AN EXPLOSION ERUPTED on the front lawn of the Avengers compound. Wanda and Vision walked over to the window, spotting the flames that were shooting up.
Pietro sprinted in and stood behind them. "What the hell happened? Did Vision try to make paprikash again?"
"Stay here, please." Vision ignored his remark and phased through the wall to investigate outside.
Once the synthezoid left, the witch felt a presence in the room, and it wasn't just her brother. She lifted a knife from the counter using her telekinesis and threw it near the head of the intruder. It stopped before it can stab him.
"Guess I shoulda knocked," Clint said as he moved the floating knife away.
"Whoa. That would've been a bullseye." Pietro remarked.
Wanda walked up to Hawkeye. "Oh, my God! What are you doing here?"
Clint was tasked by Rogers to get both Wanda and Pietro out of the compound. Once that was done, they'd make their way to San Francisco and get Sam Wilson's recruit, Ant-Man.
Afterward, they'd find and takedown Helmut Zemo before he could reactivate the rest of the Winter Soldiers in Siberia.
"Disappointing my kids," Clint replied before shooting an arrow at the wall. He shot another by the island in the kitchen. "I'm supposed to go waterskiing."
Clint faced the twins. "Cap needs our help. You with me?"
"Of course," Pietro said. "I'd rather run full speed into a wall than side with Stark."
They started to run but Vision phased into the room and shouted. "Clint! You should not be here."
A sigh left Clint's lip as he turned around. He gave Vision a weak smile.
"Really? I retire for, what, like five minutes, and it all goes to shit."
"Please consider the consequences of your actions." Vision started walking towards the three.
Clint shrugged. "Okay, they're considered."
Vision walked into the path of the arrows and activated a current that electrocuted him.
"Okay, we gotta go." Clint told them. Both he and Pietro started running, in the silver-haired man's case jogged, but they looked back to see Wanda still where she stood.
"It's this way." He called out.
Wanda looked down at her hands and fiddled with her jewelry. "I've caused enough problems."
Clint sighed and looked at Pietro. They walked towards the redhead.
"Don't think that way, Wanda." Her brother said and grabbed her hand. "You are not the cause of all this."
Clint spoke next. "You gotta help me, Wanda. If you wanna mope, you can go to high school. If you want to make amends, you get off your ass."
The archer glanced at Vision for a moment, and his eyes widened when the synthezoid shot at the arrows that held the charge, getting himself free.
"Shit." Clint breathed out.
"I got him. Go!" Pietro quickly said and ran up to Vision. He punched him several times in the chest using his super-speed, but the synthezoid simply made himself denser and took the hits.
"Oh." Pietro said in realization.
Vision shoved him aside walked up to Hawkeye. The archer fired an arrow but he phased through it before disarming Clint.
Vision pushed him away and the retired Avengers got back on his feet.
"I knew I should've stretched." He muttered as he deployed a baton.
Clint swung his baton at Vision only for it to go through the synthezoid's body. Vision blocked his next hit and put his arm in a hold. Hawkeye kept hitting him with his baton, but it broke in half once Vision's hardened his density.
He threw the broken weapon aside and tried to kick Vision, but his leg went through his body, making him lose balance as Vision put him in a chokehold.
"Clint, you can't overpower me." Vision spoke.
"I know I can't." Clint groaned in his grasp. "But she can."
Vision looked up and saw Wanda, who channeled orbs of crimson energy between her hands.
"Vision, let him go. I'm leaving." The witch demanded.
"I can't let you."
Wanda started to manipulate Vision's Mind Stone. It caused the synthezoid to change density, freeing Clint from his grasp.
"I'm sorry." Wanda continued changing his density and made Vision heavier. The floor beneath him started to fracture.
"If you do this..." Vision got onto his knees. "...they will never stop being afraid of you."
"I can't control their fear, only my own."
Wanda sent Vision crashing down several floors and into the dirt beneath the building. It hurt to do this to her friend, but she needed to get out and help Rogers.
Clint looked down into the hole. Pietro walked beside them and looked into it as well.
"Oh..."
He looked at the Maximoff twins. "Come on. We got one more stop."
• • •
FREEDOM FIGHTER STOOD in the skyway bridge of the JCTC headquarters. He looked out the window, gazing upon the water below. He wore his suit but had his helmet in hand.
The young man thought about the last five days. Secretary Ross introducing the Accords, his mother dying, the bombing in Vienna, his father and best friend being fugitives. How did it get so bad? Why didn't Steve think before trying to help Barnes? Did he not know the ramifications of it?
Or maybe he just didn't care. He believed what he was doing was right, just like how Y/N believed his own decision was.
He turned to his right and saw Natasha walking up to him. She wore her usual uniform, a sight that Y/N could never get enough of. His lips formed a smile which his girlfriend noticed.
"What's with the grin?" She asked, even though she already knew her certain wardrobe often excited him.
"You should've worn that back in Lagos." He said, placing hands on her hips.
"What? You didn't like my outfit then? The brown coat? The pants?"
"Oh, no. Of course, I did."
"You just like this tight, black suit on me?"
He chuckled. "Hey. You said it, not me."
Y/N's expression changed as he looked out the window again. Natasha noticed his sudden mood switch and had an inkling of what it was about.
"We'll bring them back before Ross's men could do anything." She reassured him.
"I hope so..." Y/N replied. "I hope dad will listen when we find him."
The super soldier didn't often refer to Rogers as dad, at least not out loud. He never felt like he needed to. But in his mind at the moment, he wasn't simply going after Steve Rogers, Captain America...he was going after his father.
Natasha nodded and caressed the side of his face. Y/N turned to her and spoke again.
"Be honest. Are we fighting on the right side?"
Natasha thought for a moment. "It's what I believe will keep us together. From being a part of S.H.I.E.L.D to being an Avenger, I feel like I finally found solid ground to stand on. I didn't want to lose that."
Y/N nodded and she continued.
"What do you think?"
"I agree." Y/N answered and let out a sigh. "I don't care about the politics. I just want us to stick together."
Natasha recalled saying a similar thing to Steve back at Peggy's funeral.
"I just hoped Rogers would've thought the same."
"Me too." Y/N held her hand and kissed the top of it. "I'm just glad I have you by my side through all this."
She smiled. "Of course. I'll always be."
The two kissed. Behind them, Tony Stark was walking and spotted them.
"Mr. and Mrs. Gump." He called out.
Y/N chuckled after he parted. "You got any other nicknames?"
"Oh, I have plenty." He replied. "How's Fortunate Son?"
"It's all right. Although I don't feel so fortunate right now."
"What is it, Tony?" Natasha asked about his sudden arrival.
Stark exhaled.
"We got a hit on Rogers. Rhodes is en route. We gotta move."
• • •
STEVE ROGERS NEARED the helicopter in the middle of the airport parking zone. He held his shield as he kept running when a device suddenly stuck to the chopper's motor and stalled it. Iron Man and War Machine landed in front of him moments after.
"Wow, it's so weird how you run into people at the airport." Tony lifted his faceplate and looked at Rhodey. "Don't you think that's weird?"
"Definitely weird." He replied.
Steve chose to speak. "Hear me out, Tony. That doctor, the psychiatrist, he's behind all this."
Black Panther suddenly leaped in and faced Captain America. "Captain."
"Your Highness."
Tony treaded in front of Steve. "Ross gave me 36 hours to bring you in. That was 24 hours ago. Can you help a brother out?"
"You're after the wrong guy."
"Your judgment is askew. Your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday."
"And there are five more super soldiers just like him. I can't let the doctor find them first, Tony. I can't."
"Steve..." Natasha called out. He turned around and saw her beside Y/N. "You know what's about to happen. Do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?"
"Come on, Cap. Listen..." Y/N added.
"All right, I've run out of patience." Tony abruptly said. "Underoos!"
A web shot down at Captain America's shield and was pulled away. His hands were webbed up next as Spider-Man landed on top of a luggage carrier. He held the shield on his right arm.
"Nice job, kid." Tony complimented.
"Thanks. I could have stuck the landing a little better, it's just the new suit." Peter looked at his idol. "It's nothing, Mr. Stark. It's perfect. Thank you."
"Yeah, we don't really need to start a conversation."
Steve glanced at the young superhero. "You've been busy."
"And you've been a complete idiot." Tony shot back. "Dragging in Clint, rescuing Wanda from a place she doesn't even want to leave, a safe place. I'm trying to keep—" Stark paused for a moment and sighed. "I'm trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart."
"You did that when you signed." Steve simply replied.
Those words hurt Y/N, who just shook his head in dismay. Tony also didn't like the response.
"Okay, we're done. You two are gonna turn Barnes over, you're gonna come with us, now, because it's us or a squad of J-SOC guys with no compunction about being impolite." Stark shouted before quieting down. He started to get emotional. "Come on."
Among their silence, Steve heard Sam through his radio. "We found it. Their Quinjet's in hangar five, north runway."
Steve raised his hands and an arrow suddenly cut through the webbing. Tony activated his helmet and looked around to see where Barton was.
"All right, Lang." Steve whispered into his comms.
Ant-Man, who was on Steve's shield the whole time, grew back into normal size and backflip-kicked Spider-Man.
"Whoa!" Rhodey stammered. "What the hell was that?"
Scott landed beside Rogers and handed him the shield. "I believe this is yours, Captain America."
Tony looked through his HUD and saw two figures running along the parking structure.
"Oh great. All right, there's two on the parking deck. One of them's Maximoff, I'm gonna grab her." He started to fly off. "Watch out for the other twin. He's probably here too."
"Got two in the terminal, Wilson and Barnes." Rhodey also informed.
"Barnes is mine!" T'Challa shouted before running off.
Captain America threw his shield at Rhodey before engaging T'Challa. Spider-Man swung away to deal with Falcon and Winter Soldier, and Y/N got a glimpse of Natasha about to face Ant-Man. He was going to assist but was suddenly pushed back by a blur of blue.
Y/N got to his feet and saw Pietro standing in front of him.
"You didn't see that coming?"
The super soldier let out a huff. "Can you think of a better line?"
He smirked before dashing towards him. Y/N luckily ducked to dodge his quick punch but wasn't fast enough to evade a back kick that sent him flying forward.
"I don't want to hurt you, Y/N."
Y/N quickly wrapped one of his legs with his billy club and pulled Pietro down. He got back up and ran towards the speedster but he dashed away. Pietro came back and started wailing him with a flurry of punches.
He kept getting hit and couldn't avoid them because of the sheer speed. But after a few more hits, time seemed to slow as Y/N surveyed Pietro's movements and attacks. Mimicking Wanda's abilities wouldn't be possible, but the other Maximoff...all he could do was fight fast.
So it was time to...well...fight fast.
Freedom Fighter parried one of his punches and grabbed his fist. He punched Pietro several times in the stomach while matching his same speed. He then landed a right hook across his face, knocking the silver-haired man down to the floor.
"You didn't see that coming?" Y/N asked, then ran off before Pietro could get back up again.
• • •
AFTER A BRIEF scuffle with Iron Man, Clint and Wanda ran away with the rest of Steve's team following close behind.
Clint pointed towards the hangar. "There's the Quinjet."
"Come on!" Steve exclaimed. He and Lang caught up with the two and were joined by Bucky, Sam, and Pietro soon after.
A beam of yellow energy suddenly cut into the pavement in front of them, bringing them to a halt.
"Captain Rogers." Vision spoke from above in a booming voice. "I know you believe what you're doing is right. But for the collective good, just surrender now."
Below him landed Iron Man and War Machine. Black Panther, Black Widow, Spider-Man, and Freedom Fighter arrived moments later.
Each side lined up and faced the other.
Team Iron Man.
Team Captain America.
"What do we do, Cap?" Sam asked.
Steve was determined on getting to Siberia and stopping Zemo. If that meant he had to go through Tony and his team...his son...then that's what he'd have to do.
"We fight."
Captain America's side walked forward, which made Iron Man's side do the same.
Walking turned to running...running turned to a full-on sprint. Flyers like Tony, Rhodey, Vision, Sam, and Wanda took flight.
Both sides clashed. Stark brought a fist down towards Rogers, who blocked the attack with his shield.
Wanda tossed crates in Spider-Man's direction using her powers, but Peter was able to evade them.
Falcon soared and engaged in aerial combat with War Machine.
Black Panther immediately charged at Bucky and started fighting him.
Natasha combatted Clint while Pietro evaded the beams Vision was shooting down at him.
For Y/N, he had the honor of facing the newly recruited Ant-Man.
"Mr. Fighter." Scott saluted. "America Junior."
"You the guy that kicked Wilson's ass earlier this year?" Y/N asked.
"Uh...yeah!"
He nodded. "Props to you." He took out his batons. "Now let me show you a real fighter."
Before Y/N could run up, Scott shrunk and leaped onto his hand. He looked around in confusion, then Ant-Man jumped at Y/N's face and punched him. He tried to swat him away, but Lang was leaping everywhere.
Scott landed on the tip of his baton, but before he could attack again, Y/N noticed him and activated the shock feature of his weapon, and electrocuted Ant-Man. The spec-sized hero flew off and landed on the floor, smoke rising from his body.
"Wow. This is like a beefed-up bug zapper." Y/N remarked before running away.
Scott grew back to ordinary size and grumbled. "Your girlfriend did the same thing." He gazed around and didn't see Y/N anymore. "Uh...hello? Damn it."
Y/N looked around, seeing the chaos that was going on. What used to be a tight-knit group of extraordinary people...were now in conflict. A civil war between Avengers.
He spotted Clint on top of a luggage carrier shooting explosive arrows at Rhodey in the sky. Y/N ran in and pulled him down using his billy club. Barton rolled back onto his feet and confronted his friend.
"Retired life didn't go well?" Y/N asked.
"I guess you could say it got boring after a while." He replied.
"Can't wait to tell little Nathaniel the story of how his uncle Y/N kicked his dad's ass."
Clint chuckled. "You got a staff. I got a staff. Let's see who's better." He activated his bow-staff.
Y/N nodded and connected his batons to form his. He spun it around before engaging Barton.
Their weapons clashed. Both men swung their staffs along with adding kicks and punches when they had the opportunity. Clint should've thought it through since the younger Avenger was more skilled with such a weapon...and the fact that after years of Y/N knowing him, he knew his style.
Y/N swept his legs and Clint fell on his back. He jabbed the point of the staff near Hawkeye's face but didn't make an impact. The two panted as Y/N won the match.
"Man...I should stick to golf." Clint remarked.
Y/N chuckled but suddenly felt weightless as red energy wrapped around him. He looked to his left, seeing Wanda using her powers.
He flung him several yards away into the side of a truck. Clint got up and looked at the groaning Y/N. "Now that's gotta hurt."
He then ran off with Wanda.
Steve finished his scuffle with Spider-Man. He ran down the lot looking for Bucky, having last seen him in a fight with T'Challa. He stopped and surveyed the area, and upon glancing to his right, saw Y/N standing a few yards away and staring directly at him.
"Y/N..." He called out.
"Cap."
"I'm sorry about all of this."
"I know."
"You understand why I have to do this?"
Y/N simply nodded. Steve spoke again.
"We've made our choices, now we have to deal with the consequences."
"Yeah."
"I have to stop that doctor. I have to prove Buck didn't do it."
He understood now. It was too late to correct it though. The damage was already done and the team was fractured.
"Do what you have to do, dad." Y/N said as he took out his batons. "But I have to do what I have to do."
Y/N tossed a baton at Steve in which the older super soldier blocked it with his shield. He threw his other baton as the first flew back into his hand, but Steve deflected it as well.
Rogers swung his shield at Y/N who deftly ducked under it and landed a jab at his father's abdomen. Steve parried his son's next punch and kneed him in the side. He kicked the pit of Y/N's knee and brought him down, but Y/N countered by sweeping Cap's legs from under him.
Steve landed on his back but rolled away before Y/N can jab his electrified baton at him. Steve kicked Y/N across the face, but the young man got up afterward and tied one of Steve's arms with his billy club.
He tried to pull Steve down, but the soldier stood his ground. Steve clenched his teeth as he held the wire and used all his strength to pull Y/N towards him. He smacked him across the face with his shield.
Y/N laid on the floor and groaned. Steve looked down in remorse...he didn't want to hurt his son.
Unbeknownst to him, Y/N took his father's hesitant reaction as a chance to kip back up and punch him across the face. Rogers swung again, but Y/N dodged his attack and hit him twice in the stomach along with an uppercut.
Steve raised his shield and Y/N's fist hit it, the vibranium emitting its signature clang upon impact. He punched down again and the sheer force sent Steve flying back. On the floor, Steve tossed his shield at Y/N, who simply caught it and tossed it to the side. Freedom Fighter threw his baton at Cap's face before getting on top of him, ready to electrocute Captain America with the tip of his weapon.
He looked at his father, who wheezed and had accepted defeat. Y/N still held his baton, but eased his grip...
He threw it aside and got off of Steve, then offered his hand to help him up.
Steve let out breaths of exhaustion amongst his confusion, but still grabbed his hand. Y/N helped him to his feet and picked up his shield. He handed it back to Cap, who glanced at the vibranium disc before looking back up at his son.
"I win this round." Y/N said with a smile. "Go do what you have to do and come back so we can rematch, old man."
Steve gave a light smile back.
"Until next time, son."
The tower collapsed in front of the hanger but Steve and Bucky were able to get through. Upon their arrival, they were face to face with Black Widow.
"You're not gonna stop." She said.
"You know I can't." Steve replied.
Natasha brought up her arm and activated her widow's bite. "I'm gonna regret this."
Both super soldiers expected her to shoot them down, but she moved a bit to the left and shot an incoming Black Panther. It slowed him down and gave Steve and Bucky a chance to escape.
"Go." She told them.
Steve nodded and ran towards the Quinjet with Bucky. Natasha stayed behind and kept shooting T'Challa until the jet flew out of the hanger.
After taking down Giant-Man with the help of Peter, Rhodey and Stark looked up into the sky and saw the Quinjet flying away. The two Iron-Men chased after the jet but Sam followed as well and was on War Machine's tail.
"Vision, I got a bandit on my six." Rhodey reported. "Target his thruster, turn him into a glider."
From below, Vision fired a beam from his Mind Stone at Wilson in the sky. Falcon looked back at the incoming beam and tucked into a barrel roll. It ultimatey hit the arc reactor of Rhodey's suit.
War Machine powered down, and Rhodey began to free fall within the immobile metal suit.
"Rhodes!" Tony shouted as he flew down towards his friend. Sam made a 180 and flew downwards as well to assist.
But it was too late...and Rhodes hit the ground.
Tony landed beside the crater that was made and retracted his mask. He knelt beside Rhodey and ripped of his faceplate, noticing blood coming from the nose of his unresponsive friend.
"Read vitals" He ordered FRIDAY.
"Heartbeat detected. Emergency and medical is on its way."
Sam landed near them and looked on in guilt. He withdrew his wings and walked closer.
"I'm sorry."
Tony instantly shot him with his repulsor. Falcon fell back and rolled on the floor, groaning in pain.
Rhodey laid beside Stark, still unconcious.
Tony let out an exhale as he looked up into the sky, seeing the Quinjet they were after now a mere speck in the clouds.
• • •
WHAT REMAINED OF Captain America's team were arrested by Thaddeus Ross and the authorities. They were off to the Raft, a prison in the middle of the ocean that Ross himself looked after.
Back at the Avengers compound, Rhodey was being evaluated. He was severely injured, and Tony feared he was going to be paralyzed for the rest of his life. After questioning Vision, he walked out of the medical bay and saw Natasha with Y/N by the handrail overlooking the lawn.
Tony, wearing an arm-sling, walked up and filled them in on Rhodey's situation.
"The doctors say he shattered L4 through S1. Extreme laceration to the spinal cord. Probably looking at some form of paralysis."
After a moment of pause, Natasha spoke. "Steve's not going to stop. If you don't either, Rhodey's gonna be the best case scenario."
"You let them go, Nat." Tony shot back. "Don't be giving me this damn lecture."
"Not just her." Y/N spoke. "I could've stopped Rogers, but I let him run."
Tony looked at him, shaking his head as he scoffed.
"We played this wrong." Natasha said.
"We?" Tony asked. "Boy, it must be hard to shake the whole double agent thing, huh? It sticks in the DNA."
"Watch it, Tony." Y/N chastised.
"Looks like the lady's personality is rubbing off on you too."
"Are you incapable of letting go of your ego for one goddamn second?" She retorted.
Tony looked back towards the window. "T'Challa told Ross what you did. I'm struggling whether to keep Y/N's actions to myself...even though it pisses me off...but I'll try." He sighed and faced Natasha. "But what you did is no secret. They're coming for you."
"I'm not the one that needs to watch their back." She said before walking off.
Y/N looked at Tony and recalled his statement moments ago. "Her personality is why I love her. If it rubs off on me...so be it." He walked off as well, leaving Tony alone by the window.
• • •
NATASHA AND Y/N had to figure out their next move, since the female Avenger was now in Ross's crosshairs. The super soldier on the other hand wasn't, since the Secretary didn't know that instead of apprehending his father...he let him go. Because of this, Y/N was still on Thaddeus's good side and an active Accords supporter, which he kind of regretted now.
He had to figure out a way to convince Ross to absolve Natasha of what she did. At that point maybe even absolve Rogers and the rest of his friends, but that was some very wishful thinking.
The young man had to go along with it for now, as Ross had called him over to the Raft to help question the currently imprisoned. Tony already went earlier in the day but didn't get anything from them on Steve's whereabouts.
Supposedly.
Y/N wondered how Sam, Wanda, Pietro, and Clint felt about him now. He hoped the last 24 hours didn't strain his friendship with them as much. Scott probably still liked him though, simply because he was related to Captain America.
As Y/N was leaving the compound, he was on a discreet phone call with Natasha.
"So where are you now?" He asked.
"In Albany. I might need to ditch my gear in case Ross tracks it." She answered.
"Ah, just like Pierce did with Cap and me."
"Ugh. Don't say his name."
He chuckled. "Well, what's the backup plan in case begging on my knees doesn't work with Ross?"
"It's cute that you'd do that for me." She replied. "But I have a contact that'll get me to Norway and get me the stuff I need."
"Well, then I'll meet you there."
"Really?"
"Sure. A Norwegian trip sounds cool. You always said we needed a vacation."
"But this isn't a vacation. I'm on the run."
"Not while I'm there." He replied. "I bring the fun."
"You're such a dork." Natasha said with a chuckle. "Call me back when you get back from the Raft."
"All right." He said. "Я люблю тебя (I love you)."
"Я тоже тебя люблю, моя сияющая звезда (I love you too, my shining star)."
He hung up the phone and walked towards the SUV that was supposed to take him to the airport. He saw a woman in the passenger's seat, and since he assumed she was part of Ross's team he went into the back.
He settled into the seat and let out a sigh. After sitting for some time, he wondered where the driver was.
"Uh...am I supposed to drive?" He asked with a chuckle.
The woman didn't reply, simply looking at the radio. She turned it on and inserted a disc into the player. The faint music started playing, and once she raised the volume Y/N heard what song it was...Fortunate Son by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
It ain't me,
it ain't me
I ain't no senator's son, son
It ain't me,
it ain't me
I ain't no fortunate one
A/N: I put the song in the banner media of the chapter in case you want to hear it.
His ears started ringing and he felt thumping within his head. His vision started to blur and he saw flashes of red as he held his head in discomfort.
"Wha-? What the hell..." He grunted as he opened the door.
He fell out of the car and the lady put the music louder. Y/N writhed on the ground and felt as if his mind was warping.
The driver and one of Ross's agents walked outside and saw Y/N on the floor. They ran up to him and tried to offer aid.
"Lieutenant? Lieutenant? What's the matter?" The agent asked as he helped him up.
The driver looked into the car and saw the woman. "Who the hell are you? Get out!"
Y/N had his head lowered as he leaned against the side of the SUV. The Widow within turned towards the open door and called out to Y/N.
"Пора вставать, мимика (Time to rise, mimic)."
Y/N's head shot up and he immediately clutched the agent's neck. He headbutted the man before slamming his face through the window of the car door. The driver looked on in panic and took out his pistol, but the soldier ran up and broke his wrist to disarm him. He let out a pained yell before Y/N grabbed the back of his head and hit it against the hood of the SUV numerous times.
The agent slowly got up and went for own his gun. After dealing with the driver, Y/N spun back around and kicked the gun out of the agent's hand. He punched him across the face before putting him in a chokehold.
He clashed in Y/N's grasp as the life was being choked out of him. He made quick work of the man thought, as he tightened his grip and snapped his neck. He let his body fall to the floor.
The Widow got out of the car and went behind him. She placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke into his ear.
"Good work, Taskmaster." She said. "Dreykov would like to finally see you."
It was all part of the plan. With the Avengers seemingly broken apart and governments dealing with fallout, it was the perfect time to retrieve the weapon. With a harmless 60s song and the Widow's words as the trigger, Taskmaster was now activated.
He didn't even look at her as he replied. "Let's not keep the man waiting."
The two entered the SUV, with the Widow commandeering the vehicle and the young man in the passenger's seat. They drove off, leaving the dead bodies of Taskmaster's victims in the lot.
• • •
THE COMPUTER SCREEN turned on after the General used his ring to activate it. He was prepared to look over his database and get more work done, but a knock on his door put it to a halt.
The doors opened and three Widows entered before standing at attention. One of them spoke.
"General Dreykov."
"What is it?" He asked. "Did you bring me my gift?"
They didn't need to answer as the man he was waiting for entered the room seconds later. Y/N walked up to Dreykov and stood in front of him.
"Ah. The soldier." The man smiled and leaned over his desk. "My soon-to-be greatest weapon."
"That's flattering." Y/N replied and looked around the room. "I wouldn't say the same about your office though."
The General didn't expect such an attitude by the mind-controlled Y/N, but he assumed the super soldier's personality was something that stuck despite the activation.
"You are here now. A place where your skills will be appreciated. Where it will be used as it was intended."
Y/N simply nodded.
Dreykov continued. "Welcome home."
Taskmaster put his hands behind his back and gave the General a smirk.
"It's a pleasure to be here." He looked down at his street clothes and opened up his arms. "Now as a welcome home gift, how about you get me some new gear?"
END OF: CIVIL WAR