SAM WOULD HAVE DECKED LOKI RIGHT THERE, except she had manners. Or at least, she attempted to.
They stood over him and he raised his hands, face pale and a cut across his left cheek. Despite everything, a small smirk tugged at the corners of the god's lips.
"If it's all the same to you, I'll have that drink now."
"Drinks are for winners," she said. "Sorry."
His eyes flicked toward her. Sam shrugged, smirking right back. In a matter of minutes, Tony had him up in metal cuffs and three helicopters flew in from overhead. SHIELD. Sam couldn't help but watch them glaringly. They couldn't have come in sooner? No, they had to send a nuke instead.
One of the agents, a bald, portly man, caught her gaze. He attempted a nervous smile. She gazed emotionlessly back.
He looked quickly away.
"All right." Tony stood, brushing off his hands. "Good one. No standing around, I'm closing up this door for later. We earned and deserve shawarma."
Sam didn't know what shawarma was, but she was more than willing to try it out. Tony shot Steve a sideways glance, smirking widely.
"By the way, Cap, feel free to clean up."
"Very funny, Stark."
"Wasn't a joke, old man. But I see how it is."
"So uhh," Nat glanced at the agents, who carefully lowered Loki's scepter into a metal container. "The magic wand?"
"STRIKE team's gonna secure it."
"We'll take it off your hands." The portly man said, offering another nervous smile. Natasha only shrugged.
"By all means. Just be careful."
"Unless you want your mind erased," Clint grunted. "And not in a fun way."
Sam blinked. "Is there a fun way?"
"I'll tell you if I ever find out."
She grinned. "Sounds like a fair deal."
"We promise to be careful," the man said. Their small group stood, closing up the case, and started toward the elevator. Sam studied their backs, narrowing her eyes.
"What the heck is a STRIKE team anyway?"
"They do a lot of undercover missions," Nat said. "Clean up the messes Fury doesn't want to. The tall guy is Rumlow. Sitwell's the short one."
"He's a nervous dude."
She furrowed her brows, watching them leave. "Not usually. Alien invasion probably got under his skin. You know, like most alien invasions do."
"Tell me about it."
"Righty," Clint looked fairly satisfied. Bruce had yet to turn back, and paced the room back and forth, muttering things she couldn't catch. She wondered how exactly he planned on turning human again. She wasn't really sure of the process.
"Right, got it. On my way down to coordinate search and rescue," Steve said, pressing the comm in his ear. Standing beside Thor, Loki shimmered into the form of the super-soldier, scrunching up his face.
"On my way down to coordinate search and rescue." He transformed back, rolling his eyes. "I mean honestly! How do you think you'll be—"
Thor clapped a muzzle over his mouth, frowning. "Shut up."
Loki narrowed his eyes.
"Samantha?" Steve glanced at her. "Come with?"
"On my way down to coordinate search and rescue," she smirked. He frowned.
"Never mind, you can stay here."
"Wait! I'm sorry! I'll come, I'll come. Just gimme a moment."
He nodded, starting toward the stairs. The rest of them crowded into the elevator, Sam shooting Loki a disgruntled look as he stepped beside her. Despite the muzzle, he offered his best smirk back. It looked very uncomfortable and she raised a victorious brow.
"What was that, Green Eggs and Ham? Nothing? No? Shame."
Tony barked a laugh, sitting on the suitcase holding the Tesseract beside her. The elevator door started to close— right as the Hulk tramped toward them. A series of shouts filled the air and Tony raised his hands.
"Whoa, whoa. Hey! Buddy. What do you think that means?" He pointed toward the number over the elevator doors. "Maximum occupancy has been reached."
"Take the stairs." Thor said.
"Yeah—" The doors began to close and the Hulk roared drawing his fist back. "Hey, stop. Stop!" They shut tightly and a metallic bang filled the air as a fist-sized dent appeared. Tony sighed. "Dammit, Hulk."
"Nobody likes the stairs," Sam snorted.
"Apparently not."
It was a long and rather awkward ride down, with Loki looking like he was more than willing to kill each and every one of them at the drop of a pin. Sam leaned against Thor's side, resting her head on the god's shoulder. She was tired and she'd be damned if he didn't like it.
Those shoulders had to be good for something.
But Thor only glanced down, looking surprised for a moment. Then he grinned warmly.
She smiled tiredly back.
The doors opened and one by one, they moved out. But Sam slowed as she saw the group waiting for them. More SHIELD agents, and a man dressed in a crisp black suit.
She narrowed her eyes.
One look at his wrinkled frown and orange hair, and she wasn't a fan. The suited man stepped forward, cutting them off mid-path.
"May I ask where you're going?"
"To lunch, then Asgard." Thor furrowed his brows. "I'm sorry, you are?"
"Alexander Pierce," Tony said. He smirked at the SHIELD group. "He's the man. One of the folks behind Nick Fury."
"My friends call me Mr. Secretary."
Sam narrowed her eyes. "And what do your acquaintances call you? Just to get on a name basis."
"I'm sorry Miss... who are you?"
"Samantha Clarence. But my friends call me Sam. Just my friends."
He studied her up and down, a look of veiled distaste flickering through his eyes. Turning away, he faced Tony and Thor again. "I'm gonna have to ask you to turn that prisoner over to me."
"Loki will be answering to Odin himself."
"Oh, he's gonna answer to us. Odin can have what's left."
Thor's eyes flashed dangerously. Sam tensed, despite her hard feelings for the god of mischief. She's rather send him off to who-knows-where Asgard than the man in front of her. But despite their hard faces, Pierce didn't back down.
"I'm also gonna need that case. It's been SHIELD property for over seventy years."
"I'm aware," she growled. "I helped keep the Red Skull from it."
He looked at her again. This time, there was a sort of surprised-realization look in his eyes. A recognition at her name. Her identity.
"Samantha Clarence. The Phantom?"
"The one and only."
"Look," Tony interrupted. "I'm not gonna argue who's got the higher authority here. All right?"
"I need that case."
"May we ask why?"
Pierce glared at her. "Government business."
"The same government that sent a nuke toward New York? I think we'll hang onto it."
"Not an option."
"Hey," Tony said. "I know you gotta lot of pull. I'm just saying..."
"Give me the case, Stark."
Three of the agents stepped forward, two taking Tony's arms and the other one going for the case. He jerked back and his eyes flashed— Sam clenched her fists. "Get your hands off me!"
"Back up, Alexander."
But suddenly, Tony lurched. His eyes went wide and he fell to one knee, clutching his chest. Then he began to convulse, falling to the ground with a thump. She started. "Tony?"
"Stark? Stark!"
Sam fell to her knees, Thor at her side. "Tony, Tony, what's wrong?"
"He's convulsing. Give him air! Medic!"
Somewhere in the distance, she heard another voice. A lower, but... familiar voice. "Medic! You guys, he needs help!"
Sam stood, looking toward the sound. She spotted a Shield agent with his helmet on, eyes lowered as he turned away. The Tesseract case, having fallen from Tony's hand, suddenly went sliding across the floor. Toward the man. He picked it up, glancing to both sides, and started away.
She shoved herself forward. "Hey—!"
Suddenly, the door to the stairs burst open. The soldier went flying back and the Hulk burst out, roaring in anger. "NO MORE STAIRS!"
The case went flying, the Tesseract spilling out. Right to Loki's foot. Amidst the chaos, he looked down, surprised, then glanced around. His green eyes met her own. Sam shouted and shoved herself forward— Loki grabbed the Tesseract, smirked, then... vanished.
She tackled thin air.
"No!"
For a long moment, no one else seemed to notice, so focused on Tony. But then Thor stood, gripping his hammer tightly, and looked around. "The case. It's uhh... Where's the case? Where's Loki?"
"Gone," Sam shoved herself up. A mix of panic, shock, and anger rushed through her. "He's got the Tesseract and he's gone."
"That's... not great." Tony stood unsteadily.
"No. It's not."
The Shield group and Pierce shifted nervously but Sam was about to punch one of them. Stalking toward the elevator, she pressed the open button and stepped inside. He couldn't have gone far. Could he? Faintly, through the comms in her ear, something buzzed.
"Tony, Samantha? What's going on? I have eyes on Loki. Fourteenth floor."
She pressed her own comm. "Steve? Steve, Loki's on the loose. He's got the Tesseract. I'm coming up."
But the only return sound was static.
Her heart leaped in panic.
"C'mon, c'mon..."
The elevator was rising too slow and she flickered in and out in agitation. One by one, the floors dinged by. Ten, eleven, twelve... Sam swore. By the time she got up there, Loki was going to be gone.
Suddenly, the 14th floor dinged. She shoved herself out the second the doors open.
And froze.
Steve stood in front of her... but not Steve. Not her Steve. The one she knew was unconscious on the floor behind him, clearly knocked out. The impersonator in front of her froze. His eyes widened.
"S-Samantha?"
"Loki, drop the scepter."
He looked from her, to the scepter he held, then back. Sam stepped forward and he went still. Not running, not threatening, but just... standing. Staring in shock. In... grief? "Samantha. You're... here. Alive."
Alive?
Despite everything, that made her stop. Sam stared at the man in front of her and nearly faltered back. Because this was Steve. Except... older. Sadder. His eyes were heavy and told stories of a thousand tragedies.
This was the man she knew, but at the same time, it wasn't. Her mind spun and her throat felt dry.
"Steve?"
"You weren't supposed to see this."
"How? How are you here? And—" She stared at her Steve behind him. "And there?"
But like he was lost in his own world, he stepped forward. Sam stayed frozen where she stood as Steve cupped her chin, searching her face. There was so much sadness in his eyes. A deep, heavy grief. "He... killed you."
"W-who?"
"... Bucky."
Sam's heart stopped.
She stepped back, staring into the blue eyes of the super-soldier in front of her. Steve, but not Steve— she couldn't make the world stop spinning. Bucky. "What?"
She heard the faint sound of static. Steve pressed the comm in his ear and tensed. His eyes flicked back to her, somehow clearer and flooded with a sharp realization. And a sorrow. "I'm sorry, Samantha."
"Steve... what's going on?"
"I miss you," he whispered. "We all do."
Tears sprang to her eyes. She searched for the right words but found there were none. Steve clenched his jaw, lifting the scepter. But his arm shook a little.
"Bucky... he does too. Did— did too. But I'm gonna get him back. I promised. To you, to him."
"Steve...?"
"Be careful, Samantha. Maybe this future isn't set in stone."
The blue stone at the end of the scepter began to glow. Sam's brain screamed for her to phase out, but she was so shocked and confused, all she could do was stand there as a blue pulse shot from the end.
Pain exploded through her chest as it hit. She went flying back, slamming against the wall and seeing stars. Everything went red, grey.
She heard Steve's footsteps. Felt him crouch at her side, check her pulse and then squeeze her hand gently.
His quiet, sorrowful whispered apology.
Then all she saw was black.
~ ~ ~
Hehe... talk about a turn of events! I've been so excited for this chapter, ahhh! Thoughts, comments?
What did you think of their talk? Some stuff revealed... seems Sam doesn't make it to their main future. That's not great. But can it be changed in this one?