In pure, "bad guy's evil hideout" fashion, the old vet clinic that Vision located was situated on the less-than-pleasant side of town. It was on the outskirts of the west side of the city, close to the Medway River. If there was any guessing of whether or not Garrett was holed up there, it became a pretty definitive "yes" when Natasha realized how close to the river it was. That seemed to be a calling card of sorts of Garrett's. He'd tried to kidnap Wanda via river, he'd crashed a helicopter in one, and now this. Apparently the guy had some obsession with being close to bodies of water. She didn't have time to do any sort of psych evaluation to figure out why. Not that she cared. Her goal was to get Steve and put Garrett behind the thickest bars they could find.
Vision and Sam had scouted ahead and found that the place was, indeed, heavily guarded. They reported at least half a dozen armed guards posted around the perimeter with the promise of more inside. Vision was able to identify a centralized location that the power seemed to be running to. It was definitely a cause for concern. They would need to focus their attention there. If Garrett was building some type of weapon, they would definitely want to make sure they disarmed it before things got too loud inside the building. There was no way of telling what it was, though. Not until they were in the room with it. Natasha would need Vision to go in with her. If there was some kind of complicated tech in there, he would be the best bet at figuring it out.
Sam and Wanda would handle the guards outside and clear a path for Natasha and Vision to make their way into the building. This would be a tall order. They needed to apprehend Garrett and all his goons. There would be no getting away this time. Of course, finding Steve was Natasha's priority number one, but she would be sure to bag as many mercs as she could on her way. She has a lot of aggression that needed taking out.
They ditched their vehicle a mile out and decided to go the rest of the way on foot. Vision took to the skies once more, given his ability to fly a lot more quietly than Sam. As always, they kept in contact via the small devices nestled in their ears. Natasha had to admit, it was nice to have the band back together again. She just wished it wasn't for this reason. Any positive feelings brought about by the reunion were easily and heavily outweighed by the worry she harbored over Steve. She would've been content never suiting up again a day in her life if it meant never having to feel this kind of fear again.
"Two guards are stationed on the building's south side." Vision informed them. "Three on the north end, and two between the east and west sides."
"I'll go in loud to the south side," Sam said. "Wanda, you clear the front while the attention's on me."
Wanda nodded her understanding. A bit of red light swirled in her eyes and around her fingers. Natasha remembered the last time she'd seen Wanda use her powers and hoped that they wouldn't see a repeat tonight. If there was some kind of bomb or weapon inside the building, the last thing they needed was to shake the place around. Perhaps keeping Wanda near the north side was their way of preventing that. If she realized that, the woman made no sign of it. She seemed fine with her role in all this. That was good. They didn't have time for doubt.
As the building came into view, Vision descended quietly in line with Natasha and the others, just as Sam threw his thrusters into high gear and zoomed into the air. He left a stream of fire and smoke in his wake as he shot over towards the other end of the building, turning heads and raising alarms as he went. The guards at the front of the building had little time to react to Sam's presence. Wanda, Natasha and Vision jogged into view, and Wanda lifted them into the air in a current of red energy. She pulled two the left and one to the right, opening a path for Natasha and Vision to make their way through the front doors.
Vision went first, turning translucent as he phased through the closed doors. There were some pops of gunfire inside, and then the doors opened, revealing some broken chains swinging from the inner handles. Natasha pulled her batons and ran into the building. What used to be a check-in area was situated in the center of the main lobby, with hallways running off to the left and right sides. The sound of heavy footsteps could be heard approaching from either end.
"You go left; I'll take right." Natasha told Vision. "No one gets away."
She attached her batons together to create one, long, electrically-charged staff and jogged to meet her opponents head on. The dim overhead lighting did little to improve visibility, but Natasha found she sorely missed them when the power suddenly cut out, and she was left in darkness. She switched the electricity on her staff, putting out some blue light of crackling energy. Nat could see some of the guards were wearing night vision goggles, suggesting the power outage was no coincidence. Garrett must have assumed there would be some kind of search for Steve and subsequent attack. These guys were armed to the gills and ready for a fight. Good. So was Natasha.
"Hey, fellas." She said as she came to a stop in front of them. "Mind telling me where the little girls' room is?"
That signature half-smirk formed on her face just as she lifted her staff and knocked aside the barrel of the first gun that was pointed at her. The shots fired off to the right of her head. They were loud and made her ears ring, but it was a hell of a lot better than a slug to the brain. Nat flipped the staff around, bringing the lower end up and connecting it with the bottom of the first guy's chin. His protective helmet wasn't doing much protecting in that area. The impact had his head snapping backward and a spray of blood leaving his mouth. He staggered back a couple of steps into the guard behind him. Natasha ran forward, planted one end of her staff into the ground, and pole vaulted herself into him, driving both of her booted feet into his chest and sending him and the guy behind him to the ground.
She used his leg as leverage to launch herself up into the air once more and felt the satisfying crunch of bone beneath her feet as she jumped. Natasha moved to the right, planting one boot against the wall and pushing off of it to deliver her opposite knee into the face mask of a third guard. As he staggered back, she dropped low to the ground, her staff positioned horizontally across the tops of her shoulders. She planted one knee into the floor and spun, whipping the staff out and connecting it with the backs of the guy's legs. As he fell, Natasha pressed one palm against the floor and pushed herself up into a one-handed handstand. Then, she flipped over and brought one foot down hard against the side of the guard's helmet, cracking it and knocking him out cold.
Instinct had her snapping her head to the side, just in time to see one of the guards she'd knocked over previously stand up and pull a handgun. Natasha leaped backwards and pressed her back to the wall as he fired off two shots that narrowly missed her. While she was on the defensive, the other guard popped out from behind the one with the gun and rushed her. He tackled into Natasha's side, knocking her to the ground. The side of her head bounced off the unforgiving floor, making her see stars for a second. She recovered quickly, though, rolling onto her back and grabbing her staff that had scattered to her left side. She brought it up in front of her just as the guard was sending a fist down at her face. Natasha blocked the shot, but the guard was thrifty. He pulled a knife with his left hand and dug it into Nat's side. Her protective vest took most of the blade, but she felt some of that steel bite into her ribcage.
Growling, Natasha unscrewed her staff, separating it back into two batons. She charged up the left and delivered an anger-fueled strike across the side of the guy's face. He was sent rolling off of her and twitching from the voltage coursing through his body. Natasha dropped her other baton long enough to pull the knife from her side and fling it at the remaining guard. It stuck into the meaty flesh of his thigh, bringing him down to one knee. Screwing her batons back together, Natasha used her staff to push herself back to a stand. She stalked over to the kneeling guard, a predatory fire in her green gaze.
"Where's your boss?" She asked, eerily calm.
"Go to hell!" The man shot back.
Natasha sighed, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. "You know," she said as she detached her batons once more and placed them at her back, "just once, it would be nice to be able to have a civil conversation with you guys."
She stepped a little closer and placed the toe of her boot on top of the handle of the knife sticking out of his leg. "Once more," she said as she applied pressure to the knife. "Where's Garrett?"
The guard yelled in pain, clutching at his leg. "He's with your boy toy!" He exclaimed.
Natasha perked a brow and lifted her boot from the knife. "Where?" She asked, canting her head to the side.
The guy just lifted one arm and pointed in the direction behind Natasha, his eyes still down at the knife in his thigh. Natasha looked behind her, then back down to the guard. She crouched down in front of him and, without warning, swiftly pulled the knife from his leg, earning another yell of pain from him. She flipped the knife over and pushed the blunt end of the handle up against the bottom of the guard's chin, lifting his gaze to meet hers. There was anger and deadly intent in her eyes, wound like a coiled serpent ready to strike.
"He better be okay," she warned him. "For all your sakes."
Natasha dropped the knife to the ground and delivered a hard fist to the guard's face, knocking him out. Wheezing quietly, she pushed herself to a stand. She pressed one hand to her side and found some blood on her fingers when she pulled it away. Clenching them into a fist, she turned and headed in the direction the guard had pointed her.
There were several doors in the hallway. Natasha opened each one to find nothing but empty rooms. That bastard better not have been lying, she thought as she advanced down the hall. She was running out of rooms to check. The hallway turned right and brought her to one more unopened door. As Natasha wrapped her fingers around the handle, movement overhead caught her attention. Out of a vacant ceiling tile descended a familiar, leather-clad figure. Lady Dust plopped down on the ground behind Natasha, grabbing a fistful of blonde hair and driving Natasha's head against the small window on the door. The glass splintered, and so did the skin on her forehead.
Before Dust could strike again, Natasha planted her boot against the door and pushed backwards with all her strength, sending both herself and Dust toppling to the ground. Natasha rolled off of her and caught her in an arm bar, pressing the back of her thigh down against Dust's throat while she yanked back on her arm. There was a loud, satisfying pop!, followed by Dust's pained scream. Natasha released her arm, lifted her leg, and booted Dust across the face.
Then, someone was lifting her to her feet.
Garrett wrapped his metallic fingers around the back of Natasha's vest and launched her forward. She went flying through the air and through the doorway of the room that had, just seconds ago, been closed. She skidded several feet across the floor before coming to a stop, face-down. Pain in her side and her head had her a bit slow to push herself up. She looked over her shoulder to see Dust rising to her feet out in the hallway. Once she was up, she started to stalk forward.
"I'm going to kill this bitch!" She exclaimed.
Garrett placed a hand on Dust's shoulder, stopping her in her tracks. "No," he said. "He's going to do that for us."
It was then that Natasha realized Garrett wasn't looking at her. He was looking past her, Natasha realized. At something behind her. Confused, Natasha turned her head and followed Garrett's gaze. She saw metal and wires and some strange devices that would explain all of the power siphoning coming to this building. Then, as her eyes traveled up, she saw Steve. He was unconscious and shirtless; bound, upright, to a metal table.
"Steve!" She exclaimed as she pushed herself to a stand. She wheeled around to face Garrett and Dust, still standing outside of the room. "What did you do to him?!" She demanded.
Garrett's scarred face twisted up into a garish smile. "You're about to find out," he said.
He reached forward, grabbed the handle, and closed the door. Natasha could hear the sound of groaning metal just outside the door as Garrett undoubtedly locked her inside. She didn't run to check. Instead, she turned and ran over to Steve.
"Steve…" She said as she began to unfasten his restraints. He didn't respond. "Come on, Rogers. Wake up…"
She removed the wires from his chest and the strange, wire mesh that had been positioned on his head. As she freed him from his last restraint, his body slumped forward. Natasha grunted as she caught him, trying to support his dead weight. "Steve!" She tried again. "Wake… up!"
Suddenly, Steve's body went rigid. Natasha could hear a sharp gasp of air inflate his lungs. He opened his eyes, fingers coming to wrap tightly around her shoulders. He straightened his arms, holding her at arm's length and looking into her eyes. She fought to maintain control of her emotions, but there was a tightness in her throat and a stinging sensation behind her green hues.
"Steve…" She said cautiously. "It's okay. We're getting out of here."
Still, Steve said nothing. He just stared at her in a way that, Natasha suddenly realized, was eerily familiar. It was a look she'd seen before. Not in Steve, but in his best friend, Bucky Barnes.
"Shit…" she breathed. "Steve… what did they do to you?"
Steve didn't respond. Instead, he lifted Natasha into the air and hurled her into a wall.
She hit her back hard, the wind forcing its way out of her lungs. Natasha fell to the floor coughing, but she had little time to catch her breath. Steve was advancing on her with quick, heavy boot steps. Natasha held out a hand toward him, signaling him to stop.
"Steve!" She exclaimed, throwing her head back to look up at him. "This isn't you! You have to fight it!"
The only thing he seemed interested in fighting, unfortunately, was Natasha. He grabbed her by the front of her vest and hoisted her up to her feet and then some. He held her, dangling in the air, with one hand and reared his other fist back, gearing up for a punch. Natasha was quick to kick him in the gut first. Her feet connected with his solar plexus, knocking the air out of him and forcing him to release her as he staggered a few steps backwards. Natasha lifted one arm and fired a Widow's Bite dart at him.
I'm sorry, Steve. She thought as the electrode hit him in the chest.
Steve grabbed it, tore it off of him, and threw it to the ground like it was a fly. Then, he was in front of Natasha, throwing punches and forearms in heavy, devastating blows. She dodged them for the most part, deflected what she had to, and retaliated when she could. She needed to get him unconscious and then… figure out some way to get him out of here. She had no idea what Garrett had done to him, but if it was anything like the doozy that had been done on Bucky's brain, it was going to take more than just a swift knock to the head to undo it. Maybe Vision could help.
Steve lifted a knee aimed for Nat's stomach. She deflected it with criss-crossed palms and then immediately drove her right elbow across his face. His head snapped to the side, and blood erupted from a split on his lip, but it didn't stop him. He was emotionless and numb, seemingly unable to even feel pain. He was less man and more weapon. Exactly what Garrett wanted him to be. Steve swung a clothesline at Natasha, but she ducked underneath of it and skirted a few paces away to put some distance between the two of them. She just needed a second to think.
Unfortunately, it didn't look like she was going to get it. Steve reached out and yanked a thin, rubber-coated wire off the machine he'd been hooked up to. He wound both ends of it around his fists, got in close, and brought the wire down against the front of Natasha's neck. His face was right next to hers as he pinned her back to his chest, pulling the wire and cutting off her airflow. She choked and grasped at the wire in an attempt to pull it off of her windpipe, but it was no use. Steve was stronger than she was. He always would be. So, she started driving her elbow back into his ribcage. She hit him once, twice, three times, but he still wouldn't let go. Natasha had to backpedal quickly and shove his back against a wall; then drive her head back into his face to get him to finally release her.
She pushed away from him, spun around, and pulled her gun.
Natasha pointed her weapon at Steve, gasping, hands shaking; eyelids trembling. Blood rolled down the cut on her forehead and over the side of her face. It stung when a few drops made its way into one of her tear-filled eyes. Her throat felt dry and raw as she struggled to regain her breathing. Steve was standing, still as a statue, in front of her. His nose and lip were bleeding, and sweat glistened on his brow and chest. He stared at her, silent and waiting for her to make a move.
"Please…" she said quietly. She took a breath and huffed it out her nose. "Don't make me do this."
Steve blinked; then furrowed his brow. His lips pulled down into a deep frown. "Nat…?" He said. He sounded confused. "What's going on?"
Relief washed over her. She breathed out a heavy sigh, her shoulders sagging as she dropped her hands down to her sides. "Dammit, Rogers," she said. "You really-"
Before she could finish her sentence, Steve rushed her. He tackled into her, knocking her to the ground and landing on top of her. His fingers wrapped around the wrist of her gun hand, raised it, and slammed it against the floor until she released the weapon. It went skidding to the side, several feet across the floor. He raised his other hand, fist poised to strike, but Natasha reached out and grabbed his wrist. She exerted every bit of strength she had left to keep his arm away from her. Her muscles trembled, and her breath came and left in ragged, shaky gasps. Unexpected terror gripped her heart, because she knew in that moment that if she didn't do something, Steve was going to kill her.
Suddenly, the door to the room went flying off its hinges in a show of red light and creaking metal. It was pulled outward and into the hallway. Wanda entered the room.
"Little… help… here!" Natasha cried.
Wanda asked no questions. She twisted her hands until she was holding a red ball of energy between them, then she shot it towards Steve. It encapsulated his whole body first, and then traveled its way up to his head. His blue eyes turned red for a second; then the light left, and his body went limp. He slumped down on top of Natasha, unconscious.
Nat's head fell back against the floor, eyes rolling up toward the ceiling and jaw going slack as she breathed a sigh of relief. A few tears slipped out of the corners of her green eyes, rolling down her temples and into her ears. She wrapped her arms around Steve's unconscious body and just buried her face into his shoulder for a second. Then, she was gently pushing him off of her and rolling him onto his back on the floor.
"What happened?" Wanda asked as she cautiously approached.
Natasha shook her head, glancing up at the woman. "Garrett… did something to him. Messed with his mind somehow."
"I will fix it," Wanda assured her. "But we need to leave."
"Where are the others?" Nat asked.
"Making sure Garrett and his people are ready for transport," Wanda said with a grin. "Viz called into S.H.I.E.L.D. They are on their way." She reached down and placed a hand on Nat's shoulder.
"It's over, Natasha."
Nat felt her shoulders slump forward as another wave of relief washed over her. She was suddenly exhausted. Physically, mentally; emotionally, she had nothing left in the tank. She looked down at Steve, and then back up to Wanda. "Can you help me carry him?" She asked.
Wanda simply moved Natasha aside and, in another graceful movement of her hands, brought forth another current of telekinetic energy that wrapped around Steve's body. It lifted him effortlessly into the air and brought him with them as they made their way out into the hall. Natasha saw bound guards, some conscious, some not, as they walked. Wanda, Sam and Vision had made neat and thorough work of getting every single one of them tied and waiting for whatever unfortunate souls were charged with picking them up. Out in the main lobby, an unconscious Garrett and Dust were zip-tied together, back to back, on the floor. Natasha ignored the overwhelming urge to grab a discarded gun and turn them both into Swiss cheese as she passed.
Outside, Vision was waiting with a very concerned Sam.
"What happened to him?" He asked.
Nat shook her head. "I'm not sure." She glanced at Steve and then over to Wanda. "But whatever it is, we're going to fix it."
Wanda nodded.
"Come on," Nat said. "Let's get out of here."
They made their way back to the van, where Steve was gently lowered into the back. Natasha joined him, unable to be bothered to get her injuries looked at or even sit in a regular seat. She just held Steve's head in her lap, smoothing some dark blonde hair away from his face. The world around her just sort of faded away. Sight and sound drowned out, and all she could see was him. All she could hear were his slow, steady breaths. She thanked her lucky stars that they'd found Steve, and she prayed to whatever God that might have been listening that they could fix whatever had been done to him.
