Present day
Munich- Germany
It didn't take her long to find them, even without her tech leading the way she realised she could have just followed the noise. Loud crashes and gunshots thundered across the open landscape. There was even the tell tale thud of helicopter blades. Which had thrown her at first until she saw the shield and blue covered figure leap from the side. Bucky was going to love that. Said ex-Assassin was currently pinned on his back at the edge of the closest lorry. Cece lifted her gun and sent off a volley of bullets. Each one skimmed past the pair's bodies as they struggled with the other. She thought of herself as a half decent marksman but between the slight rocking of the bike and her wrestling target none for her shots landed. Until one clipped Bucky's metal arm. He didn't look impressed.
"Would you stop shooting at me!"
"Would you stop moving!" She yelled back.
Pulling back the trigger she cursed to find the chamber empty. She pushed the bike closer and in a moment of madness, or genius depending on who you asked, she started to stand up. One foot pressed into the centre of the handles keeping it steady as the other balanced on top of the seat. She pulled back her arm and launched the gun with as much force as possible. It slammed directly into the face of Bucky's opponent, it wasn't enough to throw him off but it worked as a good distraction. In their moment of confusion Bucky slammed his elbow into the side of their head. Their body slumped and fell down beside him.
Before Bucky could make a comment about her actions, Cece let out a startled yell. The second lorry had slowed and swung its trailer into the bike. Her entire body shook at the impact. Acting fast she jumped upwards latching into the roof of the second lorry just as the bike toppled. She grimaced as the green vehicle was pulled under the truck's wheels and crushed with relative ease. But she didn't have time to think about how easily that could have been her. Her eyes bouncing between the super soldiers, her companions and the shield wielding pair. How on earth was she going to help this situation?
A hand shot out to hit her but she slipped under it with ease. A soft hum escaped her pursed lips. They might have been super soldiers but they clearly didn't have the same level of training as Bucky. And he hadn't managed to kill her yet. As long as her opponent didn't get a direct hit she would be fine. Armed with this new information she leapt into action. She curled both hands around an outreached arm, preventing its owner from reaching Sam, before shifting her weight down. The Falcon had been about to call out a warning to her but before he had managed to get it out she had flipped the masked soldier effortlessly.
Rolling out of the move she stayed low and shared a quick grin with an impressed looking Sam. Knowing she was capable of holding her own he turned his attention to the soldier currently charging towards him. Cece couldn't stop to watch Sam twist off the lorry and take flight, as a second masked figure was heading her way. Planting both hands on the roof of the truck she swung her body out to the side and then up. Her feet caught the red haired woman under the chin. It wasn't enough to throw her off the roof but it did force her back.
Although there it wasn't something to celebrate, this supercharged woman seemed more capable than the last. Planting a foot down in the metal, the material bending under the pressure, she stopped herself from sliding back to far. Then with a burst of speed Cece had not expected, the red head pushed forward with a flurry of punches aimed for Cece's torso. Twisting and ducking Cece managed to stay out of reach of the powerful blows. Knowing full well that one well placed hit could mean the end. When an opening finally came Cece sent a swift kick out but she wasn't quick enough. Monstrously strong fingers clamped down around her calf. There was a slight lull in the fight before Cece was spun and launched off the lorry.
She hadn't even had time to scream before the air was completely knocked out of her. Slamming shoulder first into the roof of a passing car, which swerved frantically trying to right itself after the sudden impact. The movement dislodged her and soon she found herself rolling over the side and tumbling across the tarmac. Never in her life had she thought she would be grateful for a car hitting her.
Once she had managed to rip the battered helmet from her head, she gulped in as much air as she could. Trying not to cringe as her entire left side throbbed. Groaning lowly, Cece moved to stand up. It took her three attempts to get to her feet but she got there in the end. The lorries had continued to speed on after she was thrown off. A long list of curse words decorated her breath as she pushed her legs forward, forcing them to move. She had been about to whine inwardly about being left behind when she spotted two familiar figures tumbling through the field to her right. Cece held her side in an attempt to ease the pain. Another torrent of soft curse words escaped her lips as she stumbled towards the fallen pair. She stopped by their feet and watched them argue like children. Sam had clearly had enough as he shoved the Bucky off of him.
"Fancy meeting you here," she greeted them cheerily.
She offered a hand out to Bucky, who just stared up at her. He didn't bother taking it as he pushed himself to his feet. Cece knew he was still annoyed at her for following them, she wondered how long his tantrum would last. She left her hand out and smiled encouragingly down at Sam, who accepted it politely with a quick, "Thanks."
"Wow, a thank you!" She gasped theatrically. "see that old man, manners."
Sam looked between the pair before asking, "So how do you two know each other? You're clearly not a civilian."
"Oh we go way back," Cece replied with a wave of her hand.
"Way back," He parroted. Sam seemed to take a moment or two to process her words. He lifted a brow as his lips quirked upward, "So you're friends?"
Bucky spat out a quick, "No."
"Besties," Cece chimed at the same time. Earning a chuckle from Sam and glare from Bucky.
Sam's eyes lingered on her hand, which she still had wrapped around her waist. "You alright? That was a nasty fall."
"You saw that, did you? Not my finest moment I'll admit, but I'm fine it's just a bru," Cece let out a sharp hiss as a knuckle dug into her left side.
Bucky rolled his eyes as she swatted his hand away. He didn't need to say anything as he held Cece's gaze. Eyebrows raised and lips drawn into a thin line. It was clear that he didn't believe it was only a bruise. He could already see a slight purple hue to the skin on her neck. He had known she shouldn't have joined them, though he had been surprised how long she had held up against the woman in the lorry. Not that he would admit that out loud to her.
February 2016
Bucharest- Romania
She was angry, no that didn't cover it. She was livid, mortified and humiliated. She paced the dingy one bedroom flat. Her repetitive strides wearing down the chipped lino. Turning the post it covered notebook over in her hand she barratted herself for being so stupid. Argus had picked up his presence in Vienna long before any of the news outlets had named him as the prime suspect to the bombing. She could have stopped him if she had taken the scan seriously. The question was did he get from Romania to Austria, kill multiple people and return within the hour.
She looked up from the book when the balcony door opened. Captain America. Now she hadn't expected that. There he was decked out in his Stars and Stripes. She had grown up stories of his heroic escapades. Given the current circumstances though she didn't appreciate his arrival as much as she should have. She placed the notebook on the counter as she walked toward the hero.
"I thought you'd be taller," Cece quipped as she moved past him.
"Ma'am you shouldn't be here."
She didn't reply. Her eyes had already moved from the superhero to the man standing in the centre of the room. He must have snuck in while they were talking. Marching forward she pulled a small handgun from under her jacket and pressed it firmly against his chest, he didn't even flinch at the sudden pressure. Her fingers had started to turn white at the tips and the veins in her hands pulsed as she clenched the gun.
"Cece, kid, it wasn't me," Bucky started in a low whisper, his eyes focused on the figure behind her.
She pushed the gun further into his chest and growled back, "Don't lie to me! Argus IDed you! What I don't get is how you got back. Two flags, Vienna and here, nothing in between. That isn't possible."
She hadn't been able to hide the slight tremble in her voice. She had never doubted her programming before. She had doubted so many things in her life but never her computer skills. They were her fall back, her best asset. She had learnt how to program and how to infiltrate the most advanced systems before she was a teenager. Her father had taught her everything he knew and she trusted those skills blindly. Or she did. Argus couldn't have been wrong. Bucky had set that bomb, it was the only possibility.
"Ma'am you need to put the gun down, German special forces are on their way and they've been ordered to eliminate all possible threats," eased a smooth voice from behind her. She had almost forgotten Captain America was in the room.
She smiled dryly up at him, "I know."
"What did you do?" Bucky let out a sigh. His shoulders tensed as he finally moved his eyes to her.
"Don't worry I was just leaving, you should take a look at that notebook, it's a riveting read," she continued before leaving the pair alone in the flat.
Cece didn't bother to stick around to hear their conversation. Her mind couldn't deal with any more information. Hovering in the hallway she took a moment to gather herself. Her palms were clammy from holding the gun and the tears she had been holding back threatened to fall. She had been so sure that Bucky had stopped, he had truly convinced her that he had changed. If he had been dragged back into the darkness what was there to stop her being pulled back in.
Heavy footsteps echoed up the stairwell, she had loitered in the hall for too long. A hollow laugh escaped her lips as she pushed away from the door. The special forces team had already started their assault. Spinning on the balls of her feet, Cece shifted down the hallway. By the time the armed officers had reached the top of the staircase, she had manoeuvred herself in front of the door at the opposite end of the corridor.
Cece forced a shrill cry out as she spotted the first officer stepping onto the landing. He did a double take before sending the next officer towards her. She pressed her back up door and threw her hands melodramatically into the air. Keys, which she knew wouldn't work for the door, tumbled to the ground and the soldier making his way toward her sighed. He mumbled something about civilians under his breath in German, not realising she could hear and understand him. He hadn't gotten that far when all hell broke loose.
Gunshots rang out from the apartment. Loud bangs followed by a series of shattering windows. The sudden onslaught of noise forced those in the hall into action. Their first target was to open the door, which Cece could only assume had been wedged shut by something. Three heavily armed men worked in tandem to try and ram the wooden door open. When more yells called out, Cece noted that none of them belonged to Bucky, the soldier closest to the door fired four shots. Blasting the hinges of the wall completely. A beat passed as they prepared to rush the room but before they could silver arm crashed through the wall.
Moments later the door was launched through the hallway with such ferocity that it knocked three officers to the floor and a fourth down the stairs. The man who had been making his way toward Cece froze. He had jumped round in time to see his colleagues fall. When he raised his weapon Cece noticed the violent shake of the gun. Before Bucky had stepped out from behind the mess he had created, Cece lifted her gun and slammed the handle into the base of the man's head. His body crumbled instantly. She didn't have time to do anything else, as the skylight above the stairwell shattered.
After the briefest glance at Cece, just to check that she wasn't injured, Bucky sprung into action. A collection of gunshots and groans followed in his wake as he leapt over the banister. Morbid curiosity pulled Cece forward to lean over the railing to watch the events but the sound of rushed German over the crackle of a radio stopped her. One hand still on the railing, Her leg kicked out slamming into the man's face and snapping his head backwards into the wall. The radio tumbled from his hand as he slumped down to the floor. A boot crushed the radio underfoot. Captain America's boot to be exact. He gave her a small nod of thanks before bounding down the stairs after his friend.
It was only as the carnage lulled and things settled that it finally hit her. She had just met and talked to Captain America! And her choice of words were 'I thought you'd be taller' pulling her hands down her face she let out a mortified groan. Never meet your heroes.
Present day
Munich- Germany
"What's going on in that big cyborg brain of yours?" Sam asked in jest at their silent companion.
Cece twisted just out of Bucky's reach before letting out a teasing snigger, "It's computing."
A chuckle passed Sam's lips as he peered around Bucky to reply, "You know what? I can actually see it. I can see the gears turning. Oh, they're malfunctioning, shutting down. Yep, they're on fire."
The pair broke out in giddy laughter. During their teasing they had fallen back slightly to walk beside each other. Their shoulders rocking with their laughs and oversized grins spread wide across their faces. Cece did her best to hide the fact the pain shot through her side with each chuckle. Bucky still saw it though. He glanced over when he the heard a low hiss that accompanied her laughter. It was then that he noticed just how close the pair had gotten. Cece's arm had snaked its way through The crook of Sam's elbow. It was a carefully hidden attempt to ease the weight she was putting on her left side. If Sam had realised what she was up to he didn't call her out on it. For people who had just meet they looked awfully cozy, Bucky's brows furrowed further at the thought.
"We gotta figure out where the serum's coming from," Bucky finally bit out.
Sam nodded back, agreeing with the ex-assassin for the first time that day. He didn't get a chance to share his answer with the man though as a car horn pulled the group's attention to the vehicle crawling along behind them. In the back of the army jeep sat the newly instated Captain America and his buddy from the helicopter. Cece felt her lip curl in distaste as he greeted them all cheerfully from the car. . Glancing between Sam and Bucky she wasn't surprised that neither of them looked frilled at the new arrival. Captain America wasn't just a name to them, he had been their friend. Even with Bucky's rare moments of honesty she would never truly understand it. She was essentially just a Steve Rogers fangirl and she couldn't bring herself to warm up to this imposter
Sam at least tried to be civil as the car continued to move next to them. He listened and supplied answers when needed, albeit the smiles and playful tone had quickly vanished. Bucky wasn't even trying to hide his displeasure. If he spoke it came out as an accusation and his eyes burnt holes into the shield by Walker's feet. Cece unhooked her arm from Sam's and she moved closer to Bucky. Nudging her shoulder into his lightly to try and divert his attention, she positioned herself between the truck and Bucky. Trying to buffer his glare.
It didn't work.
The men continued to go back and forth in an icy exchange. Things seemed promising when they briefly discussed the super soldiers but Bucky soon brought the tone back down. He spat a snide remark about jumping on a grenade with which Walker tried to answer. Though the man soon gave up when he noticed Bucky couldn't care less about his reply.
With a sigh the captain tried one more time, "Look, it's 20 miles to the airport. You guys need a ride. Guys. Gary, stop. Get in." The group finally gave in and clambered aboard the vehicle. "Okay, so we've got eight Super Soldiers on a bulk supply run. Why?"
"They say their mission is to get things back to the way it was during The Blip," Sam replied.
Cece couldn't stop herself as her words tumbled from her mouth, "Maybe they're just trying to help."
The men in the truck sent a frown her way as if they truly couldn't understand her words. "They had a funny way of showing it. That serum doesn't exactly have a great track record. No offense," Walker added the last bit quickly after sharing a look with his partner.
"We need to figure out where they're going. How'd you track 'em here?" Sam asked.
The second mad laughed at the question, "The Flag Smashers? Uh, no, we didn't track them, we tracked you, uh, through Redwing."
"You hacked my tech?"
"Sorry. It's not exactly hacking. It's government property. Kind of the government," The man chuckled until he realised just how pissed their hitchhikers were. He glanced at Bucky before adding, "Does he always just stare like that?"
Sam bit out through gritted teeth, "You get used to it."
"Okay, look," Walker raised his hands and cleared his throat. Trying desperately to regain control of the situation. "You know, things have gotten kind of, uh... chaotic. Yeah. The GRC, they're doing the best they can to get things up and running smoothly, post Blip."
"Doing their best?" Cece muttered bitterly, though Sam seemed to be the only one to react to her comment. He made a mental note to ask her about it later. Her words had held too much venom for them to be a passing quip.
"Reactivating citizenship, social security, healthcare. Basically just managing resources for the refugees who were displaced by the return. The Global Repatriation Council does all that," Walker continued.
"I get that. So why exactly are you two here?" Sam asked, unable to keep the frustration out of his voice.
It was Walker's partner who answered, "Well, they provide the resources and we keep things stable. violent revolutionaries aren't usually good for anyone's cause."
"Usually said by the people with the resources," Cece scoffed.
Walker frowned at her again before replying, "We got a lot of resources. If you guys, if you joined up with us, we could…"
"No," Bucky snapped.
Knowing that Bucky wouldn't even entertain the idea of working together Sam changed the subject. As it turned out Walker's partner had been graced with an avenger worthy call sign. Battlestar. Cece had wanted to ask if she could have a nickname as well but the look of disgust that washed over Bucky's face as the name left his mouth made her stop. Maybe now wasn't the time for silly jokes. With a loud bark Bucky ordered the car to stop. He had practically leapt from the car as it slowed, while Sam and Cece waited for it to come to a complete stop. Cece had jumped from enough moving vehicles for one day.
She held back her surprise as Bucky extended his hand upward to her. Even without using his metal arm he was strong enough to lift her from the back of the truck without causing any more pain to her side. Clearly he had gotten over his earlier tantrum now that he had found new targets for his animosity. Neither of them stayed to listen to the false captain's words, and when Sam came marching after them Cece realised that had probably been a good call. Pulling her screen up on her wrist she groaned, 17 long miles until the airport. Great.
I can't believe it is already over! Loved Episode 6, Sam's new suit is fab. What did everyone else think?
Thanks for the review FluffyDarcy-x-x-x I'm glad you are enjoying it! TheMadTeaPartyCompany, Thank you for the complement! Thank you for the Review Browneyes!
Thanks for the favs and follows: DragonsAreForever, Nturfitt, bloodshadow, Kayleeh ,honeyblosson, BellaMeShipper, WaterPhoenixRules
Tell me what you think, good or bad I love hearing what people have to say xx