11; cut off a head

It was over. The war was over.

Not long after the demise of Hydra did Hitler kill himself and end the war. It was safe to say the world was overjoyed. But the thing that many people didn't know was that the only reason that the war could've been won at all was Steve's sacrifice, otherwise the entire eastern seaboard would be no more. People seemed to gloss over that slightly, they knew Captain America died in combat but not really how he died.

To celebrate, the Howling Commandos had decided to go to a pub, it was also the first proper time they would get to honour Steve in everything he had done for the world. Evelyn had tagged along because, on top of the whole celebrating the war being over, she felt she needed this.

Oh how wrong she was.

They arrived at the bar to find it thronged with jovial crowds. It took Falsworth nearly too long to get to the bartender so he could order drinks. While looking for a place to sit, a man bumped into her. "My apologies." he spoke, looking at her with a smile. "With all these people it's hard not to bump into people."

"It's fine," Evelyn said, a little awkwardly. "Could happen to anyone."

The man lifted up a finger. "Hey, you're Lieutenant Liberty aren't you?"

"Yep, that's me."

"I work in the bar, how about I get you a free shot on the house?"

This time she actually smiled. "Thank you, that's very kind."

"The least I could do for a war hero."

War hero. The name didn't sound all too pleasing to her ears. Hero made it sound glamourised when the war was anything but glamorous. It was dirty and grim and a lot of times gory. True, what they did was heroic but no soldier saw themselves as one. That set her back in her awkward mood but she continued to the small table the boys had found for them. Their drinks were already on the table and that made Dugan frown. "Where's yours Ev?"

"On it's way, bartender is getting me one on the house."

Elliot scoffed playfully. "Well excuse me princess," the team laughed as Evelyn pushed him playfully, rolling her eyes.

The minute they saw her drink come to them each man held up their glass. Falsworth stated sadly. "To the captain." clinking their glasses together, they all downed their drinks, the alcohol burning down their throats.

Then everyone was engrossed in their conversations but Evelyn couldn't help but feel distracted. Her drink had been very strong, too strong for her liking and now her head was starting to feel fuzzy. She couldn't be getting drunk, it was impossible, the serum prevented that. She blinked a few times, trying to rid herself of the black spots now starting to dance in her vision. What did catch her eye though was the bartender, who was staring at her intently. She locked eyes with him and frowned, shifting uncomfortably in his piercing gaze.

Without thinking, the Mason girl coughed. It was rough and tore at her throat but it didn't clear her throat so she coughed again. Nothing happened. Jim looked at her in concern. He asked if maybe she wanted to get a drink of water which she agreed to. She rose from her seat, wobbling a little before she made her way to the bar. About half way she had to stop and lean against an adjacent table and catch her breath, coughing even more. It felt like her lungs were on fire and the more she tried to suck in air, the more she seemed to reject it.

A hand lay on her shoulder, Evelyn looking up to see the bartender from earlier. He wore a look of confusion and concern. "Lieutenant, are you alright?"

The woman couldn't even get a word out, her throat felt like it had shrivelled up. She licked her lips, now becoming dry and chapped. "Do you need air, come on." he led her outside into the alleyway where she was met with the cool night air. The minute they were out of the bar, the man threw her to the wall opposite the pub. Evelyn, too disorientated to recover from the attack, slumped against the damp brick work. More coughing ensued but this time, instead of dry, raspy coughs, blood began to spurt from her mouth each time she did so.

The bartender chuckled menacingly, watching as the super soldier struggled to grasp her bearings. He could see the beads of sweat begin to form on her brow, spurring him to start his speech. "You thought you could defeat us? You thought that by killing our leader, we would run away and hide?" Evelyn tried to sputter out a question, but she couldn't. "You thought wrong. The only good thing that came out of the Red Skulls death was your precious little Captain America's untimely death too."

His German accent was spilling through at this point, Evelyn was clear minded enough to see that. Obviously not all of Hydra had been put down. "Go..to..h-hell." She gasped, clutching at the ground to hopefully catch what was left of her breath.

"On the contrary, we are all already living in it." He crouched down, brushing blonde strands of hair away from her face. "That was what the Red Skull's dream was. His dream was to take us out of the hell we are living in and bring us into a new Eden."

She opened her mouth to retaliate but just more blood came out in quick coughs. The man got up, but not before he kicked her in the gut for good measuring, making her grunt in pain as she held her stomach. "But you and your little group ruined his dream," her vision was darkening now, her eyes closing. "And in revenge, I have taken their leader from them again."

As she lost her consciousness, the last thing she heard was. "Oh, and Dr. Zola says hi."

-

Evelyn hadn't been missing an hour before the Howling Commandos knew something wasn't right. They hadn't seen her leave but they knew it doesn't take that long to grab a glass of water. Of course they called Peggy, wondering if she had seen her. They became sufficiently freaked out when she told them she hadn't. Thus began the search to find her, the group separating all throughout the pub and Peggy on the way. They weren't going to take any chances, the war may be over but they had made many enemies, some who would want to target the co-leader of the team who took down Hydra.

Two of the men, Dugan and Falsworth had taken to the outside of the pub to canvas the area although they didn't expect to see much. It was only when they caught the sound of struggling coughs. Peggy had just exited a cab when Dugan pointed to the back of the alley. All three took out their guns in case they ran into any trouble. "Evelyn?" Peggy called out. "Where are you?"

"Over...here." came the mumbled, slurred response.

Peggy whipped around, seeing the vulnerable blonde squirming on the pavement. There was blood on her chin and lips and she sputtered as her lungs tried desperately to flow oxygen through her body. The brunette sprinted over to her friend, kneeling down to support her head. "Oh god, Eve, what happened?"

"My drink.." she gasped. "The bartender...poison." Dugan and Falsworth sprang into action, running into the pub to find this bartender and make him pay.

Peggy tried to wipe the blood away from her face using a tissue from her pocket but most of it was dried already. "It's alright, you're going to be okay, we can get you to the hospital in no time."

Evelyn nodded, a pained smile gracing her lips. I wouldn't...be so sure."

Peggy chuckled. "When have I ever been wrong?"

The woman on the floor started to laugh but it turned into a dry cough. Peggy's heart broke at the sound. "Don't stress yourself, okay? I just have to call the ambulance."

Just as Peggy's reached into her pocket to grab her phone, Evelyn's hand grabbed her wrist. "It's...too late."

Peggy shook her head. "No, it's not. Come on Eve, don't think like that. Where Lieutenant Liberty?"

This time when she smiled, it was sad, like it would be the last time she would smile at her. "The poison was in my....bloodstream too long...even with my metabolism, it would take a very...long time."

"We can wait." Peggy whispered, tears now falling down her cheeks. "For as long as you need, we'll wait."

The blonde breathed a small laugh before her eyes fluttered to a close. For a moment, Peggy thought she was dead but after feeling for a pulse, she got a faint one. This was when she decided to call the ambulance.

"Hello, yes this is Agent Carter, Lieutenant Liberty has been poisoned and I need an ambulance now!"

-

The next time she woke, she was no longer in the alley.

Evelyn could hear chattering outside that made her frown. She must've been in the hospital. How long was she out? Surely not too long, her metabolism would've seen to that she would be awake within no time.

Trying to shake the grogginess, Evelyn pulled the covers from herself and kicked her legs over the side of the bed. Behind her, the radio was quietly playing You Are My Sunshine. "Peggy?" she called out. "You out there?"

The chatting stopped, and there was a long pause until a man walked through the door dressed in a suit. "Lieutenant Mason, please sit."

Her eyes scanned the man, noticing everything. The way his suit was completely wrong for the year she was in, the way his hair was styled completely differently then she had ever seen. "Where's Peggy? Peggy Carter?"

"Lieutenant, sit."

This time he spoke a little harsher, making her look at him with a raised brow. "No, not until you tell me what's going on."

"My name is Agent King, Agent Carter will be with you shortly. I just want you not to stress yourself."

With one more disbelieving look, she sat down on the bed. The man then explained what had happened, the ambulance had taken her to the hospital and she was in a coma for four years and that the poison was successfully out of her system.

It took her thirty seconds to realise he was lying.

Her gaze hardened, her green orbs being replaced with her infamous sapphire colour and two seconds later the man claiming to be an agent was up against the wall, threatened with the notion of being evaporated on the spot. "Who do you work for?" she seethed, noticing how alarms had been set the minute his back pressed against the wall.

"Lieutenant Mason, please calm-"

"No! Not until you tell me who you work for!"

The man pressed a button next to the wall and two heavily armed men entered, their guns trained on her. Evelyn only flicked her wrist and one men was hit with a energy bolt. "Talk!" she yelled.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." came a voice much more calm than the rest of the men. In stepped a man clad in black wearing an eyepatch. If that didn't cry sinister than she doesn't know what did.

Evelyn just glared at the man. "And why not? Would I foil you're Hydra plans?" she spoke with mock pith, jutting out her bottom lip.

"Hydra?" the man shook his head. "Lieutenant, they have been dead for over 69 years."

Her eyes widened, 69 years? That was impossible, the man said she was only asleep for four. Her brow furrowed after a moment, she released the agent and then turned to the black clad man. "You're lying, it has to be 1949."

"It's 2011, Lieutenant, you've been asleep for 69 years. We don't know how it happened, or why you haven't aged a day, but we're willing to be it has something to do with the tesseract energy running through your blood."

"Tesseract? The cube Schmidt used for all his weapons."

And then suddenly it hit her like a brick wall. Evelyn had been injected with pure, non contaminated Tesseract energy to see how a human could handle the effects of it. She was supposed to be a human gun, to work for hydra flawlessly like all the other machines.

If Steve hadn't gotten to her in time, she wouldn't be on America's side. She would've been Hydra through and through.

But on top of that, now she had to process the fact that she was supposedly in a coma for 69 years. Surely Peggy and Howard would've pulled the plug years ago. Wait...

"Peggy, Howard, everyone else. Are they all?" she couldn't get the word out. It just made this sound all the more real.

He nodded. "All expect Agent Carter, but she's not doing too well."

All of her friends, her comrades, her brothers in arms. Even her own mother, the one who died probably yearning for her only child to be at her side. All of them gone. All because a stupid Hydra solider decided to poison her.

As the man, now saying his name was Nick Fury, briefed her on the new technology and things such as that Evelyn couldn't listen. She was all alone in a world she wouldn't understand, where people were different and where she would probably never leave this facility.

In a world that now had grown ten times bigger, she's never felt more like she was ten times smaller.

-
(Not edited)

A/N: whoopsie?

Now, I know what you're thinking, "Omg Emma, Steve woke up 70 years later not 69, get your facts right!!!1!!" And yes, he did, I know. I'm being strategic just because the Stevelyn reunion will just be ten times more rewarding.

But guys, that means the next chapter is the last chapter, don't worry though, this will be getting a sequel. I hope you enjoy it as much as I will when writing it.

Comment, vote & follow - emma