"This is why you were chosen. Because the strong man who has known power all his life may lose respect for that power, but a weak man knows the value of strength, and knows...compassion." - Dr. Abraham Erskine
JARVIS was chatting away in Steve's ear, but he was trying to ignore that. "Captain, you're body is not in any condition for a confrontation with a skilled opponent." He nagged. "You may have been able to lie to Sir, however, I am able to pick up your vitals through the network. This is a poor decision."
Steve was beginning to understand why Tony would get annoyed with JARVIS's mother-henning. Though it was well intentioned, he had to do this. He was surprised that he had managed to pull one over Tony though.
"What am I supposed to do then?" Steve muttered, because JARVIS was right. He felt no better now than he had before he had gone to fetch the Avengers from their cells. The asthma medication had helped alleviate his breathing problems a bit, but it wouldn't last for long. His best hope was to stall for a bit, and then end this quickly. Luckily, Coulson and his crew were on their way.
So, he just had to last a little longer and hide the way that his limbs were shaking from the strain.
The figure before him laughed, and Steve could see what Natasha had meant by being hard to miss. "So, we meet at last, Captain America." Some deep chuckles continued to break through. "I had been wondering why you had not been joining your fellow Avengers in battle, but the reason is all too clear." Though his mouth was shrouded, Steve could sense the smirk behind the mask. "You've become nothing more than a weakling."
Steve frowned at him, not letting any emotions creep into his expression. "Baron Helmut Zemo, I presume?" He halted his movements a decent distance away from the man.
That chuckle came again. "Indeed." Zemo gave a low bow. "It is an honor to meet you, Captain, though I must say that this is a bit…" Steve could feel the Baron's eyes moving over his small frame. "Underwhelming." He finished.
"I suppose so." Steve took in his adversary, noting the sword, gun, and the easy confident way that he moved. "I've heard you've got some problem with me?"
"Yes," the Baron began to move to try to circle Steve, but he knew better than to turn his back to this guy, "you see, my father was a member of HYDRA." He stopped and the soldier could feel the anger rising up. Zemo pointed an accusing finger at him. "And you killed him!" He spat out.
Steve blinked at him. That wasn't what he was expecting. "Uh, I don't know if you've noticed." He said at last. "But I've been out of commission for almost 70 years in the fight against HYDRA until recently. I'm not quite sure how I could have killed him."
"You killed him back during the war!" And Steve was seeing the madness within him, the insanity that seemed to have plagued the members of HYDRA and the Nazi Party that truly believed that their way was true and right. "You and your men destroyed the factory where he worked as a scientist!"
That was certainly a surprise. "If I did do that, then he should have known what he was getting into when he joined HYDRA." Steve admitted though he was a bit skeptical about what the Baron was saying. "It was war. Casualties are somewhat inevitable." He paused. "That was a long time ago though. Are you sure it wasn't your grandfather?"
"No!" Zemo shouted. "It was my father! And so what if it was war! You are responsible!"
Steve thought that he should probably act more shocked, but he had seen enough in this future that it wasn't worth getting worked up over. "Then, you'd have to be over 70 years old." He calmly said. "You're certainly…" What was that word Tony used when we met? "… spry." He finished.
"HA!" The Baron began to pace. "I joined HYDRA after it went underground and I was old enough, and I continued his work. Can you guess what that work was, supersoldier?" He sneered at him.
Steve's heart dropping had nothing to do with his condition. "The serum."
"Correct." Zemo declared. "And I ended up testing it on myself."
Distantly, Steve heard Bruce groaning, "That never ends well."
"It may not have granted me all that was given to you." Zemo gloated. "But it gave me longevity and increased my genius even more. Despite the cost, I have found it to be worth it."
"I'm sure you do." Steve replied, but this conversation sounded way too similar to one that he had had with the Red Skull all of those years ago. He somehow got a feeling that there was a reason that Zemo kept his face covered.
"I had hoped to test my strength against yours, making my revenge even sweeter. Conquering the supposed perfect subject for the serum would be an honor." At this, Zemo drew his sword, and Steve tensed, readying his shield. "However, destroying you will have to suffice."
Zemo launched himself at Steve. The soldier just barely managed to bring his shield up in time to meet the sword strike. The Baron followed up with a punch aimed at his face, but Steve managed to dodge it, the sword scraping along the shield as he got out of the way.
Before he could recover, the sword was coming at him again, but Steve managed to duck. Zemo was faster than Steve had expected, and he was obviously skilled in the blade. Everything faded out as Steve put all of his concentration parrying Zemo's blows. He tried to use the minimal amount of movement as strike after strike came.
It was getting more difficult as the minutes dragged on. Steve knew he couldn't last much longer as fatigue dragged at his arms and legs. He could also barely breathe and the lack of oxygen wasn't helping. He needed a plan, and he needed it now.
Keep calm and breathe. The words echoed in his mind even as he analyzed the Baron's moves and tried to stop them. Still, he could tell that the man was smiling as he was slowly beaten down bit by bit.
An idea sprouted in the back of his mind, but he would have to wait for the right moment to implement it.
All to soon, Steve found himself faltering, and his shield dropped just a tiny bit. Zemo took advantage of it and thrust the handle of his sword, surprisingly not the blade, into Steve's solar plexus. He gave a choking gasp and fell to his knees.
Keep calm and breathe.
"So this is what Captain America is reduced to?" Baron Zemo stepped back in order to gloat. "Pathetic." He sneered. The Baron began to pace again, but it was more like the prowl of a cat that had finally cornered his prey and knew that it was at his mercy.
"Then, again," he continued, "I guess this is what you always were." He drew his gun from its holster, taking a shot at Steve but he managed to roll away from it. The Baron didn't even notice that he took the opportunity to transfer the shield from his left arm into his right hand. "Everything about you came from the serum. Otherwise, you are just a weak, little brat."
"Maybe." Steve managed to breathe out.
"And I guess your friends will pay the price." Zemo said almost conversationally. "Once I'm done with you, I will dispatch them."
"You really think I didn't call back-up?" Steve shakily managed to pull himself up, so that he could more easily look at the Baron. "They'll be here soon. And even if I fall, Thor at least will have recovered enough to protect the others."
"Perhaps." His opponent tilted his head. "But that will not save you."
"I didn't come out here expecting to live." Steve said simply, and that was when he knew his moment had arrived.
Putting all of his weight into it, Steve threw his shield. It hit Zemo right in the head, though not with enough force to knock him out as Steve's throws usually did. Still, it stunned the man for a second as he jerked back, and both his gun and sword along with Steve's shield clattered to the floor. That second was all Steve needed.
Bang! The first shot managed to catch Zemo in the thigh, making him fall to his knees. Bang! The second bullet pierced the Baron's left shoulder. Bang! The third bullet clipped his right shoulder. Bang! The fourth bullet hit Zemo on his right leg, and the strain was finally too much as he collapsed on the ground.
Breathing hard, Steve brought down his gun. It wasn't the prettiest bullet pattern he had ever made, but it had got the job done. He stood on shaking legs and made his way over to the downed Baron, picking up his shield along the way. He gazed down at him.
Zemo gave a weak chuckle. "Surprising, Captain." He too was breathing a bit hard, probably to control the pain of having several bullet wounds. "Using a gun? I would have thought that those things would be too dirty for you to fight with."
"I'm from Brooklyn." Steve huffed out. "We don't have rules when it comes to fights. And I was in a war, you know."
"I see." Steve could sense the Baron's sneer. "Going to finish the job? Like the good soldier you are?" He nodded a bit towards the gun still clasped in Steve's hand.
Steve glanced down at it. "If I was a good soldier, I would've followed orders and I wouldn't be here." He said softly, and he looked into the Baron's eyes. With that he brought his shield down one last time, knocking Zemo out cold. "I may kill during war, but that doesn't make me a murderer." He whispered, though he couldn't be heard anymore.
It was over. Relief began to flood through Steve's veins, and he could barely expand his lungs and stay standing as the adrenaline rush faded. He could feel himself falling over, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He was so tired. And after all, he'd gotten the guy so the others were safe.
The world was beginning to fade around him.
Warm, strong arms caught him. Steve found himself looking into familiar brown eyes that were edged in panic. That wasn't good. Steve didn't want to make Tony upset, even with all of the fights they had had due to him going back to normal.
He thought that Tony was trying to tell him something, but he couldn't really hear him or the British voice sounding in his ear. It wasn't Peggy's voice, so Steve was confused as to who it could be.
Hands fumbled for something around his belt and he could feel smooth plastic being held to his lips. He breathed in, and realized that someone was giving him his inhaler's medication. It didn't hurt to breathe, so it was kind of weird.
The thought occurred to Steve that he might be dying. He remembered the last time he had thought that, and the words that he regretted not being able to say. Luckily, those brown eyes were still above him, even as everything else was fading into black.
Steve lifted his arm, and he thought it might be the hardest thing he had ever done because it was suddenly incredibly heavy. He placed his hand against the cheek of that familiar face, feeling the scratch of his goatee under his fingertips.
He managed to give him a small smile. "I love you, Tony."
Steve's hand dropped as his world swirled into darkness.
AN: Steve confessing his feelings here legitimately surprised me. Why? Because I had intended for Tony to admit his feelings before Steve fell unconscious. Once again, Steve manages to surprise everyone by breaking our expectations and doing even better than we hoped. Also, Steve may be Mr. Stoic from the 1940's, but I think he's a bit braver than Tony when it comes to speaking about what he believes. Like Clint said, Tony has issues when it comes to talking about things that matter. Again, feedback on the action sequence would be great. I am a bit proud of this ending for the chapter though, because after the adrenaline faded, Steve really would be in bad shape and that would definitely alter his perceptions and make them fuzzy. I think I pulled it off though.