"Who's the girl?" Sam Wilson asked as he and Bucky walked towards the plane taking them to Eastern Europe for a mission Bucky insisted on going with him. Phoenix had tagged along when he decided to head to the base to confront Sam about giving up Steve's shield. He hadn't been happy about that at all. She had kept quiet during their altercation, picking up on the situation that had gone down after she had left six months prior. The former Winter Soldier sighed before looking at his inhuman companion masquerading as a human. "Sam, this is Phoenix. Phoenix, Sam," he introduced. Sam's eyebrows raised as he looked at the girl. "Wait...you're Phoenix?" he asked. Phoenix looked at Bucky for a second. "And you know me, how?" she responded. "Let's just say this pain in the ass said something about a friend by that name," Sam replied with a smile and clapping Bucky's shoulder.
Bucky rolled his eyes and got ready to step onto the plane. He paused for a moment before looking back at his companion. "Uh, Phoenix...I'm not sure if you following us on this mission is a good idea," he said. The woman rolled her eyes. "What did I tell you last night?" she asked. Sam looked between them but decided to wait to say anything. "Right, don't lecture you about going home on the off-chance things go sideways because you've been in battle before. But how do you plan to follow? I doubt you'd want to ride on the plane," he inquired. "Dimension hopper, remember? The Road will take me where I need to be. See you there," she said. "See you when I drop in and another thing," Bucky paused.
Phoenix tilted her head, waiting. "Since you're adamant about following me into potential danger, I want your word that you will do what I say when I say it. I don't know what we're walking into but you're not familiar with this world. If I give an order, follow it. This is the only way I can protect you," he said. Phoenix mulled over his words. He wasn't wrong. She did have battle experience but she never went looking for a fight. She didn't know what to expect moving forward either and so, she needed Bucky's guidance there. "You'll have no complaint from me," she said before she phased out of reality. Sam watched in awe. Bucky just gave a rough sigh before walking into the plane and sitting down. The Falcon followed suit. "So...you and Phoenix. You together-together?" he asked once they were in the air. "God, no. We're just friends. Despite her appearance, there's nothing remotely human about her," Bucky answered. "What does that mean?" Sam asked. "You'll find out soon enough," was all the answer he got.
Phoenix emerged on the other side of the Road, back in her true form. She heard a plane roar overhead and looked up. The plane Sam and Bucky were on was flying low and she caught sight of Sam taking flight with his wing pack. She started to run to keep it in sight and she balked when she saw Bucky jump clean out of it into the trees. "That idiot," she muttered as she allowed their connection to lead her to his location. Of course, his yelling on the way down helped as well. She wasn't overly worried about him getting hurt. Whatever else HYDRA had done to him since 1944 meant he was a cut above the average mortal. He was a super-soldier, after all. Plus, he fell through trees. It stood to reason that they slowed his fall a little.
She located him not far from where she reemerged and she slowed to a leisurely walk. Bucky was flat on his back but he was fine. A bit winded and sore, but fine. He had either torn his left sleeve off on purpose or it was torn off during his descent because his black-and-gold vibranium arm was out in the open. Phoenix walked up and looked down her long face at him, huffing a little. "Excuse me, James, did you just try to fly out of that thing? And here you are on your backside in the middle of a forest. When you said 'see you when I drop in', this wasn't what I had in mind," she deadpanned, opting for his given name to voice her chagrin. "Yeah, yeah. Guess Steve's rubbing off on me. Heard he did this sort of thing all the time," Bucky responded with a chuckle. He then groaned a little from the hard landing.
Phoenix looked up when she heard something small flying their way and saw what humans called a drone. "And that's what you meant when you said Phoenix isn't remotely human. Now that I think about it, I've seen you before. Back in Wakanda while fighting Thanos," came Sam's voice from the thing. "Um…," the chimera gawped. "That's Redwing, Sam's little drone. He's talking through it," said Bucky from the ground. Redwing floated around Phoenix, taking in everything. The chimera kept shifting around to keep it in sight as it seemed insistent on getting behind her. "Sam, leave her alone before she knocks your toy out of the air," Bucky groaned as he sat up. "Fine, fine. I'll get a better look at her when you find me. Anyway, I'm north of your position. Just follow Redwing," said Sam.
Phoenix watched the drone pull back a little before she moved to stand in front of Bucky. Wordlessly lowering her head, she pulled him to his feet after he grabbed her horns. "Remind me never to do that again," he grunted, rubbing his back. "Duly noted," the chimera said before looking back up at Redwing. "You humans are so...creative, it's scary," she said to it, knowing Sam was listening on the other side. "Sounds like you come from a place without any tech," he said. "Not like this, no," Phoenix said. "Let's get moving," Bucky said, walking past. The chimera and the drone looked at each other before Redwing flew off to take the lead. "So you told Sam about me, huh," she ventured. "I'm sorry. It was a moment of weakness," he responded. "It's no trouble, Bucky. And he's right about seeing me in Wakanda before Thanos...well...before he took you away. Given he can fly, it stands to reason that he would've seen me from the air," Phoenix noted. She looked up at the drone. "For what it's worth, Sam, I don't trust humans easily but any friend of Steve and Bucky's is a friend of mine," she said. "Thank you for that, Phoenix. Means a lot," came the response.
Sam, Bucky, and Phoenix regrouped not far from a warehouse. The Falcon whistled as he took in the animal he was seeing. The chimera just shifted on her hooves, her ears twitching around and her eyes roaming the area to watch for trouble. "No wonder Bucky wasn't terribly worried about you coming along. His attempt to stop you was half-hearted," Sam said, crossing his arms. "He knows better," was all Phoenix said before her ears perked forward and she looked towards the warehouse. "I hear something in there," she said, shifting into her false form. Sam and Bucky took the lead. Phoenix followed and, to her credit, was pretty light on her feet for something that, unshifted, normally weighed half a ton. Before they entered the warehouse, the men turned to the humanshifter. "Keep out of sight. The less I have to worry, the better," Bucky said.
Phoenix just nodded and shifted back, heading off to check out the area. She started mulling over the current situation surrounding Bucky, Sam, and Steve's shield. Bucky had explained the situation in full while they were on the way to the base. She had watched the same news segment they had and, while she had less of a right to judge, she also didn't like the idea of the shield going to someone else. But when it came to whether or not Sam was right in giving it up, she was staying out of it. It wasn't her place and it was something the humans had to hash out on their own. She knew where both were coming from but she wasn't about to add fuel to the fire.
After a short time, Phoenix heard the sound of Sam's takeoff and looked up to see him flying. She saw a pair of trucks leaving the area and caught sight of Bucky racing after them. Her mind took a few seconds to process what was happening but she started galloping after the trucks. She didn't have a prayer of catching up completely but she did have higher stamina than the average horse. She kept to the woods along the side of the road to keep out of sight but still able to keep an eye on the action. Bucky and Sam were fighting on top of the trucks with other humans and they were getting beat.
The chimera burst from the woods onto a field just as the new Captain America, John Walker, arrived. Things were getting really dicey but she was powerless to help. It was all she could do to keep up with the trucks as it was. Bucky suddenly dropped out of sight when he was kicked off one of the trucks. Phoenix heard metal ripping metal and, since he never hit the road, figured he was able to save himself. A few minutes later, a red and black blur shot out from under one of the trucks. The chimera slowed down to a momentary stop to watch and she realized that Sam had managed to get himself and Bucky out of that sticky situation. She cantered to where the men had landed and rolled to a stop.
"You two okay?" she asked, slowing to a stop. "Yeah...as well as we can be," Sam groaned as he sat up. Bucky followed and got to his feet. "You actually kept pace with that?" he asked. "Not quite. Everything happened so fast, it took me a few seconds to react. My speed is a little better than a horse's but my stamina is greater. I almost lost you as I was running through the trees," Phoenix explained. Bucky reached out and pat her neck. "Thanks for doing as I asked. Things got messy and I'm glad you weren't in the middle of that," he said. Phoenix knocked a horn into his arm by way of saying it was no trouble. "If it would grant you peace of mind, being a prey animal does have its advantages. I don't go looking for fights but I will fight if necessary," she said simply.
Several hours later saw the trio walking along a road to reach the airport. Sam filled Phoenix in on the Flag-Smashers and their end goal. Both men expressed surprise that the chimera's world was based around that exact philosophy of one world, one people. "So how that does even work?" Sam was asking. "Well, when the planet only has one continent, it seems natural that humans wouldn't bother splitting up the landmass into countries. Besides, everyone, human or animal, falls under the joint rulership of the World Masters. The Continent basically belongs to them and we're all just living in their territories. Carving countries out of their territories would be seen as a powerplay and indeed, the Empire almost never happened until the Masters were assured their right to rule wasn't being threatened. Plus, contrary to what you'd imagine, the Empire was basically the humans' answer to the many animal Nations. Be that as it may, the Empire wasn't always steadfast. The situation with the Flag-Smashers brings to mind the Faction Wars in my world. The Factions, known as the Regional Independents and the Neo-Nomadics, sought different results for humanity but the endgame for both was to dissolve the Empire," Phoenix explained.
"And did you fight in those wars?" Bucky asked. "No. The Faction Wars were in the Second Epoch, long before my time. The Masters were really hands-off at the time but the Faction Wars lasted for so long, they got involved one by one. My pair-bond was the last Master to join and it was because the last standing city-state of the Regional Independents had built their town around Golgotha, a sacred hill. The Neo-Nomadics had long fallen back in line with the Empire by that point," Phoenix responded. Bucky and Sam exchanged a look. Golgotha was also a location in their world but they decided not to say anything. They decided she volunteered enough information and silence fell.
Phoenix was content to let the silence fill the space and moved off the road to walk in the grass. It felt better on her hooves and she had sensed a shift in Sam and Bucky's demeanors, knowing that they still weren't on the best of terms when it came to Steve's shield. She kept quiet as they talked themselves in circles and her attention was caught by the sound of an engine. She looked back to see a military vehicle with none other than John Walker and his own companion, Lemar Hoskins. The only thing that kept her from fleeing, despite every instinct screaming for that, was the fact neither Bucky nor Sam were giving him any mind. She had noticed the vehicle too late to jump into her human form. Walker looked at her, something akin to awe on his face.
"So the rumors were true," he said at her, rather than to her. Clearly, he didn't think she could understand. "Hear something, Bucky?" Sam asked, brushing their uninvited guest off. "Not a thing but if Phoenix is feeling bothered or threatened in any way, she has my permission to do whatever she wants to get rid of the problem," Bucky responded. The chimera and Walker had twin looks of confusion. "Uh, Bucky...I don't take orders from you. Yeah, I did say I would follow your lead when heading in danger but this isn't one of those times," she said, startling Walker and Hoskins. "You can talk!?" Hoskins exclaimed. Throwing a wary eye at the strangers, Phoenix just kept walking. Her discomfort was growing at their otherwise lack of real surprise. "Bucky...how many people have you told about me?" she confronted him. "Don't blame him. You haven't actually been a secret for a number of years now. I assume you know about SHIELD and the info dump when they crashed and burned. Do you really think the government didn't crack some files HYDRA had in the system? Not only that but you went viral online a few years back. I used to think you were some kind of hoax. I stand corrected now," Walker intervened.
Phoenix had forgotten about both points. The aftermath of the Snap had driven all memory from her mind. Now that Walker had brought it up, it did explain why he and Hoskins weren't as surprised to see an alien creature just walking along the road (along with them confirming that Redwing had been hacked). Walker reached out to touch her but Phoenix jerked away more harshly than she ever had with Bucky in the past. "Don't touch me," she said automatically, her tail raising to half-mast out of habit. Walker raised his hand in surrender. "My bad, little lady," he said. Bucky shot him a glare but kept pace with Sam, trusting Phoenix to handle herself. "In fact, don't talk to me," the chimera then said, putting a little more distance between herself and the truck. "Someone doesn't like you," Hoskins joked. "Fair enough. I should've expected as much from a wild animal, even if said animal is a monster," Walker responded. "I swear to God I'm going to punch you in the face if she doesn't hit you with her tail first. She's not a monster," Bucky snapped.
Sam placed a hand on his shoulder, wordlessly telling him to calm down. There were some battles Phoenix wouldn't appreciate him fighting for her. The chimera in question was quiet and she put more distance between them. In truth, she felt a bit unsettled by Bucky's behavior and decided to simply keep to herself while sticking close by so she wasn't left behind. She listened in on the conversation between Walker and her friends and only closed the distance again when they entered the vehicle to get a ride by bringing herself up to a canter. Even then, she stayed quiet and listened to the conversation as it continued. She could tell both Sam and Bucky were getting agitated by Walker's attempts to have them team up with him. But it took Hoskins telling them his codename was Battlestar for Bucky to throw in the towel and call for the car to pull over.
He was out and walking down another road in minutes. Phoenix trotted after him with Sam bringing up the rear. Once they heard Walker's car pull away and leave, the former Winter Soldier's shoulders sagged and he came to a halt. He turned to face his friends before running a hand through his hair. Phoenix and Sam looked at each other. "Are you okay, Bucky? Ever since I came back, you've been more on edge than I remember you ever being," the chimera ventured. "I'm just stressed out. I don't mean to take it out on you," he said. "You haven't. I'm just concerned that there's something you're not telling me," she responded. Bucky looked away. The chimera shifted into her false form and closed the distance to set a hand on his arm. "You don't need to tell me anything. I'm aware that I'm an outsider to everything that's going on and I really have no right to stick my nose into matters I know little about. On that note," she paused, stepping back to look at the men.
"This whole thing with Steve's shield is a sore point. I get that. I'm going to tell you both right now that you're not dragging me into that argument. It's not my place and I refuse to take sides. All I will say on the matter is that you two need to hash this out soon. Thanks to Walker, I have something else to worry about. If your government thought me a hoax before, they won't anymore because I don't trust him to keep me a secret. He reminded me that HYDRA had a file on me from the 1940s and then there's the fact I went viral online a few years ago. I was counting on the encryption of the file and the fact most humans think I'm a hoax to keep me safe. But if he blows my cover, I'll have to bounce from this world in a hurry and I may not be able to come back at all," she explained.
Sam and Bucky didn't have to be told anything further than that. The subtext was right there in bold. If the government was told that Phoenix was a real creature, there wouldn't be a whole lot stopping them from attempting to capture her. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier didn't have the necessary clout to keep her out of government hands and Bucky didn't like the idea of her leaving with no real chance of returning. Her safety relied more on her anonymity than anything else, including whatever protection he gave her. She could just remain in her false form since Walker had never seen her in it but neither was sure how to suggest that without coming off as rude. Sam decided to try and reached out to her. However, he let his hand hover by her arm, knowing she'd notice. He had known from their first meeting that she wasn't fond of contact just from her body language at the time. Her reaction to Walker's attempt confirmed it. It seemed Bucky was the only one she allowed to touch her. Sam was all about respect and would wait for permission.
Phoenix looked at him when she noticed his hand, reading his intent and remaining calm. "I wouldn't worry about it if I'm being honest. I don't like the guy but I don't think Walker would say anything. However, we can't take that chance. This is just an idea but your best option to stay under the radar is to just stay in this form unless necessary," he suggested, motioning at her body. Phoenix hummed a little, closing her eyes in thought. "Actually...that's a good idea. Right now, only you two have seen me in this form. If we're going to be in cities most of the time, it would be best if I blend in. How does the saying go? When in Rome, do as the Romans do?" she asked. For the first time that day, Bucky cracked a smile. Sam followed suit, crossing his arms. "Got that right. You catch on quick," the Falcon said. The humanshifted animal grinned in response. The trio set off down the road again, feeling a bit more confident that Phoenix was as protected as she could be. Now they could focus on the Flag-Smashers and the threat they posed. They were clearly enhanced and Bucky wanted to find out why.