"Did you manage to get Sitwell?" Bethany muttered into the inconspicuous radio she possessed.
"Yeah. It wasn't too hard. Nat politely convinced him to fess up." Steve voice cracked over the speaker in response.
She gave a quiet sigh of relief, relaxing her tense shoulders against the café chair. Steve, Sam and Natasha had devised a plan earlier that day which involved wings, weapons, and kidnapping. The equipment was the only thing Bethany was certain she could assist with, and continued to make a quick stop at Steve's ruined apartment to gather all of the resources they needed. After her job was done, she was advised to wait for their part of the plan to go smoothly. Fortunately enough, it did.
"Awesome. I'll meet you at the rendezvous." she said, rising from the table calmly to draw as little attention as possible.
She hurriedly crossed the busy street, and patiently waited on the curb for her ride. Even though there was no adrenaline involved with her short mission, she couldn't help but feel anxious about the whole situation.
This feels unnervingly familiar...
Suddenly, in close proximity to where she stood, was the sound of a car screeching against gravel. Her ears popped from the uncomfortably piercing sound, sending her shaking hands to each side of her face. She stared in horror towards the noise, as the civilians around her started screaming in panic. A long highway covering most of the road in front of her seemed to be the source of the danger. Bethany's distracted assumptions immediately formed into one single name; Steve.
Closing her eyes in concentration, she sighed sharply, expanding her energy to the Earth below her planted feet. The ground hummed in unison, connecting with her wavelengths to increase it's power. Steadily, she blocked out the blaring background noise, focusing the strength surging through her body. Fixating her immense power to her legs, she flashed open her eyes and bolted towards the highway, allowing the ground to quicken her pace.
She knew her powers weren't at full capacity, but it was worth the risk. Anything for the Cap.
Bracing herself for a split second, she leaps off the road, hearing the satisfying crunches of the ground caving in to the pressure of her energy. The wind whipped her loose hair around her flushed face as she catapulted into the air, landing on the highway to immediately stumble from the unprepared force.
"Never. Again." she choked, as the landing had immediately knocked the air from her lungs.
Quickly regaining her sense of gravity, Bethany stared in dismay at the destruction around her. Cars and trucks were scattered among the wide road, each with smoke or fire escaping from the debris. Civilians pushed past her in desperation, running from what ever caused the inconceivable mess. A couple of destroyed vehicles down, Bethany quickly heard the horrible noise metal against metal. She instantaneously spotted Steve and Natasha, skidding along the road on a mere car door, while Sam roughly tumbled away.
"Oh god." she breathed in heightened concern, quickly making her way towards their position.
She stopped in her tracks as she noticed several armed men surround her teammates, walking slowly to finish off what they had supposedly started. Her breath hitched in her throat as she recognized one of the enemies; The Winter Soldier. From her secure position she could make out his intimidating features; Mid-length mahogany hair, a face mask and goggles to cover his identity, and the infamous glimmering metal arm. He clutched onto a large grenade launcher, aiming at his targets. Her nostrils flared in rising frustration, as she was eager to quickly subdue the assassin who had tried to murder her.
It's gonna compromise my position, she thought with resentment, impatiently watching her opponents close in on Steve and Natasha at an alarming rate.
Breathing heavily with remorse, she quickly came to a unsure solution; Fuck it.
"Hey asshole! Over here!" she yelled, rising form her crouching position to wave at the Winter Soldier.
Pausing on the spot, he slowly looked up at her, sending chills down her perspiring spine. The men behind him immediately started shooting towards her, as she automatically ducked down with a yelp.
"Bethany!" she heard a familiar voice shout from across the destroyed highway.
She quickly looked to her right to see Sam, also hiding behind an ruined civilian car.
"What the hell were you thinking?!" he shouted above the gunfire, avoiding the bullets raining down on their position.
"I was trying to distra-", but before she could finish her explanation, a loud explosion erupted in her ears.
The duo winced in surprise, taken aback by the sudden eruption. She heard Steve yell in pain, watching in pure horror as his body flied across the air above her, connecting with one of the buildings behind them with a loud crunch. She saw a flash of red, blue and white as he fell, silently sighing in relief.
The shield would've helped protect him, she though with hope, eager to check if he was alright.
Quickly peering from her cover, she gave a silent sigh of relief as Natasha ran across the highway, jumping from the ledge without hesitation.
"Natasha's out safe. I have no idea where Rogers landed. We need to get out of their line of fire-" Bethany instructed, but was quickly cut off by the sound of another explosion right beside her.
She was thrown off of her feet, her ears ringing from the sudden noise. Her head throbbed in pain from where it had inconveniently connected with the road, and gradually came to her senses, only to feel the alarming sensation of cold metal against her bare neck. The Winter Soldier lifted her off of the ground with ease, holding her mere inches away form his concealed face. Unable to breath, she stared wide eyed in horror at her own suffocating reflection in his emotionless goggles. She felt the air painfully escaping her heaving lungs, as his grip tightened exponentially. Slowly drifting unconscious, Bethany numbly kicked out her suspended legs in desperation, and to her joyous relief, connected with something hard. With a grunt of displeasure, he automatically let go, causing her to collapse in a heap on the cold concrete. She gasped for air, quickly regaining her senses and bolted towards the edge of the highway, vaulting off the ledge in frantic concentration.
The wind slapped her bruised face as she descended rapidly through the air, focusing on the ground she would soon land on. Her weak energy thankfully connected to the Earth below, as it broke through the road to meet her, gently lowering her to the rest of the chaotic street. As soon as her trembling feet hit the floor, Bethany continued to run in the opposite direction from the highway, frantically searching for Natasha or Steve.
The scene surrounding her heaving body shook her to the core, as it was worse down here than it was above. Faces pushed by her, screaming in agony or panic, she couldn't tell. It was all the same to her now. Unable to leave the damaged area without her team mates, she quickly ducked behind an up-turned car, pausing to catch her fleeting breath.
"Beth?" she heard a female voice breathe beside her.
Natasha stared at her with urgency, her emerald eyes flashing with alarm. For the first time in a while, Bethany was glad to see her.
"Nat I don't know where Steve is we need to find him-"
"I know Beth. But first we need to get out of this alive. I'll distract the Winter Soldier while you try and get us out of here." she ordered with determination, peering from the cover to quickly scan their surroundings.
Bethany's eyes widened in confusion.
"Wait, how the fuck am I suppose to do that?!" she snapped, shaking her head with uncertainty.
Before the women could retaliate, another explosion erupted close by, alerting the duo to The Winter Soldier's dangerous presence.
"Just do it!" Natasha shouted over her shoulder as she ran back into the frey.
Cursing once again, Bethany gritted her teeth and rose to her sore feet, looking around for any sign of Steve or Sam. The abrupt sound of gunshots filled her ears. Quickly regaining her senses, she watched in awe as Steve huddled behind his trademark shield, protecting himself from the gunfire pelting against the vibranium.
Thank God he's alive, she thought with overwhelming happiness, exiting her cover to assist with his retaliation.
Rising her hands in unison, Bethany gathered her elemental energy in her sweaty palms, summoning the ground beneath her. The road gave way, as large cracks rapidly formed to give way for the surging Earth spilling from the openings. She grunted with effort, directing the steady stream towards the gunmen, forcefully catapulting her targets off of their feet. With Bethany's sudden aid, Steve was able to finish off the last enemy, bashing his surprised expression clean in the jaw. Continuing to control her earthly energy, she quickly ran up to him with relieved delight, grinning at their collaboration.
"What took you so long Summers?" Steve teased breathlessly, securing his tainted shield over his shoulder.
He looked battered and weary from her point of view, as cuts and bruises decorated his strong features.
"I try my best Rogers." she replied with a cheeky smile.
Suddenly his cautious blue eyes enlarged, as he stared at something behind Bethany with increasing worry. She turned around with a frown, searching for what he was concerned about. Her eyes rested upon the Winter Soldier, bending over Natasha's struggling body. He readied his assault rifle, preparing to execute her in a brutal fashion. Before she could react, Steve was already running towards them at high speed, collapsing in on the assassin with a rough tackle. Sighing in frustration, Bethany quickly joined him, summoning further energy to complete the task.
The two men were locked in deadly combat, throwing heavy punches and kicks. The Winter Soldier had lost his goggles somewhere during the battle, revealing a portion of his enraged face. Azure eyes would occasionally flash from under the mess of hair, glowing with resentment towards Steve. Trying to intervene, Bethany concentrated on the ground below them, shifting the gravel in Steve's favor. The street rose with her commands, as he worked with her Earth weaving expertly. Climbing the rubble with ease, he plummeted atop the Winter Solider with force, sending the assassin to his knees. To Bethany's dismay he quickly recovered, completely ignoring her abilities to focus on Steve.
Her eyes widened in confusion, taken aback with his stubborn demeanor towards her maneuvers.
"Fine. If that's how he wants to play it." she mumbled angrily, eager to prove her worth.
She began to stalk over to the fight, gathering enough strength to form sharp spikes from the mixture of gravel and rock. The deadly weapons hovered above her outstretched palm, quickly aiming them at the Winter Soldier with a smirk. The two men, however, were constantly changing positions, making it harder for Bethany to target the right soldier. She glared at the Winter Soldier, concentrating on his fight pattern with heated determination.
"Steady...steady..." she grumbled, taking a slow deep breath to ease her anxiousness.
Before she could strike, Steve quickly locked onto the Winter Soldier's jaw, slamming his heavy body over his right shoulder with force. The Winter Soldier hit the concrete with a thud, immediately regaining himself, and quickly turned around to face the pair with a look of hatred.
His face mask had fallen off from the struggle, exposing the rest of his mysterious features.
Somewhere in the distance, Bethany felt herself gasp in complete shock, as the world suddenly slowed down to a harsh stop. Bucky Barnes glared at the two soldiers, his familiar snowy eyes glaring into her soul. His features were exactly the same from the last time she painfully remembered, aside from the mid-length hair covering his chiseled jaw.
'James?' she tried to scream, but her voice was lost in the madness absorbing her tormented mind.
Unable to breathe, Bethany collapsed to her knees in consuming distress.
"Bucky?" Steve's voice echoed, sending miserable chills down her frozen spine.
"Who the hell is Bucky?" he answered in monotone, and aimed his gun, ready to finish what he had started.
She tried to stop him, but she couldn't. She felt paralyzed, kneeling hopelessly on the ground, traumatized to witness her own Bucky standing before them, preparing to kill them as they were his targets.
It sounded crazy. But she didn't care.
He's alive, and that's all that matters.
Waiting for her inevitable execution, she mind-numbingly stared at the ground below her, quivering from shock.
He's alive, and that's all that matters.
She couldn't even process how he was standing before them, but he was.
He's alive, and that's all that matters.
Her thoughts quickly escaped her grasp as the darkness began to settle in, gradually realising she was passing out from the trauma she had just endured. In the drifting distance she heard people shouting in anger, followed by many footsteps surround her fading consciousness.
She couldn't care less.
He's alive, and that's all that matters.