Chapter 1
It was a botched mission to begin with. Bucky, Steve and Sam had been called out on short notice to do some Captain America business. The fact that the army had notified them about this mission at 1am should have been a red flag to the group, but it went unnoticed. So they flew out to an old warehouse to scope the place out for any signs of rogue hydra agents. Which of course they found.
They were hidden in a bunker, deep underneath the abandoned warehouse. So per usual, Sam and Steve had let Bucky scout ahead while they watched the entrance.
As Bucky moved through the underground tunnels he breathed in the stale air and stalked through the decrepit halls. This place had felt familiar since they had first touched ground but Bucky hadn’t mentioned anything about it to Steve nor Sam. This was probably where the whole mission went wrong.
After running a mile through the catacombs and not seeing anyone, friend nor foe, Bucky had decided to call Sam and Steve down with him. “Hey, this place seems pretty deserted, if anyone were here I would have seen em by now.”
With that Sam had unfurled his wings and began soaring through the underground tunnels, with Steve surfing on his a back. The only thing that allowed Sam some visuals was his red visor that glowed fluorescent red. “I’m not sure how you can see anyone down here Buck,” Sam quipped with his usual snarky tone. He was seven minutes away flight wise from Bucky’s location when he spotted a heat signature on his visor. He signaled Steve to jump off as he tucked his wings back into his pack and slid to a stop. “Hey Buck, I think you missed something. I’m picking up a few bodies in a room about a 15 minute walk from you.”
This came off as odd to Bucky, he hadn’t heard anything nor seen any signs of life down below. So how had he missed them? “Shit Steve I think there’s a hostage!“ Bucky felt an overwhelming feeling of dread spread through his body.
“Sam and I are going to check things out. Bucky get here as soon as possible.” Steve knew that this would upset his friend but it had to be done. I’n his nature Bucky was a protective person, but when it came to Sam his protectiveness reacted a whole new level. He crowded around him at parties, staring down at any drunk man or women trying to get a taste of the new Captain America. And he always kept him in sight during missions.
Sometimes Sam would scold Bucky, believing that Bucky thought he was too weak to take care of himself. This of course was not true and it took Bucky a long time to back off a little bit and let Sam “spread his wings.”
“Steve wait there’s something off about-“ and Sam had interrupted Bucky before stating, “Buck stop being an overbearing worry wort there ain’t nothing going to-“ and the door swung open. Shots were fired out at the duo. Sam covered himself with his wings while Steve hid behind his shield. “Sam! Steve! Get to cover now, I need more time to get there!” Bucky’s warning fell on deaf ears as using his pack, Sam released red wing to fire out some shots to help disperse the gun fire. “Sam come on we should listen to Bucky!” Steve called out to Sam as well but he didn’t listen.
The thought of hydra agents getting away with a potential hostage made Sam’s blood curl. What if this person ended up just like Bucky did? Or worse, what if the hostage dies, and Bucky feels responsible for it?
Sam flew into the room and kicked one of the men into the back wall. Steve followed up with a throw of his shield and charged into the room. It was evident in his features that Steve hadn’t wanted to enter but what instead wait for back up. However he couldn’t leave Sam behind. He bashed one of hydra agents in the head his shield and sent him flying into one of the others. Then everything came to a stop.
I’n the middle of the room there was a crazy chair that looked like it came out of a saw movie. There were wires that were plugged into the chair and a metal ring around the head piece. A set of operating equipment laid on a table near the chair. And then there was the man. Seated in the center of this room, on the death chair was a man, and an agent holding a gun to his head.
“Captain America and his replacement, what a surprise,” the man spoke with vile intentions laced in his worlds, “you don’t belong here. Not after what you did.” Steve looked toward Sam and back at the man standing up, still brandishing his shield. “Sir, what you’re doing here is only going to make what’s coming to you even worse. So please put the gun down.”
As Steve approached the man Sam caught a glimpse of a second person approaching from the side that Steve hadn’t noticed. “Steve watch out!!” Calling out to Steve, Sam lunged at him and spread his wings to help block the bullet from the side. Steve also moved his shield to help protect the side of his body. In doing so the man next to chair saw his opportunity and in a split second shot Steve in his now exposed abdomen.
Steve fell back into Sam’s arms and before he could do anything, a flash bang blinded Sam from the rest of the hydra agents. In just a few seconds a simple mission has been completely derailed. And it was all his fault.
The time it took for a medical evac team to arrive felt like ages. Bucky had showed up long before them and helped Sam put pressure on Steve’s wound. There was a cold distance in his eyes directed at Sam. This look has never once been directed at Sam, and feeling it now made his earlier actions that much worse.
When the medical team finally arrived cap was shipped off to the closest hospital and Sam and Bucky were put on a plane to the nearest army base.
The back of the plane was filled with an awful silence that made Sam distraught.
“What is wrong with you?” The words were filled with judgment and anger. “Bucky I-“ Bucky stud up and grabbed his arm with his normal arm and this throat with the vibranium one. “Don’t you fucking speak!”
Sam has known Bucky for a long time. Not as long as Steve has but long enough to tell when something really got under his skin. And the hand currently keeping him from taking a full breath made that realization even more chilling.
“Me and Steve both told you to stop, to fall back and you didn’t listen! Now look where your actions have gotten you, Steve’s in the hospital with a hole in his side. And we might be dealing with a new winter soldier,” that last line was laced with fear and frustration. “I thought you were better than this. Your calm judgment and corageus acts was what made Steve chose you to be the new Captain America. But after seeing your recklessness today, maybe he was wrong.”
It was the worse thing he had ever felt. Not the hand currently crushing his arm. Nor the hand cutting off his circulation, but the sheer understanding in Bucky’s voice. Like he had just solved the worlds hardest puzzle. That puzzle being that Sam Wilson didn’t deserve to be Captain America. He finally let go, and walked toward the cockpit.
Sam collapsed onto the cold floor gasping for air trying to control his racing mind. He was currently experiencing emotional whiplash.
The feeling of Steve’s limp body falling against him plague his sense of touch. He tasted the blood of his slip lip that formed when cap fell on top of him. The smell of blood and musk from being down underground attacked his sense of smell. The feeling of Steve’s blood pooling through his fingers flood back again as he looked at his bloodied hands. He saw images of Steve’s lifeless body, and Bucky’s glare flags through his mind. It was all too much at once.
He reached for his phone in his pocket with shaky hands. He tried using it with his bloody hands but only managed to cover the screen with bloody finger prints. Quickly wiping the blood away he shakily scrolled through his contacts landing on a number labeled, centuries old asshole. The sarcastic name barely brightened his mood as he pressed call.
The phone range once……twice…..three times. ‘Pleas god please pick up.’ And finally on the last ring a deep voice answered, “calling me at 7am isn’t very nice Sam. I’m trying to go to sleep.”
A slight bit of relief washed over Sam as he tried to answer the man, “l-l-look man I just need someone-s-someone to talk too o-okay?”
The sound of things being moved in the background of the call paused as the man on the line stopped to consider his next few words. “Did something happen?” God how could he even begin to answer that question? “Look man, I just-I need a place to stay and a person to talk to r-right now okay.”
The person over the phone sighed, “where can I pick you up?” Finally Sam began to cool down a little bit as he was able to pick up the phone with less shaky hands and bring it to his ear. “Let’s meet at our old spot in h-half an hour, that okay?”
“Alright I’ll meet you there Sam.” Finally feeling a bit a peace he spoke the man’s name, “you’re the best Blade.”