29
Vengeance
Tony stared at the screen with glossy eyes, and his bottom lip began to tremble. Steve stared at Tony in concern and Bucky stood there feeling as equally guilty as he looked. Suddenly Tony moved to lunge at Bucky who took a step back and moved to raise the gun at him. Steve reached forward and held Tony back.
"No, Tony," Steve pleaded with guilt and regret in his tone. Tony slowly turned his attention from Bucky to look at Steve. Tony looked at the ground in contemplation for a moment then looked up at Steve as Pain and betrayal filled his expression.
"Did you know?" Tony asked. Steve hesitated.
"I didn't know it was him." He said carefully as he lied through his teeth.
"Don't you bullshit me, Rogers." He growled as he shoved Steve off of him. "Did. You. Know?" He asked as his face contorted into rage. Steve searched Tony's eyes for a moment and prepared himself for whatever was about to happen next.
"Yes," Steve replied simply as he held his breath. Tony took a step back from Steve feeling completely betrayed and it was written all over his face, his heart was broken it was like Tony didn't know who Steve was anymore. He nodded a few times and attempted to keep himself calm he looked back at the monitor for a moment and took a breath but rage won over logic. Before Steve even had a moment to react Tony punched Steve in the face knocking him back several feet.
Bucky raised the gun to him and Tony shot it out of his hand. Bucky looked at it for a moment before turning his attention back to Tony and swinging at him with his metal fist. Tony caught it with his own metal arm and squeezed as his helmet moved back over his head. With his free hand, he grabbed Bucky by the throat and launched off the ground causing Bucky to let out a panicked scream as Tony slammed him into the ground. Tony got up and stood on Bucky's metal arm holding it down as he powered up to shoot Bucky in the face. Suddenly Steve's shield hit Tony's suit distracting him which caused Bucky to be able to move out of the way of his shot.
Tony turned his attention toward Steve and stood up as Steve threw the shield again which caused Tony to fly back a few feet. Tony stared at the two of them for a moment than using his foot thrusters, launched himself at Steve knocking him backward away from Bucky once more. In a rage, he launched restraints at Steve's ankles immobilizing him before turning his attention back to his parents' murderer just as he got up and started throwing punches at Tony with his metal arm.
Once again Tony grabbed Bucky by the throat and flew them both up and into the wall. He held Bucky off the ground with one hand and began to punch at him with the other. Bucky attempted desperately to fight Tony off as he powered up his hand laser once more. Bucky grabbed Tony by the fist with his metal arm and yanked it back then turned it toward Tony and crushed the glove causing the laser to malfunction and break. Tony tried to pull his arm free but Bucky wouldn't let him, so instead Tony attempted to send an explosive into Bucky not caring that it would damage himself severely at this short range. Luckily Bucky redirected his hand just as Tony activated them sending the rockets to hit one of the large Cryo Tank systems instead as an explosion rang through the bunker.
Steve broke free of the restraints and ran to help Bucky just as the Cryo tank system began to crash down around them in a fiery blaze that threw debris at the men which caused Tony to drop Bucky and dodge out of the way. However it was too late, and a large piece of the tank system landed on Tony and other debris landed on Steve and Bucky. For a moment all three of them lay on the ground with a groan, then Steve and Bucky both got up and locked eyes.
"Run! Get out of here!" Steve yelled. Bucky paused for a moment and looked for his nearest escape route then ran for it. Suddenly Tony flew over the rubble and attempted to fire some more shots at Bucky who dodged the blows narrowly and escaped. Tony attempted to go after him but Steve jumped in his way.
Bucky hit the button to open the ginormous hatch at the top of the bunker that lead outside and braced himself to start the climb up the metal platforms that protruded from the walls as the sunlight pooled into the bunker.
"It wasn't him Tony. HYDRA had control of his mind." Steve attempted to reason as Tony lifted himself off the ground.
"Move!" Tony yelled as he attempted to fly over Steve.
"It wasn't him!" Steve screamed as he grabbed Tony by the ankle.
Tony tried to break free as Steve knocked out one of Tony's thrusters with his shield. Tony broke free and landed a few feet away, looking back at Steve who ran for him. Thinking quickly, Tony used a laser to break down the concrete doorway to seal off his path. Satisfied that Steve was at bay for the moment he looked up to see Bucky halfway to the surface. Tony determined to get him, attempted to fly on one foot thruster before struggling and having to land.
"Damn it." He muttered before lifting off again and making his way to Bucky who was launching from platform to platform toward the surface.
"Shit" Bucky muttered under his breath as Tony came up to his level. He jumped for the next platform but Tony grabbed him and threw him across the bunker and down a few platforms causing Bucky to fall face-first into it and lose his breath for a moment. Tony powered up once more and then fired the shot. Steve jumped in front of Bucky and the shot bounced off the shield and back at Tony effectively launching him back into the center and down a few levels. Steve turned and helped Bucky to his feet then looked to see how far Tony fell before looking back at Bucky.
"He's not gonna stop, go." Steve panted out. Bucky nodded and kept climbing as Steve pulled a zip cord off his belt and put his shield away on his back. He waited for Tony to get close enough then threw the zip cord around his neck and jumped off the platform dragging him back down toward the ground. Tony choked and struggled as the two plummeted further away from Bucky. Steve was thrown a few feet down and hit celebrate platforms. Tony yanked the cord away from his neck and sat up. Tony looked up to see how far Bucky had gotten then aimed to shoot him. Steve threw the shield at him once more in hopes to stop him quickly but Tony knocked it down to the ground.
"Targeting systems compromised," FRIDAY explained to Tony as she tried to lock onto him.
"Open up my mask, I'm eyeballing it," Tony said. Just then his mask receded and he stared at Bucky who had gone for the latter. He closed one eye and attempted to line up his arm when suddenly he had a better idea. Tony shot the hydraulic latch that was keeping the door open causing it to explode and the several-ton metal door to begin crashing down. Bucky made the split decision to jump instead of getting crushed and landed back on the platform. As he rose to his feet he noticed a metal pipe.
Thinking quickly Bucky picked up the pipe and rose to his feet as Tony approached once more. He swung the pipe left at Tony like it was a baseball bat and knocked him back a few feet. However Tony didn't quit in his blind fit of rage. He charged Bucky once more, and once more Bucky fought him off with the pipe swinging right this time.
Tony grew angry at this once more as he was sent back a few feet and flew at him full force this time reaching for the pipe. Both of them attempted to pull the pipe out of each other's hands as they strained. Thinking quickly Tony threw an elbow which caused Bucky to let go of the pipe then quickly Tony got behind Bucky and began to choke him as the pipe plummeted quickly and bounced off of platforms until it hit the ground.
"Do you even remember them?" Tony whispered with hatred in his voice as he panted and tightened his grip around Bucky. Bucky gripped his metal arm tightly trying to pry it away.
"I remember all of them." Bucky choked out in anguish in response as he kicked backward off the platform in hopes it would get Tony to release him.
The weight of both of the men couldn't be supported by both thrusters. Bucky and Tony began to descend slowly backwards as Tony held his grip on Bucky's throat. Bucky felt himself slowly drifting out of conciseness due to the lack of oxygen when suddenly Steve leaped from a platform and threw both Tony and Bucky back into a wall, causing Tony to release his grip as the three men began to plummet. Bucky landed on his side harshly on a nearby platform with a crack and groan as both Tony and Steve continued to plummet toward the floor.
Steve was the first to hit the ground, they busted through an area and Steve smashed face-first into a concrete slab before rolling toward a set of floor-to-ceiling windows, Tony landed on the slab not being as fortunate as Steve to be able to roll out of it. He lay on his chest for a moment and attempted to breathe, the suit breaking most of his fall.
Bucky began to roll over to the edge of the platform and held his ribs as he caught his breath to see if Steve was alright as he lay in front of the windows. Tony crawled back to his knees, his iron suit clanking against the concrete as he pulled himself to his feet. Steve heard this and began to do the same, he panted as he rose to his feet and then rounded to face Tony.
"This isn't gonna change what happened." Steve reminded Tony as he looked up at him.
"I don't care, he killed my mom," Tony said. For half a moment there was just silence before Tony launched himself forward at Steve and landed a particularly heavy blow to the side of his head. Steve grunted in frustration and mimicked the movement momentarily dazing Tony in the process. Tony threw another blow and then Steve did the same. The next punch Tony threw Steve dodged allowing himself to get behind Tony and put him into a chokehold. The force of Steve's choke made the iron suit creak under the pressure.
Thinking quickly Tony launched a blast from his hand blaster to a nearby wall launching them both backwards. Tony flipped around in mid-air and as Steve landed on his back Tony went for his face. Steve dodged it with a gasp as Tony's iron fist collided with the concrete causing some of it to crack under the pressure. Tony grabbed him as he attempted to roll out and pinned him back down then began throwing blows at his face which he blocked with his hands.
Bucky watched the fight unfold from the platform as he regained his breath. Seeing that Steve was struggling without his shield he looked around for it before spotting it a few platforms down a cross from him. Quickly he climbed to his feet and launched himself across the bunker toward the shield. He picked it up and turned toward the two men as his blood began to boil. Tony was pommelling his best friend, The things he'd said about Darla earlier already made him angry. He knew Tony had a right to be mad at him, But taking it out on Steve? That was a line he shouldn't have crossed.
Bucky let the rage take over, he launched himself off the platform as he lifted Steve's shield above his head, and with a battle cry and all of his might, he struck Tony in the back with the vibranium object effectively knocking Tony off of Steve who quickly climbed to his feet.
Quickly Tony fired at Bucky from the ground as he turned onto his back, and Bucky blocked the shot with Steve's shield as Tony climbed to his feet between the two men. Bucky threw the shield back to Steve as Tony went for Bucky once more. Bucky dodged his fist and threw it back before spinning and kicking Tony in the gut as Steve threw a punch with the shield at Tony's head.
Tony fell to his knees for a moment as he began to grow tired and weak as he attempted to hold his own against two super soldiers. He forced himself to rise to his feet and drew a punch for Steve but Bucky kicked his fist away with an angry grunt. The force of the kick caused Tony to fall to his knees once more as the two men tag-teamed him from either side. Now looking for anything to get the advantage Tony turned to throw a punch at Bucky's already fractured ribs knowing full well that Steve would protect him where he was weak.
Steve quickly threw Bucky his shield so he could block the blow. Then as Bucky threw it back, Tony sent another blast toward Steve. He caught the shield a little too late, The blast hit Steve center mass, charring his suit and sending him back flying into the nearby wall which effectively knocked him down for the count as he hit the floor. Bucky screamed in rage as he uppercut Tony with his metal fist. Tony returned the blow with a strained grunt.
The men continued to throw heavy fists as Bucky backed Tony toward the opposite concrete wall in an attempt to get him away from Steve and simultaneously corner him. Tony charged up his blaster as he became tired of the games, and sent out a large beam from his hand which Bucky dodged as he grabbed Tony's wrist and directed the beam away from himself and Steve who was slowly regaining his consciousness and attempting to crawl back to his feet.
With his metal fist, he punched Tony directly in the arc reactor in the center of his suit which caused his beam to cease and him to stumble backwards. Without giving Tony any time to regroup Bucky charged at Tony and pinned him against the wall by the face of his mask before grabbing the reactor with his metal fingers and attempting to break it. Tony yanked his hand away as he tried to fight Bucky off of him. Bucky screamed and thrust his metal hand forcefully against the rector, curling his fingers against it as Tony grabbed Bucky's wrist and attempted to pry him off. Steve slowly rose to his feet as Bucky yanked harder on the core. Straining, Screaming, and Shaking as he used what was left of his strength to remove the core from Tony's suit. Tony screamed in pain as the suit began to malfunction and he let go of Bucky's arm. Then suddenly as FRIDAY's last line of defence, the Suit shot a beam directly from the core of the suit.
A sharp pain ran through Bucky's left shoulder as he was launched back a few feet. The force from the blast knocked him over as his ears began to ring and his vision began to blur. He reached out in front of him to catch himself but the weight of his body couldn't be supported by his right arm and he fell to his elbow, leaving him to wonder why his metal arm didn't react as it was supposed to. He glanced at Steve who was staring in shock and rage as he heard his heart beating in his eardrums.
Knowing that the look splayed on his best friend's face meant that something was wrong, he followed Steve's gaze to his left arm to see nothing but exposed charred wires and molten red hot metal surrounding freshly cauterized tissue of what was left of his upper arm just below his shoulder. He attempted to climb to his feet, half in anger, half in shock. However before he had a chance to make it to his feet, Tony sent another blast at the exposed injured appendage with his glove which sent Bucky flying several feet and caused him to pass out from the pain before he'd even hit the ground.
This was the final straw for Steve, he felt his blood boil as rage overtook him. He got up and sprinted at Tony who sent several beams in his direction. Steve blocked them all with the shield and as a last resort, Tony readied himself and pushed his one good hand out in front while he braced it with the other as he forced a beam similar to the one FRIDAY shot from his chest. Steve took the same stance with his shield and the two held the position head to head while they strained only a foot from each other. Both men attempted to hold their ground as the heat from Tony's beam dissipated around the shield.
The suit's reactor couldn't keep the beam up much longer which Steve knew, when it flickered out he was ready to strike. Steve threw a heavy blow which launched Tony backwards once more into the wall. Steve pinned him against it and started delivering blow after blow, each one letting out his pent-up anger and frustration from everything that had happened in such a short amount of time. Lagos, The Accords, Peggy's Death, The explosion, Tony's betrayal, The arrest, The fight, The divide in the team. More and more things surfaced and he got lost in his anger as he pummeled Tony into the wall.
"You can't beat him hands-on!" FRIDAY exclaimed in a panicked tone to Tony as his systems began to malfunction.
"Analyze his fight pattern!" Tony panted out as he attempted to block the blows.
"Scanning!" FRIDAY exclaimed as Steve continued to throw blows at Tony in a blind rage. "Countermeasures ready!" she informed as the suit reached up and grabbed the shield snapping Steve back to reality as he looked between the shield and Tony.
"Let's kick his ass," Tony said fiercely as he blasted the shield out of Steve's hand. Steve watched as his shield clattered to the ground then Tony grabbed him by the wrist before kicking him in the chest which sent him flying backwards towards Bucky who still lay somewhere on the border of unconscious and paralyzed by pain.
Tony launched himself forward and once again the two men engaged in a fistfight. Tony knocked him in the face and then blasted him in the lower stomach which caused him to drop to his knees in front of Bucky. He hugged his stomach for a moment then sat up on his knees as he glared at Tony.
"He's my friend." Steve panted as he shielded Bucky's body with his own.
"So was I," Tony replied spitefully before sucker punching his face from the left, and then the right, knocking Steve back down onto his hands and knees beside Bucky momentarily as he coughed out blood.
Tony grabbed Steve by the collar of his suit and attempted to throw him out the floor-to-ceiling windows. Steve caught himself on the large cement frame instead, which caused him to smash his face off of the frame and hit the ground.
"Stay down. Final warning." Tony informed Steve as he stood between Steve and Bucky.
Bucky stirred into consciousness and tilted his head to the side to see the scene that sat before him. He watched as Steve struggled to his feet, and then at Tony's clenched fists. He knew that Steve wasn't going to win this alone so he attempted to get up, but to no avail. Doing the only thing he could think of he rolled onto his metal-coated shoulder as a burning pain once again ran through him, and with a shaky hand slowly began to reach for Tony's leg as Steve made it to his feet. Steve swayed back and forth while panting as he brought his fists up to a fighting position.
"I could do this all day," he said as he attempted to guard his stance. Tony brought his glove up, as the sound of the laser powering up began to whirl.
Bucky launched himself forward and grabbed a hold of Tony's leg tightly in hopes to distract him or at least hold him in place. The laser-powered down as Tony looked down to see Bucky clinging to his leg. Tony shook out of his grasp then turned around quickly and kicked Bucky in the face. The sound of a wet crack came from Bucky's nose followed by a pained groan as he rolled to lay on his back once more.
Bucky's distraction worked, he'd given Steve enough time to run up behind Tony and stop him as he moved to kick Bucky again. With what felt like the last of his energy, Steve lifted Tony over his head and aimed to throw him out of the window to stop the threat. Tony kicked at the air and wiggled in his grasp than in a panic activated his thruster.
Steve used this to his advantage and threw Tony into the ground between the window frames, then quickly jumped on top of him and began to punch him in the mask. When Steve realized it was doing little to no damage he glanced around quickly and spotted his shield within reaching distance. He grabbed it and then began to deliver harsh blows to his mask with the sharp rim of the shield. he brought it down over and over again with all of his force until Tony's mask shattered beneath the force.
Steve brought the shield up one last time as he and Tony looked each other in the eye. Tony's eyes widened and his life flashed before his eyes as Steve raised the shield over his head once more and began to bring it down. He blocked his face with the arms of his iron suit only for Steve to slam the edge of the shield down into the center of his arc reactor, causing its bright blue light to flicker and dim as Steve's shield sat buried in the chest of the iron man suit.
Tony stared up at Steve as Steve panted while sitting on top of him. The suit became heavy and limp as Fridays systems began to crash and the suit began to power down. Steve's adrenalin began to dissipate and he fell off the side of Tony as the feeling of his injuries became very real. He sat against the large frames of the window as Tony lay in front of him with the Shield sticking out of his chest. Tony didn't move as he attempted to get some air back in his lungs while looking at Steve in physical and mental pain.
Steve rose to his feet slowly and yanked the shield out of the iron man suit's chest causing the arc-reactor cores light to flicker a few times before resuming a dull glow. Steve refastened his shield to his arm as he attempted to regain his footing. He almost tripped over Tony as he tried to get his bearings and move toward Bucky who lay on the floor and watched as blood spilled over the sides of his face from his broken nose.
When Steve reached him Bucky's bottom lip trembled in pain, he reached his arm up for Steve to help him, glad that this was finally over. Steve reached for Bucky's hand and grabbed hold of it. He steadied himself and then pulled Bucky off of the ground to his feet then once Bucky was standing Steve hooked Bucky's arm over his shoulder and reached to hold his best friend up by his waist. Bucky grabbed tightly onto a strap on the shoulder of Steve's suit to help hold himself up and they began their trek for the exit. Tony rolled onto his side as he watched someone he called his friend for years choose the man who murdered his parents over him.
"That Shield doesn't belong to you." Tony barked as he felt the metallic taste of blood swimming in his saliva. He spit it onto the floor beside him before speaking once more. "You don't deserve it..." he followed up as he watched Steve carry Bucky away the best he could. "My father made that shield!" he yelled when Steve didn't react as he tried his best to keep his voice from breaking.
Steve stopped and looked at the ceiling with a pained sigh as Bucky drifted in and out of consciousness in his grasp. He knew that Tony was hurt and that he was grieving. He'd sacrifice his shield for his best friend if that meant he could leave without any more issues.
He shook the lower half of his right arm that the shield was attached to which caused it to clatter to the floor with a hollow bang. Steve closed his eyes and took a deep breath for a moment. This was never what he wanted, and this certainly wasn't how he wanted any of it to end. He released his breath and without speaking a word or looking back, he helped Bucky to the elevator.
Bucky continued to lull in and out in the elevator as Steve struggled to hold him up.
"Stay with me Jerk," Steve strained. He hadn't even bothered to close the safety cage.
"I'm with you Punk." Bucky breathed out lazily as his eyes fluttered closed.
Bucky knew he must have fallen unconscious because the next thing he remembered was the cold sting of the snow blowing against his face forcing him awake, a second jet and King T'Challa came into focus.
Steve noticed Bucky waking up and carefully placed him back on his feet as he continued to grip on his waist.
"He didn't kill your father." Steve panted out, ready to defend Bucky once more.
"I am aware. I have placed the man responsible in the prisoner hold of your jet. He was going to end his life. I am sorry that vengeance has consumed your friendships. I will no longer let it consume me." T'Challa said carefully. Steve panted a few times in relief, T'Challa seemed to be an honourable man so Steve took his word as good.
"Can you help us? Please he needs medical." Steve begged the king.
"Yes, I will take you back to Wakanda and there you will be offered asylum," he explained as he approached and helped Steve guide Bucky. "Leave the Jet. I believe you've destroyed the Iron mans Suit, he will not make it home without it. Come. We will take mine." he explained.
"How....do we know we can trust you?" Bucky said as he looked at T'Challa lazily.
"I do not think you have any other choice right now Sargent Barnes." T'Challa reasoned.
Bucky grumbled as Steve and T'Challa got him into the back of the ship. T'Challa started digging through drawers until he found a needle, then he pressed a button and a table began to raise from the floor.
"Sit, Sargent Barnes." the king instructed. Bucky tried to protest but using some of the strength Steve still had he forced Bucky to sit on the table and gave him a stern look as he held down Bucky's shoulders. Bucky stared at Steve for a moment then sighed and swung his legs up onto the table.
"What the hell is that?" Bucky asked looking at the needle.
"It is a herb grown by my ancient ancestors, it will help take away the pain and speed up your healing process," he explained as he began to unbutton Bucky's jacket.
"I can do it myself," Bucky said as he tried to undo the buttons with his single hand.
"No. You can't. Let him help you." Steve said sternly as he backed up and fell onto the bench to finally let his body relax. Bucky grumbled as he looked at Steve then sighed. T'Challa carefully removed Bucky's jacket to reveal a muscle shirt that he was wearing underneath. Carefully T'Challa folded his jacket up and put it at the head of the table as Bucky watched. He circled the table then lifted Bucky's right arm and found the vein, as gently and efficiently as he could he inserted the needle into him and then injected him with the green liquid.
Bucky stared at the needle as T'Challa removed it from his body then furrowed his brows as a funny feeling began to pulse through his body followed by an overwhelming need to lay down. Bucky fell back onto his elbow then all the way back as his head collided with his jacket.
"What the hell," Bucky muttered as T'Challa came back with alcohol wipes and cleaned the blood from his face to assess the damage to his nose.
"It also makes you incredibly high, and tired," T'Challa explained as he threw the bloody wipes in the trash below the table. "This may hurt," he warned as he examined the angles of Bucky's face.
"Just do it," Bucky muttered as the colours around him began to melt together. T'Challa reached for Bucky's nose and straightened it for him. Bucky let out a small groan and resisted the urge to punch the king as he balled his fist.
"Alright Sargent Barnes. You will see us in a few hours." T'Challa explained as the effects of the drug finally put him out.