Hey everybody hope you all enjoyed the last chapter! This is a long one. Gonna try and deliver another one you'll love, this will have some centering on a certain Romanogers couple so I hope you all are ready! Anyhow, with that said, I don't own Marvel, its characters or intellectual properties, I do this for fun. Here is…
Chapter Thirty-one
Soft light beat on her eyelids and a warm gentle breeze kissed her skin. She turned her head to the side and slowly blinked her eyes open as everything was still out of focus. Her memory seemed just as cloudy, unable to recall who or where she was. She could tell she was lying in bed, but nothing else. As she focused more to wake up, she heard a radio. She sat up fully and looked at it clearly, her vision now restored. It looked like an ordinary radio, it boasted nice woodworked craftsmanship and quality sound. A sportscaster was calling out the current baseball game between the Dodgers and the Braves, painting a picture with his heated words. As she looked around, she saw that the room looked an awful lot like a hospital room, and outside looked and sounded like Brooklyn, New York. Her memory came back to her then in a rush, forcing her to put a hand to her head.
My name is... Natasha Romanoff... I'm Captain America. Last thing I remember was fighting the Red Skull on his bomber and having to crash it into the icy waters of the arctic. Nat thought to herself as she looked around some more, taking note of herself and seeing she was dressed in an SSR shirt and tan khakis. How did I get here? And who dressed me like this? Before the lady of liberty could think further on everything the door to exit the room opened, and a tall well built man with brown hair and eyes walked in. He was dressed in a U.S. Army dress uniform, and as he turned to face Natasha after closing the door he flashed her a friendly smile. "Good morning, Captain." He said in a pleasant tone, then looked down to his watch and said, "Or should I say, good afternoon." Cap looked at the man in front of her, and cocked her head slightly to the radio as the sportscaster called out an amazing play.
"Where am I?" Nat asked, gauging the man's reaction to her question. "You're in a recovery room, in New York." The man replied, still maintaining the friendly manner. The radio got loud as the crowd went wild over the game, causing Cap to stare at it hard before looking back at the man. "Where am I really?" She asked, and the other occupant in the room shifted his stance slightly and bore a confused look on his face as he answered. "I'm not sure I understand." Nat glared at the radio once more before looking back at the man and said, "The game, it's from May nineteen forty one. I know because I was there." She got up from the bed quickly and took a step towards the man and said in a stern tone. "Now I'm gonna ask you again. Where am I?" The man retreated a step back, pushing a button on a device in his pocket as he replied. "Captain Romanoff…"
Seconds later two armed men in black uniforms entered the room, and Natasha's look hardened. Not giving them any time to react, Captain America moved forward, planting her elbow in the first guard's stomach. Moving with fluid motion she slammed her head into the second guard's face. As the two men recoiled from the pain she hauled them both up from the floor by the front of their uniforms and threw them through the wall. Natasha stepped through the whole, seeing an elaborate set, her expression growing dark as she began to run. She heard the man at first call out to her and briefly began to sound the alarm. As she ran, people walking through the hallway parted before her to avoid getting trampled on. A few tried to stop her only to get shoved aside and nearly ten feet away. Cap blew through the glass door as if it wasn't even there, continuing on to busy streets. Cars of unseen and strange design honked at her and people cursed at her from their windows as she ran. As Natasha picked up speed, at first thinking they were just part of where she escaped.
Until Nat saw a restaurant she recognized, and the alley behind it. As she stopped and looked around, she could tell now that she was in New York, Brooklyn to be precise. It was almost unrecognizable to her now with many of the updated buildings, with billboards and electronic signs here and there. Several black trucks seemed to encircle Nat, and she tensed herself for a fight. "At ease, soldier." A commanding voice said to her, drawing her attention to a vehicle behind her. A tall black man in a long dark leather trench coat and an eye patch came towards her and said. "Look I'm sorry for that little show back there, but we thought it best to break it to you slowly." Captain America said in a huff, growing frustrated with the charades. "Break what?" The man with the patch looked down a moment and said after a sigh of sadness. "You've been asleep, Cap. For seventy years." This hit Nat harder than she ever thought possible, and it suddenly felt as if the serum had left her body and she was plagued by asthma again.
The man put a hand on her shoulder and asked, "You gonna be ok?" Nat drew in a breath, looking around again before turning back to him, her eyes shined slightly with unshed tears. "Yeah. Yeah, I just … had a date." The man with the patch looked sympathetic as he said, "My name is Fury. I'm the director of Shield. I know you have a lot of questions, and I promise we will do our best to help you and answer them. The government has issued you an apartment and a stipend for your services rendered in World War Two. We will take you there now and let you get some rest. We can begin reacquainting you with the world tomorrow." As they walked to one of the trucks, Natasha spoke then, "With all due respect, Director Fury. I want to go somewhere I'm comfortable first, if you don't mind." Fury nodded, "Not at all. Um, I'm not sure where you'd feel comfortable around here. Any suggestions?"
Cap shook her head yes and said, "There's a diner about a block or two back down there. It hasn't changed a bit. That's where we're going." They spent hours there, Nat ordering several plates of food over time, savoring every one before starting to ask questions. Eventually the time came for the diner to close, forcing them to drive to the apartment made for Nat. After giving her a tour, Fury told her that he would be in touch, but to feel free to reach out to him if there was anything she needed in meantime. He handed her a card embossed with the Shield logo and a telephone number, and eventually left Natasha alone in the apartment. The super soldier wandered around the place, trying to appreciate it for what it was worth. She could find no joy in it though, as the thoughts of everyone she had left behind caused her to finally break down and cry the silent tears she had been holding back.
Natasha sank to her knees in the spacious kitchen as thoughts of her best friend, Jaime "Bucky" Barnes falling to her death from the Hydra train played over and over again in Nat's memories, quiet sobs wracking her body. She thought of Matthew Carter. The handsome British intelligence agent who believed in her before and after her transformation into a super soldier. She fell in love with him, but knowing what she knew now made losing him even more painful. It would have been slightly tolerable to have been woken up a few years after being frozen, but with it being seventy years after meant that there was no way to know if he was even alive. No way to be friends, and no way to explore what could have been. Natasha felt so out of place, out of time that she wished she had never been thawed. She cried until she could no longer shed tears, and her body no longer heaved from winded sobs.
Her shoulders shook slightly as she reached up and took hold of the edge of the table and pulled herself up. Nat plopped down into one of the chairs, her eyes still stinging slightly from her tears. After several deep breaths, she began to calm herself. Bucky would kick my ass right now for how I'm putting myself down. I gotta pull myself together here. Dr. Eirkshien wouldn't have given me the serum if all I was going to do when things got hard was sit down and cry. Natasha wiped her eyes and got up from the table and moved to the bathroom. After taking a shower, she rummaged through the drawers of the dresser and pulled out several items of clothes.
Holding up a small piece to her hips, she realized that was meant to be her underwear. This is what constitutes as undergarments? How the hell do women in this century wear these? Nat thought to herself, pulling up the underwear till it fit properly. She stared at herself in the mirror and admired how she looked. The feel might take some getting used to, but I gotta admit they look better than what I used to wear. Natasha climbed into bed and pulled the covers around her, trying not to dwell on the past and fall asleep, but she found herself counting up to over a hundred sheep before she finally dozed off.
Six months later…
Natasha was in Harvy's gym, putting in the work on a heavy punching bag. Her fist were thudding against it in slow, precise strikes as she tried to exercise and keep her mind off of her past. As she did, memories came to the forefront of her mind despite her best efforts. Each punch sounded like explosions in her ears, gunfire began to ring to a deafening level. Seeing herself in her Captain America uniform, killing Hydra soldiers and fighting against Red Skull. She hears herself say there wasn't enough time, that she had to crash the Hydra bomber into the water. Nat saw Matt and heard his voice, telling her she wouldn't be alone. Each punch got harder and harder, no finesse behind them, just brute strength. Eventually the hundred pound bag was punched clean off the chain and split open, flying over a dozen feet away. Sand spilled everywhere, and Natasha rolled her eyes and groaned, sweat pouring off her like running water. I hate it when that happens. The super soldier picked up another bag in one hand and hung it up and resumed her attack on it.
Just as a punch landed in the bag, causing an instant dent a few inches deep, a voice called out to her. "Trouble sleeping?" The super soldier looked at Director Fury through a few of the loose strands of her red hair before punching the bag again. "I slept for seventy years, sir. I think I've had my fill." She punched the bag extra hard then. A small split forming around her fist. Fury came closer and said in a lighthearted tone, "Then you should be out, celebrating, seeing the world." Nat begins to unwrap the hand wraps from her hands and walks towards one of the benches and replies, "I went under, the world was it war, I wake up they say we won. They didn't say what we lost." Fury comes closer, looking at the floor for a moment before he said. "We've made some mistakes along the way. Some very recently." The super soldier looked up at the Shield Director and asked, "You here with a mission, sir?" He nodded, "I am." This caused a chuckle from Natasha. "Trying to get me back in the world?" Fury produced a folder he had been holding behind his back as he said, "Trying to save it."
Four hours later, Cap was sitting in a Quinjet, heading to a Shield base. She looked over the files Fury handed her, before reaching out and picking up the tablet next to her. She marveled at the technology, still amazed that the mostly transparent device could display excellent and almost lifelike video quality. The pilot called out then, "We're about forty minutes out from base, sir." Phillis Coulson nodded before moving back to talk to Natasha as she booted up the tablet. She watched a video come on of a dark haired woman in a white lab coat and scrubs transformed into a eight foot tall giant. Her skin grew a grayish green as did her hair and eyes, and her muscles looked like they put an Olympic bodybuilder to shame. With a roar she tore apart the laboratory she was in, and anyone and anything that got in her way. The super soldier blew out a breath as she asked. "So this Dr. Walters was trying to replicate the serum that was used on me?" Coulson nodded her head before she replied.
"A lot of people were. You were the world's first superhero. Walters thought that gamma radiation might hold the key to unlocking Eirskine's original formula." Another roar from Walters in her She-Hulk form drew their attention back to the video as she threw a jeep into the air, almost hitting a helicopter. Nat shook her head before she asked. "Didn't work out too well for her, did it?" Coulson nodded and reached over, and with a flick of her hand changed the video to a video of Dr. Jennifer Walters holding a lecture at Culver university. She said then, "Not so much. When she's not that thing though, the girl is like a Stephen Hawking." Unfamiliar with the name, the super soldier raised an eyebrow in confusion. "He's a really smart person." Coulson explained, then unable to contain her exuberance any more she said. "I gotta say it's an honor to finally meet you, officially."
Natasha smiled at that, knowing she was bound to start running into situations like this where her legends preceded her and did her best to remain humble. The Shield agent continued then, "I sort of met you, I mean I watched you while you were sleeping." Nat shifted a little and shut down the tablet before climbing to her feet. Realizing what she had said came out as stalkerish Coulson tried to recover. "I mean, I was... I was present, while you were unconscious from the ice. You know it's really… really just an honor to have you on board." The super soldier looked out the cockpit, a serious expression in her face. "Well I just hope I'm the right soldier for the job." Coulson turns to face Nat as she said in a reassuring tone. "Oh, you are. Absolutely. Uh… we made some modifications to the uniform. I had a little design input." The super soldier raised an eyebrow in curiosity as she asked. "The uniform? Aren't the stars and stripes a little… old fashioned?" The Shield agent nodded as she said. "With everything that's happened, the things that are about to come into light, people might just need a little old fashioned."
On the Helicarrier, Steve Rogers was waiting in the radar tower for the Quinjet carrying Captain America. Wonder if Coulson's asked her to be besties yet. She was practically jumping for joy when they pulled her idol out of the ice. The Black Tarantula thought to himself. He knew why Fury was recruiting the super soldier, her exploits during the second world war were so legendary they made comic books of them that still saw purchase into today. Her strength and keen intellect, as well as her charisma and compassion made her the clear choice to be the leader of their upcoming team. This is going to take some cracker jack timing. We've got to get everyone working as one before Loki can enact whatever he has planned or we can kiss this world goodbye. The Quinjet showed up on the radar and the operators and comms people communicated with the pilot and gave him clearance to land. Steve left the radar tower and made his way to the flight deck to greet it's passengers.
Once the Quinjet had landed and the boarding ramp lowered, Captain America and Agent Coulson stepped down. Steve watched the women approach, keeping his face an impassive mask. Coulson reached out and took Steve's outstretched hand on friendly greeting and stepped aside and began introductions. "Agent Rogers, Captain Romanoff." The super soldier stood at attention as she said to the super spy. "Sir." Rogers nodded in polite recognition before he turned back to the Shield agent. "They need you on the bridge. They're starting the face-trace." She nodded as replied. "See you there." Coulson walked away briskly, leaving the two of them to fall into step with each other. Steve smiled to himself, before saying, "It was quite the buzz around here, finding you in the ice. Did she get you to sign them yet?" Seeing Natasha's raised eyebrow he continued, "Her Captain America trading cards." Her mouth hung open a second before finding her voice. "Trading cards?" Nat managed to ask. Steve nodded, "They're vintage. She's very proud."
As some of the workers on the deck were milling about, Dr. Jennifer Walters was trying her best to avoid getting in their way. "Dr. Walters!" Natasha called out in order to get her attention. She turned and pushed her glasses up her nose a bit in a nervous habit and smiled as she got closer to them. "Oh yeah. Hi. They told me you'd be coming." The two shook hands, with Nat giving a warm smile as she said, "Word is you can find the cube." Jennifer looks down slightly and said in a slightly meek tone. "Is that the only word about me?" To which Natasha replied simply. "Only word I care about." This seemed to put the scientist at ease, with her looking around broadly before she asked. "So, this must all be pretty strange to you?" The super soldier shrugged slightly as she answered, "Actually, this is all kind of familiar." Steve comes up to them and draws their attention. "Ladies, you might want to step inside in a minute. It's going to get a little hard to breath."
Curious, Natasha steps closer to the edge of the carrier and looks down. "Is this a submarine? " Jen came closer as well as she said in astonishment. " Really? They wanted me in a submerged, pressurized metal container?" Once the two of them saw the massive propellers break out of the water and felt the Helicarrier begin to rise out of the ocean the scientist then let out a laugh in disbelief. "Oh no. This is much worse." With that, the three of them went inside to the bridge. They set up Dr. Walters down in the lab and alerted anyone with spectrometers across the world to start searching for any amount of gamma radiation. It was at this point, the super spy came over to Natasha. "We have an excellent training room here, full of equipment designed for someone of your capabilities." Steve said in a well meaning tone, watching her every reaction, beginning to profile her. The super soldier smiled politely as she replied. "I've been keeping in shape, don't worry about that. If we get the call that they found the cube I want to be able to go at a moment's notice."
"That's understandable, however you haven't seen action in quite a long time, perhaps some sparring would be in order to make sure you are up to speed." The Black Tarantula said evenly, keeping his tone friendly but fully aware the wording was designed to draw out a reaction. Natasha didn't take the bait, though if she chose to do so or didn't recognize it for what it was Steve was still unsure to tell. "I assure you, when the time comes, I'll be alright. It's nice to see some things haven't changed." The super soldier said as she leaned back against the wall, a smirk on her lips. Curious, the super spy asked. "What do you mean by that?" Nat said with a chuckle soon afterwards, "It's nice to see a big, strong man come to the defense of a small, frail lady. Especially ones they like. It's nice to see chivalry isn't dead." The whole room suppressed the urge to laugh, knowing full well they would face the wrath of the Black Tarantula if they did.
"Well, we wouldn't you falling down and breaking a hip in the middle of battle now, would we? We'd know for sure just how much geriatric care you'd need if you exercised a bit. Suit yourself though." Steve said dismissively with a wave of his hand and turned to walk away. Nat came off the wall then and fell into step with him, looking at him in a side glance. "So, I have a question for you. You really want this old woman to hand your ass to you in front of all these people? Cause I have no problem doing that, sonny boy." The super spy smiled and looked at her quickly and continued walking. "Perhaps once this thing is all over we can test that out. If one of us gets hurt before the mission has a chance to get off the ground he'll make us wish we killed each other. And that's not a cop out, it's the truth, understand?" Natasha smiled as she said, "Oh I believe you, I just hope you know what you're walking into." Before Steve could reply, Coulson ran up to them, a grim look on her face as she said, "It's time. We have a positive I.D. on Loki." The two enhanced individuals nodded. " This way, your uniform awaits." Steve said as he led the way down the hall.
Two years after the battle of New York
Natasha was sitting in her favorite coffee shop. A honey glazed chocolate donut in one hand, a copy of The Daily Bugle in the other and a cup of coffee on the table. After taking a bite she read the article on the front page. Massive cleanup still underway. Should the Avengers be held accountable? Natasha shook her head, taking another bite of her donut as she read through the article. I know that most of the buildings probably didn't have coverage for the damage that happened, but it's not like we wanted what happened to happen. If they hold us accountable, who will be there next time if something bad happens? The super soldier thought to herself and threw the paper down on the table in disgust, knocking over her coffee by accident. A waitress came over to clean it up and the two women fussed over who would clean it up. This was decided as Nat's watch beeped in a steady alarm.
She looked down at it and hit the top button, stopping the beeping. It was five in the morning, causing the super soldier to frown as she realized that she would be behind for her run in thirty minutes if she didn't leave now. Natasha paid her tab and left, hailing a cab to take her to her destination. After paying her fair, the lady of liberty tightened her laces on her running shoes and began her run around the Reflecting Pools and the Washington Monument. Midway through her exercise, the super soldier saw another runner on the path. Must have arrived when I was back at the monument. As she drew closer, she could see it was African American man in a grey sweater and khaki shorts. He was a little taller than average, with a short haircut and broad shoulders. Nat came up on him quickly, and politely said to him as she zipped past him. "On your left." As she made her way past him, the lady of liberty didn't want to be full of herself, but she swore she could feel his eyes on her. Specifically her ass.
Natasha shook it off, and continued to run, quickly making her way around the pools and the Washington Monument. She sped back down the length of the Reflecting Pools, and around the bend of it. Once again she came upon the man from earlier, and this time she decided to look as she ran past. "On your left." She said politely as she ran past, and gave a quick glance at her fellow runner. His sweater had Army embroided on it, and his face, though mildly sweaty and in a mask of concentration was handsome. His eyes shifted down as Nat passed, confirming her suspicion from earlier. As the super soldier had passed him and made her comment he had replied. "On my left. Got it, thank you." As she ran back down the Reflecting Pools towards the Washington Monument, she smiled at this, realizing that her passing him was beginning to annoy him.
Hmm, he wants a look at my posterior while I run fine, I'll just keep putting a stick in his craw then. The super soldier thought to herself with a chuckle. Sure enough Natasha had caught back up to him, and he heard the pounding of her footfalls as she came up. He seemed to stiffen as she approached, to which his disposition got worse as the lady of liberty called out, "On your left!" Hearing his frustrated growl caused a ghost of a smile to form on her lips, and as she made her way around again Natasha saw him look back at her as she began to close the distance between them. "Don't you do it. Don't you do it! Don't say it!" Nat pushed harder then and blew past him as she said defiantly. "On your left!" To which her fellow runner yelled back in response. "Come on, man!" She could tell he struggled to keep going after that before finally having to stop. After her run, Natasha came up to a tree the man was sitting under, holding an ice pack on his left knee. His sweater is stained with sweat and his breathing is heavy.
She smiles and asks playfully, "Need a medic?" He turns to her and manages a laugh as he does his best to answer. "I need a new set of lungs. Dude you just ran thirteen miles in thirty minutes." With a laugh she replied. "I got a late start." The man raised an eyebrow in surprise as he said incredulously. "Oh, really? You should be ashamed of yourself. You should take another lap." A moment of awkward silence falls between them before the man says, "Did you just take it? I assume you just took it." Natasha simply smiles as she asks, "What unit are you with?" "Fifty eighth, pararescue. But now I'm working down at the VA." He held his hand out, to which the super soldier took hold of it and helped pull him to his feet. "Sam Wilson." He said, with a charming smile. "Natasha Romanoff." Nat said back, offering a smile back. "Yeah I kind of put that together. Must of freaked you out coming home after the whole defrosting thing." Sam said, not trying to be rude but continuing to have a conversation.
The lady of liberty smiled lightly as she replied. "It takes some getting used to. It's good to meet you, Sam." As she turned to leave, Sam called out to her. "It's your bed, right?" Taken back by this question, Nat turned back around and asked, "What's that?" To which the former pararescue began to explain. "Your bed, it's too soft. When I was over there, I'd sleep on the ground and use rock for a pillow, like a caveman. Now I'm home, lying in my bed, and it's like…" "Lying in a marshmallow. Feel like I'm going to sink to the floor." Natasha says, earning a smile and a nod from Sam. She asks then. "How long?" With a slight shrug he replied, "Two tours." There was another moment of awkward silence between them until he said. "You must miss the good old days, huh?" This caused her to laugh and half roll her eyes as she replied. "Well, things aren't so bad. Food's better, we used to boil everything. No polio is good. Internet, so helpful. Been reading that a lot trying to catch up."
This caused Sam to look up to think and raise a finger. "Marvin Gaye, 1972, "Trouble Man" soundtrack. Everything you missed jammed into one album." Nat nodded and took out a small notebook. "I'll put it on the list." She said before writing it down on the last line of the page, having checked off Star Wars, Star Trek, I love Lucy, Rocky II, and several other pop cultural icons. Her phone buzzed as it got a text, drawing the super soldier's attention. Mission alert. Extraction imminent. Meet at the curb. :) Reading the message drew a smile to Natasha's lips. "Alright, Sam, duty calls. Thanks for the run. If that's what you wanna call running." As they shake hands Sam lets out a pained laugh as he asks next, "Oh, that's how it is?" To which the lady of liberty said back, "Oh, that's how it is." Sam laughed a bit before he said. "Okay. Any time you wanna stop by the VA and make me look awesome in front of the girl at the front desk, just let me know." With a nod Nat replied. "I'll keep that in mind."
As her new found friend was about to respond, a sleek black Corvette Stingray pulls up to the curb, the window rolls down quickly to reveal Steve is behind the wheel. "Hey, kids. Either one of you know where the Smithsonian is? I'm here to pick up a fossil." The super spy said with a sly smile. Natasha rolled her eyes as she opened the passenger door to get in. "That's hilarious." Sam looks at the Corvette appreciatively and gives a low whistle. "That's a sweet ride. That got the LT1 in there? What's that give you, 400 hoursepower?" Steve smiled and answered back. "460. This thing flies." Natasha could tell that this could easily end up as a gear head conversation and decided to change the subject. "Well, can't run everywhere." To which Sam nodded and smiled. "No, you can't." The super spy shifted gears and peeled out, leaving a smoking tire trail as the Stingray sped away.
Hours later, they were in a Quinjet over the Indian Ocean as Rogers detailed the mission for Cap, Rumlow and the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. After the brief, as they were putting their two way radios in their ears, Steve turned to Natasha and asked. "So, did you do anything fun this weekend?" To which the First Avenger said with a slight smile. "Well, all the gals from the USSO group are dead, so no, not really." Steve sighed before he said, "Your know, if you asked Kevin out from statistics he'd probably say yes." Nat finished securing her ear piece as she headed to the rear opening of the jet. "That's why I don't ask." This caused the Black Tarantula to quiply ask, "Too shy or too scared?" Captain America smiled brightly before yelling back. "Too busy!" Then promptly leapt out of the Quinjet to dive down the twenty-seven thousand feet to dark ocean waters to pencil dive through them and began to make her way to the captive S.H.I.E.L.D. ship.
One week after the rescue mission on the Lumerian Star.
Natasha left Alexander Pierce's office in a foul mood, aggrivated by the fact the Secretary of the World Security Council made a veiled accusation that she har anything to do with Fury's death. As the First Avenger walked down the hall back to the elevator, she caught sight of Agent 13, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who had been assigned to watch her at her apartment. Aaron Carter slowed his walk a bit and looked as if he was about to say something, but Cap blew him off as she walked briskly past him and said. "Neighbor." Nat entered the elevator and used the voice command to go to Operations control, and as it closed, Brock Rumlow shot his hand through, causing the sensors in the elevator to respond and open the door. He stepped in with two other S.T.R.I.K.E. agents. "Keep all S.T.R.I.K.E personnel on site." He commanded and after the other two agents responded he looked up at the ceiling out of habit and used the voice command to go to Forensics.
After Nat and Rumlow greeted each other Rumlow then asked, "Evidence Response found some fibers on the roof they want us to see. Want me to get a tac-team ready?" Still off put by what happened in Pierce's office Natasha mentally shrugged this off and said, "No, let's wait and see what they come up with first." Rumlow nodded his head in response. "Right." Movement to her right caused the lady of liberty to look at one of the agents, who's hand has shifted to rest on his weapon. His finger was eerily close to the trigger of the rifle, but before she could ponder this further, the elevator stopped again and more S.H.I.E.L.D. and S.T.R.I.K.E agents boarded, asking to go to administration. One of the bigger agents brushed past her and excused himself as he went past. Brock turned to face Natasha again and said. "I'm sorry about what happened with Fury. Messed up, what happened to him." The super soldier could hear from the tone of S.T.R.I.K.E agent's voice and the look in his puppy dog brown eyes that he truly meant what he said.
"Thank you." Nat said, and while what Rumlow said was genuine something still felt off. With another look around at the agents in the elevator, the First Avenger saw that one of them was sweating. This was curious because the temperature of the elevator was a cool 66 degrees, even with the number of occupants. And once the already cramped elevator stopped again to let more passengers on, Natasha began to realize she was completely surrounded. She looked down at the floor a moment and sighed inwardly. Then she said as she looked up, a fiery glare in her emerald eyes as she asked. "Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?" A second passed before an agent whirled around with a stun baton and attempted to strike her with it, only to feel Nat's fist crash upon his face and demolish his nose in a crunch of bone and spray of blood. The larger agents grabbed her, struggling with all their might to hold her. She lashed out with her legs, taking down two more agents with well placed shots to the head.
They managed to pull her shield off her back and slap a magnetic cuff to her wrist, desperately trying to pull her arm to the metal frame of the elevator. Before a second could be placed on Nat's other wrist she kicked it away, then elbowed the agents holding her by the neck and throwing him over her shoulder. With a hard right hook she sent the other large agent flying into the glass wall of the elevator, cracking it and the camera, and as Jasper Sitwell watched it he nervously called for more S.T.R.I.K.E units to mobilize to the 25th floor. Rumlow kicked Nat's hand that had the cuff on it, and as it flew back from the force of the blow, the magnetic energy pulled her back to trap her to the frame of the elevator. Captain America fought even harder and more viciously now, having only three limbs to work with. She caught a S.T.R.I.K.E agent by the throat with one hand, slammed her head into his and flung him away. The lady of liberty rammed her fist into the stomach of the next agent, then hammered him in the side of his head with her elbow.
Nat swept Brock's legs out from under her and as the S.T.R.I.K.E leader was getting up to recover, Nat pulled with all her might to free herself. As she did, she somersaulted to her feet and squared off to face Brock as he was picking up a second stun baton. Seeing her stance and knowing everything that Captain America could do, Rumlow held his hands up and open enough as he could around the batons. In a hurried breath he said " Whoa, there. Easy, little sister." There was a moments pause as they each readied themselves for what came next. Rumlow said then, "I just want you to know Cap, this isn't personal!" In a flurry Brock struck multiple times, doing his best to try and hit Natasha with the weapons. Most of the strikes were deflected away, her speed making the First Avenger to seem like a blur. One of the batons managed to make contact, sending a surge of tortuous electrical shocks through her left hip.
Several more attacks and Rumlow managed to catch Nat with an elbow and slam both stun batons on her back. She screamed and swung with a backhanded strike, putting a hole in the metal wall as Rumlow had managed to dodge it just in time. Brock managed to slam one of the stun batons onto Cap's shoulder and was going to do the same to the other, but the super soldier caught his wrist before she could get close. The S.T.R.I.K.E leader's toned muscular arms bulged to their limit and he tried to maintain the pressure he was exerting, but the First Avengers strength proved to far outstrip him in no time. Natasha grabbed Brock's wrist that held the weapon that was shocking her and forced it away from her shoulder. Cap then head butted Rumlow and threw him bodily up into the ceiling, taking a few deep breaths as she stared at Runlow's unconscious form. "It kind of feels personal." Captain America said in a huff, kicking her shield up into her waiting hand and cutting off the electro cuff off her wrist.
After making her escape from the Triskelion building, Natasha went back to the hospital that Fury had died in to recover the flash drive. Panic surged through her as the First Avenger stared at empty space the flash drive had occupied. In the reflection of the glass Nat caught sight of Steve behind her, a large bubble of gum from his lips. When it popped she experienced a momentary loss of her composure and grabbed the shoulders. She shoved him into an empty room and effortlessly lifted the super spy from the floor as she hissed in a low tone. "Where is it?" To which Steve, with a look that said he was unimpressed or afraid of what was happening said. "Safe." With a shake that bounced him against the wall Natasha said in a near growl. "Do better!" Not wanting to be handled in such a manner, the super spy began to flex and stretch his arms outwards. Cap could feel her grip on him breaking, and while she could try and regain some ground on it the First Avenger knew it would draw all kinds of attention if the Black Tarantula and Captain America started fighting in a hospital.
Nat let him go, and after a moment Steve asked, "Where did you get it?" Romanoff looked at him with a raised eyebrow in puzzlement before firing back forcefully. "Why should I tell you?" The super spy raised an eyebrow of his own as he asked, "Fury gave it to you. Why?" Still heated Nat asked with an aggravated tone, "What's on it?" As Rogers said he didn't know this only furthered those feelings as she got closer to him and grabbed the front of his hoodie. "Stop lying!" The super soldier said in a forceful tone, growing louder than necessary to keep a low profile. The Black Tarantula narrowed his eyes as he said harshly, "I only act like I know everything, Romanoff." Tilting her head to one side as if she expected this kind of answer Nat then said. "I bet you knew Fury hired the pirates, didn't you?" Steve shrugged slightly as he replied. "Well it makes sense. The ship was dirty, Fury needed a way in, now so do you." In a low and threatening tone, Natasha said. "I'm not going to ask you again." Unfazed by this, Steve looked her straight in her dazzling green eyes and said,
"I know who killed Fury. Most of the intelligence community doesn't she exists, but the ones who do call her the Winter Soldier. She's credited with over two dozen assassinations over the last fifty years." Sighing slightly Nat said, "So she's a ghost story." Steve continued his story, "Five years ago I was escorting a nuclear engineer out of Iran,somebody shot out my tires near Odessa. We lost control, went straight over a cliff, I pulled us out but the Winter Soldier was there. I was covering my Engineer, so she shot him, straight through me." Steve pulled up his shirt, showing a sizable scar in his abdomen. "Bye-bye going around shirtless." With flick of her eyes at the quick exposure, Natasha looked back into his baby blues and said. "Yeah I bet you look terrible shirtless now." The super spy smiled wryly before he said in a flat tone. "Going after her is a dead end. I know, I've tried." Natasha's attention is brought to Steve's hand as he holds up the flash drive. "Like you said, she's a ghost story." She heard him say in a hushed tone. Cap took the drive from him and replied, "Well let's go see what the ghost wants."
And that everyone is Chapter thirty-one! I hoped you all enjoyed this one, it's a different take on Romanogers that someone asked me to explore because of how I made Black Tarantula and Captain America with the roles reversed. This shout out goes to Nisafreen, who asked if I could showcase the relationship between them. I will be doing more, and also keep up with all the characters we know and love! Hope you all enjoy the story and let me know what you think!