Natasha had been awake for only a minute or so; far from being lucid. He head lolled to the side as she tried to open her eyes. After a moment, she felt the fog clearing out of her brain, but could only think enough to keep her head up and her eyes open.
From the hallway, Natasha heard soft grunts and something hitting the floor. It was too early for Qaseem to come back which made Natasha worry. She tried to struggle against the ropes holding in the chair as the door to her room creaked open.
A man stepped inside then closed the door behind him. When he turned around, Natasha instantly recognized him. "Clint?"
Clint came to stand beside her and checked her over for wounds. "Hey, Nat. Surprised to see me?"
"Yes," she breathed, "I am." Clint went behind her, and a moment later, her hands were free. She tried to move her arms and was surprised when they followed her mental instructions. "He's had me drugged since I've been here. Not sure how it has affected me." Natasha revealed.
"It's okay. I don't need you to fight an army." Clint helped her to her feet. "I just need you to cover me as best you can." He handed Natasha a gun.
"I think I can handle that."Natasha caulked the gun and took a step; her legs didn't follow command.
Clint kept her from falling. "Let's try that again." Clint put her arm around his shoulders and walked both of them out of the room.
"Don't tell Tony about this." Natasha warned.
"Wouldn't dream of it." Clint grinned.
Sounds of gunfire echoed down the hallway as Clint and Natasha reached a set of stairs. They climbed like kids in a three-legged race, fumbling up each set. "Where is the team?" Natasha finally asked.
"Cap is taking out the guards on the lower floors. Tony is running surveillance for us and cutting off theirs. I think Thor is guarding the jet which is on the roof."
"And Bruce?"
Clint stayed silent as he continued to climb.
"Don't screw with me, Barton. Where is he?" Natasha couldn't hide the worry in her voice.
"He's talking with Qaseem." Clint said flatly. "When we got here, Bruce walked up to the front gate and some guards took him to another location."
"And you let them?" Natasha was enraged.
"We had a plan to follow." Clint pushed through the door leading to the roof. Natasha was able to move by herself now that the drugs had worn off, so he let go of her.
"Does this plan have a way to get him back?" Natasha snapped.
"I'm sure it does, but I only listened to my parts of the plan." Clint jogged past Thor and into the jet.
"Welcome back, Natasha." Thor said as he followed her into the jet.
"Thanks," she answered quickly before joining Clint in the cockpit.
"The package has been recovered. Proceed to extraction points. Jet is on the move." Clint said into his headset.
"Roger that." Steve said.
"Roger, Rogers." Tony added. "Ha! That was better than I thought it would be."
"Have you just been waiting for that?" Steve asked, sounds of punching heard in the background.
"When opportunities present themselves, I am more than willing to jump at them." Tony replied.
The back of the jet was left open for the others as Clint took off from the roof. He flew past a few buildings before Tony swooped in effortlessly to join them. He removed his suit then came to stand behind Clint and Natasha. Leaning over their shoulders, Tony said, "Good to see you, Romanoff."
"Thanks, Tony." Natasha smirked.
"Once we get the Jolly Green Giant, the band will be back together and we can start our reunion tour." Tony quipped.
"Who let him go in the first place?" Natasha raised her eyebrow.
"Hey, Steve was the one who said stick to the plan." Tony held up his hands in surrender.
"Oh, I'll deal with Rogers."
The jet circled back to a clearing where they waited for the super soldier to meet them. "Cap, where are you?" Clint asked.
"I'm almost there. I have five bogey's in pursuit." Steve informed. He broke into the clearing at a dead sprint. Racing for the jet, Steve heard gunfire and the bullets whizzing past his head. "Start the jet. I'm closing in."
Clint started the jet and propelled it forward slowly to keep it away from the other men on the ground. Steve was catching up, but not fast enough. "Slow down," he huffed.
"Or you can speed up." Tony offered.
"Stark!" Steve yelled in frustration. They could hear it over the coms and from behind them.
"Now, now, super soldier." Tony jested.
Steve, either by some miracle or anger at Tony, found his second wind and leaped into the back of the jet. Clint gunned the engine, and the jet took to the sky leaving the men chasing Steve in a cluster on the ground.
As the back door raised to a close, Steve laid on the floor breathing heavy. He unhooked his helmet and slid it off his head, continuing to inhale deeply.
Tony watched from his chair and sighed, "Don't be so dramatic."
"You try running," Steve paused to sit up, "two miles at a dead sprint...while being chased by guys with guns. Then you can tell me not to be so dramatic." His breathing evened out enough to stand, and Thor helped him to his feet.
"Very well. Next time, I take out the bad guys and you run surveillance."
"Deal." Steve nodded.
"You're not out of the frying pan yet, Rogers." Natasha called from the cockpit.
"If this is about Banner, it's all under control." Steve assured her.
"You better explain."
"I will." Steve said as Natasha faced him. He hoped he had a good explanation.
Bruce was being led from the car toward a small house. It had two windows in the front covered with layers of dust, and the yellow paint was fading, revealing the gray stone the house was built from.
He recognized it immediately.
It was the house he had lived in during his time in Kolkata. The house where Qaseem's wife had died.
The guards shoved Bruce through the door and closed it behind him. The room was dark except for a single candle glowing on a small table. The light danced across Qaseem's face as he knelt in prayer behind the table. Once he was finished, Qaseem opened his eyes and stared at Bruce. "I was sending a prayer to my wife." Qaseem watched Bruce intently. "I was asking her for forgiveness. Fariba wasn't sick until I started helping you. I brought the sickness to her."
"It couldn't have been avoided. We didn't have the right equipment. You and I could have been infected at any point."
"That was the problem. I wasn't sick. I had spent years doing irredeemable things, and yet, Fariba was the one to fall ill." Qaseem stood for the first time.
"It wasn't your fault." Bruce ventured.
"No, it wasn't," replied Qaseem. He flipped a switch and the lights in the house burned bright. The old, outdated bulbs had been replaced with newer, incandescent bulbs. "It was your fault." Qaseem raised a gun and shot Bruce in the legs.
The scientist cried out as he collapsed to the ground. The bullet was lodged in Bruce's thigh - the flesh burning around it. "You will just wake up the beast. How does that help you?" Bruce grumbled through the pain.
"Actually, I do not think the beast will show." Qaseem stepped around the table to stand over Bruce.
"And why is that?" Bruce felt his heart rate rising like it did before an episode.
"You see, Bruce, the dart I shot you with was filed with a concoction of my own invention."
"You said as much." Bruce snapped.
"However, what I did not say was the cocktail contained a chemical that I found neutralizes your radiated cells." Qaseem smirked.
Bruce stared up in shock, "You couldn't. I've never found anything remotely close to that."
"You give up too easy, Doctor. I have worked years to perfect this formula. I have visited every scene of a Hulk attack and gathered evidence. I have researched every animal, plant, and chemical with stabilizing properties. You gave me a purpose after Fariba's death, and now I will carry it out." Qaseem fired at Bruce; the bullet pierced his right shoulder.
Hissing in pain, Bruce clutched his arm. He glared at Qaseem - eyes frozen in their coffee color.
"I am going to kill you, Bruce." Qaseem squatted to be eye level. "I will not lie. It will be painful and you will suffer. Just like my wife."
"Go to hell." Bruce spat.
Qaseem smiled, "You first, Doctor." Standing, Qaseem walked back toward the small table with the candle burning. He licked his fingers and extinguished the flame.
Bruce couldn't help but see the foreshadowing of the candle to his current situation. Much like the candle, Qaseem would soon extinguish Bruce's flame. The monster would finally be consumed by the night.
A/N: Don't hate me! But what would happen if a chemical could neutralize the Hulk? Would Bruce be willing to give up that side of him to have a normal life? What would you do if you had a cure?
