Chapter 36: Return of the Widow

In his car cruising down a DC avenue, Director Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. activated a communications console installed in his dashboard. A screen popped up with the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo as he began speaking.

"Activate communications encryption protocol." he commanded. "Secure line 0-4-0-5."

"Confirmed." The car's computer responded.

There was a click, then the call connected.

"This is Hill." Agent Maria Hill's voice declared.

"Any word from Romanoff?" Fury asked.

"Negative." Hill replied. "She's still in Deep Shadow. Not even a blip on the radar."

"Damn." Fury cursed. "Do we at least know what the hell she's looking for?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, Sir." Hill replied. "But you know her. She'll return when she's ready."

"True." Fury agreed. "Keep me posted."

The call ended as Fury reached a stop light. A cop pulled up on his left, the two cops inside eying him suspiciously. Fury glanced over, rolling his good eye in annoyance.

"Wanna see my lease?" Fury jeered.

The cops just put on their siren and drove off. Fury watched them go as the light turned green. He pulled forward to continue on his way, then another police car rammed into his passenger side. His car was send skidding and he rammed hard into the steering wheel. Several more cop cars came out, boxing Fury in. inside, Fury slowly pulled himself up nursing a pounding head and a broken left arm.

"Fracture detected." he car suddenly announced. "Recommend anesthetic injection."

A small compartment in the dash opened, a small needle with medicine coming out. He fumbled for the needle as best he could, pulling off the rubber tip with his teeth before stabbing his arm with the medicine. His head was slowly starting to clear as a SWAT truck came on the scene.

"Any particular reason why DCPD is trying to kill me?" Fury inquired.

"D.C. Metro Police dispatch shows no units in this area."

"Figured as much." Fury replied. "Get me out of here!"

"Propulsion systems offline."

The fake cops were beginning to shoot at the car, leaving dents in the shatter-proof glass on the windows. He knew this wouldn't last too much longer, and that he'd be left a sitting duck.

"Warning, window integrity compromised."

"You think?!" Fury shouted. "Reboot the system and get propulsion back online!"

The fake cops stopped firing on the car, pulling out a battering ram from the SWAT truck, and planting it on the ground. They set it up and it smashed into the driver's side window. It cracked the glass greatly, but it remained intact.

"Window Integrity thirty-one percent." The car declared. "Deploying countermeasures."

"Hold that order!" Fury called out.

The battering ram smashed a second time, the glass starting to cave inward.

"Window Integrity nineteen percent." The car called out. "Offensive measures advised."

"Wait, dammit!" Fury insisted.

The battering ram smashed for a third time, and by some miracle of engineering, the window still remained intact.

"Window Integrity one percent."

"Now!" Fury yelled.

Just then, a minigun popped up from the middle of the car's steering wheel. He grabbed it and used it to open fire on the phony officers. He managed to take down most of them, just in time for the reboot to finish its job.

"Propulsion systems now online." the car reported.

"Full acceleration, now!" Fury ordered. "Get me out of here!"

The car started taking off, leaving a slew of pissed off impostors.

"Initiate vertical takeoff!" Fury demanded.

"Flight systems damaged."

"Then activate guidance camera!" Fury snapped, his grip tightening on the wheel. "Get me Agent Hill!"

"Communications array damaged."

"Well, what's not damaged?!" Fury questioned.

"Air conditioning is fully operational."

"Perfect." Fury grumbled. "Give me the wheel!"

The car switched to manual driver and Fury began weaving in and out of traffic, trying desperately to avoid his pursuers. The cars continued their chase with minimal resistance from oncoming traffic.

"Give me an alternate route." Fury instructed.

"Traffic alert on Roosevelt Bridge. All vehicles stopped. 17th Avenue clear in three blocks, directly ahead."

Fury followed the route his car was laying out for him, trying to lose the fake cops. He headed into traffic, weaving through oncoming cars in a desperate measure. Several horns blared as he did, bullets raining through the air. Though Fury's antics caused a pile up that stopped most of the cars, the cops merely got out, continuing to fire.

Fury managed to kill two of the mercenaries by running them down before getting past the traffic, but the remaining mercenaries continue to chase after him. After several blocks, they sandwiched his vehicle between them, making escape impossible.

"Warning, approaching intersection." his car warned.

Said intersection was approaching fast, but Fury managed to hit the brakes as the two police cars drove forward, getting run over by an oncoming truck.

"Get me off the grid!" He demanded.

"Calculating route to secure location." his car reported.

As he drove off, Fury noticed a mysterious figure walk out into the middle of the road ahead of him. The figure was dressed in black, wearing a mask that covered the bottom half of his face and dark glasses. His left arm was made of metal, and he had a strange weapon, which he fire. A disk-like object shot towards the car, attaching to the underside of Fury's car before exploding. The explosion caused the car to flip over before landing on its roof and sliding to a stop on the other side of the street. Fury was still disoriented by the initial attack as the figure approached. As Fury tried to pull himself free of the car, a light seemed to appear from the underside of the car. That light move in a square like motion until a hole dropped down. Fury looked inside the hole and saw Natasha standing below with some kind of laser cutter.

"Afternoon Director." she greeted. "Need a hand?"

"Would love one." Fury replied.

Natasha managed to cut Fury free of his seatbelt before he followed her down the hole just as the figure reached the car. By that point, the two had retreated into the underground tunnels, making a hasty exit from the wreck.

"I suppose you have some questions." Natasha guessed.

"A few, but first we need to deal with the freak that tried to kill me." Fury replied.

"I have an idea about that." Natasha replied. "I just need to bring someone in to help with the situation."

In Central Park, an african american man wearing an airforce sweatshirt was jogging around. He was taking a leisurely pace when Steve Rogers came running up behind him. He passed by the man, never slowing.

"On your left." Steve told him.

At another stretch of the park, Steve continued running as he past the man again

"On your left." Steve told him.

"Uh-huh," He replied. "on my left. Got it."

Sometime later, the man continued his jog as he heard Steve run up again.

"Don't say it!" He insisted. "Don't you say it!"

"On your left!" Steve told him.

"Oh come on!" the man exclaimed, trying to catch up to Steve angrily.

A little later, the man was resting under a tree as Steve walked up.

"Need a medic?" Steve asked.

The man laughed, still clearly out of breath.

"I need a new set of lungs." he reported. "Dude, you just ran like 13 miles in 30 minutes."

"I guess I got a late start." Steve remarked.

"Oh, really?" the man quipped. "You should be ashamed of yourself. You should take another lap."

He paused, the spoke again, hsi voice layered with playful sarcasm.

"Did you just take it?" he asked. "I assumed you just took it."

Steve chuckled at the remark.

"So, airforce, huh?" Steve replied, noting his shirt. "What unit you with?"

"58, Pararescue." the man reported. "But now I'm working down at the VA. Sam Wilson."

"Steve Rogers." Steve replied, offering him a hand up.

"Yeah, I know who you are." Sam told him, taking the offered hand. "You kinda leave an impression."

"So I've been told." Steve replied.

"Must have freaked you out coming home after the whole defrosting thing." Sam mused.

"It takes some getting used to." Steve admitted.

"It's your bed, right?" Sam guessed.

Steve looked a little confused by the question.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Your bed, it's too soft." Sam clarified. "When I was over there I'd sleep on the ground and use rock for pillows, like a caveman. Now I'm home, lying in my bed, and it's like-"

"Lying on a marshmallow." Steve finished. "Feel like I'm gonna sink right to the floor.

Sam smiled and nodded his head.

"So...how long were you there?" Steve asked.

"Two tours." Sam answered. "How about you? You miss the good old days?"

"Well, it's not all bad." Steve reassured. "Food's a lot better, we used to boil everything. No polio is good. Internet, so helpful. I've been reading that a lot trying to catch up.

"Marvin Gaye, 1972, 'Trouble Man' soundtrack." Sam insisted. "Everything you've missed jammed into one album."

"I'll put it on the list." Steve replied, taking out a small book and opening it up

Inside the book, Sam could see several lines of culturally relevant material, including various tv shows, movies, and historic events. Sam chuckled at the sight.

"Bet it takes awhile to get through all that." he remarked. "Got anyone to help you?"

"I did, but he had other obligations." Steve told him. "I'm getting by though."

"You know, you should come to the VA sometime." Sam offered. "I know several vets who would love to hear from you. That, and it would score me some brownie points with the girl at the front desk."

"I'll keep that in mind." Steve replied, shaking his hand. "Thanks for the run. If that's what you wanna call it."

"Oh, is that how we're gonna play it?" Sam snorted.

"Oh, that's how it is." Steve retorted.

Just then, a sporty black car pulled along the curb, coming to a stop. The window rolled down to reveal Natasha in the driver's seat. Steve's eyes widened as she looked at the two, acting as if she hadn't been gone for months on end.

"Hey, fellas." She greeted. "Either one of you know where the Museum of Natural History is? I'm here to pick up a fossil."

Steve just walked up to the car, feeling both surprised and angry at the same time.

"Where have you been?" Steve demanded.

"Just get in." Nat told him.

"Everything alright?" Sam asked, noticing Steve's change in demeanor.

"Fine." Steve replied. "Just… have some old business to finish."

Steve got into the car and the two drove off.

Sometime later, the two continued driving in awkward silence. Natasha made no attempt to speak, focusing on where she was going. After awhile, Steve finally spoke.

"Where have you been?" Steve questioned.

"Classified mission." she answered simply. "Off the books, deep cover."

"For S.H.I.E.L.D., or was it personal?" Steve deduced. "Involving what you found in the Red Room."

Her grip tightened on the wheel, but she remained calm.

"That's not important right now." she insisted, tapping a manilla folder sitting in between the seats. "This takes priority."

Steve took the folder and opened it up, finding several grainy pictures of the figure that attacked Fury.

"At 0800 this morning, Director Fury narrowly avoided an attempt on his life." Natasha reported. "When a team on assassins failed to take him out, he came forward and nearly finished the job."

"Who is he?" Steve asked.

"Most of the intelligence community believes he doesn't exist," Natasha replied. "The ones that do call him the Winter Soldier. He's been credited for over two dozen assassinations in the last 70 years."

"So he's a ghost story." Steve deduced.

"He's real." Natasha insisted. "He trained me, as well as several other girls in the Red Room."

"So that's why you left." Steve pieced together. "You were trying to find him."

Natasha nodded.

"Now, he's after Fury." She went on. "Don't know why, or on whose orders. Only way to find out is to bring him in."

"And that's where I come in." Steve gathered.

"He's too strong an too elusive to be caught by conventional means." she informed him. "That's why I'm bringing you in. Just you. No Avengers."

"Don't suppose you thought to bring my gear." Steve replied.

"It's in the trunk." she answered.

"Let me guess, you grabbed it without telling the others you were at least back in town." Steve surmised.

Her silence spoke volumes.

"Right." Steve replied. "How much further till where Fury's held up?"

"Not far." she told him. "He's in a safe house S.H.I.E.L.D. set up. He's waiting for us."

Later, the two finally arrived at the safe house Virginia. Cap grabbed his gear from the trunk before joining Fury and Natasha inside. Fury was sitting on a recliner in the corner of the living room, holding an ice pack to his head. Maria Hill was tending to his wound, but aside from her, there was no one else.

"Hill." Cap greeted.

"Cap." Hill greeted back.

He then turned towards Fury, seeing the state he was in.

"You look terrible." Cap remarked.

"I have Natasha's new friend to thank for that." he remarked. "Thankfully, I still have my good eye."

"Right." Cap replied. "So, have any idea how we're gonna catch this guy?"

"He failed to kill me once." Fury recalled. "Best guess, he's gonna try again."

"You wanna use yourself as bait?" Cap guessed.

"You got a better idea?" Fury countered.

"No, I just wanna be sure you're up for it." Cap responded. "If this is what failure looks like, I'd hate to see what success looks like."

"Need to take these guys down." Fury replied. "No better way to lure them out then acting as though the world intends to spin on."

"Alright then." Cap replied.

The next day, Fury hobbled out of the apartment and drove off towards a hospital to get checked out. Hill, Natasha, and Steve stayed with him, much to his annoyance. They continued to keep an eye out for the attackers, especially the Winter Soldier. As they made their way into the city, a lone figure stood on a nearby building, looking down a scope at the passing car. Taking careful aim, he set his sights on the cars rear tires.

With his shot set up, he fired, taking out the back tire and causing the car to swerve out of control. It finally crashed into a nearby lamp post, the front of the car buckling like an accordian. The four of them managed to pull themselves out of the car, with Hill and Natasha grabbing a few guns, and Cap grabbing his shield.

"Take cover inside!" Cap ordered.

"What about Fury?" Hill questioned.

"Bring him!" Cap replied. "It's too dangerous out in the open!"

Hill went over to Fury's car, keeping low so she wouldn't get shot. Once she got there, she tried to open the driver's side door, only to find it jammed shut. Gasoline was beginning to pool underneath the car, the smell wafting into her nostrils as she tried to get the door open.

"Fury!" she cried out, not getting a response.

While this was going on, the Winter Soldier continued firing at Cap, forcing him to dodge and weave to avoid getting hit. While he did this, he tried to figure out where the shots were coming from. As he scanned through the skyline, he caught the faintest of glimmers on one of the rooftops.

"Got him." Cap let out.

Seeing that his position was made, the Winter Soldier aimed his weapon at the gas leak and fired. The shot seemed to ignite the gas trail and turned Fury's car into a ticking time bomb. Natasha was the first to notice, grabbing Hill and forcefully dragging her away. The fire then reached the car, causing it to explode and knocking the two of them back. Cap held up his shield to block the oncoming flames. He then looked at the smouldering wreck, quickly feeling enraged by the turn of events. He took off towards where the Winter Soldier was at breakneck speed. Seeing Cap coming, the Winter Soldier slung his gun over his shoulder and took a few steps back before running forward and leaping to the next rooftop.

Inside the building, Cap saw the Winter Soldier making his getaway and, thinking fast, leapt out a nearby window, crashing into the building the Winter Soldier was on top of. Cap then got to his feet and began running, people in the building rushing to get out of his way. As Cap approached an oncoming window, the Winter Soldier landed on the roof across from him. Steeling himself, Cap put his shield up to protect himself before leaping out of the window. He rolled onto the roof before tossing his shield right at the Winter Soldier. Sensing it coming, the Winter Soldier immediately spun around and grabbed the shield with his metal hand. Cap slowly got to his feet, stunned by what had just happened, the two locking eyes for a moment before the Soldier threw the shield back at him. Cap managed to catch it in his hands, but he was also sent skidding across the roof as the Winter Soldier made his get away. By the time Cap recovered, the soldier was gone. Cap just looked out at the street with irritation and intrigue, wondering who or what this assassin was.

SHIELD agents cordoned off the area in a matter of minutes. Forensics were hard at work, piecing together what was left of the crime scene. Hill was off to the side, her face unreadable as she gave her statement to Coulson. From the way they both kept glancing at the wreck, it was clear that the entire event had them both shaken. Natasha had retreated into an alley, remaining out of sight as she watched everything happen. Her disappearance was noticed by Cap, who followed her into a secluded alley.

"Natasha…" Steve let out. "I'm sorry."

She remained silent, her eyes never leaving the scene. After a moment, she took a shaky breath, turning to Steve.

"The Soldier..." she let out, her voice trembling slightly.

"He's exactly like you described." Steve told her. "Fast, strong, metal arm. You were right on."

"Did you get anything?" She asked. "Any idea who hired him or why he-?"

"Nothing yet." Steve lamented. "They're still searching."

She cursed, slamming a fist against the side of the building. Steve just put a comforting hand on her shoulder, easing her slightly.

"We'll figure this out." He told her. "We'll take him down."

"I know, I…" Natasha let out.

"Hey, Cap." Coulson called out, walking towards them. "Got something on some of the building security cams."

The two of them gathered around a monitor screen that was playing the footage of the Winter Soldier's attack.

"What is this gonna tell us?" Natasha asked.

"Keep watching." Coulson told them.

As the footage continued to play, the Winter Soldier himself came on screen, running across the rooftop.

"Freeze." Coulson instructed. "Zoom in on the sleeve."

The screen zoomed in, showing a symbol of a skull with eight tentacles coming off of it. It was a symbol all of them knew all too well.

"HYDRA." Cap let out.

"Looks like they might be the ones behind the Winter Soldier." Coulson deduced.

"Then I know who we need to talk to." Hill declared.

Sometime later, Cap flew with Natasha and Hill in a S.H.I.E.L.D. jet towards the Rocky Mountains.

"So why are we here, exactly?" Cap asked.

"You'll see in a moment." Hill informed.

As they continued to fly, they soon spotted a massive building tucked away in the mountains with a large landing pad sticking out.

"Captain, welcome to the Vault." Hill introduced.

Hill flew the jet right towards the Vault, landing on the platform with graceful precision. The ramp then opened up, and the three of them exited one by one before heading towards the entrance.

"Impressive place." Cap commended. "What is it, exactly?"

"The Vault is a supervillain prison designed to hold tech-based villains and their gear." Hill explained as the three piled into an elevator. "Stark cooked it up back when he was still making weapons for the government."

The elevator began a very long descent downward towards their designated floor. After a while, the elevator stopped and the doors opened up, allowing them to walk out and down a hallway.

"Some of its more famous occupants include Whiplash, Technovore, Chemistro, and the Iron Monger." Hill listed off.

"So why are we here?" Cap asked.

"Remember when you first woke up?" Natasha questioned.

"How could I forget?" He muttered.

"Then you should remember our guest of honor." Natasha replied. "Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker."

As they finally reached the end of the hallway, the doors opened up, revealing Strucker sitting in a featureless cell. He only had one arm, his deadly gauntlet removed.

"Strucker." Cap spoke up, getting his attention.

"Captain America." Strucker replied. "To vhat do I owe zhe honor?"

"The Winter Soldier." Natasha answered. "We know HYDRA has control of him."

"Indeed." Strucker confirmed. "He iz our greatest triumph. Undyingly loyal, unparalleled in fighting, everything you are and more, Herr Captain."

Cap just scowled in response.

"Who is he?" Cap asked. "Why was he sent to kill Nick Fury?"

"It does not matter who zhe Soldier iz." Strucker informed him. "He iz a veapon, nothing more. As for vhy he killed Fury, vhy don't you ask him yourself? He should be along shortly."

"What?" Cap let out. "What are you-?"

At that moment, the alarms began blaring and red lights began flashing. Strucker grinned maliciously. Not wasting any words, Cap turned and bolted out of the cell, with Natasha and Hill following behind.

"What's going on?" Cap questioned.

"Someone's broken into the Vault." Hill answered. "The entire facility has gone into lockdown mode."

"It has to be the Soldier." Natasha rationalized. "That's why he attacked Fury. He knew that once we discovered HYDRA was behind the attack, we'd go to Strucker for answered."

"All so they could spring him out of prison." Cap concluded.

As they ran towards the elevator, the doors were blown open, colliding with the three heroes as the Winter Soldier stepped out. He then walked passed them as he approached Struckers cell. He then took out his gun and shot the lock, destroying it. Strucker then opened the cell doors and walked out towards the soldier.

"Excellent work." Strucker commended.

As they turned to leave, Natasha sprung up and kicked the Soldiers gun out of his hands. She then tried punching him, but he quickly caught her fist and tried twisting her arm. She quickly leapt into the air allowing her arm to remain untwisted before kicking the Winter Soldier in the chest. The Soldier stumbled back as Natasha ran towards him. The Winter Soldier took a swing at her, but she quickly slid underneath him before pulling out some wire and trying to wrap it around his neck. He quickly held up his metal hand to block it before flinging her over him, causing her to land on her back.

"Soldier!" Strucker called out. "Time to go!"

The Winter Soldier then turned towards Strucker and the two entered the elevator, taking it up. Natasha, as well as Hill and Cap, slowly pulled themselves up as the car rode upwards. Cap rushed towards the door and pried it open with his bare hands.

"Come on!" He called out. "This isn't over yet."

Up at the landing platform, the elevator doors opened up, allowing the Winter Soldier to gun down additional agents who were trying to stop them from leaving. Strucker just walked forward with a twisted smile on his face. As they walked towards a nearby S.H.I.E.L.D. shuttle, Cap and Natasha managed to climb up the elevator shaft and chase after them. Cap quickly threw his shield at the two of them, only for the Winter Soldier to spin around and grab it with his metal arm, much to the surprise of both of them. Not wanting to waste time, Natasha ran towards them, prompting the Winter Soldier to throw Cap's shield at her. She quickly got to her needs and slid under it, allowing Cap to catch it in his hands. She then tried punching the Winter Soldier, but he simply caught her fist, flipping her to the ground. She then swept his legs out from under him, knocking him down. She tried striking again, but he just shot out his metal arm, grabbing her by the neck and throwing her to the ground, choking her.

"You could… at least recognize me…" She wheezed.

The Winter Soldier just scowled in response, before looking up and seeing Cap running towards him. He let go of Nat and tried punching Cap, only for Cap to block the strike with his shield. The metal hand left a massive dent in the shield. The Winter Soldier then got to his feet and pushed the shield aside, allowing him to kick Cap in the chest. Cap rolled backwards before getting back up and running at him again. The Winter Soldier quickly pulled out a knife and clashed with Cap, blocking most of his blows and trying to slice at him with the knife. Cap deflected and ducked under as many strikes as he could, but the Winter Soldier proved to be too fast for him. One strike actually cut Cap in the side, causing him to grunt in pain.

Having enough Cap ducked under one swipe before jamming his shield right into the Winter Soldiers arm. He then spun around and collided his shield with the Winter Soldier's face, causing him to fall to the ground and his mask to get knocked off.

"It's over." Cap declared as the Winter Soldier got back to his feet.

The Winter Soldier then slowly turned towards Cap, finally exposing his face to him. Upon seeing it, Cap nearly dropped his shield in shock. He was dumbstruck, in complete disbelief about what he was seeing. Of all the people to be behind that mask, this one the one Cap never expected.

"... Bucky?" He let out.

"Who the hell is Bucky?" the Winter Soldier replied before punching him out.