Weaponised

8

Steve Rogers

Finally: this is it. The last HYDRA facility (that we know about). There's one more somewhere, and hopefully, when we capture Zola, who's meant to be on this train, we'll find it.

We're on a snow-covered mountain, preparing to zipline onto a train when it arrives. Well, when I say we, I mean the 'Howling Commandos' (that's our group, the guys from the pub), however the only ones of us actually going onto the train are Bucky, Rikki, Jones and I.

"Remember when I made you ride the Cyclone at Coney Island?" Bucky chuckles from beside me, overlooking the railway.

"Yeah, I and I threw up?" I smile back.

"This isn't payback, is it?"

"Now why would I do that?"

"Oh, I wonder," Rikki interrupts, moving to fall in line next to me. She and Bucky high-five behind my head, him winking at her; he thinks I didn't see, but I did. I really did.

"We were right," Jones speaks up. "Doctor Zola's on the train. HYDRA dispatcher gave him permission to open up the throttle. Wherever he's going, they must need him bad."

"Let's get going because they're moving like the devil," Falsworth grins, clapping Jones on the shoulder.

"We only got about a 10-second window," I inform the four of us that are taking on the freight train. "You miss that window, we're bugs on a windshield."

"Mind the gap," Falsworth smiles, pushing Jones forward to get ready.

"Better get moving, bugs!" Dugan shouts

"Thanks for that thrilling metaphor, Captain Rogers," Rikki rolls her eyes, attaching herself to the zipline. I thought I was going down first?

As Dernier gives us the signal, Rikki jumps off the edge of the mountain and is quickly followed by myself, then Bucky, Jones bringing up the rear. We all land perfectly on top of the train- thank God that there are no casualties yet. We all know the dangers. Rikki hurriedly climbs down a ladder, swinging around through a door into the carriage we need, whilst Jones stays outside with a shotgun in case.

The freight car is, at the moment, empty; a brief nod leads to me on one side, Bucky and Rikki taking the other. As I step through the door it slides shut behind me, stranding the other two. I see them through the glass, watch as Rikki slams the butt of her gun into the glass but it bounces off, sending her flying backwards into the metal storage shelves that split the carriage in two. Bucky pulls her up and they exchange words but I can't hear what they are.

Bucky turns around to fire the moment that something bigger and much more technologically advanced shoots at me- I duck into the side of the car. After waiting a few moments, I jump out and swing across the ceiling, taking the metal beam out with my shield. Unfortunately, the blasters on that machine can't destroy the door separating the three of us, but shots ring out in the other carriage from more than just Bucky and Rikki. 

As I return to that door the mechanism just opens and I rush in, putting Bucky's opponent out of action while Rikki disarms and knocks out her own. "I had him on the ropes," Buck complains blankly.

"I know you did," I answer. Suddenly another trooper with a blaster appears. "Get down!" I yell as he fires directly at me; I'm blasted into the side of the carriage, alongside a huge hole behind me, my shield nowhere to be seen until it ends up in Bucky's hands.