...Bucky...
Saturday arrives too quickly for my liking. Before I even have a chance to fully wrap my head around the enormity of what we're about to do, it's standing right before me. There are two black SUVs outside the compound's main house and they're waiting for us.
"A bit unconventional, don't you think?" I ask Steve as we descend the front steps.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean... most of the people here can fly. Why are we taking cars like we're on our way to prom?"
"Tony's trying to keep a low profile, Buck. He doesn't want everyone flying through the city suited up. He's- we're, hoping that we can maintain an element of surprise. See you on the other side, pal." With a quick clap on my shoulder, he slides his shield over his shoulder and secures it across his back before climbing into his designated car. I turn at the sound of more footsteps approaching from the house and see the rest of the crew making their way to the car.
"Oh, Mr. Stark! When we get there-" Peter's voice falls into background noise as he and Tony walk around to the other side of the car and climb in.
"Who's driving?" I ask as Nat approaches with Wanda and Kit. In answer, she holds up a set of keys and jingles them in the air with a smug look on her face. "I should drive."
"Please, I can drive circles around you, soldier." She spins around me, dangling the keys in front of my face and snatching them away before I have the chance to grab them. I narrow my eyes at her as she climbs into the driver's seat laughing.
"Be careful, okay?" Kit's voice pulls my attention away from the cars and I offer her a crooked smile.
"I always am." She quirks an eyebrow at me and the look on her face tells me she is far from believing my words.
"Please, if everything I've witnessed is your version of 'careful', I find that alarming." Despite the clear worry in her voice, she manages a small smile. Despite the sun shining over our heads, it feels like there is a storm on the horizon crackling between us. The air is filled with anxiety and all of the 'what if's'.
What if we don't make it out of this?
What if I never see her again?
What if, what if, what if?
I watch her shuffle her weight from foot to foot and note that she stands on the tips of her toes when she's nervous. Like a bird that's ready for flight at a moment's notice. Natasha or Tony, I'm not sure which, honks at us. Hurry it up, they're saying. The clock's ticking. Before Kit has the chance to step away from me, I grab her by her arm and pull her into a tight hug, one hand holding on for dear life around her waist and my other tightly gripping the back of her neck. If her hair wasn't wrapped tightly into a long braid down her back, I'd bury my face in her curls. Instead I settle for pressing my forehead to hers, I close my eyes and take a deep breath, breathing her in. "Don't do anything stupid," I warn. "You are to come back to me in one piece, do you understand?" When I'm met with only silence, I open my eyes to find her already staring at me. A peculiar smile dances across her lips.
"Yes, sir," her voice is just a whisper. "I'd say the same to you but... that's already out of the question." She taps her fingers against my metal arm and I can't help but laugh lightly. "You'd better go get in your car before I decide I don't want to do this and drag you back inside with me."
"No one's stopping you from doing that," I respond almost wishing she would. But we both know that neither of us could sit this out. We aren't built to take the bench and watch from the sidelines, biting our fingernails until we hear from the others. So before she has the chance to tempt me again, I press my lips lightly to the tip of her nose and release her. As I walk away from her and climb into the back of the SUV, an emptiness opens up inside of me that seems to only be present when she's gone.
I expect to hear jeers from the other occupants of the car when I close the door behind me. Instead we pull away from the compound with the only thing I hear is the gravel crunching under tire. Worse than the silence is the pity that lives in each of their eyes as they look at me. I clench my jaw and resist the urge to look over my shoulder at the car traveling behind us.
...Kit...
Peter is trying to keep up conversation as we make our way through the city, bless his heart. No one is picking it up though and he finally stops trying. Steve bumps his shoulder against mine before wrapping his arm around me. "Don't look so down, kid."
"I'm far from a kid," I mumble as I stare out the windshield. I want to be literally anywhere else in the world right now. We're cramped into this SUV like sardines in a can and my chest feels tight. Note to self, if you suffer from claustrophobia, don't jam yourself into a car with five men and all of their superhero equipment. I take a deep breath and lean my head back on the headrest of my seat. It's only about thirty five minutes from the compound to the place where Reed is hiding, I remind myself. Deep breath. In, out, in, out.
"Hey you're younger than me," Steve jokes, trying to pull me out of my head. "Everything is going to be fine, you'll see."
"There are so many things that could go wrong. You can't tell me everything is going to be fine, Steve." The atmosphere in the car shifts immediately as I bring up the elephant in the room. Clint looks at me from the front seat. If I wasn't almost 100 years older than him, he'd give me big 'father' vibes. He gives me a reassuring smile but doesn't say anything. I haven't had a whole lot of interaction with Clint, but I decide that I like him. He seems genuine. I hate that he may die today because of me. Because of my failed mission that forced all of the Avengers into action against Hydra. That nagging guilt worms its way through my stomach and I can't stand to look at Clint anymore. So instead I close my eyes and try to ignore the pressure growing in my temples. I focus on the sound of the tires on the pavement; the cars honking as they make their way through the traffic around us. I count to 100, then back to 1, and back to 100 again. I've worked my way into a good rythm by the time the car slows to a stop.
"Alright, we're about a mile away from the safe house. I figured it would be best to go from here on foot," Tony informs us as he kills the engine. He's right. Probably not smart to drive all the way up to his doorstep and give him enough warning to be prepared. Although I'm pretty sure he's already prepared for something like this. We all clamber out of the car and everyone around me gathers their gear. Peter removes his jacket and pulls a mask down over his head as Clint reaches into the hatch and grabs his bow and a satchel of deadly arrows . He rifles through them briefly as if taking inventory. Sam was fulling dressed in his suit and Steve pulls his shield off of his back and straps it across his forearm. The most impressive, by far, is Tony. He taps something in the palm of his hand and his suit seemingly appears from thin air, laying itself out over his arms and across the rest of his body like tiles being laid out.
My awe must be clear on my face because just before his helmet closes over his face he smirks at me. "I feel under dressed," I remark as I look down at my outfit. I'm wearing blue jeans, a black tshirt and a pair of sturdy boots. Great for running. "I want some of that stuff next time," I say pointing at Steve's vibranium shield.
"Oh, I actually brought you something," Tony says as he walks around to the back of the car and opens the hatch back up. "Here, put this on." He holds out a black one piece suit expectantly. "Just put it on over your clothes, it'll resize itself." Without asking any questions, I unzip the suit and step into it. It already fits pretty well as I shove my arms in through the sleeves and begin to zip it up, although it is just a little bit loose. As soon as the zipper is secured at my collar bone, the suit seems to "suck in". The almost vacuum like sensation seems to suck all of the air out of the clothing as it fits tightly around my body. Not so tight that it's uncomfortable, but it's still a strange sensation. I look to Tony once again in amazement.
"It's bullet proof. So... there's that. He won't be able to shoot you."
"What about my head?"
"Well, he won't be able to shoot you anywhere other than your head."
"Thanks, Tony. Seriously. This is great." He nods in acknowledgment and I grab my weapons from the backseat of the SUV and find that there is a holster on both sides of my suit for my guns, and a small concealed holster near my ankle for my small knife. Tony has paid me more attention than I had thought. I holster all of my weaponry and with one last look between us, we start the mile long trek to the safe house.
...Bucky...
"Do we just... go straight up?" Natasha asks as we walk toward the elevator bay. The entire lobby is empty and dark but I still feel uneasy. Maybe more so because of the darkness. I keep my gun out and up as I walk through the mostly empty entryway. There's just the one desk, so luckily I don't feel the need to go through and clear a bunch of potential hiding places. Instead I clear the receptionist's desk and glance up at the security cameras in the corners of the room. Their blinking red eyes letting me know they're still recording. I nod up at them as Natasha looks back at me and her eyes follow mine to the cameras. There's not much we can do about them, but I want her to be aware that they are, in fact, there.
"We should be able to get there with my badge," I answer Nat's question as I pull out my Reed & Company Publishing name badge. Kit and I were both issued badges when we were brought on to help Reed out. Her's was more than likely deactivated after her encounter with John Teller, but I'm hoping that mine still works. If not, it's the stairs for us. Wanda presses the button for the elevator and the doors open with a ping that echoes around us. We load into the elevator and I slide my badge across the keypad and press the button for the top floor. I watch as the light turns red and denies us entry. I sigh in frustration. "Looks like it's the stairs for us." I step around Natasha and make to get off the elevator but Vision places a hand on my shoulder and halts me. When I move to shove him off, I see a red glowing light coming from the back of the elevator.
No, not coming from the back of the elevator. Coming from Wanda. She stands with her feet shoulder width apart and is looking down at the floor of the elevator. Her hands are palm up and glowing and she has a deep look of concentration on her face. After just a moment, I feel the elevator lurch upwards and we glide silently to the top of the building. When we arrive on the top floor, she finally releases her hold and the red glow disappears.
"I could have done that," Vision says with amusement. "It would've been less strenuous on me. Wanda twirls around him with a grin.
"It was more fun for me." She reaches for his hand and he grabs it tightly.
"His office is the only one on this floor," I say walking around them and their small show of affection, uncomfortable. "It should be easy to get it." I say, even though I know the door will be locked.
"Do you have a key?" Natasha asks, bewildered.
"Sort of." We stop in front of the door and I grab the handle tightly and shove as hard as I can. The doorframe gives a loud groan and then with an ear splitting noise it falls apart around us. I toss the door to the side of the room and step over the rubble. Vision immediately takes a seat at the computer and begins doing... whatever it is that a synthezoid does to tap into the computer's mainframe. He was explaining it to Wanda on the way over, but if I'm completely honest, I zoned it all out. Technology isn't really my thing. Everyone around me keeps harping on that it's the best way to move through this life, but hey. I'm old school. Instead of standing over him like a hawk, I begin to rifle through the cabinets lining the east wall. There's quite literally nothing inside his cabinets so I make my way to the opposite side of the room. Reed boasts an impressive collection of expensive books in a large book case. All of them are wrapped in leather, none of them with names on their spines. I pull books off at random and glance briefly over their covers and flipping through their pages. Some of the books are just for show and their pages hold no words. Just empty books to match this strange empty office.
I toss the books onto the floor carelessly until a book bound in red leather catches my eye. With a deep feeling of dread, I grab the thin book by the spine and pull it out of the case. On its cover is a black star right in the center. I run my hand over the book and debate on whether I should open it. This book, although it isn't the exact same one that I'm intimately familiar with, most likely holds the same content. All of the information regarding the Winter Soldier Program. This book is most likely just for decoration or maybe some kind of weird novelty for Reed. I don't think it's ever been opened, the spine is nowhere near as worn as the one that now lives in Wakanda where I left it with the Dora Milaje.
I decide that I want nothing to do with it and begin to set it back on the shelf when I notice a small switch that was previously hidden by the book. "Hey," I call over my shoulder to Natasha. She seems to materialize at my side. "What do you think that does?" I ask her.
"I don't know. But we probably shouldn't touch it."
"Why not?" I reach forward to flip the switch and to my surprise she actually smacks my hand away.
"Stop it. What if that's some kind of alarm?" Her tone is chastising. Like she's talking to a small child. I frown at her.
"Why would he put an alarm behind a book? Alarms should be easily accesible. I think we should flip it. What's the worst that could happen?"
"Maybe it isn't an alarm... maybe it will activate some kind of booby trap. What if he has those serums set to release into the air if that is tripped?" I shrug.
"We've all be inoculated." I reach for the switch again.
"What if it's poisonous?" She asks again, grabbing my hand.
"Why would he put something that releases a poisonous gas into a room that he's occupying? I think you're over thinking this."
"Fine," she says as she crosses her arms. "If we all die then I'm going to kill you." I roll my eyes at her and flip the switch. There is no gas released, no alarm sets off. Instead the book case itself moves. It jolts backwards into the wall and then slides open to reveal a hidden room. Nat lifts her arm and activates a flashlight on her wristlet and illuminates the room in front of us.
"I found nothing on his computer," I vaguely hear Vision say from behind us. "We should join the others.
"There's nothing on the computer," Natasha says, without looking away from the room in front of us. "Because it's all in here."
...Kit...
"Remember, two entrances. I'll take the north entrance with Peter and Clint. Tony, you go to the south side with Sam and Kit. We're all connected with our ear pieces so when you guys are in position, just give us the word and we'll head in at the same time. If we can get in quietly, that's the best route.. but I have a feeling he's got cameras all around us and will know as soon as we get close enough." The safe house is within view as Steve begins to lay out the plan.
We are to go in, fan out and clear our side of the building. We don't have a layout for the inside, but the house isn't very large so hopefully it isn't too hard to clear. We are to assume that there are guards and cameras pointing at us from every direction. Stay on high alert for any noise, stay quiet on the comms unless we are in need of help or if we find Reed. My whole body buzzes with nervous energy. I'm ready to get a move on and get inside already, I'm growing antsy the longer we wait here. When we finally break apart into our respective groups, I lead the way around the building to the south entrance. I take large strides and don't worry about the others keeping up. I want this over with.
"We're in position," Tony says softly. I hear him only through my ear piece and Steve begins to count down from five.
Five.
Four.
Three. I grab the door handle.
Two. My heart is pounding so loudly that I'm not sure I'll be able to hear anything through my ear piece.
One.
I twist the knob and to my surprise it doesn't resist. I push the door open and glance suspiciously back at my group. Sam shrugs. I suppose if you are the leader of a gigantic terror group you probably don't have to worry too much about security. You just kill anyone that shows up uninvited. We walk into the building and there is another door directly in front of us and a long hallway that branches off to either side of us. Tony points each of us down a pathway and I follow his signal to walk down the left hallway with Peter.
Even though he's still just a kid, Peter is calm and collected as we stalk silently down the hallway until we come to another door. He nods at me to go on as he opens the door and heads inside the room to check for anyone inside. Walking alone now, I continue to creep down the hallway. Reaching down to my hip, I unholster my hand gun and raise it up in front of me. The hall comes to an L shape and I turn right. I do happen to note a few cameras in the bends of the hallway. As I'm beginning to grow uneasy at the silence, I turn another corner and come face to face with Steve. He seems almost as bewildered to see me as I am to see him.
"What-" He begins, but I don't hear the end of his question because at that very moment, the walls beside us explode and I'm thrown through the air as if weightless. I smash into the wall as the explosion dies down and the only thing I can register is a loud ringing in my ears. My brain is clouded from the impact my head made with the wall, and from the initial bomb going off. I stand slowly, pressing my hand against a barely standing wall to steady myself and stumble over to a Steve shaped bundle underneath some rubble. I open my mouth slowly, trying to release some tension in my jaw and begin to pull rocks off of my friend.
"What was that?" I hear panicked voices in my ear as the ringing begins to die down. I can't seem to organize my thoughts yet and so instead of replying I just keep shuffling rocks off Steve. He finally moves a little and gives a small grunt as he heaves himself up onto his hands and knees.
"Kit?" He asks, but he sounds far away. The dust from the explosion begins to settle around us and he reaches up towards my face and when he pulls his hand away from my head, it's covered in blood. My bloor or his? I don't know and right now I don't care to find out. I grab him by the hand and together we pull each other upright. I have to give it to Stark, the suit seems to have absorbed most of the explosion because my body feels fine, the only problem being the pounding in my head.
"We're coming to you guys now." There's urgency in Tony's voice and Steve reaches up to his ear to press his comm back in place when a second bomb goes off from a second location. This one is a little bit further away from us, so even though it knocks us off our feet, it doesn't throw us through the air the way the first one did.
My head still knocks back hard enough against the stone flooring that I see stars. Two super soldiers and we are quite literally getting our asses kicked by none sentient enemies. This time as I lie on the floor, I debate on getting back up. Maybe I'll just lay here until this is all over. Giddiness bubbles up in my chest and I begin to laugh. Steve rolls over next to me and pushes himself up for a second time.
"Let's go, Evans," he says, his voice sounds wobbly but when he grabs my hand his grip is firm and steady. He yanks me up to my feet and the whole world seems to tilt around me. I feel the blood drain from my head, a quick feeling of queasiness rushes over me. "No puking," he says, putting my arm over his shoulder. We limp away from the destruction of the bombs, well I limp. Steve seems in better shape than me. He has his right hand held in front of us and is following a blinking red dot on his wristlet. As we approach the blinking dot, I hear the mechanics of Tony's suit whirring.
"Are you two okay?" I hear his voice this time, not just in my ear piece. He lands in front of us and his helmet flips open. Quick footsteps from behind him quickly reveal the rest of our group meeting up with us.
"Yeah, we're great," I respond. Luckily my voice is a lot stronger than I feel. For that I'm grateful. I pull away from Steve but he doesn't fully let go of me. But I do feel better, like I can stand on my own two feet again. Deep down I'm glad he still holds onto my bicep, just in case. "Careful though, I think Reed has this place rigged to blow up if you trip an alarm or something," I joke.
"We cleared the whole building, guys," Peter pipes up. "There's no one else here."
"What about the basement?" I ask. Everyone looks at me like I'm crazy. I point to a door at the end of the hall we stand in and they all turn towards it. "I assume that goes somewhere. Since it's got the whole... 'stairs' sign next to it."
Despite not wanting to go further into the belly of the beast, Tony pulls the door open. We have no choice but to follow the stairs downwards.