Avengers Imagines

Surviving From The Fittest (Pt. 1/2)

[This two-part oneshot is largely centered upon Hydra!Steve. On that account, it irrefutably will show him in a very different light and not in the semblance of the righteous warrior we have all come to know and love. The description is not necessarily graphic but very possibly could be disagreeable for some of you. Henceforth, you have been warned. Proceed with your own discretion.]

Running. That was all you had known for the past few weeks. Running and hiding. Every time you closed your eyes, you saw Natasha in a pool of her own blood. Each instance that sleep drifted over you, the vision of Clint's cold face with an arrow of his very quiver pierced through his skull haunted your dreams. Tony was never found, only a portion of his Iron Man helmet containing just the right amount of brain.

"I am not paid enough to do this." You scrunched your nose, which detected a detestable smell. Something was burning. 'Rubber?' Fury turned a corner and pulled you into an alley. "The Avengers are gone, so is almost everyone I know. You're all I've got, (L/N)."

"Now, there, see those stairs? They're gonna take us to our safe space." He pointed to a rusted ladder going up the back of a dilapidated building. 'Safe space.' Given the current circumstances, those words had become more of a theoretical concept more than anything else. "What safe space?" You scoffed.

"Retired SHIELD facility." Fury replied as he tested the steps to take his weight. You almost took a step back. "SHIELD facility? Don't you think he would know about it?"

"It's a good thing I keep secrets from everyone, then." Fury mounted the first few steps and waited for you to follow. You saw little reason, but having full faith in Fury for as long as you could remember, you obliged. Overhead, the sky took a sinister, starless shade.

Testing the worn out ladder, you took a step. Followed by another, and another. Then your face rammed into something straight ahead. "Great! Now I have your butt all over my face." You groaned.

Fury did not move, his eyes transfixed on something up onto the roof. You craned your neck up in inquiry and your blood ran cold. It was him. He was here. A series of gunshots rang out and Fury grew heavier above you, eventually landing him into the dirt below him.

"(Y/N)..." He rasped out, running short of breath, "...when you survive this, I know you will, you have to get out there and rebuild this from the ground up. Become someone whom the people believe in."

"The people believed in Captain America. Look where that got us." You cried. Fury smiled wanly. "I have little time left, (Y/N). Do not waste it in futile argument. Go."

"Where? What would I even do without you? Do I run? Do I fight? I'm scared, Nick, don't leave me." Tears were running freely down your face. Fury slowly reached up and wiped them off. It was apparent that the mundane action required extreme effort. "You were always more capable of them all, ever the lioness. You know what you need to do."

Fury's hand lifelessly fell down and his smile faded as the light in his eyes went out. Stifling a scream, you stood up with renewed determination and blood in your eyes. Steve Rogers had not only taken your friends from you but also someone who was much more than a superior or a mentor - a prominent father figure.

The world had turned upside down the day Steve had declared his allegiance to Hydra. The government was in shambles, anarchy had risen its ugly head and nobody was safe. Blood coated the streets. Nearly everyone important was dead. Chaos reigned indiscriminately.

Turning on your heel, you grit your teeth and mounted the steps, driven purely by revenge. Steve dropped his gun and watched you ascend with an amusing smirk on his face. The last Avenger standing deserved to be much more of an entertainment. Once you were securely on the roof, Steve savagely brought his shield down on the rusted ladder enough times to tear the metal apart and your nearest escape rattled down to the ground.

"How could you do it? They were your friends." You growled. Steve's amused smirk grew into a pleased one. "The Avengers were a threat to Hydra's cause. They had to be eliminated."

"Had to be...Thor and Bruce are still out there, you know." You scoffed. Steve preped his stance. "You'd be surprised at how vulnerable Thor is without his hammer. And Bruce has not been seen since the events of Ultron. As far as I'm concerned, he is as good as dead."

"You will burn for this." You rasped with stone cold precision. Steve launched his shield in your direction. You made a turn and caught it efficaciously. "Bet you regret teaching me that, huh?" Instead of attacking him in lieu, you held on to the shield and dashed through the door down the stairs into the building. Steve groaned and followed.

First thing you did was throw the shield out the nearest window - take away his biggest weapon. Then, you ran. You ran as fast as your legs would carry you; with no destination in mind.

You were not a god, exceedingly brilliant or enhanced in any way. You were, in addition to being the only surviving Avenger, a simple human being and you were severely compromised.