The six headed HYDRA

by Malcolm Merlyn

This chapter lacks a title. I regret nothing,

"What's wrong with everypo... everybody?" Spike asked as he looked out the window, watching as Bucky sat down upon the grassy hill staring high at the stars. Trude had said nothing since she had come back, only sit down in a rocking chair, and just do a thousand yard stare ahead, nothing could get her out. Occasionally, her eyes would water as tears began to slowly crawl their way down, dripping down upon the carpet.

"A lot of things." Erica commented as she looked over at Slade and Medic, the former of which was sharpening one of his blades, while the latter experimented with his strange machines. She had heard stories of mercenaries. Men with little loyalty to their cause, save for the money they would be paid. Being the most intelligent doctor in existence or possessing generations worth of fighting skill would never compensate for that. Taking a look over at the Captain, he was nowhere in sight. Probably outside to console with his friend...

For some odd reason... his friend did seem an awful lot like Trude. Impulsive as hell... tries to keep their cool... but whereas Trude nearly got herself killed due to her rashness... it seems as though Bucky would more likely killed someone else from his rashness. Certainly, whatever HYDRA must have done to him must have been atrocious, but... what he did...

He looked back at Trude, who hadn't said a word since she regained consciousness. Walking over, she decided now would be a good time to help console her friend, who looked as though she was about to fall to pieces.

"You okay pal?" Steve asked as he watched Bucky, who was currently sitting down upon the grassy hill and looking straight up to the stars, as though his eyes wanted to reach for the stars themselves. For the entire trip back, he had said almost nothing and hardly even as much as made any indication that he even existed. He had become distant... like a ghost.

"Steve... remember when we first met Schmidt?"

"Real life? Yeah. I was quite surprised he had a literal Red Skull." Steve chuckled, causing Bucky to smile a bit. "You know... this guy makes Adolf's plans look like they were drawn in a coloring book."

"I always thought where we were now is comparable to a coloring book." Bucky laughed humorously again. "Remember how I asked you whether or not YOU had a red skull as well?"

"Yeah... and I checked... trust me... I don't have one." Steve joked as he tugged at his own cheek.

"Steve... jokes aside, I almost killed Trudy's sister." Bucky said as his tone grew serious. "I... I think whatever HYDRA did to me... I am starting to become like..."

"You start thinking like that, and you'll actually become like that maniac." Steve said solemly. "Red Skull is a war criminal and just another mad dog. We put him down, and this time, we do it for keeps."

"Hopefully..." Bucky replied. "Steve... all that time being HYDRA's "Winter Soldier", sometimes, I feel like I am still that assassin... that I am still not who I truly am."

"Nonsense Bucky... who you are, doesn't change. It's just what you are that's your decision." Steve said. "We've made our decisions. We're going to fight HYDRA."

"Rousing speech about liberty and justice for all?" Bucky grinned sadly.

"You got that right."

"Well... let's hear it from Captain America."

"Trude..."

"Leave me alone Erica." Trude sobbed as her mind was flooded with thoughts of her sister. "I... I..."

"You've done nothing but sulk in that chair for the past few hours. Maybe you should get some sleep..."

"Does it LOOK like I can get any sleep?!" Trude asked irritably. "I find out that a bunch of lunatics have my sister for god knows what?!" Am I EXPECTED to be able to get rest? And find out that Bucky almost killed CHRIS?!"

"You know... he had no way of knowing." Erica continued. When Trude said nothing, it only confirmed Erica's hunch on what, or rather, who Trude was so upset about. "It's just those... those HYDRA people."

She said nothing, only continuing to sulk in the chair as her mind flooded with Chris, and what she may have had to endure in the tender mercies of what Steve had described as "terrorists" and "nazis". To this day... she still had no clue what the latter was, though Bucky seemed to associate both her and Trude with that word. Unless it was some racial slur for their world's version of Karlsland, she had no clue.

"You know... you always give me this soldier talk every day at breakfast." Erica said as she watched Trude, who looked downright pathetic at the moment. "How would Minna feel if she you like this? Would she think of you?! What would Chris think about her older sister? What would Chris say? How would EVERYONE feel? Miyafuji? Charlotte? Everyone else? They'd think you were downright pathetic. Get up and get your head back in. We have a fight to win... and it's not just some coloring book that's at risk. If what the Red Skull says to be true... then EVERYONE, and EVERYTHING is going to be at risk. As of now..."

"As of now..." Slade cut in. "The Red Skull used Chris to test whether or not her blood could be used as a stabilizing compound on raw magical energy. Unfortunately for us and everyone else... that works. And now, the Adolf-wannabe now wants to harness the power of the elements of harmony so that he can do god knows what."

"Umm... what are the elements of harmony again?" Erica asked.

"Nothing special." Spike said as he walked in carrying a stack of books, totally oblivious to the context of the conversation. "Just the most powerful magical artifacts in existence."

OH GOD.

"Currently... Red Skull is located off the coast of Equestria within a massive submarine underneath the ocean." Slade explained. "We're going to need a plan. A damn good one."

"What's that name you gave to Rogers?" Erica asked.

"The star spangled man with a plan." Slade groaned. And he thought some of the monikers he had come across were bad.

[HYDRA headquarters, off the coast of Equestria, three hundred meters beneath ocean surface."

From beneath the ocean water, a dark and massive shape lurked within, fish scattering at it's approach, whales doing best to avoid the craft of unfathomable size. Slowly, the massive submarine continued it's descent to a safe zone, where it continued to go along it's course.

"Ve stop here." The captain ordered to the crew within the bridge. Dressed in a HYDRA uniform of another era, the captain looked over behind him to the screen that showed him the face of the Red Skull. "Ve are ready."

"Good." Scmidt commented as he turned around to face Chris who was strapped down as various tubes entering major veins drew blood out of her. Slowly, but surely. From behind her, the elements of harmony sat, slowly blinking to life. The Skull smiled as he turned around at the dormant... what can be described as a plane-like object behind him. It was completely black in color, with underlying shades of light red. It appeared to be "sleeping" in a sense.

"It vasn't JUST a vitch that we got..." Strucker smiled as he looked at the Neuroi. "In 1944 of their vorld, ze nations of ze world stand together in a pitiful alliance against an alien threat. Had it been HYDRA in their postion, ve vould have not only just took control of all zese invaders, but used zem to conquer."

"And zat is what we will do. Ze Neuroi may be terrifying their vorld... but zey are only pawns zat may be manipulated by ze greater powers of HYDRA." Skull continued as he watched Strucker for a moment. The old devil was sly... cunning. Granted... wrestling power away from the one HYDRA worshiped as a god among men was impossible to put bluntly... but if accidents were to happen... Strucker could potentially find himself at the top of the food chain again.

What Strucker was doing back at the factory... Skull didn't know. In truth... he probably wouldn't want to. And that... right there, is one huge statement. Of course, the lost of a "key" installation was merely a minor setback. He would have to make sacrifices in order to get his primary enemies out of his way.

Captain America. The Winter Soldier. The Mercenary that had accompanied them. Gerhard, Erich, and some random doctor of superior intellect to the ordinary man.

Sitting back, the skull wondered for a moment... where a mercenaries TRUE loyalties lay.