Berlin, Germany
12:16 p.m.
It was an inconspicuous meeting, at least to Steve. He waited patiently under the bridge as the car finally came to a rest ahead of him, the engine dying. The door opened, and out came Sharon Carter, dressed well, tired, but all around good to see Steve and his friends alive and well. He smiled to her, stepping away from his own vehicle to approach her.
With a humorous smile, Sharon said, “Not sure you understand the concept of a getaway car.”
No good to see you, glad you’re safe, or what have you? Steve cast one glance behind him, taking in about two seconds of the small Volkswagen and the characters inside. Aside from Sam taking the passenger’s seat, the rest of the car was crowded. Bucky sat in the middle seat with Rainbow on his right and Fluttershy on his left. Both of their wings were shot out, obviously stretching from the long car ride cramped together. Those wings brushed across Bucky’s face, tickling his nose and cheeks with only a couple of apologizes sent his way. He couldn’t look more annoyed if he tried.
Seeing Sam’s smart-ass grin after catching a look at the rear-view mirror, Steve shook his head, returning to Sharon. “It’s low profile,” he said.
Sharon only chuckled, pausing by her car’s trunk. “It’s cute. I’ll be glad to get these out of my hands. I’m sure you and the others will find better use out of them than I did.”
Upon that, Sharon lifted the trunk’s hood of her car open, revealing, first and foremost, Captain America’s red, white, and blue shield lying in the center. Alongside his shield lied Sam’s EXO suit and machine pistols, fresh clips of ammunition lying snugly next to each. She knew them so well.
“I appreciate this, Sharon,” Steve said, turning to her. “Really, I do. You’re helping us a lot here.”
Sharon just shook her head, her blonde hair swaying as she did so. “I’m also breaking a ton of laws by even helping you,” she said, finally bringing her eyes to meet his. For a second, the two just stared at each other, Steve feeling the impact of her words and the way her condescending tone added to it. He got the message. Sharon shook her head again. “When will this end, Steve?”
He turned back to his getaway car, pointing to the man between the two ponies. “When he’s safe. We get to Russia and hopefully Buck will have remembered where the others are kept by then.”
“You heading to the airport?” Sharon asked.
Steve nodded. “Leipzig.”
“Quinjet?”
Steve blinked. “Got a chopper.”
“Might want to leave pretty soon. Word on the street is Stark may be headed there soon… if they weren’t already led astray by a false witness report about… twenty miles north of Berlin.” Sharon smiled again, Steve staring at it for quite some time. “Well, the more you know,” she mumbled, still holding that sly grin.
Steve was incredulous. He gasped lightly, shaking his head with a smile. “Thank you.”
Sharon waved it off. “It’s fine.”
“No, really,” Steve persisted, taking a step forward. Sharon watched his actions carefully, not backing away, holding his stare. His strong, strong eyes held with her own, Carter holding her breath, waiting for him to speak again. He said, much stronger and deliberate this time, “Thank you, Sharon.”
She waved it off once more with a smile. “It’s all for them, you know?” she said, turning back to Steve’s car. Still inside, Bucky was busy plucking out the colorful feathers that had managed to get into his mouth, Rainbow Dash trying to contain her laughter while Fluttershy desperately tried to help him. Sharon chuckled. Steve did the same.
Their laughter didn’t last long, both facing down to stare at their feet. The group from inside the vehicle watched them intently, the silence growing, festering. Sharon sighed, bringing her gaze up to meet Steve’s. She asked, “You really think the girls should be getting involved with this?”
“They're here on their own accord,” Steve replied.
“Still…” Sharon retorted, shifting her gaze back and forth, from the ponies and back to Steve. She lingered on the mares a tad longer, sighing, “You should watch out for them. Keep them safe. If anything happens to them…”
Steve caught her. “They’re strong; I’ve seen it myself. If they can handle Ultron… I’d say they can handle a simple mission.”
Sharon turned away from the vehicle, and didn’t look back. “A simple mission, huh?” she asked, her gaze held with Steve’s. The two didn’t part away, nor break. Steve replied with a solid nod and a promise.
“They’ll be safe,” he told her. “You have my word.”
Sharon smiled. “Good luck, Steve.”
“Thank you, Sharon.”
She helped them so much. She broke the law for them, twice. Without her help, they would have never found Bucky in the amount of time that they did, nor would they have had the proper tools to take down the doctor and the other Winter Soldiers. Their journey may have still remained unclear, but at least she was there, guiding them as much as she could.
The two waited. They stood like they didn’t know what to do. Sharon, with her smile slowly fading, and Steve, with his uneasy eyes shifting all across her frame, waited together for what felt like minutes. He didn’t know if he could hear mumbling from the Volkswagen or not, but considering this was probably the last time he’ll see her before he was behind bars… or worse… then…
Mentally tossing his worries aside, Steve stepped forward and kissed her.
Sometimes you just had to say “screw it”.
Thankfully for him, Sharon placed her palm on the back of his head, only furthering the kiss between the two. For her, she was relieved for the tension to be gone, leaving something that could blossom further, hopefully in the future. Hopefully where they weren’t behind bars.
The two kept on going, much to the amusement of the group in the Volkswagen. Finally, they separated, Steve hearing a gentle exhale escape her lips. He smiled as she did, glad to see she enjoyed it for all it was worth. “That was…” she whispered, almost forgetting where she was headed.
“Late,” Steve chuckled.
Sharon chuckled, too. “Damn right,” she mumbled to him, her hand resting on his chest.
They barely said another word to each other aside from a simple goodbye. Sometimes that was all that was needed. They shared a final smile to one another, Sharon retreating back to her car. Steve watched her close the door, probably telling him to get his crap and get to the airport. He obliged, picking up his shield and facing the Volkswagen ahead of him.
Rainbow Dash nodded, her cocky grin bigger than everyone else’s. Fluttershy blushed like the innocent little thing she was, her giddy smile hidden behind her hooves. Steve grinned at the two, then turned to his best friends.
Sam smiled, shaking his head and handing Bucky ten dollars.
Leipzig, Germany
Leipzig Airport
1:57 p.m.
The airplanes were always a constant wake-up call, their engines loud enough to keep anybody awake and ready for action. Even as the small Volkswagen Beetle hobbled in to the Leipzig Airport parking lot with its inhabitants weary from the long day’s drive, they were up and constantly scanning their surroundings. Steve parked the car near the white van, one he recognized from the call he got that morning.
He was relieved to see a familiar face walk out. Steve opened the door and stepped out on the solid concrete to meet him. Clint smiled. “Cap,” he greeted, “how’s it been?”
Steve held out his hand, to which Clint responded with a firm handshake. “I appreciate you coming all the way out here,” Steve told him, still shaking his hand. “I wouldn’t have called if I had any other choice.”
The two broke away, Clint saying, “Hey, man, you don’t have to worry about a thing. I always got your back. Well, we do.”
Steve turned his eyes to Wanda Maximoff. He nodded to her. “Wanda, thank you for coming.”
“About time to get off my ass,” she said with a shrug. “Hey, girls.”
“‘Sup, Wanda?” Rainbow greeted with a short nod her way. Fluttershy simply waved her hoof, a smile to go with that.
“Sam mentioned another recruit,” Steve continued. “Do you have him?”
“That I do, Captain.”
“Pinkie and Spike, too?” Rainbow asked.
Clint pulled open the door to the van, grunting, “See for yourself.”
As the door slammed open, it revealed what appeared to be Pinkie Pie curled up on a man’s chest, the two deep in slumber. Spike was there, but lying on his back on the floor of the car. The moment that door slammed, however, the man jolted awake, meeting the expectant stares of multiple individuals and plenty of new faces.
Scott Lang blinked twice, turned his eyes to the resting pony still lying on top of him and the curious stares of the Avengers. He held up his hands, almost as if he was at gunpoint.
“Um… it’s not exactly what you think…” he muttered, referring, of course, to the pink pile of fluff snoring over his heart. He turned to Clint for help, pointing at Pinkie’s head.
Clint rolled his eyes. “Pinkie…” he called, the pony just scratching her ear and replying with a loud, animal-like snore. Clint slammed his palm on the outside of the van, two times and very hard. “Wake up!” he shouted.
Instinctively, Pinkie flinched and bucked Scott square in the forehead. As the man reeled his neck back and clutched his forehead in pain, Pinkie shook her head, yawning loud and carnivorously. Her eyes focused on the outside world, more specifically, on the two ponies staring at her next to Steve and Sam. She gasped, launching herself like a rocket out of the van.
“Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie Pie cried, the Pegasus trying desperately to move out of the way, but failed. She was caught in the unnatural strength of Pinkie’s back-breaking hug. “Oh, I’m so happy to see you again! Wait, what happened to your face? Did somepony scratch you again? I bet it was Fluttershy!”
With Rainbow still wrapped in her forelegs, Pinkie glared at the meager Pegasus next to her. Fluttershy squeaked in fear under the eyes of the pink menace, but had nothing to worry about further when Rainbow gasped, “Pinkie, it’s fine! Fluttershy didn’t do anything! It was all T’Challa!”
“Who?”
“Long story. Just, please… let me go already.”
As Spike yawned his way out of the van and joined the group of mares for a quick hug, Scott was slow to get to his feet, constantly holding his head like his brain was pure slosh. Clint helped him stand before letting him move on his own, his eyes landing on the three ponies. Grumbling, Scott moaned, “Oh, God, there are others.”
“Go meet your captain,” Clint told him, pushing on his back.
“My captain?” Scott asked, narrowing his eyes and facing forward. The light didn’t seem to bother him anymore. He stood, slack-jawed as he approached the one and only. “Ca… Captain America!”
Scott shot out his hand, to which Steve gripped it with his own. He was surprised by Scott’s strength, and just how fast he shook his hand up and down. “Mr. Lang, I’ve heard a lot about you,” Steve told him.
“Oh, shit,” he muttered, quickly shaking his head. “Oh, I mean, wow! It’s an honor, sir! I’m shaking your hand too long, am I?”
Steve managed a small smile. “Just a little bit.”
The two broke off, mostly Steve prying his hand away. “Okay, sorry, I’m just… wow! Do you know who this is?” he asked, turning back to Wanda, who crossed her arms. “This is the Captain America!”
“Yes, we know. You must be so proud,” Wanda said to him, her voice condescending.
“Who are you again?” he asked. Wanda dropped her arms, narrowing her eyes on the man. He blatantly ignored her stare, facing the Captain and grabbing his shoulders. “Jeez, Captain America… I can’t believe it!”
Steve managed an awkward grin. It wasn’t the first time he was bombarded by a fan, but a full-grown man seemed a little off to him. Rainbow Dash chuckled, leaning next to Pinkie and Spike. “And I thought Scootaloo was a fangirl.” The three giggled amongst themselves.
Scott’s eyes managed to break away from the glory of Captain America for just a second, just enough time for him to actually recognize the Falcon. He smiled nervously, pointing to Sam. “Hey, man!”
“What’s up, Tic Tac?” Sam asked, smiling knowingly.
“Listen, uh, about last time…”
“It’ll never happen again,” Sam said, beating him to the punch. He shook his head. “You won’t have to worry about a thing.”
“Good…” Scott nodded, smiling enthusiastically once again. “Great!”
He turned back to the Captain, who ignored him and turned to Rainbow, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Spike. “Everyone, unless you didn’t know, this is Scott Lang. He was responsible in helping Hank Pym construct the portal that brought you all to our world.”
Scott nodded to them, saying, “Yeah, it took a while to stea—find those components.”
As the mares laughed amongst themselves, Steve turned back to Scott, who seemed to be waiting on him attentively. “Did they tell you all what we're up against?” Steve asked, looking to Pinkie and Spike and resting his gaze on Scott.
It seemed that his enthusiastic grin seemed to fade, replaced only with concern etched in his facial features. Scott asked, “Something about some… psycho assassins, right?”
“Please say yes, please say yes, please say yes…” Pinkie whispered, tapping her hooves and barely controlling herself. To her great joy, Steve nodded. “Woo hoo! This is gonna be the bestest mission ever!” Pinkie screamed, hopping up and down and all around the Avengers.
Her joyous celebration over the fact that they would indeed be hunting some blood-thirsty, highly-trained killers intent on destroying several countries was cut short. “Pinkie!” Steve called to her, watching as she froze in mid-air, staring at him with big, worried eyes. “Do you mind?”
She slowly floated to the ground, playing with her hooves. “Sorry,” she said, blushing.
Scott slowly shook his head. “I don’t understand a thing she does.”
“We all go with it,” Wanda muttered.
“We’re outside the law on this one,” Steve said, bringing Scott back to the situation at hand. “So, if you come with us, you’re a wanted man.”
Even to the surprise of Steve, Scott nodded rather quickly. “Yeah, well, what else is new?”
That was fast. After everything he’s heard about the man he shouldn’t be too surprised. “I can assume Pinkie is on board, so… Spike…?” Steve asked, turning back to face the three mares, but more specifically the young dragon standing next to them. “Can we count on you?”
Spike was stuck for a moment, unsure of the eyes trained on him as well as the situation constantly pumping through his mind. He had been thinking it over on the flight, as well as the van ride. He had spent a long time thinking of the outcome, what the circumstances were if he continued down the path he was headed. It meant turning his back on Twilight and what she wanted. It meant breaking the law and causing all sorts of trouble. If they were on Equus doing the same exact thing he wouldn’t have to worry as much. But he was on Earth, an entirely different planet with entirely different rules. The choices he and his friends make now will most certainly affect the relationship between their worlds.
If they get caught, that is.
Spike stamped his foot on the solid cement, staring the Captain right in his eyes. He straightened himself almost as if he was preparing to salute, but stopped about halfway in the process. “If it means proving to Twilight that Bucky is innocent… then I’m game,” he said, turning back to Bucky and smiling. Barnes managed a grin back to the young dragon.
“We will prove it to her,” Steve told him, earning a smile from the young drake. “We’ll prove it to the whole world.”
Pinkie could barely contain herself bouncing up and down from where she stood. She said, “Oh, this is so exciting! I’m gonna need to pack the right essentials if we’re headed across the world!”
Rainbow nodded, turning to Steve and asking, “Yeah, so, where exactly are we headed, Cap?”
“Siberia.”
Steve shut his mouth, realizing that word didn’t come out of his mouth, but to his left. It seemed everybody shared his reaction, turning in the direction to which the voice emerged. To everyone’s great surprise, a dark red figure leaped down from the floor above, landing right in front of them. The ponies took a cautious step back, while the Avengers took a daring step forward to the dark figure.
It rose up, arms to its side, fists clenched, and shimmering, red eyes staring at them from the shadows. Steve instantly noticed the twin horns on its head, giving the image of a devil of some sort. When he saw the horns and the image that came to mind, it all seemed to click together. He, or whoever it was, was the second figure next to the shooter, the one fighting off the man trying to kill Bucky. He got away, but not before the news choppers got a short shot of him. That was all they really needed. Steve didn’t watch the news recently, but he remembered seeing those red eyes and horns staring down at him from the overpass, now staring at him only feet away.
Steve took another step closer. “Who are you?” he asked.
The red eyes seemed to glow, but the figure remained practically like stone. “I’m Daredevil, but that’s not important. What’s important is this,” he said, reaching behind him and stepping forward, causing everyone to instantly be on their toes. Daredevil noticed this, taking a step back and revealing the red book.
“This is the book the doctor used to bring out the Winter Soldier back at the Terrorist Centre. Inside, I found not only Barnes’ but several other sets of trigger words.” He stood just close enough for the book’s star to shimmer in the sunlight, causing Bucky to flinch, shutting his eyes. A different world of ice and snow flowed through his vision. Bucky shook his head, opening his eyes.
Steve, like everyone else, didn’t know right away what to make of the situation. Here comes a guy dressed as the devil himself giving them information on the doctor and Bucky, stuff they probably already knew. Steve, however, knew that he wouldn’t come to them without a more important reason. Maybe something they didn’t know. So, he pushed further and asked, “The doctor, where is he headed?”
“Last I saw him he was taking a flight to Moscow, most likely to make his way to Siberia. He’s going to awaken the other Winter Soldiers and unleash them upon the world.”
Just what they wanted to know. Bucky knew the others were being held in Russia, but nothing more than that. With this new information, they could be certain of where their destination lied. Sam seemed to catch on this, pushing even further.
“Where exactly in Siberia?” Sam asked, still not keen on letting the devil stand close. Thankfully for him, Daredevil tossed the book to the Captain, who caught it and flipped through the pages.
“First page,” he said. “You’ll find a translated set of coordinates leading right to the Siberian facility where the other Winter Soldiers are kept. My best guess is that the doctor’s headed there now.”
“I remember,” Bucky finally said, everyone turning his way. He blinked several more times, gulping down something fierce and taking many deep breaths. He opened his eyes, turned to the rest of his team, and said, “Yeah… Yeah, I got it now. I remember where in Siberia.”
“Now we got exact coordinates and a memory. Just what we needed,” Sam said, smiling to Steve. Even the ponies and dragon seemed to become more used to the presence of the devil.
Steve smiled back, closing the book in his hands. He turned to face the devil, nodding his way. “Thank you…” he began to say, his voice trailing elsewhere. “What did you say your name was again?”
“The Devil of Hell’s Kitchen,” Wanda answered, stepping forward to break the distance between him and the Avengers. Daredevil turned his eyes her way, remaining silent. Just for her. “You’ve been one of the many popular topics in recent news lately. I’ve heard of what you can do, what you have done to common thugs. He uses brutality to his advantage, deceit, and bloodlust. How did you even get that book in the first place?”
Daredevil only smiled. Wanda didn’t like that smile. It meant too much, but hid everything. “Oh, sweetheart. Wanda Maximoff. I know who you are, what you’ve done. Don’t stare at me like I’m the only devil around here,” he told her.
None too pleased with the title “sweetheart”, Wanda opened her mouth to tell him off, but found herself pausing. A PA announcement went out across the airport, a man speaking in German. Alongside the PA was a constant siren. Bucky recognized the language easily, saying, “We need to get moving. They’re evacuating the airport.”
“Stark,” Sam said. Steve nodded.
“Stark?” Lang asked, receiving no answer.
Turning back to Daredevil, Steve nodded his way, pocketing the book into his back pocket for safe-keeping. “We appreciate the help,” he told him. “But we need to go.”
“I’m not leaving you yet.”
That was a statement that shocked the entire group. The ponies looked to the one another, all three of them and Spike eventually returning their eyes to the Captain. As for the Avengers, they kept their eyes centered on the devil concealed in the shadows, caught in-between trust and doubt. He continued, saying, “There’s someone I need to pick up, and he’s fighting with Stark.”
“The shooter?” Sam asked.
Daredevil nodded. “Frank Castle. The very same.” He suddenly turned his head to the sky, appearing as if he had heard something. Everyone else turned in the direction of the only viewable area of the sky, seeing nothing but the bright blue. They turned back to the devil, listening as he said, “We need to hurry. They’re about five miles away and closing fast.”
While others wondered just how he knew exactly that, Steve Rogers just nodded. “All right then,” he said, turning to the rest of his team. To Sam Wilson, Bucky Barnes, Wanda Maximoff, Clint Barton, Scott Lang, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Spike… and Daredevil. His team.
“Avengers… suit up!”