Chapter Text
Epilogue: A Matter of Time
They won.
It wasn’t by a sudden explosive blast from the epicenter of where Steve and the other Avengers were fighting. Bucky stared all around him; at the tiny motes formed from the sudden dissolving of the many faces of Thanos.
It was different from the dusting that he had seen in Steve’s memories.
It was… strangely beautiful; specks of light, like fireflies, floating among them, before fading away.
The Asgardians were first to declare victory, their roaring cheers of victory spreading relief through him. More joined in, echoing and overlapping with laughter and cheering.
The wounds that Bucky had sustained shot lancing pain through him, as he shifted ever so slightly. The half mask and glasses had retracted, allowing him an unfiltered view of his surroundings. His serum was working slower than usual in trying to stymie and heal him, but he supposed it was all due to the sword he had wielded.
Even ‘cleaned’, he could feel acute throbbing pain from the enormous gash that it had made when he used it. It ran up from his forearm and to his shoulder. But he considered it a small price to pay—
Heavily armored and wrapped feet in sandals entered Bucky’s vision. He blinked and looked up to see his Roman counterpart standing before him, before kneeling. The sword that he held onto was pried painfully away. Bucky didn’t have the strength to resist, as white-hot jolts lanced up and down his arm.
“Over here, Mage Natasha,” his Roman counterpart stated.
Hurried footsteps approached, but it was another person’s arrival that caught his attention. The woman who had glowed, had flown in a similar manner that he remembered seeing Steve’s memories of Carol Danvers, landed next to him. She had been the one to rescue both him and his 2020’s counterpart from the fray – from being trapped within the horde.
Of his 2020’s counterpart, he was lying on the slope of the sand dune as well. Steve’s 1949 shield was lying next to him. Bucky could see some cuts and scrapes, but he didn’t know how wounded his counterpart was.
“I don’t care if you think that your reality is better off without you, but please don’t ever so that again, Uncle Bucky!” the woman who was not Carol Danvers, cried.
Bucky frowned, as he caught his Roman counterpart’s puzzled glance at their mutual counterpart. They were both thinking the same thing – namely the convention behind ‘Uncle Bucky’. Then, his Roman counterpart resumed pointing out where his wounds were to Natasha, the spell user.
“My days of thinking about suicide have been long over, Caroline,” his 2020s counterpart stated. “Cards just fell that way during the attack.”
“That better be true, or else Mom and Dad are going to have your hide. Uncle Steve too, when I find him,” the woman huffed. Then, she reached out and gently squeezed his shoulder, before she took off in flight.
“Don’t tell me that fucking dumbass is missing,” he heard his 2020s counterpart mutter.
“Caroline?” Bucky couldn’t help but ask.
He needed something to distract from the rather painful healing, or whatever Natasha was doing with her glowing hands. His counterpart had an extremely firm grip on his metal shoulder, pressing him down to keep him from moving.
His sniper rifle, pressing simultaneously into the sand and his back, was uncomfortable. Yet, it hadn’t escaped Bucky’s notice that his Roman counterpart had a metal arm.
It was the one thing that defined them – all of them – as the Winter Soldier.
“Stephanie Rogers and James Barnes’ kid,” his 2020s counterpart stated. “Met them and the kid shortly after the grudge match between Stark, Steve, and me in 2016. 0-8-4, alien device, transported Steve and me to their world. Caroline was a toddler back then. Looks like she was transformed into that reality’s equivalent, or thereabouts of my reality’s Carol Danvers.”
“Huh,” Bucky grunted.
He didn’t know what to make of it, or how he felt about the fact that a female iteration of Steve, had a child with an iteration of himself – his selves. It certainly did feel a little odd, but strangely enough, he felt happy for that reality’s counterparts.
“How are your reckless counterparts, Buck?”
Bucky glanced over his Roman counterpart’s shoulder to see Steve – dressed in the red-white-blue with a white star Roman-like armor – approach. Peggy followed him. What Roman-Steve wore didn’t looked quite like the others within the Roman legions, but it did mark that version of Steve clearly as that reality’s Captain America.
Or whatever the Roman equivalent was.
“Wasn’t a reckless idea, Steve,” Roman-Bucky surprisingly stated, sounding defensive. “It was an excellent use of tactics, Peggy’s powers, and terrain advantage—”
“Fuck it. I’m not staying for a lecture or argument between the two of you,” their 2020’s counterpart suddenly stated, wincing slightly as Bucky saw him sit up.
“Hey, you’re still injured—” Roman-Steve began.
“Sam, what’s the status of the Avengers?” his counterpart stated, pressing his right ear, where Bucky was certain there was a comm piece. He heard the double voice in his own ear’s comm piece.
“I’m flying, but I’m not seeing a damn sign. Not even where Thor’s landing at Prime blew a crater into the ground,” Sam answered, worryingly.
Bucky blinked as a rather filthy swear in Russian issued out of his counterpart’s mouth. “On my way. I’ll meet you at the edge of the 1949 contingent.”
“Copy,” Sam’s crisp answer sounded over the com.
His counterpart then stood up, taking the shield with him, while simultaneously brushed off Roman-Steve and Roman-Peggy’s attempts to stop him. As much as Bucky himself wanted to follow his counterpart, he was still pinned down by his Roman counterpart, and still being healed.
“I didn’t quite catch what he said earlier,” Roman-Peggy began.
At that, Bucky couldn’t help but chuckle, thought that sent a sharp lance of pain through his injured arm. “It’s Russian,” he answered after taking a moment to just breathe through the pain. “Different language. Guess whatever translating spell that was cast didn’t account for it. Almost all of us Winter Soldiers speak that language.”
At the mention of the Winter Soldier name, he couldn’t help but notice that his counterpart had flinched. “Sorry,” he apologized.
The silence that feel upon them was uncomfortable, but Bucky still couldn’t not move to escape it. Instead, he glanced over towards where his counterpart used to lay, and stared out into the sea of people.
Motes of light continued to brighten as if fighting to not be erased, but ultimately fading.
Even with what Bucky could see, the disparate groups brought together to fight, were starting to gather along the edges of the dunes. Celebrations were fading, and the now, curiosities were being piqued between worlds, realities, and timelines. While some groups were healing or rendering medical aid, there was one thing clear to Bucky—
Steve, the other four Avengers, and Thanos-Prime – were nowhere to be seen.
* * *
It wasn’t just dark – it was completely pitch black.
Steve blinked. The unbearable pain that coursed through his body was gone. It was replaced by… nothing. No hint of exhaustion, aches, pulls, or even the scratch of cloth against his skin.
Yet, as soon as he started to move, the darkness that greeted him began to fade. It looked like dawn was approaching, though where the horizon began and ended was a little disconcerting. The entire place, including the ‘ground’ he was ‘standing’ on was brightening.
He glanced down – his body was still there. Armored, and he was holding onto Stormbreaker. But he felt almost nothing—
“You are alive. But only just.”
Steve turned from where he was, and saw the most horrific, yet strangely satisfactory sight. Ghost Rider was tugging on the chain that was usually wrapped around its chest. Attached to the other end of the chain was a seemingly anchored Thanos – the primary one.
Thanos looked to be struggling mightily against the chain, but strangely wasn’t making a sound. Ghost Rider looked completely unaffected by the struggle, though it was a little difficult to tell with the skull-on-fire visage.
“Alive?” Steve questioned.
“The Tesseract should have killed you and your friends.” The entity didn’t transform into its current host, but strangely, Steve could hear him speak.
Steve quietly sighed.
“What is the price?” he asked after a few moments.
“There is none. It has been paid by what I owe you and your Avengers, Captain Rogers.”
He gaped. Yet, the entity said nothing more. “Then where am I, and why am I here?” he asked.
“You stand at the precipice, between several realms, currents of space and time, Captain—” the entity began, but then fell silent. Almost immediately, the entity’s visage changed to that of his host.
“What it means to say is that you have a choice, Rogers,” the youthful, but battle-hardened and scarred visage of a younger Bucky who had went to war at the age of sixteen, stated. “Stay in 1949 and live the rest of your life there, or return to the 2020s.”
“I can do that?” Steve questioned.
“You stand between two worlds, but you may only choose one, Rogers,” the entity stated. “Ghost Rider is willing to make that concession for what you’ve done.”
“Where is my body then? In the 1940’s?”
He would be damned if he didn’t try one last time to find out what happened to his body when he tried to look for it. Only the shield had been recovered. If he was forced to leave Peggy and Bucky behind, he wanted to at least give them the location of himself – wherever he was.
“Your appearance there caused it to be momentarily displaced,” the entity answered.
“Displaced?” Steve began, then realized what Ghost Rider meant. “So, if I return to the 2020s, my other self will return?”
“Yes.”
The unasked question was there. If he was willing to do so – to leave behind those he loved. To leave behind Peggy, Bucky, and everyone else. To give them the clean slate of Steve Rogers, with only memories up to 1945.
But to not return to the 2020s was to also set his 1945 self up to be continually displaced until he died in the timeline he had carved out with Peggy and Bucky. To be selfish, and to set his 1945 self up for heartbreak, loneliness, and what he himself had gone through since 2011.
“Do I have to make the choice now?” he quietly asked.
Ghost Rider’s visage had returned to being a skull-on-fire. The entity did not say a word, except to fade before his eyes. The soft, warm colors of his surroundings also began to fade into a more grey pallet…
Steve felt sand, or at least whatever constituted the ground in this strange ‘world’, upon his back. Stormbreaker was laying a little ways away to his right, his hand outstretched towards it. All around him were tiny motes of light that were slowly fading like fireflies.
To his left was Natasha and Clint – both were stirring. Thor was already moving, though the Asgardian probably felt as sluggish as Steve.
Steve did not see Tony or Bruce anywhere; he could only surmise that because they had used the stones. Tony was technically dead. Steve could only assume that Bruce and Tony had only been grounded by Ghost Rider solely for the battle.
Booted feet stopped before his eyes. “Why d’ya have to keep being a dumbass, Steve?”
Steve glanced up. The burnished black metal hand that Bucky, his Bucky of the 2020s was extended towards him. “Thought I gave the stupid back to you, jerk,” he commented, faintly smiling.
“Punk. Don’t you remember? You took it all with you when you left with the stones,” Bucky gently retorted, but nevertheless, hauled him up.
“It isn’t 2023 anymore, is it?” he asked.
“Spoilers,” was all Bucky stated.
It was enough for him to understand that days, weeks, possibly months had already passed since he had left 2023. That he was crossing time streams either by showing up, or remaining behind while Bucky, Sam, Clint, and their friends came here to fight.
His future now, his past – if he returned to 2023.
Steve looked around, glancing down momentarily when he felt Bucky briefly squeeze his hand before letting go. It was a silent, yet affectionate gesture that spoke volumes between them; of a chance long passed, and of relief from Bucky that he was not dead.
He looked back up; there was a neutral look in Bucky’s eyes, and it wasn’t on him. The 2012 group of Avengers – identified solely through their uniforms – were approaching. Natasha and Clint of the 2020s were getting up, and Thor had gotten up with help from the Warriors Three and Sif.
Beyond the 2012 group, were a few others, including the 1949 group. Peggy looked uninjured, though Bucky – 1949 version – looked somewhat injured, but not as bad as Steve had initially thought. They were hanging back, as if unsure if they wanted to be quite a part of the gathering.
Mingling in with the group was surprisingly some of the not-quite Roman Army, including a surprising appearance of his own counterpart. What looked like people from the 1970’s were joining the 1949 group. More than a few from either groups were eyeing each other with slight surprise.
Steve focused his attention on the 2012 group of Avengers – the closest to him and his friends. That was, until Sam suddenly landed, making some noise. There was an extremely happy grin on his friend’s face as he surveyed the scene.
It was Bucky of the 2020’s rolling of his eyes at Sam’s dramatic entrance that broke some of the tension in the air. “Clearly, Steve’s stories about his USO days rubbed off on you, Sam,” Bucky dryly stated.
“Damn straight,” Sam answered “I’m making the red-white-blue look finer than she’s ever been.”
“I completely agree with that!” an unexpected voice chimed in.
Steve glanced over to his right to see his female counterpart – Stephanie ‘Stevie’ Rogers – approach. She, along with several SHIELD members that included Quake, Lincoln, Director Carter, and another version of Bucky who had not lost his left arm, and Caroline Rogers – that reality’s version of Captain Marvel – followed.
“Hey, an endorsement from another reality’s Cap. That’s pretty awesome,” Sam quipped.
“Stevie,” Steve greeted, fondly.
“Steve,” she answered, equally fond. “We won.”
Steve smiled, wide and happy. He nodded once. “We did.”
“And we have your group of Avengers to thank for that.”
Steve and the others turned around. Clint and Natasha, along with Thor and his friends had gathered closer to them. A small group – no more than three people, approached. Steve couldn’t help but gape slightly in surprise.
A woman who looked similar to Tony, dressed in nearly identical armor that Tony had worn into the 2023 battle, led the way. She was flanked on her right by another iteration of Bucky, in the uniform of Captain America. On her left was an iteration of himself – unexpectedly in the guise of the Winter Soldier, complete with a metal left arm.
“Thanos-Prime,” Steve softly stated.
“Antonia Stark,” the woman greeted, nodding once to his correct assessment of what her world had faced.
“Steve Rogers.” Steve shook the woman’s hand. “But you probably already knew that.”
“What happened to my counterpart and Dr. Banner in your reality? If they both existed?”
“Bruce – Dr. Banner – was the one who used the stones to bring everyone back,” Steve explained. “He was… a fragment of a soul that Natasha here—” he gestured to Natasha, who gave the three a simple nod “—carried when she was the Soul Stone.”
He paused for a moment, knowing that 2014 at Vormir had truly been the last time he had gotten to talk to Tony. He had said all he wanted to say – now was the time to honor a true protector and friend.
“Anthony Stark, gave his life to snap Thanos and his forces out of existence,” Steve solemnly stated. “One victory out of millions of losses that our reality’s Dr. Strange had seen.”
“So, what now?” Clint spoke up, breaking the solemn silence that had fallen.
Steve opened his mouth to speak. It was Ghost Rider’s sudden appearance in his skull-on-fire form that stopped him. However, the host form that the entity had taken was not the youthful version of Bucky, but of the man Steve remembered as Robbie Reyes.
“You go home,” Reyes stated, transformed to host state. “Ghost Rider’s work here continues.”
“There are more Thanos iterations, aren’t there?” Tony of 2012 spoke up.
Reyes inclined his head once. “But all of you have fulfilled your obligations, and some more than what was owed. All future fights against Thanos will not involve any of you, unless you explicitly contract with Ghost Rider again. Even then, there is no guarantee of your life, such as there was now.”
“So you’re saying to stay the hell out of your way?” Sam asked.
“It’s better that way,” Reyes answered. “For all of your own good.”
“All right, fine by me,” Tony – a wheelchair bound version – rolled up into the edge of the group. Steve recognized him as the Tony Stark who existed in the reality where the Red Skull had taken over the world – possessing him, Steve.
“So then, where’s the hell is Private Barnes, Reyes?” the same Tony then brusquely asked.
“Here, Stark.”
The crowd to Steve’s left parted slightly. The younger version of Bucky who had become host to Ghost Rider in order to return Steve and his friends to their reality, stepped through. Steve watched as he crossed to the other side, accepting something small and metallic thrown at him by the speedster Jacqueline Falsworth-Crichton.
It took Steve a moment to realize that the tiny object was that reality’s US Army Private James Barnes’ dog tags. The ones that contained the Captain America uniform. Said uniform bled over the young man a few seconds later.
That reality’s SHIELD Director, Daisy Johnson, handed Private Barnes the familiar shield. Barnes took the shield and draped it across his back, before turning back around.
A fire sparking portal had formed near the group.
An echo of surprise mixed with sadness shot through Steve as saw that reality’s James Barnes salute both Stevie and him. They were the two Captain Americas who had helped his reality defeat the Red Skull. The same Red Skull who had possessed that reality’s Steve Rogers – and was killed.
It was that reality’s Captain America’s way of saying thanks.
Steve returned it with the respect and honor that it deserved.
It was only after every single person from that reality had stepped through, and the portal closed, that Steve dropped his hand. It also was the signal for the others to begin to return to their own realities, times, and lives.
Antonia Stark, along with her reality’s Winter Soldier and Captain America left shortly after that. It didn’t seem that any of the three were keen on talking or goodbyes. Steve didn’t blame them; he was a little uneasy at the fact that he was the Winter Soldier in that reality.
Steve stepped away from Sam and Bucky, and picked up Stormbreaker. He approached Thor, who was watching the others leave with some curiosity. The Lady Sif and the Warriors Three were watching as well, though it seemed that all the weapons used by the other Avengers had been returned.
“Thank you, Thor,” he said, extending the weapon out.
“This was a battle that will be told for the ages to come,” Thor stated, but did not take the battleaxe. “That is yours to keep, Captain Rogers.”
As surprised as he was, Steve supposed that he shouldn’t have been. “It’s yours,” he insisted. “Maybe not now, but perhaps somewhere in the future.”
“The Allmother says that it is constantly in motion, that it is unpredictable,” Thor murmured, then nodded.
Relieved of the burden of Stormbreaker, Steve stuck out a hand to Thor. “I hope everything goes well for you and your reality in the future.”
“Yours as well, Captain Rogers,” Thor answered, clasping his arm. “It will be interesting to tell the tale of this battle to the Avengers. Yet, they shall know of the protection that was bestowed.”
They let go. Steve watched as Thor and the other Asgardians left through their own portal. As it snapped closed, he turned slightly at hearing footsteps approach.
“Don’t forget about this when you go home, Steve,” Bucky said, handing him his shield.
Steve took it, but not before shooting both Bucky and Sam a puzzled look. Neither said a word in response, but he had a feeling that it was clear that they were no longer from 2023. Yet, he also didn’t dare ask just how many years had passed since the battle.
He still hadn’t made his decision, but as he slung the shield across his back and returned to where Peggy and the 1949 group were. Footsteps behind him caused him to turn slightly, only to have Natasha drape and sling her arms around both him and Sam’s shoulders, pulling both of them close to her. Clint opted to walk beside Bucky, rolling his eyes at the antics.
“Good to have you alive, Nat,” Sam said, smiling.
“Clint still won’t tell me what year it is, so I bet it has to do with some spoilers,” Natasha started.
She didn’t get to speak more on the subject, but did let go as the Roman Army counterpart of Steve approached. The other Roman Army members had separated from mingling in with the 1949 and what looked to be 1970 – solely based on hairstyles – groups.
There was a strange, glowing tear-drop container of sorts hanging around his Roman Army counterpart’s neck. Steve suddenly remembered Bucky’s – 1949 Bucky – quip about playing Roman legion with his shield and the strange sword. The Roman counterpart in front of him carried a variant of the concentric circle and star shield, and what looked like a ludius.
“Well met, Captain Rogers, is it?” his counterpart said, stopping before them.
“It is… sir,” Steve answered. He could hear authority in that tone. Not that the bearing that his Roman counterpart spoke of someone incredibly used to command; living it day-to-day.
“General Rogers, commander of the northern armies,” his counterpart stated, holding out a hand. “Well, former commander. I had been in retirement for about six years, before the debt owed to Ghost Rider was due.”
Steve clasped his arm for a brief moment, a slight disquieting feeling running through him. He knew that he himself would never agree to anything with Ghost Rider unless it was a life-for-a-life. There were too many small loop holes that could theoretically arise if that debt was anything less than that bar.
“I’m sorry to hear that you had to make a debt with the Spirit of Vengeance, General,” Natasha sincerely stated, reaching out and clasping hands with Steve’s Roman counterpart.
“It was worth it,” Steve’s counterpart stated.
Steve didn’t miss the brief flick of his eyes towards Bucky. The disquieting feeling disappeared – he would have done the same if Bucky’s – or even Peggy’s – life was at stake.
“Pardon my rudeness, but how are we able to understand you?”
Clint had asked that question.
“My friend, Mage Natasha, cast a translating spell. It will wear off soon, but I was told by a variation of former Empress Peggy of the tale behind these stones,” General Rogers stated. “We will begin to search for the rest of the stones, and try to destroy them. You have my thanks, Captain – and your friends – for the foresight of preventing a larger war in my… time.”
Steve nodded, unsure as to what he was supposed to say to something like that. Fortunately, it was Clint again, who covered for his uncertainty by asking, “What’s that around your neck?”
“A phylactery,” was all Steve’s counterpart answered before bowing slightly to all of them. “Safe travels. May the future bless fortune upon your blades.”
“You as well,” Steve answered.
When his counterpart was definitely out of earshot it was Bucky who spoke up first, saying, “Definitely not Roman Army.”
“Not in a million years,” Sam agreed. “Though…”
“Though?” Clint prompted.
“The movements that he directed his army during the battle reminded me that sword-and-sandal movies really suck at depicting battles,” Sam stated. “Aerial view and all that.”
“Come on,” Clint began, grinning. You can’t discount that he and the others are practically Gladiator, with magic. Except that you know… instead of dying, Maximus lives.”
They watched as the not-Roman Army formed up and marched with precision into the fire portal. “Praetorian Guards,” Steve heard Bucky mutter.
“Barnes?” Natasha questioned.
Bucky shook his head. Steve shot his best friend a questioning look, but Bucky’s expression remained closed. Steve didn’t continue to pry.
“Head’s up Steve, looks like the 70’s are calling. Bad hairstyles and all.” Sam’s alert drew Steve’s attention to the 1970’s group and the fire portal forming near them.
He saw Bucky – 1949 – give his 1970’s counterpart the ‘cleaned’ sword. Caroline Rogers, the daughter of Stephanie Rogers, was watching the exchange with interest. The group that both Caroline and Stephanie were a part of, were also talking earnestly to what looked like 1970’s versions of Peggy and Sousa. Peggy – his Peggy, his wife, was surprisingly among the discussion.
There were some grim yet satisfied expressions when Steve and the others reached them. Whether by sheer presence, or the fact that Stevie knew him the best, she stepped forward. There was a strange object in her hand.
“Ghost Rider gave us a rather nifty 0-8-4 in repayment for what it owed us,” his counterpart began without preamble. “Turns out my reality is a nexus or crossroad for different realities to jump into. Private Barnes’ reality, and that one where Thanos-Prime existed, are nexuses as well. It certainly explains a hell of a lot of the 0-8-4s that keep transporting people to our reality.”
“So is that going to steady it?” Bucky asked.
“Focus most of the 0-8-4s, even the ones that we haven’t found yet,” Stevie answered. “First thing we’re going to do is establish a bridge to the 1970 reality that just had HYDRA exposed and unleashed. We have a lot of experience that they can use in their war.”
“They’ll definitely appreciate the help,” Steve answered, nodding.
“Then, we were thinking of establishing a bridge to your—”
“Don’t,” both he and Bucky stated at the same time.
Steve briefly glanced over at Bucky as Sam, Natasha, Clint, and Stevie chuckled. “We have enough of our own troubles,” Bucky amended.
“So I’ve gathered,” Stevie answered. “Are you sure?”
Bucky glanced over towards Sam and the others. All three nodded in agreement. “Yeah,” Bucky stated.
“How about you, Steve?” Stevie asked.
“I’m just a transient wanderer through time,” he said. He still had not completely made his choice on whether to stay in 1949 or return to the 2020s.
“Steve—” Natasha began, annoyed as she glared at him.
“Your wife – and by the way, congratulations – didn’t want a bridge connected anyhow,” Stevie cut in before an argument could break out.
Steve nodded, before murmuring his thanks. “Good luck on helping the 1970 group, Stevie.”
Stevie’s lips quirked up in a confident grin. “Yeah. Caroline’s already calling your counterparts Uncle Steven and Uncle James. The two of you are still Uncle Steve and Uncle Bucky in her eyes. She’s trying to get the eggheads to figure out if mail can be sent to you guys, even without a full-bridge being established.”
“Good luck to her,” Bucky said, chuckling.
“Anyways,” Stevie said, clipping the object to her belt. She stuck out her hand. Steve took it and firmly shook it.
“Thank you for you and your team’s help. It was good seeing all of you again, alive and well. Best of luck and good hunting, Captain Rogers,” he said.
“You as well, and thank you for everything, Captain Rogers,” she answered. Then she shook the others’ hands as well.
Steve watched her return to her group. 1970, along with 1949, and Stevie’s group slowly separated. Four fire circles had formed now, and one of them was clearly for the 2020s group to return through.
Both the 1970 and Stevie’s group left first – but not before Caroline made a mad dash towards Steve. She fiercely embraced him, and Steve returned the hug. Then, she did the same to Bucky, before flying back to the others.
Soon, it was only Bucky and Peggy from 1949 left, and the Avengers of 2020s that remained in this eerily beautiful world. Steve still had to make his choice—
“Ahem,” Natasha’s clearing of her throat startled him out of his thoughts.
Steve looked over to see that she had her hand outstretched.
“Tesseract, Steve,” she stated.
The argument that since Thanos was removed as a threat from the 1949 reality could be made, but there was still the threat of the Wolf Spider within that timeline. Wolf Spider only knew that the Tesseract was a part of the Thanos threat – that despite everything, he also wanted it out of the reality.
Removing the Tesseract would also remove the temptation for SHIELD to utilize the object to build weapons. He knew Thompson had good intentions – just like Fury did – but the two were too similar in defensive ideology and measures.
“Hide it somewhere, where even I won’t be able to find it, Nat,” Steve said, handing the case over to her.
Unsurprisingly, she briefly opened it to make sure that it was there before closing the case. Walking over to Peggy and Bucky, she briefly explained and showed the Tesseract to them. Steve could only guess that she was telling them of the promise to remove it from the reality. After all, she had a stake in that world as well.
“Okay, damn, didn’t know she liked you in that way, Barnes,” Sam’s soft exclamation as they saw Natasha then briefly kiss 1949 Bucky on the lips, pierced the silence.
“She doesn’t,” Bucky answered. Steve glanced over to see a faintly amused smile on his lips. “Not me anyways. Not this iteration. Won’t ever. Too much history, too much bad blood.”
No words of sympathy was stated, even though it seemed the most appropriate thing to say in the face of such self-deprecation. Yet, Steve was not one to let it remain that way.
“You’ll at least try to be friends with her?” he asked.
“Maybe,” Bucky answered. “If she doesn’t keep acting like a cat.”
“Good luck with that,” Clint quipped. He left a moment later, joining Natasha as she made her way across the barren ground towards the 2020s portal.
Then it was only the five of them: Peggy, Sam, Bucky of 1949, Bucky of the 2020s, and him – Steve.
Forward and together, until the end of the line.
Steve still had not made his choice. He had made a vow to Peggy. A vow to Bucky – to both of them. He would have to break one or more. He didn’t want to be selfish, yet he didn’t want to leave his future self a bleak future with no one to spend it with. He knew what it felt like—
“Steve,” Bucky began, then huffed and fell silent, as he shook his head.
Bucky reached out and clamped a firm metal hand on his shoulder. Steve’s world spun a hundred eighty degrees, before he was pushed towards Peggy and Bucky. His surprise – along with Peggy and Bucky’s own – made him stumble.
Neither expected Bucky of the 2020’s to do such a thing.
Steve glanced back. His best friend whom he had left behind to seek a new, separate life, had crossed his arms over his chest. “Go, Steve. Go live, and be happy.”
“Yeah,” Sam chimed in, nodding in agreement. “We got this. Don’t worry about us.”
In that very moment, Steve had his confirmation that their past was his future; that he had not returned to the point he had left in 2023. Spurred by his best friend, he had chosen a more selfish route. That if – no, when he did return somewhere in the future – he had done so, living a full life.
“Thank you. Both of you,” he said, nodding.
“Everything’s going to be all right, Steve,” Bucky stated. He wore the smile that reached all the way to his eyes.
“It will,” Steve agreed, returning the smile.
He took a deep breath and turned back around. Without another word to his friends, Steve walked forward; to his loving wife – Peggy, to his best friend whom was his everything – Bucky, and towards a fulfilling life.
Forward and together, until the end of the line.
* * *
1949, Somewhere in Siberia…
“<This is where the anomalous reading have come from, sir.>”
The bitterly cold wind whipped at him, kissing the promise of death within minutes upon what little skin was exposed to the elements. However, as the storm and snow died down a few minutes later, he saw it – the anomaly.
It looked like a jagged slit hanging in the air before them. Like a ripple within the water that had not quite followed the waves. It was jagged blue and purple in color, with black edgings that made it look eerie as it was beautiful.
“<Here. Take this.>” he immediate stated, quickly divesting the pack he carried of the rope.
The pack was left on the ground, as he tied a secure loop and knot around himself and handed the end to the scientist who had come with him. Said scientist had been the one to discover the readings, called up from his apparent ‘exile’ to this region after he had caught the name and report a few days ago.
The Red Room – Department X’s nickname that floated around Soviet circles – had been formed immediately after his return to the Motherland. Ivchenko had had enough influence left within those who controlled the purse strings to convince the right people the push it through.
But after the past few years, Department X’s personnel had whittled down to almost nothing.
Losing the Winter Soldier had been a great blow, but he never had enough faith in that program. He knew the subject quite intimately to know that what Ivchenko and Zola had tried to do was highly unstable. But their leaders had wanted a super-soldier. He had delivered what he could.
Adding to the blow was the loss of the famed Black Widows – with only one Widow left. They would have to rebuild, and he was hoping that this anomaly here would be bountiful.
Slowly approaching the slit, he stuck a hand through first, and felt nothing. He could still feel his hand. Cautiously, he stepped forward – leg first, before putting his weight forward.
On the other side was silence – relative silence. But it was not as cold as it was where he had been. The rope was still tied to him, and the slit had not changed shape, size, or color.
He looked around, drawing his hood back. He was in a well kept and maintained graveyard, which explained the quiet. But it was a set of stones to his left that drew his attention:
[Mary E. Carter – 1900 to 1975]
[Michael B. Carter (Sr.) – 1897 to 1974]
[Michael B. Carter (Jr.) – 1917 to 1945]
[Alexander T. Carter – 1948 to 1989]
[Margaret E. Carter – 1920 to 2016]
He didn’t know why a bitter smile crawled up his lips, but he forced it back down. Fortunately, the gust of blustery wind that blew through the quite graveyard, also happened to carry a few pieces of garbage through. He caught a stray partially-ripped newspaper with his hands.
A smile crawled back up his lips as he read the partially ripped headlines and the date of publication: [--CELEBRATING THE RETURN OF HUMANITY!]
The newspaper was not old, and still felt crisp and fresh. It meant it was most likely less than a year old. And given the vague time frame that he knew of this place, the Avengers would have already scattered.
“So this is the future,” Michael Carter, the Soviet agent code named Wolf Spider, murmured to himself. “The future you came from, Captain Rogers.”
~*~*~*~
Captain America, Agent Carter, Wolf Spider, Falcon, and the Winter Soldiers will return in Captain, Agent, Soldier, Spy.
~*~*~*~
FINI