//------------------------------// // Chapter 31 // Story: The six headed HYDRA // by Malcolm Merlyn //------------------------------// "Electronic countermeasure deployed?" "Check." "Erica flying the plane?" "I am on it! I am on it!" "Check." "Let's see... titanium cable ties of up to 500 feet?" "Check." "Wait... how are we going to open the door again?" "By pressing down on the handle! How else?" "Let's see..." Erica began as she continued to fly the quinjet. "A trio of lunatics actually crazy enough to do this? Check. Why can't I just get in close with my strikers, and I dunno... force the door open then?" "Alright... how do we get in?" "Umm... I pick you up?" "Yeah... not a chance." Steve grumbled as he attached the cable onto himself. "Alright, so we got to be fast. Red Skull might be nuts, but he sure as hell isn't stupid. He see's a broken window or bullet holes in the plane and it's game over." "Gotcha." Slade replied as he opened the plane door, the massive gusts of wind slapped him straight in the face, yet he hardly as much as flinched. "It's easier than it sounds! It's my third time doing this!" "Mhm... alright... on my mark boys... 3... 2..." "Boys? I am older than you by over..." "Shut up and jump!" Trudy shouted over the din of the sky. Deciding not to keep talking, Bucky jumped out, followed by Steve and Slade. He jumped into the icy blast, his static line unhooked and he ain't gonna jump no more! His static line was probably the least of his worries from the icy cold of the skies and the fact he was going to be hitting a plane, or rather, attempting to catch a plane when he would be falling at at around 200 m/s. If he was just a tad too slow... he'd have a nice 30,000 foot drop. If he landed at the wrong place, he would be incinerated almost instantaneously by the jet engines. Or... worse yet. If he landed improperly, he would make a nice pancake upon the hull of the quinjet, if he was extra unlucky, he would crash through, and probably kill Slade and Steve in the process. Without a parachute, the task was daunting on a good day. Good thing he got himself drunk before doing this... Oh wait... Can't get drunk. "Got it! Everyone okay?" Erica asked over the radio as she monitored the blips that represented her comrades that had just jumped out of the plane. "Captain America checking in!" "Deathstroke. Bored... but alive." "Winter Soldier, alive and ready." "Alright boys... you know the next step." Erica grinned. "Good thing I can get a nice view of it..." She swung the jet down right behind the HYDRA quinjet seeing three figures all gathered around the back door. 3... 2... 1... She wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen it herself. But the sounds of metal creaking were all over the transponder as she got a view of the three tearing the back door open, the grunting of fatigue and exertion echoed with it, but no one, no one as much as faltered. You can almost imagine the looks on the faces of the people within. "So... how do ve do step two again?" Medic asked as he looked in-front. Chuckling rather sadistically at the sight of a screaming soldier thrown down a 30,000 foot drop. He turned around to see that they too were opening their door. "Vait... ve're not jumping are ve?" "Oh of course not!" Trudy explained. "Let's see doctor... we got the striker units just in case.I am going to ferry everyone over." "Are you sure you can carry me Frau Barkhorn? I may not be heavy... but I am not..." "Just stop being a baby and grab a hold of Trudy.... okay... that sounded wrong. Just grab hug her real tig.... just hold.. okay. Forget it. Just let her carry you across." "Vell... um..." Medic stammered as Trudy grappled around him in a really awkward embrace before being thrown into the cold gusts of air. "Vait... vait... AUUUUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHHH... I AM FLYING! ZIS IS AMAZING! YAAAAAA..." "Alright... alright... calm it doc." Slade nodded as the German was deposited inside, watching as Trudy turned around for Erica. He did a good job of not looking... as did Steve... but Bucky on the other hand... "Hey pal... head up. Head up." "Huh? What...?" Bucky snapped back into reality as he averted his gaze from "down there". Maybe being a foot taller than someone who didn't wear pants made it so that... it wasn't as noticeable... but when at the same height... it's awfully hard not to look at the fact Trudy only wore underpants "down below". "Okay. I got Erica." Trudy commented as she deposited the younger girl inside. "What do we do now?" "First... we do this." Slade replied as he pressed his trigger. The abandoned jet exploded into a million pieces. "Now then... step two... see these dead guys?" "Quinjet-616 is back." The man on the operator signaled as a man sat around the landing zone. The backdoor opened, revealing a lone man in uniform much to the confusion of the guy on deck. "Just in time too..." He said to himself. "We're about to submerge." "Hey... where's everyone else?" Someone asked. His tag read "Bob". "It vas only just me zis time. No co-pilot either." The pilot replied. His thick German accent rather evident. "Well... okay..." Bob commented as he saw the man push down several crates. "What are those?" "Veapon shipment. Help me put zese in ze storage room." "But... the list never said anything about..." "Are you questioning my authority Herr... Herr BOB?!" The pilot spat out angrily. "And worse yet... are you questioning ze authority of Herr Schimdt?!" "Okay! Okay! Okay! I'll help. Sheesh. No need to be such a jerkass... I'd think you were on of the guys trying to kill us if you weren't the pilot." "Ja...ja...ja... shut up and help me." "Okay. They're in here. God... you happy now?" "Ja..." "And so are we." The sinister voice called from behind. Before Bob knew it, something metal had wrapped around his neck and he was pinned against a man. A very big man with a rather nasty disposition towards HYDRA agents. "What do we do with him?" Erica asked as she got her weapons. The Luftwaffe uniform from 1944 was rather confusing... though the fact she lacked pants was distracting. Regardless... maybe Bob would have been able to get a better view if he wasn't busy getting strangled from the mass of angry supersoldier right behind him. "This." Trudy swung her fist, the teeth went flying straight out. Good thing HYDRA offered full-dental insurance... oh wait... no they don't. "Don't forget to dispose of this joker." Slade reminded as he picked up the unconscious heap and tossed him in one of the crates. "I still think we should have killed him." "You can go do that later." Steve said as he looked up. "If I get this right... there vents are large enough for a man to walk in?" "Only one problem. Once they submerge, we'll be chest deep in water. Hey you two... I hope you're good at swimming..." Slade commented as he opened the large ventilation grate from under them. The long winding tube would lead right all over the submarine. "You're going to be doing that a lot once we submerge." "Seriously?" The two witches groaned as Steve jumped in. "Hey... you know what? 70 years later, your average person would be tall enough to walk through this. Have fun both of you." Slade chuckled as he jumped in. "So... how long till we get there?" Erica asked as they trudged through the vents. "We'll get there when we get there. Now then... everyone know what they'll be doing...?" Cap asked as he readied his shield and his gun. "I get to upload a virus to HYDRA's mainframe. Get them to run aground upon the beach." Slade said as he tossed a flash drive up and down. "And... it looks like I part ways with you guys here. See y'all around." "Good luck." Steve told him before smiling slightly. "But if you die... you will not be missed." "That's not news. But if Captain Star-spangles dies... then I hope your friend there is ready to take over!" "Don't plan on dying today." Steve grumbled as he made the turn. The sounds of a siren blared from all over the submarine. "Damn... they're submerging." The water slowly began to seep in as it was soon level with the boots of everyone. Steadily, the level of the liquid rose and rose until the group had begun to wade through the water. Trudging ever more slowly as the water grew higher and higher. It wasn't long before the water was up to Steve's chest, which was also grazing the area of Medic's neck and unfortunately, meant that Trudy and Erica had to tread water, while their taller companions waded through it. "Augh... too bad it's salty..." Erica commented as she spat out a stream of water, causing Medic to spin around angrily when she accidentally soaked him in the back of the head. She smiled sheepishly, as she continued to tread water as the water level grew higher and higher, until it stopped at Medic's chin much to the German's relief. "Here... lemee help you out a bit." Steve offered as he picked Erica up, settling her on his back much to the delight of the witch. "Thanks big guy." Erica smiled happily. "But you know... I can swim." "I know. But I think I owe you a lift." "Really? I shot you... or your shield rather and you're not angry?" "Not really. About time the big guy gives the little guy... or girl in this case a hand." Steve looked back. "By the way... if you shoot me again... I swear to you, I will drown you." "It's alright. I can swim." Erica replied as she enjoyed the ride from Steve's shoulders. "You know... is everyone as tall as you are?" "Nope. I am just extra tall... but I know that I think we as a people have probably grown at least 2 inches." "Alright.... alright..." The idle conversation really wasn't much in the ears of Bucky, who currently had his eyes on Trudy though taller than Erica by about two inches, was still within the uncomfortable phase of having to tread water, a difficult task when all things considered, she was carrying quite a lot of weight. Quite the marvel when someone 5' 4'' is able to carry two LMGs with hardly any signs of fatigue. Maybe it was now time to take a page from Cap. "Need a lift Trudy? I can carry you over the waterline." Barkhorn was totally taken back at the offer from the look on her face. She never expected that the big guy would offer HER help. HER of all people. "Well..."