The First Avenger [1]

Sergeant Barnes

       

Captain America: The First Avenger - Chapter Ten: "Sergeant Barnes"

WONDER WOMAN WAS once again known to the world. Her resurfacing had been confirmed as her, Steve and the howling commandos slowly took down more and more HYDRA factories. Their success was well-known and praised as the world finally had their saviours.

This mission had been on a typically cold day, but the mission war clear: Assault the Hydra train and capture Armin Zola.

She wore her classic black cloak as she and the team stood atop the cold, snow covered mountain, preparing to zipline onto the oncoming train.

"Remember when I made you ride the Cyclone at Coney Island?" Bucky said to Steve, staring in nervousness at the tracks.

"Yeah, I and I threw up?" Steve replied, a slight smile on his face.

"This isn't payback, is it?"

"Now why would I do that?" Steve smiled as he glanced at Bucky.

"We were right. Dr. Zola's on the train. Hydra dispatcher gave him permission to open up the throttle. Wherever he's going, they must need him bad." Jones said to the team. Steve put on his helmet as he moved over to the zipline. Diana readied herself, discarding her cloak and standing behind Steve.

"Let's get going, because they're moving like the devil."

"We only got about a 10-second window. You miss that window, we're bugs on a windshield." Cap said as he readied himself on the zipline.

"Mind the gap."

"Better get moving, bugs!" Dugan shouted.

"Maintenant!" Jaques shouted in French.

Steve lead the group of 4 including himself, Bucky, Diana and Gabe onto the train.

They dropped onto the train one by one as they sneakily made their way to the front opening. Steve, Diana and Bucky found their way into an empty cart and tip-toed forward. Steve moved ahead when the door abruptly shut forcing Bucky and Diana away from Steve.

Diana's eyes widened as she turned around and was faced with the enemies firing at them. She punched angrily at the shut door, making a fist size dent on the other side. The metal was strong, like it had residue of vibranium. She knew one more try should do it, although it seemed that a group were approaching from the rear.

Diana heard a shot fire, turning to deflect wherever it was coming from, but instead she was tackled to the ground. Her head whirled around to look at Bucky who held her tight in his arms staring down at her with wide unblinking eyes.

"Are you okay?" He asked hastily, quickly scanning her for injuries.

She nodded, laughing slightly as she sat up. His hold on her loosened, dropping completely as she moved.

"You forget I can block bullets, James?" Diana reminded, crouching and taking cover behind a stack of cargo.

Bucky stared after her, moving from his knees to his feet and taking cover behind a crate.

"Maybe I wanted to be the one to save you for once." He said, before moving out from cover and charging towards another two men. He took them down with minimal struggle. Though, mere moments later, two more entered, guns blazing.

Diana leapt from behind the cargo and covered Bucky as she blocked the shots with her gauntlets.

She sped through to the men, and disarmed them before throwing them against the wall and knocking them out.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know if you're under his control." She said as she looked down shamefully at the unconscious men. Diana knew mankind was well and truly capable of horror on their own, but Ares' influence could still wreak havoc— especially within the higher ranks. Diana guessed that if these men were assigned to protect Zola, they had to be under some influence.

When she heard a loud blast from the cart Steve was trapped in, she rushed over to the door.

More men entered the space from the other end, and Bucky made sure to take care of them.

Diana backed up, blocking a few shots before turning back to the door. She rushed forward, ramming her shoulder into the door and knocking it down with ease.

"Get down!" Steve yelled, holding up his shield to protect Bucky and Diana who had just entered the cart.

The man who had been fighting Steve blasted a blue beam from his weapon, hitting the vibranium shield out of Steve's hand and knocking all 3 of them back. The beam hit the side of the train creating a large hole.

Bucky held up Steve's shield and shot his gun at the HYDRA agent who shot the beam again, causing Bucky to fly out the hole on the side of the train.

"Bucky!" Steve and Diana yelled in unison.

"I've got him!" Steve yelled to Diana and moved out the side of the train to save Bucky. Diana wasted no time in arguing as she charged towards the HYDRA agent. His gun made the high pitched sound as he was about to fire again, making Diana reflexively bring up her arms in an 'X' formation, absorbing the bright beam of energy.

"Bucky!" She heard Steve yell. Diana broke apart her gauntlets, looking off to the side when the gun sliced her arm.

"NO!" Bucky's voice echoed, as Diana tripped backwards towards the large gaping hole in the train. Her eyes caught a glimpse of Bucky, as he fell into a void. The snow haze devoured his limp body; he was gone forever.

Steve screamed, his voice cracking as he felt everything inside break. Not Bucky... not him.

"No..." Diana hissed to herself, blood trickling down her arm from the beam that had just missed anything important.

She forgot about the HYDRA agent that Steve had now taken care of, her body collapsing to the ground as she gripped the edge of train. Not again, she couldn't lose a person she cared about again. Bucky was special to Diana as he was to Steve. He was supposed to be somebody she could protect, but she couldn't even do that.

If only she had taken out the man quicker. She might've saved him. If she had harnessed the strength of her flight, she could've dove after him. But she wasn't attuned to that ability, she had only ever used it twice.

She replayed ghe moment in her head, his body falling was already so far when she saw him, merely a speck of dust in her vision. She had no true recognition that it was him other than the screams that rebounded in snow-dominated valley.

Diana never blamed anybody for anything.

But this might've been her fault.

She could have saved him. Had she not taken her time with the agent. Had she not been distracted by his pleas for help.

Once again, her love, her humanity, only got people killed.

And she wouldn't forgive herself for that.