"Steve?"
Surrounded by so many suited superheroes, the Winter Soldier, Bucky, felt an instinctive surge of panic and subconsciously turned his eyes toward the only person here he knew.
"I'm right here." Captain America grasped Bucky's hand and stood by his side. "I know you have a lot to say, but now isn't the time."
Bucky's mouth moved slightly, a flash of dazed confusion passing over his face once more.
Before long, however, the memories of his time spent brainwashed flooded into his mind like a surging tide, making him clutch his head in agony.
By the time Bucky raised his head again, the confusion in his eyes had vanished, replaced by endless anguish.
He remembered what he had done.
Over the years spent as Hydra's enforcer, he had executed a total of thirty-two missions, twenty-eight of which had targeted people connected to S.H.I.E.L.D.
Howard Stark and his wife were among them.
Aside from those, he had also killed dozens of people outside of official missions—including Jack Monroe, that young man who had called himself the "second Bucky" and viewed both him and Captain America as idols.
Neither Batman nor Iron Man spoke, but Bucky could clearly sense the extreme rage suppressed deep within both of them; Batman buried his far deeper, whereas Iron Man let a fraction of it show on the surface.
Captain America glanced at Iron Man and Batman. He understood the anger in their hearts better than Bucky did.
Even so, he still chose to stand in front of Bucky to protect him, because this was a partner he could never abandon.
Steve Rogers did not clench his fists, presenting himself as entirely at their mercy instead:
"Batman, Tony. Whatever price you intend to make Bucky pay, count me in for a share of it."
Batman remained silent. Just as Tony was about to speak, Bucky cut in ahead of him:
"No, Steve. I'm the one who did the killing, and I'm the only one who should pay the price... The only thing I can do is die."
"Then I'll go with you." Captain America looked at Bucky, his gaze resolve itself completely.
Batman still said nothing, looking on at this pair of World War II partners with cold detachment, as though none of this had anything to do with him.
Tony Stark lifted the metal faceplate of his Mark armor, staring at Bucky, who was shielded behind Captain America:
"Do you still remember what my father looked like when he died by your hands? Jack Monroe included?"
Bucky avoided Iron Man's gaze:
"I remember the face of every single person who died by my hands."
"Good," Tony said through gritted teeth. "If I genuinely demanded your death right now, would you comply?"
Bucky closed his eyes, remaining silent for a long time under the watchful gazes of Captain America and Batman before finally speaking:
"I would."
"Heh." Tony let out a cold laugh. "So even you know that the blood debts on your hands can never be paid back, and that death is your only release, huh?"
"What do you want to do, Tony!" Captain America stood up, using his body to completely shield Bucky.
Even if Iron Man fired another high-powered chest repulsor blast, the first person to die would be Captain America himself.
"What do I want?" Iron Man said, still gritting his teeth. "I want to kill him! But doing that would only give him an easy way out!"
Batman kept silent, seemingly leaving the decision entirely in Tony's hands.
"Death means nothing to him anyway—he already wants to die!" Tony shouted, his voice nearly trembling. "I refuse! Dying is far too easy for him. I want him to stay alive for me!"
"Until every last damn Hydra agent is wiped off the face of this earth!"
I know you deserve to die, and I know you want to die, but I want you to live!
No one knew just how much resolve it had taken for Tony Stark to utter those words, nor did anyone know what kind of turmoil stirred beneath the expressionless surface of Batman standing beside him.
All everyone knew was that Captain America visibly let out a sigh of relief, while Bucky stared at Iron Man in complete disbelief.
It was easy to say, but looking at it from another angle—if Captain America had died at the hands of a brainwashed Hydra assassin, Bucky knew he couldn't have laid the actual blood debt solely at Hydra's doorstep.
He would have killed the assassin first before grinding Hydra down to ash, rather than gritting his teeth and forcing himself to handle the situation with cold reason like Tony Stark was doing.
Hawkeye and Black Widow exchanged a look; for the first time, they felt that Iron Man seemed so unfamiliar.
Was this really the same irresponsible playboy who had once run over to Avengers Manor to drink himself into alcohol poisoning simply because he heard Thor had a high tolerance?
Or was the person beneath that metal mask actually Batman?
The reactions in the minds of the Avengers varied, but at this moment, they genuinely experienced the compelling charismatic force of Tony Stark's character.
Batman remained completely silent. After Tony finished speaking, he turned around and departed, with Betty Ross quickly hurrying after him.
The remaining matters no longer required Batman's presence to handle.
"I want you to join the Avengers Alliance," Tony said, staring at Bucky after Batman had left.
"I agree," Bucky said.
He had no other choice. Even if Tony Stark didn't kill him, he had plenty of reasons to throw him in prison to spend the rest of his life.
Yet Tony hadn't done that, choosing instead to make Bucky a frontline weapon against Hydra.
"Tony, thank—"
Just as Captain America opened his mouth to speak, Tony Stark turned around and walked straight away.
He needed a heavy drinking binge to numb himself, to keep from regretting the decision he had made today.
Watching Tony's departing figure, Captain America didn't chase after him to talk. Instead, he sat down beside Bucky:
"Tell me about what happened over all these years."
"Dr. Banner."
Batman pushed open the laboratory door and called out to Dr. Banner, who was buried deep in his experiments.
Hearing the noise, Dr. Banner habitually flashed a simple, honest smile, adjusting the frames of his glasses as he looked toward the doorway.
However, as that black-haired figure walked out from behind Batman, the smile on Dr. Banner's face faded away bit by bit.
It was Betty Ross, the woman he missed night and day.
"Bruce!" Betty cried out with a sobbing voice as she looked at Dr. Banner, who was frozen on the spot.
Hulk and the Lizard couldn't stand each other, and Banner and Connors often bickered as well, but in this moment of chaotic heartbeats, Dr. Banner almost instinctively glanced toward Professor Connors.
"Be brave, Banner." Professor Connors gave Dr. Banner a push forward.
With the help of that push, Dr. Banner walked up to Betty Ross, utterly at a loss for what to do.
A man who commanded the winds and clouds in the scientific realm and threw heavy punches in the face of enemies couldn't even figure out how to speak right now.
"Betty." After holding it in for a long time, Dr. Banner managed to squeeze out only that single word.
Betty Ross let out a sob before proactively spreading her arms and throwing herself into Dr. Banner's embrace.
Professor Morbius glanced over with envy before burying his head back into his work once more.
The other scientists turned around as well to continue their work, none willing to disturb this couple reunited after a long separation.
Dr. Otto was absent; he had already left South Brother Island to accompany his own woman somewhere else.
Batman stood like a stone, his eyes not lingering on Banner and Betty for even half a second.
He walked straight over to Warren the Jackal, looking at a cloned body created from his own cells inside a culture dish.
--
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