ᵈᵃʳᵏⁿᵉˢˢ ▸ 𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐕𝐄 𝐑𝐎𝐆𝐄𝐑𝐒⁴ ✓

thirteen.

"Oh, that's right, I forgot to mention." Tony huffed, "After our little fight, when you took off, the rest of your team got thrown into a maximum security prison.  The Raft, to be exact...you may have heard of it." 

"Are you okay?" Steve repeated, this time with a darker and much more determined tone. 

"When you sacrificed yourself so we could go, I was terrified that something was going to happen to you. I just didn't think that Tony would stoop so low."

"She broke the law!"

"Okay, I might have broken it but it was for a good cause. Like you wouldn't have?" she snapped.  "Not even to consider that the Raft isn't a very nice place. Having to compel some of the guards to get out of there."

"Jesus," Steve whispered in complete shock, again trying to take a step towards Caroline. However, Kiara was the one to push past Tony and take her sister in her arms. Caroline relived pressed a kiss to the side of her head, "I'm fine."

Steve saw the opportunity as well and pushed past Tony, setting his shield on the floor next to him and took her arms gently in his grip, trying to lure you to look at him. 

"Caroline, I'm sorry.  I had no idea they would do that."

"Listen, we can argue about this all day, but I'm here for a reason, alright?" Tony broke in.  "Maybe your story isn't so far fetched after all. Ross doesn't know that we're here, and I'd like to keep it that way.  I think we've got something a little bigger than either of us going on."

Steve looked down at Caroline, worried that of all the decisions that he had made, the one that allowed her to be a part of this was by far the worst.  After Ultron, he didn't want to go through that same scenario again, where she the woman who could live forever could be in a situation of life or death. Giving him a complacent nod and turned him towards Tony to force them to see each other once and for all. 

"It's good to see you, Tony."

"Yeah, it's good to see you too, Cap.  Hey, Manchurian Candidate, you wanna put that down?" Tony called out to Bucky, who was still holding his weapon steady, "we've got a truce here, alright?"

As they all walked forward with caution, Tony analyzed the room with everyone on defense. "I got heat signatures."

"How many?"

"Uh, one."

As they enter the vast chamber the lights come on. Hazy, yellow mist decends within the capsules. As well as Josef, each one contains an enhanced soldier from the 1991 experiment. Steve and the others look around, bewildered.

A voice on the loud speaker comes on, "If it's any comfort, they died in their sleep. Did you really think I wanted more of you?"

Bucky growls, "What the hell?"

"I'm grateful to them, though. They brought you here." Zemo appears in a control room. Steve hurls his shield but it flies back. "Please, Captain. The Soviets built this chamber to withstand the launch blast of UR-100 rockets."

"Really could they withstand a vampire's strength?" Caroline emerged more forward, shedding her teeth with Zemo more than entertained.

"The vampire and the soldier sister." He teased instantly bringing up Caroline's anger before being held back by Kiara.

"I'm betting I could beat that." Tony continued moving past the scene.