Remnants of Time

Chapter 10

He let his eyes wander through the room. An alarm told him it was afternoon by now, but still the same day they'd attacked Hydra in Augsburg. He wondered if Nat had some kind of plan right now.
But she wasn't here. What did that mean? Was she meeting someone else, conveying information? Steve couldn't shake the little shiver crawling over his back. Whatever she was doing, it required Bucky to be out of it. That couldn't be good at all. If they were going to take down Zola, they'd need Bucky awake and with his full power. Was she trying to prevent them from going after Hydra? Did she have a secret plan that could ruin everything? Steve could've screamed right then because people he trusted were keeping things from him again. He hated it.
"But why would Bucky try to kill us, Sam? What am I missing? Did anything happen? Did you find Zola?"
"Did we find him? More like we ran right into his trap. Although technically, the trap part wasn't made for us. But since we trusted that crazy addict, we're back to one and people are dead and we can't even protect each other."
"Addict? Dead people? Sam, could you explain?" Steve sighed. This was like talking to a drunk person. He'd always taken Sam for a hilarious drunk. Well, life was disappointing.
"It was all about Barnes, that little shit. Hydra has him on their hook like a hunted duck. Wow, that rhymed. Well, now we got the Winter Soldier. Maybe we can trade him tomorrow." Sam smiled lazily and leaned deeper into his seat. Steve rolled his eyes. That guy really needed to sleep.
"Wait! What happens tomorrow?"
"Oh yeah. Tomorrow, we're gonna meet Z- Zem- Zu..."
"Zola?"
"Yeah", he mumbled, words blurring more the closer he came to falling asleep, "such an asshole."

And with that, Sam was asleep and snoring on the armchair. Steve decided it was better that way. If they wanted to get anything done, they'd need everyone sober and armed with a clear mind. Steve shrugged his discomfort off. He'd never had such a weird conversation with Sam. Something was off with him.
Steve stood up and noticed the door that led to a kitchen.
It was small, but there was enough space for a microwave, a fridge, some cabinets and a table with a little bench with pillows for seating. Some things cleared up when Steve noticed the open Vodka bottle on the table. So Sam was drunk. Something big must've happened.
But there was a little note as well, on top of a pile of loose papers, folders, and notes. Hi Steve, hope you're better. I'm just running some errands, be back in a few. Keep Barnes on Ketamine, it's safer that way. Check out the intel we took from the base last night.Steve tossed the crumpled paper into the paper bin.
So, after a rather disappointing meal Steve put together from the few supplies available in the kitchen, he sat down examining the material of information Nat had supplied him with. He followed her notes and highlighted paragraphs.
A report stated the end phase of Project: Awakening with explicit dates. Another look at the alarm sent a wave of disappointment through Steve. Today. This morning. Zola must've already been
Zola must've already been resurrected if the plan had worked. And, while Steve prayed that there had been complications because of their attack in Augsburg, he was sure it had worked.
A phone transcript praised the high quality of the Stark Tech they'd managed to get their fingers on. A unique piece, not even finished, that only needed a few days of recalibration. If they used Tony's machines, success was written over Hydra's horizon, the supersoldier knew that. Tony was too much of a genius to build defective machinery. On top of that, Steve's eyes noticed how the papers mentioned an address in Munich. Augsburg wasn't even significant to Zola's plan. Then why had they gone to that base?

Natasha had left Steve, Sam, and Yasha in her apartment with the best intentions possible. She'd made sure to leave the door to the little closet locked, hoping that the three soldiers wouldn't notice the hostage she kept in there while she was actually getting stuff done. After all, she needed to make sure they'd get through this with an advantage. Not that the captured agent would matter to Hydra; Zola or Lomawu, it didn't matter, they would laugh at her face for proposing a deal based on a hostage.
But the CIA, they might actually attach value to this person and Natasha could come out on top. Plus, Steve was heavy. She'd needed someone to help her carry the supersoldier.
Right now, the redhead stood on a roof approximately twenty minutes from her apartment. She grabbed the long-range rifle from the gun bag that an hour ago, still had been safe in a locker at Munich airport. Sitting behind an industrial chimney, she quickly gained an optimal shooting position for the office building across two streets. She put all the different pieces of the gun together with quick movements and placed it before her. The sky above her was gray and painted with different kinds of clouds, but luckily, there wasn't much wind.
Sitting behind an industrial chimney, she quickly gained an optimal shooting position for the office building across two streets. She put all the different pieces of the gun together with quick movements and placed it before her. The sky above her was gray and painted with different kinds of clouds, but luckily, there wasn't much wind.