Prologue

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HYDRA HeadquartersKreischberg, AustriaNovember 1943

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HYDRA Headquarters
Kreischberg, Austria
November 1943

Arnim Zola races through the darkened hallways. There are distant screams of the other fallen HYDRA members and explosions ring through the silence. He must retrieve his work; this is not the real fight. He bursts into his office and starts to raid the cabinets, lifting stary papers off of his desk. He hears a moan from behind the glass. James Barnes was lying flat on the table, unable to move after his most recent experiences. Zola's eyes dart to the table opposite. Iola Hyde is nowhere to be seen. Desire.

"Get me out of here Soldat!" Zola shouts to the darkness. Iola emerges from the shadows, her icy blue eyes reflecting in the light.

She glances to Barnes. She gestures towards him.

"Leave him, he will return to us."

Iola takes Zola's arm as they move out of the lab and into the corridor. Captain America watches them leave. Iola spots him before Zola does, shoving Zola forward, out of the Captain's sight. Barnes makes another moan, and the Captain sprints towards them. Iola and Zola move quickly away when the Captain does not go for them. Corroded.

***

Steve is perched on a snowy mountain ledge as they wait for Zola's train to appear. Bucky and Steve are observing the zipline from the mountain to the train track. Seventy.

"Now why would I do that?"

"You were right, Doctor Zola's on the train. HYDRA dispatcher gave him permission to open up the throttle." Gabe announces.

"Wherever he's going they must need him bad."

Steve pulls on his helmet and prepares himself for the fight that is about to happen. They only have one shot at this.

Zola's train comes racing around the corner, travelling at intense speed that makes Steve doubt for a moment. Only a moment. He launches himself from the mountain ledge and down the line, touching on the train just in time. Gabe stays on the roof and Steve and Bucky make their way into the train, making sure that they are as quiet as possible. They move up the carriage, Steve in front and Bucky following close behind, until they are separated by the sliding doors. Steve realises it is a set up as 2 HYDRA members begin shooting at Bucky. He turns to see what he is facing, Iola glares back at him. Daylight.

She advances towards him, swinging towards his torso. He blocks the hit and goes to swing at her face. She catches his fist before it connects with her face, he looks at her in horror. He cannot win this through hand to hand. As she swings for him again, he moves back and drops to the floor, swinging his legs underneath him, connecting with her ankles as she plummets to the floor. Her head cracks against the cold titanium floor. Fire.

Steve crouches behind stacked weapons carrier, checking how many rounds in his gun before shooting a quick glance over the top of the carriers to see if the mystery girl was there. Her body lay on the floor still, she was out. He didn't have much time to focus on her however, as the sound similar to thrusters start powering up. He stands and is immediately thrown back by a blast of electric blue energy, knowing him off of his feet. Nine.

A tall, armed, masked being stood at the other end of the carriage. Steve launches his shield at them, the sheer force knocking him to the ground. Steve throws himself towards the figure, slamming his now returned shield into their chest, he is out cold. Steve uses the weapon to fire at the door that locked him in the carriage, staring at the damage when it doesn't just go through his door, but Bucky's too. The blast took out Bucky's last opponent. Benevolent.

"I had him on the ropes."

"I know you did."

The familiar sound of the thrusters powering up again rings through the carrier. Both turn to the noise to attack, but it wasn't quick enough. The blast rips the carriage apart, a third of the wall hanging off. The blast has knocked Bucky out of the train, leavening him hanging on the ledge, seconds from slipping to the snowy heights below. Arrival.

Steve runs and reaches for his shield, launching it at the figure, but they block it with another blast. They advance towards Steve, as he tried to analyse the weak spots in the armour. Bucky is trying to pull himself back up into the train, but he cannot get a good enough grip on the edge. A blonde figure emerges from the smoke. Iola stares straight at the Captain. She was his mission; he must die here. One.

As she advances towards Steve, who has just shot dead the armed HYDRA member, Bucky makes a split-second decision. He uses the last of his strength to lunge for her ankle. He successfully reaches and wraps his hand around it. It is too late for her to realise before Bucky releases himself from the edge of the train, throwing his bodyweight backwards, pulling her out with him.

"NO!"

Steve watches from the train as Bucky and Iolafall down in the snowy depths that lay beneath them. FireStation.

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