☆» All Queen Visaena Hightower wanted, was to protect her children. Being married off at a young age to a man three times her senior changed her. She was a sweet and kind girl in her youth, but every little experience forced her to toughen up. She...
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As Visaena sat in the back of the van, the pain from the dampening device around her neck barely registered compared to the storm of emotions raging within her. Her body ached, every nerve screaming in agony, but it was the turmoil in her heart and mind that truly overwhelmed her.
For sixty years, she had believed that Bucky Barnes, the love of her life, was dead. She had mourned him, cried for him, and tried to move on with the heavy burden of his loss. She had built a life, raising their son, Lucerys, and protecting her family. The sorrow of losing Bucky had been a constant ache, a wound that never fully healed.
Then, in the midst of battle, she had seen him again. But he wasn't the Bucky she remembered. He was the Winter Soldier, a weapon forged in pain and brainwashed into a ruthless killer. The recognition in his eyes, brief and fleeting, had pierced her heart more deeply than any bullet ever could. He was alive, but he didn't know her. He didn't remember the love they had shared or the life they had dreamed of together.
The shock of this revelation hit her like a tidal wave, mixing with the pain of her physical injuries. She felt a complex mixture of joy, sorrow, anger, and confusion. Joy that he was alive, sorrow for what he had become, anger at those who had taken him and twisted him into a weapon, and confusion about what to do next.
Memories flooded her mind—memories of their time together, of the love and happiness they had shared. She remembered his smile, his laugh, the way he held her close and made her feel safe. Those memories felt like a lifetime ago, and in a way, they were. Her heart ached with the longing for the man she had lost and the uncertainty of the man he had become.
"It was him. He looked right at me like he didn't even know me." Steve spoke, his voice heavy with emotion.
"How's that even possible? It was like seventy years ago."
"Zola. Bucky's whole unit was captured in '43. Zola experimented on him. Whatever he did helped Bucky survive the fall. They must have found him and..." Steve shook his head.
"None of that's your fault, Steve," Natasha interjected, her voice soft but firm. Visaena stayed quiet during all of this. She didn't have much to say, her mind still thinking about how she failed Bucky.
"Even when I had nothing, I had Bucky." Steve sighed. Sam looked at Natasha, her bleeding shoulder, clearly getting worse.
"We need to get a doctor here. If we don't put pressure on that wound, she's gonna bleed out here in the truck." Suddenly, one of the guards pulled out an electric rod and neutralized the other guard, knocking him out. The guard then removed their helmet, revealing Maria Hill. Visaena felt a short amount of relief flood through her.
"Ah. That thing was squeezing my brain," she said. Sam looked at her in confusion.
