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Thoughts

Speech

Chapter eleven: Insight

Shepard threw Jasper Sitwell onto the roof with Natasha following closely behind him "Tell me about Zola's algorithm" he demanded.

"Never heard of it"

"What were you doing on the Lemurian Star?"

"I was throwing up, I get seasick" Shepard holds Sitwell by the throat loosely over the edge of the roof, Sitwell just smiles "Is this little display meant to insinuate that you're gonna throw me off the roof? Because it's not really your style Shepard"

Shepard puts him back onto the roof and fixes his suit for him "You're right. It's not" stepping aside "It's hers" Natasha kicks him off the roof, he plummets down screaming.

"Oh, What about that girl from accounting, Laura?"

"Lillian. Lip piercing, right?"

"Yeah, she's cute"

"Yeah, I'm not ready for that"

"Right, sometimes I forget you are from a different time period"

"Many different periods"

Suddenly Sam brings Sitwell back onto the roof with his Falcon jet-pack suit throwing him down.

"Zola's algorithm is a program...for choosing insight's targets!" he said quickly shaking in fear.

"What targets?"

"You! A TV anchor in Cairo, the Undersecretary of Defense, a high school valedictorian in Iowa city. Bruce Banner, Stephan Strange, Tony Stark, anyone who's a threat to Hydra! Now or in the future"

"The future? How could it know?"

"How could it not?" he asked laughing "The 21st century is a digital book. Zola taught Hydra how to read it"

Shepard and Natasha look at him in confusion.

"You bank records, medical histories, voting patterns, e-mails, phone calls, you damn SAT scores. Zola's algorithm evaluates people's past to predict their future"

"And what then?"

"Oh, my God. Pierce is gonna kill me"

"What then?" Shepard demanded pinning him to the door to the roof.

"Then the Insight Helicarriers scratch people off the list. A few million at a time"

"Hydra doesn't like leaks" Sitwell said sitting in the back of the car.

"So why don't you try sticking a cork in it?" Sam asked annoyed.

"Insight's launching in sixteen hours, we're cutting it a little bit close guys" Natasha said leaning into the front seat.

"I know. We'll use him to bypass the DNA scans and access the Hellicarriers directly"

"What?! Are you crazy? That is a terrible, terrible idea" Sitwell yells in distress.

Suddenly a metal arm reaches into the car throwing Sitwell through the window and into oncoming traffic. Natasha jumps into Shepard's lap avoiding a bullet through the roof pulling his head towards her to avoid a bullet aimed for him, then she kicked Sam in the shoulder knocking him out of the way of another bullet. Shepard pulls the break handle throwing the Soldier onto the road.

Another car rams them from behind as the Soldier jumps back onto the roof and removes the steering wheel "Shit!" Sam yelled in a panic. Natasha pulled out her gun and started shooting at him as he jumped to the hood of the car behind them as they are forced off the road. Shepard grabs the door and Natasha "Hang on!" he yells to Sam who grabs him as he breaks the door off and slides on it as the car starts flipping. Sam fell off as the slid rolling to a stop while Shepard held Natasha tightly to the door.

The Winter Soldier shoots a grenade launcher at Shepard and Natasha. He pushes her out of the way kicking the car door up to use as a shield. Shepard was thrown off the bridge and through a bus windshield by the blast. Natasha jumps off the other end of the bridge swinging under it to avoid a car flying towards her from an explosion. Running towards Shepard she notices the Soldier's shadow. She stopped pulled both her pistols and shot up at him hitting his goggles.

Natasha ran as he came back up and fired his rifle where she had previously been "I'll take car of her. Find him" he ordered his men in Russian jumping off the bridge and following after her. His men started to set up zip-lines to get down off the bridge. Sam stopped one as he attempted to jump slicing his weapon strap off him with a combat knife and kicking him off the bridge as he caught his weapon.

Shepard came crashing through the back window of the bus firing both his pistols taking down two of them then moving to get behind cover. Sam shot one from the bridge and started firing at another "Go! I got this!" he yelled firing at the Hydra agent as he stood back up hitting him. Shepard nodded and ran in Natasha's direction.

"Get out of the way! Stay out of the way!" Natasha yelled to the civilians as she ran, she stopped and got in cover behind a car as she received a bullet in her left shoulder. The Winter Soldier jumps onto the car aiming at her as she turned to him. Shepard tackled him off the hood making him drop his rifle. He drew an SMG as Shepard kicked it from his hands. He punched him in the chest using his metal arm to send him backwards several feet, drawing a pistol her fired at him. Shepard rolled left then back right to avoid another bullet, grabbing the gun he head-butted him wrenching it from his grasp he took the weapon apart.

The Winter Soldier swung his metal arm for his head, Shepard ducked under it punching him in the abdomen he grabbed him from behind and slammed him on the ground. Picking him back up he threw him into the side of a fan kicking him in the abdomen denting the door, he then rammed his knee into his chest denting the door even further. The Soldier drew a knife swinging it at him Shepard grabbed his arm hitting the underside of it with his fist forcing him to drop the knife.

The Soldier caught it with his metal arm and swung again only for Shepard to flip him back into the van door over his shoulder making him drop the knife. Standing back up he grabbed Shepard by the throat with his metal arm throwing him over the hood of the van. Jumping over the hood he smashed his fist into the ground where he was supposed to be. Shepard kneed him in the face, the Soldier swung wildly causing Shepard to jump away.

Unsheathing a second knife he pinned Shepard to the van and thrust the knife towards him, Shepard moved his head as it embedded into the door. The Soldier's metal arm forced him to go left as he forced the knife through the car trying to stab him. Shepard punched him hard in the face knocking his mask lose, he stabbed the knife from the door into his metal arm catching a punch from the other he hit him in the face with an uppercut. Moving behind him he grabbed him by his face and threw him over his shoulder throwing the mask off as he did.

Shepard stared in shock of who he saw "Bucky?"

"Who the hell is Bucky?" he asked drawing a second pistol. Sam hit him from behind in his Falcon jet-pack landing beside Shepard. Bucky rolled onto his feet and aimed the gun at Shepard. With an uncertain look in his eye he raised the gun towards Shepard's head before ducking out of the way of a grenade fired by a wounded Natasha.

Shepard turned to see her before turning back to see Bucky had disappeared. Vans full of Hydra agents pulled up pointing their weapons at them "On your knees! Now! Get down! Rumlow ordered exiting the vehicle. Shepard held his hands up and dropped to his knees. One Hydra agent pointed his in to his head "Put the gun down" Rumlow ordered looking at the news chopper "Not here. Not here!" They quickly packed the three of them into one of the vehicles and drove off.

"It was him. He looked right at me and he didn't even know me. Hell he didn't even know who he was" Shepard said solemnly.

"How's that even possible? It was like seventy years ago man" Sam asked.

"Zola. Bucky's whole unit was captured in '43, Zola experimented on 'em. Whatever he did, it helped Bucky survive the fall. They must have found him"

"None of that's your fault, Shepard" Natasha groaned out.

"Yes it is. If I hadn't refused to join the war it would've ended before Bucky was old enough to enlist. If he never enlisted then he never would've ended up as Hydra's tool. I am responsible for all of that. Especially because it's my fault those wars happened and that Hydra even existed"

"Don't blame yourself" she breathed out exhausted.

"We need to get a doctor here. We don't put pressure on that wound she's gonna bleed out here in the truck" Sam said to the guard who showed him his shock baton in response.

"That's the idea, Sam. They're gonna kill us when they get where they're going" Shepard said annoyed.

Suddenly that same guard shocked the other knocking him out. Taking off his helmet he was revealed as Maria Hill "That thing was squeezing my brain" she groaned looking a Sam "Who's this guy?"

Entering the secret facility a doctor came forward "GSW. She's lost at least a pint" Hill called to him.

"Maybe two" Sam put in.

"Let me take her!" he called back.

"She'll want to see him first" opening a door she walked them in to see Nick Fury lying in bed "About damn time" he said looking at them with a smirk.

"How are you doing old man?"

"You're not shocked?" Natasha asked annoyed.

"I just saw my friend from seventy years ago is still alive and found out Hydra still exists. This isn't nearly as surprising"

"Well according to the doctor I have a bad case of Lacerated spinal column, cracked sternum, shattered collarbone, perforated liver, and one hell of a headache"

"Let's not forget your collapsed lung"

"Oh, let's not forget that. Otherwise, I'm good"

Natasha was having her wound treated "They cut you open, your heart stopped"

"Tetrodotoxin B. Slows the pulse to one beat a minute. Banner developed it for stress. Didn't work so great for him, but we found a use for it"

"Why all the secrecy? Why not just tell us?" Shepard asked.

Any attempt on the director's life had to look successful" Hill explained.

"Can't kill you if you're already dead. Besides, I wasn't sure who to trust" Nick pulled a photo of Alexander Pierce up "This man declined the Nobel Peace Prize. He said 'Peace wasn't an achievement, it was a responsibility' See, its stuff like this that gives me trust issues"

"We have to stop the launch" Natasha said standing up.

"I don't think the Council's accepting my calls anymore" Fury said opening a case with three chips inside.

"What's that?" Sam asked.

"Once the Helicarriers reach three thousand feet, they'll triangulate with insight satellites becoming fully weaponized" Hill explained.

"We need to breach those carriers and replace their targeting blades with our own" Fury added.

"One or two won't cut it. We need to link all three carriers for this to work, because if even one of those ships remains operational a whole lot of people are gonna die" Hill continued.

"We have to assume everyone aboard those carriers is Hydra. We need to get past them, insert the server blades, and maybe, just maybe we can salvage what's left-" Fury began.

"We're not salvaging anything. We're not just taking down the carriers, Nick, we're taking down SHIELD" Shepard interjected.

"SHIELD had nothing to do with it"

"You gave me this mission, this is how it ends. SHIELD's been compromised, you've said so yourself. Hydra was right under your nose and nobody noticed"

"Why do you think we're meeting in this cave? I noticed"

"And how many paid the price before you did?"

"Look, I didn't know about Barnes"

"Even if you had, would you have told me? Or would you have compartmentalized that too? SHIELD, Hydra, it all goes"

"He's right" Natasha spoke up.

Fury looked at Hill who nodded in agreement then to Sam "Don't look at me. I do what he does, just slower"

"Well...Looks like you're giving the orders now, Commander" Fury relented.

Shepard nodded and left the room heading out towards the bridge.

"You know he wasn't talking just about you" Natasha said to Fury.

"I know, he blames himself for not seeing it. And more so for what happened to Barnes"

"Not just that. He blames himself for Hydra even existing"

Shepard looked out over the bridge at the water below thinking back during the war.

Why do you always go off so recklessly? You could've gotten yourself killed!

Bucky, I appreciate your concern. I only did it to save the villagers from the bombs, if I hadn't done anything they'd be dead now

That may be true but you had the whole team to back you up and you told us to just stay back

Which you didn't do

Of course we didn't you needed our help

I can take care of myself just fine, Bucky. I have been doing it long enough haven't I?

The thing is you don't have to. I am with to the end of the line

"He's gonna be there, you know?" Sam said interrupting his thoughts.

"I know"

"Look, whoever he used to be, the guy he is now, I don't think he's the kind you save. He's the kind you stop"

"I'd die a hundred times over before I could do that"

"Well, he might not give you a choice. He doesn't know you"

"He will. I practically raised him after his mother passed away. I didn't abandon him then and I won't now. Gear up, it's time"

"You gonna wear that?"

"No. If you're gonna fight a war, you gotta wear a uniform" he smirked.

"Excuse us" Shepard said with his gun pointed at the technician who opened the door as he, Sam, and Hill entered the room. Shepard took his helmet off placing it down next to the PA microphone "Time to got to work" he silently said to himself.

"Attention, all SHIELD agents. This is Commander Shepard. You've heard a lot about me over the last few days, some of you were even ordered to hunt me down. But I think it's time you know the truth. SHIELD is not what we thought it was, it's been taken over by Hydra. Alexander Pierce is their leader. The STRIKE and Insight crew are Hydra as well. I don't know how many more, but I know they're in the building. They could be standing right next to you. They almost have what they want: absolute control. They shot Nick Fury and it won't end there. If you launch those Helicarriers today, Hydra will be able to kill anyone that stands in their way, unless we stop them. I know I'm asking a lot, but the price of freedom is high, it always has been, and it's a price I'm willing to pay. And if I'm the only one, then so be it. But I'm willing to bet I'm not" he finished placing his helmet back on.

"Did you right that down first, or was that off the top of your head?" Sam asked smirking.

"Hey, Commander, how do we know the good guys from the bad guys?" Sam asked as they made their way to the carriers.

"If they're shooting at you, they're bad"

Sam flies off to one of the carriers as Shepard goes to another, arriving aboard they both were shot at by Hydra agents.

"Hey, Commander! I found those bad guys you were talking about" came through his ear piece.

"You okay?" Shepard asked hitting a Hydra agent in the throat and shoot three more with his rifle.

"Not dead yet"

"Eight minutes, Shepard" Hill notified.

"Working on it!" he answered back snapping the leg of another agent.

Shepard made his way into the carriers controls and placed the chip inside "Alpha locked"

"Falcon, where are you?" Hill asked.

"I had to take a detour! Oh, yeah! Bravo locked"

"Two down, one to go" Hill notified.

Shepard used his thrusters to fly over to the next carrier as Sam arrives next to him Bucky kicks Shepard off the carrier before grabbing his wing and tearing one off throwing him off the carrier. Sam used his parachute to land on the Triskelion roof "Shepard! You okay?"

Shepard's hanging from the side of the carrier "Yeah, I'm here! I'm still on the carrier"

"I'm grounded. The suit's down, sorry"

"Don't worry, I've got it" he said pulling himself up. Entering the control room he found Bucky standing in front of where he needed to go "People are gonna die, Buck. I can't let that happen"

Bucky stares coldly at him "Don't make me do this" Shepard said taking out his staff. Seeing Bucky not standing down he charged him. Shepard ducked under his metal arm swinging at his head he kicked him back hitting him with the staffs shield sending him on his back. Bucky recovered and charged him. Shepard ran at him flipping over him at the last moment he hits Bucky in the back with his staff knocking him down. Shepard presses the button to reveal the chips as he takes out the chip Bucky kicks it out of his hand.

Shepard hit him in the face then the ribs with the other end. Bucky grabs the staff and kicks him over the railing, he uses his metal arm to snap it in half. Following after Shepard he unsheathed a knife. blocking the knife he broke it with his arm as he got stabbed between his shoulder plates with a second knife as Bucky grabs the chip. Shepard backhands him takes the bloody knife out then grabs him by the throat slamming him into the ground.

"Drop it!" he yelled breaking his arm causing him to yell in pain "Drop it!" he repeated stabbing his metal arm with his sword and punching him in the face until he passed out. Grabbing the chip he climbed back up to the chip section. "Thirty seconds!" Hill yelled over the earpiece. Bucky regained consciousness and shot Shepard in the back between the shoulder plates dropping him to the ground in pain. He slowly stood up and placed the chip inside the system "Charlie locked"

"Get out of there, Commander" Hill said as the carriers started targeting each other.

"Fire now"

"But, Shepard-"

"Do it! Do it now!"

As the carriers opened fire on each other Bucky became trapped under a support beam.

Sam jumped from the Triskelion as the building came down towards the helicopter. Fury turned the chopper sideways so he wouldn't get killed in the blades. Sam crashed through the door as Natasha caught him "41st Floor!" he yelled at Fury.

"It's not like they put the floor numbers on the outside of the building!"

"Hill, where is Shepard?" Natasha asked worriedly.

Shepard helped Bucky out from under the beam "You know me" he says as Bucky stood up "No, I don't!" he yelled punching him.

"Bucky, you've known me your whole life" Bucky hits him again as he decides not to fight back.

"Your name is James Buchanan Barnes"

"Shut up!" he says hitting him again.

Shepard drops his sword through the glass "I'm not going to fight you. You're my friend"

Bucky tackles him to the ground screaming in anger "You're my mission!" he yelled as he mercilessly punched his helmet "You're my mission!"

"Then finish it"

Bucky hesitates with his next punch "Because I am with you to the end of the line" A look of recognition crosses his face just as the carries bottom falls sending Shepard down into the river as Bucky grabbed onto the carrier.

"Shepard's going under!" Fury yelled flying low towards the water "I'll get him!" Natasha yelled jumping into the water as she desperately searched for him. She came back up for air then went back under looking around still not finding him. Returning to the surface for air "I can't find him, Fury-" She stopped as she saw him lying on the shore with The Winter Soldier walking away from him. Rushing to the shore she tore his helmet off and started performing CPR "I found him Fury! Get EMT's down here!"

Shepard awoke in the hospital seeing Sam sitting next to his bed in a chair reading a book "On your left"

Sam turned surprised and smiled seeing he was awake "Glad to see you are up"

"What happened?"

"We won. SHIELD and Hydra are gone for the most part with stragglers here and there"

"How did I get here? I remember falling out of the carrier"

"Natasha's crazy ass jumped into the water to pull you out"

"Natasha save me then?"

"Not according to her, said you were on the shore when she found you with Barnes walking away from you"

"Bucky save me?" he asked with a grin on his face "I knew it. I knew he was still in there"

"You were right, I'm sorry for not believing in him"

"You didn't know him. I didn't expect you to"

"Thanks man" he said with a small smile.

"So where is Natasha now? or Fury and Hill?"

"Fury disappeared after we rushed you to the hospital and Hill is currently working for Stark at the Avengers Tower. Natasha just finished kicking ass at the her court hearing"

"Look who's awake" Tony said knocking on the door with flowers "I brought flowers, didn't know if you liked that sort of thing being old and all"

"Good to see you, Tony"

"You know Romanoff has been in here everyday and didn't leave until she had to go to the hearing"

"Really?"

"I was surprised myself. How come you didn't call me? Iron Man would've been glad to help"

"I didn't think you were making suits anymore"

"I still make a few now and again just in case I am needed. Officially I am retired from the hero business"

"You and me both pal. It doesn't seem to want to let me go"

"With Hydra resurfacing like it did, I suppose I will be back in the game for awhile just until the Avengers take them down" he said with a smirk.

"Is that an invitation?" Natasha asked entering the room.

"Romanoff, glad to see you're back. I could've helped you with my legal team like Hill you know"

"I know, that's why I didn't ask. I wanted to defend myself not hide behind a wall of lawyers"

"Well once Shepard recovers we will all be hunting Hydra together, I called Barton and Banner and they are on their way. I have set up floors for each of our lovely heroes"

"That's an offer I will take you up on" Shepard said smirking "I will need some of your resources to find Bucky afterward though"

"I will do my best. That just leaves you, miss Romanoff. Will you be joining us at the Avengers Tower for our quest to stop Hydra?"

"I'll think about it"

"Good enough, let me know by the time he is up and at 'em" he said walking out of the room.

"Stark!" She called him back in "Yes?"

"I have a favor to ask" she whispered something in his ear "I will do so with the utmost urgency!" Tony said with a crisp salute.

"I have to go...do something somewhere else" Sam said quickly exiting the room.

"That wasn't sly at all, Wilson!" Shepard called after him "I hear you jumped out of a helicopter to save me"

"It wasn't that big of a deal, we were just above the water"

"That's not how Sam tells it"

"He exaggerates, besides, Barnes is the one who saved you not me"

"Thank you"

"For what?"

"Trying"

"But I didn't save you. Why thank me?"

"It tells me you care" he said smirking.

"Whatever" she said smiling back with a shake of her head.

"So, you've experienced this sort of thing before?" Fury asked approaching Shepard and Sam standing in front of Nicholas Fury's grave.

"You get used to it"

"We've been data-mining Hydra's files. Looks like a lot of rats didn't go down with the ship. I'm heading to Europe tonight, wanted to ask if you'd come"

"Stark told me. I will be helping alongside the other Avengers"

"How about you, Wilson? I could use a man with your abilities"

"I'm more of a soldier than a spy"

"Alright then. Anybody asks for me, tell them they can find me right here" Fury says walking away.

"Thank you for the offer to help find Bucky. I may take you up on it someday. For now he needs some space to figure out who he is. I'll come for him when he's ready"

"Just let me know, Commander. I'll always be here to help" he said shaking his hand then turning to leave.

"You should be honored, that's about as close as he gets to saying thank you" Natasha smirked leaning against a nearby tree.

"Not going with him?"

"No"

"Not staying here?"

"Nah, I blew all my covers, I gotta figure out a new one"

"That might take awhile"

"I'm counting on it. That thing you asked for, I called in a few favors from Kiev" she hands him a file.

"You gonna join us in hunting Hydra?"

"Maybe...I haven't decided yet"

"I know I could really use my partners help" he said with a smile.

Natasha smiled faintly "Okay" she kissed him on the cheek "Be careful, Shepard. You might not want to pull on that thread" she said walking away. She stopped after a few steps and turned her head "See you at the Tower, partner" she said with a wink.

Hope you all liked it! Next chapter should be coming out soon