Natalia
Natalia watched as the man she stabbed fell onto his back and he didn't move. She knew that he wasn't dead, not yet. She knew she should be happy, she had completed her mission objective. Then why did she feel this pang of guilt that flowed over her body as she stared at the man's body lying limply on the ground? She didn't even know the man, and he seemed to care about her, a lot. She never say that before, other than Winter Soldier, he cared about her, but from a teacher to student stand point. This man who was lying on the ground, dying, seemed that he actually loved her. He was sorry for hurting her, Natalia had never run into that. She was trained that emotions were a weakness.
Were they a weakness, or was that just them trying to indoctrinate her into thinking that emotions make her weak. She put her hands to her head and she didn't know what to do. It seems that nothing is wrong, but something clearly is. Natalia felt a tear come to her eye. What is happening? She couldn't stop the feelings, she looked at the man on the floor and her heart felt broken, she slowly crawled over to him, wincing when she put little pressure on her leg. Natalia put her hands on his chest and his eyes shot open. Natalia hesitated and she said the first thing that came to her mind: "Hi"
He stared up at her and he was breathing fast "Hi" he said and he coughed.
"How do I know you?" Natalia asked
He paused and she knew that he knew that she wasn't Natasha.
"I'm your partner" he said
"In where?"
"Work, and out of work" he said and he coughed again
Natalia paused for a second and she blinked "Are we in a relationship, I mean is Natasha in a relationship with you?" Natalia asked
The man nodded his head and he slightly winced as he moved his arm.
"How did I get you?" Natalia asked
"You had me, from the first time I looked at you" Steve said
"You say this is 2015, and life seemed good for me" Natalia said looking around and her eyes came back to him.
"It is" Steve said coughing
"Then I don't want to be here" Natalia said
Steve looked at her slightly confused "Can you bring Natasha back?" Natalia asked
"I'm not sure" Steve said
"Well it was working before, do something that solves the problem that is in my head"
"What is the problem?" Steve asked
"I feel like I shouldn't be here, I had my time, and this life, Natasha's life seems nice."
"You do know you're the same person right?" Steve asked
"I know, it's just I would rather be a memory than a true thing. I'm a monster"
"You're not a monster, you have a dark past, and you can't let it control you" Steve said
"You've said that before" Natalia said
"Yeah, and I know what happened at that school that haunts you so much" Steve said
Natalia looked away from him and she saw the images of kids burning and she stood there and did nothing, she just turned off her emotions and watched as they screamed in pain, and she did nothing. "You not disgusted with me?"
"No, I can forgive things that seem unforgivable. It was a long time ago, and you are truly sorry for it, you shouldn't be hated for it. You were trained by cruel people that wanted nothing for you, but a gun and the next mission."
"You have a way with people don't you?" Natalia asked
"You keep telling me that" Steve said smirking
"Ok, well I'm going to save you" Natalia said
Natalia looked at the knife in his chest and she grabbed it and she looked at Steve and he gave her a nod and she pulled it out. He gritted his teeth and he grunted in pain. Natalia put her finger around the wound and she pressed slightly and she looked at Steve "This is going to hurt"
"Just do it" he said
Natalia put her finger into the wound and she felt around and she looked at Steve's face and he had his eyes closed and his face had no emotion in it. Natalia took her finger out of his wound.
"Well you are lucky that was the worst stab of all time" Natalia said
"What?"
"I missed your heart and hit all body cavity"
"Thanks I guess"
Natalia chuckled "Ok I'm going to cauterize it" she said
"Here use this" Steve said holding out a nail to her
Natalia took it and she tore a piece of cloth that was from his sweater. She pulled out a lighter from his pants. "Where did you get these clothes?"
"From a very disgusting shop owner somewhere in Russia"
"Well you are lucky he had a lighter"
"Well I'll thank him afterward"
"Ok, this is going to hurt"
"I can take, it I've been through worse"
Natalia looked at him and she nodded and she flipped open the lighter and she made the flame come out of it and she held the nail to the flame. She waited for a few minutes and it was hot enough to burn skin. She tossed the lighter away, not caring where it went. Natalia slowly moved the nail to his wound and she looked at him one last time and he nodded and she put the hot nail to his skin and it burned. Steve gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw. Natalia took the nail away and she looked at it and it was cauterized.
"Sorry about the ribs"
"Don't worry, they're mostly healed already"
"Right your serum, I wish they put that in mine"
"Everyone does" Steve said and she held out a hand to him and he took it and she helped him sit up.
"I'm still here" she said
"I know, and it was nice to talk to you" Steve said
"You don't mean that" Natalia said and she looked at his blue eyes and she felt herself slightly become lost in them.
"I mean that" Steve said and he put his hand on her face
Natalia had never had this kind of affection, and she felt a pang of regret that she never will. Natalia didn't know what she was doing and her hands shot forward and grabbed his face and kissed him. She took him off guard and she felt his lips against hers and then his arms wrapped around her and she could feel his warmth around her and she felt herself leave and she was taken away, but she was sad to go. She knew that it was for the best and she wished she had just one day with him, after one conversation, she would have followed him anywhere. He did have a way with people.
Steve held her in his arms and they came apart and he looked into her eyes and Natalia was gone and Natasha was back. Natasha had tears flowing down her eyes and she kissed him again. Steve held her close and he felt her close to him and he had forgotten where they were.
"Wait, I need to get you out of here" Steve said
"Then take me home" Natasha said and she rested her head against his shoulder and she never noticed how she missed his hugs.
"Yes ma'am"
Steve grabbed her and he put his left arm under her legs and he grabbed her by the mid back and picked her up. He kept the pain of his half healed ribs back and he carried her and he began to walk forward.
Clint
Clint was staring at the flames as they began to climb higher. Well at least the prison was going to be destroyed, but at the moment with them still in it. Clint looked behind him and he saw three huge fuel storage tanks. He rolled his eyes, great. Clint walked over to Bobbi, who was talking to Hill.
"Anything?" Clint asked
Bobbi glanced at him and she said something to Hill and turned toward him "Yeah, the maintenance room is below us, and it is full of flames at the moment."
Clint exhaled "Of course, well we need to get out of here, we have three fuel storage tanks over there and fire is climbing"
"Yeah it didn't help that the prison had a huge fuel depot at the bottom and that is what exploded" Hill said
"This just keeps getting better and better" Clint said
They stood around not entirely sure of what to do when a loud metal bang came from the hallway that Bucky ran down. Clint looked at the hallway and he pulled out one of his last arrows and he walked forward slowly. Another loud bang came and echoed throughout the prison and then another. Clint got to the corner and he leaned up against the wall and he peeked around the corner and he saw three huge dents in the sealed metal door. Clint didn't like the look of that then another dent appeared with a loud bang. Clint walked away from the wall and back toward Hill and Bobbi.
"Someone is coming out of the sealed door"
"Bucky?" Hill asked
"No idea, but he had a metal arm so it is most likely him." Clint said
Another loud bang came and Clint turned and he saw half of the metal door fly out of the hallway and then Barnes came out after it and he rolled and stopped himself with his metal hand scraping against the stone. Bucky looked up and he glanced over at them.
"Get down!" he yelled
Clint saw Niko come around the corner with a rocket launcher "Shit" Clint said and he tackled Hill and Bobbi to the ground. Niko fired at them and the rocket flew past them and missed and hit the wall and sent rock and dirt flying into the air and the wall broke away and they could see outside and the sun was coming up. Clint stood up and Niko tossed the launcher away and he looked at Clint.
"You brought friends" Niko said to Bucky
"Well, I t would have been stupid to come alone" Bucky said
"Yes, but you have just made my job easier, now I can kill you all" Niko said and he pulled out a detonator.
Clint's eyes widened and he fired the arrow and it hit the detonator out of Niko's hand. Niko went for it and Bucky threw the shield and hit him in the back. Niko growled and he turned around toward Bucky. Bucky ran and he punched Niko in the face and ten the gut. Niko countered with a knee to the gut and then a head butt. Bucky blocked another punch and he kicked Niko away. Niko fell onto his back and he got back up.
"Go, find Steve and get him out of here" Bucky said
"What about you?" Clint asked
"I've got him" Bucky said and ducked a kick and he quickly hit Niko twice in the ribs and jaw.
Hill took a step forward, toward him Bucky stopped Niko's arm and looked at her "Go and get Steve out of here, go" Bucky said and he punched Niko in the face and then a knee hit Bucky in the face.
Bucky retreated and he blocked a kick and he slammed down on Niko's leg. Niko grimaced and he swung at him with lightning speed. Bucky was just in time to block every punch.
Hill followed Clint and Bobbi and they ran into the hallway. Clint saw Steve carrying Natasha in his arms.
"Cap" Clint said
"Clint here take her, careful her right leg is broken" Steve said and he handed Natasha off to Clint who held her close.
"Who broke her leg?" Clint asked
"That would be me" Steve said
Clint's eyes widened "She was brainwashed by Niko, but I think it's gone"
Clint looked at her "Nat?"
Natasha looked up at him "Hey Barton" she said
Clint laughed lightly "Well you seem to be in one piece, you scared me there for a second" Clint said
"Just get me out of here" Natasha said and she looked at Steve
"Cap, Niko is out there" Clint said
"I know, and I'm going to give him a visit" Steve said
Steve walked past him and he exited the hallway and he saw Bucky fighting Niko. Steve saw his shield on the ground and he grabbed it. Steve walked forward and he was behind Niko. Bucky noticed Steve was walking toward them and he kicked Niko back and Steve hit him with the shield. Niko swiped Steve's leg out from under him. He rolled backwards and he came up and Steve stood up and Bucky was to his right.
"It comes down to this huh?" Niko said and he spit blood out of his mouth
"It ends here Niko" Bucky said
"We'll see about that" Niko said and he cracked his jaw
Steve took a step forward and Niko pulled out a pistol and fired. Steve put the shield up and he walked forward. Niko dropped the gun and he waited for Steve to throw a punch. Niko was ready for it then a metal hand hit him. He stumbled away, he looked at them and Bucky was directly behind Steve.
"Ok, time for the end game" Niko said and he pulled out another detonator and clicked it.
"What was that?" Bucky asked
"The thing I warned you about" Niko said
Bucky's eyes widened and he glanced over at Natasha.
"She has two minutes" Niko said
Bucky looked at Steve "Go, you need to kill her" Bucky said
"What?" Steve snapped
"The brainwashing is going to return and this time it isn't going to go away, you have two minutes till the Natasha we Know won't be coming back at all" Bucky said
"You have got to be kidding me" Steve said
"Afraid not, Go! I've got him" Bucky said
Steve looked back at Niko and he looked at Natasha and he ran after Clint. Bucky walked forward.
"Ok Niko, let's kill each other" Bucky said
Niko smiled and he ran at Bucky. Bucky stopped a kick and then a punch. Bucky returned with a head butt and then a hand to the throat. Niko grabbed his arm and he pulled it away and he punched Bucky twice in the face. Bucky felt his jaw slightly dislocate. He grunted and he hit Niko in the ribs and he brought the metal hand up and grabbed him by the throat and picked him up and slammed him down onto his back. Niko felt the air in his lungs leave and he coughed and he kicked Bucky in the back. Bucky stumbled forward and he swung backwards and he hit Niko in the face, bruising his cheek.
Niko brought out a knife and sliced Bucky in the ribs. Blood hit the floor and Bucky felt the cold blade and the burning. He took a breath and he swung at Niko. Niko dodged and then a pistol was pointed at his gut and Bucky shot him five times. Niko fell onto his back and he gasped for air. Bucky tossed the gun away and pulled out another one and aimed at Niko's head.
"It ends here" Bucky said
"Not here" Niko said and he stabbed Bucky in the ankle, Bucky groaned in pain "In hell" Niko said and he pulled the knife out and sliced Bucky in the thigh.
Bucky stepped back and aimed the pistol and fired. Niko took a bullet to the shoulder and he wasn't fazed by it and he kept coming. Bucky tossed the gun away and Niko tackled him to the ground and they both slid across the floor and Bucky's head went over the edge and he was leaning back and he could see the flames climbing. Bucky blocked a punch and then a hand grabbed his arm and Niko punched Bucky in the face.
Bucky felt his head go back and then another punch and then another. Niko had blood leaking out of his nose and mouth and he had a smile on his face and he punched him again. Niko was breathing heavily and Bucky was too tired to move. He struggled to breathe and Niko stood to his full height. He grabbed Bucky's metal arm and he held it straight out. He put his foot on the upper arm.
"They gave you this arm" Niko said and he pulled. Bucky felt the arm crack and bend and break away. Niko held the arm in his hand and he laughed and looked at Bucky "And now I'm going to kill you with it"
Niko straitened the arm out and he had the torn part aimed at Bucky's throat and he brought it down.
Hill looked over at Bucky and saw Niko about to stab him with his own arm. Hill ran forward and she felt her heart racing and her legs were burning. She was tired and she couldn't go much longer. She pushed herself and she felt her legs go numb with burning pain and she yelled.
"NO!"
Hill tackled Niko and they both flew over the edge.
Bucky watched as Hill and Niko flew over the edge and Bucky felt his heart jump as he knew that Hill was going to fall into the blazing flames. Bucky rolled to his left and he grabbed her hand as she flew past him. Bucky felt the pain in his right arm and he stopped her from falling. Hill looked up in surprise and she looked into Bucky's eyes.
"Gotcha" he said
Bucky grunted and he lifted Hill up. He yelled in pain as he felt his muscles strain and he rolled. Hill came up the top and she grabbed the edge and started to pull her own weight. Bucky was breathing heavily and he had her hand in in his and he was sighing in relief.
"Good catch" Hill said and she laid next to him.
"Next time, warn me first" Bucky said lightly chuckling
"You got it" Hill said getting up and she pulled Bucky to his feet. Bucky looked back down and he saw Niko was pulling himself up onto a small platform that was just above the flames. He looked up at them.
"This isn't the end Barnes!" He yelled up at him
"Hey Niko, just shut the hell up" Bucky said and he walked forward.
Steve
Steve ran up to Clint and he grabbed him by the shoulder "We have a big problem" Steve said
"What?"
"Niko just activated his backup brainwashing, to make sure it doesn't go away"
"What?" Natasha asked
"Bucky said that to stop it from happening we have two minutes and you're not going to like this, you have to die for it to stop"
"I really hate this guy" Clint said
"Do it" Natasha said
Clint looked down at her "What?" Clint snapped
"Barton, put me down" Natasha said
"But Nat"
"Clint put me down"
Clint against his better judgement put her down. Natasha was keeping herself sitting up and Steve knelt down next to her.
"Clint call Fury to come get us" Bucky said walking up
"Ok, well Steve just told…"
"You that she needs to die to stay herself, well yeah" Bucky said and he looked down at Natasha.
"Guys stop looking at me with faces like I'm a child go and wait for Fury to get here. Steve and I have got this" Natasha said slightly angry that they were fretting over her.
They walked away and Bucky kept his eyes on them the entire time. When they were out of ear shot Natasha spoke.
"Steve use my Widows bite, set it to lethal and shock me" Natasha said
"Is there another way?" Steve asked
"Steve, calm down. If you freak out, I'm going to freak out. We've gotten out of worse"
Steve nodded and kept himself calm and he took her gauntlets off.
"Ok one gauntlet will kill me and another will bring me back" Natasha said and he turned one of them to lethal.
"Ok, well it's like the time when you save me on the helicarrier" Steve said swallowing
"Yeah, it's going to be fun" Natasha said trying to make him feel better
"You know that is a sick sense of humor" Steve said
"I just noticed that" Natasha said and she smirked.
Steve grabbed the gauntlet that was lethal and he looked at Natasha. Her smirk was gone and her eyes were closed as if she was concentrating on something. She groaned in pain and she fell back and she groaned as her head pulsed with pain. Steve swallowed and he put his hand on her face.
"You ready?" he asked
Natasha nodded her head through the pain and she saw a flash of fire and people burning.
"OK" Steve said and he charged the gauntlet and he placed it on her chest and shocked her.
Natasha arched her back and she shook and then fell back down and wasn't moving. Steve felt his heart rate increase and he clenched his jaw as he looked at Natasha as she was lying limp. He placed his fingers on her throat and he didn't feel a pulse. He exhaled and he grabbed the other one and charged it and shocked her. Her body arched up then fell back down. Steve charged again and shocked her.
"Come on, you wake up" Steve said and he shocked her again.
Steve charged and shocked her again, nothing. "Come on" Steve said and he shocked her again.
Steve went to charge again and her gauntlet died. He tapped it against his hand and he gritted his teeth. "No, work" he said and ha smacked it hard and it turned on and then died again.
Steve dropped the glove and he put his hands on her face. "Don't you give up yet" Steve said and he placed his hands on her chest and pressed down quickly. He counted to thirty and he grabbed her jaw and tilted her head and he breathed into her mouth and he saw her chest rise. He counted to thirty again as he pressed down on her chest. He tilted her head again and he gave her a breath again. Steve did it again and he titled her head and breathed. He saw her chest rise and he was about to do chest presses again when she coughed and her eyes opened.
"Natasha" he said and he sat her up she was coughing and she took in a few deep breaths. She looked at him.
"Steve?" she said and her eyes closed and she passed out.
Steve held her close and he could feel her heart beating and he was filled with relief.
"Fury, we have a minute tops" Clint said
Steve picked her up and carried her like before and walked over to them.
"What is going on?"
"Fury is coming, but he ran into some trouble and he isn't going to be here on time" Clint said and he looked at Natasha in his arms and her eyes were closed.
Guessing at Clint's reaction Steve spoke "She's ok, just passed out" Steve said and his voice was soft.
The floor rumbled and shook and then fire came over the edges of the railings and the fire spread slowly toward them.
"Oh yeah, what did you explode to use for a signal?" Clint asked looking at the flames
"I didn't blow up anything" Steve said
"Then who did?"
"I'll tell you later" Steve said
Steve heard the floor creak and start to bend from the heat. He heard a Quinjet above them. It slowly hovered down and the ramp dropped and Bobbi jumped and pulled herself up. Bucky jumped up next and Bobbi helped him in. Hill went next and Bucky pulled her to her feet.
Clint jumped and grabbed the edge and grunted as he pulled himself up. Bucky and Clint leaned over and put their hands out and Steve raised Natasha up and they grabbed her lifted her up. Steve was about to jump up when the floor bent and he fell backwards. He hit the floor and rolled and his arm caught on fire. He jumped up and threw off his coat and he put the shield onto his back and he ran up the slanted floor and he jumped. Bucky and Clint caught his hands when the floor gave away and he was dangling above the flames.
"Use some of that strength Cap, you're a lot heavier than you look" Clint said
They used their strength and they pulled Steve up and Steve stood and he looked at Clint and patted his shoulder. Clint walked away and Steve turned to see Bucky and he smirked at him.
"That is the last time you do something on your own" Bucky said
"Yeah, keep hoping that I won't do anything stupid"
"Everything you do is stupid" Bucky said teasingly
"Yeah" Steve said and he hit the manual close for the ramp "Then why don't you ever stop me?"
"I don't know, maybe I like saving you" Bucky said
Steve laughed and he walked forward and he saw Fury was standing over Natasha while she was on a crate. Steve walked past her and he patted Fury on the shoulder. Steve sat down on a seat and he leaned back and rested his head on the hull. He didn't notice how tired he felt. He felt his eyes become heavy and he relaxed and he closed his eyes and welcomed the much needed sleep.
End of Act 5