Chapter 18. Making Amends

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I made the decision not to use dialogue from the TV series to avoid copyright issues

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I made the decision not to use dialogue from the TV series to avoid copyright issues. As a result, there is a lot of exposition in this chapter which may just seem like a rehashing of the plot from the series. There is some made up dialogue. While you're reading it and you think back to the scene in the series just remember that my dialogue is different.  After this chapter everything will be original plot and dialogue as Bucky takes on the danger threatening Lacey and Tommy.

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The next few weeks were time that Bucky would never get back.  After "helping" Zemo escape custody, then flying to Madripoor to seek out information about the super soldier serum they found themselves on the wrong side of the faction that ran the lawless colony.  A woman in the criminal world in Madripoor gave them the name of the man making the serum, Wilfred Nagel, then was killed herself, which prompted a bounty on their lives, even though they had nothing to do with her death.  Only the appearance of Sharon Carter helped them temporarily out of being killed by the bounty hunters.  Carter, obviously part of the criminal underworld herself, helped them locate Nagel's lab.  He confirmed the existence of the serum, admitted it was formed from a blood sample taken from an unwilling Isaiah Bradley, and that he had created 20 doses.  They knew of eight Flag Smashers who had taken the serum, meaning there were potentially another dozen people that could be or already were transformed. 

It literally blew up in their faces when Zemo killed Nagel, then a bounty hunter sent a rocket into the shipping container where the lab was.  Zemo disappeared while Bucky helped Carter and Sam out of the wreckage.  After helping them dispose of the rest of the bounty hunters Zemo showed up with a car to get them out of there and back to his private jet.  At least they had a name, Donya Madani, a source of inspiration to the Flag Smashers, and a place, Riga, Latvia, to search for the group.

When they arrived in Riga, and Zemo led them to a safe house there, Bucky noticed several kimoyo beads in the vicinity and hung back, knowing the Wakandans were near.  In a quiet street he spoke to Ayo, the Dora Milaje warrior, who gave him 8 hours before she and her squad came for Zemo.  It was long enough for Zemo to find out where the funeral for Donya Madani was being held, and long enough for Sam to try and talk to the leader of the Flag Smashers, Karli Morgenthau.  At least it would have been long enough if John Walker hadn't shown up to arrest Karli.  She escaped in the confusion Walker's appearance caused.  Later when the Dora Milaje came to take Zemo into custody Walker intervened again starting a fight that never should have happened.  In the confusion of that fight Zemo escaped. 

Karli reached out to Sam, via a veiled threat she made to his sister and nephews.  When he and Bucky met with her they realized quickly her true intent was to occupy them while the rest of the Flag Smashers went after Walker and Hoskins.  It was during that fight that Sam realized Walker had somehow taken the super soldier serum.  That was also the fight where Hoskins was killed and Walker retaliated by killing one of the Flag Smashers in front of a crowd of civilians recording on their cell phones, using the shield to do it.  After Walker ran off they followed him to an empty industrial building where both could see the mental turmoil the man was in.  Sam asked for the shield and Walker took it as a threat.  In the ensuing battle between the three Walker tried to kill Sam and Bucky was forced to fight unrestrained against the man who insisted he was still Captain America.  It took breaking Walker's arm to get the shield from him then Bucky picked up the shield and dropped it beside Sam as he lay on the floor, not caring at that point whether Sam picked it up or not as he was done. 

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