BUCHAREST, ROMANIA
The content found inside Sharon's files brought Sam, Steve, and I to Romania. A beautiful country, filled with gorgeous people, and the one person we spent two years searching for: Bucky Barnes. He hid well, tucked in a remote corner of Bucharest, in a rundown apartment building.
An hour after Sharon allowed us in on the files, Sam, Steve, and I jumped through a portal to the roof of the apartment. Sam went through the plan: he and I would watch over the apartment from afar while Steve ventured into the building to find the specific hideout of Barnes.
"Say he's not in there, then what's the plan?" I interrupted.
Sam paused. "That's a good question."
"Clara, I don't know if you'll agree to it..." started Steve slowly.
"Uh-oh," I sighed.
"If we find the apartment, we can use Max to sniff him out," he finished.
"But Max doesn't know how to--" I stopped and shook my head. "Steve, we said he wasn't going to be anything but a lap dog."
Purposely using a playful tone to ease my irritation, he defended, "He was bored."
It didn't work. I opened a portal into our apartment. Max, entirely familiar with what the portal meant, rushed forward to greet us. I clapped my hands for him to jump through. I ran my fingers through his shaggy fur. Max was the only being I loved who I was able to protect. Steve throwing him into danger was the last thing I wanted.
"It hasn't been intense training," said Steve. "I only--"
"I don't want to hear it right now," I said.
"We should get going," said Sam awkwardly.
I kissed Max's head, then pointed to Steve. He trotted for him.
"Take care of him," I pleaded quietly, standing.
"He is our dog," said Steve. He adjusted the shield over his back. With a click of his tongue for Max, the two started to cascade down the staircase.
"And Steve?" I called.
He turned, brow raised, in a hopeful way. I don't know what he expected me to say.
"Don't expect him to be the Barnes you knew."
Steve's shoulders noticeably slouched. "He's still in there," he said.
"He's not the same as he used to be. We're just looking out for you, Steve. He's changed," said Sam.
"Yeah. So have I," said Steve, then ducked into the emergency staircase, Max at his heels.
I stared after Steve. Sam appeared behind me, hands on my shoulders.
"Breathe, kid," he reminded me.
"I shouldn't expect him to listen when it comes to Barnes," I said, wiggling his hands from my shoulders.
I opened a portal to a building nearby for him. He silenced his comforting and jumped through without another word. I fell through my own portal to a building kiddie corner to Barnes'. I crouched behind the high ledge. Sam disappeared from the building I sent him on.
"Sam?" I said into the earpiece.
"I'm scouting the area," he said. "Heads up, Cap. We've got German Special Forces approaching from the south."
"Understood," said Steve.
Special Forces hustled to the apartment building. Sam was nowhere to be found. I watched two dozen men pour out from a black van. They carried guns, which was not at all surprising, but the amount of extra padding they clearly wore was. Excessive padding and giant guns meant exactly what Sharon guessed: they planned on bringing Barnes in dead or alive.
"Setting the perimeter," I warned.
The first squad broke through the front door.
"Entering the building," I said.
The second squad shot grappling hooks to the ledge of the apartment. One by one, half of the squad climbed to the roof. The other half pointed guns at the window where I assumed Barnes, and Steve, were stationed.
"On the roof," I said, standing.
"Turning back," said Sam.
I started to stretch out my spine in preparation. I waited for the squad to disappear through the staircase before I opened a portal to the rooftop. I danced on the tips of my toes, ready to jump through on Steve's call.
"Five seconds... Three," I predicted.
The squad on the ground fired bombs into the apartment window.
"Breach," I told Steve. "If that wasn't obvious."
Sam made a noise. "Yeah, Smiles, I don't know that you're okay to be doing this right now."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.
"You're not in the right mindset to do this without bias," he said blandly.
I stepped through the portal, walking to the opposite edge. "I'm fine," I said.
"Engage!" yelled Steve. "Clara, south rooftop!"
Coincidentally, Barnes and I jumped at the same moment. He had jumped from a lower point than I. I used a portal to make it to the neighbor structure first. I then caught him in a portal. He made a soft landing directly in front of me. I picked up the backpack beside me and wiggled it in the air.
"This yours?" I asked.
He stared at it. I tossed it to him.
"Follow me, would you?" I asked again. I opened a portal.
"Why?" he asked quietly.
One look into his eyes told me he wasn't looking for a reason to follow. He wanted to know why I, of all people, was going to help him.
"Your parents," he continued. "You know what I did--"
"You mean something to Steve," I cut in. I gave him a desperate sigh. "That automatically makes you of value in my life, too."
I was incapable of asking if he was going to follow. A foot slammed into my back. I fell into Barnes. He pushed me back on my feet. I faced the being who kicked me.
It wasn't a German Special Unit member, although he also wore a black uniform. His was skin-tight. His stance resembled a crouch. A flick of his hands brought out claws from the tips of his fingers.
"Who are you supposed to be?" I asked.
His head turned for Barnes.
I took a step in front of him. "This man is under my... Protection."
"What authority do you have?" whispered Barnes.
"Uh, honestly none."
Our cat-like attacker struck. Barnes and I fell into a pattern. I blocked, he hit, he blocked, I kicked. We fought together, in a rhythm. It went on for several seconds, until the attacker managed to swipe under the block. Barnes lifted his metal arm to block the inevitable clawing. The attacker hit Barnes in the face, then the chest. He hit an air conditioning system. The attacker tried to scratch Barnes in the face. He ducked out of the way.
I dove in front of him. The man encircled his hands around my waist and flipped his own body. While he landed gracefully on his feet, I hit the ground. My knuckles clashed against a pipe. I grabbed it in the nick of time, I covered my face from his claws. The pipe was slashed in half. I yanked my foot into the air. The man took my ankle and threw my body at Barnes' retreating figure. I caught myself through two different portals. I ended on my feet, running behind Barnes.
Gunfire from a hovering helicopter caused Barnes to stop. I ran directly into him, his plan, as he covered our heads with his arm. I pushed his body away from mine. I stared at him, my lips split. A fast incoming blur in my peripheral brought me back to the situation hand. I shoved Barnes into a portal and closed it.
"Who's the other guy?" asked Sam.
"We're about to find out," said Steve.
The attacker veered around me entirely. I watched as he jumped to a pillar on the edge of the building. He used his claws to slide down. He sprinted in the direction of Barnes.
"He's not going for us," I warned.
I jumped through a portal to the exact spot I sent Barnes to. once more, the attacker had to veer around me to avoid wasting more time. I ran through another portal to gain distance on Barnes.
Where I landed, he stopped and jumped over a barrier into an underground highway tunnel. He narrowly avoided being roadkill. A glance at me, then he continued to sprint alongside the traffic.
Groaning, I hopped the barrier as well. I ran through portal after portal just to get a word to him. I screamed, I yelled, begging him to let me help him, to help me end it before we attracted too much attention and unwanted parties.
"Sam, I can't shake him," said Steve.
"Right behind you."
"What's your status?!"
"Found a car, heading your way."
"I'm gonna tackle him through, I can't keep up this running for much longer," I panted.
"No, he won't trust us if you take him unwillingly," denied Steve.
"And what's the alternative? Getting all of us arrested?" I asked.
"Just stop him."
Ahead, German Police vehicles blocked the terminal exit. I opened a portal in front of Barnes and jumped out. He was going too fast for him to stop in time. He ran straight into me, I caught us through another portal, on the opposite side of the terminal. I shoved him into a pillar.
The car with Steve and the cat-like attacker passed by. We had less than a minute before they caught our trail.
"This is our last shot to save you. Take it. End this chase, for the love of God," I said.
"I didn't ask for your help," said Barnes, pushing past my body.
He stood in the traffic, for the second time. One vehicle was coming for him: a motorcycle. With one hand, he grabbed the handle and propelled the bike in the air. He shoved the man off. In mid-air, he jumped on the bike, and he was gone, just as fast as he took the bike.
A frail whimper exited my lips. Again, I was jumping through portals, chasing after Barnes.
I noticed Steve driving by in a car with the attacker still clutching onto the back. He lunged for Barnes, who caught him by the throat. The motorcycle swerved, almost ramming into me, I dove out of the way. Steve swerved to avoid hitting me. Sam passed over me.
I lay on the ground for no longer than thirty seconds, breathing heavily to catch some of my breath back, before I continued jumping through portals to keep up beside Barnes.
The weight sent the motorcycle tipping to the left. Barnes used his metal arm to hold the motorcycle in place. He threw the man into the air, where he caught onto Sam. Barnes sped up. I watched him pull a device from his pocket and throw it at the upcoming underpass. He drove under it, unharmed, then allowed it to explode.
I tripped, desperate to stop my momentum. As soon as I stopped skidding across the road, I threw a portal up in front of the debris, sending Steve, Sam, and Barnes' attacker to the other side. I dropped it after the remains buried the road. I ran through a portal to meet them.
Steve and Barnes stood side by side, Steve's hand outstretched in front of him.
The attacker had stopped, not of his own accord, but due to the surrounding Police. Each had excessively giant guns aimed on each of us.
I helped Sam from the ground. We walked, hands in the air to meet Steve and Barnes. Steve looked over his shoulder. I nodded. He took an unnoticeable step closer to Barnes.
Then, from the sky, came a chain that attached to my neck. It wasn't on for nearly a second before I was screaming at the top of my lungs. I hit the pavement. Electricity hit my brain in fast and powerful surges. It cleared my head of any thoughts, other than one: it hurt.
Sam dropped to his knees beside me. His fingers tapped along the metal contraption, searching for a hook or clasp to undo it. Desperate, he looked behind my neck. He didn't find a way to take it off, only a way to send me into a farther reach of irritation.
A single name, the person responsible: Stark.
"Congratulations, Cap. You're a criminal," said Rhodey.
"Get that off of her now," ordered Steve. He sounded absolutely livid.
Rhodey lowered his head. "You know why I can't do that."