A/N: This chapter is a little shorter than I would have liked, but overall I am very pleased with it. I hope you all enjoy :)

Warning: Mentions of gore and death

Chapter 24

"I want every Agent that we have assembled and sent to Frederick—pull them off of missions if needed. Red Skull is our top priority," Fury says to the Agent on the computer, who nods at her orders. The Director straightens his posture, placing his hands behind his back and turning to Loki. "Have you figured out the final trial?"

"Sacrifice," Loki says grimly. "It doesn't say whom, only that one must be made."

Fury nods after a moment. "Avengers, you will take care of Skull. Coulson, I want you leading a team into the base. Do not let anyone escape," he orders. "Comms are still down from the Hydra attack here and there's no guarantee when they'll be back up again. Once you land in Frederick, you'll be on your own."

"Wait, Hydra attacked the Helicarrier? Again?" Clint asks, baffled.

"It's a long story," Bruce says.

"One that I most certainly want to hear," Clint responds.

"If I may," Thor says, addressing Fury. "I would like to request that my brother accompany us to Frederick. I believe Loki will be able to assist Son of Coul and, if needed, he will be able to provide instant aid in our battle.

Fury nods his confirmation. "Coulson, keep an eye on him."

"Will do sir," Coulson responds.

"Tony, are you okay?" Steve asks, quietly, making sure not to draw anyone's attention to them.

The brunet shakes his head. "Frederick is the place from my dream. You know; the one where you die?"

Steve furrows his brow as if he knows what Tony is implying. "Tony, I can't stay behind. I've been fighting this battle since 1943 and now I can finally finish it. You, on the other hand, need to go to medical and get those injuries checked out."

"I'm not leaving you," Tony says, firmly.

Steve frowns and Tony shakes his head.

"JARVIS?"

"Sir."

"Goddammit, I thought I told you to get him off of my servers?"

"It must have slipped my mind," Tony says waving off Fury in favor of continuing to speak with JARVIS. "I need you to build a new suit and have it dispatched to my location as soon as it's ready. In the meantime, I'll charge my gauntlet on the Quinjet and we'll go from there."

"Very well, sir."

"You don't have your suit?" Bruce asks.

"It's an even longer story," Rhodey says, saving Tony from having to come up with some bullshit explanation.

Tony nods his thanks to Rhodey. He looks around at each of his battle weary teammates, eyes alight and eager at the possibility of finishing the trials. "Right," he says before glancing up at Steve. Let's finish this."

It only takes about an hour and a half to reach Frederick via the Quinjet and a majority of the ride is spent in a tense silence. Upon arrival, it doesn't take long for the team to locate Skull and his Hydra Army in the largest park in the city. The enemies are already being engaged by Shield and they appear to be evenly matched. Well, not for much longer if the Avengers have a say.

"The area's too hot, I won't be able to land," Coulson says as he scans the area.

"We don't need to land," Steve says, climbing from his seat and strapping his shield to his back. "Clint and Tony, I want the two of you evacuating any citizens that may be in the area. Natasha, Thor, Rhodey, and Bruce, I want you to assist Shield in engaging the Hydra forces. Bucky and I will take care of the Skull." He exchanges a fond grin with Bucky. "Loki, you stay with Coulson, and get rid of their base. Use whatever means you find fit in this fight. We're going to take down Hydra once and for all."

Everyone nods their confirmation of the plan.

Cap nods once more before turning towards the now open loading ramp. "Bucky, come on."

"Right behind you," Bucky says before they both jump off the ramp.

Natasha scowls. "I don't understand why those two idiots insist on not wearing parachutes."

"You know what they say: like Bucky, like Steve," Clint says as he pulls on his parachute pack.

Natasha snorts before nudging Clint in the arm. "I'll race you," she says already running to the ramp.

"Like you'll win, Romanov," the archer says before leaping after Nat.

Rhodey smiles to himself—or at least that's what Tony imagines he's doing as his face is covered. "This is gonna be fun," he says before firing up his jet boosters and launching himself out of the Quinjet.

Bruce shakes his head. "I'm glad I decided not to put a shirt on after all." He jumps from the ramp and Hulk's roars are heard seconds later.

"Man of Iron, may I offer assistance?" Thor asks.

"Please," Tony says.

"You guys be careful," Coulson says.

"You too," Tony responds.

Thor wraps an arm around Tony's middle. The brunet clings to the other man as he raises his hammer and launches them from the Quinjet and towards the ground, hearing the sound of Coulson flying away over the noise of the battle. The blond Demi-God lands behind a parked car and ducks down, making sure Tony is completely covered before releasing him.

Tony nods. "Thank you," he says, offering the other man a small smile.

Thor returns his smile. "It is my pleasure." He clasps Tony's shoulder once in parting before taking to the skies and landing somewhere on the battlefield.

Tony pokes his head out from behind the parked car, searching the area for his teammates. Cap and Bucky are moving in complete synchronization as they fight Skull, never using the same move twice and taking advantage of the terrain. Natasha is engaging the foot soldiers with Shield, continuously keeping herself in motion and not letting anyone get a hit on her. Rhodey is flying around the entire length of the park, trying to establish a perimeter and keeping the enemies from crossing it. Hulk is roaring and taking down anyone in his way, while also keeping the enemies off Bucky and Cap. Thor is now fighting his enemies with a brutal efficiency that Tony hasn't seen from the other man yet. Clint isn't far from Tony, kicking one of the foot soldiers away from him before spotting the brunet and waving.

"Tones, there's a bus full of trapped people over here, let's go!"

The brunet glances around to make sure the area is clear before moving to Clint's position, using the cars and overturned debris as cover. When he reaches the car closet to Clint, the archer runs over and ducks down next to Tony, his expression serious.

"The bus is a few minutes away from us. If we stick to the perimeter, we shouldn't run into any resistance." He gestures to Tony's gauntlet. "How much juice you do have left on that thing?"

"Enough," Tony says with a shrug. He's honestly not sure how much power he has left. Not only did he not get the chance to finish charging his gauntlet on the way over, but it's also still damaged from when he was forced from his armor. Right now, he's hoping for the best, but he's a Stark—they always have rotten luck.

The archer nods. He pokes his head out from behind the cover and looks around. "Alright, when I say go, we'll move to that green car over there, okay?"

"Okay."

Clint waits for a moment before saying, "Go!" The archer leaves the cover first, couched low, head down, and shuffling fast. Tony follows behind him, mirroring his movements until they reach the green car. The pair duck down behind it and wait a brief moment before nodding to each other.

They continue moving in that fashion until they reach the bus, which is surrounded by Hydra Agents. Tony and Clint duck down behind a brown car, which is the closest they can get to the bus without being seen.

"Any ideas on how to get past this?"

Tony thinks for a moment. "If you distract them, I can free the people trapped."

"Alright," Clint says. "As far as I can see, there's only eight of them, but there could easily be more on the other side. Just be careful and don't take too long."

"Oh, you know me, I'm a regular Speedy Gonzales," Tony says, to which Clint snorts. "On your go."

The archer nods his understanding. He hovers for a moment before launching himself from cover, drawing the attention of the enemies. The soldiers shout and leave their post, chasing after Clint, who is leading them to the other side of the street.

As soon as Clint and the soldiers are gone, Tony runs towards the bus. The brunet circles the vehicle once, making sure all of the soldiers are gone. He glances upwards at the horror stricken faces of the children and adults trapped inside the vehicle, and gives everyone a small smile.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. I'm here to help," Tony says in a soothing tone, hoping the people inside can hear him. He's betting they can seeing as one of the windows is cracked open. He goes to stand in front of the door that opens the bus. He grabs onto the edge of the door and tries forcing it open, only for it not to budge. He tries this a few more times before sighing.

"Wait, I know you—you're Iron Man!" One of the kids on the bus says, her face pressed against the window as she looks at Tony curiously. She furrows her brow. "Where's your suit?"

"In the shop," Tony says, distracted.

The brunet takes a step back, pausing to think for a moment. He looks between his gauntlet and the doors before an idea hits him. The brunet backs up a few steps and gestures for everyone to move to the opposite side of the bus. When they comply, Tony raises his right arm and fires a small repulsor blast, which blows the door off completely. "Alright, everybody out."

The people quickly comply. Tony helps them off the bus, accepting their thanks as they flee the area. When all the citizens are safely gone, Tony sighs relieved and goes in search of Clint.

Tony finds the archer a few minutes later. He's further down the street, closer to where Thor originally dropped off Tony, collecting his arrows from the bodies of the Hydra Agents surrounding him.

Clint looks up and spots Tony, immediately grinning and waving. When Tony gets within earshot, he says, "Mission Accomplished?"

"Yep; they're all on their way out of town," the billionaire responds as he stops next to his friend.

"Nice," the archer says as he holsters his arrows. "I've been searching for a perch and the best one is on top of that Bell Tower. Cover me while I climb it?"

"I got your back, literally," he says, earning a smile from Clint. "Let's go."

Tony and Clint once again run from cover to cover as they head towards the main battle area. They quickly find themselves entangled in the mass of Soldiers and Agents fighting, having to step over corpses so disfigured that neither can tell if the body is Hydra or Shield. At one point, Natasha darts over and helps Tony escort Clint to his perch, staying close by as they fight off anyone who tries approaching while the archer scales the side of the Bell Tower.

"Looks like you could use a lift," Rhodey says via his external speakers. That is all the warning he gives before plucking Clint off the side of the Tower and giving him a ride to the top.

Once Clint is secured, Widow jumps back into the battle. Tony follows her, hanging back some for he's wary about not having his armor during a fight this large. The billionaire bites down on his bottom lip before taking down a Hydra Soldier with a repulsor blast, hoping that JARVIS finishes his suit soon.

The enemy soldiers are finally beginning to thin out after what seems like years of fighting. Now that the perimeter is secured, Rhodey has landed and is offering additional ground support, which is something the Agents appear appreciative of. Cap and Bucky are still locked into their battle with Skull, while Natasha takes down the soldiers surrounding her. Hulk and Thor are nearby, continuing to keep what's left of the soldiers off their allies.

Tony's gauntlet ran out of power a while ago and he's been forced into physically knocking the soldiers down with the useless piece of metal. The billionaire looks up and catches Red Skull's gaze, watching as the other man's lips slowly curve into a smirk.

Skull knocks away Steve and Bucky's weapons away from them before kicking both men away from him. The villain catches Tony's eye again before opening his mouth and speaking. When he does, it sound like Tony is catching the tail end of a conversation filled with clipped words and the Skull bragging about how successful he's going to be.

"So, have you figured it out yet, Captain? Where do you hit a man where it will hurt the most?" Red Skull sneers, before readying the laser gun in his hands. "His heart!"

"Tony! Watch out!" Steve screams.

The billionaire is shocked when Steve bodily tackles him out of the weapon's range. He stumbles for a moment before steadying himself. He turns back to Steve and—

Tony's eyes widen in horror as he watches Steve fall to the ground, completely silent. The brunet barely registers Hulk's roars and Thor's battle cries as they move the battle elsewhere. He runs to the other man, kneeling beside him, and surveying the damage. Steve has a huge hole in his torso that won't stop bleeding.

The brunet rips off a piece of his shirt and tries to stop the bleeding. In the back of his head, he knows his efforts are useless, but he can't help but try. It's Steve. Tony searches lover's face as tears well up in the former's eyes. He places his hand on the blond's face, and gently strokes his cheek. The corner of his mouth twitches when he feels Steve lean into his touch.

"Steve," he whispers.

"Tony . . ."

The billionaire leans down and gently kisses Steve's lips, smiling when he feels the other man kiss back.

"I love you."

Steve's face lights up. He smiles brightly, despite the fact that he is obviously in so much pain. "Tony," he breathes. "I . . ."

Tony waits for the other man to say the words back. "Steve?" His face falls as he starts to gently shake the blond's shoulder. "Steve?"

No response.

"Steve!"

Still no response.

"No," he whispers brokenly. "No, no, no, not him. Please not him." Tears fall freely down Tony's face the harsh reality hits him.

Steve's dead. And he's never coming back.

Tony leans forward, crying into what's left of Steve's chest, not caring that his clothes are becoming soaked with his boyfriend's blood. Time moves slowly and Tony hear anything over the sound of his haggard breathing and the mantra of SteveSteveSteve running through his mind. Or is he speaking out loud? Tony doesn't care at the moment because Steve—oh no, Steve is—

Tony hears a faint voice and feels someone grab him under his arms, trying to manhandle him away from his boyfriend. "No!" he yells as he attempts to fight off the other person. "Don't take me away from him! Don't you fucking take me away!"

"Stark! You're going into shock! You need too—oof!"

Tony finally breaks away from the other man and spins around. He glares at Fury, every muscle screaming with defiance. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Stark," Fury begins again. "You need to relax."

"I'm fine! Steve! Tell them I'm—" Tony freezes. "Oh no."

"Stark—"

"You want me to what? Relax? Calm down? Yeah, don't think so," Tony interrupts. "Because, in case you haven't noticed, my boyfriend is—" he cuts himself off and places a fist over his mouth, trying to stop a fresh wave of tears.

"Stark—"

"NO!" Tony screams again, unable to stop his tears. He knows he needs to relax. The rational part of his brain is telling him to stop and take a breather. All this yelling isn't going to . . . going to bring Steve back. Steve with his golden hair that shines in the sunlight and his breathtaking smile; Steve whose nose wrinkles in the most adorable way whenever Tony gives him a nickname he doesn't like; Steve with his confusion to technology and most things modern; Steve who loves Tony unconditionally and looks at him like it's the first time all over again and—

"It's Steve," Tony hears himself say in a calmer tone. "So, I can't calm down."

"Fine, don't calm down. But, there is something important that you need to know."

"What?"

"There was a mole."

Tony freezes, mind going completely numb. "What . . . did you just say?" he asks, his voice neutral, calm, terrifying.

"There was a mole," Fury explains slowly. "Someone fed the Skull information: classified information . . ."

"Oh my god, we really were being watched," Tony breathes out horrified. He thinks back to that awful feeling he had at the Maria Stark Foundation's charity ball all those months ago. He thinks back to the destruction of Stark Tower, and the Shield Hacking. That explains how the Skull knew about the trials; how he knew where to find them and for how long they'd be gone. Tony knew he was one of the additional targets on Skull's list from the beginning. He'd just become a bigger one once the villain figured out how much he means to Steve.

"Our technicians are still working on fixing comm the problem," Fury continues. "I made my way here to warn you, personally. I tried to get here as fast as I could and unfortunately, I was too late."

"It's all my fault," Tony hears himself say. "Steve is dead because of me. I could have found a way—I could have." He can feel himself start to hyperventilate, but he couldn't care at the moment. "I should have known about the mole. I could have done so much and—"

"Stark!" a new voice barks, startling Tony. It was Clint (Rhodey must have brought him down from his perch). "It is not your fault. It's Skull's and whoever this mole is. Hulk and Thor are in pursuit and could use some assistance from Iron Man. You're not the only one who's lost him. Now, pull yourself together for a moment so we can do what we do best. Avenge."

The corner of Tony's lip twitches. "Sir," he hears JARVIS say through his earpiece. The comms must be back online—a little too late, he might add. "The Mark fifty-two is one hundred percent fully operational."

The brunet stands and looks down at Steve's body, the Skull's words coming to him "No matter what you do. No matter how much you try to avoid it, we'll always end up here." He remembers the bastard's smirk clear as day. "We'll always have Frederick." Tony's hand clenches into a fist.

Tony takes a breath and collects himself before turning to Widow, Hawkeye, Rhodey, Bucky, and Fury, his features set with resolve. "Let's get this son of a bitch."

A/N: There's going to be a companion fic to this chapter called "Come Back to Me." I'm hoping I'll have that posted sometime next week.