Echoes of Sokovia
"Cap, got it. He went in through the back entrance," Falcon said as he flew over the city, his gaze fixed on a massive building below. In front of it, people of all ages were gathering tightly near the main entrance; many held up signs and appeared to be protesting, while others seemed openly opposed to them. A visible tension had formed between both sides, one that the police were struggling to keep under control.
"Bucky," Steve said through the comms.
"I've got another one. It's going to be a bit hard for me to catch up with you; go on ahead," Barnes replied, standing face to face with a man who showed no expression at all, his eyes locked onto Bucky's. Both of his hands appeared to be made of the same metal as Bucky's arm. He stood in a guarded stance, clearly ready to fight. His outfit felt far too familiar.
So familiar that the former Winter Soldier recognized it instantly, because it was one he himself had worn in the past.
The man struck first, throwing a punch straight at Bucky's chest. Bucky dodged to the side and tried to counter, aiming for the man's face. With remarkable skill, the man caught Bucky's arm with both mechanical hands and began squeezing with crushing force.
Bucky glanced down at his arm as a sharp pain surged through him, then reacted quickly, driving a kick into the man's chest and forcing him back. He rubbed his arm briefly, a slight grimace crossing his face as the pain lingered.
"Ahh… it's really annoying having to fight copies of myself," he muttered as he raised his guard again, this time keeping his metal arm forward, ready to continue.
That was the truth. What Bucky was facing now was a HYDRA supersoldier, one of the Winter Soldiers from the legion that, before he could destroy them all, had been activated during one of HYDRA's uncontrolled operations. Many of them were now loose across the city, and for almost a year, Bucky and the Avengers had been hunting them down one by one.
"Try to capture him. We need to know why three of them gathered at the same location," Natasha said quickly through the comms. "I've got the third one in my sights. Looks like he's carrying something." She fell silent right after, most likely tailing him slowly.
Bucky dodged another punch, which smashed straight through the wall behind him, and he could not help but grimace. Still, he was not about to tell Natasha much, even if things were starting to get complicated. After all, technically he was still the newest member of the team, and he had started off on the worst possible foot, considering he used to be their enemy… or something like that.
Meanwhile, Steve Rogers sprinted into the building through the back entrance. The moment he crossed the threshold, a massive steel fist flew straight toward his face, forcing him to raise his shield just in time. However, he immediately realized his shield had not actually been struck; something had attached itself to it, glowing ominously, seconds away from detonating.
Steve reacted instantly, spinning around and hurling the shield toward the doorway behind him.
It exploded.
At the same time, a powerful punch slammed into his back, sending him flying several meters across the floor.
Rogers pushed himself up, pain flashing through his body as he looked at his attacker. It was the man he had been searching for, yet it felt as if the man had deliberately lured him inside. He stood ready, wearing a pair of mechanical gauntlets that reached up to his elbows.
The man cracked his neck slightly as he walked toward the Captain without saying a word, as if his only purpose was to bring him down.
"I liked it better when I was the only supersoldier. Now I get Owen's jokes," Steve Rogers said as he stood up, bracing himself for the fight.
Without knowing he had already walked straight into a trap.
"Steve, this is bad!" Natasha shouted suddenly through the comms.
…
Elsewhere, at MIT, Tony was in the middle of what could be described as a workshop, presenting his new technology for reconstructing memories into reality through holograms. They were so realistic it was almost impossible to tell whether they were real or not.
"…from this moment on, every student will equally receive the inaugural September scholarship. In other words, your projects have already been approved and fully funded," he concluded, a hint of pride in his voice.
The students erupted into applause.
"Thank you," Tony said. "Let's get to work."
He dismissed them with a smile.
His phone would not stop buzzing in his pocket as he exited the auditorium, followed by several professors. The moment he saw the message on the screen, however, his expression tightened and he picked up his pace.
"Sorry, I've got something urgent to take care of," he said to one of the professors, who looked like he was about to ask whether the faculty would be getting anything as well.
Tony hurried down the hallway and headed for the elevator, repeatedly pressing the button as his tense expression remained unchanged.
Right there, standing in front of the elevator doors, a woman was waiting as well.
"It was very nice what you did for the students," she said as they waited for the doors to open.
"Ah… well, thanks," Tony replied, never taking his eyes off his phone.
"They say generosity usually comes with a great deal of guilt. But when you have money, that guilt seems to fade away, doesn't it?" she added, looking straight at him.
Tony looked up, setting his phone aside for a moment, then glanced at the elevator button, which had not been pressed yet. He pressed it while watching the woman with suspicion.
"Are you going up?" he asked, still staring at her as he slowly slipped his phone into his pocket.
"I'm exactly where I want to be," the woman replied, suddenly reaching into her purse.
Tony reacted on instinct and grabbed her wrist.
"What are you doing, ma'am?" he asked carefully, his eyes fixed on her. A second later, however, he realized he might have overreacted, since the purse was far too small to hide a weapon or anything like that.
"Sorry. Occupational hazard," he added quickly, letting go.
Even so, his guard did not drop.
"I work for the Department of State, in human resources. I know it sounds boring, but it allowed me to raise a son. And I'm proud of the man he became," she said as she pulled out a photograph and pressed it lightly against Tony's chest.
"His name was Charles Spencer. And you, the ones who created that abomination, were responsible for his death in Sokovia," she continued, pain clearly evident in her voice.
"So tell me, Mr. Stark. Who is going to avenge him now? He's dead. And I blame all of you for it."
With that, she turned around and walked away.
Although Tony was not the one who created Ultron, but rather Pym, that moment marked the only time V.I.T.A.E. and the Avengers had witnessed so many people die since both groups were formed. An event that dealt a devastating blow to Owen's morale, ultimately leading to his retirement. And of course, Tony, now at the head of V.I.T.A.E.'s leadership, felt deeply guilty as well.
Tony stared at the photo of the smiling young man for several seconds before pulling out his phone again and opening the page he had been viewing earlier. On the screen, a group of novice heroes, following the ideals of the Avengers and V.I.T.A.E., were confronting a group of villains. Everything was being broadcast live. During the fight, something went wrong, and one of the villains detonated inside a school, killing more than three hundred people, including children who had been inside the building.
Another video appeared immediately after. A large building engulfed in flames, with Steve Rogers, Falcon, Bucky, and Natasha visible around it. The broadcast placed the blame for the explosion squarely on the Avengers.
…
Tony rushed into the V.I.T.A.E. headquarters. As he moved through the corridors, soldiers around him saluted him with crisp military gestures, something that clearly bothered him, given that he was not a soldier. Still, there was little he could do about it.
When he entered the meeting room, several people were already there, gathered with grim expressions.
Nicolas, now a bit more tanned, even he, usually loud and unserious, wore a clearly irritated look. Pietro remained silent, observing everyone. Banner continued flipping through images on the screen, his expression visibly shaken. Rhodey sat with his arms crossed, waiting for Tony.
There were also a few new faces. One wore a red and blue suit with web-like patterns: Spider-Man. Another seat, however, remained empty.
"Where are Wanda and the other rookie?" Tony asked, glancing at the two empty chairs.
"Wanda's on her way. And the other one… well, who knows," Nicolas replied, looking at Tony.
"Tony, what are we going to do? This made things much worse than what we were carefully managing," Banner said immediately, breaking the silence.
"I'm working on it," Tony replied, his tone slightly tired. "But first, can you tell me what the Avengers, or part of them, were doing there?" he added seriously.
"Hunting HYDRA supersoldiers," Rhodey answered firmly.
"Did they ask for backup?" Tony asked.
"Do you really think they would? Barnes was with them. At least two or three people here wanted to turn him into paste, you included," Banner commented.
"To make things worse, the location is none other than that," Pietro said, pointing at the screen where the building was still burning.
Everyone looked at the image and could not help but feel immediate unease. It was the new Superhuman Registration Center. It was not operational yet, but if the Sokovia Accords were approved, it would be the place where all of them would be forced to register for having powers.
"Wow. I leave for a while, and everyone's already completely demoralized," a very familiar voice suddenly said as the meeting room door opened.
Tony turned around immediately and, for a moment, let out a slightly more relaxed breath upon seeing him.
The others reacted in much the same way, because the one who had entered, followed closely by Wanda, was none other than Owen. He wore a soft, genuine smile, clearly happy to see everyone gathered together.
"So… what did I miss?" he asked, setting the greetings aside for later as he looked at the screen showing a building in flames and, beside it, a destroyed school.