Not again
Steve was asleep when the digital clock on his bedside flashed 5 AM. The tranquillity of the early morning was suddenly shattered by the voice of JARVIS.
“Everyone is needed on the jet as soon as possible, Mr Stark has discovered a lead on Hydra’s mission”
The jet stood ready in the hangar. As the team boarded, the tension was palpable. They knew the risks of confronting Hydra’s supersoldiers, but they also knew the stakes if Hydra was indeed building up their forces with the serum.
As the jet ascended into the early morning sky, the team members fell into a tense silence. Each was lost in their thoughts, mentally preparing for the confrontation ahead. The last remnants of sleep had long since faded, replaced by a laser-sharp focus on the mission.
In the dimly lit cockpit of their aircraft, Natasha approached Steve with a worried expression on her face. “Do you actually think we can fight this?” she asked, her voice filled with uncertainty.
Steve sighed heavily, his hands fixing the ends of his suit “We have no choice,” he replied,“They are targeting a research hospital.”
Clint, who had been listening quietly from the side, couldn’t help but intervene. “Are we intercepting them right? Tell me we are not fighting in front of a hospital,” he questioned, his voice carrying a hint of disbelief.
“That’s the idea,” Steve replied, his tone steady and resolute.
Meanwhile, Tony Stark was completely engrossed in a holographic map. His fingers traced the coordinates of their target location, a hospital that served both as a research center and a patient ward. The information he’d uncovered about Hydra’s operations presented them with a golden opportunity they couldn’t afford to lose.
Back in the main cabin, Steve gathered everyone to go over their strategy one more time.
“Is everything clear?” he asked.
“Yes,” everyone responded in unison.
As everyone took their seats, he approached Thor and Loki. “We don’t need to kill them all,” he said, his gaze firm.
“Why not?” Loki chuckled, leaning onto his sceptre in a nonchalant manner.
“Brother…” Thor scolded him, his tone mixed with exasperation.
“I’m joking, don’t worry,“ Loki retorted, patting Steve on his shoulder with a smirk. “Don’t worry captain, I’m here to help.” He paused “This time.”
Steve then moved to sit next to Bucky who was flipping his knife “Are we really trusting those gods?” Bucky chuckled, his eyes never leaving the blade. “Oh man, sometimes I miss the ignorance of the universe I had in the 40s.”
Steve chuckled along with him “I guess I do too, Buck,” he replied, patting him on the shoulder. “I’m sorry I lashed out the other day…” he sighed, his gaze lowered.
“I get it, Steve, sometimes you miss her,” Bucky said, “Fortunately, you are someone who cares about others.”
A small smile appeared on Steve’s face as he continued, “I never told you what she wrote in the letter,” he confessed, his gaze now on Bucky who kept his eyes on his knife. “She told me that it’s the love that I can give that makes me a hero,” he chuckled lightly shaking his head “and that as much as she hated to admit, that’s what brought you back,” he sighed, his voice barely above a whisper.
Bucky paused, his knife still in his hand, his gaze lost in the distance. “She knew you weren’t the Winter Soldier anymore, she saw you changed,” Steve continued.
“She… she was right…about the first part,” Bucky mumbled, his voice barely audible. “You saved me.”
“’Till the end of the line, remember?” Steve patted on his shoulder, giving him a comforting squeeze before standing up as they heard the jet landing.
The jet landed swiftly in a field in front of the hospital, the deafening noise of the engines slowly dying down. The hospital lay ahead, its facade bathed in the soft light of the early morning.
As their boots hit the concrete their eyes scanned their surroundings. Every shadow, every movement, every sound. The tension hung heavy in the air, the calm before the storm.
Natasha was the first to move, her movements fluid and silent as she made her way towards the field. Clint followed closely bow in head ready to fire, his eyes never leaving the rooftop of the adjacent buildings. Meanwhile, Tony, in his suit, and Bruce, in the form of the Hulk, stood guard by the jet.
Steve and Bucky, both armed took the lead. Thor and Loki were just as tense. Their presence, while bringing a certain level of uncertainty, also provided a sense of hope. They were formidable allies and their powers could be the game-changer.
The silence was finally broken by the crackle of Tony’s voice that echoed in their ears, “All set. Remember, we’re here to stop them, not to start a war we are not ready to fight. If they run, let them”
Suddenly, the silence was broken by the sound of gunfire and the area was instantly filled with Hydra agents pouring out from the vehicles approaching and a few jets landing. They were heavily armed and moved with an unnatural speed and agility, a clear sign of the serum’s influence.
Tony took to the skies, his repulsors blasting at the enemy forces. Thor and Loki stood side by side, their powers unleashing a storm of thunder and illusions on the Hydra agents, causing confusion and chaos.
Steve and Bucky fought back to back. Steve’s shield ricocheted off multiple agents, knocking them out cold.
Natasha and Clint where standing on the tailgate, their precise shots taking out the Hydra agents, as Wanda and Bruce stood guarding the hospital entrance.
However, the Hydra agents were relentless. Their numbers seemed to be endless and they were stronger and faster than any normal human.
“Steve, we need a plan B!” Tony’s voice crackled in their earpieces. His suit was taking heavy damage and even his repulsors were having a hard time keeping up with the enhanced agents.
Steve grunted, throwing his shield to take out another agent. He quickly scanned the battlefield, his mind racing to come up with a new strategy. And that’s when he realized that the agents didn’t even try to come close to the hospital.
“Tony! We’re being ambushed!” he yelled into his earpiece, his heart pounding as he sprinted towards Stark.
“What’s happening?” Tony questioned, his voice barely audible over the clattering noise of Thor’s hammer striking two agents that had been advancing in their direction.
“I’m as clueless as you are,” Steve gasped out, his breath ragged. His eyes darted across the battlefield “Where’s Bucky?”
“We need to retreat!” Natasha’s voice crackled in their ears.
“Nat, is Bucky with you?” Steve asked, his voice tinged with worry and anxiety.
“No, Steve,” came the short reply.
“Wanda, do you see Bucky?” His voice filled with worry, concern, almost panic.
“No, Steve,” she echoed Natasha’s response.
His gaze swept across the battlefield again, moving fast from left to right. He noticed the hydra agents starting to retreat, and their jet was missing. His heart dropped.
“No, no, no, no,” he murmured, beginning to run towards the last of the vehicles. A firm, suited hand gripped his arm pulling him back “No, no, let me go,” he protested, turning his face to find himself mere inches from Stark’s.
“They’re gone, Cap,” Tony stated, his voice heavy as he lifted his mask. “If you want to punch me, go ahead. But they’re gone. We need to regroup.”
“They’ve taken Bucky,” Steve screamed, the words ripping from his throat.
“I know,” Tony responded, his gaze locked with Steve’s, attempting to provide some semblance of stability in the chaos. “We’ll get him back, I promise you that.”
As they arrived at the compound they all joined the meeting room, where Sam was already waiting for them.
Steve roared as he entered the room behind Stark, his eyes blazing with anger and worry. “We can’t just sit here and wait for a lead to magically appear. We need to be out there, searching.”
Tony snapped back, “And what? Run around like headless chickens? We need a solid plan, Steve. We can’t afford to make mistakes. We can’t afford to lose anyone else.”
Their argument escalated, their voices echoing through the room. But no matter how heated their exchange got, they were both driven by the same thing, fear.
“I can’t just sit here, and.. and, I can’t imagine what they might to do him” Steve panicked, his hands in his hairs
“or what they might do with him” Tony cut short as Steve's eyes met his, arrows from his gaze.
“Zemo is in prison” Steve stated “he’s the only one who knows the words”
“Yeah, and Karpov was supposed to be the only one with the serum” Tony pointed out.
“We’ll start the search right now” Steve commanded as he exited the room.
After a week of searching, the days turned into nights and nights into days as they tirelessly worked to find any clue, any lead that could point them to Bucky. As the hope of finding him anytime soon, each of them dealt with the situation their own way. Steve was nearly catatonic, his gaze forever fixed on the spot where Bucky usually sat, as if he could will him into existence just by staring hard enough. Natasha threw herself into work, her face hard and her eyes cold as she scoured every database and made every possible contact to find any trace of Hydra’s movements. Tony holed up in his lab, his fingers flying over holographic screens, his eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep and too much caffeine.
Clint and Wanda, their faces were pale and drawn, but they kept the team grounded, reminding them of their mission, finding Bucky but also keeping tabs on all Hydra’s movement.
Thor and Loki had to go back to Asgard but they asked Tony to keep them informed.
There were no words to express the pain and fear Steve felt. He would have never thought he would go through this again. The problem is, this time he knew what they would do to Bucky, he knew they would try to bring the Winter Soldier back.
“Do you need a hand with that?” Nat was leaning on the door of the armoury as Steve was trying to adjust one of Clint’s arrows.
“No I think I’m good” he cut short
As she entered the room and reached the table her hands took another arrow and started cleaning it.
“I still can’t believe it,” Steve murmured, his fingers tracing the edge of the arrow. His gaze was lost in the distance” Not again.”
Natasha didn’t respond immediately. She knew that any words of comfort would seem hollow in the face of such pain. Instead, she placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze.
“Steve,” she finally said, her voice soft but firm. “We will get Bucky back. We won’t let Hydra win this time.”
Steve managed a small nod, though his gaze remained distant. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for the question he was about to ask. “Nat, do you think you could locate Iris?”
Natasha looked at him, surprise evident in her eyes. “Why?”
Steve sighed, his shoulders slumping. “I just… I need to know she’s safe. And… maybe she can help us. She knows Bucky, she knows how Hydra operates. And she knows the Winter Soldier better than anyone if that’s already the case”
Natasha nodded, understanding his reasons. “I’ll do my best, Steve. But you need to prepare yourself for the possibility that she might not want to be found. Or that she would not want to have anything to do with this”
With a determined look, Steve nodded. “She will.”
“Why?” Nat asked, her voice laced with curiosity.
“Because it’s Bucky.”