7

"Well, I feel better."

"I feel awful."

"Gentlemen. And lady. Good to see you again." Walker and his partner were getting their attention by using the siren of a nearby police car. "Look, if we divide ourselves, we don't stand a chance, you guys know that."

"So what do you got?" Sam asked him.

"Well the leader's name is Karli Morgenthau. We've been targeting civilians-"

"Whoa."

"-Civilians who've been helping Karli move from place to place."

"They geotagged a location, then scrambled the signal," Walker's partner explained. "But our satellites have found their symbol popping up in various displaced communities all across Central and Eastern Europe."

"Sorry, we haven't met. Carina Granado-Barnes."

"Lemar Hoskins." They shook hands.

"'Battlestar'," said Bucky.

"That's right."

"We think she's taking the medicine she just stole to one of these camps," Walker continued as they were finishing their introduction.

"Well there are hundreds of those all over the planet since The Blip, so I guess you'll have to look really hard," said Bucky.

"Good thing I have 20/20 vison, huh?" Walker returned with just as much attitude.

"Where is she now, Walker? Do you know?"

"No, we don't know, Bucky." His voice was rising.

"Hey, hey, easy," cut-in Carina. "Just answer the question."

"We don't, but it's only a matter of time before we find out."

"Things are really intense for you, aren't they, Walker?" Bucky continued.

"Take it easy," Sam stepped in. "Look, Walker's right, it's imperative that we find them and stop them. But you guys have rules of engagement and all kinds of authorizations you have to get. We're free agents, we're more flexible. So it wouldn't make sense for us to work with you."

"A word of advice then: stay the hell out of my way."

"Okay, but then you stay the hell out of ours," Carina returned and with that, both sides separated. "I really wanted to give him a chance," she admitted as they walked away, leaving the police station, and Cap and Battlestar, behind.

"So what are you thinking?" Sam asked Bucky.

"Whatever it is, I'm coming too," Carina announced.

"But-"

"No 'buts' James Buchanan Barnes. I've called the lab, arranged everything, it's all set. And, lucky for you I've been touching-up my new stealth suit, so I've got that. Come on, you can get me up to speed on the way."

"Well, I know what we have to do. When Isaiah said 'my people'-"

"Oh, don't take that to heart," said Sam. "That's not what he meant."

"No, he meant HYDRA, HYDRA used to be my people."

"Oh-" Sam scoffed. "Not a chance."

"Wait, you don't mean..." said Carina.

"I think he does." Sam winced.

"Oh, no, no. Absolutely not!"

"Walker doesn't have any leads," Bucky protested.

"I know where you're going with this and no," Sam tried.

"He knows all of HYDRA's secrets. Don't you remember Siberia?"

"All too well," sighed Carina.

"So you're just gonna go sit in a room with this guy?"

"Yes..."

"You'd be comfortable with that?" cried Carina. "'Cause I'm definitely not comfortable with that."

"I think he has answers that we need. I just want to talk to him."

Sam sighed. "Okay then. I can't believe it, but we're gonna go see Zemo."

"I can't believe we're doing this," Carina kept repeating.

"You and me both," agreed Sam.

It was back to Europe, back to Germany for them, including Carina this time, to the prison where Helmut Zemo was being held, and had been in since he had been captured in 2016.

Bucky insisted on going in alone to confront him. Carina was hesitant but he insisted.

"I'm going in alone."

"Why?"

"Cause you're both Avengers, and you know how he feels about that."

"You're an Avenger too," Carina was quick to say.

"Not to everyone."

"Well it's not like you two were known for frolickin' in the sun together," said Sam.

"He was obsessed with HYDRA, probably still is. We have a history together. Trust me, I got it."

His chat with Zemo didn't last long. Soon he was back, leading them via flashlight into a dark room.

"What are you talking about you wanna break Zemo out of jail?!" Sam cried, his voice echoing through the dark space. "Where the hell are we, Buck? Have you lost your mind?"

"We have no leads, no moves, nothing."

"What we have is one of the most dangerous men in the world behind bars."

"And we should keep it that way," Carina insisted.

"We also have eight super soldiers that are loose."

"Look, Zemo's gonna mess with our minds, especially yours. No offense."

"Offense." Finally Bucky managed to find the light and flick it on. Looked like they were in some garage or storage room. "Super soldiers go against everything he believes in."

"Well then that also means you," cried Carina.

"You make a good point. He's crazy but he still has a code."

"And I've been on the wrong side of that code Buck, and so have you," Sam reminded. "So has Carina! We all have! He blew up the UN, he killed King T'Chaka and framed you for it, just to name a few things. Did you forget that? You think the Wakandans forgot about it? It's a rhetorical question, they didn't. I know why this matters to you but it's pushing you off the deep end."

"Sam, we don't know how they're getting the serum. We don't even know how many of them there are. Look, let me just walk you through a hypothetical. Can I?"

"What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything. Now the weakest point in any system isn't the software, the hardware, it's the meatware. The human element. Now in this lockup, it's nine to one, prisoners to guards. And if two prisoners start fighting then the protocol says four guards have to respond."

"So why would two prisoners randomly start fighting at that moment?" asked Sam.

"Who knows? There could be many reasons."

"What did you do?" pressed Carina.

"Nothing! But the point is, these things escalate. Lockdown procedures would have to be initiated and with all those bodies flying around left and right, wouldn't be hard to slip down a hallway or two. And if the fire alarm got tripped while the prisoners were being separated, someone could use the chaos to their advantage."

"Jesus Buck, this had better just be a hypothetical," said Carina.

"That's what I said, isn't it? I'm giving you a hypothetical."

"Yeah I don't like how casual you're being about this, it's unnatural," agreed Sam. "Are you - where are we man?"

But Bucky didn't get the chance to respond, for they were joined then by someone else. At first they thought it was one of the prison guards, but it quickly became clear that that was just a front.

"Whoa. Whoa, whoa, whoa - hey!"

"Ay Dios mio-"

"Hey! What are you doing here?!" Sam yelled at Zemo.

Bucky held them back. "I didn't tell you 'cause I knew you wouldn't let this happen!"

"Damn right!"

"What did you do?!" cried Sam as Bucky tried to stop them from approaching Zemo.

"What the hell, Bucky?!" cried Carina.

"We need him-"

"Not that badly!"

"Yes, that badly!"

"You're going back to prison," said Sam, and by the way he said it, it sounded like he would march Zemo back there himself, and Carina didn't doubt it. Hell, she would join them!

"If I may-" Zemo tried.

"NO!" they all shouted at once. That shut him up.

"When Steve refused to sign the Sokovia Accords, you both backed him. You broke the law and you stuck your necks out for me," Bucky reminded them.

"Of course we did," she said.

"Now I'm asking you to do it again."

"I really think I'm invaluable," Zemo piped up.

"Shut up." Sam sighed in defeat. "Okay, but if we do this, you don't make a move without our permission."

"Fair," Zemo agreed.

Carina strode forward, approaching him.

"Ms. Granger," Zemo addressed her.

"Mrs. Granado-Barnes," she corrected.

"Mrs. Granado-Barnes. Ah, it sounds like a congratulations is in order-"

SMACK!

She struck him right across the face. "You know what that's for. And you most definitely deserve it."

He just rubbed his cheek.

"Okay Zemo," said Sam. "Where do we start?"

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed as always! :)