to die for winter | bucky barnes

act 2 | 13

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Chapter Thirteen

hero duties

THE twins were obviously surprised the moment I handed them some utilities like gloves for Wanda and shoes for Pietro. Granted, none of those really belong to me, the gloves originally owned by Nat and the shoes owned by Clint, I still took it upon myself to give them away so the two can use something.

I remember how Steve always emphasized the importance of wearing proper gear and uniform whenever we indulge ourselves in a battle. And seeing as that's where exactly we're heading, I took it upon myself to prepare the possibly new recruits.

However, what I didn't expect was for the two to stick with me the whole way to Sokovia.

"Alright, listen up," Steve said, breaking the long story Pietro was telling me about their childhood. He honestly looks like a kid who just found a new playmate and is so excited to tell all of his secrets.

We all turned attending towards Steve. "Ultron knows we're coming. Odds are we'll be riding into heavy fire, and that's what we signed up for," he stated, looking at each of us. He then turned to the twins. "But the people of Sokovia, they didn't." That then made me glance at the two, well tried to at least, seeing as I am currently being sandwiched as I sit in between them. However, I didn't even have to take a good look at them to know that made them feel something. And so I placed a hand on both of their hands, giving a supportive squeeze. Pietro immediately squeezed back while Wanda took a few seconds to do so.

"Our priority is getting them out," I stated, making sure that everyone shared the same goal as I had. Steve and I shared a look before he nodded in agreement. "All they want is to live their lives in peace, and that's not going to happen today. But we can do our best to protect them. And we can get the job done and find out what Ultron's been building. We find Romanoff, and we clear the field. Keep the fight between us. Ultron thinks we're monsters and we're what's wrong with the world. This isn't just about beating him. It's about whether he's right."

I smiled, shaking my head. "I bet my life he's goddamn wrong."

—

I don't even remember how the battle actually started. All I could recall was the adrenaline rush, the screaming, and the guns. The next thing I knew, the ground was shaking, and just when I was about to fall from losing balance, I felt a hand on my waist steadying me. I quickly looked at the owner of the said hand and found Pietro smiling sheepishly. "Easy there, hero."

I chuckled, shaking my head. "Thanks, but what the hell is happening?" I asked as I noticed how dust and dirt started flying up in a cloud that surrounded the city. Pietro let me go, and we both watched in horror as everything crumbled around us.

"Anthony!" I called out.

Knowing exactly why I called out his name, Tony accessed his newly built AI in place of Jarvis.

"Friday," he said, his voice mirroring the worry we all are currently feeling.

"Sokovia's going for a ride," Friday responded quietly.

Buildings started crashing and falling to the ground. I looked up and saw that a piece of crashing building was about to fall onto a teenager who looked lost, her eyes full of panic and worry. I run towards her, engulfing her in my arms as I jump both of us out of the way. I groan as I land badly on my left shoulder.

I let go of the teen, frantically ushering her to run and leave. "Go! You need to go to a safe place. Now!"

Fortunately, despite her panic and worried state, she listened to me and immediately ran away. I took a deep breath before pushing myself to stand up, holding to my possibly injured shoulder.

I then finally notice as various groups of robots starts flying around and targeting anything and anyone they come across. "Well, this is fun."

"Do you see? The beauty of it; the inevitability. You rise, only to fall. You, Avengers, you are my meteor, my swift and terrible sword, and the earth will crack with the weight of your failure. Purge me from your computers; turn my own flesh against me. It means nothing. When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world will be metal," I then suddenly heard Ultron say. I leaned on the debris behind me, glaring at the robot that was approaching me before taking out my special gun and firing right at its eye. I watch as it falls in front of me, shutting down.

"Hey, Anthony. Your son's pretty good with words," I said, catching my breath and trying to feel just how bad my shoulder was.

"I know, right?" Tony answered, amusement covering his tone.

"Also, Cap, you got incoming," he warned.

"Incoming already came in," Steve answered, groaning. I guess the warning didn't come as quickly as he would have wanted.

"Stark, you worry about bringing the city back down safely. The rest of us have one job: tear these things apart. You get hurt, hurt 'em back. You get killed, walk it off," Steve ordered.

I chuckled, shaking my head in amusement. I fixed my stance before walking towards the approaching group of robots.

"Still as motivating as ever, Cap."

Steve chuckled, "Thank you."

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my finals is done and to celebrate that here's a short update!

hope you're all doing fine lovelies

xo, nics