Author's Note: Alright, here we go! Thank you for the comments I've been getting! Even a 'please update soon!' keeps me motivated to keep posting and writing! Things are going to get a little tense here. I had fun writing this chapter. Because I love chaos. Mwahaha!
And it's time for hints for the next part in Aspen and Steve's story! The third part in my series will be titled A Game of Winter. Which in and of itself gives you some hints toward the content!
Feel free to leave a review, and thank you as always for reading!
27 – The Face of Evil – June 18th, 2012
"Isn't that what they always say in the movies?" Zemo stood, and Steve readied himself for a fight. He wished he could get Aspen to leave, but he knew she never would. Instead he forced himself to focus on Zemo. "Ah, but you wouldn't know. You missed a few years."
"I guess you finished your compound after all."
"It has lengthened my life considerably yes, but I find myself growing bored." He waved a hand in the air.
"So you're doing all this because you're bored?"
"If you had lived as long as I have, you would be bored too. You're just beginning your life again. You're still so young."
"What do you want with me, Zemo? Revenge? After all these years?"
"It's never too late for revenge. I couldn't very well take it when you were frozen somewhere in the Arctic. When I heard that they had found your body though… I had hoped you would survive so that we could meet again, and here you are. You even brought friends."
Steve moved in front of Aspen, and Zemo chuckled. "I'm not sure she appreciates your protectiveness," he said. "She finds it overbearing. I wonder how long this will last, the two of you. Ah, yes, I saw the way she threw herself at you after rescuing you. Clearly you mean a great deal to her, but she will eventually grow bored. We all do."
"That's not true," Aspen said sharply. She moved to Steve's side again, and he fought back the urge to shield her again.
"Quit manipulating us," Steve said. Zemo smiled, the curve of his lips just visible behind the veil.
"It only works if you let it," Zemo said silkily.
"What do you want with me?" Steve asked again.
"I want your strength, your speed and agility, your influence," Zemo said, slamming his hand down on the table. "I may be immortal, but I am old in my bones. Old weaknesses, old injuries… I'm not what I once was. Scarred beyond recognition. Oh, but you don't see, do you? Let me show you." He pulled back the veil, exposing his scarred face. Most of the scars were burns. One eye was milky white, nearly swollen shut beneath his puckered skin. His remaining eye was a clear shade of blue that seemed hardly human. He sneered. "I did not survive all these years as well as you did. I want to see your years striped away, your powers and your strengths. I want to see you suffer as I did, burn as I did."
"Whatever you want to do to me, leave my friends out of it," Steve growled.
"But don't you see?" Zemo asked. "Making them suffer will make it worse for you."
"And how do you propose you do that?" Steve asked. "There's nothing keeping us here."
Zemo laughed cruelly. "You don't think I really kept my castle so unprotected, did you? Outside this room are two dozen highly trained guards and somewhere in this castle Trickshot has your archer friend. Do you really want to test me?"
"You have no idea what you're playing with," Steve told him, trying to formulate a plan in his head. "I'm not sure you really want to test us."
"First you can watch her die." He pulled a gun out from behind his back and aimed it at Aspen. Steve realized that Aspen was in full range of the shot having moved a few feet to his right. Before Zemo had the chance to pull the trigger however, Steve put his hands on the end of the long table and thrust it toward Zemo with all his might. The table shot forward, hitting Zemo in the gut. The gun arm flew upward and the shot took some plaster down from the ceiling. Zemo's eyes widened as his body was propelled backwards through the window, shattering the glass.
The last Steve saw of him was his wide-open eyes as he realized he had lost. Wagner rushed to the window, and Steve resisted the urge to push him out too.
"That was easier than expected," Aspen said, breaking the silence.
"You!" Wagner turned to them. "You!" That's when Aspen shot him with her dart gun. He fell to the floor in a heap.
"We've still got two dozen guards outside these doors. I'm surprised they haven't come bursting-" He cut off as the doors splintered open. Clearly the doors had locked behind them when they'd entered the room. It was also clear that the guards had heard the breaking glass. Steve raised his shield, and Aspen pulled out her second dart gun. The first guard went flying as Steve struck out with his shield. Six more fell with darts in their necks. Aspen gave him a sly smile as they fought on. When all twenty-four guards lay unconscious around their feet, Aspen looked over at Steve.
"Huh," she said. "That wasn't much of a test."
"Clearly he'd never seen your dart guns in action." Something nagged at the back of his mind. That had been easy. What if it wasn't over?
Aspen walked over to Wagner. "We should take him with us. He might have some valuable information if we can get him to talk." She took out some thin cord from her belt and tied his hands behind his back. "He can think of superhero names for me in solitary confinement. Now we need to go find Clint before he gets himself into trouble."
Steve followed Aspen out of the room, treading carefully around the prone bodies. Steve was wondering how they were going to find Clint when they heard shouting and a loud crash from below. They exchanged a glace and sprinted toward the staircase ahead.
The front hall of the castle was a mess. Vases lay in shards and pictures had fallen to the floor and shattered. Barney and Clint were locked in a struggle that did not seem to be going well for Clint. His lip was bleeding and his face sporting bruises that were already beginning to darken. His muscular arms strained as he wrestled with Barney. Their bows lay discarded on the ground a few feet away. Barney had no injuries, and Steve realized Clint was trying to spare him.
Aspen sighed and aimed her dart gun before pulling the trigger. The dart flew across the room and deftly hit Barney's neck. Instead of falling to the ground, out cold, he tore the dart from his neck and looked straight at them. The family resemblance was striking. Though his hair was a bronzy red rather than dark blonde, he had the same blue-grey eyes as Clint. Right now there was nothing remotely friendly in those eyes.
Clint took advantage of the distraction and thrust his fist into the side of Barney's face. He shook out his hand as Barney slumped to the floor.
"Great, glad that was so easy," Aspen said, studying Clint's face.
Clint wiped a drop of blood off his chin. "Well, what were you two doing this whole time? Canoodling in some dark passageway?" Steve felt his cheeks grow warm.
Aspen gave Clint a deathly glare. "I would slap you if you weren't already bruised to hell," she snapped. "For your information, while you were serving as a personal punching bag, we were escaping imprisonment, dealing with madmen, fighting two dozen guards, and, oh, yeah, throwing Zemo out a third story window."
Clint stared at her. "Zemo's dead?"
"Well, I'm thinking he didn't survive that fall unless he's made of jelly or sprouted wings." Steve could tell Aspen was just getting warmed up.
"Wagner?"
"Tied up and ready to be delivered," Steve put in before Aspen could start in on Clint again.
"Told you you could handle this," Clint threw at Aspen. Aspen muttered angrily under her breath, and Clint grinned at her. "Come on, we need to get out of here."
"I am not carrying anyone to the quinjet," Aspen said, putting her hands on her hips.
"I'll just go get the jet then and park it on the front lawn, shall I? No one will notice."
"Who care if anyone notices? Eventually someone is going to notice something!"
Clint sighed loudly.
"What about the artifacts?" Steve asked. "There are an awful lot of things in there that SHIELD would be interested in." Clint sighed again.
"You're going to have to call in a team," Aspen said. "And no, I am not carrying all that onto the jet! You parked it up a freaking mountain!"
"The guards are all going to wake up before SHIELD can get here," Steve pointed out.
"There are so many holes in this plan, I'm surprised it hasn't sprung a leak," Aspen grumbled. Clint threw her a glare.
"Then we lock them up," he told Steve.
"I can barricade the doors and tie them up," Steve said. "Unless they want to scale three stories, they're not getting out."
"I'll get the jet," Clint said resignedly.
"I'll guard Barney," Aspen told them.
"You sure? If he wakes up… If your darts don't work, my tranqs won't."
"Then I knock him in the head," Aspen said. "Go. Both of you."
"Since when did you start giving orders?" But Clint didn't look mad.
"Take this at least." Steve handed over his shield.
"Why?" She gave him a puzzled look.
"For if he wakes up."
"Let's not give him a concussion," Clint threw over his shoulder.
"Be careful," Steve told Aspen. He left her standing, hands on his shield, ready to incapacitate Barney again if need be.
Before dragging an enormous cabinet against the broken doors of the dining room, Steve pulled Wagner from the room and used cord to tie each guard to the heavy oak chairs that lay around the table. A cool breeze ruffled his hair, and he felt himself drawn to the window. The calmness outside was such a stark contrast to what they had just been through. He could see the village behind a line of trees. If Clint employed the quinjet shields they might manage to avoid notice after all. He looked down and saw Zemo's body lying prone on the ground below. The purple veil fluttered in the breeze. He frowned, unable to shake the feeling that they were missing something.
Back in the hall, he dragged the heavy cabinet in front of the doors. He'd already relieved the guards of their weapons. Now he shouldered Wagner's unconscious body and headed down to the front hall again. Aspen was sitting next to Barney, the shield rested up against her knees. She'd taken the liberty of tying Barney's hands behind his back. Steve set Wagner's body down next to him.
Aspen stifled a yawn. "I'm taking a long nap after this," she told Steve. "Preferably wrapped in your arms." She gave him a coy smile.
Steve's cheeks warned though there was no reason for it. He crossed his arms, something he tended to do when he was uncomfortable or flustered. He'd started noticing this habit after Aspen had pointed it out to him. He still didn't know how to respond to Aspen's flirtations but she never seemed to expect a response. Either that or her grin would widen as she listened to him stutter out a response.
The sound of the quinjet arriving saved him from responding. They went out on the front steps of the castle to meet Clint, opening the castle doors wide.
"I called for backup," Clint said. "An artifacts team is coming to collect the items."
"My old job," Aspen said. "I'm not going to miss sorting through potentially dangerous items like that."
"Are the guards secure?" Clint asked, turning to Steve.
"Tied up and the door bared," he said. "They were still out cold thanks to Aspen's darts."
"I took the liberty of shooting the ones you knocked out too," she said in response.
"My brother?" Clint asked.
"Tied up and still unconscious," Aspen said, turning to look back into the hall. Her eyes widened at the same moment Clint shouted, "Watch out!"
Steve turned around in enough time to see Barney standing, untied and holding a gun. His bonds lay on the ground at his feet. The next moment Aspen lurched. Steve looked down to see blood soaking through her shirt. She stood for a moment, placing a hand against her side. It came away red.
"No!" Steve caught Aspen as she fell, eyes going distant. She slumped into his arms. "Aspen! Stay with me!"
Clint was staring at her in horror. "Do something!" Steve shouted at him. Clint brought his bow up with reflexive speed aiming at Barney's legs, but Barney dodged the arrow with ease, disappearing into the castle. Clint made to take after him, but Steve shouted, "She needs help now or she's going to bleed out! Leave him!"
Clint stared after Barney for a second longer. "Damnit!" He kicked the doorframe. "Get her up," he said.
Steve carefully pulled Aspen into his arms. He needed to put pressure on the wound or she was going to lose too much blood. "We need to take her into the village to get help," he told Clint.
Clint swore again. "Come on," he said. "We'll find a doctor."
Steve went as quickly as he could go, careful not to jostle Aspen too much. The village came into view, and Clint ran ahead to find a doctor. People stared as they passed through. Steve was sure the sight of a bruised and battered archer and a man holding a bleeding girl and wearing a shield on his back was quite the sight, but right now he didn't care. Right now all that mattered was saving Aspen. Her blood had soaked into the front of his shirt making it look as if he'd been shot too.
"Here!" Clint yelled, holding the door to a doctor's office open. Steve entered, Clint on his heels. A startled looking assistant at the front desk shot to her feet when they entered.
"She's been shot. She needs help," Steve told the frightened looking girl. He didn't know if she understood English, but she understood that they needed help.
"This way," she said in a thick Austrian accent.
Steve followed her through a set of doors and down a corridor. She motioned them into a room with an operation table and hurried out of the room presumably to find a doctor. "Stay with me, Aspen," Steve pleaded with her. Her face was very pale, and he feared she'd lost too much blood. He gently laid her on the table. A doctor and three assistants entered a moment later.
"What has happened?" the doctor asked. He brushed past Steve and Clint.
"She's been shot," Steve said though that was pretty clear from the bullet wound.
"How long?" The doctor was calm. Much calmer than Steve felt.
"A few minutes."
"I will tend her. If you will wait outside." When Steve didn't move he added, "Please. We need to operate now if we are to save her."
Steve didn't want to leave her, but he knew the doctor was right. He bent down and kissed her head. "I'll be here, Aspen. Just hang on." He and Clint backed from the room as the doctors stripped the blood-soaked shirt off of her to expose the wound.
"You can wait out here," the woman from the front desk said in stilted English. "They will let you know what happens."
Steve and Clint grudgingly followed her, taking a seat in the front office. If she thought it was strange when Steve leaned his shield up against the wall or Clint his bow, she didn't say so. The minutes passed like hours, and Steve had never felt so frightened.
…
"Just hang on." Aspen heard the words over and over in her head. The blackness consumed her completely, but she still hung onto those words. Steve, she tried to say. I'm right here. I'm not leaving you. But she couldn't form the words, couldn't move. After awhile even the words faded leaving her with nothing.
…
Steve sat with his head in his hands. It seemed like it had been ages since they had started the operation. He couldn't stand the thought of that bullet ripping through Aspen, tearing apart her skin. Now the doctors would be cutting into her to remove the bullet. What if she didn't make it? He had no way of knowing if the bullet had hit any internal organs. Panic began to set in. What if he didn't even get to say goodbye? What would he even do without Aspen? She was everything to him. Just a few minutes before she'd been telling him she wanted to fall asleep in his arms.
"I can't believe Barney shot her," Clint said, breaking the silence.
Steve looked over at him. "I can," he said sharply. Now he felt his sorrow turning into anger. It boiled up quickly. Clint had dragged them into this unauthorized mission. "Barney doesn't remember who he is. He's a criminal. He wouldn't think twice about killing any of us, even you. Aspen was just the unlucky recipient of his bullet."
"He didn't know what he was doing."
"You're actually defending him? Justifying his behavior?" Steve asked in disbelief. Clint was staring at the floor. Steve stood abruptly and began to pace. The girl behind the desk sunk lower behind her computer monitor. "He shot Aspen, Clint. Or did you miss that?"
"I know. I saw it. God, I hope she's all right. This is all my fault."
"You're damn right, it is."
Clint finally looked up at Steve. "You're blaming me for her getting shot."
Steve laughed in disbelief. "Yeah, I am. You dragged her into this mission. You knew it was dangerous and that Barney was unpredictable."
"It's part of the job. People get hurt everyday."
"Part of the job?" Steve stared at him. "Clint, Aspen could die. How is that 'part of the job?' Our job is to look out for her!"
"She doesn't need anyone to look out for her."
"Then why is she lying on an operation table?" Steve asked. He realized he was shouting. He took a deep breath to calm himself. He knew pointing fingers wasn't going to solve anything but it sure as hell felt good.
"Because shit like this happens to good people," Clint told him. "Just like it happened to my brother. Maybe you don't have a family to fight for, but I do. I'm sorry Aspen got shot. If I had known Barney would do that, that it would happen, I would have kept her miles away. But are you gonna be the one to tell her to stay home and sit tight while we go on missions? She chose this life, Steve. She knew the risks. She's a fighter though. She's going to make it."
Steve tried to calm himself, sitting back down. "Sorry," he said softly after a moment. "This isn't your fault, and it's not right for me to blame you."
"No, it is my fault. If she…if she doesn't make it…" Clint shook his head. "I'll never forgive myself."
They lapsed into silence. Waiting was torture. Steve had no idea how bad the wound was. He could only sit and hope that she would be okay. When the doctor finally stepped into the waiting room, Steve and Clint were so caught up in their own thoughts that they didn't notice him at first. Then he cleared his voice and they jumped to their feet, looking at him with expectant eyes. Steve's heart was racing, and he suddenly found it hard to breathe. He was scared to hear the words the doctor would say. He couldn't read his expression. Surely he'd be smiling if the operation was successful? The suspense drew out even though Steve knew it had only been a few seconds. Then the doctor opened his mouth and gave them the news.