"Bucky?"

I follow Steve into the room, while both Sam and Natasha trail behind me. The room is empty save some medical equipment in a cupboard on the far wall, an empty metal table next to it along with a couple of metal chairs, while the bright white lighting illuminates everything in the room. Our steps echo, bouncing off the high ceilings, as we approach.

Bucky is standing close to the containment unit that is currently housing Artemis, his arms crossed tightly in front of his chest. When I spoke, his shoulders shift imperceptibly and I can't help but frown.

"Hi Chloe," Artemis's voice draws my attention, and my eyes snap up to the source.

Standing in the middle of the bright white pod, my sister stares back at me with a blank look on her face. No longer wearing the horrific smirk painted on her face when she shot Mara, this girl looks more like the sister I know and love. The thought gives me hope, and I allow a small smile to curl up the corner of my mouth.

"Ari," my voice is hardly more than whisper. "Hi. How are you feeling?"

Artemis bites her lip, "Why am I locked in here? Chloe, I want to go home."

"I'm sorry, Ari," I reply, taking a step forward until I'm standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Bucky. "I can't do that yet. We just want to keep you safe, okay?"

I expect him to take my hand, but instead he stands still as a statue while facing the containment unit. Glancing behind me, Steve lifts an eyebrow before shrugging. Both Sam and Natasha are wearing impassive looks, the former studying the floor in front of him while the latter's gaze is locked on the back of Bucky's head.

"Okay," Ari whispers, nodding as she blinks back tears. "You're right. I understand."

Confused, I turn to look at Bucky only to see his eyes are closed as he breathes in deeply. My eyes skim over his face, noting the tension etched all over his face from the tension between his eyebrows to the muscles flexing in his jaw. Something is bothering him, and I have no idea what it is. Exhaling, I turn my gaze back toward my sister - still thinking over what she said - but something catches my eye. A solid red handprint wraps around Bucky's right wrist, the skin puckered and blistered from a severe burn, and the tips of a charred black handprint peek out from the front of his shirt under his forearm.

My heartbeat jumps in my throat while I furrow my eyebrows, and Artemis' voice draws my attention back to the containment unit in front of me.

"The real danger is out there anyway, isn't it?" Artemis asks, laughing through her tears.

A flash of silver gleams in the corner of my eyes, and - in a split second - I'm thrown across the room. My back slams against the thick concrete wall, and a groan slips from my lips as I shake off the confusion to see my attacker.

"Bucky?" I cough, struggling to catch my breath.

Steve immediately steps forward, throwing a series of punches that the Winter Soldier evades effortlessly before the blonde super soldier is tossed to the side like day old laundry. He scrambles to his feet while Natasha moves quickly into action, barely more than a blur, as she executes an expert series of kicks and jabs that gives Steve enough time to recover as Sam rushes over toward me.

"You okay?" Sam asks, wrapping an arm around my waist as he hoists me to my feet.

I nod, "What's happening? What's he doing?"

"It's not him anymore," Sam replies, tugging me toward the door only to be thrown to the ground as the Winter Soldier sends one of the metal chairs flying our way.

Glass shatters from the door in front of us as we fall through the frame, my hands landing on the ground as hundreds of tiny shards cut into my face and arms like countless flashes of pain burning into my flesh. Sam groans, rolling onto his back, having been struck by the chair and sucks in a deep breath.

"Go!" Natasha cries, waving me out of the way after she's thrown like a rag doll across the room.

Shaking my head, I wince as I stand. The Winter Soldier is locked in concentration with Steve, his blue eyes dark with rage as he captures Steve's fist in his metal hand - twisting it unnaturally away from his face - and slams his other fist into the blonde super soldier's jaw.

He takes the moment to whirl around and face the containment unit housing my sister, punching in digits rapidly until the door slides open and Artemis cackles before exiting the pod. Standing side by side, she cracks her neck as her skin begins to glow orange like it did on the video and tiny flames begin to lick at the skin on her hands.

"I really like this game, Chloe," Artemis hisses. "Don't you?"

Steve tries to land a hit on her, but she's too fast - impossibly fast - and the fire makes it hard for him to connect with her. He tries to push through the pain and the heat, his serum-enhanced skin allowing him to withstand more than the average human, but even he can't stop her. The Winter Soldier rips Steve from her, tossing him so he crashes into Natasha, and Artemis sends a stream of fire at them which sends the two rushing for cover.

The blaze continues to rise, her hands producing more fire by the second, as a line of flames separates Steve and Natasha from where Sam and I stand.

"Sam, go," I tell him as Artemis takes a step forward with the Winter Soldier glowering by her side.

He shakes his head, "Not gonna happen, Chloe."

The sprinklers activate, water gushing from the ceiling in sheets of icy cold liquid, extinguishing many of the flames in the blink of an eye. Sam takes a swing at The Winter Soldier, but he's no match for the Winter Soldier's speed and strength as he blocks the blow and sends his metal fist flying into Sam's temple.

He turns to me next, and an alarm sounds in the building as try to remember my brief training as the Winter Soldier's fist comes flying toward me. I throw my hands in front of my face, using the momentum to push his arm to the side as I step toward him - against my instincts to run - and begin to execute a wrist lock in an attempt to bring him to his knees. He evades it easily, twisting his body the opposite direction, and soon our roles are reversed as he lands a solid kick on my rib cage before quickly maneuvering behind me to wrap his metal arm securely around my neck.

Lights flicker as the compound goes into high alert, and I struggle to push against the Winter Soldier's vice-like grip as my body screams for oxygen. The door slams open, while Stark rushes into the room. Vision quickly follows, phasing through the floor to hover in the air above us, moving quickly to help Steve and an injured Natasha pick their way through the flames Artemis continues to feed from her hands.

"What's going on, Cap?!" Stark demands, lifting his hand and training a gun on the man with his arm wrapped around my neck.

Artemis laughs, nodding to the Winter Soldier who tightens his grip on my neck, "Glad you could join our game."

"Yeah, I liked you better when you were unconscious," Tony quips, unsure of who he should be aiming the gun at.

She scoffs, and I tuck my chin and sink down in an attempt to loosen his grip on my airway so I can suck in a bit more oxygen. He jerks me backward, causing me to stumble against his chest, and tears prick at the corner of my eyes. My hands and face are covered with blood from the broken glass, and I'm certain at least three ribs are broken, so I'm rapidly losing any and all strength I have to push against him.

"Let her go," Tony warns, pointing the barrel of the gun at the Winter Soldier.

Steve staggers toward him, "Tony, don't. It's not him."

"Sure as hell looks like him," Stark quips, flicking off the safety.

I shake my head, unable to speak and beg him to spare Bucky's life, as the metal arm tightens around my throat once more. Steve stares at his friend, hating every second of feeling out of control in this situation, as Artemis rolls her eyes.

"This is boring," she groans, flicking a wrist toward the group causing them to stumble backward.

Stark drops the gun in his hands, the metal overheating and burning his flesh, allowing Artemis to scoop up the gun and spiral around to point it at Bucky. Before my eyes can register that she's pointing it at him instead of me, she's pulled the trigger and emptied several rounds into Bucky, sending him toppling backward - pulling me with him.

Steve cries out as she does, diving toward her through the flames, while her laughter echoes over the din of fire, water, and alarms vibrating through every bone in my body.

It's the last thing I hear as my head slams into the ground, black spots floating in the edges of my vision.

It's the last thing I register as my eyes land on Bucky, his face frozen and expressionless as everything fades to black.

It's the last thing...