(Jared's POV)
Mall...
As the agents are going down the escalator, I spot Rumlow on the escalator next to us going up.
"Steve. Nat." I said, looking between Steve and Natasha. "You both should kiss."
"What?" Steve asked.
"Public displays of affection make people very uncomfortable." Natasha said.
"Yes, they do." Steve said, laughing a little.
Natasha quickly pulls down Steve's head and kisses him, making Rumlow look away as he goes past us on the escalator.
"You still uncomfortable?" Natasha asked.
"It's not exactly the word I would use." Steve said.
Car...
We're driving to New Jersey, my home state and my humble abode. Basically, my stomping ground.
"Where did the President of the World learn how to steal a car?" Natasha asked.
"Miracle Day!" I said, excitedly.
"Mm." Nataha said, looking over at me.
"Also, we're borrowing this car. So, take your feet off the dash." I said, while Natasha took her feet off the dash. "Unless you want me to tell Yelena about it."
"Jared, now is not the time to be talking about her." Natasha said, as she looked over at Steve. "Alright, Steve, I have a question for you, oh, which you do not have to answer. I feel like if you don't answer it though, you're kind of answering it, you know?"
"What?" Steve asked.
"Was that your first kiss since 1945?"
"That bad, huh?"
"I didn't say that."
"Well, it kind of sounds like that's what you're saying."
"No, I didn't. I just wondered how much practice you've had."
"You don't need practice." Steve said.
"Everybody needs practice." Natasha said.
"It was not my first kiss since 1945. I'm ninety-five, I'm not dead."
"Nobody special, though?" Natasha asked, as Steve chuckles.
"Believe it or not, it's kind of hard to find someone with shared life experience." Steve said.
"Do you want to be together with River Song?" I asked, sitting in the back seat.
"No, I don't. I don't approve of your recommendation of Captain Jack Harkness either."
"Well, that's alright, you just make something up." Natasha said, happily.
"What, like you?" Steve asked.
"I don't know. The truth is a matter of circumstances, it's not all things to all people all the time. And neither am I."
"That's a tough way to live."
"It's a good way not to die, though."
"You know, it's kind of hard to trust someone when you don't know who that someone really is."
"Yeah. Who do you want me to be?" Natasha asked.
"How about a friend?" Steve asked.
Natasha laughs softly, "Well, there's a chance you might be in the wrong business, Rogers."
Outside an abandoned military base...
The three of us pull up outside an abandoned military base where the signal led us to.
"This is it." Steve said.
"The file came from these coordinates." Natasha said.
"So did I."
Abandoned military base...
Later that night as we walk around the base trying to pinpoint where the signal came from.
"This camp is where I was trained." Steve said.
"Trained to be Captain America. This was where you met Howard Stark and Peggy Carter." I said, grabbing the strap of my sling bag.
"Changed much?" Natasha asked.
"A little." Steve said, having a brief vision of his former, smaller self running past him as he's getting trained with other soldiers.
"Pick up the pace, ladies! Let's go! Let's go! Double time! Come on Rogers, move it!" Sergeant Duffy yelled, and Steve's former self stops and stares at Steve as he is now. "Come on! Fall in! Rogers! I said fall in!"
Present Steve watches nostalgically as the former Steve runs off.
"This is a dead end. Zero heat signature, zero waves, not even radio. Whoever wrote the file must have used a router to throw people off." Natasha said, while Steve notices a building ahead of us. "What is it?"
"The last time I went to a military base. It was UNIT's." I said, as we walked over to the building.
"Army regulations forbid storing ammunition within five hundred yards of the barracks. This building is in the wrong place." Steve said.
"It can't be." I said, opening the lock with my sonic screwdriver and we enter inside, when we turn on the lights, we notice it's a SHIELD office.
"This is SHIELD." Natasha said, her eyes widening.
"Maybe where it started." Steve said, as we enter a room where we find old framed portraits of Howard Stark, Peggy and Col. Chester Phillips.
"There's Stark's father." Natasha said.
"Howard."
"Who's the girl?" Natasha asked.
"It's Peggy Carter." I said, when Steve doesn't reply and turns away to walk further down the room and stops by a massive book shelf. "She was Steve's lover during World War II."
"Oh. I see."
"If you're already working in a secret office..." Steve said, pushing the books shelf and slides open to reveal an elevator behind it. "Why do you need to hide the elevator?"
We go down the elevator which takes us to a room with old looking computers.
"This can't be the data-point, this technology is ancient." Natasha said, noticing a small flash drive port, she places the flash drive in it which then activates the ancient computer in the room.
"Initiate system?" The computer asked.
Natasha types using the keyboard.
"Y-E-S, spells yes." Natasha said, smiling as the old computer starts to cranks up. "'Shall we play a game?'" She looked over at Steve and I. "It's from a movie that..."
"WarGames." I said, happily. "Steve? Did you watch it?"
"Yeah, I saw it." Steve said, looking at the computer.
Suddenly, we hear an accented voice speaking.
"Rogers, Steven. Born, 1918. Romanoff, Natalia Alianovna. Born, 1984. Shay, Jared. Born, 1999." Dr. Arnim Zola said, and we see an old camera moving above us as it analyzes us.
"It's some kind of a recording." Natasha said.
"I am not a recording, Fräulein. I may not be the man I was when the Captain took me prisoner in 1945, but I am." Dr. Arnim Zola said.
The computer screen shows an old photo of Dr. Arnim Zola.
"Do you know this thing?" Natasha asked.
"Arnim Zola was a German scientist who worked for the Red Skull. He's been dead for years." Steve said.
"First correction, I am Swiss. Second, look around you. I have never been more alive. In 1972, I received a terminal diagnosis. Science could not save my body, my mind, however, that was worth saving on two hundred thousand feet of data banks. You are standing in my brain." Dr. Arnim Zola said.
"So, what. You are the computer. You're not a little girl in a library filled with living shadows." I said, looking at Dr. Arnim Zola. "And that's in the fifty-first century. I prefer Charlotte Abigail Lux over you. I trust her more than you. Well, how did you get here?"
"Invited."
"It was Operation Paperclip after World War II. SHIELD recruited German scientists with strategic value." Natasha said.
"They thought I could help their cause. I also helped my own." Dr. Arnim Zola said.
"HYDRA died with the Red Skull." Steve said.
"Cut off one head, two more shall take its place."
"Prove it."
"Accessing archive." Dr. Arnim Zola said, while the computer screen shows us old footage of Johann Schmidt/Red Skull, of the how the original SHIELD founders. "HYDRA was founded on the belief that humanity could not be trusted with its own freedom. What we did not realize, was that if you try to take that freedom, they resist. The war taught us much. Humanity needed to surrender its freedom willingly. After the war, SHIELD was founded and I was recruited. The new HYDRA grew. A beautiful parasite inside SHIELD. For seventy years, HYDRA has been secretly feeding crisis, reaping war. And when history did not cooperate, history was changed."
"That's impossible, SHIELD would have stopped you." Natasha said.
"Accidents will happen." Dr. Arnim Zola said, as the computer screen shows them HYDRA had killed Howard and Maria Stark making it look like a car accident along with the recent death of Fury. "HYDRA created a world so chaotic that humanity is finally ready to sacrifice its freedom to gain its security. Once the purification process is complete, HYDRA's new world order will arise. We won, Captain. Your death amounts to the same as your Life; a zero sum." In anger, Steve suddenly smashes the computer screen. "As I was saying..."
"What's on this drive?" Steve asked.
"Project Insight requires insight. So I wrote an algorithm."
"What kind of algorithm? What does it do?" Natasha asked.
"The answer to your question is fascinating. Unfortunately, you shall be too dead to hear it." Dr. Arnim Zola said, and suddenly the doors starts to close, Steve tries stops it by throwing his shield in between it but he's too late.
"Steve, Jared, we got a bogey. Short range ballistic. 30 seconds tops." Natasha said, looking at her phone.
"Shit." I said, clutching the strap of my sling bag.
"Who fired it?" Steve asked.
"S.H.I.E.L.D." Natasha said, sadly.
"I am afraid I have been stalling, Captain, President of the World. Admit it, it's better this way. We're, the three of us...out of time." Dr. Arnim Zola said.
Steve notices a small opening on the ground, he throws the metal door aside and just as the place explodes, he throws himself, Natasha, and I into the hole and protects us with his shield. Steve then manages to get us out from under the building rubble just as STRIKE agents arrive to roam the area for us.
"Call in the asset." Rumlow said, as he notices a footprint in the dust.
(Open POV)
Pierce's home...
Pierce goes to his kitchen to get a drink, when he sees the Winter Soldier sitting behind him with his gun on the table as his housekeeper calls out.
"I'm going to go, Mr. Pierce. You need anything before I leave?" Renata asked.
"No. Uh...it's fine, Renata, you can go home." Pierce said, sadly.
"Okay, night-night." Renata said.
"Good night." Pierce said, and Renata leaves. "Want some milk?" The Winter Soldier doesn't reply. "The timetable has moved. Our window is limited. Two targets, Level Six." He pours himself a glass of milk and goes over to join the Winter Soldier at the table. "They already cost me Zola. I want confirmed death in ten hours."
Just then, Renata interrupts them as she enters the kitchen.
"Sorry, Mr. Pierce, I...I forgot my phone." Renata said, noticing the Winter Soldier.
"Oh, Renata. I wish you would have knocked." Pierce said, picking up the gun from the table and shoots and kills Renata.
(Jared's POV)
Sam's home...
Returning home from his morning run, Sam hears a knock at his door, he opens the door to see Steve, Natasha, and I.
"Hey, man." Sam said, looking at Steve.
"I'm sorry about this. We need a place to lay low." Steve said, frowning.
"Everyone we know is trying to kill us." Natasha said, letting out a sigh.
Sam pauses a moment before replying, "Not everyone."
Sam lets us enter.
Later, as Steve, Natasha, and I are cleaning up, Steve notices Natasha looking sad and thoughtful.
"You okay?" Steve asked.
"Yeah." Natasha said.
"What's going on?"
"When I first joined SHIELD, I thought I was going straight. But I guess I just traded in the KGB for HYDRA. I thought I knew whose lies I was telling, but...I guess I can't tell the difference anymore."
"There's a chance you might be in the wrong business."
Natasha smiles faintly, "I owe you and Jared."
"It's okay." Steve said.
"If it was the other way around, and it was down to me to save your life, and you be honest with me, would you trust me to do it?" Natasha asked.
"I would now. And I'm always honest."
"Well, you seem pretty chipper for someone who just found out they died for nothing."
"Well, I guess I just like to know who I'm fighting."
"Nat. If you were able to see Yelena soon, would you do it?" I asked, walking over to Natasha. "Without hesitation."
"Yeah. I would." Natasha said, walking up to me for a hug. "I miss her."
"I know."
"I made breakfast. If you guys...eat that sort of thing." Sam said, looking between Steve, Natasha, and I.
"Pancakes?" I asked, letting go of Natasha.
"Chocolate chip." Sam said, happily. "With a cup of coffee."
"Thank you, Sam." I said, letting go of Natasha and dragging her into the kitchen. "Come along, Romanoff!"
"Wait up." Sam said, following me with Steve behind him.
We sat in Sam's kitchen and I ran up to the island to eat the chocolate chip pancakes and drink a cup of coffee.
"So, the question is: who in SHIELD could launch a domestic missile strike?" Natasha asked.
"Alexander Pierce." I said, using my knife to cut into the chocolate chip pancakes.
"Who happens to be sitting on top of the most secure building in the world."
"But he's not working alone, Zola's algorithm was on the Lemurian Star." Steve said.
"Well, Jasper Sitwell was also at the Lemurian Star." I said, using my fork to place a chocolate chip pancake into my mouth.
"So, the real question is: how do the two most wanted people in Washington kidnap a SHIELD officer in broad daylight?" Steve asked.
"The answer is: you don't." Sam said, dropping a file in front of Steve.
"What's this?" Steve asked.
"Call it a resume."
Natasha picks up a photo of Sam with his para-rescue team.
"Is this Bakhmala? The Khalid Khandil mission, that was you." Natasha said, looking over at Steve. "You didn't say he was a para-rescue."
Natasha is looking at the photo of Sam with his colleague.
"Is this Riley?" Steve asked.
"Yeah." Sam said, happily.
"I heard they couldn't bring in the choppers because of the RPGs. What did you use, a stealth chute?" Natasha asked.
"No. These." Sam said, handing Steve the file.
Steve opens the file and reads it, "I thought you said you were a pilot."
"I never said pilot."
"I can't ask you to do this, Sam. You got out for a good reason."
"Dude, Captain America needs my help. There's no better reason to get back in."
"Where can we get our hands on one of these things?" Steve asked.
"The last one is at Fort Meade, behind three guarded gates and a twelve-inch steel wall." Sam said.
Steve looks at Natasha who shrugs her shoulders and I am still snacking on the chocolate chip pancakes, "Shouldn't be a problem."
Steve throws down the file on the table and it's a classified military project called Falcon.
"FYI, Jasper Sitwell is with Senator Stern." I said, taking out my MacBook Pro from inside my sling bag with the Torchwood software loaded up. "They're at this building. But first, let's make you the Falcon again, Sam Wilson."
Washington D.C...
After their meeting is over, Sitwell walks out of the building with Senator Stern.
"Listen, I gotta fly home tonight, cause uh...I got some constituency problem, and I gotta press the flesh." Senator Stern said.
"Any constituent in particular, Mr. Senator?" Sitwell asked.
"Uh...no, not really. Twenty-three, kind of hot. Real hot. You know, wants to be a reporter, I think. I don't know, who listens at that point?"
"Doesn't sound much of a problem to me."
"Really? Cause she's killing my back. Look, this isn't the place to talk about it." Senator Stern said, touching Sitwell's pin on his jacket. "This is a nice pin."
"Thank you." Sitwell said.
"Come here." Senator Stern said, while they embrace and as they do Stern whispers to Sitwell. "Hail, HYDRA." As Stern steps away, he touches Sitwell's back. "See, it's right there..."
"I just saw that, yeah."
"Should I get it checked?"
"I think you should." Sitwell said, as Stern walks away, and Sitwell gets a call from Pierce, causing him to turn to his men. "I need a minute. Bring the car around." His men leave and Sitwell answers the phone. "Yes, sir?"
"Agent Sitwell, how was lunch? I hear the crab cakes here are delicious." Sam said.
"Who is this?"
"The good looking guy in the sunglasses, your ten o'clock." Sam said, and Sitwell looks around but doesn't see him. "Your other ten o'clock." Sitwell turns the other way and sees Sam sitting a few feet away from him. "There you go."
"What do you want?"
"You're gonna go around the corner, to your right. There's a grey car, two spaces down. You and I are gonna take a ride."
"And why would I do that?"
"Because that tie looks really expensive, and I'd hate to mess it up."
Sitwell looks down at his tie and sees a small red light from the gun being pointed at him.
Rooftop...
Steve throws Sitwell across a rooftop, Natasha and I follow behind him, "Tell me about Zola's algorithm."
"Never heard of it." Sitwell said.
"You're lying." I said, sipping on my cup of coffee in a styrofoam cup.
"Jared's right. You are lying, Sitwell. What were you doing on the Lemurian Star?" Steve asked.
"I was throwing up, I get seasick." Sitwell said, while Steve forces him to the edge of the rooftop, causing him to just smile. "Is this little display meant to insinuate that you're gonna throw me off the roof? Because it's really not your style, Rogers."
"You're right. It's not. It's his."
"It really is mine." I said, as Steve stepped aside and I kicked Sitwell off the roof. Sitwell plummets down, screaming. "Wanna get back to finding Steve a girlfriend?"
"Sure. Oh, wait. What about that girl from accounting, Laura...?" Natasha asked.
"Lillian. Lip piercing, right?" Steve asked.
"Yeah, she's cute."
"Yeah, I'm not ready for that."
"Oh. I know. What about Clara Oswald?" I asked, looking down at Sitwell falling.
"Isn't she taken by Danny Pink?" Steve asked.
"For now. Until Danny dies. Then she's free for the taking." I said, and Sam, in his Falcon jet-pack suit with wings, flies up holding Sitwell and throws him down on the roof.
Steve, Natasha, and I walk towards Sitwell, he holds his hand up in fear.
"Zola's algorithm is a program...for choosing Insight's targets!" Sitwell said, terrified.
"What targets?" Steve asked.
"And how many are we talking here?" I asked, sipping on my mocha.
"Both of you! A TV anchor in Cairo, Ruby Rose, Kazuto Kirigaya, the Under Secretary of Defence, Yuna Yuuki, an angel named Pit, a high school valedictorian in Iowa City, Usagi Tsukino, Purple Heart, Bruce Banner, Madoka Kaname, Hibiki Tachibana, Stephen Strange, Mikoto Misaka, Nanoha Takamachi, anyone who's a threat to HYDRA. Now, or in the future." Sitwell said, looking between Steve and I.
"The future? How could it know?" Steve asked, while Sitwell laughs.
"How could it know about me? And Nanoha. Neither of us are even from this universe. And Purple Heart is on another planet." I said, crossing my arms.
"How could it not? The 21st century is a digital book. Zola told HYDRA how to read it." Sitwell said, while Steve, Natasha, and I looked at him in confusion. "Your bank records, medical histories, voting patterns, emails, phone calls, your damn SAT scores! Doesn't matter if you're born on another planet, from a parallel universe, or born in this one. Zola's algorithm evaluates people's past to predict their future."
"And what then?" Steve asked.
"Oh, my God. Pierce is gonna kill me."
"What then?!" Steve exclaimed.
"Then the Insight Helicarriers scratch people off the list. A few million at a time."
(Open POV)
Car...
"HYDRA doesn't like leaks." Sitwell said, as Sam drives them to Triskelion.
"So why don't you try sticking a cork in it." Sam said.
"Insight's launching in sixteen hours, we're cutting it a little bit close here." Natasha said.
"I know. We'll use him to bypass the DNA scans and access the Helicarriers directly." Steve said.
"What?! Are you crazy? That is a terrible, terrible idea..." Sitwell said, sadly.
Suddenly, the Winter Soldier lands on the car roof, pulls Sitwell out through the window and throws him into the oncoming traffic, killing him. The Winter Soldier then starts shooting at them until Steve pulls the brake handle making him drop down onto the street, as another car smashes into the quartet's car and pushes them along. The Winter Soldier jumps back onto their car, smashes through the windscreen and pulls out the steering wheel.
"Shit!" Sam yelled, as Natasha starts shooting at him but the Winter Soldier jumps onto the vehicle behind them, as the quartet's car is being pulled off the road Steve holds on to the car door.
"Hang on!" Steve said, breaking open the door, holding onto Natasha, Sam, and Jared.
They slid on the car door through the streets.
Washington D.C...
The Winter Soldier is joined by HYDRA agents and they start shooting at them, the quartet scatter and run off in different directions with the Winter Soldier shooting at Natasha but she manages to shoot him in his eye goggle mask and run off.
"She's mine. Find them." The Winter Soldier said, going in pursuit of Natasha as the Hydra agents go after Steve, Sam,and Jared who manage to fend them off as they shoot at them, Steve then notices the Winter Soldier in pursuit of Natasha.
"Go, I got this!" Sam said, angrily.
The Winter Soldier thinks he's found Natasha hiding behind a car as he can hear her voice.
"I make an LZ, twenty-three hundred block of Virginia Avenue. Rendezvous two minutes. Taking fire above and below expressway. Civilians threatened. Repeat, civilians threatened." Natasha said, and the Winter Soldier rolls a bomb towards where he thinks she's hiding. As the bomb rolls behind the car, Natasha isn't actually there but a recording over her voice is being played back on a phone. "I make an LZ, twenty-three hundred blocks at Virginia Avenue. Rendezvous two minutes."
The bomb explodes. Natasha jumps onto the Winter Soldier's back and tries to strangle him.. The Winter Soldier throws Natasha off, and attempts to shoot her, only for Natasha to throw an electric device which shocks his metal arm before running off. The Winter Soldier removes the device, and recalibrates his arm.
"GET OUT OF THE WAY! STAY OUT OF THE WAY!" Natasha yelled, looking at the civilians as she tried to get away from the Winter Soldier.
Natasha suddenly gets shot in the shoulder and falls down. She looks around her, only for the Winter Soldier to come up for behind, ready to shoot her again.
Steve jumps in and blocks a punch from the latter with his shield before he kicks him away, followed by him blocking a few bullets from the Winter Soldier's Colt M4A1, Škorpion vz. 61, and SIG-Sauer P220ST.
The Winter Soldier briefly takes Steve's shield, and throws it at him, but Steve manages to avoid being hit. Then they fiercely battle it out.
Eventually, Steve manages to stop the Winter Soldier's arm, and throws him away, the latter's mask falling off in the process.
The Winter Soldier lands, and looks at an aghast Steve, whom by just looking at him, has learned his true identity.
"Bucky...?" Steve asked.
"Who the hell is Bucky?" Bucky asked.
As Bucky aims his pistol at Steve, Sam flies in and kicks Bucky aside.
"Steve, Bucky is under mind control." Jared said, and Bucky has a brief look of realization, but he quickly brushes it aside, and takes aim again, but before he can shoot, Natasha uses the grenade launcher he dropped against him. "You can't reason with him in that state."
"Right." Steve said, while Bucky vanishes in the smoke of the explosion.
Soon, the quartet hear sirens after which they are surrounded by HYDRA agents being led by Rumlow.
"Drop the shield, Cap! On your knees! Get on your knees! Now! Get down! Get down!" Rumlow said, as Steve holds his hands up. "Get on your knees! Down!" He kicks Steve's leg and Steve kneels down. "Don't move." Rumlow looks at the helicopter flying above them and warns Rollins who's holding Steve at gunpoint. "Put the gun down. Not here. Not here!"
Rollins lowers his gun, the HYDRA agents then take Steve, Sam, Natasha, and Jared into custody.
"Steve, I said that was Bucky. And he is under mind control." Jared said, and the quartet is being escorted in a van. "River Song was like that too under the influence of the Silence."
"Fair point." Steve said, frowning. "It was him. He looked right at me like he didn't even know me."
"How's that even possible? It was like seventy years ago." Sam said.
"Zola. Bucky's whole unit was captured in '43, Zola experimented on him. Whatever he did helped Bucky survive the fall. They must have found him and..."
"None of that's your fault, Steve." Natasha said, sadly.
"Even when I had nothing, I had Bucky." Steve said, letting out a sigh.
Sam notices Natasha is bleeding from her shoulder and looks at the guards, "We need to get a doctor here. We don't put pressure on that wound, she's gonna bleed out here in the truck."
Suddenly, one of the guards pulls out an electric rod and neutralizes the other guard and knocks him out, the guard is revealed to be Hill as she takes off her helmet.
"Ah. That thing was squeezing my brain." Maria said, while Sam looked at her in confusion, before looking between Steve and Jared. "Who's this guy?"
"Sam Wilson. He's a friend." Jared said, as Rumlow's crew stopped their vehicles and got out.
"Three holes. Start digging." Rumlow said, and they go over to the van holding Steve, Sam, Natasha, and Jared.
As Rumlow and his men open the door, they find it empty with one of the guards left unconscious and massive burnt whole on the car floor.
Secret Facility...
Hill has taken the quartet to a secret facility, a man runs towards them; referring to Natasha's wound.
"GSW. She's lost at least a pint." Maria said.
"Maybe two." Sam said.
"Let me take her." The doctor said.
"She'll want to see him first." Maria said, taking them to Fury who's alive and lying in bed, the quartet look at him in shock.
"About damn time." Nick said, annoyed.
"I thought going inside a Dalek was bad. But this is a lot worse." Jared said, eating some chocolate chip cookies.
"It is a lot worse since you're dealing with the Winter Soldier." Nick said, and Natasha's wound is being treated. "Lacerated spinal column, cracked sternum, shattered collarbone, perforated liver, one hell of a headache."
"Don't forget your collapsed lung." The doctor said.
"Oh, let's not forget that. Otherwise, I'm good."
"They cut you open, your heart stopped." Natasha said, looking at Nick.
"Tetrodotoxin B. Slows the pulse to one beat a minute. Banner developed it for stress. Didn't work so great for him, but we found a use for it."
"Why all the secrecy? Why not just tell us?" Steve asked.
"Any attempt on the director's life had to look successful." Maria said.
"Can't kill you if you're already dead. Besides, I wasn't sure who to trust." Nick said.
Bank vault...
The HYDRA agents fix Bucky's metal arm and as they do so he has a brief flashback to his old life after he was recovered by Zola and the HYDRA agents.
"Sergeant Barnes..." Dr. Arnim Zola said, while Bucky has to flashback to falling off the train at the edge of the mountain with Steve trying to save him.
"Bucky, no!" Steve yelled.
Bucky then has flashbacks to after he's picked up by Hydra agents.
"The procedure has already started." Dr. Arnim Zola said, as Bucky the Zola and the Hydra agent amputating his left arm and replacing with the metal arm."You are to be the new fist of HYDRA." Zola looks over at his men. "Put him on ice."
Bucky is being frozen after which he comes back to the present and knocks over the HYDRA agent fixing his arm, Rollins points his gun at him to stop him attacking any further. Pierce enters the bank vault Bucky is being held in.
"Sir, he's...he's unstable. Erratic." Scientist #1 said.
Pierce enters with Rumlow and some other HYDRA agents and goes over to Bucky.
"Mission report." Pierce said, and Bucky is looking blank and doesn't respond. "Mission report, now."
Pierce moves closer to Bucky and suddenly strikes him hard in the face.
"The man on the bridge..." Bucky said, while he has a flashback to Steve calling him by his name. "Who was he?"
"You met him earlier this week on another assignment." Pierce said.
"I knew him." Bucky said, as Pierce sits in front of him.
"Your work has been a gift to mankind. You shaped the century, and I need you to do it one more time. Society is at a tipping point between order and chaos. Tomorrow morning we're gonna give it a push. But, if you don't do your part, I can't do mine, and HYDRA can't give the world the freedom it deserves."
"But I knew him."
Pierce turns to the scientists, "Prep him."
"He's been out of cryo-freeze too long." Scientist #1 said.
"Then wipe him and start over." Pierce said.
The scientists strap Bucky in his chair and then place a teeth shield in his mouth as they begin the process of wiping his brain with Bucky screaming in pain.
(Jared's POV)
Secret facility...
"This man declined the Nobel Peace Prize." Nick said, looking at a photo of Pierce. "He said, 'Peace wasn't an achievement, it was a responsibility'. See, it's stuff like this that gives me trust issues."
"We have to stop the launch." Natasha said.
"It's not 'have to', Nat. It's 'need to'." I said, looking at Natasha.
"I don't think the Council's accepting my calls anymore." Nick said, opening a case containing three chips.
"What's that?" Sam asked.
"Once the Helicarriers reach three thousand feet, they'll triangulate with Insight satellites becoming fully weaponized." Maria said.
"We need to breach those carriers and replace their targeting blades with our own." Nick said.
"One or two won't cut it. We need to link all three carriers for this to work, because if even one of those ships remains operational a whole lot of people are gonna die."
"We have to assume everyone aboard those carriers is HYDRA. We need to get pass them, insert the server blades, and maybe, just maybe, we can salvage what's left..." Nick said.
"We're not salvaging anything. We're not just taking down the carriers, Nick, we're taking down SHIELD." Steve said.
"SHIELD had nothing to do with it."
"You gave me this mission, this is how it ends. SHIELD's been compromised, Jared said so himself. HYDRA grew right under your nose and nobody noticed."
"Why do you think we're meeting in this cave? I noticed."
"And how many paid the price before you did?"
"Look, I didn't know about Barnes." Nick said, looking at Steve.
"Even if you have, would you have told me? Or would you have compartmentalized that too? SHIELD, HYDRA, it all goes." Steve said.
"He's right." Maria said.
"We still have UNIT and Torchwood has been disbanded for a few years." I said, while Fury looked at Natasha then Sam. "The world will still be protected, Steve, Nick. My friends will help protect it after SHIELD and HYDRA go under."
"That works." Steve said, happily.
"Don't look at me. I do what they do, just slower." Sam said, raising up his hands.
"Well... Looks like you're giving the orders now, Captain." Nick said, smirking.
Steve stands on a bridge and has a flashback to the time he spent with Bucky after Steve's mother's funeral.
"We looked for you after. My folks wanted to give you a ride to the cemetery." Bucky said, as we walked towards Steve's apartment.
"I know, I'm sorry. I just...kind of wanted to be alone." Steve said.
"How was it?"
"It was okay. She's next to Dad."
"I was gonna ask..."
"I know what you're gonna say, Buck, I just..."
"We can put the couch cushions on the floor like when we were kids. It'll be fun. All you gotta do is shine my shoes, maybe take out the trash." Bucky said, and we get to the apartment door, Steve tries to find his keys, Bucky kicks a brick aside, picks up the apartment keys from under it and gives it to Steve. "Come on."
"Thank you, Buck, but I can get by on my own." Steve said, smiling.
"The thing is, you don't have to." Bucky said, giving Steve a friendly pat on the shoulder. "I'm with you to the end of the line, pal."
Steve's thoughts of Bucky are interrupted as Sam and I join him on the bridge.
"He's gonna be there, you know?" Sam asked.
"I know." Steve said, sadly.
"Look, whoever he used to be, the guy he is now, I don't think he's the kind you save. He's the kind you stop."
"I don't know if I can do that."
"Well, he might not give you a choice. He doesn't know you."
"He will. Gear up, it's time." Steve said, turning and starting to walk off.
"Steve, talk to Bucky. Get through to him. He'll listen. I promise." I said, happily. "You can do it. I have faith in you."
"Thank you for the reassurance by believing in me, Jared." Steve said, smiling.
"You gonna wear that?" Sam asked, looking at Steve's clothing.
"No. If you're gonna fight a war, you gotta wear a uniform." Steve said.
(Open POV)
Smithsonian...
A guard walks in, and when he looks over to the Captain America exhibit, he notices the Captain America WWII uniform that was on the dummy has been stolen.
"Oh, man. I am so fired!" The Smithsonian Guard said, annoyed.
Triskelion where the Helicarriers are being held...
"We are in final launch sequence." A man on the PA said.
"We are go on guidance." A SHIELD technician said.
"All personnel to launch station." A woman on PA said.
Pierce meets the World Security Council as they arrive at the Triskelion, "And how was your flight?"
"Lovely. The ride from the airport, less so." Councilman Hawley said.
"Sadly, SHIELD can't control everything." Pierce said.
"Including Captain America." Councilman Rockwell said.
Pierce walks over to one of the guards who hands him a case containing four pins, "This facility is biometrically controlled, and these will give you unrestricted access."
The council members each take a pin to wear.
Project Insight headquarters...
"I've been parking there for two months." Communication technician #1 said.
"But it's his spot." Communication technician #2 said.
"So where's he been?"
"I think Afghanistan."
"Negative, DT-6. The pattern is full." Communication technician #1 said, talking into his earpiece, before turning to his colleague. "Well, he could have said something." Suddenly, they hear a sharp noise through their earpiece. "Ow!"
"Must be the dish." Communication technician #2 said.
"I'll check it out." Communication technician #1 said.
"Triskelion command request we clear the area for launch." The man on PA said.
As the technician goes and opens the door, he's faced with Steve, Sam, Hill, and Jared on the other side of the door, Sam, Hill, and Jared point their guns at him.
"Excuse us." Steve said, while the technician holds his hands up and steps aside to let them enter.
"I know the road hasn't exactly been smooth, and some of you would have gladly kicked me out of the car along the way." Pierce said, addressing the World Security Council members. "Finally we're here, and the world should be grateful."
As they start drinking to Pierce's toast, they hear Steve over the SHIELD microphone that everyone in the building can hear.
"Attention, all SHIELD agents. This is Steve Rogers. You've heard a lot about me and Jared Shay over the last few days. Some of you were even ordered to hunt me and Jared down. But I think it's time you know the truth. SHIELD is not what we thought it was, it's been taken over by HYDRA. Alexander Pierce is their leader. The STRIKE and Insight crew are HYDRA as well. I don't know how many more, but I know they're in the building. They could be standing right next to you. They almost have what they want: absolute control. They shot Nick Fury and it won't end there. If you launch those Helicarriers today, HYDRA will be able to kill anyone that stands in their way, unless we stop them. I know I'm asking a lot, but the price of freedom is high, it always has been, and it's a price I'm willing to pay. And if I'm the only one, then so be it. But I'm willing to bet I'm not." Steve said, finishing his speech.
"Did you write that down first, or was it off the top of your head?" Sam asked, looking at Pierce after learning the truth about him.
"You smug son of a bitch." Councilman Rockwell said.
"Arrest him." Singh said, when two HYDRA agents enter the room, thinking they are SHIELD agents.
The HYDRA agent points his gun at Singh.
"I guess I've got the floor." Pierce said.
Rumlow and his men break into the control room, where Agent 13 also is, Rumlow walks over to one of the techs.
"Preempt the launch sequence. Send those ships up now." Rumlow said, while the technician hesitates visibly. "Is there a problem?"
"I'm..." The shield technician said, shaking his head nervously.
"Is there a problem?"
"I'm sorry, sir." The SHIELD technician said, taking a few nervous breaths before replying. "I'm not gonna launch those ships. Captain's orders."
Rumlow points his gun at the tech's head, "Move away from your station."
Agent 13 walks over to Rumlow pointing her gun at him.
"Like he said!" Sharon yelled, as all the SHIELD agents draw their weapons and point them at Rumlow. "Captain's orders."
"You picked the wrong side, Agent." Rumlow said.
"Depends on where you're standing." Sharon said.
Rumlow drops his gun, but as he does he grabs his knife and cuts Agent 13's arm, leading to the SHIELD agents firing their guns. Amidst the bullets, Rumlow manages to release the Helicarriers and runs off.
"Close the bay door! Close the bay door now! Close the bay door!" A SHIELD agent said, as the bay doors holding the Helicarriers are about to be opened.
The HYDRA agents enter and start shooting and killing the crew and techs.
SHIELD headquarters...
Hill watches on the monitor as the Helicarriers are being initiated, "They're initiating launch."
Helicarriers...
Steve, Sam, and Jared make their way to the Helicarriers.
"Hey, Cap, Jared, how do we know the good guys from the bad guys?" Sam asked.
"If they're shooting at you, they're bad." Steve said, sadly.
"That's usually how it works." Jared said, and Sam, in his Falcon suit, flies off.
Steve and Jared head down, the HYDRA agents starting shooting at them.
Sam flies around avoiding getting shot, "Hey, Cap, I found those bad guys you were talking about."
"You okay?" Steve asked.
"I'm not dead yet." Sam said, flying off as the HYDRA agents continue to shoot at him.
SHIELD headquarters...
Pierce watches from the window the commotion caused by Steve, Sam, and Jared trying to stop the Helicarriers launching, he turns to Singh.
"Let me ask you a question. What if Pakistan marched into Mumbai tomorrow, and you knew that they were gonna drag your daughters into a soccer stadium for execution?" Pierce asked, handing Singh a glass of champagne. "And you could just stop it with a flick of the switch. Wouldn't you? Wouldn't you all?"
"Not if it was your switch." Councilman Singh said, tossing the glass aside, one of the HYDRA agents hands.
Pierce his gun and Pierce points it at Singh, and Hawley kicks Singh away, then takes down the other HYDRA agents in the room before taking the gun and pointing at Pierce, she then removes her disguise to reveal it's Natasha.
"I'm sorry. Did I step on your moment?" Natasha asked.
"Satellites in range at three thousand feet." A Charlie Weapons technician said, referring to the Helicarriers.
"Falcon, status?" Maria Hill asked.
Helicarriers / SHIELD headquarters...
"Engaging." Sam said, managing to fly down to the Hellicarrier bay taking down the HYDRA jets chasing him. "Alright, Cap, Jared. I'm in." Just then, another HYDRA jets heads his way and starts shooting at him. "Shit!"
Sam manages to fly off and avoid getting hit, meanwhile Steve and Jared are fighting off the HYDRA agents as they try to get inside the Helicarrier.
"Eight minutes, Cap." Maria said.
"Working on it." Steve said.
"What are you doing?" Councilwoman Rockwell asked, looking at Natasha who was on the computer.
"She's disabling security protocols and dumping all the secrets onto the Internet." Alexander Pierce said.
"Including HYDRA's." Natasha said.
"And SHIELD's. If you do this, none of your past is gonna remain hidden." Pierce said, while Natasha continues typing into the computer. "Are you sure you're ready for the world to see you as you really are?"
"Are you?"
Control center of Helicarrier Alpha...
"Alpha locked." Steve said.
"Yup." Jared said, holding his sonic screwdriver in his hand and scanning the control panels on the Helicarrier. "I'm doing something incredibly stupid."
"And what is the plan?" Maria asked.
"Something Steve won't approve of."
"I see." Maria said, her eyes widening. "Falcon, where are you now?"
"I had to take a detour!" Sam said, flying towards one of the Helicarriers when heat-seeking missiles are shot at him by HYDRA, so he flies back towards the Helicarrier and manages to get the missiles that were aimed at him to hit the Helicarrier giving him entrance. "Oh, yeah!" Sam flies into the Helicarrier; to Hill. "I'm in. Bravo locked."
Sam flies out of the carrier.
"Two down, one to go." Maria said, happily.
"All SHIELD pilots, scramble. We're the only air support Captain Rogers and the President of the World has got." A SHIELD pilot said.
Suddenly, Bucky appears and starts firing at the SHIELD pilots and agents killing them all after which he gets into one of the jets and flies off.
SHIELD headquarters...
Inside the building with Natasha, Pierce and the council members, everything doesn't look so good.
"Disabling the encryption is an executive order, it takes two Alpha Level members." Pierce said.
"Don't worry, company's coming." Natasha said, while a helicopter appears outside, lands and Fury steps out to enter the building to Pierce's surprise.
"Did you get my flowers?" Pierce asked, as Fury looked at him coldly. "I'm glad you're here, Nick."
"Really? Cause I thought you had me killed." Nick said, scoffing.
"You know how the game works."
"So why make me head of SHIELD?"
"Cause you were the best and the most ruthless person I ever met."
"I did what I did to protect people."
"Our enemies are your enemies, Nick. Disorder, war. It's just a matter of time before a dirty bomb goes off in Moscow, or an EMP fries Chicago. Diplomacy? Holding action, a band-aid. And you know where I learned that; Bogota. You didn't ask, you just did what had to be done. I can bring order to the lives of seven billion people by sacrificing twenty million. It's the next step, Nick, if you have the courage to take it." Pierce said, looking at Nick.
"No, I have the courage not to." Nick said, taking Pierce to the retinal scanner with Natasha pointing her gun at him.
"Retinal scanner active." The SHIELD computer said.
"You don't you think we wiped your clearance from the system?" Pierce asked.
"I know you erased my password, probably deleted my retinal scan, but if you want to stay ahead of me, Mr. Secretary..." Nick said, removing his eyepatch to reveal his scarred dead eye. "You need to keep both eyes open."
They both look into the retinal scanner with Fury using his dead eye.
"Alpha Level confirmed. Encryption code accepted. Safeguards removed." The SHIELD computer said.
Hill at the headquarters...
"Charlie Carrier's forty-five degrees off the port bow." Maria said, noticing two HYDRA agents breaking into the headquarters, she shoots and kills them as they enter. "Six minutes."
Helicarrier...
Steve is trying to get away with Jared from the HYDRA agents shooting at them.
"Hey, Sam, I'm gonna need a ride." Steve said.
"Roger! Let me know when you're ready." Sam said.
"Don't worry about me. I can do a landing strategy." Jared said, while him and Steve just manages to jump off the edge as a HYDRA agent shoots a missile at them.
"I just did!" Steve yelled, while Sam flew in just in time to catch him.
Sam flies himself and Steve onto the last Helicarrier, "You know, you're a lot heavier than you look."
"I had a big breakfast." Steve said, smiling.
"I still got it." Jared said, using his landing strategy to land right on the last Helicarrier. "I can see why that's a thing in RWBY." Bucky appears and pushes him and Steve off the edge. "Shit!"
"Steve!" Sam said, as he goes to fly off and help Steve andJared.
Bucky grabs one of Sam's wings and throws him back. Sam starts shooting at Bucky, and as he goes to fly off, Bucky uses his weapon to rip off one of Sam's wings and kicks him off the Helicarrier. Sam manages to get his parachute out and lands on the roof of the Triskelion.
"Cap? Jared? Cap, Jared, come in. Are you okay?" Sam asked.
Helicarrier...
"Yeah!" Jared said, while Steve is holding onto the side of the Helicarrier and he is also the fanboy's hand. "Steve caught me!"
"I did! Yeah, we're here! We're still on the Helicarrier." Steve said, pulling himself and Jared up. "Where are you?"
"I'm grounded, the suit's down. Sorry, Cap, Jared." Sam said, sadly.
"Don't worry, we got it." Steve said, as [Bucky watches him and Jared from above the Helicarrier.
SHIELD headquarters...
As everyone at the Triskelion is rushing around trying to evacuate the building, Rumlow fights and kills some SHIELD agents.
"All SHIELD agents regroup at Rally Point Delta." A SHIELD agent said.
Romlow kills the speaker and another three agents.
"Sir, Council's been breached." HYDRA dispatch said, on the radio.
"Repeat, dispatch." Rumlow said.
"Black Widow's up there."
"Headed up!"
Hill notices Rumlow on the monitor, "Falcon?"
"Yeah?" Sam asked.
"Rumlow's headed for the Council." Maria said.
"I'm on it." Sam said.
Helicarrier...
Steve and Jared are confronted by Bucky.
"People are gonna die, Buck. I can't let that happen." Steve said, as Bucky stares at him coldly. "Please, don't make me do this."
Seeing Bucky won't back down, Steve throws his shield at him and they start battling each other, as they fight Steve manages to bring up the targeting blade system, but as Bucky attacks him, the chip falls from Steve's hand.
Council...
"Done." Natasha said, looking at her mobile device. "And it's trending."
Pierce sets off the pins he gave the council members, causing it to burn deeply into their sternum, Natasha and Fury points their guns at him.
"Unless you want two inch hole in your sternum, I'd put that gun down." Pierce said, looking at Natasha who doesn't back down. "That was armed the moment you pinned it on."
Fury and Natasha reluctantly lower their weapons.
Helicarrier...
As they are battling it out, Bucky stabs Steve in the shoulder with his knife and then grabs the fallen chip, but Steve manages to get the knife out, grab Bucky by the throat and throws him down, armlocks him.
"Drop it! Drop it!" Steve yelled, as Bucky continues to hold the chip.
Steve breaks his arm and holds onto his throat until he passes out and lets go of the chip,
"Yes!" Jared said, and Steve then grabs the chip and rushes off with him. "You did it."
An office in the SHIELD HQ...
"I'm on forty-one, headed towards the south-west stairwell." Rumlow said, and Sam attacks him but Crossbones manages to knock the Falcon down. "This is gonna hurt. There are no prisoners with HYDRA, just order. And order only comes through pain. You ready for yours?"
"Man, shut the hell up." Sam said, annoyed.
Sam and Rumlow attack each other.
SHIELD headquarters...
"Lieutenant, how much longer?" Pierce asked.
"Sixty-five seconds to satellite link. Targeting grid engaged. Lowering weapons array now." Charlie XO said, on the radio.
"One minute." Maria said, talking to Steve and Jared as she watches from the monitor.
Steve desperately tries to get back up to the Helicarriers with Jared to get to the targeting system when Bucky becomes conscious and shoots at Steve in the left thigh and then the right shoulder, but Steve still manages to climb up with Jared.
"Thirty seconds, Cap, Jared!" Maria said, worried.
"Stand by." Steve said, getting the chip out. "Charlie..."
Bucky shoots Steve in the stomach and he falls.
Helicarrier's bridge...
"We've reached three thousand feet. Sat link coming online now." Charlie Weapons technician said.
"Deploy algorithm." Charlie XO said.
"Algorithm deployed."
"We are go to targets." Pierce said, on the radio.
Hill watches as the weapons are being targeted at Washington, the White house, the Pentagon, Stark Tower, Mitakihara City, Kamihama City, Tokyo, London, aiming to kill over 700,00 people.
"Target saturation reached. All targets assigned." Charlie Weapons Technician said.
"Fire when ready." Charlie XO said.
"Firing in, three, two, one."
At that moment, Steve manages to get up with Jared, and the fanboy uses his sonic screwdriver to override the system and lock it down.
"Charlie locked!" Jared said, holding his sonic screwdriver in his hand, and the light at the end is glowing blue. "Can't believe it wasn't deadlock sealed!"
"Where are the targets? Where are the targets?" Charlie XO asked, as he watched the targets go off with the technician.
"Okay, Cap, Jared, get out of there." Maria said, getting the Helicarriers weapon targets to open fire upon each other.
"Fire now." Steve said.
"But, Steve..." Maria said, sadly.
"Do it! Do it now!" Steve yelled.
"There's no need! I wiped Zola's algorithm!" Jared said, excitedly. "We can still use the Helicarriers! But they're under my control now."
"You did what?" Steve asked, looking at Bucky below him.
Triskelion...
Pierce watches the Helicarriers just flying there.
"What happened?" Pierce asked.
"Sorry. But those Helicarriers are under my control now." Jared said, his voice coming out of the speakers. "I wiped the entirety of Zola's algorithm on them, Pierce. It's all over."
"Are you still on the fence about Rogers' and Shay's chances?" Natasha asked.
"Time to go, Councilwoman. This way, come on. You're gonna fly me out of here." Pierce said, starting to leave with Natasha.
"You know, there was a time I would have taken a bullet for you." Nick said, looking at Pierce.
"You already did. You will again when it's useful." Pierce said, while Natasha activates a small disc that emits an electric shock through her whole body and disables the pin.
This gives Fury a chance to shoot Pierce, which he does so twice, Fury then walks over to Natasha who is lying unconscious on the floor.
"Romanoff! Natasha! Natasha, come on!" Nick said, angrily.
Natasha opens her eyes, " Ow. Those really do sting."
Pierce lies on the floor and says with his last dieing breath, "Hail HYDRA."
Helicarrier...
"Jared, why did you save them?" Steve asked, looking at Jared.
"These are going to come in handy someday." Jared said, happily.
"Maybe for you. But Zola's algorithm..."
"It's gone. It's wiped. I wiped it from SHIELD's servers, HYDRA's servers, and on these three Helicarriers." Jared said, looking between Steve and Bucky.
Triskelion...
Sam and Rumlow continue to fight each other.
"You're out of your depth, kid." Rumlow said, and he got stunned and knocked out.
Triskelion / Helicopter...
"Please, tell me you got that chopper in the air!" Sam said, while Natasha who is in the helicopter as he sprints away.
"Sam, where are you?" Natasha asked.
"41st floor, north-west corner!"
"We're on it, stay where you are." Natasha said, and Sam jumps out of the window as she and Fury fly their chopper barely in time to catch him.
"41st floor! 41st!" Sam said, annoyed.
"It's not like they put the floor numbers on the outside of the building!" Nick said.
"Hill, where's Steve and Jared? You got a location on Rogers and Shay?" Natasha asked.
Third Helicarrier...
Jared is looking between Steve and Bucky who are just standing to look at each other.
"You know me." Steve said, frowning.
Bucky lashes out at Steve in anger, "NO, I DON'T!"
"Bucky, you've known me your whole life."
Bucky hits Steve, but his friend chooses not to fight back.
"Your name...is James Buchanan Barnes." Steve said.
Bucky hits Steve again, "SHUT UP!"
"I'm not gonna fight you." Steve said, taking off his mask and drops his shield out of the Helicarrier. "You're my friend."
Bucky pushes Steve to the ground.
"You're my mission." Bucky said, mercilessly punching Steve repeatedly across the face. "YOU'RE. MY. MISSION!"
"Then finish it..." Steve said, while Bucky hesitates, holding his fist up. "Cause I'm with you...to the end of the line."
Bucky looks at Steve as if he's starting to remember, and Jared tossed a teleport pad to be around Steve and Bucky. Steve ends up being teleported to the river below as Bucky watches from the Helicarrier, Jared looks down to see an unconscious Steve being pulled out of the water and dragged onto the shore by Bucky before he turns and walks away.
(Jared's POV)
Hospital...
In a room guarded by two armed agents, Steve wakes up in a bed to hear Marvin Gaye's 'Trouble Man' playing with Sam and I sit next to his bed.
"On your left." Steve said, smiling.
"Sam, you should use that joke again in the future." I said, while Sam looked at Steve and I and smiled.
"I should." Sam said, smirking.
I thought about Agent 13 practicing shooting at a shooting range wearing a CIA t-shirt; Hill at Stark Industries about to undergo a lie detector test; then Senator Stern getting arrested and then a badly burnt Rumlow being treated by doctors at the hospital.
Committee hearing...
Natasha is then being sworn in at a committee hearing with me watching in the shadows with the help of my TARDIS key.
"Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" A bailiff asked.
"I do." Natasha said.
"Why haven't we yet heard from Captain Rogers and the President of the World?" The committee general asked.
"I don't know what there is left for them to say. I think the wreck in the middle of the Potomac made their point fairly eloquently."
"Well, they could explain how this country's expected to maintain its national security, now that they and you have laid waste to our intelligence apparatus."
"HYDRA was selling you lies, not intelligence." Natasha said.
"Many of which you seem to have had a personal hand in telling." The committee general said.
"Agent, you should know that there are some on this committee who feel, given your service record, both for this country and against it, that you belong in a penitentiary, not mouthing off on Capitol Hill." Scudder said.
"You're not gonna put me in a prison. You're not gonna put any of us in a prison. You know why?" Natasha asked.
"Do enlighten us."
"Because you need us. Yes, the world is a vulnerable place, and yes, we helped make it that way. But we're also the ones best qualified to defend it. So if you want to arrest me, arrest me. You'll know where to find me." Natasha said, getting up and walking away to approach me.
"Nat, you were amazing up there." I said, while knowing Fury is getting rid of any trace of his existence, including his passports and eyepatch, burning them and his hiding place. "Let's see Nick."
Cemetery...
"So, you've experienced this sort of thing before?" Nick asked, wearing sunglasses and hoodie, meeting Steve and Sam at a cemetery at his own grave.
"You get used to it." Steve said, sadly.
Fury's gravestone, which bears the epitaph 'The path of the righteous man. Ezekiel 25:17'.
"We've been data-mining HYDRA's files. Jared had some friends teleport the rats that were on the Helicarriers to a UNIT prison. Looks like a lot of rats didn't go down with Jared's taking over of the ships. I'm headed to Europe tonight, wanted to ask if you'd come." Nick said.
"There's something I gotta do first." Steve said.
"How about you, Wilson? Could use a man with your abilities." Nick said, looking at Sam.
"I'm more of a soldier than a spy." Sam said, frowning.
"Alright then." Nick said, as Sam and Steve shook his hand. "Anybody asks for me, tell them they can find me right here."
Fury looks to his gravestone and walks away, just then Natasha and I join Steve and Sam.
"You should be honored, that's about as close as he gets to saying thank you." Natasha said, happily.
"Not going with him?" Steve asked.
"No."
"Not staying here?"
"I blew all my covers, I gotta go figure out a new one."
"That might take a while." Steve said, smirking.
"I'm counting on it. That thing you asked for, I called in a few favors from Kiev." Natasha said, handing Steve a file titled 'дело No 17' (file No 17). "Will you do me a favor? Call that nurse."
"She's not a nurse." Steve said, looking at Natasha.
"And you're not a SHIELD agent, Steve." I said, laughing a lot. "You're a good man. A really good man."
"What was her name again?" Steve asked.
"Sharon. She's nice." Natasha said, kissing Steve on the cheek and turning to walk away. "Be careful, Steve. You might not want to pull on that thread."
"Nat. I'll see you around." I said, walking up to Natasha for a hug. "I'm meeting up with the Doctor and Clara soon."
"What adventure will you go on?" Natasha asked.
"Robin Hood." I said, and Natasha let go of me and walked away. "That one is going to be fun."
Steve opens the file, which is about Bucky and the information regarding his Winter Soldier transformation.
Sam walks over to Steve and I, "You're going after him?"
"You don't have to come with me." Steve said.
"I know." Sam said, looking at Steve.
"Me too. I'll be helping you the long way around, Steve." I said, grabbing Steve's hand.
"Jared's right. I still don't understand how he can time travel. When do we start?" Sam asked.
(Open POV)
Underground HYDRA lab...
Baron Wolfgang von Strucker is talking with a HYDRA scientist.
"It's over. Fury has released everything to the public." List said.
"Everything he knows about." Baron Wolfgang von Strucker said.
"Herr Strucker, if they get word of our work here, if they find out we serve HYDRA..."
"HYDRA, SHIELD, two sides of a coin that's no longer currency." Baron Wolfgang von Strucker said, walking over to the corner of the lab where Loki's scepter is being kept with List. "What we have is worth more than any of them ever knew. We've only scratched the surface and already..." He and List start walking out of the lab. "There are other facilities doing HYDRA's good work around the world. We'll feed them to Captain America and his colorful friends. Keep them off our scent."
"What about the volunteers?" List asked.
"The dead will be buried so deep their own ghosts won't be able to find them."
"And the survivors?"
"The twins." Baron Wolfgang von Strucker said, looking at the twins, Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, aka Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, being kept in glass cells each exhibiting their powers, Pietro having superhuman speed and Wanda having telekinetic powers. "Sooner or later, they will meet the twins. It's not a world of spies anymore, not even a world of heroes. This is the age of miracles, doctor. There's nothing more horrifying than a miracle."
Smithsonian Museum...
At the Captain America exhibit, Bucky in civilian clothes is staring pensively at the display about himself.