Beyond the Snowy Veil
All characters belong to Marvel Comics
(This work was purely written for fun.)
It was a sight of pure desolation. The military caravans turned up and smoldering, the streets were vacant with shards of broken glass scattered over the cracked asphalt with the droning sounds of screaming and metallic screeching of heavy artillery fire and laser blasts.
The central downtown area was battlefield, weary and terrified citizens fumbling over debris and searching for their loved ones.
The stench of blood was thick in the crisp wintry air, permeating the barricaded area. Most of the obstruction was caused by abandoned vehicles, hardly intact and the wafting, and heart numbing smell of death blanketed over the lifeless bodies of cops.
Most of the police force had been compromised, bodies thrown and smashed through windshields. It was a scenery of extinction.
Captain Steven Rogers was atop of a a jeep, his knees bent and shield strapped to his wrist. His crystal blue eyes focused on his teammates, fighting in the haze of smoke.
His helmet had been ripped off his face after he saved a ten year old boy from a firebomb, he vaulted and dodged out of the window, holding the child securely under his shield, and landed flat on his back, with glass shattering over his battered form. He didn't care about his fractured bones; the boy was safe. That's what mattered to him.
Now, he was defending his team, with his strength and driven endurance, his shield was scuffed with silver marks seeping through the red stripes, and his chiseled, structured face covered with small gashes and remnants of blood. His golden hair ruffled and drenched with feverish sweat. He was battle torn, but also defiant.
His blue eyes trained on the smoking pit, as he listened to whimpering of distress; quickly he jumped off the underbelly of the jeep, and slowly descended into the hole; his boots sliding over the crumbling rock, and throat clogging with choking ash.
"Hang on," he yelled aloud, climbing up, as water from a busted pipe slashed over his dark blue uniform. He gripped the grimy surface with his massive hand, and extended out his arm to a small child huddled underneath a contortion of piping. His muscles jerked and strained as he gritted his teeth and forced his hand lower for the girl to reach. "It's okay," he spoke to her, soft as possible. "I'm going to get you out of here."
She was timid, and tucked her bony knees close to her chest.
Steve tightened his face, blood dripped from the crown of his head, and ran steadily over his lip. "Look I know that you're scared. I know your in shock, but you need to trust me sweetheart." he said, looking down at her trembling, frail body. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you," he smiled, his eyes glistening as she coughed, and slowly lifted her shaking hand to him. "That's a good girl."
He gripped her wrist, carefully, and hoisted her up to his armored shoulder, wrapping his broad arm over her back, and holding her tight against him.
"Now, I want you to reach for that pipe and climb out. You can do this..." He firmly instructed, and she gave him a nod, and he swung just enough for her to grasp the pipe. He was slipping, using support as the wall was giving out. " Get out of here." he grimaced, and she looked down at him with sadden dark brown eyes, but he waved his hand, gesturing her to move. There wasn't enough time. She made it out to the surface, and knelt down lowering her hand for him to grab.
Steve smiled, and tried to reach for her, it was only a few inches, but then the wall crumbled, and he lost the support, his head bashed against a sharp form of rock, bruising his forehead, and blurring his vision. All he hear was screaming, and a familiar inorganic noise of twisting metal.
He closed his eyes, bracing for impact. A metal hand clawed on his suit, and held on tightly. He was dangling like a puppet on strings, but he never collided with the ground. Wincing in pain, Steve opened his eyes, and stared up at a unshaven face obscured by dark, scraggy brown hair. The man's blue eyes were burning with intensity, and his full lips pulled into a tight line. "Bucky," he coughed out the blood that replaced his saliva. His vision was dimming, and stomach clenched into knots. He was barely conscious to register the pain surging in his veins. He kept his teary eyes focused on his friend.
The metal plating in Bucky's arm was shifting and disaglining, as he gnashed his teeth and heaved Steve's muscular body up to the surface. He barked out the girl to move out of the way, and she obeyed his words, scampering to the other side of the jeep. He yanked Steve, and settled the super-soldier hard on the ground. He lowered his head, feeling the urge to run.
"Bucky," Steve choked up, placing his tattered gloved hand on the metal shoulder. The Winter Soldier regarded him with a feral glare of darkened blue, and scowled. "I just want to say...Thank you."
The assassin gave him a small nod, and looked down at him. "I always have your back," he said, biting down on his lip, and then wrenching his eyes away. "When you need me...I will find you, pal." he promised, and whipped his head as Iron Man's red and gold suit gleamed through the snowy air.
Steve swallowed thickly, pain jabbed into his heart. "I will find a way to free you, Buck. I promise. Not matter what the price will be...You will be James Barnes again."
Bucky dropped his eyes to the silver embossed star, a few tears leaked from his eyes. "I hope one day, you can forgive me...Steve?" his voice drifted, and he bowed his head, long strands draped over his heavy jaw. "Friends never hurt each other...but I did. I hurt you Steve."
"It wasn't you, Buck. HYDRA programmed your mind to follow orders, but you failed to carry the last out. You saved me." Steve tentatively placed his hand on Bucky's cold face, and looked deeply into his lost and divided blue eyes. "Can you forgive me for letting you fall?"
Bucky nodded, wordlessly, and then broke his lips into a watery smile, and allowed Steve to wipe his tears away. He wasn't alone to cry.
The sound of Tony Stark's interrupting voice echoed in the air, and he abruptly stood upright, and gazed down at Steve, with a warm blue dissolving the darkness in his blue eyes. "I have to go," he whispered, looking the other way. "We will see each other again, Steve. We're brothers until the end."
Steve felt those words tug on his hearts, he lowered his eyes for a second, but Bucky was gone, and small arms enclosed over his broad shoulders, and the gentle voice of the girl said, "Thank you for saving me, Captain America."
He enveloped his large hand over her tiny fingers, and shed one last tear before looking up at the shaft of light breaking through the falling snow and the shadow of destruction.
Hope had become anew.
A/N : A huge thank to my wonderful Beta Reader.