way back to the infirmary.
He bursts through the door, receiving shocked glances from Tony, Pepper and Sam, who were sat chatting. Bruce has to take a seat in order catch his breath...
Back on the bridge, Steve recounts the story to his crew. He joins in as Natasha, Clint and Thor laugh and it feels good to see them laugh. His stoic, stubborn and too-often-right first mate. Her husband with a sense of humour only she understands half the time; who also happens to be the best pilot this side of the 'verse. And Thor, who stumbled into their hold one day drunk and half naked but became a loyal and loved member of their team. "Tony's really okay?" Natasha asks, wiping a tear from her face and taking a seat on Clint's lap. "I'll tell you the truth, I didn't expect him to heal this quick. The Doctor knows his trade, I'll give him that"
The console sounds and Barton looks over the notification, "We're being hailed" Steve once again takes the co pilot seat and flicks on the vid-link. "Steve Rogers" a blond woman smiles on a fuzzy, grey screen. "Hello Sharon" "I have to say, didn't expect to be hearing from you anytime soon" Natasha clears her throat, off screen, at Sharon's comment and gives the Captain a pointed look when he glances at her. "Well, we might not have parted on the best of terms. I realise certain words were exchanged. Certain- bullets. But that's air through the engine, that's past. We're business people. 'Sides, your days of fighting over salvage rights are long behind you, what I hear. What are you, mayor now?" Sharon smiles smugly on the other side of the screen and Natasha rolls her eyes. "Just about. You tellin' the truth about that cargo? 'Cause your asking price is a bit too reasonable for that much treasure" "It's imprinted. Hence the discount..." Steve admits, knowing it won't bother Sharon. Not enough for her to say no, anyway. "Government goods, huh?" she asks, and Natasha hopes she says no. "If it doesn't work for you, no harm. Just thought you could use it is all..." Steve shrugs, goading her. "Hydra don't scare me. I like you being up front about it. We can deal. I'll upload coordinates for a rendezvous outside of town" "See you in the world, Sharon" Steve nods and the screen goes black as the communication ends. The Captain purposely avoids Natasha's look as he mutters "I believe that woman is planning on shooting me again..." "If she meant to pay you, she'd have haggled you down some" Thor pointed out. "Just a little effort to hide it would've been considerate..." Steve mutters as Natasha is uncharacteristically predictable when she says; "Cap, we don't have to deal with her" "Yes we do" "Here's a little concept I've been working on, why don't you shoot her first?" Thor asks, "It is her turn" Clint points out, drawing another grin from his wife. "That doesn't get us what we need either" "There's moons on this belt we ain't seen. We could try our luck on one of-" "Our luck? Have you noticed anything particular about our luck, last few days? You depend on luck you end up on the drift, no fuel, no prospects, begging for Hydra work or being towed out to the scrapbelt. That ain't us. Not ever. Sharon has money to pay and she's going to... One way or another"
Whitefall. The fourth moon of Athens in the Georgia system.
Serenity lands in the middle of a desert; the location of the meet; a valley, is visible in the distance. As Steve steps off his ship; he is hit with reminders of the war. Judging by the look on Nat's face, so is she. "Nice place for an ambush" she comments as they approach the valley. The hills provide a good view for the snipers that Sharon has probably had in place since she spoke with Steve over the vid link. "That it is" Steve agrees, taking a good look around and considering his tactics. Thor has buried the cargo a short distance from the meet site; Natasha's idea. She doesn't trust Sharon and Steve thinks she's right not to.
Thor takes a walk around the valley, quietly removing Sharon's men and collecting their weapons while Steve and Natasha wait for her to show. "I still don't think it's a good spot, Cap. She has the advantage over us" Natasha points out, arms crossed, ensuring her unease with this plan is clearly evident. "Everyone always does" Steve turns to her; "That's what makes us special"
Steve and Natasha approach the rendezvous; a spot in the centre of the valley. If things go south, there's nowhere to run but the miles between them and Serenity. They both know Thor is on one of the hilltops; and they both know that Sharon could still have countless snipers out there, with weapons aimed right at them...
They stand and wait, ignoring the blistering heat and overbearing sun, until Sharon appears. Six men back her as they arrive in front of Steve and Nat on horseback. Sharon is a young woman with blue eyes and has long blonde hair, though it is greying in areas. She looks older than Steve knows she is. Ruling this little backwards moon is getting the better of her... Which doesn't put him any more at ease. "Steve. How you doing?" she greets him as an old friend, which is half true. "Walking and talking" he shrugs. "That Natasha? You're still sailing with this old bum?" Nat glances at Steve and refrains from answering the obvious. "That's an awful lot of men to haul three crates" Natasha points out; Sharon sighs as they get straight down to business. "Well I couldn't be sure my Steve here wasn't looking for some kind of payback. You understand" "We're just on the job, Sharon. Not interested in surprises" Steve answers, honestly.
In the hills, Thor treads lightly as he removes another sniper from his post. He's the third and what Thor hopes is the last. They'd been watching for the exchange, waiting for the signal. Sharon would pay up, get the coordinates and have Steve and Natasha shot. She'd leave with the money and the cargo and Serenity would lose their Captain and First Mate... And it was Thor's responsibility to ensure none of that happened. Thor takes the snipers rifle and peers down the scope, watching the exchange as it takes place. Sharon questioning the legitimacy of the cargo, Steve throws her a sample; she inspects and she nods. One bar will feed a family for a month, specifically developed by Hydra scientists to contain all the protein, vitamins and immunization supplements that people need to survive. Allowing Hydra to supply everything the outer world needs without having to ship out expensive food and medicines better kept for those on the core. Thor watches through the scope as Sharon throws a bag of coins to Steve, who give ups the location of the rest of the cargo.
Steve and Natasha wait for Sharon and her men to leave, however, there seems to be a problem.
"I'd appreciate it if you all would turn around and ride out first" Steve requests, sensing the situation turning exactly the way they'd anticipated. "Yeah, well... See, there's kind of a hitch" Sharon smirks a little and Natasha sighs, "We both made out on this deal, Sharon. Don't complicate things" Steve says as he scratches his head, giving a signal to Thor who he hopes is in place by now. "I have a rule. I never let go of money I don't have to. Which is maybe why I'm running this little world and you're still in that dinky old boat sniffing for scraps... Ah, Steve. You just ain't very bright are you?" Natasha mutters an agreement to Sharon's statement under her breath while Steve counts down in his head. 3, 2, 1...
The man to Sharon's right suddenly falls from his horse, dead. Thor reloads his rifle as Steve and Nat reach for their own weapons. They each shoot, taking down a man each and leaving Sharon with just half her original number. Gunfire echoes through the valley as Sharon's men return fire. The horses panic; dust clouds form at their footfall. Natasha takes a hit to her chest and falls forcefully to the floor, Steve glances her way but his attention is drawn back to the fight as a bullet flies past his ear. One man flees, and Thor shoots him before he can get far, another falls from his horse as it rears in panic, he's still firing, but it's an easy shot for Steve to make as he takes cover behind a nearby boulder. Thor hisses as he misses his next shot, but a bullet fired by Natasha hits his missed target. Steve and Sharon are the only ones left standing now the fighting has subsided; everyone else is down or dead.
"Natasha?" Steve calls, using the temporary calm to check on his crew. Natasha groans, "armours dented" she comments, sitting up. That is going to leave one hell of a bruise, but at least Tony's improvised armour is bullet proof... "Well, you were right about this being a bad idea" Steve says, offering her a hand up, which she ignores and climbs back to her feet herself, "thanks for saying so, Cap..." she deadpans as they both turn their attention back to Sharon, who's currently taking cover behind her horse. Natasha moves and manages to sweep Sharon's legs out from under her, she hits the floor and her gun falls from her hand; which Nat quickly claims as her own as the horse flees. Steve steps forward, looking down at his former ally; "I did a job. I got nothing but trouble since I did it, not to mention more than a few unkind words as regards to my character so let me make this abundantly clear. I do the job. I get paid" The pair of them turn away, leaving Sharon alone in the valley, "go run your little world" Steve calls back to her, pocketing the bag of coins as he and Natasha leave to meet Thor.
Back on board Serenity, Clint is impatiently waiting for word from Natasha that the deal has been completed successfully. Sitwell has been using his time alone to work himself free of the binds that held him and has made his way back to the cargo hold. He arms himself with the gun he had hidden in his bag before attempting to contact Hydra once more. Tony has been one step ahead this time and instructed Clint on how to set up a block to prevent all outgoing transmissions, other than those sent from the bridge. Sitwell throws his tablet back in his bag angrily before pulling out another gun and shoving it into the waistband of his pants. He moves carefully and silently through the ship; having previously memorised the lay out during his brief time undercover. In the infirmary he finds one of his targets; Wanda. Tony sits up to finds a gun pointed at him by the man who'd already shot him once, the man who now holds Wanda hostage. "I'm sorry about what happened before, but make so much as a sound and the next one goes through your throat" the fed threatens before dragging Wanda away.
Bruce joined Clint on the bridge in order to try and clear his head. Clint isn't helping; "You should think about asking Cap to drop you somewhere else. Whitefall ain't exactly civilisation in the strictest sense..." "You don't have to worry about me" Bruce informs him, "Nat's out on a deal, I always worry. So it's not out of my way-"
Tony's voice interrupts them over the com: "He took her. Sitwell's free. He's got Wanda-" Bruce bolts out of the room and Clint is about to follow, before a warning alarm draws his attention. "Oh don't you dare..."
Bruce finds Sitwell in the cargo bay. He manages to follow his movements from the upper deck; before jumping down behind him. He frees Wanda, who flees, and Sitwell looses both his weapons as they scatter across the floor. He lunges for a gun but Bruce knocks him down; pinning him to the floor and doing everything in his power to keep him from those weapons. During the fight, Clint's voice sounds over the PA: "Reavers! We got Reavers incoming and heading straight for us. We are in the air in one minute!" he flips off the PA while he readies the ship for takeoff, "I guess they got hungry again..." He sends word to Natasha and the others, giving them a heads up about their impending departure as he waits nervously for them to return.
Pepper comes out of her shuttle to see what she can do to help, only to see Bruce and Jasper locked in a fight in the middle of the cargo bay. Bruce has gotten hold of a gun but even Pepper can see his hands shaking as he lifts it. "You gonna do that? You gonna kill a lawman in cold blood? I don't want to hurt anybody. I have a job to do... To uphold the law. That's what we're talking about here. There's nowhere you can go that we won't find..."
In that moment, the air lock doors open; distracting everyone from the fight. Sitwell grabs the gun and fires, missing his target but sending Bruce diving for cover. The Hydra fed grabs Wanda again, holding the gun to her head this time as she uses her body to shield his own. "Anyone makes so much as a-"
Steve walks in behind Bruce and fires a single shot through Sitwell's head. The man falls, dead. "Barton, we're on. Go!" Steve instructs over the com as he and Thor throw Sitwell's body out of the air lock. The ship takes off, doors sealing behind them as they finally leave Whitefall behind.
Steve and Natasha head straight up to the bridge while everyone else lingers nervously.
"How close are they?" Steve asks the moment he enters, "About twenty seconds from spitting distance" "Well lose them" Thor suggests, joining them. Steve turns to Natasha; "Give me rear vid?" She nods and flips a switch, bringing the view up on the screen. "Āiyā. Wǒ men wánle..." "How close do they need to be to fire the grapplers?" Steve asks Clint as Thor utters; "Barton, dodge them! Dodge them!" The pilot merely sighs, "if everybody could just be quiet for a moment..."
Clint is incredibly calm behind the controls of Serenity, even now. He veers left and flies low through the hills but the Reavers remain right behind them. "I need Tony in the engine room please..." "Can he even-" "Thor, get him there. Now" Steve instructs, "Pepper. Get in your shuttle, get the civilians and be ready to go" "We can't just leave you here-" "We get boarded, you take off, head for town. We might be able to stop them from following" "They'll kill you!" "Pepper..." Pepper glares at Steve but knows he's right, she looks back to Clint and Natasha before leaving the bridge. Pepper gathers Bruce and Wanda and takes them with her to her shuttle but Sam insists on staying; he has some knowledge about engines and goes with Tony to help.
"How we doing, Barton?" Steve asks, returning to watch his progress. "I don't want to alarm anybody, but I think we're being followed..." he deadpans in true Barton-humour. "Can't keep this up, they get a beat, they're gonna lock us down" Clint glances back to the rear vid on the screen and curses. "You want me to go for full burn?" Tony's voice sounds over the com. "Full burn in atmo? That won't cause a blowback? Burn us out?" Natasha questions, sliding into the co-pilots chair. "Even if it doesn't, they can push just as hard, keep right on us. Barton, you gotta give me an Ivan" Natasha glances at Steve and pulls on a seatbelt. "Tony?" Clint asks, knowing he heard their Captain's request. "Always wanted to try one... Thor, open the port jet control, cut the hydraulics" he instructs, "Where on earth-" "Look! Look where I'm pointing!" Sam steps in and does as Tony instructed, saving Thor from figuring it out.
Steve is watching the screens carefully and sees the Reaver ship switch on the magnetic grappler, "They're on us!" "Everyone hold onto something" comes Clint's voice over the com. "Here's something you can't do..." He slams down on a lever, forcing Serenity's port jet to flip, the ship lurches into a one-eighty turn before the jet flips back and Serenity takes off, ducking under the Reaver ship and taking off in the opposite direction. It's a tense few moments as Clint holds the controls steady with all his strength. He eventually eases off and turns to smile at Natasha, who returns the grin proudly. Steve announces the news to the rest of the ship; "we're good people"
"We should have just enough left in us to hit a fuel station. We'll need to do some patching up. Hope we got paid today." "We did" Steve nods. Natasha and Clint exchange a glance and she climbs back out of her seat. "Cap, I'd like you to take the helm, please.." she says, taking Clint's hand, "I need this man to tear all my clothes off" Steve doesn't reply, just indicates the way out with a small, awkward grin. Clint climbs out of his chair and follows Natasha happily, his hands on her hips as he attempts to speed up their exit. Steve slips into Clint's usual seat and lets out a breath of relief; allowing himself to be calmed by the simple task of keeping the ship on course.
The ship settles back into a routine of calm; Tony is taken back to the infirmary to rest up, and Pepper falls asleep by his side. Clint and Natasha spend the night together in their room. Wanda and Sam settle into a comfortable silence, each with a book while Thor sits with them in the dining room and takes it upon himself to finish off the coffee. Bruce checks in on Tony before heading to see Steve. He notices the Captain's arm is bleeding from a stray bullet earlier on Whitefall. "You need me to look at that?" "Just a graze" Cap shrugs, certain Natasha's bruise is worse. "So, where do you plan on dumping us?" Bruce asks carefully, aware than he and Wanda still need to find somewhere to go. "There's places you might be safe. You want the truth though, you're probably safest on the move... And we never stop moving" "I'm confused. No wait- I think maybe you're confused" "It may have become apparent to you, the ship could use a medic. You ain't weak, and that's not nothing. You live by my rule, you could maybe find a place here. Til you find better..." Steve offered. "I'm trying to put this as delicately as I can; how do I know you won't kill me in my sleep?" "You don't know me, son. So let me explain this to you once: if I ever kill you, you'll be awake, you'll be facing me, and you'll be armed" Bruce smiles a little at Steve's honesty. "Are you always so sentimental?" "I had a good day" "You had the law on you, criminals and savages... Half the people on this ship have been shot or wounded... Including yourself and you're harbouring know fugitives..." Bruce lays out. "We're still flying" "That's not much" "It's enough..."