Chapter Text
The video was sent eighty-four days after Steve and Bucky left Tony in Siberia. It was given to every major news channel worldwide and streamed on Youtube and various social media sites. The creator of the video wanted to make sure that no matter where the rogue Avengers were hiding, they saw it, as well as everyone else in the world.
During that time, King T’Challa had given his former enemies asylum in Wakanda while also quietly assisting Steve Rogers, Clint Barton, Sam Wilson, Scott Lang, and Wanda Maximoff with any emergencies where they were needed, despite the danger of being caught and sent to prison because of the Accords.
While they all used this time to grow closer to each other, Clint and Scott had bonded quickly over their families - their love and their worry - and would brag to each other after their bi-weekly check in. Neither of them had been able to return to the States for any length of time, nor had they been able to see their families, but they had been assured from the start that they were safe. The Bartons had left their farm and were in another secure safe house while Scott’s ex-wife, Maggie, Paxton, and his daughter Cassie went to stay with the Pyms, as they were powerful enough to shield them from Ross and any public backlash. Sam’s only remaining family was his mother, but apparently Nick Fury had taken it upon himself to relocated Darlene Wilson to a safe house that just so happened to have a secure line that could be used to call her vigilante son.
Wanda had been the most affected by the Accords and her stay on the Raft, but with the four men she looked up to as older brothers - and even a bit as father figures - she was healing from her ordeal.
Natasha had checked in with them multiple times in Wakanda, the first time having brought all of their confiscated gear and uniforms. How she got a hold of them she didn’t say, but they were all thankful. For the most part, Natasha had been out in the world working on finding the remaining triggers for the Winter Soldier. She had remained tight-lipped about where she was getting her leads from, but every time she received a text from a blocked number, she would leave only to return a couple days later, usually with a victorious air about her.
It was because of her unrelenting work that it only took two months to track down every handler the Winter Soldier ever had and find the trigger words. Apparently she had been working on it before the Avengers fallout, but had been too busy to give her full attention to it. When Bucky was taken out of cryofreeze, the Wakandan doctors induced him into a medical coma he could be partially awakened from a few hours each day. It produced an almost hypnotized state of mind where the Hydra triggers could finally be erased. Steve had barely seen Bucky in the two weeks he’d been out. Instead, Bucky was being led by Natasha and Clint to break through the programming with Sam’s support and the help of the Wakandan doctors.
Everything was going well enough for the outlaws. They had even made plans to bring their loved ones to Wakanda for an extended visit the following week.
And then one evening, eighty-four days after all hell broke loose, they were finishing their dinner when King T’Challa summoned them to the conference room they had appropriated and turned into the “War Room”. He turned on the large screen that covered nearly an entire wall to an American news station.
The newswoman had a strained face and was fidgeting with the papers in front of her. “We will play the video again every fifteen minutes to make sure the message is received by Steve Rogers and his allies,” she said.
The screen cut to display a caucasian man in his early thirties with light brown hair and brown eyes.
“Hello. My name is Hammond Zemo,” he said calmly in a Sokovian accent. “My cousin, Helmut Zemo, is the one responsible for the UN bombing three months ago in an attempt to tear the Avengers apart. I suppose he succeeded in his goal, but I had always found his plan to be...insufficient.” Hammond blinked in a bored manner.
“This message is for the Avengers, most especially Steven Grant Rogers. At Noon, Eastern Standard Time, I will log onto a live chatroom website I have created for this sole purpose called ‘Epiphany’. You, Rogers, will also log on and we will talk face to face. If you do not, I will set off the bombs I have planted over the last three months in major cities all over the world, one by one.” Hammond paused to let that sink in. “You can try to trace the origin of this message, but you will fail. You can try to trace my location during our chat, but I have taken many steps to ensure that will be near impossible. Your best hacker will not be able to find the correct path among the many trails I have laid down,” Hammond said in a relaxed manner that let the avengers know he was not overconfident in his belief.
“The authorities do not have enough time to search everywhere,” he continued. “They could be in a school, in a business, a government building, a hospital, attached to a major gas pipe...The possibilities are endless. Oh, I could be bluffing,” he said lightly, “but you will not think so after I set off the first bomb, which I will do if you are even one minute late,” he said sternly, his calm mask finally breaking and glaring at the audience. “For every minute you are late, I will set off a bomb. If anyone else attempts to chat with me, I will set off a bomb. If the stream is interrupted by any party, I will set off a bomb. Do you understand me, Avengers? I want to talk to Steve Rogers most of all, but any other hero with him should attend the video chat as well. Each and every one of the Avengers, past and present, has a vested interest in this matter. Most importantly, I invite anyone and everyone to stream the live conversation on any device available. You will not want to miss this.” Hammond’s lips twitched into a grim smirk. “Don’t be late.”
The feed switched back to the newsroom where the anchormen and women were discussing the possible outcomes.
“Mute,” said T’Challa, and the audio cut off. He turned to look at the seated Avengers. T’Challa and Steve were sitting at opposite ends of the long table with Natasha, Sam, and Scott on one side and Clint, Wanda, and Bucky on the other. “What do you think?” he asked Steve.
Steve took a moment to answer. “I have no idea what Zemo could want. He’s holding the lives of thousands, possibly millions of people over our heads, all for the chance to talk?”
Natasha folded her hands on the table. “We need to think of this rationally. Zemo said that we can’t trace him. Everyone can be tracked eventually, but it takes time, which leads me to believe that whatever his end goal, it will most likely be completed by the time your live chat is over.”
“Maybe he wants his cousin released?” Clint put forth.
Natasha shook her head. “No. For one, he didn’t seem too concerned about Helmut Zemo. For another, it would take too long to arrange even if we did have the authority, which we don’t. If he wanted his cousin released he would have contacted the UN. He wants something to do with us.”
“What if,” Sam said slowly, “he wanted to...embarrass us, so to speak?”
The Avengers frowned at that. Steve waved his hand in a gesture to continue.
“Well, think about it. We were superheroes, and now we’re considered vigilantes. What if he wants to make us feel helpless? He is holding the world hostage,” Sam said with more confidence. “And he’s inviting everyone to watch what happens. What if he wants to do something horrible, and not only be seen doing it, but let everyone else see that we can’t stop him?”
The Avengers looked at each other in realization.
“He wants to mock us by hurting innocent people,” Clint declared.
Scott shook his head. “What would be the point of that?”
Steve sighed. “People have lost a lot of faith in us. The Accords didn’t help them trust us again. Our actions since then have helped renew their trust in us a little, at least in the fact that we are still here willing to protect people.” He referred to the missions around the world where they went in, stopped the bad guy and then got out before anyone who had the ability to detain them arrived. These in-and-out missions had largely been hushed up in conventional news mediums, but had been blowing up on social media.
Steve continued, “If people believed that we could not protect them, they wouldn’t have any incentive to give us a chance to help. It would make us and powered people everywhere even less popular, since people would start to think we didn’t have any redeeming qualities and the only thing we’re good for is making a mess.”
Wanda sunk down in her seat a bit at this news. Clint didn’t look at her, but rested his hand on her shoulder in comfort. “What’s been done to find Zemo?” he asked.
T’Challa replied, “I have people working on it, but right now it doesn’t look promising. The video was leaked several ways. After finding the original video, we tried tracing the signal, but it was a dead end. We found the website he said to use, but finding the location it is maintained from has so far proved impossible. The signal continues to bounce back and forth between servers around the world. Just when we think we found it, the location changes again.”
Steve had caught up on using modern technology, but he still didn’t know how to hack nor understood the complexity of it, but he had learned a few tricks from watching others. “Have you thought to send a team to any of the locations? It could be that he has people working for him to constantly receive and then redirect the signal for him. It could be why he’s so confident that we won’t be able to find him even when he’ll be streaming a live video.”
Natasha nodded. “That could be one way he thinks to outsmart us. Most likely he’s implemented a number of different ways to protect the signal and delay a trace.”
T’Challa sat straight in his chair at one end of the table. “We need to decide right now what we are going to do. Captain,” he said with a frown, “As it stands now, you need to answer Zemo’s request to talk. I am willing to stand with you in a show of support. The UN and Secretary Ross already believe you to be hiding here, so the knowledge would not provide anything new for them to act on. They know they can do nothing while you reside in my country. We have no mandatory extradition stipulations, and thanks to our vibranium mines and advanced technology, we have enough allied countries and businesses that will stand with us against any attack. The question is what the rest of you will do,” he finished, looking over the gathered heroes.
Sam spoke up immediately. “I’ll answer the call with Steve. I’ve always had his back, and frankly, I won’t be any help trying to find Zemo.”
Steve smiled slightly and nodded his head in thanks.
“I’m the same,” Scott said happily. “Well, not with the always having your back,” he said to Steve, “but only because we haven’t known each other long and I haven’t had many chances to prove that. But I’m willing to prove it now.” Scott beamed. “Besides, I’m a good hacker, but what you described sounds above my level.”
Bucky cleared his throat. He was very quiet when around more than one or two people, and was still getting used to speaking again. “I’m not sure if it would be appropriate for me to be there.”
Sam crossed his arms. “Do you want to be there? Because if you do, then that’s your right. This guy called us all out. I may think you’re an ass, Barnes, but you’re one of us. You heard Zemo, it affects all of us.”
Bucky tilted his head to the side before nodding once. “I’m with all of you ‘til the end of the line.”
Steve grinned at that and was about to speak when an ordinary ringtone sounded. He looked down at his pocket and pulled out his cellphone before looking back up. Everyone looked at him expectantly. Steve answered the call and put it on speaker before setting the cell on the table.
“Tony,” he said.
“Spangles,” came the tinny reply. “What the hell did you do to piss off another Zemo?”
Despite everything, Steve was genuinely glad to hear from his old friend. “Honestly? No idea. I’m here with the others and have you on speaker. Are Rhodey and Vision there?”
Rhodey’s voice answered, “We’re here, Steve. What’s the plan?”
“We think Hammond Zemo wants to destroy the Avengers reputation even more by hurting people during the live chat and making us watch, unable to stop it. People would feel like they couldn’t count on us to protect them.”
“Not a bad hypothesis,” Stark commented. “He wants to talk to you, right? But he said that this involves all of the Avengers.”
“Yes,” Steve answered hesitantly, glancing up at the others. Steve recognized Tony’s “plotting” tone. “What are you thinking, Stark?”
“Well, you’re all together living it up in Africa - don’t try to lie to me, I know that’s where you are - in between jetting to different disasters around the world. It’d make sense for you all to answer the call together and for me to not be there. Besides, none of you can hack like I can.”
“Hey!” Scott interrupted. “I hacked Vistacorp!”
A snort came through the phone speaker. “Please, that was child’s play. Natashalie might be able to hack them, but she would be better suited taking the call with you. Hey! Red! You there?”
Natasha rolled her eyes before saying in a bland tone. “I’m to use my skills to distract Zemo from his original goals and delay him long enough for you to run a trace. Yes?”
“That’s what I got,” answered Tony. “Vision will help and Rhodey will be in contact with Interpol so that as soon as we have the location we can send someone in to capture Zemo, preferably before anything goes Boom!
Steve nodded. “Alright, contact us, too. We’ll help, but we trust you to do your thing,” Steve said softly. “In the meantime, we’ll get everything set up for the chat. Got any odds of how many people will log on to watch?”
There was a pause before Vision’s proper accent came through. “I believe at least 60% of the population of first world countries will stream the live video, with 37% in third world countries. The North American continent and the Western European nations will have the most viewers, especially as word has come that several news stations will be airing the video chat, though with ten to thirty second delays to edit any language or violence should it occur.”
The Avengers accepted this.
“He wants people to see him ‘beat’ the Avengers,” Sam muttered grumpily.
“What happens if this goes south?” asked Clint. “It’ll be all over the news that The Avengers let some manic blow up the world.” At everyone’s looks, Clint shrugged. “It makes sense. He’s already got the bombs planted.”
“I guess we’ll just have to find a way to stop him,” Steve said. He turned his attention back to the phone. “Stark, keep in touch if you find anything before we go live.” Steve paused. “It’s good to hear from you Tony. You too, Rhodey. Vision. Wish it was under better circumstances.”
Everyone held their breath to hear Tony’s response, but it was Rhodey who said, “We’ll call you,” before hanging up.
The three original Avengers slumped slightly with Tony’s rejection. T’Challa, both wanting to distract them and needing to get back on task, stood. “I will have a room set up for the coming conference with all of the necessary equipment. Should we wear our uniforms for this, do you think?” T’Challa asked.
Everyone shook off their dejection and looked around for the others’ thoughts.
Bucky scowled. “I’m not wearing anything special,” he declared. “A pair of cargo pants and a black t-shirt will work for me. Long-sleeved,” he added with a glance at his new vibranium arm that King T’Challa had gifted him. It felt lighter and responded better than his old arm ever had. In fact, Bucky sometimes felt like there was no difference between it and his flesh arm, it was so well built and the sensors so in tune with his nervous system.
“I agree with Bucky,” Steve said heavily. “I’m not really Captain America anymore. All I’ve been wearing on missions is a common black tac suit.” He nodded his head firmly. “That’s what I’ll wear. It’s up to the rest of you if you want to wear your uniforms or not.”
The others nodded and Natasha asked where they’ll be setting up. T’Challa told them that they’ll set up just down the hallway. They then spent the next hour going over what they’d need to say to Hammond Zemo to stall him from hurting anyone and a back-up plan if something went wrong. None of the Avengers still in New York had called with any new information during that time.
Fifteen minutes before Steve had to log onto the video chat, they all took a break to calm themselves for the meeting and to change into their uniforms. While Steve and Bucky weren’t wearing their signature uniforms, the others had chosen to do so, with Scott and Sam leaving off their helmet and goggles. King T’Challa had decided to dress in his formal Wakandan robes for the live conversation.
Natasha had looked at the ratings surrounding the video chat. It seemed Vision’s estimates were low. It was a Saturday, so more people were off work, and since Zemo chose noon EST, that meant it was a good, morning television watching time for most of the US, and evening time for Europe. The hype was high, and already millions of people had logged onto the sight to watch the Avengers close-up for the first time in months. Various channels were also speculating on whether Steve Rogers would even answer the call.
Natasha was watching WHIH Newsfront with Christine Everhart* on her tablet with a disdainful look.
Scott came up behind her and scoffed. “What’s that blonde bitch saying about us now?”
Natasha smirked up at him. “Not a fan?”
“Hardly.” Scott scowled. “I did an interview with her shortly before being released from prison and she was completely biased, painting me as a selfish criminal mastermind.”
Natasha glanced down at the image. “I know people who are like her. They are so set in their beliefs, their hatred, that there is no use arguing with them, and no use even discussing another point of view. They don’t want to hear it because they don’t want to believe that they are not right. It’s not even about them being wrong per say, just that there is another right way that might be better,” said Natasha thoughtfully. “When you meet someone like that, the only thing you can do is smile at them in a way that clearly says you are amused with their idiocy.” Natasha grinned widely. “And then, while they are expounding their beliefs, you stay silent and get your ducks in a row. Do you know what happens then?”
Scott leaned away from the feral grin Natasha was giving him. “What?”
“You slam down all of your evidence, and it will be a lot considering all of the time they took repeating the same belief with nothing to back it up. You address every issue, every accusation, overturning them all because you have proof. You appeal not only to logic, but human emotion as well. You show them that what they thought was real wasn’t; what they believed wasn’t true. Then when you are done, even if they still don’t accept it, it won’t matter because you will be known as the intelligent one, the compassionate one, and the one to follow, while they will be seen as what they truly are: ignorant, prejudiced, decidedly narrow-minded and uncaring of anyone else’s hardships. They will be humiliated and unable to come back from their disgrace.”
Scott looked at Natasha in shock and no small amount of trepidation. “Wow. You really don’t like Christine Everhart. Are you planning on doing that to her?” he asked in interest.
Natasha smiled. “No, but I know someone who is. Frankly, I can’t wait to see it,” she said with palpable excitement and a slight cackle. “It should be fun to watch!”
Just then, T’Challa called out to the others that they were ready in the conference room.
“Steve!” he called when Steve hesitated outside, looking in worry at his phone. “Is everything alright?”
“Yeah,” Steve answered quickly. “Everything’s fine.” Yet, Steve continued to glance at his phone with a frown. He shook his head and walked through the doorway.
Inside, a long wooden table was set up with all the chairs facing one direction so there would only be a blank wall behind them. On the opposite side of the room was a camera crew, working to make sure all eight heroes would be seen with the camera. Directly behind said camera was a large screen so that the heroes would see Hammond Zemo when they spoke.
One of the crew came over and spoke quickly to T’Challa.
He turned to the others and said, “We have five minutes. They have everything set up and will connect with Zemo on Steve’s signal. We should take our seats.”
Steve gestured for T’Challa to sit first, and he chose one of the seats in the middle. It was his right as King of Wakanda and their host. Steve took the other middle seat and the others arranged themselves to their satisfaction. Starting on the left sat Scott Lang in his red suit, followed by Sam, Natasha, Steve, T’Challa, Bucky, Wanda and finally Clint, who had a habit of shielding Wanda with his body. She was often stuck between Clint and another person he trusted.
The crew gave them the one minute warning. Steve took a deep breath. He had faced worse than this, but he couldn’t get rid of the horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach, like he was on the edge of something that he wasn’t quite sure he was ready for. At the same time, he felt almost eager, like he’d been waiting so long for this moment. His emotions confused him, but there was one thing he was sure of in the seconds before the video was supposed to connect. Whatever happened today, nothing would ever be the same.
“Ten seconds,” the woman in charge of the production called. The heroes all exchanged looks and nodded before steeling themselves. When the director gave them the nod indicating that a video request had come in on the website, Steve nodded his head.
The camera light came on, and the screen came alive with a video feed. The Avengers could all be seen on the bottom half of the screen, while the top half showed Hammond Zemo standing in a bland, empty room with gray walls and a concrete floor.
He smiled. “Hello, Avengers. I am glad you decided to talk with me. In return, I will tell you all where four of the bombs are located. In Chicago, Illinois, the United States, there is a bomb inside The Chicago Water Tower behind a painting. In Barcelona, Spain, there is a bomb hidden inside the La Rambla Drinking Fountain. In London, England, there is a bomb located under The London Eye. Finally, in Quebec, Canada, there is a bomb attached to the gas line that runs under rue Saint-Louis in Ville de Quebec.” Hammond Zemo inclined his head.
Steve cleared his throat and glanced at King T’Challa and then Natasha. “Thank you for that information,” he said blandly. “Are you going to reveal the locations of the other bombs?”
Hammond smiled benignly. “All in good time. First, I think you want to know why I am doing this. Yes?”
Steve lowered his head slightly and stared directly into the camera. “I can guess. You’re from Sokovia. You want revenge for what happened to your family just as your cousin did.”
Hammond Zemo’s smile widened. “Yes. And No. You have to understand first that Helmut Zemo and I share no love for each other. When we were younger, we were best friends, but when we grew up, we had the unfortunate experience of falling in love with the same woman. Heike grew up with us, and I had loved her since the day I first met her, but,” said Hammond, “she fell in love Helmut. I could not hate my cousin for the simple fact that he made Heike happy, but I did not like how he treated his position in the world. You see, Helmut was to inherit the title of Baron Zemo after his father died. After his time in the Sokovian Special Forces though, he cared little for it. He had no pride in where he came from, but that was the only thing that I could take pride in. I tolerated him for Heike’s sake only.” Zemo’s smile dimmed. “I accepted that she would never be mine, as long as she was happy with her life. With a husband that was not me, and a son that was not mine. I was content to simply be a part of her life, even if it was not in the way I wished,” he finished softly.
Steve’s face morphed into a sorrowful expression. “I’m sorry. I know she was one of many who died in the attack by Ultron last year. If it was in any way possible, I would go back and keep it all from happening.” Steve tilted his head to the side. “I can’t change the past though, and hurting more people isn’t going to bring her back.”
Zemo’s face hardened into a glare. “It is not just about Heike, Steve Rogers. It is about everything. It is about my ancestors, my country, my family, my history; it is about my home. I have no home anymore, and I am angry. I have nothing left and I want you all to feel what I feel.” Zemo paused in thought. “Perhaps this makes me a callous monster...but I find I don’t care. I no longer have the capacity to care about anyone or anything. Pointless as it may seem to make everyone else miserable, I’ve come to find I take some comfort in it.”
Natasha leaned forward towards the camera. “So that’s it?” she asked slowly. “You’re just going to murder innocent civilians that you’ve never met simply because it distracts you from your own pain? Those are people, people like your Heike,” she said in an even tone.
“Ah,” said Zemo. “No. You misunderstand me. I do not wish for the world to burn. Just your world,” he explained. “After Sokovia, Helmut and I came together over our grief and started planning out how we could avenge Heike along with her son and Helmut’s father. Helmut had spent some time decrypting the leaked SHIELD files before Sokovia’s destruction and had come across a report that he thought promising. After Heike’s death, he searched for the rest of the information he would need to bring his plan to fruition. By that time, we had already parted ways. I thought his goal too shortsighted, and his plan too far-fetched. He would bomb the UN posing as James Buchanan Barnes, The Winter Soldier, which would prompt a worldwide manhunt. Once caught, he knew Barnes would be handed over to the UN and given a psychological evaluation, as there was documented evidence of brainwashing.
“He was, by the way,” Zemo said abruptly. “Much of the world wants to punish James Barnes, but even I know that what he did under Hydra’s control was not of his choosing and that he is a victim of torture and brainwashing.” Zemo tilted his head and said in amusement. “Many of you are quite stupid for believing him a villain. If it is worth anything, I am sorry for the horrors you lived through, Sergeant.” Zemo bowed his head once.
Bucky remained silent and stared passively at the man with his arms crossed.
“At any rate,” said Zemo, “my cousin kidnapped and killed the requested psychologist and took his place so that he could speak to Barnes. He had also sent an EMP to the power station and set it off remotely once he was alone in an interrogation room with Barnes. Then, Helmut used the trigger words recorded in the Red Zimney Soldat notebook he obtained from one of Barnes' former Hydra handlers to put him into Compliance Mode. Helmut questioned him about where he was kept in Siberia and then ordered him to escape. Helmut knew that once Compliance Mode was deactivated, Barnes would believe that Helmut wanted to activate the other five Winter Soldiers that were being kept in cryofreeze in the Siberian bunker. Of course, Captain America would follow him, along with the other Avengers.”
Hammond Zemo shook his head in bewilderment. “I cannot believe how perfectly his plan worked out. The fight at the airport was a most helpful turn of events. It took out almost all of the Avengers, all but the three he needed to go to the bunker in Siberia. Captain America, the Winter Soldier, and Iron Man arrived at the Hydra base to find all five super soldiers dead with a bullet in their heads.” Zemo smiled. “And that’s where he revealed the truth. That Helmut wanted to tear down the Avengers by getting them to kill each other. He so very nearly succeeded when Tony Stark saw the video that had been taken from a Pentagon surveillance camera in December 1991 and kept in that base all those years.”
The Avengers sat up ramrod straight, barely breathing, eyes glaring into the screen.
“You know,” said Zemo, “when Helmut told me his plan, I asked him, ‘Why not just send the report that stated James Barnes murdered Howard and Maria Stark?’”
Bucky clenched his fist.
“He told me that it would not be enough. If Stark were to watch his parents murdered by Barnes in cold blood, he would not be able to control his emotions. He would attack Barnes, but then Rogers would defend his best friend, and so they would fight. With everyone’s emotions running high, reason would be lost, and then…” Zemo twitched his lips up into a smirk. “The Avengers would not be able to come back from that.”
Steve lifted his chin. “He was wrong,” he said, though he wasn’t sure he believed it.
“Yes!” Zemo agreed. “Helmut was wrong! Of course the Avengers could come back from that. It would take time, but there will always be a world-ending disaster to make them put their differences aside and focus on saving the world. That was why I left Helmut to act on his own. Instead, I traveled. I met people who felt as I did, who just wanted you to feel the agony we feel everyday. Then I came up with my own plan,” Zemo smiled. “I told you that I lost my home. That is the worst thing to be forced to live through. But home is not a place or an heirloom, it is a person. Home is that one person we need in our lives.”
Clint’s body jerked in panic and he looked down the row of heroes. His eyes came to rest on Scott’s, which had the same amount of fear in them.
Just as their minds formed the thought that He has my family! Zemo spoke again and their attention was diverted. “But then I wondered. Who? Who could that be? The Avengers have very few family members, and none that I believed would affect all of them. Did such a person even exist?” Zemo closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. “And then I saw a picture randomly posted online. One of the people caught my interest. I thought, ‘I know that face.’ I knew that face from other pictures. So many pictures where this person is with the Avengers, but always in the background. Always staying out of the spotlight. But they became your friend. Once I had a face, I got a name. Once I got a name, I researched this person, and, suddenly, it all became clear. One person,” Zemo said with relish, “that tied all of the Avengers together. One person made them feel human. One person made them a family.”
Zemo smiled wickedly at them. “Who’d have ever thought?”
Panicked realization was dawning on several of the heroes’ faces, their eyes widening and jaws clenched tight.
Zemo smiled in satisfaction. “Who is this person?” Zemo asked in excitement. He leaned in closer to the camera. “Her.” The camera was turned to the side to reveal a dark-haired woman tied to a chair with her head bowed. Her clothes were rumpled and had a few visible dirt smudges. She looked up to reveal blue-green eyes, her mouth gagged.
“Darcy!” yelled all of the heroes except Scott, Bucky, and Steve, who’d gasped and pressed his fingers down onto the table to keep himself from reacting.
Natasha, Clint, and Sam though, had all jumped to their feet, Natasha even pulling out one of her wicked looking knives.
Zemo walked into view and Darcy watched him with a look of both hate and a desire to cause him pain. Zemo stood beside her. “Darcy Maria Lewis, who started as a simple intern, but she is the Avengers' linchpin. Isn’t she?”
Clint snarled at him and made an aborted movement to reach for his bow. “You let her go you bastard!”
Natasha’s fierce scowl deepened and her lips parted to bare her teeth.
Zemo smiled. “She is your friend, almost a sister to you, isn’t she? I learned that even Tony Stark cared for her. My source tells me he acted almost fatherly towards her.” Amusement glinted in Zemo’s eyes. “I think, then, he did not know about the two of you. Did he, Steve Rogers?”
The others glanced at Steve out of the corners of their eyes. Steve had stiffened and was barely breathing. The tips of his fingers dug into the wooden table.
“Steve?” Bucky breathed out.
“Do any of them know?” Zemo asked curiously.
Darcy looked straight at the camera, eyes wide and brows tightened. The expression was one asking for forgiveness. All of the Avengers were tensed, eyes flicking from Zemo to Steve and back again.
“Steve, what is he talking about?” Sam asked softly. Natasha was nearly vibrating next to him, eyes like lasers at Zemo.
Hammond was greatly enjoying himself. “You know, when I found out how close she was to each of you heroes, I still never expected to come across the information about the illustrious Captain America and his whore.”
All eyes jumped to Steve. He was like marble, completely unmoving except for his hands gouging into the table, the groaning of wood audible in the silence that followed. Murder was in his steely, blue eyes.
“Did you really think you could keep her a secret forever?” Zemo shook his head in disappointment. “I suppose you care quite a lot for her. She is your home, isn’t she?”
Steve remained silent.
“Say it, Captain Rogers. She is your home.”
Steve’s jaw tensed and untensed. Zemo sighed and pulled out a knife. He dragged it over Darcy’s cheek, but she didn’t flinch away. She just glared at him even harder. Zemo held the knife blade down over Darcy’s leg just above her knee. He raised a brow in a silent challenge.
Wanda gasped and held her hands over her mouth. Her eyes were filling with tears.
Steve blinked at the threat and the hate in his eyes lessened to mix with fear for Darcy. His eyes found hers on the screen. She was looking at him with confidence and nodded her head just slightly.
Steve dropped his shoulders a bit and lifted his chin. His eyes didn’t leave Darcy. In a voice barely above a whisper he said, “She’s my home.”
Zemo nodded. “You took away my home, Avengers. Now, I’m going to take away yours. You’ll go on living, maybe even save the world and find moments of happiness...but you will never be complete again.”
“No!” Clint burst out. “Don’t hurt her!” He looked at the others, eyes pleading for support.
T’Challa turned to the screen and spoke with the authority of the king he was. “Hammond Zemo, I am King T’Challa of Wakanda, also known as the Black Panther, protector of my people. I would be willing to negotiate with you for the release of Darcy Lewis.”
Zemo had shaken his head before T’Challa finished speaking. “No,” he said simply. Zemo moved behind Darcy. “I am going to kill her, and you all are going to watch. If there is anything you wish to tell her, I suggest you say it now.”
A few of the Avengers shook their heads and opened their mouths, but couldn’t find any words.
“Oh,” Zemo let out abruptly. “I almost forgot. Before I slit her throat, there is one thing you should know. When I picked Miss Lewis up from the motel room she was hiding in, I found some interesting vitamins in her bag.” Zemo leaned over Darcy and lightly rested his hand on her stomach. “Congratulations, Captain,” he said with a smile. “You are going to be a father...or at least, you were.” Zemo shrugged carelessly.
The cracking of the wooden table under Steve’s hands was his only response. A glance at him revealed his eyes riveted on Darcy. The other Avengers were looking furiously between the screen and Steve.
Zemo rested the knife on Darcy’s throat and tilted his head to the side as he considered her. “I’m curious,” he said. “Is there anything you wish to say?” He untied the gag and the cloth fell onto her lap.
Darcy licked her lips and took in a deep breath. Zemo took a couple steps to the side so she could see him easily. She looked at him with calm disdain and raised one eyebrow. “What? You think I’m going to beg you? Or that I’m gonna give all my secrets away?” Darcy turned to the camera and gave the audience a look that very few understood the significance of before turning back to Zemo. “I still have some pride, which you clearly do not since it took you nearly thirty minutes to finally decide to get to the point of all this. Seriously dude, monologuing? That is soooo 1960’s incompetent villain. And now you’re giving me the chance to talk?” Her voice was incredulous. "Have you ever even watched a movie? You do realize this is now the part where, just when you think you’ve won, I pull a miracle rescue out of my ass?” Darcy was smiling by now with both eyebrows raised in amusement.
Clint and Natasha both reeled back at this and looked at each other with tentative hope. Steve’s lips twitched, but his face dropped into a frown.
Zemo looked at her in offense with pursed lips. He seemed to think about what she said for a moment before taking a firm hold of his long knife. “This was not how I imagined killing you,” he said.
Darcy nodded. “Yeah. I tend not to accommodate my kidnappers. They learn pretty fast that kidnapping me is a Bad Idea. Those last two words were capitalized by the way,” Darcy said nonchalantly.
Zemo started to raise the knife, but before he got any closer to Darcy, a shrill alarm started ringing. He stopped and looked up.
Darcy beamed at him. “Oh, look at that. I timed that perfectly.”
Zemo glared at her. “What did you do?”
Darcy hmmed and closed her eyes. She faced forward and opened her eyes to look at the camera. She smiled and nodded her head. “I just want you back where you belong,” she sang quickly. “And that’s why, I will leave the light on, I will leave the light on- ”
Zemo tucked away his knife and walked over with his hand outstretched.
“I will leave the light on for you,” Darcy finished in a rush just before Zemo grabbed her chin in a tight grip and forced her to look at him.
Zemo narrowed his eyes at her in suspicion, the alarm still going off in the background.
Darcy talked despite the painful hold. “Got two options: kill me, but then you won’t be able to stop what I started. Or you let me fix it.”
Zemo looked at her skeptically, but Darcy held his gaze.
Zemo released her and stepped back. He looked at the camera - at the Avengers. He looked over his shoulder at Darcy and his lips curled into a sneering smile. “I still have your home,” Zemo said with a gloating smile. He nodded his head to someone off camera and his connection to the video chat cut off.
The Avengers were left looking at a screen with the top half black and the bottom displaying their own shocked images.
Scott looked from the screen to his teammates. “Um, what just happened?”