A/N. Hi :) Nice long chapter with... not so nice content. It's beautifully written though! At least in my opinion. I'm really proud of how this turned out so I really hope you enjoy it too :D

CHAPTER XXV

It's been two days since the attack. At least, that's what Steve's internal clock is telling him. Two days since they have been missing and they have yet to be found. They must be hidden really well for the Avengers not to have discovered their location yet. Or really far…

Unfortunately, with being knocked out for almost a whole day, Steve knows a part of his time on Earth is missing from his memory. Well, he doesn't remember because he was unconscious. How they managed that was beyond him… his body burned off drugs and alcohol and all sorts of things around four times faster than the average human. They either gave him some sort of super drug or gave him a HUGE dose or maybe several huge doses of regular drugs. It is presumably because of these drugs that he doesn't know what time it is. Normally his internal clock would be able to tell him almost perfectly the hour of each day, but right now is different.

There are no windows. There is no connection to the outside world. There are no clocks. There is no sun. There is no sky. There are no stars to help point him in some direction like North. The lights had gone out and they therefore could not read the time of their pocket watches. Tania's phone had died some time ago. It's probably some point on the eleventh.

They've been there for two days. HYDRA soldiers take turns coming in and giving them food. There's a bucket in the corner and Tania is painfully reminded of the cell in Neil's crazy freak house. They came in and shot him again a little earlier. He was more prepared that time and didn't make a sound – but it still hurt like he couldn't even explain.

Tania was forced to patch him up again. It was in the same place too. And she cried while removing the bullet with the same, shaky hands. It became understood that this was going to be a daily thing. Come in every morning and shoot Captain America in the exact same place as before. Make him suffer through it.

Tania had likened it to a Greek myth. With nothing better to do, she told him the story in great detail and he'd listened, wondering if it had anything to do with Thor. She'd laughed and told him that that was completely different. That it was Norse mythology. He'd blushed and she'd laughed again and that's when he knew that things were still okay. They were bloodied (he more so than her, thank goodness) and bruised and trapped but they had hope and they had a plan but most importantly, they had each other. As long as they were together, they could get through this. That guy in the myth? He had no one.

That guy was named Prometheus. From what Tania remembered, she'd said that Prometheus was a Titan. He was the one to create humans. Although Steve didn't believe that one bit, Tania reminded him that it was myth, not belief. She'd said that Prometheus wanted to give them the gift of fire, but the God of all Gods, Zeus, did not want to give them something so dangerous. Prometheus loved his creations, and therefore wanted to give them all he could and help them evolve. He stole fire from the Gods and bestowed it upon the mortals. When Zeus found out, he punished Prometheus severely by chaining him to a mountain for eternity. That wasn't all. He sent an eagle to eat his liver and tear it from his body. Prometheus, in being a Titan, was immortal, and therefore could not die. So when his liver was taken, he would grow it back. But then the next day, the eagle would return and do it again. This was his punishment: eternal torment of having his liver ripped from his body by an animal for the rest of his days.

"Did he ever escape?" Steve had asked once the story had been told. It was eerily similar to his own situation. Except he wasn't alone. He was restrained, like Prometheus, and forced into torment every day as they knew he would heal by nightfall. Prometheus had been tortured because he'd gone against orders and done what he believed should have been done in the first place. Steve was being tortured because he'd killed the HYDRA leader, something he had also believed to be right, but the HYDRA followers, did not.

Tania had turned her head to look at him from her position on his lap and stared directly into his eyes. "No." For one horrible moment, Steve's heart plummeted to the ground. But then he remembered that he wasn't Prometheus. His situation was different. He had several very determined people out there looking for him. And he wasn't immortal. And he wasn't alone. But then Tania continued speaking and even though he knew there was absolutely no connection between their stories besides similarities, he felt more hope than he'd felt in the past forty-eight hours. "But he was rescued eventually by a man named Hercules."

"I've heard of him. He was the really strong guy, right?"

She'd laughed. He vowed to make her laugh every day so that she wouldn't lose hope. Even if part of his reason for doing so was mostly selfish. Her laugh gave him hope. It was enlightening and enriching and he found himself becoming addicted to it. It was his sunlight in this dark chamber of torture. It was a drug that he wanted to become addicted to. "Yes, he was the really strong one. I don't suppose you've seen the Disney movie?"

"Can't say that I have."

"Well, there isn't much to tell you about the rescue. Hercules was on this giant quest and he came across Prometheus accidentally. He freed him and that's all I know. I don't even know if I'm remembering this right. I could be totally wrong, I could have some of the details mixed up but I know I'm mostly right."

It had been his turn to laugh. It felt good. It felt good to know that even though these HYDRA bastards had him hand cuffed to a chair that he was still on top because he had Tania and he was happy (every once in a while; you know, when he wasn't in pain from being shot or being spoon fed what tasted like barf) and he knew that they hadn't gotten the best of him. But that was about to change.

Back in the present, on January eleventh (he presumed), the door to their private chamber was thrown open, smashing against the wall roughly and echoing throughout the room loudly. Both occupants cringed but didn't cover their ears. It was a pride thing.

When their eyes adjusted to the new lighting, there were two men standing in the doorway. One was Austerlitz. The other… well, if Steve ever had to describe what the devil looked like as a human, this would be it.

The man appeared to be in his early thirties, maybe late twenties, with red hair similar in colour to Natasha's. It was long for a boy and covered one eye completely just with his bangs. His ears were also hidden behind all the straight strands. He was tall too, probably around Graham's height, maybe a bit shorter. He was definitely taller than Steve. He wore a black coat similar to Fury's and black and red leather accents on his clothing that Steve honestly couldn't tell you what exactly he was wearing. It was just red and black. But what really set off the look was that one, blood red eye. Oh, and the twisted, demonic, grin on his face.

He walked in with a purpose with his hands behind his back and Austerlitz followed, eyeing Steve and Tania warily. He gripped his machine gun tightly in both hands and stood no more than three feet away from the man in red at all times. Probably a guard. Which meant that the red guy was probably the head honcho around here. Great…

Tania stood up from her position next to his chair where she'd been sleeping with her head on his thighs (it didn't look very comfortable but she hardly ever stopped touching him – it was like she was scared to be too far away from him so she made sure to be in physical contact at all times. He wasn't complaining. He felt the same way. If he could move his numb arms he would have them around her at all times. It just felt safer that way). She stood with a hand on his right shoulder and a little behind the back of his chair, but not so much that he couldn't see her.
The man in red smiled, but it really shouldn't be called a smile when it reminded him so much of the Devil. "I see you've gotten used to your new home," he said, gesturing around the room. He became immediately aware that the man had a thick German accent. What person in this place didn't? Honestly.

"This will never be our home," Tania bit back quietly. He was both proud of and scared for her. Speaking out was a bold move, which is where the pride came in. But speaking out also usually led to a lashing, usually physical. That was where the fear came into play.

"Of course, of course," Red Guy agreed as he began to circle them like a lion to its prey. Steve felt all his senses go on red alert. He was hyper aware of every move the guy and Austerlitz made. This was where his plan would come into action. It had to be in that time frame. Of course, with the cameras, he'd never been able to actually tell Tania his plan, but that was irrelevant. She knew he had one. That was all she really needed to know. Red Guy continued talking. "But figuratively speaking, you live here now, so literally it is your home."

"Define home," she challenged and he raised an eyebrow. Steve clenched his fists behind his back.

"Hmm…" he looked her up and down. "I can see why the Captain fell for you. Too bad it will be both his and your downfall."

In the blink of an eye, Austerlitz rushed forward and grabbed Tania, ripping her away from him. "No!" Steve shouted, struggling with his restraints harder than ever before.

To his left, Austerlitz placed a writhing Tania into a chair that had just been deposited by some random HYDRA agent before he fled and tied her there. She snarled at him but she was subdued nearly two feet away from him. She was so close but so far away.

Red Guy was now re-nicknamed the Devil in Steve's head. No one touched Tania like that and got away with it. No one. Austerlitz was now on his hit list. Every damn henchman in this joint was on his freaking hit list. He jerked his arms and barely felt the cold metal of the cuffs digging into his skin anymore. His arms had become limp noodles but he struggled to regain feeling as he watched the Devil approach his girlfriend.

"I want to see your face Captain," he started, "when you know and feel in your heart and soul that you are, once and for all, powerless."
He slapped Tania across the face. The smack resonated around the entire room and Steve became furious. Seething. But in order for his plan to work, he needed the upper hand. They didn't know his ankles had been freed the day before. He needed surprise. They were expecting him to try and hit them now. It would be pointless.

Tania, to her credit, didn't scream or cry or whimper or any of those things. Her chest rose and fell in quick gasps as she slowly returned her head to its normal position, straight ahead. She was glaring daggers into the Devil's head.

He grinned like a maniac while staring at Steve. "So that's what that looks like," he mumbled to himself. "Ooh, I wish I had a camera to capture this moment." He grabbed Steve's chin and held it fiercely, crushing it in his fingertips.

"It would last longer," he agreed in a tempting fashion.

The Devil raised an eyebrow. "Hit her again."

Austerlitz backhanded Tania on the cheek. She was more prepared for it this time and didn't make a sound. Instead, she chuckled. "I could do this all day," she croaked.

Steve felt an amazing sense of pride and déjà vu as he remembered himself saying that very line quite a few times to the many bullies he'd faced in his life time.

"Maybe so," the Devil conceded, "But can he?"

Austerlitz hit her again and her head snapped to the side. The smack was no quieter than last time and the familiarity of it did nothing to soothe Steve's pounding heart and rushing blood in his ears.

"Oh, how I wish he could have seen this," the Devil exclaimed giddily while staring at Steve. It was hard not to give any reaction when he was so utterly enraged by this horrible DICKHEAD of a person standing in front of him.

"Who?" he asked, knowing that that was what the Devil wanted him to say.

"The original Red Skull."

"Original?"

"Yes, in case you haven't noticed, I am the next generation. The Neo Red Skull, if you will."

"Next generation?"

"Yes, if this can get through that dumb brain of yours. I am Dominik Schmidt."

"Schmidt?" He and Tania said together. It earned her another smack to which Steve was the one to wince.

The Devil cackled (because there was no way what he was doing could be classified as a laugh). "My father was his second cousin," he explained. "You killed a member of my family and now, of course, you see why I have to take revenge."

"No, I don't see," Steve told him bravely.

The Neo Red Skull huffed. "If I were to take a member of your family away, like let's say… one James Barnes," Steve held back a cringe, "and killed them. Would you not want to kill me? Tear me limb from limb?" He kneeled in front of Steve, one hand on the back of his chair and his face rested just a foot or so from his own.

"I don't want to kill anybody," he said. "I'd want revenge, sure. But I'd never kill someone for that reason alone."

"Oh but it would be so tempting," he tried again, "to kill me because I killed one of your own. Because I killed Mr. Barnes." He said it with such conviction, like he had actually done it. "Or maybe, if I killed Miss Banks."

Steve's expression hardened. "I won't let you do that."

"Oh? Are you sure about that?"

"Positive."

"What do you think, Miss Banks?" The Neo Red Skull asked, turning to the woman herself.

She paused in thought. "Steve Rogers doesn't lie. And neither does Captain America. And if you want my opinion, he'll kill you not because of anything you did to me, but because you're part of Nazi organization that can threaten the world. He'll send you to Hell so you can be with your second cousin or whatever – right where you belong."

"Shut up you little bitch!" Austerlitz shouted before smashing the butt of his gun over her head.

Fuck the element of surprise, Steve had had enough. He kicked his feet forward, slamming them into Neo Red Skull's chest before bringing them to the floor and pushing up. He hadn't stood in days and he was a little wobbly but that wasn't about to stop him. He swung his body around and whacked the chair he was still attached to against Austerlitz, sending him to the floor.

"Steve, watch out!" Tania warned when Neo Red Skull sneaked up behind him. The Captain ran forward and jumped in the air, pushing his legs forward and kicking his chest again. It was a move Thor had shown him. They were both shoved in opposite directions and Steve landed on his chair, breaking it beneath his weight. He shoulder rolled backward, now free of the chair. He dropped to a crouch and swung his leg around, swiping the legs of Tania's chair right out from under her. The wooden piece of furniture broke easily under her weight and she grabbed her knife before pushing herself to her feet.

Both Austerlitz and Schmidt were back up by the time this happened and Arnold began to open fire on them. The couple dive rolled separate ways before Steve flipped horizontally in the air and swung his left leg into the back of Austerlitz' head with enough force to knock him out on impact while Tania sawed her ropes off faster than she thought possible and dropped her restraints to the floor. Schmidt tackled her to the ground as soon as her hands were free and her back crashed into the floor painfully.

She gripped the knife he didn't know she had and stabbed him in the first available place – his arm. He cried out while Steve kicked him off of her and she scrambled to her feet. She took the knife and tried out something that just came to her in the moment of adrenaline.

Steve's hand cuffs were powered by electricity and held together by some sort of sizzling wire. She turned him around quickly and stabbed the metal part of the cuff, jamming the blade into a crack and rendering it powerless when the wire was no longer attached to the conductor. Or… that's how she thought it works, anyway.

With his arms free, the first thing Steve did was whirl around and wrap her in a hug. It felt like an eternity since he had held her in his arms and he knew they should be running but he just needed this – for once second.

Tania hugged him back and squeezed as tightly as she could, remembering Steve's promise to her that she would always be safe in his arms. And now she was there, in his embrace, and she had never felt more safe.

The second of happiness was over and Steve ran over to Austerlitz and grabbed his gun. In their moment of tenderness, Schmidt had gotten to his feet and exited the room, pulling an alarm of some sort. That was NOT part of the plan.

Steve grabbed her hand in his while the other held the gun tightly and together they ran out of the room and into the brightly lit hallways. It was a drastic change in lighting and took a little time to get used to. Unfortunately, they didn't have time.

Honestly, Steve thought it would be a little easier than this to break out. He'd thought wrong. The pain from his latest bullet wound was still raw, his legs were numb from lack of use, his arms were numb from lack of use, his stomach rumbled in hunger, his throat ached for water, and his emotions were bubbling over from having to watch the one he loved be hit right in front of his eyes and not be able to do anything about it. Suffice to say, he was not in peak condition right now. That, more than anything, would be his downfall.

He shot with not so perfect aim and with one hand at the minions down the hall that blocked their supposed exit. He had no idea where we he was going, where they were going. This ironically bright white hell was eerily shaped like a maze and there were doors every few feet that led to God knew where.

Luckily JARVIS helped out a lot, feeding them directions on where to go and telling them when to expect to run into more guards. It was helpful, for lack of a better word.

Tania slashed at anyone who got close with her knife (where did she get that knife again?) but it was obvious she wasn't in the best physical condition either. She was still seemingly faring better than he was – physically, at least.

They ran and they attacked and he killed while she tried not to and they ran some more. There were an endless amount of guards around and it seemed hopeless. How far away was this exit anyway? How big was this compound? Where in the hell were they? But Tania and Steve were not ones to give up.

They turned around a very sharp corner (having trouble not to slip and slide and trip over each other while holding hands) and stopped dead in their tracks. There was a pretty large pit right in front of them, randomly place in the middle of the hallway. What the hell?

Neither of them had time to think about it because guards were on their tail and unless they jumped, they were toast. They nodded at each other once as JARVIS calculated the distance for them. They both ignored him and backed up, before running ahead.

Tania jumped. Steve didn't. He was tackled by three guards at once and he'd let go of her hand so as not to drag her down with him. He peeked through the guards he was struggling to fight off and his breath caught in his throat.

Tania landed harshly by her arms on the other side, dangling over the edge dangerously. What lay at the bottom of that pit and how far, he didn't know. He wasn't sure he wanted to know. But whatever it was, there was a possibility that it could kill her.

She struggled and she wiggled and she tried to pull herself up but she was weak from the lack of movement and nutrition and cleanliness and she couldn't do it, so she just kind of hung there – until a hand gripped her throat in a flash and lifted her above the pit with ease.

"Tania!" he cried out, knocking off one guard only to have two more jump on his back. Damn these guys were heavy. It wasn't like he couldn't lift them all, but when they were all punching and kicking and stabbing, it was a little disorienting. Still, his eyes were glued to the love of his life, dangling over a seemingly endless pit, choking to death in the hands of the Neo Red Skull.

"You were so close," he told them, shouting over the noise of HYDRA soldiers attacking the Captain, "Tsk, tsk. But not close enough. Enjoy the consequences."

He threw Tania into the pit. She screamed. Right. Her biggest fear? Falling. Falling and dying at the end of said fall. Holy shit. HOLY-!

Steve cried out, feeling like his heart was falling with her. Or maybe she was his heart, and that was why he felt like that. He slammed one man into the wall, knocking him out instantly. He tossed another one over his head and rammed him into the ground. He punched yet another one in the face over his shoulder and shoved him into the wall before punching him again. The man dropped like a stone. He jumped and landed on his back, or rather, the back of the man on his back, before elbowing his stomach and rolling over, falling into the pit himself. On purpose.

Because Tania wasn't going anywhere without him. Not even to death.

It was dark as he fell and he could feel the clothes whipping at his skin and dove head first, arms outstretched, in the hopes of catching up to Tania. But he had been up there a good fifteen seconds after she'd fallen. A lot could happen in fifteen seconds. She could have died in those precious seconds. He would just have to follow.

The fall wasn't long, but he heard a splash and then mistakenly thought that he would fall into water. He was wrong. It was because of his brain expecting to fall in water (in which case he would live) that he was doubly shocked when his body rammed face first into what felt like a wall of glass. He groaned. That had hurt.

He slowly and shakily raised his palms to rest beside his head and pushed, peeling his face from the glass with a suction cupped smack! He blinked warily and realized that he was lying on all fours on a giant roof of glass that stretched from wall to wall on every side. But where was Tania?

His question was answered when he looked down. It turns out that the glass was part of a giant rectangular fish tank of some sort, filled to the brim with water. What the heck was this here for?

Right below him, floating in the water with her cheeks puffed out to hold her breath, was Tania. He gasped. She had no air under there. No way out. She would drown. She would die. Why hadn't he fallen in with her? Obviously it was some sort of torture scheme set up by HYDRA but he could barely think about that as he watched her pound her fists against the glass directly below him.

"Tania! Tania, can you hear me?!" he tried.

She shook her head but pressed her left palm to the glass, directly beneath his. His hand felt a few degrees warmer and he stared. All he could do was stare. The water was going to kill her. But it had done one thing good. It had cleansed her of the dirt, filth, and dried blood she'd acquired during their stay here, and she was just as beautiful as ever.

But then her lips popped open and bubbles started rising and a hand flew to her throat. She was choking. She was drowning. She was DYING.

"NO!" Steve screeched, pounding his fist against the glass exactly as Tania had done. Maybe because he was a super soldier, he would be able to break this extremely thick barrier between them. He banged the side of his fist again and again.

She screamed silently and he could just barely here her but there was something in the faint scream that was distinctly Tania and he could see and read the fear in her eyes, the panic in her gaze, the beg for help in her face. She pressed her hands harder against the glass – and then she began to sink.

"NO! TANIA!" Tears began falling down his face but he didn't notice or care. He pounded on the glass even harder than before. "NO!"

Her palm slowly stopped touching his – sort of – and her hair flew about her as she lost all air. Her eyelids closed and he was the last thing she saw. "No…" he sobbed. His heart was falling to its death. When she hit the bottom, it exploded, shattering into a billion tiny sharp shards that spread throughout his body and punctured every single part of his being. He screamed and he allowed his elbows to bow out so that he completely collapsed on the roof. He was sobbing hard and Tania was seconds away from dying. Seconds away from being taken away from him.

He forgot about HYDRA. He forgot about their captivity, about the security cameras, about JARVIS, about the Avengers coming to help and he bawled. She was gone. Forever.

It physically hurt to lose. Every part of him stung and ached, even in places he was sure had never been injured. He screamed again, this time in agonizing pain of losing the one he loved. Every muscle tensed and he spasmed. Was he dying too? There was no way he could suffer this much pain and not be dying. Perhaps he was simply dying on the inside. That would make sense.

By some force of nature, instinct perhaps, he opened his eyes one last time and looked down upon her corpse at the bottom of the tank. She looked peaceful. At least she had escaped this Hell he was stuck in. And now they didn't have anything to hold over him anymore. He would not let them win. For Tania.

But then a miracle happened. The water level began decreasing significantly and before he knew it the tank was completely void of liquid except for a shallow puddle at the bottom that she lay in.

He watched with bated breath; hope daring to attack him in his weakest moment, probably ever. Tania's chest stayed infinitely still. Her lips were blue, he could see, even from so far away. She didn't move. She was either dead, or very, very close. This "miracle" had done nothing but free her body from the depths of those cursed waters.

But as he kept watching, continued to stare at her lovely face even though she was dead, he noticed a HYDRA soldier open a door and enter the tank. His heart began pounding out of his chest – the one he'd thought had shattered. He should be dead. He should be down there with her but by some stupid, elaborate plan by HYDRA, he had been separated from her within those FUCKING FIFTEEN SECONDS he'd been stalled.

He honestly hated time at this point. First there was sleeping for seventy years, then there was going back in time and having to choose which he loved more, then where was the fact that time held everything in its palm and chose to separate him from Tania and have her killed. Yeah he totally hated time now.

He grabbed his pocket watch in his fist and popped it open. The coffee mug and the music note embedded into the cover brought more tears to his eyes. His hand shook so hard he couldn't read the time – but he hated time. He closed his fist and raised his hand, ready to smash it. But something held him back. Maybe it was because he didn't want to do something he'd regret, lose something that would remind him of her. Or maybe it was the fact that the HYDRA soldier below was giving her CPR.

His hands were pressing against her chest and his lips were on hers, breathing life into her and Steve couldn't help the jealousy that twisted his stomach and wringed it out like a towel. But the man was trying to save her, even if was half-heartedly and probably against his will. And for that, Steve suppressed the jealousy and watched, not breathing. He hadn't noticed that he'd stopped breathing when she did, holding his breath. How long had it been?

Again with the time thing. He shoved it out of his mind.

Tania still wasn't breathing. The man who was at it and had kissed her at least fourteen times and she still wasn't breathing. On the fifteenth, he rolled her onto her side and she coughed, spluttering up more water than was probably healthy. No water in her lungs was healthy so puking up what looked like an entire gallon was very bad. She coughed for a good forty-five seconds before she flopped onto her back and allowed sleep to take her.

But she was breathing.

Her chest rose and fell and Steve had never been more relieved in his life. Tears of joy were falling, mixing with those of the grief he'd just felt and he could feel the shards of his heart plucking themselves from his insides and slowly putting themselves back together. A protective shell around his real heart.

The HYDRA soldier left, passing by an old man in a wheel chair that Steve didn't notice because he was a little too busy tumbling through the air when the glass suddenly opened in the middle.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah-! UGHN!" He hit the ground harshly on his back and it rang through his body to his bullet wound and he groaned. But none of the pain mattered. Nothing mattered except that Tania was breathing and alive and within reach.

He scrambled to crawl over to her and she was so close and she was breathing! He sighed in relief. He could hear every breath she took, feel the beat of her heart beneath the palm of his hand. He cradled her to his chest. He was touching her. He had his arms around her. She was safe. She was safe. She was alive. She was safe. And Alive.

She was clammy and wet and pale and blue but she was alive and safe and more beautiful than he thought he'd ever seen her. Her dress clung to her and her hair was plastered across her face. He gently pushed it back so that he could see her better. Beautiful…

A sound from the doorway which the soldier had exited made his head snap up and he growled at the old man sitting there in his wheelchair, staring at them with an expression his mind was too clouded to read. All these emotions, the grief he thought would kill him, had taken away his words and reduced him to using his animalistic instincts. So he bared his teeth and pulled her closer, away from the perceived threat.

The old man sat there for a second longer before rolling away, leaving Steve and his love in peace. When he finally accepted that the threat was gone, he turned and stared at the one thing that could destroy him completely, but that he loved unconditionally forever. He wanted to tell her he loved her, but his throat was dry and he had no words. So he simply leaned over her body and cried. He cried for hours in relief and grief at the same time. He cried himself to sleep and when he woke, she was no longer in his arms.