The Same, Just Deadlier (Book 3)

1.4

June 16, 2014

Steve and I stepped into the elevator. We both had a look on our faces that said everything. There was something going on not only with Pierce but in SHIELD. "Operations control." I told the elevator computer control. The doors started to close when Rumlow steps in with two agents. Steve and I moved, giving them space.

"Forensics." The doors started to close again and Rumlow looked at us both, nodding. "Cap. Williams."

"Rumlow." Steve and I say at the same time as the elevator doors close and we start riding down.

"Evidence Response found some fibers on the roof they want us to see. You want me to get the tac-team ready?" Rumlow asked us.

"No, let's wait and see what it is first." Steve answers. When I look down I notice one of the agents touch the holster of his gun. Something is going on. Fury's words rang in my head as looked at Steve. Both of us had the same thought. The elevator stops again, more agents getting on. Steve and I look around at all the agents in the elevator. One of them is sweating slightly, like a nervous sweat. Steve and I look at each other and I reach for my gun until I realize I don't have it.

I sigh but look back up at Steve; ready for anything. "Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?" I ask. There's a small pause before one of the agents suddenly one of the agents turns and uses an electric rod to give me a shock. About 3 agents try to strap me down with magnetic cuffs while all the other agents attack Steve, trying to do the same. I knock one of them down but the other agent manages to put the cuff on my wrist, stopping me from moving my hand. The agent on the ground gets up and takes out his shock rod. Just as he was about to shock me, I move the other agent in front of him and he falls to the floor, electricity going through him. The other agent drops his rod and I break free of the magnetic restraint, knocking the last agent unconscious. I look to Steve, Rumlow standing right in front of us, an electric rod in hand.

"Whoa. I just want you guys to know, this ain't personal." Rumlow then goes to attack Steve first with his electric rod, allowing me to kick the back of his knees and then punch him in the face, knocking him unconscious. All of the agents that had attacked us lay unconscious on the floor of the elevator.

"It kind of feels personal." Steve mumbles as I pick up his shield and toss it to him. The elevator doors open and we are greeted with a dozen more STRIKE agents with weapons pointed at us.

"Drop the shield! Put your hands in the air!" Steve looks at me as I push my hair out of my face, ready to run again. Steve uses his shield to break off the elevator wires which sends the elevator down. When we force open the doors again, we see more STRIKE agents approaching us. He closes the door, looking at me. I sigh, knowing what to do but not wanting to. I look towards the glass surrounding the elevator. "Give it up, Rogers! Get that door open! You have nowhere to go!" Steve looks at me and I nod, ready. He uses his shield to break the window, both of us jumping through, plummeting to the ground. We both hit the ground, rather hard, but because of our powers, we landed on our feet. Steve helps me up and we start running. Steve starts up his motorcycle, me jumping on the back, grabbing his shoulders as he drove away quickly, evading the obstacles laid out. We had made it out of the garage before the doors snapped shut behind us. Ahead of us, the Quinjet emerges, lowering close to the ground. "Stand down." The pilot orders as the Quinjet's machine gun emerges. "Repeat, stand down." When Steve doesn't stop, the machine guns start to fire at us. I grab Steve's shield, throwing it into the propellers to jam it. I use Steve as a booster to jump onto the jet, grabbing his shield and damaging the rest of the guns before jumping to the ground. Steve reaches an arm out to me, allowing me to grab his hand and having him pull me back onto the motorcycle as we make out getaway. Behind us, I hear the jet crash.

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Steve and I walked through the hospital, dressed in normal clothes. Steven here, left the flash drive that Fury gave us in a vending machine machine. Steve put a quarter in, the flash drive falling out like a snack. Steve grabbed it and forced us into a different room, one without any people in it. "What do you think is on it?" I asked him. Steve just respond with a shrug.
"Okay, well the best place to find out is a mall. A lot of people for us to hide among." Steve nods, agreeing with me. Just then, my phone went off, startling me as I jumped to answer, not knowing who was calling.

"Clara? It's Nat." I sighed, realizing she was using a burner phone. She knew some of what was going on, I had called her earlier telling her that Fury was dead. "Don't say anything." She ordered me, making me nod, even though I knew she couldn't see me. "I know who killed Fury. Most of the intelligence community doesn't believe he exists, the ones who do call him the Winter Soldier. He's credited with over two dozen assassinations in the last fifty years. Based on the description you gave me, I knew who it was instantly. Five years ago I was escorting a nuclear engineer out of Iran, somebody shot out my tires near Odessa. We lost control, went straight over a cliff, I pulled us out, but the Winter Soldier was there. I was covering my engineer, so he shot him straight through me." The Winter Soldier. I remembered her telling me this story a while back. I had seen the scar on the side of her stomach. "Soviet slug, no rifling. Bye-bye bikinis." I rolled my eyes, knowing she still worse bikinis. She didn't mind the scar that much. "I know better than to tell you not to go after him. Just be careful." She waited for a second before hanging up. I looked at Steve.

"We have to go. I'll fill you in on the way."