[Lagos, Nigeria. The Market.]
Smoke rose from the burning building. Sirens wailed.
Wanda Maximoff stood in the center of the devastation, her hands trembling. She had tried to contain Crossbones' explosion. She had failed.
"Oh god," Steve Rogers whispered, looking at the Wakandan aid workers buried in the rubble.
Sebastian Michaelis stood on the periphery. He wasn't part of this mission, but he had accompanied Natasha as support. He looked at the bodies. He looked at Wanda's horrified face.
"Tragedy," Sebastian murmured, checking his watch. "The ink on the newspapers will be particularly venomous tomorrow."
"Help them!" Steve yelled at him.
"The dead are beyond help, Captain," Sebastian said coldly. "But the living require an exit strategy. The police are coming. And they are not coming to thank you."
[Avengers Compound. Upstate New York. One Month Later.]
Tony Stark sat on the sofa, nursing a headache. He looked at the document on the table. The Sokovia Accords.
Secretary Ross stood at the head of the room, playing footage of New York, Washington D.C., Sokovia, and Lagos.
"The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt," Ross said. "But a debt is still a ledger. And your ledger is dripping red."
He looked directly at Sebastian, who was standing in the corner, pouring coffee.
"And then there is the matter of the... 'Asset'," Ross pointed a finger. "Mr. Michaelis. An undocumented, enhanced individual with no citizenship, no background, and a kill count that rivals a small army. Under the Accords, he is classified as a Weapon of Mass Destruction. He will be retired. Or imprisoned."
The room went deadly silent.
Steve looked at Tony. Tony didn't look up.
"He's a butler," Tony said softly.
"He's a threat," Ross snapped. "Sign the Accords. Surrender the Asset. Or we shut you down."
Ross walked out.
[The Debate]
"We can't sign this," Steve said immediately. "It's surrender. It's giving up our right to choose."
"It's accountability, Steve!" Tony stood up. "We dropped a city on people! We need guardrails!"
"We need trust," Steve argued. "I trust my own hands. I don't trust a UN panel to tell me who the bad guys are."
"And what about Sebastian?" Sam Wilson asked, looking at the butler. "Ross wants to lock you in a box. You okay with that?"
Sebastian smiled. He picked up the Accords, flipping through the 500 pages in two seconds.
"It is a contract," Sebastian noted. "Contracts are binding. They provide structure. Without rules, humans are merely... beasts."
"See?" Tony pointed. "Even the demon gets it."
"However," Sebastian placed the book down. "I answer to only one Master. If the UN orders me to serve them, I shall have to decline. Politely, of course."
"Tony, they'll come for him," Natasha warned. "If you sign, you're handing him over."
"I can protect him," Tony said, rubbing his temple. "If we sign, we steer the wheel. If we don't, they take the car."
Steve stood up. "I'm sorry, Tony. I can't do it."
Steve walked out. Sam followed.
The team was broken.
[Berlin. The Joint Counter Terrorist Centre.]
The bomb went off.
The conference hall shattered. King T'Chaka of Wakanda lay dead. The news flashed the face of the suspect: James Buchanan Barnes. The Winter Soldier.
Tony sat in the safe room with Natasha.
"It's Barnes," Tony said, looking at the tablet. "Cap's friend."
"He's going to go after him," Natasha said. "Steve won't let the kill squad take Bucky."
"Sebastian," Tony called out.
Sebastian stepped out of the shadows.
"Sir?"
"Get to Bucharest," Tony ordered. "Find Barnes. Bring him in. Do not kill him. If Steve interferes... stop him. But don't hurt him."
"A capture mission," Sebastian adjusted his gloves. "Very well."
"And Sebastian?" Tony looked at him. "Why do I feel like you know something about this guy? You were there in the 90s."
Sebastian paused. His eyes were unreadable.
"The Winter Soldier was a Hydra myth, Sir. A ghost story. I never met him."
It was a lie. A technical lie. Sebastian hadn't met him. He had seen him. Through the scope of a sniper rifle on a dark road in 1991. But his orders that night were clear: Protect the boy. Stay in the house.
"Go," Tony waved him off.
[Bucharest. The Apartment.]
Bucky Barnes was grabbing his go-bag. He sensed them coming.
CRASH.
Steve Rogers burst through the window. "Bucky! The police are here! You have to go!"
"I didn't do it, Steve," Bucky said, his metal arm whirring.
"I know. But they don't."
BANG. BANG. BANG.
GSG-9 special forces breached the door. Bucky slammed a table into them. He punched a soldier through the wall.
He jumped to the balcony.
He froze.
Standing on the railing of the adjacent building was a man in a tailcoat.
Sebastian Michaelis looked at Bucky.
"James Barnes," Sebastian said. "You have caused quite a mess."
Bucky looked at Sebastian. The Winter Soldier programming twitched in his brain. Threat. High Level.
"Who are you?" Bucky growled.
"I am the one who is going to take you into custody," Sebastian leaped.
He didn't land on the balcony. He landed on Bucky.
Bucky swung his metal arm. Sebastian caught it with one hand.
CLANG.
The impact cracked the concrete floor. Bucky's eyes went wide. His arm—which could crush iron—was being held in place by a man in a suit.
"German engineering," Sebastian noted, looking at the bionic arm. "Hydra always did have a flair for prosthetics."
Sebastian threw Bucky back into the apartment.
Steve jumped in. "Sebastian! Stop!"
"He is a fugitive, Captain," Sebastian said, dodging a punch from Steve. "Stand down."
"He didn't do the bombing!" Steve yelled, throwing his shield.
Sebastian caught the shield again, but this time, Bucky tackled him. The two super-soldiers (one serum, one demon) crashed through the floor into the stairwell.
[The Chase]
The chase spilled into the tunnel.
Bucky was running. Cap was running. Black Panther (T'Challa) had joined the fight, his Vibranium claws slashing at Bucky.
And Sebastian was... gliding.
He ran along the walls of the tunnel, avoiding the cars.
Black Panther pounced on Bucky. Sebastian jumped on Black Panther, pulling him off.
"Wait your turn, Your Highness!" Sebastian scolded.
Bucky grabbed a motorcycle. He spun it around, trying to run them over.
Sebastian didn't dodge. He stood in the path of the motorcycle.
SCREEECH.
He grabbed the handlebars. The bike flipped forward, launching Bucky into the air.
Steve caught Bucky in mid-air.
Suddenly, War Machine landed, guns aimed. Police cars boxed them in.
"Stand down!" Rhodey yelled.
Bucky, Steve, T'Challa, and Sebastian stood in the center of the encirclement.
T'Challa retracted his helmet, revealing T'Challa.
Sebastian straightened his tie. He looked at Bucky, who was panting, terrified.
"Mission accomplished, Sir," Sebastian whispered into his comms. "The package is secured."
Bucky looked at the butler. He felt a chill that had nothing to do with cryo-freeze.
"I know you," Bucky whispered. "From the road. '91."
Sebastian put a finger to his lips.
"Hush now, Mr. Barnes. We wouldn't want to upset the Young Master. Not yet."
[End of Chapter 34]
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