Through Space & Time

Every Lesson Forms a New Scar

"It was him." Steve says as we're sitting in the back of the van, on our way back to SHIELD, I'm assuming. I'm doing my best to remain conscious but with the amount of blood loss I'm dealing with, it's hard. "He looked right at me, like he didn't even know me."

"We don't know what they did to him Steve. It's been 70 years. And they're not known for being nice." I mumble, trying to keep my eyes open.

"How could this even be possible?" Sam asks.

"Zola." Steve and I say at the same time. "Bucky's whole unit was captured in '43. Zola experimented on him." Steve explains.

"We never were able to get a good idea of what was done to him. His brain protected him from the trauma of it all by burying it." I add.

"Whatever he did helped Bucky survive the fall. They must have found him and..."

"You don't get to take the blame for this Steve. It's not your fault." I manage to get out. "And I don't have the strength right now to have this conversation with you again."

He doesn't say anything to that, just turns to look away from me. "Even when I had nothing, I had Bucky."

I lean my head back against the side of the van, trying to make myself comfortable as I continue to bleed out. "We need to get a doctor here. If we don't put pressure on that wound, she's gonna bleed out here in the truck." Sam tells one of the guards.

The guard lights up the taser, holding it out threateningly at Sam, before flipping it around and stunning the other guard with it, before kicking him and knocking him out. "What the hell?" I whisper.

The guard takes off the helmet and we're shocked to see Maria Hill. "Ah. That thing was squeezing my brain." She complains. "Who's this guy?"

The van starts slowing down and we have a split second to escape after Hill cuts a hole through the floor. "Let's go. Come on." She says, helping me stand. Steve grabs me as I almost topple over, pressing his hand against my shoulder, trying to stop the bleeding.

"I'm sorry Ellie. I should've been paying closer attention." He whispers.

"It's ok Steve. I think today, of all days, you have a pass for putting your own emotions first." There's another van waiting for us and we get inside. Sam's able to apply some basic first aid, at least get me bandaged so I'm not bleeding out on everyone's hands and shirts. We pull up outside of one of the damns on the outskirts of the city, no one around for miles.

"What is this place?" Steve asks. My eyes widen when I realize that this was the place I met Coulson at when this whole mess started. Surely he wasn't still here. When Maria pulls me aside to double check the dressings, I lean in.

"You need to warn Coulson." Her eyes widen. "Fury had me meet him, before... he died. Coulson needs to know Ward is not what he appears to be. Neither is Garrett." I say weakly.

"Are you sure?"

"He tried to kill me in the elevator the day we went on the run. I'm positive. Coulson, the others, they're not safe if he's with them." She nods and hurries us inside.

"GSW. She's lost at least a pint." Hill yells at the person running up to us.

"Maybe two." Sam corrects.

"Let me take her." The doctor, I'm assuming, yells.

"She'll want to see him first." Hill says, leading us into a corridor that has HASMAT curtains hanging up. She pulls one back and there, laying in a hospital bed but very much alive, is Nick Fury.

"About damn time." He says, sitting up a little.

"You've got to be shitting me." I say lowly, before lunging to attack him, Steve pulls me back just in time. "You asshole! You let me believe you were dead! After all the shit I did for you!" I yell and I'm sure everyone in this entire place can hear me as well. My fists were glowing and Sam backs away cautiously.

"You still haven't gotten a handle on keeping your emotions well below the surface." Nat says as she walks around another curtain.

"I shouldn't be surprised that you're already here." Steve comments.

We're sitting at his bedside and the doctor is working on stitching up my wound. "Lacerated spinal column, cracked sternum, shattered collarbone, perforated liver, and one hell of a headache." Fury lists out his injuries.

"Don't forget your collapsed lung." The doctor adds.

"Let's not forget that." Fury says sarcastically. "Otherwise, I'm good."

"They cut you open. I watched as your heart stopped beating." I say, trying not to let my emotions get the better of me.

"Tetrodotoxin B. Slows the pulse to one beat a minute. Banner developed it for stress. Didn't work so good for him, but we found a use for it." Fury explains.

Steve's face is set in a hard line. He's still pissed. "Why all the secrecy? Why not just tell us?"

"Any attempt on the Director's life had to look successful." Hill explains further.

"Can't kill you if you're already dead." Fury adds. "Besides, I wasn't sure who to trust."

I stand up, ignoring the doctor's warning. "Are you kidding me? You send us all over fucking creation, solving your problem, and you're not sure who to trust? Do I look like fucking HYDRA to you?" I ask, and Steve tries to get me to sit back down, before I do more damage. "No, I'm fine. I spent my last remaining years in the 40s trying to bring them down, watched my husband fall trying to stop them, and you have the fucking nerve to assume that we were with them?!" I'm forced back into my chair by Steve and the doctor finishes stitching up my wound.

"There. Try not to rip them." He says before cleaning off the surrounding skin with an alcohol wipe and leaving. It was time to get to work.