New Jersey, 1970
See you in a minute. The words run through my mind as I look out over the meadow.
Her smile replays again and again. I hadn't known then what would happen, how I wouldn't see her again, because she was never coming back. Standing in the machine reminds me of what we lost.
Sam stands with his arms crossed. He looks nervous as he watches me prepare to travel through time. Bucky stands closer, his hair ruffled by the wind. There is a kind of sadness deep in his eyes. It's almost like he can feel the strength of the pull that is luring me closer to Peggy and away from everything else.
Bruce pushes the button, sending me away. The blur of colors and lights blinds me until it disappears and I'm standing in front of S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters. Off to my left I can see Tony coming out of the main entrance, accompanied by Howard Stark.
The warm breeze runs through my hair as I step out of sight. I make my way to the locker I remember from my first visit. I stash my suit in a locker, changing into an officer's uniform.
I pull my hat low over my face, slip on sunglasses, and enter the flow of people in the hallway.
Tony pulled the tesseract from a deep storage locker deep in the base. Before my departure Bruce had found a way to form casing for the stone in the shape of a square. It looked about as close to the real thing as possible.
The hallways get narrower and less crowded as I move farther below ground. I don't know where exactly Tony found the tesseract so I end up roaming the basement and dodging people as best as I can.
The basement is like a maze, I begin to panic as time passes and I remain no closer to finding what I'm looking for. I end up grabbing a young looking man who by his uniform I assume is low ranking.
"Excuse me, Son," I say. "I'm here from New York to see the Tesseract, I was hoping you could point me in the right direction."
"Uh, well, I don't really know," he stutters. "Hey are you working on the Pegasus project?"
"Yes, just a direction would be great," I say, trying to keep a smile on my face. He points back in the direction I had just come from.
"I think it's the third left that way."
I was too happy to question how he suddenly had the specifics.
"Thanks," I say, trying not to sprint off. Following his directions I find the empty box and replace the Space Stone.
"More trouble than you're worth," I mutter to it as I turn to go.
As I do, alarms blare overhead. I step out into the hallway and get caught in the swarm of panicked people. I desperately look for someplace private as I get pushed along.
"What happened?" someone just ahead of me asks.
"I heard that someone stole some of Doctor Pym's work," someone else answers.
He just got back to his office and saw that I took the particles, I realize. It takes forever, but I finally break off from the mainstream. Unfortunately I find myself close to what must be the command center.
"Why did you leave your office, Doctor Pym?"
The voice seems to stab my heart. Peggy. I see her out of the corner of my eye. All business, her curls bouncing around her face as she takes command of the situation.
I duck into a different hallway and continue on my way, hoping to find a way out. Instead I find myself back at Pym's office. It's empty as he has just run for help and people are on their way. I look behind me, then race inside and grab more of the red vials. I push through a door in the back to avoid being seen. That room is empty so I quickly pocket the vials and realize that I've left my suit in a locker. People rush into the room I've just come from.
"The bastard took more!" Hank's indignant cry forces me to move again. I find my way back onto the first floor. Finding the locker room takes a while in the chaos, but the place is empty. Before I can be stopped again I travel.