Legendary

"I'm going to Prague at the end of the week," I said once we were out on the street. "There's a meeting for people who want to bid on the renovation of the Clementinum, which houses the national library. I wasn't going to bid, originally, it's a massive contract and I've got enough to do. But it's not an RSVP thing and I can use it for a cover." She heard the rest of the plan and nodded.

"I can do that," she said.

I went home and explained things to Damian. He nodded, listened to my plans, and made a few very helpful suggestions. We went to bed early. We had work to do and not much time to do it in.

Midmorning, I got a call from Loki. "The Security Council of the United Nations has warned my brother officially that his embassy will be closed if he attempts a rescue of Barnes," he said grimly. "'We cannot sanction invasion of a sovereign nation,'" he said prissily. "'You are not to subvert the peaceful negotiations.' They did say that they would add international pressure." He snorted.

"What?" I exploded. "That's such bullshit! Their history is littered with invasions and assassinations and spying!"

"Indeed. It is hypocritical, but they are trying to preserve peace in the Balkans. They are ignoring what we know is being done to him and what the consequences for everyone will be if the Winter Soldier is resurrected," he said grimly. "My brother wishes that you had time to visit." He stared at me expectantly, willing me to get it. And finally I did.

"It's a shame that I can't," I said. "I'm sure I'm being watched. There's a black vehicle in front of the building filled with big men in black suits. They followed me in to work today. And I've got a bid to put in; I have to go to Prague at the end of the week. I will have ten days to submit it."

Loki's brow wrinkled. "Are you serious? Is that a condition? Why did they do that?"

"I think they really want the contract to go to a national, which I can understand. They'll have much more familiarity with the building. But winning this bid would be huge for Valkyrie." I blew out a sigh. "I'll see if I can return afterward."

We disconnected and Torunn looked up from her book. "Tell Daddy hi from me," she said absently, and turned the page. I smiled, took off my suitcoat (there's no point in shifting more mass than I have to,) and popped to Asgard. I blotted my forehead when I got there; it's a lot of work to move so much.

"Alex!" I looked around and the Asgardians in the Great Hall made a path for me to the throne, where Thor was standing. He trotted down the steps when I would have taken a knee in respect. (It would have been difficult in a straight skirt, so I was grateful.) He gave me a brief hug.

"Torunn says hi," I mumbled. He smiled slightly.

"How is she?"

"Bored, I think. But that's better from my perspective." He nodded.

"After this is over, you must return and we can speak properly. I have some things that will help you in your rescue." I loved how he just knew I'd be doing it. "First, Heimdall has located Barnes. He is on the third sublevel of the complex." He produced an image of the floorplan, letting me look at it until I had it memorized, and pointed out a few places that would be helpful. For the first time, I felt a surge of hope that this would actually work. Then his face got stern and solemn. "Magni." Magni stepped forward, also unsmiling.

"Alex, I am providing you with a weapon to assist your recovery of one of my generals from torture and illegal experimentation," he said formally. He took the spear from his son's hands. "This is Gungnir, the weapon of the AllFather, glorious in battle. As one of his valkyries, the only one with her full capabilities left in the Nine Realms, you should be able to wield it." He presented it to me, and my hand closed on the ash staff. I looked at Thor. "Can you feel the energy?" I nodded. The spear was practically dripping with it. "Let us see if you can use it. Summon the energy to the point and make it spark."

We all jumped back as the energy released in a larger crack than I'd been trying for. "That's good," Magni said, smoothing his hair down. Thor grinned at his son for a second.

"Indeed." He sobered again. "Return it when you have achieved your goal, not before. Once you have recovered General Barnes, remember that our healers are prepared to assist his recovery." I nodded.

"It looks different than when Odin used it," I said, looking at it carefully.

"It is," Thor confirmed. "I had the shaft replaced. First, the original shaft, which will be restored when you return the spear, has too much power stored. You would be consumed by the energy. Second, the change makes it look different from the one Odin was using in that... that film." His lip drew back and I nodded. And smiled. It wasn't a nice smile. "And one final thing. I have a ship, we took it from some pirates. It is alien in design and composition, but intuitive to fly. It appears to be designed so that beings without extensive training can use it. It does not have weapons, nor will there be time to fit any to it. I will have it flown to Earth and hidden here." He showed me on a map of the area and handed me a small knobby black stick. "This will allow you entry." It took some effort not to crack up. Alien ships using keyless entry?

"How will I get it back to you?"

Thor shrugged. "You can conceal it and we can retrieve it later, or if necessary, it can be left for authorities to discover. It's fairly primitive in design." Thor stopped and considered. "I will have our pilot remove the drive that permits interstellar travel. That way if it is discovered, it will not be obvious that I have assisted your quest." We nodded at each other.

"Good luck, Alex," Magni said softly, and Thor nodded. I took a deep breath, bowed to them both, and popped back to my office. Wow, even just bringing the spear with me was a significant drain. I wouldn't be able to move Bucky that way when I found him.

Torunn looked up when I popped back, and her jaw dropped a little. She stood up and looked at the spear. "Is that Gungnir? It looks different." She held up a little gizmo. "I checked, there's not any listening devices in here, and this also keeps anybody from using parabolic microphones on the windows. We can talk frankly."

"Thor is loaning it to me," I said. "It's got a different shaft is all. I can use it enough as a weapon."

"So the rescue is on?" Despite her assurances, her voice dropped to a whisper, and I nodded. I put Gungnir in the closet for the time being. How was I going to get it home?

I called Daniel to verify that I could still use the training facilities in the tower and then Alfred, asking if he could bring my practice bag with poles and javelins for a workout. Within an hour he'd dropped it off. One of the men in black stopped him and searched the bag. Without a warrant, I noted, filming it from the reception area windows. Alfred looked like he was bristling, but he winked when he brought the bag up to me.

I made my reservations for Prague, at a hotel on the outskirts of town where they had the main hotel and cabins with kitchens for more privacy. I got the largest one, the farthest away from the main hotel, with two bedrooms, for a twelve-day stay.

Three hours later, Alfred called me with the news that our house had been raided, my armor and swords taken away. I called our lawyers. By the end of the day, the media had the story that the government was persecuting me, a private citizen, because my uncle had been kidnapped by a foreign power and they thought that I'd do something. When I walked out of the Valkyrie Building, I blinked at the flashes from the cameras and and listened to the questions that the reporter peppered me with. "Yes, my uncle was kidnapped.. yes, the government said they're negotiating for his release... no, they won't let the Avengers or any other group go in for a rescue... they raided my house and took the swords and armor I used during Ragnarok, what on earth do they think one woman alone can do? I have quarterstaffs and javelins, is this supposed to be effective against modern weaponry?... Yes, I'm going to Prague, I'll be submitting a bid on an important restoration project for my business... Why don't you ask the government why they think one woman alone is a threat to an entire HYDRA facility?"

There was dead silence, then a gasp as they all drew breath. With that, I let Torunn and Eira clear a path to the curb, where Damian was waiting. He pulled away and we went to the tower. Malia was also waiting.

"You certainly have a way of livening things up," she said as we worked with quarterstaffs.

"Would you do things differently?" I asked, curiously.

"Probably. I'm military, so I wouldn't have called out the entire chain of command during delicate negotiations."

She had a point. "It will make their job harder," I acknowledged. "But it also forces them to actually do something."

"We are doing something, Ms Barnes," the Senator said behind me, his voice hard. I stepped back from Malia and turned to face him.

"Really. Because it doesn't look like talking is doing anything. And frankly, the American people deserve to know about the existence of a terrorist organization that threatens our form of government. So do people in other countries, for that matter. It doesn't look good for you folks that you've allowed HYDRA to go unchecked all these years. And frankly, I don't appreciate you turning the screws on me. I'm just the niece of the sergeant who's even now being subjected to torture and brainwashing in an attempt to remake one of the best assassins in history. You'd think that the threat of the asset unleashed again would add some impetus to your whole process. Let alone that Bucky is an American citizen, a war hero. Nice."

"You're a bitch, Ms Barnes."

"You say that like it's news, Senator. The Avengers, even the Justice League, could have extracted Bucky by now. Instead, you subjected my butler to a warrantless search, searched my home, and stole my armor. Why, exactly, should I have a good opinion of you? How in the world do you propose that a lone woman penetrate a HYDRA installation, with a knife and good intentions? All I'd be doing if I tried that would be to give HYDRA leverage to use against my uncle. So how, precisely, am I a threat?"

"When you put it like that, it does seem ridiculous to think you're a threat to the process. I thought valkyries were supposed to be tough," he said witheringly.

I turned around in front of him. "See any wings, Senator?" He snorted. "Do you have any idea what this is doing to my family, especially to my Aunt Rebecca and my grandpa? It's their brother. My uncle. Nessa's significant other. I bet if it was a member of your family, you'd have pushed things faster. Call off your dogs--" Eira barked. "Sorry, Eira. You back off, leave us alone, apologize publicly for your searches, and I'll drop my lawsuit. I'll be going to Prague in a few days, which obviously you know about. You have until I come back to recover my uncle. If he's not free by the time I get back, then I'll be taking off the gloves." I stared into his eyes. He turned away before he blinked. "And I expect the return of my arms and armor."

"You'll get them back, Ms Barnes," he said icily. "Not immediately, but you'll get them back. In the meantime, get out of here. Private citizens have no right to use Avengers facilities or personnel."

"I've got an agreement, signed by the oversight committee, that states otherwise, but I don't want to be around you any more than you want to be around me. I hope your pettiness makes you feel better," I said as I put my quarterstaff in the bag and zipped it up. "Because I mean what I said. If Bucky's not back by the time I get back, I will make your life a living hell."

I picked up my bag, nodded to Malia, and started for the door with Eira and Torunn. By the time we got home, the news had a spokesman for the Senator apologizing for overzealousness in their attempt to control the situation and get Bucky back. He had no comment on the news about HYDRA.

The next day I promptly had Mei and Callahan in my office and dumped all my current projects on them. "I know you haven't been with me long," I acknowledged, "but I have confidence in your abilities. And there shouldn't be any major catastrophes anyway. If there are, notify me for those, but if not, use your best judgment." We had a talk about the projects and where they were in terms of the timeline. "The one I'm most concerned with is the Hall of Justice, parts of it are just hanging in there with bubble gum and baling wire." Callahan snorted in amusement. We went through their projects as well and they also promised to research the sources and companies that I could use in my quote for the Prague project.

"I'm sorry to hear about your uncle, Alex," Mei said softly. "I hope he's rescued soon."

"Are you sure about HYDRA?" Callahan asked, and I nodded.

"I wish I weren't. But how governments respond to this should give a pretty good idea about how far HYDRA has penetrated into governments or how sympathetic they might be."

I spent the next few days hard at work, making preparations, sleeping a few hours a night and cutting out an hour a day to spend with my family. Then I borrowed the family's sub-orbital vehicle and Torunn and I went to Prague. We checked into the hotel and were shown down a path that just admitted the golf cart we were riding in to our cabin. We brought in our luggage, and Torunn left to go grocery shopping as I settled in. I'd moved heaven and Earth to get most of the proposal done before I went to Prague, but there were things I wouldn't know until I went to the meeting and got the official packet of information and saw the structures for myself.

The next day I went to the presentation and Torunn took the opportunity to see some of Prague. I was hugely relieved at the provided information; they hadn't identified trouble spots beyond what I suspected. There was bound to be more damage than they had found, but that was the nature of the gig and I'd accounted for emergencies. I also had Tony's gizmo that enabled me to check what was behind a wall before tearing in, which would help if I won the job. I was surprised to realize how much I wanted the contract. I went to the hotel, stopping by the desk on the way to ask that housekeeping not disturb me for the rest of my stay because I needed to concentrate on the proposal, which would be more difficult because I would have to figure out how to use local crews for the work and the costs. The man assured me that he understood, and I went down to the cabin. And that was all anybody saw of me until the ninth day of my stay, when authorities knocked on the door, demanded to speak to me, and told me that my uncle had been rescued from the HYDRA facility and did I know anything about it? I invited them in, showed them all the stuff strewn everywhere--paper, computer projections, everything, and told them to look around to satisfy themselves that I'd just been working. I further offered to have Torunn show them the sub-orbital vehicle and see the logbook, which would verify that it had stayed in place since we'd arrived. I spread my hands.

"You can check everywhere. I haven't rented a vehicle here. We took public transportation to get to the presentation, and I don't know how you figure that I could have dropped down there by walking. This commission is important and would mean a huge deal to my business, gentlemen, and I'm taking it seriously." They murmured, said that they had to check, and off they went with Torunn. I called Steve to find out how Bucky was; he was resting comfortably while they figured out what HYDRA had tried to do to him and there was no point in hurrying back since he wasn't cleared for visitors yet anyway.

"He was in bad shape, Alex," he said gently. "But the medical team is working hard. He's going to be ok."

"Ok," I said, blinking back some tears. "I trust you. It's just really hard not knowing more now that I know he's been recovered. Do you know how? I haven't had the news on since I got here. I thought somebody would have called."

"Everybody's tried, Alex," he said with commendable patience, and I hunted up my communicator. Dead. I swore, and Steve smiled slightly.

"Language," he chided gently.

"It is language," I agreed. "I'm going to see if I can get this done early and come home. I'll charge my communicator. You'll let me know if anything changes?"

"Take your time, Alex," he said. "I'll call you when there's an update." We hung up, and I got serious about the work. My ribs were still killing me, but it was a small price to pay. Torunn came back, reported that the investigators had literally ticked off boxes on their forms, and settled down with a 3D projection game of chess.

"You really sold it, Alex, you look like you've been hard at work."

"I have been hard at work," I said, rolling my eyes, and we grinned at each other. Then I sat down, propped my foot up to take pressure off the ankle, and got to the paperwork. We packed up the next day, settled the account at the hotel, and had the hotel car detour to the office where I submitted my bid, and then it was to the outskirts of the city where we could board the sub-orbital. We put on our pressure suits and activated the automatic system. We'd be home in a couple of hours. I slept on the brief flight, and tripped coming down the stairs, picking myself up off tarmac with a curse.

Damian tutted, helping me up and welcoming me home with a hug and kiss. "Sweet pea, do you want to stop by the clinic and get your ankle looked at?" he asked anxiously as I hobbled toward the car. I noticed a big man in black and rolled my eyes.

"I think so, darling. I tripped over a pile of reference material and hurt it, I just made it worse back there."

"That's good," he said. "After you're seen, we can go upstairs. They just cleared Bucky for visitors about an hour ago."

So that's what we did. I watched as the doctor diagnosed a severe ankle sprain, tapping the information into my file on the pad, healed what they could, then the pad was put away and the rest of my injuries were diagnosed and treated. Then they wrapped my ankle and sent me upstairs.

My uncle looked so much better than the last time I'd seen him, and I had to force myself not to cling like a limpet. I sat by his bedside and peppered him with questions about how he was feeling and if he remembered anything about his rescue.

He shook his head. "Armor, wings. Don't know whether they were real or mechanical, but they were dark. Reddish. I think I passed out, then woke up here. I'm grateful," he said quietly. "I was coming to the end of my ability to hold out." I bit my lip, clutched his hand, and scooted my chair closer to the bed. "It's going to be ok, sweetie," he said, patting my hand with his other one. "How did your bid go?"

"Yes, Ms Barnes, how did your work in Prague go?" The Senator was in the corner, watching the whole thing.

I curled my lip at him. "You're lucky. Bucky's back, so I won't have to go after you."

"And how were you going to do that?" he asked. "Academic information, of course." Out of the corner of my eye I could see Torunn shaking her head fractionally. The room was either bugged or there were observers I couldn't see.

"You called me a bitch before, Senator," I said calmly. "But I'm a rich bitch. I would have funneled my money and everybody else's that I could talk them into into opposing your reelection bid next year. Donations to candidates to the fullest extent allowable by law. Contributions to PACs. Appearances at fundraising activities and campaign stops. It's really quite a savings for me." His lips thinned. It wasn't an inconsiderable threat, and I think we both knew that there were things that I'd do that I wasn't going to admit to. He left the room, and I talked to Bucky until he got tired--not long--and we went home, where I had some quality time with my babies and a celebratory dinner with Alfred. When we turned out the lights that night, we went down instead of up, and went to the conference room in the bat cave., passing the display cases as we did. There was a new one, with a fantastical set of quite stylish armor inside. There was a full table waiting for me.

"I think we'd all like to know just how you pulled that off," Bruce said as I sank into the chair Damian held for me and sighed. Alfred poured me a cup of coffee and placed a small plate of spice cakes by the saucer before passing around a larger plate to everybody else. I took a bite, savoring the delicate cake, before speaking.

"Well, it wasn't easy," I began.