I got there a little bit before Sam. He had to discuss some things with Sarah and make a call, so I got a head start. I got to New York pretty quickly. Home sweet home. I met Bucky on the ground. NYPD were everywhere and there was a complete lockdown at the GCR meeting. Bucky and I weaved around all the people outside the building.
'I'm almost there,' came Sam's voice over comms.
'What's the plan?' Bucky asked.
'Karli's gotta be close,' I say.
'Keep your eyes open,' Sam said.
'Well, it could be anybody,' Bucky mumbled.
The two officers blocking the way to the door parted for us and muttered a greeting. I give them a polite nod.
'And by the way,' Sam said, 'I called in some backup.'
'Excuse me? Are you two supposed to be here?' Bucky and I turn to a man standing behind us. He reaches up and takes off his hat, as well as something disguising his face. Sharon was the result of the familiar SHIELD tech. 'It's me.'
'Sharon, what the hell are you doing here?' Bucky asked.
Sharon rolled her eyes. 'Relax. No one's looking for me here.'
'I don't think that's why he was asking,' I mumble.
'Do I hear Sharon?' Sam asked.
'Sadly,' I said.
'Hey, Sam,' Sharon said. 'I thought I'd get the band together.'
'Thank you,' said Sam. 'You're risking a lot coming here.'
Sharon shrugs. 'Hear pardons aren't all they're cracked up to be anyway.'
'Depends on the therapist,' said Bucky. I roll my eyes at him.
'They're gonna move on the building soon,' Sam said. 'Be ready.'
The three of us walk outside the building trying to find anything suspicious. Nothing happens.
'Maya, Bucky, Sharon, what's going on, on your end?' Sam asked.
'Nothing,' I reply. 'All quiet.'
'No one's moving toward the building,' Bucky said.
'Karli's not coming in. She's trying to force everybody out.' The three of us walk through a door walking through as Sam says, 'You guys are gonna have to do something. Don't let 'em out of the building.'
Sharon sets off a metal detector and Bucky and I look at her.
'Oops,' she said.
Bucky turns back around and motions out the window at a guy and says, 'Here's one of them. We'll get the evac.'
Bucky and I start walking deeper into the building. We were walking down a hallway when a lady walks up to us with a phone in hand.
'Mr. Barnes,' she says, 'it's Karli.' Bucky takes the phone hesitantly.
'Put it on speaker,' I whispered. He rolls his eyes, but does as I ask.
'Karli?' he says as we walk down the steps.
'Aren't you two tired of fighting for the wrong side, Mr. Barnes? Maya?' Karli said. I don't question how she knows I'm listening. Bucky shakes his head towards me, telling me not to speak. I nod back at him.
'I've done this before, kid,' Bucky said. 'I know how it ends.'
'It doesn't matter if I don't survive this,' Karli said. 'I'm fighting for something bigger than myself. With all the bodies you've collected, have you ever been able to say the same?'
'You don't think I ever fought for something bigger than myself,' Bucky said. 'That's all I ever tried to do. And I failed twice. You think your cause justifies all this death, but in the end, the nightmares won't go away. You're gonna remember all the ones you killed. Trust me. Don't do this. Don't go down this path.'
'If that's how you feel, you should sit this one out,' said Karli.
'Come on,' said Bucky, 'you know I ain't gonna do that.'
'What about you, Maya? Last change to switch sides,' Karli said. I stayed quiet and avoided looking at Bucky. 'Not allowed to talk, are you? It's because he knows you want to say yes, Maya. I know it. You know it. Sam even knows it.' I look at Bucky. His face showed he was worried. He knew Karli could get to me and so did I. He shook his head again. 'Fine. Thank you for taking my call. You've both been a big help.'
Karli hangs up and Bucky and I quickly go to the garage where he starts getting on a motorcycle. The evac leaving.
'Seriously, you two had one job,' Sharon said.
'You worry about your guy,' Bucky mumbled.
I follow him out in a run, surprisingly not that far behind. Once we're out of the garage, I fly. I'm low, so I can still see him, and he can still see me if he needs to.
A minute or so later, Sharon comes over the comms and says, 'Well, that's one down.'
'How'd you manage that?' Sam asks.
'Mercury Vapor, amongst other things,' Sharon says. 'You better speed things up, Sam. The choppers are about to take off.'
'Bucky!' Sam says.
'I don't fly, man,' said Bucky. 'That is yours and Wicked Witch's thing.' I roll my eyes.
'Maya,' Sam says.
'Sorry, Birdie, I'd love to help, really,' I said. 'But I don't fight helicopters and planes.'
'What?' He asks, sounding out of breath.
'Well, ever since I tried to when I was fifteen, I lost the appeal,' I said.
'Of course,' he said. 'I got it.'
The cars were ahead, but Karli was already there. There were road blockers in the way, and I wondered only for a second how Bucky was going to handle that. Apparently, he was going to handle it by throwing himself over the blockers at one of the guys who were trying to move them. I landed next to him as they both got up.
'There were so many better ways to do that,' I said, deflecting the flag smashers punch.
'Shut up,' he mumbled, punching the guy in the face.
A couple seconds later, Bucky's motorcycle blew, and a fire started spreading to one of the evac cars. I grit my teeth and Bucky got one last good punch in before I just used my powers to slam the guy to the floor, hard. Bucky and I run over to the car of people. Bucky tried to pull the doors open, but there was a device keeping them closed. We kept trying to pry at the doors, when I hear a familiar voice.
'Morgenthau!' Walker shouts somewhere behind us.
I roll my eyes. 'Does that guy have to show up everywhere?'
'You're gonna kill me, but go help Walker,' Bucky said. 'This isn't a two-person job.'
I lock my jaw and nod. He was right. I wouldn't help Walker, I would just start a fight with a flag smasher. Turns out that was easier than expected. When I turned to go help Walker, he was losing the fight. He was on the ground with a fake version of the shield and was surrounded by four flag smashers. I push a flag smasher back into a wall, diverting the attention to myself. A shock runs down my spine and I turn to catch a glimpse of a guy running at me with a parking meter. Before I could really react, Bucky tackles the guy, having already gotten the doors open apparently. Bucky kicks the guy in the chest when he stands, sending the guy to the ground again. I run forward when Karli picks up the parking meter again.
I create a force field and step in front of Bucky who was still fighting the other guy. Karli brings the meter down and hits the force field. The impact makes my knees bend, forgetting how strong Karli is. Instead of her hitting me again, she moved around me quickly to go for Bucky. I block any hits as Bucky tried to fight her. We were both preoccupied with her, we forgot about the other guy until he kicks Bucky in the chest, sending him flying backwards. Bucky tried to stop it with his metal arm, but doesn't succeed and falls off the edge of the not-built part. The guy who kicked him grabs a metal pole and jumps down after Bucky. I curse and throw Karli back, harder than intended, and jump down after both of them.
I slowed myself and landed softly next to Bucky. The flag smasher guy immediately went to hit me with the pole. I quickly block him with a force field, having to play defense as Bucky straightens. The guy keeps hitting the shield over and over again. He was very persistent.
'Hey, Buck, wanna help me out?' I say, as my knees start to bend.
'Why aren't you fighting back?'
'Really?' I ask. 'Sorry, it's not like if I get hit in the head with this pole I'd die, moron!' Bucky pushes the guy back. I have to block another hit before Bucky draws the attention to himself. 'You play offense and I'll play defense until you get the pole.'
Bucky glares at me as I watch him handle the pole guy. He catches the pole and punches the guys hands off of it quickly, gaining control of the pole. He slams it into the guy's face, sending him to the ground.
'Happy now?' he asks.
'Well, now I'm less likely to die, so yes,' I say, sarcastically.
'You still could have helped.'
I roll my eyes. 'You handled that in like two seconds, stop being dram—' A crash from above us made me stop short. The other evac car was halfway over the drop and halfway not. It wasn't moving and I froze for a second. 'Shit.'
'Do your witch thing,' Bucky said, pushing my shoulder.
'I thought there weren't any witches?' I mutter. 'I don't know. If I touch it, it might fall more. I don't know if I'll be able to catch it.'
'Shit,' he said.
Before we could come up with a plan, or an idea, the car starts moving backwards and the fake shield was thrown over the edge and landed next to us.
'Help him,' Bucky said, pushing my shoulder again.
'You push my shoulder one more time and I will hurt you,' I said.
I start to make a large rectangle of energy to catch the car if it falls. I'm doing my part without helping Walker. Is it just a bit selfish? Sure. Do I care? Not really. The car moves back slowly and then it starts falling forward again. I move quickly, moving the energy up to keep the car in place. Before I even get there, Sam flies down to hold up the car. A smile forms quickly on my face. The shield attached to his back is the first thing your eye goes to.
'Maya, help,' he said.
'Right, yeah,' I mutter, coming out of the daze.
I move the energy around Sam and help push it back. Once we got it secure, Sam used the new and improved Redwing to open up the door for the people. Before Sam could land, Karli threw a thin pole in Bucky and mine's direction. That familiar shock, that was starting to bother me, shot down my back and my first instinct was to duck. Bucky on the other hand caught it. I rise as Karli starts charging at us. The shield slams into her chest and then all of the other flag smashers that were starting to surround us. Then the shield came flying at me and on instinct my arm went up and grabbed it. Sam landed next to me as Karli rose.
'You of all people bought into that bullshit?' Karli said, staring at Sam. I held out the shield and Sam took it from me.
'I'm trying something different,' Sam said. 'Maybe you should do the same.'
Gun shots ring out and something lands between us and Karli. It explodes and dust surrounds us as more and more appear. I'm sure to stay still, hardly able to see anything at all.
'This way,' Sam said, putting the shield behind his back. I was able to see the shield and therefore able to follow him in the direction he saw Karli go.