The Soldier and his Widow

5

"I got heat signatures," Tony said, scanning the area with his suit.

"How many?" Steve asked.

"Uh, one."

Bucky and Natasha ventured further into the room, stopping before the illuminated pods.

"If it's any consolation, they died in their sleep."

Zeno's voice sounded on the speakers. Natasha stopped in front of the pod containing a blonde. "Stacie."

Like Stacie, all five were shot in the head.

"Did you really think I wanted more like the two of you?" Zemo asked, "pathetic, murderous, mindless beasts."

"Widow." Bucky reached out for Natasha, who stood still, staring at Stacie's lifeless eyes.

"That could've been me. I could've been in there," Natasha said, glancing to the far end of the room, to a sixth and empty pod.

"I'm grateful to them, though," Zemo continued, "they brought all of you here."

Lights flickered on. Natasha and Bucky stepped into a defense-offense stance, while Steve hurled his shield and Tony fired a laser beam.

Zemo only laughed behind the metal doors. "Please, the Soviets built this chamber to withstand the launch blast of UR-100 rockets."

"Bet I could top that," Tony said as he and Steve walked towards the metal door.

"Oh, I'm sure you could, Mr. Stark. Given time. But then you'd never know why you came."

"You killed innocent people in Vienna just to bring us here?"

Zemo stared at Steve through the window. "I thought about nothing else for over a year. I studied you. I followed you. But now that you're standing here, I just realized . . . there's a bit of green in the blue of your eyes. How nice to find a flaw."

"You're Sokovian. Is that what this is about?"

"Sokovia was a failed state long before you blew it to hell. No. I'm here because I made a promise."

Steve studied Zemo. "You lost someone?"

"I lost everyone. And so will you." Zeme pressed a button. Steve stepped over to the screen. "An empire toppled by its enemies can rise again. But one which crumples from within? That's dead . . . forever."

Tony stared at the screen, anxiety rising. "I know that road. What is this?"

Bucky recognised it as well, and it seemed like Natasha did too.

The video played. Natasha jumped as a car skidded into view, and then a figure on a motorcycle. The four of them watched as Howard Stark fell out of his car, begging the stranger to help his wife. Steve watched Tony's growing unease.

They watched as the Winter Soldier pulled Howard up by his hair.

"Seargant Barnes?" the old man asked.

Expressionless, the Winter Soldier beat Howard to death with his metal arm. Natasha closed her eyes when the Winter Soldier set Howard back in the car, his face slumped against the wheel. Beside him, Maria Stark had already bled out from a gunshot wound.

The Winter Soldier grabbed a case from the trunk, then fired at the camera.

Eyes glistening and his entire body shaking, Tony turned to Bucky, who cast his gaze downward. Tony lunged for Bucky, and Steve held him back.

"Did you know?" Tony eventually asked Steve.

"I didn't know it was him," Steve said.

"Don't bullshit me, Rogers. Did you know?"