Chapter Text
"Speaking"
'Thinking'
"Communications"
Writing/Reading
"YELLING"
"Different Language (Translated)"
December 7, 2016, Pearl Harbor, Oahu, Hawaii
At first glance, one would understandably assume things were calm around Pearl Harbor, but then they'd be wrong. In a secret base hidden in the high mountains around the former United States naval base, a secret battle raged between the forces of Hydra and the Avengers. Gunfire rang out as bullets flew around, only to either be dodged or deflected by a respective Avenger. The Avengers fought hard and fast as they pushed through the Hydra soldiers, clearing out the base until they reached the central laboratory, where they found a strange device. However, they didn't have the time to focus on the device as they needed to get the remaining Hydra soldiers dealt with.
"All right, Avengers, we're on the last home stretch," Said Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, giving an order to his team. "Black Widow and I will secure the labs here. Iron Man, Thor, and Hulk, the three of you are to move on the command center, while Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, and Vision are to capture the armory!
"If we capture the armory, then Hydra's ability to fight will be nullified," Captain America finished. "While taking their command center, will cut off the head of the snake."
"But Cap, why hold the labs?" Tony Stark, otherwise known as Iron Man, asked. "I don't see much reason to hold them."
Steve could see where Tony was coming from, and he understood why Stark was making the argument. However, prior to their attack, Captain America had studied the layout of the Hydra base.
"Because if we maintain control of the lab, we can keep the remaining Hydra soldiers from preventing us from capturing this base." Captain America replied, shifting his vibranium shield from his left arm to his right.
Iron Man thought about what his team leader was telling him, and after a moment's thought, he concluded that Captain America was right. Whoever controlled the central laboratories effectively won the battle, so the Avengers needed to hold the labs in order for the others to capture the critical areas for success. Stark nodded to the Captain and gestured for his teammates to follow him. Iron Man's team turned right towards the command center. In contrast, Hawkeye's team took the left path to capture the armory, and Captain America and Black Widow stayed in the labs, prepared to fend off any Hydra soldiers attempting to take them back.
As Steve and Natasha Romanov, known as the Black Widow, kept a close eye out for any Hydra soldiers, the Spy Avenger couldn't help but notice the strange device in the corner. She didn't know what the contraption was for, but it gave her a bad feeling, especially since neither Stark nor Vision had the time to study it. As for Bruce Banner, he was currently not in the best mood (literally) to work on it until the base was captured, and he had a chance to calm down from Hulk form. Feeling displeased with not knowing what the Hydra device was for, Black Widow turned to her friend, team leader, and fiancé.
"Steve, what do you think Hydra plans to do with that thing?" Natasha asked, prompting the First Avenger to look at the device. "I mean, I realize that with it being Hydra tech, it obviously can't be anything good."
Captain America looked at the odd machine closely while keeping his ears open for any sound of stomping footsteps. His eyes traveled over the gadget, noting how it looked like a doorframe but lacking the door. Naturally, in their arrogance, Hydra had their symbol of a skull and tentacles emblazoned on it, but even so, Steve also wanted to know what it was for. Unfortunately, he knew from experience with the vile organization that he fought against since World War II that patience needed to be maintained before they could learn what it was and what it was being used for.
"To be honest, Nat, I don't know," Steve answered honestly, looking at his lover. "We're just going to have to wait until we capture this Hydra base, and then Iron Man, Vision, hulk, after he calms down, can study the thing. Lucky for them, it looks like we managed to capture the labs before the Hydra scientists could delete any information."
Black Widow nodded in agreement before turning to look at the control console. Feeling her curiosity getting the best of her, Natasha holstered her twin Glock-26 pistols and walked over to the control pad. Feeling somewhat mischievous, Black Widow swayed her hips in a manner that she knew Steve couldn't resist, regardless of their current situation. Natasha knew she was successful as she felt Steve's eyes drawn to her. Upon reaching the console, Black Widow bent over to begin hacking the computers to find out what Hydra was planning.
"Widow, what are you doing?" Steve asked his fiancée.
Black Widow's fingers raced across the keyboard, thus far successfully hacking into Hydra's system. Pulling over a nearby datapad, she plugged it into the computer and began using tried and true S.H.I.E.L.D. hacking techniques to break Hydra's firewalls. Mentally running the numbers through her head, Natasha knew it wouldn't be long before she was in the system.
"I'm making our job easier by hacking into Hydra's systems," She replied, standing straight up with the datapad in her hands. "Hopefully, I'll be able to figure out what Hydra was planning to do with that device while we wait for the other teams to complete their objectives. Just give me some cover, Steve, while I hack into the system."
Captain America couldn't help but chuckle at his fiancée's words but nonetheless maintained his constant vigil. The Super Soldier and the Spy had been in a steady relationship since they had successfully expelled the regrown Hydra from within S.H.I.E.L.D. and freeing Steve's former best friend, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes, from Hydra's control as the Winter Soldier. It wasn't really planned, but their relationship just seemed to work out, especially since Steve admitted that he enjoyed that, technically, fake kiss while they were on the run (although Cap was willing to admit that he had begun to be attracted to the Russian born woman since they first started working together when the Avengers first formed). Steve's eyes traveled between the two entrances into the lab while occasionally looking at Natasha to check on her progress. Eventually, he brought his free hand to his earpiece to listen to the opening comm channel.
"Hawkeye to all Avengers," Rang out the voice of the Avengers Marksman. "My team has successfully captured the armory, and the remaining Hydra forces in our sector have either surrendered or swallowed cyanide pills to keep from talking!"
Captain America couldn't help but roll his eyes when he heard Hawkeye's report of what happened to the suicidal Hydra soldiers. After all, he saw firsthand how often Hydra personnel were willing to keep from talking during the Second World War, so it wasn't a surprise that Hydra in the present day did the same thing. The First Avenger's attention returned to his comms as Iron Man's voice tuned in.
"Nicely done, Hawkeye, although my team might have you beat," The Iron Avenger stated as gunfire rang out in the background of the communication, with the distinctive whiting of Iron Man's repulsors, the whoosh of Thor's hammer and the roar of Hulk mixed in. "Because my team is right on the verge of capturing the command center. I expect we'll have it in hand shortly."
Steve rolled his eyes at Tony's antics while Natasha chuckled as she continued hacking into Hydra's computer system. Suddenly, the sound of pounding footsteps came from the hallway from which the Avengers accessed the labs, and Steve pivoted to face it. He knew from experience, courtesy of his time as an army captain during the Second World War, that pounding footsteps could only mean one thing: enemy reinforcements were coming!
"Captain America to all teams!" He spoke into his communication device as he stood firm, defending Natasha as she continued working with the datapad. "Hydra reinforcements are coming towards the lab, eta five minutes!"
"Copy that, Cap, but my team is still working on clearing out the command center," Ironman replied. "But it shouldn't take too much longer, and we'll be there soon!"
"Same here, Captain," Hawkeye added, gunfire in the background of his com. "We'll try and finish up in the armory as soon as possible!"
Steve couldn't help but grit his teeth when he heard that from his teammates, especially as around twenty Hydra soldiers stormed through the doors leading into the lab. The Hydra troopers wore uniforms reminiscent of World War Two German uniforms, complete with WWII German helmets donning the Hydra symbol and armed with MP5 or AK-47 automatic rifles. Captain America didn't hesitate to fight the Hydra goons when they entered the lab, charging into the formation with his shield in front of him.
"Copy that, finish your assignments, and get over here as quickly as possible!" He stated, using his shield to bash a Hydra soldier in the face while dodging bullets.
While Captain America was fighting against the Hydra soldiers, Black Widow continued working furiously on the datapad in her hand. Whenever a Hydra trooper or two managed to get past the First Avenger, they noticed what she was doing and charged at her to stop her from accessing their files. Whenever they did so, she would either use her Widow Bites to electro-shock the Hydra soldiers or draw one of her duel Glock-26s to shoot at them. Amazingly, she did all this while working on the datapad with one hand.
As for Captain America, he would either bash the Hydra goons with his shield, toss said shield at them, allowing the disc-shaped weapon to bounce off each target, or straight up punch the Hydra soldiers, effectively knocking them out. Whenever he threw his shield, it would fly through the air as a red, white, and blue blur as it hit at least six Hydra troopers, bounced off a wall, and proceeded to knock out another four Hydra soldiers before being caught by its owner who then used it to hit a Hydra officer in the chest, throwing the man through the air. Whenever the Hydra soldiers tried to use their guns, Captain America would raise his shield to block the bullets, allowing them to bounce off the surface and fly off in different directions.
However, one such bullet that bounced off Captain America's shield flew in the direction of the machine in the center of the lab. The bullet hit the device in the middle of the skull portion of Hydra's symbol, penetrated through the metal, and hit the machine's power source. The kinetic force of the impact of the bullet triggered the machine to begin powering on, unknowingly to the combatants in the room. The machine started making a whirring noise as it began to turn on, but because of the gunfire, no one heard it. Meanwhile, Black Widow continued working on hacking into Hydra's files, finally breaking through the last firewall that stood in her way.
"Ha, I still got it!" She exclaimed, firing the last bullet from her pistol at a charging Hydra goon. "Cap, I've broken into Hydra's data files; I have access to everything related to that machine!"
While he heard what his fiancée said, Captain America sucker-punched a Hydra officer, following it up by hitting a Hydra soldier who was attempting to sneak up behind him with his shield. The Hydra trooper remained standing, with a goofy face, for only a moment before falling face first.
"Nice work, Widow," He replied as he grabbed another Hydra goon and wrapped his arm around the goon's neck, squeezing hard until the enemy soldier passed out. "Transmit the data to Ironman as quickly as possible!"
"Already ahead of you, Cap!" She answered back, sticking a flash drive into the datapad. "Black Widow to Ironman, do you copy? I've hacked into Hydra's database and have access to their computer files, especially regarding their mystery device; I'm transmitting it to you now!"
"Copy that, Black Widow; I'm seeing it now on my HUD," Ironman replied. "My team has successfully captured the command center, and we're returning to the lab now!"
"Same with my team," Hawkeye added in. "The armory is taken, and we are heading back to the laboratory!"
Looking at each other, Captain America and Black Widow knew that they would still have to hold off their attackers as long as possible until the rest of their team arrived. All the while, the device in the middle of the laboratory was making a whirring sound as it powered up, all of which everyone in the room wasn't paying attention to. Meanwhile, Natasha continued looking through the information on her datapad until she came across something that caused her eyes to widen in shock and her face to pale.
"Bozhe Moy (Oh my God)!" Black Widow exclaimed in Russian, looking over the information she just read before looking at Captain America. "Cap, according to the data, the device is a time machine! Hydra cracked the code to time travel!"
Steve looked at Natasha in shock, realizing, to a degree, Hydra's plan. With the time machine, they could send agents to specific timelines and alter the past, allowing Hydra to ensure its control over the world. Worst of all, they could go to moments that could affect the Avengers, ensuring that they either couldn't or, worse, wouldn't join forces to fight for the freedom of the world. At that moment, the time machine turned on, a red energy vortex exploding from the center of the machine with arcs of red-colored electrical beams snaking through the room, in addition to a vacuum-like effect sucking nearly everything into the machine. Instantly, Captain America jumped into action, using his body to provide cover for Black Widow and raising his shield to protect them from the red lightning bolts.
"How did the time machine turn on?" A Hydra officer demanded, ducking to dodge an arc of red electricity. "It wasn't supposed to activate like that!"
"I don't know, Sir," a Hydra soldier replied while trying to keep his feet firmly on the ground. "But if it continues to remain like that, we might not..."
Whatever the Hydra soldier was going to say, it was cut off as a red bolt of electricity hit him and was instantly vaporized. The Hydra officer was also struck and killed by another bolt of electricity, along with the remaining Hydra forces in the laboratory, leaving only Captain America and Black Widow. The two Avengers had been able to duck underneath Cap's shield while the vacuum sensation grew stronger. When the vacuum's pull became more powerful, Steve grabbed a metal pipe inserted into the floor, which provided a firm grip for the First Avenger; however, despite the Super Soldier Serum in his DNA, Steve could still feel the strain on the muscles in his arm.
Natasha could see the strain on Steve's face as he struggled to hold onto the pipe. She knew that unless he released his grip, he would tear his arm muscles, and considering what she read on the datapad, there was a very good chance that history, as they knew it, was in danger. Natasha shifted her body as best she could in Steve's arms and looked into his eyes.
"Steve, you need to let go of the pipe," She said, shocking her fiancée. "Otherwise, you're going to tear up your arm muscles!"
"Nat, have you lost your mind?" Steve replied while tightening his grip as best he could despite the pain. "If I let go, we'll be sucked into that machine, and who knows what time period we'll end up in?!"
Natasha shook her head in exasperation.
"Steve, please, trust me," She pleaded. "Otherwise, Hydra will succeed in their plan to change the past!"
Steve contemplated Natasha's words. They had worked together for quite a few years since he was thawed from the ice, and more so after the formation of the Avengers team when Loki attacked New York City with his Chitauri army. Looking from Natasha to the time machine, Steve knew he had no other choice. Taking a deep breath before releasing it, Steve released his grip on the pipe and wrapped his arms around Natasha. Within seconds, Captain America and Black Widow were pulled into the red vortex of Hydra's time machine, which finally shut off after they were gone. Seconds later, the rest of the Avengers arrived at the laboratory but quickly realized they were too late.
Ironman's faceplate opened, revealing his pale face as he stared at the time machine. Like Natasha, Tony realized what Hydra had built and knew it could mean disaster for the Avengers and the world. After discovering the damage to the machine and realizing what must have happened to Steve and Natasha, he ordered his AI, Friday, to contact the Avengers allies in the reformed SHIELD so they could transport the time machine to Avengers Tower in New York City. With any hope, he and Bruce Banner could repair the machine and get Steve and Natasha back from whatever timeline they were trapped in.
Unknown Date, Unknown Location
The portal ripped open over a forested area blanketed in snow, and from the vortex fell two figures. Captain America and Black Widow fell for about a minute or two before they landed in the snow, with the First Avenger landing first while the Spy Avenger remained in his arms. Fortunately for Widow, Cap took the brunt of the landing while cushioning her. While she rolled off her fiancé and onto the snow, Natasha heard Steve groan heavily, and quite frankly, she couldn't blame him; even though he had the Super Soldier Serum in his DNA, he was still prone to feeling pain from a fall like what they experienced, even if they landed on soft snow.
Eventually, the two Avengers stood up, wiping off the snow as best they could before taking in their surroundings. Given that they had traveled back in time, they weren't sure where they were, much less WHEN. All they could tell was that they were in a wooded area during winter. Fortunately, Stark had modified their suits with built-in temperature sensors that would give them some degree of warmth, but they weren't sure how long that could last.
"Well, Steve, what do you suggest we do?" Natasha asked, looking to her fiancée for guidance. "I mean, depending on when we are, it's not like we can pick up the phone and call home."
Steve chuckled at Natasha's reference, knowing she was talking about Spielberg's E.T. movie. Although, to be fair, she wasn't exactly too far off the mark. For all he knew, they could have ended up in a time in the past before phones had been invented. For now, it was probably best to figure out their bearings before going further. Looking for any kind of significant landmark, Steve turned to his right and listened carefully; what he heard was the sound of running water, maybe a river. Hearing that, Steve pointed in the direction of where he believed the water was.
"Let's head that way," Steve said, already walking in the direction he pointed out. "Maybe we'll run into someone and ask them what the year is.
Natasha wasn't going to argue as she quickly ran to keep up with Steve. They walked in silence through the woods until they finally came upon a clearing. There was only one small issue with the clearing they walked into: it was full of old-fashioned military tents and soldiers walking about. It quickly became apparent to the two Avengers that they had stumbled into an army camp, but what they were focusing on were the uniforms and equipment of the army they were looking at. For one thing, the soldiers were using flintlock muskets, which hadn't been used by any world military in years. As for the uniforms, the soldiers wore blue coats with either cream or red-lined piping or lapels, and several wore tricorn hats. As for the officers, they had epaulets adorning the shoulders of their uniforms, with some epaulets either being silver or gold in color.
As the soldiers and officers were shaking out of their stupor at seeing the two strangers walk into their camp, they quickly moved to grab their weapons and pointed them at Captain America and Black Widow. As for the two Avengers, recognizing that they were outnumbered, they quickly raised their hands in surrender, hoping that they would be spared. As Steve examined the uniforms closer, he was beginning to develop a suspicion as to which time period they were in. After some time, an officer with silver epaulets on each shoulder and riding on horseback approached them, his sword drawn and pointed at them.
"Who are you?" The Officer asked, the sword at his side but not fully raised in Steve and Natasha's direction. "And how did you get past our sentries?"
Steve and Natasha looked at each other before looking at the officer.
"Just out of curiosity, what year is it?" Steve asked, confusing the Officer. "And where exactly are we?"
The officer looked at Steve in utter confusion, unable to comprehend why the strangely garbled man with the shield would ask those specific questions. The thought that they were spies didn't escape his mind, but he couldn't be sure. Finally, the officer sheathed his sword and looked at the two strangers. For now, he decided to play along before taking them to his commanding officer.
"The year is December Ninteenth, Seventeen-Seventy-Six, just a few hundred miles from Trenton, New Jersey, on the British side of the Delaware River," He replied, staring at Steve and Natasha's shocked faces. "I think it's best that I take the two of you to my commanding officer, General George Washington!"