Broken || STEVE ROGERS [5]

04; Change

2016 ― Upstate New York
"Just skip the 'but' and tell us why you're really here. I don't like my time being wasted."

"Five years ago, I had a heart attack and dropped right in the middle of my backswing." The Secretary of State, Ross was speaking, and he imitated a golf swing as he continued. "Turned out it was the best round of my life. . because after 13 hours of surgery and a triple bypass. . I found something 40 years in the Army had never taught me. Perspective." He spoke.

Katherine looked back at Tony who was sitting in the back of the room, and not at the table that she, Steve, their children, Natasha, Nikita, Sam, Wanda, Vision, and Rhodey were seated at, but Tony avoided her gaze, which now made her curious as to why he brought the Secretary of State here with him.

"The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt. You have fought for us, protected us, risked your lives. .-" Katherine cut him off.

". .-Just skip the 'but' and tell us why you're really here. I don't like my time being wasted." Katherine spoke. Ross looked at her and nodded his head.

"Very well, Miss Moret. .-" She cut him off.

". .-Rogers. Agent Rogers. If I wanted to keep Moretti in my name, I would've hyphonated. " She said. There was a reason she completely dropped Moretti and took Rogers once they got married. She finally got rid of her father, and she never wanted to be tied to that name again.

"As I was saying, while a great many people see you as heroes. . there are some who would prefer the word 'vigilantes.'" He said. Katherine rolled her eyes. They definitely weren't vigilantes. They were put together by Fury when S.H.I.E.L.D. was still operating and S.H.I.E.L.D. was a government agency.

"And what word would you use, Mr. Secretary?" Natasha asked.

"How about dangerous? What would you call a group of US-based, enhanced individuals. . who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose and who, frankly, seem unconcerned about what they leave behind." He said, which made Katherine roll her eyes once again.

Then a map came up on the screen and pinpointed New York, the inner city. "New York." The secretary said as a video of their battle against Loki in 2012, four years ago came onto the screen. In specific, it was a video of Banner as Hulk smashing into things. "Washington DC." He spoke as the screen changed.

Steve and Katherine looked at each other, knowing what they were about to see. It was the ship crashing down into the water, after Steve had given the call for Maria to turn the missiles against each other. People being drenched in water. Katherine noticed Sam hung his head, but that wasn't his fault. If those ships would've launched those missiles where they wanted them to go. The collateral damage would've been much worse.

"Oh come on, Secretary. Do you know what HYDRA had planned for those missiles? If we wouldn't have done what we did, and re-trained them to blow up each other, there would've been a lot more people dead, and then you would've blamed me and Steve, Sam, and Nat for not doing anything about it, so either way, we don't win." Katherine said.

Secretary Ross looked at Katherine, knowing that she was right, but he ignored her statement.

"Sokovia." He said, as the screen switched to their battle that had just happened nearly a year ago. Katherine, who was near Wanda laid a gentle hand on her shoulder because she knows she doesn't like thinking of Sokovia since that's where her brother died. Christian grabbed her hand, knowing that Wanda hated thinking about it, since that's where she lost her brother. "Lagos." He said, the video switching to just one month ago.

It showed the building that Wanda put Rumlow up against before he exploded, and showed people being brought out on gurney's. Dead people. Katherine rolled her eyes and stood up, because she didn't want Wanda blaming herself more than she already was.

"Okay, that's enough." Katherine said, slightly slamming her hands against the table. The Secretary nodded towards who was controlling the screen and they turned it off. Steve gave his wife a look and she slowly sat back down.

"For the past four years, you've operated with unlimited power. . and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. But I think we have a solution." He said, holding his hand out towards one of the men who was here with him, and he handed him what looked like a thick booklet of papers.

"The Sokovia accords. Approved by 117 countries. ." He said, putting the booklet down in front of Wanda. She looked at the cover before Katherine stretched her hand out for it. Wanda slid it back to her as Secretary Ross continuned speaking. ". . it states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organization. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel only when and if that panel deems it necessary." He said, walking around the table.

"Please tell me this is some kind of sick and twisted prank." Katherine said, shaking her head, as she passed the papers off to Rhodes who was reaching out for them.

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place." Steve said, finally speaking up for the first time since they've been in here. "I feel we've done that." He said.

"Tell me, Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?" Ross asked. Nikita looked up at the mention of Thor. The answer to that question was no, they have no idea where Thor and Banner are. Especially Banner because of the private mode Tony had installed on his aircrafts, so they couldn't track him. Steve looked up at Ross, but remained silent.

"What do their locations have to do with anything?" Katherine asked.

"Are you trying to say that Thor is a threat? Because he's helped Earth on more than one occasion." Nikita snapped.

"If I misplaced a couple of 30 megaton nukes you can bet there'd be consequences. Compromise. Reassurance. That's how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground." He said, which made Katherine scoff. Nikita rolled her eyes and stood up from the table and started to walk out.

"Agent Romanoff, where are you going?" Secretary Ross asked.

"That's nobody's business but my own." She said and then she looked at Amaya and Christian. "Tell your parents and my sister I'm going after Thor, I'll be in touch." She thought. Amaya and Christian nodded their heads before Nikita walked out.

"Let's just keep going." Katherine said, bringing everyone back to the topic at hand.

"So, there are contingencies." Rhodes spoke.

"Three days from now, the UN meets in Vienna to ratify the accords. Talk it over." Ross said. Katherine turned around to once again look at Tony who had been completely silent this whole time. He avoided her gaze, which made her roll her eyes, and when he did finally look up at her.

She turned back around.

"And if we come to a decision you don't like?" Natasha asked him as he and his men started to leave the room.

"Then you retire."

―

Retirement? What? How do you think this conversation is going to go over? Also, we won't be seeing Nikita again until Ragnarok, her third book!

Don't forget to vote/comment.

xoxo.