Alex could see from the look on Steve's face that it was time for the final move, then Captain America would be his.
*Snap*
He snapped his fingers, and the doors behind Steve swung open once more. Causing the man to turn around.
"Steve? Is that you?" Came the surprised elderly voice of the woman being wheeled in in her wheelchair.
Steve froze, his heart stopping for a beat at the familiar voice that he'd thought he might never hear again in this lifetime. He turned, slowly, disbelievingly, to face the doors that had swung open. There, being wheeled into the room, was a woman whose voice he would never forget, no matter how aged it had become.
"Peggy?" His voice was a whisper, a mix of hope and fear of believing too quickly, too fully. The years had changed her, as they change all things, but the spark in her eyes, the strength in her gaze—it was unmistakably Margaret Carter.
"Yes, it's me, Steve," Peggy said, her voice stronger now that the initial shock had passed. Her smile held decades of sorrow and joy, a testament to a life lived fully but always with a shadow of what could have been.
Steve stepped towards her, each step heavy with the weight of years lost, of opportunities missed. He knelt beside her wheelchair, taking her hand in his, feeling the realness of her skin, the warmth of her touch. "I... I thought I'd never see you again," he managed to say, his voice choked with emotion.
It seemed that Peggy was about to say something, but her eyes filled with confusion for a moment, and then she looked back at Steve and gasped in shock. "Steve? Is that you?" she asked, reaching out for him with her shaking hands.
Steve reached out to carefully take her fragile hand in his. The contrast between their age evermore apparent as her aged skin rested against his. He continued to look at her. Pain filling his heart, so much time lost, a lifetime.
Then suddenly, the hand he was holding was pulled back roughly, breaking him out of his daydreams. Looking up at her face, he saw confusion.
"What, who are you? What am I doing here?" She asked while trying to distance herself from him. Before once again, she seemed to recognize him. "Steve? Is that you?"
This time, Steve couldn't help but be both confused and concerned and looked back towards O5-1 for answers.
"Captain Rogers," Alex began, his voice steady, betraying none of the satisfaction he felt at the scene's impact. "I understand this is a lot to take in. Margaret Carter was brought here under the safest conditions we could ensure. Her fluctuating cognition is a result of her advanced age; I'm afraid she suffers from Alzheimer's disease."
Alex continued. "She doesn't have much time, so i figured I should bring the two of you together."
Steve's eyes flickered between Peggy and O5-1, the revelation sinking in with a heavy, suffocating weight. Alzheimer's disease—a name he knew, a condition he understood the cruelty of, even if the depth of its impact was something he was only now beginning to grasp.
The realization that Peggy was not just the shadow of the woman she had been but also trapped in the fluctuating tides of her own memories struck him with a profound sadness.
"Peggy..." Steve whispered again, this time with a different layer of realization, one tinged with the sorrow of understanding what her moments of confusion meant. He turned his gaze back to her, studying her face as if trying to memorize it all over again to find the woman he had known within the one before him now.
Peggy looked back at him, a flicker of recognition dancing behind her eyes. "Steve," she said, her voice a fragile thread of sound. "You're so... it's been so long."
"It has, Peggy. It's been... a lifetime," Steve admitted, his voice thick with unshed tears. He held her gaze, offering her a smile that was both a greeting and a goodbye, an acknowledgment of their shared past and the unbridgeable distance the years had placed between them.
"I... I don't always remember," Peggy confessed, her voice barely above a whisper. "But when I do, it's always you. My greatest... what if."
Even Alex felt slightly emotional as he watched those two reunite, feeling for them the pain they must both feel at this moment. Yet, as sad as their story was, he and the Foundation held the key to giving them a happy ending.
Alex sat back, letting the two sweethearts have their moment. Let them catch up, for however long it would take poor old Carter to once more forget about it. The pain in Steve's heart would no doubt become immense.
It would be then that he would be willing to sell his soul to the devil, not for himself; no, he was far too righteous for that. No, he would do it for Peggy, for Bucky, for his friends, and for the world itself.
Steve's heart ached as he watched the flickers of recognition come and go in Peggy's eyes, each moment of clarity a precious gift, each lapse a reminder of the cruel disease robbing her of her memories. Her mention of him as her "greatest... what if" pierced him deeply, resonating with his own sense of loss and the unfulfilled life they could have shared together.
Finally, Alex felt that he had seen enough and decided to end this pity party before the mood spread. "I think its time we give dear old lady Carter some rest and for you to hear what I offer, Captain Rogers. Not just what I offer you, but what I offer the three of you."
Steve's gaze shifted from Peggy to Alex, torn between his concern for Peggy and the curiosity piqued by Alex's words. The mention of an offer, especially one involving not just him but Peggy and, implicitly, Bucky, sharpened his focus. Despite the emotional turmoil, the strategic part of his mind, always attuned to potential opportunities and threats, clicked into place.
"What are you talking about?" Steve asked, his voice steady despite the storm of emotions brewing within him. He stood up from beside Peggy's wheelchair, gently squeezing her hand before letting go, his presence offering a silent promise of return.
"I want you to work for me; I give you a new purpose; forget about working for the US, forget about wars; what we at the Foundation do is so much bigger, so much more important.
Steve looked at the dark silhouette of a man, thinking about what he had heard and seen so far, about the situation he found himself in—a world so very different from the one he remembered, a world that wasn't as simple, where it was far harder to see who the bad guys were.
Sure, Hydra was still around, still the bad guys, but even the US didn't seem all that much better. It would be far easier to work for this Foundation then try to fit back into the world out there. But he just couldn't agree so easily.
"And what of the values I stand for? Freedom, justice, the protection of the innocent," Steve pressed on, needing to understand the moral compass that guided the SCP Foundation. "How do those fit into your 'bigger, more important' mission?"
Alex understood the importance of this question to Steve. "The Foundation's mission aligns with those values more than you might expect," he began, his voice firm and sincere. "While the nature of our work requires us to operate in secrecy, our ultimate goal is to protect humanity."
Steve was quick to point out what Alex had left out. "And what about freedom? Justice? You just going to leave that out?"
Alex paused, recognizing the need to address Steve's concerns directly. "Those are some grand ideals; however, in the real world, some things have to be given up in exchange for safety. When lives have to be sacrificed, we will first give up ideals to spare lives, and only then will we pay in blood."
Alex knew that Steve would probably never understand the need for some of the more dark aspects of the Foundation's work. Most people would no doubt dislike the stuff done to deal with the abnormal. The callous disregard for the lives of the D-class, the necessary child or baby sacrifice here and there.
All stuff was as dark as it got, but while most would want the Foundation to use more humane methods, only those of the Foundation knew that such ideals were simply not possible. Which is one of the very reasons the Foundation works in secrecy.
To ensure that they can do their work without interruptions or slowdowns. The problem was selling this idea to someone like Steve Rogers, Mr righteous himself.
Steve's expression grew tense, the conflict evident in his eyes. "Sacrificing ideals for safety... That's a dangerous path. How do you decide whose lives are worth more? How do you ensure that the power you wield doesn't corrupt? My fight has always been for those who can't fight for themselves without compromising the very ideals I stand for."
Alex recognized the challenge in convincing someone like Steve. "It's a balance, Captain. A constant evaluation of risks and benefits. We don't make these decisions lightly. There are oversight committees and ethical reviews. We're not infallible, but we strive to make the best decisions with the information we have."
Steve pondered the words, understanding the complexity of the situation yet grappling with the moral implications. "And what if I disagree with a decision that's made? What if I see a better way?"
To this Alex, O5-1 could only shake his head. "If you agree to work for us, for the Foundation, then there will be no questioning our decisions. There will be no hesitation in carrying out orders, we allow people to disagree, to file a complaint with the Ethics Committee, but only after having carried out our orders."
Alex continued without giving Steve a chance to interrupt. "Some of the objects we contain are so dangerous that the slightest error, the tiniest bit of hesitation, could lead to the very end of human civilization or earth as a whole."
Steve wasn't entirely happy about what he heard, even if he understood it to some extent. "I've faced tough decisions before, decisions that could mean life or death for others. I understand the necessity of action, the urgency of making calls in the heat of battle," Steve admitted, his resolve hardening.
"But I've always believed in accountability, in questioning orders that don't align with moral integrity. If I'm to join you, it cannot be as a blind follower."
Alex just shook his head once again. "I'm sure that after the training, you will come to agree with me, with us, with the Foundation, its ways and mission. But first, you will deal with Hydra; for that, we won't bother with how you do it."
"I'll join your fight against Hydra," Steve finally said, his voice carrying the weight of his decision. "But not as a soldier blindly following orders. I do this as Captain America, fighting for what's right, with every intention of holding the Foundation to the highest moral standard I know."
"We will see if my offer won't be able to change your mind a little," Alex said with a smile on his masked face. "I didn't bring Miss Carter here just for your reunion. No, I can offer you a great boon: work for me, and I will restore to her the youth wasted waiting for you."
Steve froze hearing that, yet Alex was far from done just yet.
"I can cure her mind and body, return her to the woman you once knew, I can even restore your friend Bucky. The three of you can be together once again, undertaking the mission to take down Hydra, finish your work, avenge Bucky, protect Shield, Peggy's live work."
A/N
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