2| Platinum [Pietro M.] ✔

32. Criminals

My false sense of security quickly vanishes when I hear slicing. The bike's rear tire is pulled to the side, sending both Bucky and me crashing into the pavement. We roll across the highway as the motorcycle careens on ahead before eventually falling to its side with a crash. I let out a sharp cry as I roll onto the wound on my right arm. It causes a fresh wave of blood to erupt from the slices. The rough surface of the concrete pulls and tugs the sensitive flesh in all directions, leaving crimson stains behind as my momentum continues. Briefly, a sense of dread washes over me when I hear tires skidding. I begin to wonder if we're about to become roadkill. I mean, if the police don't run us over first the cat's gonna tear both Barnes and I a new one...

I continue to roll and barely manage not to get crushed by the suited man or Bucky. My head collides with the road a few times, which causes my vision to blur slightly before it comes back only for the process to repeat again. Somehow I still manage to make out Steve running through the falling rubble as the car he was previously driving continuously flips in our direction. Barnes and I come to a slow rolling halt from our wipeout and the out of control vehicle veers away from us, much to my relief, as it continues to flip. But the cat man is already on his feet and is hovering over Bucky. He looks ready to lay the pain on him.

Right before the darkly suited man can bring his claws down on the assassin, Captain America grabs him by the middle and tackles him sideways. It startles both Barnes and I. My breathing turns to shuddering gasps as I look with wide, frightened eyes at Bucky. He was previously watching Cap with surprise as the Spangly man tackled Emo Hello Kitty. I'm lying on my side with an almost permanent wince on my face due to my position -- on my side where my gory, wounded arm is. The damaged flesh is throbbing and I can tell it's torn up from being dragged across the lane as I rolled. I can feel the blood acting as an adhesive between my injury and the warm highway, causing the rough bricks below me to attach to my open wound. This causes sharp pains to run up the length of my arm.

James gives me a short nod as he gets to his feet before he slowly approaches me once the angry cat man has been taken down. Behind him, an entire squadron of police cars floods into the tunnel. I grimace not only in pain but anxiousness as well. He offers me his non-metal hand and I carefully take it with my shaky, free one before he carefully hoists me to my feet. A quiet whine escapes me as the skin on my right arm peels off the road before I cradle my arm to my body closely. "Thank you." I murmur quietly to him. Once I'm up steadily on my feet Barnes turns around sharply. We both watch as Steve faces off with the man who's been trying to kill us over the past few minutes. Meanwhile, the large group of policemen circles us with their cars. Their sirens are blaring and the blue lights flash brightly. Steve holds his arm out towards Bucky in an attempt to make sure he doesn't go running off. Hovering in the sky behind us is the helicopter and out of nowhere comes Rhodes, who lands in the middle of the street. He's donning his War Machine suit as he lifts a hand. He looks ready to blast any of us with one of his repulsor beams. The mini machine gun on his shoulder is also poised and ready.

"Stand down now." He commands. I share a hesitant look with Bucky before he subtly shifts so he's acting as my shield. His face then drops to look at the road at his feet before it slides to the many men in front of us, all of whom are wearing dark tactical gear and aiming large firearms at us from where they're taking cover behind their vehicles. There's a great many of them -- at least three dozen.

Steve stands up straighter and takes his shield off his wrist before placing it on his back. He then lifts his hands in surrender. "Congratulations, Cap. You're a criminal." Rhodes states as the Special Forces begin to shout orders at each other in German. Soon they're like a pack of seagulls, all shouting at once. To make it worse, an entire team of them rush towards us from all sides. Their handguns are raised and ready to fire. I move to stand at Barnes' other side just as one of the soldiers grab Bucky by the back of his shirt before kicking the back of his knees, forcing him to the ground. Knowing I can't do anything to help without getting myself shot, I continue to stand and glare at anyone who gets too close and cradle my arm protectively. I can hear Sam approaching from out of the rubble behind us as the man in the cat suit lifts his hands slowly before removing his mask from his face. I'm very surprised. Under the mask is T'Challa, Prince of Wakanda. His father, T'Chaka, was the Black Panther. However, it seems the mantle has been passed to his son. I can't believe I didn't recognize the suit.

At the same moment T'Challa reveals himself, a man approaches Steve from behind. He takes his shield and tosses it to another man. The soldier then pulls Rogers' arms behind his back before handcuffing him. "Your Highness." Rhodes says respectively to T'Challa as Steve watches on with shock. Meanwhile, the man that took Barnes down seems to be having trouble with his handcuffs and I can hear Bucky grunt. One of the soldiers with a larger weapon approaches me with the intent of putting me on the ground to handcuff me like they did to Barnes. I give him a cruel look, my lips pulled back so I may bear my teeth like a cornered dog. At the same time, I let out a pulse of energy that sends all the men within a yard of me stumbling away before they land on their backs. This causes an uproar as the rest of the agents begin to shout louder, all of them pointing their weapons at me. Or at least the ones not occupied with getting Bucky, Sam, and Steve away from me.

I watch as both T'Challa and Rhodes' attention snap to me. I can see Steve turn his head to look at me with surprise after my outburst. I can tell he's seeing me as he sees James: frightened, injured, and scared. This is absolutely not what I signed up for. He knows this. I'm a volatile bomb, ready and able to blow. Steve's gaze shifts to Rhodes with a quick flash of fear, sending him a silent message. Before I have time to react, a small shot is fired at me from the War Machine suit. It latches onto my skin before sending a high-powered shock through my system. I let out a cry as my head tilts back. Electricity crawls across my skin as I fall to my knees. I hear a few shouts around me.

"Sparky!" Sam shouts.

"Hey!" Bucky's gruff voice calls.

It's the last thing I hear before I collapse to the unwelcoming ground beneath me. Thankfully I do manage to land on the arm that isn't wounded. Nobody moves. Everyone seems too afraid to after my small outburst. I grit my teeth as my ability to move my limbs escapes me. Soon images blur. My sight fades in and out before my vision leaves me completely. A shuddering breath escapes me before consciousness abandons me wholly. I'm left at the mercy of those sent to apprehend us.