His vision dancing in the wake of the bright, cerulean light, Steve ran over to the plane's controls and climbed into the pilot's seat, trying to figure out what any of the buttons and levers did. It would have been hard enough trying to fly one of Stark's planes, but at least then the controls would've been in English. These, of course, weren't.
But some things you didn't need words to understand. On a screen to his left, there was a glowing red crosshairs marked over a familiar map. And even if he hadn't recognised it, there were the words in unmistakable block capitals. ZIEL: NEW YORK CITY.
Well, he hadn't spent all those nights the last few months unable to shut the sound of Bucky and Elke's hushed conversations out of his superhuman hearing for nothing. He couldn't help knowing some German.
TARGET: NEW YORK CITY
Of course it was. How many thousands of miles had he travelled, just to end up right where he had started, headed for a fight he couldn't hope to win in Brooklyn? Like there was an invisible leash tying him to who he had always been.
The little guy.
This time, the little guy had an impossible decision to make—except that it wasn't impossible, not really. There was no way he could let New York City burn. But at least, if he had to die, he had a beautiful view. Who else would ever see the sun rising over the arctic clouds?
***
In the Hydra control tower in the Alps, Colonel Phillips, Elke Fischer, Peggy Carter and Jim Morita had taken over control from the Hydra soldiers. A radio crackled, and a familiar voice transmitted into the room. "Come in. This is Captain Rogers. Do you read me?"
Morita picked up the microphone. "Captain Rogers, what is your—?"
"Steve, is that you?" Peggy demanded, hurrying over. Morita let her take his place without issue, and Phillips sent him out to check on the status outside. "Are you alright?"
"Peggy!" Steve sounded so relieved to hear her voice. "Schmidt's dead."
"What about the plane?" she asked.
He was silent for a long moment, trying to find the words to say it to her. "... that's a little bit tougher to explain."
Elke leaned over her shoulder to speak into the microphone. "Give us your coordinates. We will find you a safe place to land."
"There's not going to be a safe landing," came the reply, and she stared, stunned. "But I can try and force it down."
"Just wait," Peggy pleaded, her eyes prickling with tears. "I'll get Howard on the line. He'll know what to do."
***
In the plane, Steve sighed, wishing the desperation in her voice didn't cut so deep. "There's not enough time. This thing's moving too fast and it's heading for New York." He hesitated, looking out at the clouds. "I gotta put her in the water."
"Please, don't do this," Peggy begged, and he could hear the tears in her voice. "We have time. We can work it out."
"Right now I'm in the middle of nowhere. If I wait any longer, a lot of people are gonna die." He swallowed hard, pulling out his compass and opening it to see the picture of her he'd put in it. At least if he had to die, he could see her face, hear her voice. At least he could pretend he wasn't alone. "Peggy, this is my choice."
***
"Peggy?"
She sniffled, biting her lip hard to stop it from trembling. "I'm here."
"I'm gonna need a rain check on that dance," he said, his voice crackling as the radio signal wavered.
"Alright," she managed, swallowing past the lump in her throat. "A week next Saturday, at the Stork Club."
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Lady Liberty |1| The Liberty Saga (An MCU Fanfiction)
ActionWhen Steve Rogers takes the supersoldier serum and becomes Captain America, he is not alone in his fight against Hydra. Elke Fischer works for the SSR, often undermined for the twin crimes of being female and being German. Her terrakinesis makes her...
