THE FADING FALLEN ● Bucky Barnes X OC ● 18+ ● ENGLISH [COMPLETE]

Chapter 6

'Steve...'

Somewhere in his muddled thoughts, the name was familiar. But it took quite a while, and more importantly, a lot of history study, to sort out this chaos in his mind to some extent.

On a short visit to the Smithonian Museum, just before he left America, he saw the young sergeant's picture in front of him. Smiling, he stood next to Captain America.

He saw the undeniable resemblance, but didn't recognize himself in it.

Again and again, recent memories haunted him. In front of him Steve, his face bruised from the many punches by the metal arm.

"Then finish it... cause' I'm with you till the end of the line."

He was his mission. And yet Steve's words held him back.

At that moment, it felt like his entire existence was shattering into a million tiny pieces.

Bucky refused to believe what he was hearing. And yet he wished it were true. He wanted to remember it. His past, his life... his friend.

Like a fallen man, he plunged once again into that darkness. The shards of his identity fell down into an abyss from which there seemed to be no return.

Just like he himself at once.

A normal mortal would never have survived the fall into the icy gorge. However, after Hydra experimented on him during his first imprisonment, he was aware that the nightmare had begun much earlier.

Hydra... this name not only brought back the agonies and memories of what he had done as a will-less killing machine.

Above all, since the first time he saw her, her face kept flashing in his mind's eye.

The young woman in the white doctor's coat.

Light brown hair, which she had tied together. Deep eyes that threatened to swallow him with their golden glimmer. Soft fingertips which touched him.

He believed from the beginning that she was without any doubt one of Hydra's lackeys. Why else would she be walking around with their symbol on her upper arm?

What made him wonder, though, was what she said to him as he sat transfixed in the chair looking at her. Even more so was the way she said it.

"I'm going to get you outta here, Sgt. Barnes!"

With a certainty he had never known from a woman before - at least not from those he could remember.

What happened to her after that he didn't know. It disappeared in a black hole. He only knew that he was again hooked up to the machines and that the unbearable torments started all over once more.

It could be that his brain playing games on him. Maybe he was hoping that there was someone who would rescue him from his own captivity.

The longer he thought about it, the more sure he was that it had to be that way.

Hydra weren't helping people - Hydra destroyed them.

And this doctor was definitely only there to continue subjecting him to the endless tortures.

As dawn broke through the barren curtains and the dirty windows behind them, Bucky decided to get up.

His job today at a fabric mill was waiting for him and he wanted to get it done quickly. At least his strength and arm were an advantage, with the heavy warehouse work.

A small ray of hope in his dark life did appear before him: the market and the delicious plums, which at least gave him some joy.

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