𝘾𝘼𝙋𝙏𝘼𝙄𝙉 𝘼𝙈𝙀𝙍𝙄𝘾𝘼.

“. . .” He took a second. “Let’s go.”

He’d sigh.

“I. .listen.” Steve tapped the earpiece in his left ear, cutting comms between him and 𝙌𝙪𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙅𝙚𝙩 𝙊𝙣𝙚. “You’ve got maybe thirty seconds to get out of here before a 𝙙𝙤𝙯𝙚𝙣 agents drop on both our heads. I’m not sure why they’ve taken interest in you —- but I’ll find out.”

“I know a man. .well a robotic man, thing. 𝙄𝙧𝙤𝙣 𝙈𝙖𝙣 —- he’s the bodyguard for 𝙏𝙤𝙣𝙮 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙠. He can get us schematics of the cities 𝙘𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙡 power line in minutes, maybe seconds. Give me some time and I’ll get back to you. .

. .uh, how 𝙙𝙤 I contact you?”

Steve crossed his arms, weight shifting to one foot. “You’ve got to the right person —- if I know Hydra like I think I do, they’ll be close to an untapped power source. Something they can syphon off of without a trace.” Rogers face contorted to something stoic.

“Please, all me Steve.” He said almost quietly —- “I believe you. I wish I didn’t, and I wish those damn Nazi’s stayed dead. But like most things evil, they can’t and won’t.”

“I. .I wish I knew. They don’t tell me much these days.” A hard truth for him to say, but since the mess in Latveria, 𝙎.𝙃.𝙄.𝙀.𝙇.𝘿. had kept him on a leash.

“It’s better if you come in without fighting.”

We can always help people. No matter what.

“Depends on if you’ve got them, pal.” Steve said, and his shoulders and demeanor had fully change.

The other 𝙎.𝙃.𝙄.𝙀.𝙇.𝘿. Agents were deep in the woods too, but he didn’t feel like playing babysitter. “There’s been some anomalies my people have tracked here. They sent me and a team of six.”

“What. .are you then?” He said hesitantly. “Maybe I can talk to the brass, tell them this doesn’t have to go the way they want it.”

“She’s not going to do this easily. But if you let me talk to —-“ “Move. Steve.”

They began to circle her, each of them weapons raised and eye’s itching with a slight hint of uncontrolled rage.

Steve turned —- Rumlow, Ross’s first in command, second only to Rogers himself, took a step forth. His weapon raised.

“Rumlow take a step back. She’s —-“ “That’s not for you to decide, Cap. Orders come from Thunderbolt, that’s above your pay grade.”

| thank ya :)

Four men in each dropped out, as if the fall of twenty something feet meant nothing to them.

“Rogers!” One called. “Step back from the 𝙒𝙞𝙩𝙘𝙝!”

She was kind. He’d give her that. Beautiful too. But he wouldn’t dare to say that out loud.

Rogers gave a sigh as he heard the helicopters pass overhead. Two of them, full of Team Six and Team Seven of Ross’s new Super Soldier Program.

| it always compels me that Steve wakes up and thinks he can just go and be a soldier again, nuh uh feller the people need hope man you got bigger fish to fry

This is ridiculous. 5 months after he had woken up —- and he was beginning to feel like a 𝙗𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙮 with a 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧 on his chest.

“I. .” He wanted to say he was sorry, but he knew Agents of 𝙎.𝙃.𝙄.𝙀.𝙇.𝘿. and General Ross’s Soldier Program are watching. “We do this with any new Meta-Human.”

< Rogers. > A voice came into his ear, 𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙡 𝙍𝙤𝙨𝙨. < Detain or don’t —- I’m sending in Team Six. >

“Wait —-“ Steve placed his fingers to his ears, but the connection had seemingly been shut off from the other side. “Diana. It may be in your best interest to get out of here. Trust me.”

She was right. Steve hadn’t seen something so. .𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡 pop up in this city for as long as he could remember. And suddenly, just for a fleeting moment, he was getting the feeling the intentions of his “leaders” was changing.

“Lots of people are on their toes these days.” Rogers said with a nod. “When word got around of a haunted forest in the Midwest —- people wanted something 𝙙𝙤𝙣𝙚 about it.”

He took a cautious step forward, hands still up. “Captain America, and 𝙮𝙤𝙪 are?”

Rogers tossed the apple up in the air, catching it with a thump.

“Diana, I don’t think you’re a 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩. Usually my sort of threats are already trying to 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡 me. I can explain to the brass what’s happened here if you tell me.”

And. .Hell is real. He shouldn’t be surprised by any of this. When he was woken up, the first face he saw belong to an 𝙄𝙧𝙤𝙣 𝙈𝙖𝙣.

“I. .I’m Steve.” He says, shifting weight into one foot. “Steve Rogers. People call me 𝘾𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝘼𝙢𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙖. .I’m not from this time, so forgive if I play catch up.”

It was. .a lot of words. Circe —- which he could only think as the Greek Goddess of 𝙈𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙘, which would make sense for all the. .theatrics. 𝘼𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙣 he feels stumped on, wasn’t a lot of moving pictures in the 20’s that feature that. Maybe she was like 𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙧? But her accent didn’t read like 𝘼𝙨𝙜𝙖𝙧𝙙.

@solareste.bsky.social
—-
Elsewhere.

“There’s no need for hostility. 𝙎.𝙃.𝙄.𝙀.𝙇.𝘿. would rather do this quietly.”

He took a step back once he did. Keeping distance between he and the stranger.

“You’ve got a lot of 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩 people in in arms. .” Steve said through a small laugh, looking over the fruit. “Who 𝙖𝙧𝙚 you?”

Eyes as blue as the deep see, like nothing he had ever seen before. 5 months ago the world was at war —- and the time was 1945. Now, when he awoke, it had all change. And standing before him, was 𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙘.

Rogers lowered his shield. Reaching out a red gloved hand that took the apple cautiously.

Captain America standing before debris and fire, holding his shield close to his chest. Art by Juan F.

@thelastamazon.bsky.social
—-
Midtown.

“𝙎.𝙃.𝙄.𝙀.𝙇.𝘿. gave me orders to bring you in, they said you were here tricking people with 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠 magic. .from what I’ve seen it looks like the opposite. I’m giving you a 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 to prove me right.”

@branching-paths.bsky.social
—-

“It’s alright.” Steve said, with hands somewhat defensive. He moved the circular star shield to his back, settling it into place. “I’m not here to fight you.”