59. I Can't Run in Heels
"You good?" Sam asks Bucky as they're in a hallway away from the crowds, walking to where Selby was waiting for the four of them.
Bucky blinks a few times and nods in response. He was still coming down from the high he felt when he was fighting. He didn't like that it made him feel like that. That Mary had to see that despite what her outward expression was. Bucky was protective of Mary even more so after she'd witnessed Winter in action. He didn't want her going anywhere from him. And she had no intention of leaving his side.
The group of four walk through crates that contain various kinds of illegal guns, drugs and stolen property from around the world. Zemo led them down the corridor while Bucky's arm was draped around her waist, guiding Mary alongside him but also keeping her close. Sam trailed up the back and glanced at everything around him, having never seen so many things that were typically illegal all at once.
Bucky was well aware of the people around them and behind them as they walked towards where Selby was waiting. Mary could sense the emotions of someone new. Someone dangerous enough to call the shots and be the Power Broker's second.
"You should know, Baron. People don't just come into my bar and make demands." Selby says while the four enter the room. Zemo takes a seat across from Selby while Mary sits in a chair beside where Bucky stands emotionless. Sam takes a spot on the opposite side of the room to stand.
"Not a demand. An offer." Zemo corrects Selby.
"A lot has changed since you were here last." Selby says, her eyes follow Bucky for a moment, making Mary narrow her eyes briefly at the woman. "By the way, i thought you were rotting away in a German prison." Selby comments with a slight tilt of her head, "How did you escape?"
Zemo shrugs, "People like us always find a way, don't we?" He retorts and then he looks at Selby, he wanted to get to business. "I'm sure you've already figured out what i'm here for."
Selby waves a finger as she keeps her eyes on Zemo, "You're taller than i'd heard, Smiling Tiger." She says, her eyes slowly moving from Zemo to Sam. Mary could feel that Selby was in charge, her confidence and the way she spoke. It was commanding in an almost ladylike way. Selby teasingly purrs at Sam and all he does is shrug. She then looks back at Zemo with a smile, "What's the offer?"
"Tell us what you know about the super soldier serum." Zemo begins with stating what he wants in return before saying what he was offering. He stands up and walks over to Mary. He grabs her by the chin and forces her to stand up. She staggers onto her feet, Bucky nearly losing his emotionless expression. His eyes followed Mary's every movement. They weren't sure if Zemo was betraying them. And to use Mary to do it, was certain death. "And i give you her."
"What's so special about her?" Selby quips. From Selby's perspective, Mary was nothing but Winter's plaything after a mission to finish off his adrenaline.
"She controls him." Zemo says casually. "The trigger words i will give you as well, of course. But she is his key. The only thing he cares about. As long as you have her, he will do anything you want." Zemo states and smirks at Mary before dropping her back into the chair she was previously sitting in.
Selby was intrigued, "Now that's the Zemo i remember." She teases with a wide smile at the proposition that had been placed in front of her. "I'm glad i decided not to kill you immediately." She states with a shift in how she was sitting. Fully looking at Mary and Bucky now. "Yeah, you were right to come to me. Arrogant, but right." She states as Zemo takes his seat across from Selby again. "The Super Soldier serum is here in Madripoor." Mary's eyes shimmer briefly, her emotions were in a tizzy at how her beloved mentor's serum was in the hands of evil people. It was exactly what Erskine didn't want happening. "Doctor Wilfred Nagel is the man you wanna thank. Or.... Condem." Selby says with a glance to Bucky, "Depending on what side of this you're on. The Power Broker had him working on the serum, but.... Things didn't go as planned."
Zemo takes in the information and then looks at Selby with his head slightly tilted, "Is Nagel still in Madripoor?"
"Oh..." Selby whispers as she stands, "The breadcrumbs you can have for free but the bakery is gonna cost you, Baron." She states as she begins to walk, "And before you get all cute, don't think you can find Nagel without me." She says. But the tension in the room skyrockets when Sam's phone begins to vibrate with an incoming call. Mary and Zemo look at each other, they knew they'd been compromised unless Sam could handle whoever was on the other end. Bucky moves towards where Selby is just as precautionary. He wasn't going to let Sam's screw up of not turning off his phone bring danger to his wife, "Answer it. On speaker." Selby demands.
Sam begrudgingly answers the phone call and he glances at Mary for a moment. "Hello?"
"Hey, um... we need to talk about this situation. It's been drivin me nuts." Sam's sister's voice appears on the end. Mary had never met Sarah, but she had always wanted to ever since Sam told her about her.
"What situation exactly are you talkin' bout?" Sam asks sternly. He still had to put up his front, but it was quickly falling.
"Are you high?" Sarah quips. Mary watches as Selby circles where Bucky is standing. "You know what situation, it's the only situation me and you have."
"What situation, Sarah? Say it." Sam snaps.
"The damn boat. And watch your tone. Okay?" Sarah snaps back. "I let you slide at the bank."
Sam tries to play this off and scoffs, "The bank. Yeah. Laundered so much... yeah they'll come around." He snaps with a chuckle.
Mary watched Selby closely without trying to use her powers. She knew if she used her powers in any way, she'd expose herself and become a target for people. She'd be a prize, a weapon just like her husband and daughter.
"If that was the case, then why'd they dog you out, Big Time?" Sarah jokes.
"Yeah, you damn right i'm Big Time. You'll see when i have that banker killed." Sam threatens and it feels like he almost got away with it.
Until Sarah shouts over the phone to one of her sons. "Cass! What'd i tell you about the Cheerios? I don't have time for this! Sam, i'm sorry, i'll call you back."
"Sam?" Selby catches Sarah's unintentional slip of her brother's name. Mary's eyes snap over to Selby, "Who's sam?" She snaps. "Kill them." She commands but Mary jumps when a bullet breaks glass and hits Selby in the chest, killing her instantly.
Mary's eyes widen as she feels Selby's soul die. Her breathing becomes increasingly harder to maintain and Bucky knows it. He knows Mary's never felt anyone die with her powers. The toll it must take on her, feeling not just the person die, but their soul die as well. The essence of a person never able to live again.
A fight ensues once Selby's body drops to the floor. Bucky's quick to protect his wife as her eyes flicker amber. "Luna!" He shouts at his wife, trying to break her out of the loop she's in. He grabs the rifle from Selby's thug as Zemo grips onto Mary's arm and pulls her with them to escape.
"She's-"
"I know she is. We need to leave." Bucky says softly to Mary. He wanted to comfort her, but he couldn't until they were safe.
"They're gonna pin this on us." Sam says as he eyes Mary, trying to see if she'd snap or not.
Zemo sighs as he continues to hold onto Mary. She was in no state to function of her own free will at the moment and all three men knew it. "We have a real problem now, so leave your weapons and follow my lead." He tells them as phones ping with a notification all around them. There was now a bounty for Selby's killer and everyone wanted the money.
Bucky takes Mary from Zemo as he leaves the rifle. He holds her close as they walk. Mary nearly stumbling a few times as they quickly walked down the walkway of a street in Madripoor. Phones still were going off with the bounty notification. When they turn a corner a rifle goes off in their direction. But Mary, drained from feeling a soul die, had turned into a loose canon. Her power wasn't completely under her control.
Her eyes snapped bright amber as she grabbed onto the soul of the man that shot at them and she forced him to drop his weapon. Others were coming after them at the same time. The three men watched in shock as Mary threw up an amber force field around them with a wave of her hand. Bucky feared the stone was taking over but he could still see his wife was in some control. She was just in a lot of emotional pain.
"Come on!" Sam shouts to them and Bucky grabs onto his wife and carries her as she pushes the field along with them as they run. The man she had controlled was passed out on the ground beside his rifle. "I can't run in these heels!" He shouts. Motorcyclists move closer to them as they run into an alleyway. Men with guns had followed them and were ready to shoot but a sniper kills them just before they could shoot.
Mary breaks her shield around them as her eyes flicker more. She feels the souls leave their bodies and she knows she shouldn't feel remorse. They were trying to kill her husband and friend. But she felt everything that they did as they died. The excruciating pain and shock. Their souls dying away was a pain Mary never wanted to experience, never thought she'd have to experience. But she was feeling the dark side of the Soul Stone's powers. And she didn't know how to cope with them.
"You seem to have a guardian angel." Zemo says, having been separated by the commotion. His eyes look over at Mary in Bucky's arms. Before he can comment on seeing her powers work for the first time. A voice none of them had heard since the Avengers break up appears.
"Well, this is too perfect." Sharon Carter says as she steps out of the dark part of the alley and pulls off her hood. She aims her gun at Zemo, "Drop it, Zemo."
Zemo does as he's told as Bucky stares at Sharon in disbelief. "Sharon?" Bucky questions.
"You cost me everything." Sharon snaps at them. Mary could feel the anger in Sharon, the hurt and struggle. Mary could feel the emotions of everyone in the alleyway and then some. She was having a difficult time figuring out which emotions were hers, and which were those around her.
"Sharon... wait..." Mary stammers, she was shaking but she wanted to stand. So Bucky set his wife down gently, his arms around her waist to help keep her stable. Mary leaned into Bucky's chest behind her, her breathing slowly evening out as she was finally able to calm down a bit. Calm down her powers that were on overdrive.
"Someone recreated the super soldier serum and Zemo had a lead." Sam explains to Sharon so she's up to speed.
Sharon rolls her eyes with a tilt of her head as she kicks Zemo's gun away, "Well, that explains why you guys are here. And Selby's dead." Sharon comments.
"So what're you doing here?" Bucky asks.
"I stole Steve's shield and gave it to Evelyn, remember? I also took the wings and repulsors for your asses, so you could save his ass from his ass." Sharon snaps, pointing from Bucky to Zemo, looking at them. Mary sucks in a breath of air sharply. She could feel the anger Sharon had specifically towards Steve. The fact that he didn't choose her, that he chose Evelyn. And that's when it dawned on Mary that Sharon was the victim of unrequited love. "I didn't have the Avengers to back me up." She snaps, "So i'm off the grid in Madripoor."
"Hey, don't blow that smoke. I was on the run, too. So was Pietro." Sam reminds Sharon. Mary closed her eyes at hearing Pietro's name. Bucky and Mary didn't know where he was exactly, he took off when Wanda did from Westview. Both living their own lives separately now. If Mary focused long enough, she could track down Pietro's soul possibly. But it would take a quiet atmosphere, as well as intense focusing.
"Was. Is. Big difference." Sharon states, "I don't speak to my family anymore. I can't. My own father doesn't know where i am."
"Listen..." Bucky says, "Sharon, we need your help."
Sharon simply laughs in disbelief at Bucky's request for her help. "Please." Mary whispers. The niece of Peggy could see that Mary was not trying to pull anything over her, they simply needed help. Mary was Peggy's best friend, this was something Sharon felt
Sharon and Mary used to be good friends. Sharon had made friends with Becca even before the events of the Civil War broke out and changed everything. The blonde looks at the group of four, eyeing them. "This isn't over." She states and then motions to where she came from behind her, "I have a place in High Town. You'll be safe there for a while." She states and leads the way.
Bucky lifts Mary into his arms and follows after Sharon, the other two men quickly following behind. The three men piled into the backseat of the car Sharon had waiting. Mary semi-conscious in her husband's arms as the car drove through the empty highway to High Town.
"Doll..." Bucky says, his vibranium hand moving some hair from Mary's face as she sat on his lap, her head resting on his shoulder. "Are you alright?" He asks softly. Sam glanced at the couple worriedly, he was concerned for Mary as well. And though Zemo hated to admit it, he didn't want to see Mary die or suffer. She had a reason to resent him. He couldn't fault her for that. "What happened back at Selby's?"
"I felt her soul die, James... i felt everything she did in her last moments." Mary whispers, her voice shaky and her hands were shaking just as much. She looked down at her hands in her lap, clenching them to try and stop the shaking. "I had never felt anyone suffer like that... and then the other people that died as we were running.... The stone... it just took over for a moment.."
"Took over? Like what Wanda was trying to prevent from happening?" Bucky asks softly, his voice barely above a whisper. He didn't want ears listening in.
"Not.. exactly..." Mary whispers, "You know the show that Jamie's been watching?" She mutters, trying to explain as best she can.
"The... element show with the bald kid and flying bison?" Bucky asks.
Mary chuckles softly, the first time she had laughed since they stepped out of the car into Low Town. "Yes, The Last Airbender." She corrects her husband, "It felt kind of like when the boy goes into that glowing state." She explains, "It's a protective mechanism.."
"The stone felt you in distress and took over so you didn't have to focus on using your power." Bucky sums it up and Mary nods as she snuggles into her husband's lap. His arms instinctively tightening around her. "You're learning more and more about the stone and what you can do as time goes on... i just wish it wasn't at a time like this."
"Me too.... But i should let Stephen know soon.. once this is over with.." Mary says softly and Bucky nods in agreement. They both were silent the rest of the drive into High Town, not wanting to expose themselves and Mary's powers in case people were trying to listen in on them.
Mary was a secret weapon, one Zemo had seen in action and was extremely curious about.
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