Bucky's Anchor

Chapter 39 - In the Heart of the Battle

The ground trembled beneath my feet, the echo of distant explosions vibrating through the medical tent. It had been hours since the battle began, but it felt like an eternity. My hands worked on autopilot, wrapping bandages and administering medicine to the wounded soldiers brought in from the field. But my mind was elsewhere—out there with Bucky. Every sound, every tremor in the earth, made my heart leap into my throat.

I glanced out of the tent, my breath hitching as I caught sight of the battlefield. Dust and smoke clouded the sky, and the roars of Thanos's army filled the air. My gaze swept over the chaos, desperately searching for a glimpse of Bucky. My stomach twisted with every passing second. I couldn't see him.

"Emily, focus!" Shuri's voice cut through my panic, grounding me back to the present. She was right. I had a job to do here. These soldiers needed me. But then another wave of Outriders crashed against the Wakandan forces, and through the haze, I saw him—Bucky, surrounded, fighting with everything he had. He was holding his own, but the odds were overwhelming.

My heart pounded in my chest. "I have to go," I muttered under my breath, my hands freezing mid-action.

"What?" Shuri looked up, her eyes wide with concern. "Emily, you can't! It's too dangerous out there!"

But I wasn't listening. My feet were already moving toward the tent's exit. I grabbed a rifle from the nearest rack, my fingers clenching around the metal as I stepped out into the open. The wind was hot, carrying the scent of burning and blood. My heart hammered in my chest, but there was only one thought in my mind: I had to get to Bucky.

"Emily!" Shuri's voice called after me, but it was drowned out by the cacophony of battle. I knew I was leaving my post, that I was supposed to be here helping the wounded, but I couldn't just stand by and watch him fight alone. Not when he was so close to being overwhelmed.

I ran, my feet pounding against the dirt as I navigated through the chaos. Bodies blurred past me—soldiers fighting, screaming, falling. My vision tunneled on Bucky, on the way he moved with such lethal grace, his Vibranium arm glinting in the harsh light. But even as he fought, I could see he was tiring, the onslaught of enemies relentless.

"Hang on, Bucky," I whispered, my voice lost in the roar of battle. I raised the rifle, firing at the Outriders closest to him. Each shot was a heartbeat, a step closer to reaching him. The noise was deafening—gunfire, explosions, the screech of the alien creatures—but all I heard was the pounding of my own heart and the desperate need to reach him.

The ground shook as a nearby explosion rocked the battlefield, throwing me off balance. I stumbled but kept going, pushing through the debris and smoke. My lungs burned with each breath, but I refused to slow down. Bucky needed me, and I wasn't going to let him fight alone.

---

I broke through the haze just as Bucky was surrounded by a new wave of Outriders. He fought valiantly, but they were closing in. I fired into the mass of creatures, taking down as many as I could. Bucky turned at the sound, his eyes finding mine through the chaos. For a brief moment, there was shock in his gaze, quickly replaced by something else—fear.

"Emily!" he shouted, his voice carrying over the din of battle. "What the hell are you doing out here?"

"Saving your ass," I called back, firing again. My hands were shaking, but I forced myself to stay steady, to aim true. I moved closer, my rifle blazing, until I was by his side. Bucky shifted to cover me, his movements sharp and fierce, but I could see the worry etched on his face.

"You shouldn't be here!" he growled, slamming an Outrider to the ground with his Vibranium arm. "It's too dangerous!"

"So is letting you die," I shot back, swinging the butt of my rifle into an enemy's face. "I'm not losing you, Bucky."