"So. How long before Colonel Phillips finds out you weren't on that plane to London?
Reina looked over to Howard as the nurse finished drawing blood from her arm. She scoffed, shrugging her other shoulder.
"Knowing him…he already does." Reina grasped the cotton ball, pressing it to her arm as the nurse pulled the needle from her arm. She pulled it back, looking at the clean cotton. "This is too important to wait"
"No idea what they put in their serum?" Howard rounded the table, flipping through the papers.
"Not a clue. All I know is that there were no vita rays to activate this serum" Reina shook her head.
"What differences have you noticed mentally?" Howard asked, jotting down notes.
"Honestly? None. Mentally I don't feel any different. It's only physical wise" Reina tapped the exam table.
"You said you had enhanced hearing, and sight as well. And that your stamina was at an all-time high" Howard looked back to her again.
Reina nodded. "After I was able to sleep a few hours, I could march without growing tired or sore. Even when we hit the base I felt like I could keep going through the night" Reina looked down at her hands. "All my wounds healed within those few hours of sleep. All my aches and pains vanished".
Howard nodded, clapping her on the shoulder. "I'll start testing your blood. Compare it to Steve's. I'll crack it one way or another."
"Reina?"
Reina turned to the sound of her name being called, finding Steve standing in the doorway. He shifted awkwardly, gesturing her over. "Can we talk?"
Reina pushed off the table, rounding it as she walked up to him. She had to tilt her neck to look at him.
"Did something happen?" She asked.
"No, no. I was just um…" Steve stumbled over his words. For someone with his strength, it was nice to know he hadn't changed. "I told Colonel I was putting together a team. To fight Hydra"
Reina nodded. "Really? Who do you have on the team?"
"Well, no one yet. I'm heading to London to put the team together but I um…I wanted to ask if you'd join me?"
Reina nodded, crossing her arms. "Ah, so what? The colonel tell you to ask me to go to London?"
Confusion crossed his face, Reina slowly dropping her arms. "Wait, you're asking me to join your team?"
Steve nodded. "Well…yea. If you want to I mean. Bucky he, um, told me about what a soldier you were. I'd be honored to have you fight with us"
Reina stood stunned, her mind racing with thoughts. She shook her head, trying to clear them as she laughed slightly. She looked back up to Steve, nodding.
"Let's go wipe out Hydra…"
!
The next few months were a whirlwind of gunfire, explosions and victories. One by one the Howling Commandos knocked the Hydra bases down, leaving nothing but rubble in their wake.
Their next mission; capture Arnim Zola.
Reina sat on the flat stone, peering to Morita as he adjusted the Hydra radio box. Jones listened carefully, giving Morita signals as they tuned in. She glanced to Dugan looking out over the mountain, Dernier was beside him with both their guns drawn. On her other side, Falsworth was crouched on the ledge. He watched through the binoculars, trained on the tracks. Finally Reina looked forward to Steve and Bucky standing in front of her. Both were looking down the cable line to the tacks below.
"We were right, Dr. Zola's on the train" Jones broke the silence, everyone turning their heads to look at him. "Dispatcher gave him permission to open the throttle."
"They must need him bad" Reina stood, dusting off the snow as she walked alongside Jones.
Dernier handed her the T-Bar, passing another to Steve, Bucky and Jones. Falsworth looked up from the binoculars.
Let's get going, they're moving like the devil" He called to them.
"You've got about a 10 second window, miss that window and you're bugs on a windshield" Steve hooked his bar to the line, getting himself ready.
"Better get moving, bugs!" Dugan exclaimed, excitement written on his face.
Dernier held his hand up, holding it there for a few moments. He yelled, Steve pushing off the ledge as he rode the cable down towards the train. Dernier motioned, Bucky going next.
"Reina" He gestured.
She hooked the bar on the cable, pushing off as she swung down. She steadied her breathing, watching the train pass underneath her. She waited, releasing the bar as she landed on the top of the train. She kept low, looking back as Jones landed a few feet behind her. The four made their way farther up the train, Jones keeping his gun drawn. He looked around, gesturing them as Steve climbed down the side of the train and pulled the door open. He stepped inside, Bucky following after him. Reina grasped the rail, stepping down as she climbed into the train car and slid the door shut.
She looked around the empty car, glancing at the boxes stacked around her. She peered back to the other train cars, again empty. Steve and Bucky made their way forward, Reina following as she kept an eye behind them. She heard the car doors slid shut, locking and quickly looked over to Bucky as he banged on the window.
"Buck!" Reina drew her gun, taking cover as the soldiers came from behind them. Reina opened fire, ducking back behind the cargo as she looked across to Bucky. He fired, ducking down as he tried to unjam the rifle. Reina pulled out her handgun, whistling to him as she threw it across the floor to him. He gave her a smile, and a wink as the two opened fire again.
The soldiers dropped, Reina slowly peering from her cover. The door between them slid open, both whirling around with their guns drawn. Steve held his hands up.
"Whoa, whoa"
The two lowered their guns, standing. Reina looked past Steve, watching the soldier as his canons charged. "Steve-"
Steve turned, holding up his shield as the blast hit it. The force threw the three of them back, ripping a hole in the train's side as the wind whipped through the car. Reina was thrown against the rack of cases, grimacing then looked up as the soldier stalked towards her. Bucky stepped in his way, holding the shield up as he fired his gun at the soldier. The bullets did nothing, the canon firing as it hit the shield and sent Bucky flying back. Reina gasped, watching him as he hung from a metal bar.
"Bucky!" She screamed, scrambling to her feet. She heard the shield bounce off the soldier, Steve running past her as he grasped the rail.
"Hold on, we've got you!" He yelled. Reina moved to the edge of the car, readying to grab hold of Steve. "Bucky, grab my hand!"
Reina heard the metal groan, the screws ripping from the wall.
"NO!"
Reina watched as Bucky plummeted down towards the river, his screams echoing. Reina stood frozen, watching the river.
"Bucky…" She whispered. "BUCKY!"