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CHAPTER THIRTEEN
unpleasant surprises
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(episode two - the star spangled man pt.1)

JOHN WALKER PLAGUED the Earth worse than the snap. Diana couldn't escape his cursed face and his stupid uniform and how in every photo, that shield screamed at her to take it, give it back to the right hands. She had to stop three times in two different alleyways, dry heaving into random trash bins.

Not once did a shaking fist unclench itself. She could feel everything boiling under the thin layer of her skin. One wrong move and the building that she was refraining from punching would have a new hole in it. Diana took in a shaky breath and looked over at Bucky. He watched her with careful eyes. They were close to the base now, and Diana was sure the propaganda would get worse once they were inside but the memory of Steve putting the shield into Sam's care flashed in her mind.

She steeled her nerves, hardened her gaze and she straightened up.

"I'm good," she growled out through gritted teeth before brushing past Bucky.

It killed her that the right hands didn't understand their role. Sam Wilson didn't know that he was needed as Captain America. Steve's era was over and there was a new world in his wake. And this world needed a new Captain America, sure, but it needed an accurate one, it's not just an America full of Steve Rogers look-alikes, there are Sam Wilson's too. It felt corny of her to say it but it was about damn time. Diana felt a shot of anger course through her veins as she passed another photo of the "New Captain America".

She wanted to rip it down and just watched it dissolve in a charged fist but she wasn't sure if vandalism was considered a felony when it's an Air Force base. Diana settled for a twisted expression of disgust as she glided down the stairs.

Sam wasn't here yet, but Bucky assured her that he would be. She didn't want to know how he got this kind of information. Diana wondered how much he knows about her day-to-day schedule and what his own is like.

"You shouldn't have given up the shield!" Bucky yelled out to someone coming down the stairs, Diana's anger bubbled up as she looked at Sam, her mouth clamped shut in fear of what she might say.

"Good to see you too, guys," Sam was good at a stoic expression but the hint of hurt in his voice slapped her across her face, and her anger lessened by a fraction.

Enough for her to be able to speak and unclench her hands. But Bucky beat her by opening his mouth.

"This is wrong." He fell into step with Sam, Diana was on the other side of her Air Force friend, observing his demeanor and overall look. He wasn't dressed like he was going anywhere dangerous but the contents of his bag could mean something else.

"Hey hey, look, I'm working alright?" Sam snapped, "so all this outrage is gonna have to wait."

"You didn't know that was gonna happen?" Bucky asked, referring to Sam giving the shield to the Smithsonian institution's display for Steve.

"No, of course, I didn't know that was gonna happen!" Sam defended himself, "you think it didn't break my heart to see them march him out there and call him the new Captain America?"

Diana narrowed her eyes as they continued to walk, and her anger started to shift. Sam didn't have to apologize but she was still realizing that ripping into him wasn't going to help anyone, and for him to be suddenly flying to Germany meant that something big was there.

"Steve didn't want this," Bucky frowned. Diana cast a glance at the floor at the mention of his name. A new rage slammed into her chest as she remembered him.

"Oh my god, so what do you want me to do?" Sam asked sarcastically, "call America and tell 'em I changed my mind? Huh?"

Sam chuckled and Diana looked up at him, almost apologetically. She managed to get out here to this Air Force base and a simple, anger-fueled conversation that she didn't even interrupt took all the wind out of her sails.

"Yeah, right," Sam rolled his eyes, "it's a great reunion, friends, be well."

"You had no right to give up the shield, Sam," Bucky dug his two feet right back in but Diana cleared his throat.

"Hey, this is not what you're gonna do," Sam stopped him, he turned to face the old soldier, they didn't even make it out of the hangar, "you're not gonna come here in your overextended life and tell me about my rights, it's over, Bucky."

Diana sighed as she glanced at Bucky's fuming face, it was like the anger just transferred from one person into another but even he seemed to be calming down.

"He didn't give it to the government, himself Buck, only the Smithsonian," Diana finally spoke up, her voice was a little more gentle than she anticipated, "and he can't just go get it back."

The betrayed look on his face made guilt wash over her for a split second before she looked back at Sam.

"You got a mysterious duffel that I suspect holds Stark tech, can I ask what you have going on?" She asked.

"I got something big going on now," Sam admitted as he alternated his stare between the two.

"What could be bigger than this?"

Sam pulled out his phone, pulling up something before turning it to show the two a photo. Diana leaned forward squinting at the screen to see that in the dark lighting was the photo of a man in a black mask with a red handprint on it.

"This guy," Sam answered, "his connections with rebel organizations all over Eastern and Central Europe, and he's strong... too strong."

Diana furrowed her eyebrows and looked up, she didn't like how that sounded. Was he implying someone like Bucky or someone like Steve?

"And?" Bucky asked, too casually to Diana's preference.

"Well, he's been connected to this online group called the Flag Smashers—"

"Terrible name."

Sam looked at Diana with wide eyes as if her interruption validated him in some way as he nodded.

"Now, Redwing traced them to a building somewhere outside of Munich so that's where I'm going," Sam explained, Diana was already on board and he didn't even say if it was alright for her to join.

"Well I don't trust Redwing," Bucky protested, Diana spared a glance over at him as she did, at this point, it looked like she couldn't argue about the shield anymore and needed a reason to be mad, "hold on a minute!"

"You don't have to trust Redwing," Sam shut him down again, "but I'mma go see if he's right, cause I have a feeling it might be part of the Big Three."

"What big three?"

"The Big Three."

"What Big Three?"

"Aliens, androids, and wizards."

Diana couldn't help the busting laughter that escaped her chest, she remembered years before, when Sam tried making this something that the Avengers would say when it came to mission debrief, of course, it never stuck, it just felt too silly to say.

"That's not a thing."

"That's definitely a thing."

"No, it's not."

"Every time we fight, we fight one of the three."

"So who are you fighting now? Gandalf?"

"How do you know about Gandalf?" Sam's suspicious voice paired with his eyes narrowing just a bit as he looked Bucky up and down.

"I read the hobbit," Bucky defended himself, "in 1937, when it first came out."

"So you see my point?"

"No, I don't, there are no wizards."

"Doctor Strange."

"Is a sorcerer."

Sam lit up, as if Bucky had walked into his trap, Diana stood back with her arms crossed as she watched the bickering, it slightly resembled how Steve and Tony bickered, but even they weren't as entertaining as this.

"A sorcerer is a wizard, without a hat," Sam alternated his gaze between Bucky and Diana now as if he had a checkmate in a chess game that was this argument, "think about it, right?"

"They shouldn't be in the big three though, the wizards," Diana used air quotes around the term, "have never been a threat, in fact, Wong gave me a tub of self-refilling ice cream for my birthday. It's in my freezer right now."

"But that's not the point, these guys aren't magical," Sam redirected the conversation after that, "they use brute force like you, the incredibly annoying guy in front of me with a staring problem."

Sam turned to walk off but another question popped into Diana's head about the threat.

"We're coming with you!" Bucky yelled out before she could ask.

"Diana can, you can't!" Sam yelled over his shoulder.

Diana cleared her throat, she would let them continue the bickering after her question.

"Well hold on Sam—" her friend paused after she asked him, "—where do super-soldiers figure into the big three?" Diana asked, she furrowed her eyebrows, "you said they're strong right?"

The two looked at her incredulously when she mentioned the term "super-soldier". She pointed her thumb at Bucky who rolled his eyes at her hint. She stuck her tongue at him with a scrunched nose.

"That would mean someone is making a serum," Bucky argued.

"Well, what about the serum that you uh— intercepted, and was used on that kill squad?"

"That was made and used so long ago—"

"Hold on," Diana heard her voice reach a higher pitch as she interrupted him her hand on his chest as she tilted her head and narrowed her eyes, "I was 1 in '91 so it wasn't so long ago, so mind your manners, Mr. 106, I mean, hell, you knew what the Old Testament was when it was just the Testament."

Sam snorted as he turned to continue walking off, Diana falling in after him with a sharp stare sent to Bucky. The plane was large and inconspicuous. A young soldier was hanging out of the open cargo door with a smile, he took Sam's duffel, then extended a hand to Diana.

"Welcome aboard," The young man smiled.

A grin broke out over Diana's face as she accepted his open hand, shaking it in greeting.

"Sam, who is this?" Diana didn't recognize the tone in her voice when she asked about the young man. She heard her friend's laughter from somewhere in the dark plane. It was clearly meant for cargo considering the crates in the middle.

If Sam answered with an introduction to the soldier, Diana couldn't hear it over thundering footsteps behind her. She spun around to see Bucky standing in the entryway, he gave the soldier a wary stare before he settled his gaze on her.

"You're going to go fight possible supersoldiers in leggings and a t-shirt?"

"First of all, at least I don't go everywhere looking like I'm ready to go to war, and secondly—" she pulled her shirt off to reveal the tank under, tossing her shirt on top of Sam's bag, her glowing chest piece sat proudly an inch above her sternum, she tapped it twice like her old friend taught her and she tapped her wrists together afterward, the nanotechnology spreading all over her body— "I never leave the house without it, so hush."

"Yes ma'am," Bucky grumbled, watching as Sam took a seat on one end of the plane. Diana watched as he surveilled the enclosed space and noticed how his eyes landed on a bench on the other side of the plane that gave him a perfect view of Sam.

Diana rolled her eyes as he walked over and sat down, his gaze settled on Sam and Sam only. She looked over at the subject of Bucky's attention to see that he was staring back. Diana sighed as she walked over to the young soldier.

"Sam has no manners," Diana held her hand out, "I'm Diana."

"Joaquin Torres," The soldier took her hand with a smile, "but you can call me Torres."

"Okay, Torres," she smiled and glanced back at the two, a frown settling on her face.

It killed her that they weren't getting along. Yes, she was upset about the shield, but now wasn't a good time anymore. She wasn't planning on a surprise trip to Germany, but a quick text to the other trainer had the classes covered for the next week or so until the threats were eliminated.

"Are they always like this?" Torres' question cut through her thoughts and brought her back to her body.

"I guess, I think the beef started when we first became war criminals."

"Understandable."

"Eh, it was a complicated situation, lots of failures on the government's part overall," Diana shrugged, "you might have seen how the court case went."

"Only through word of mouth, I was deployed at the time," Torres shrugged. Diana nodded and patted his shoulder.

"So how long have you been working with Sam?" She asked.

"Oh only for a few weeks now," Torres grinned and leaned over, "we stopped an Algerian pirate."

Diana's eyes widened. She glanced over at Sam whose staring contest still prevailed before she looked back at Torres.

"Was his name Georges Batroc?" She asked. Torres blinked and leaned back, stunned by the question.

"Do you know him?" Torres asked, his head tilted with genuine curiosity.

"He and his men had taken a SHIELD cargo ship hostage in 2014, Steve, Nat, and I along with the STRIKE team took his crew out but he got away," Diana shrugged, she pointed at Bucky, "it was the mission that kickstarted his discovery and the revelation of HYDRA."

"That's crazy," Torres spoke with astonishment.

The plane ride was in silence after that. Diana got set up with an earpiece to be connected to Torres and Sam, and she adjusted her gauntlets to take more power, truthfully, she hadn't used the suit since the fight with Thanos and hadn't updated her gauntlets to work with how her powers were today.

She counted up her stones, Diana was at a low count of 53, most of her stones were in a bag at home, but she didn't expect a last-minute mission. She just hoped Charlie got her text and is going to go to her apartment after school to feed Natalia.

"One minute to drop off, Sam," Torres spoke up as he prepared the plane for a door to open.

The two continued to stare for a few long, agonizing seconds until Sam got up, breaking eye contact to prepare himself like Diana did a while again. A shared glance and a simple hand maneuver and Diana knew exactly her drop-off plan.

"So what's our plan?" Bucky asked, afterwards, he stuck an earpiece in as well, tapping it to make sure he could hear through it.

Sam didn't reply. Diana rolled her eyes, she didn't know the whole plan either. She only knew how she was going to get down.

"Great," Bucky spoke sarcastically, "so no plan."

"Thirty seconds!" Torres called out over the wind.

Diana walked over to the opening, looking down at the clouds and lush green forest below, she could see the clearing of smaller trees approaching with a building nearby, that must be where the coordinates led.

"Enjoy your ride, Buck," Sam finally spoke up.

"No, you can't call me that."

"Why not? That's what Steve called you, Diana still calls you that."

"Steve knew me longer and Steve had a plan," Bucky retorted, "and Diana had plans too."

Diana narrowed her eyes and shook her head. He has never followed her into a battle a day in his life, she knows he's just being petty. She sighed as she pulled her hair up in a ponytail to prevent any more of it from flying in her face.

"Fifteen seconds to drop," Torres announced.

"I have a plan," Sam defended himself as he made his way over to Diana and Torres, taking his position behind her.

"Really?" Bucky asked, getting up from his seat once more, "what is it?"

A tap on Diana's back alerted her that it was time. She blew a kiss at Bucky before jumping out feet first. Her hands flew up, open and ready for Sam to grab. She had forgotten that she didn't grab a parachute in case of an emergency. The idea of needing a parachute flew out of her mind to live in the clouds the second she felt Sam's hands around her forearms. She gripped tightly onto his and bent her knees, preparing to roll when she hit the ground.

The second she was at a safe distance from the ground, Sam released her, letting her protective energy encase her and take the impact as she rolled.

"I think that's been our smoothest drop-off yet," Diana spoke up after she steadied herself on her feet.

"Yeah, it helps when helicopters aren't shooting at you," Sam replied when he dropped down, a ping on his wrist had him waving over to show her something on his device.

"Look at this," Sam seemed to almost giggle.

Diana stepped over to watch with him. It was Redwing's view of the cargo ship she just dropped out of. She opened her mouth to question the view when Bucky shot out of the open doorway, his yelling could be heard over the comm, snapping branches, and eventually the thud of him falling on his back.

She couldn't help the giggle that escaped her throat.

"I have all of that on camera, you know that right?" Sam asked.

Redwing fly closer to Bucky's face and she could see the pain spread across his expression.

"Get out of my face, Sam, or I'll break it," Bucky's gravelly voice turned something in Diana's gut but she ignored it.

"Are you okay, Buck?" Diana asked, "200 feet is a lot."

"I'll be fine," Bucky answered.

"Okay, head north, come on," Sam confirmed and the two headed inside the building they landed near.

It was an old red brick warehouse with most of the windows smashed, the roof was in a zig-zag shape, and had grey shingles protecting the building from the weather. Though they didn't seem to do their job well because if it looked run down on the outsides the inside was far worse, one string gust of wind, and Diana was sure this place would go crumbling to the ground.

Sam and Diana were alone in the open room, a suspicion of the threat being on the other side of the wall, but they still waited for Bucky to regroup with them before they went further.

Bucky ventured further into the warehouse and Sam had the bright idea to sneak up on him with Redwing. He immediately went to smack at the thing like he promised to do earlier.

"Oh-ho-ho," Sam mocked as he made Redwing fly out of Bucky's reach, "don't hurt him."

When Bucky finally caught up with them, Diana gave him a small nod as Sam kept his eyes on the device; she knew he was surveilling the building, scouting out for heat signatures that would give away their positions. Diana took this time to stretch, there was only one time she didn't stretch before getting in a fight with a super soldier and she got shot four times in 72 hours.

"They're in there," Sam jerked his head in the direction that Redwing flew off.

"Where's the guy?"

"I don't know," Sam answered his question quickly, "I think they're smuggling weapons, though."

"Well, I think you could be right."

"How are you able to agree with someone and still make it sound like you're insulting them?" Diana asked, her voice just above a whisper.

Bucky gave her a look before looking back at Sam.

"There's only one way to find out." Bucky finished the thought that Diana didn't even realize she interrupted, "I see a clear path, I say we take it."

Diana didn't move an inch. Bucky's strategy was... straightforward but this was Sam's mission. It didn't feel right to join Sam's mission and then not think of him as the lead on it. Bucky moved to go by himself but a hand was firmly planted on his chest to stop him. The two looked over at Sam.

"We're not assassins," he spoke.

Diana let out a small gasp, her eyebrows furrowing. Did he really think that Bucky would want to kill them? And what did he think of her? Would he assume that she wouldn't try to get the Flagsmashers to stop peacefully? Maybe try fighting for a team like the Avengers? Killing robots and aliens was one thing, but she won't kill a human even if they're on steroids that enable them to do things that aren't good.

"I'll see you inside, or not." Bucky maneuvered around Sam's hand, stalking off towards the next room.

Diana spun around to watch him leave, a frown settling on her face. She could tell the comment hurt him even if he didn't let it on. An angry glance at Sam had the man opening his mouth to hopefully spit out an apology.

"Hey come on, man," Sam backtracked, a playful smile spread across his face, "I'm just messing with you, come back!"

Bucky didn't return, and Sam wasn't done surveilling the scene, looking for points of attack and group weakness, all the while, Bucky crept up without any of them noticing.

"Look at you," Sam started up as he noticed Bucky in Red Wings feed, "All stealthy, a little time in Wakanda and you come out White Panther."

"It's actually White Wolf," Diana and Bucky had spoken in unison, and Diana had to fight the urge to yell jinx for everyone to hear.

"Huh?" Sam asked, looking over at Diana.

"It's what the village kids used to call him and it stuck," Diana explained quickly before they decided to start moving, they were even quieter than Bucky had been, avoiding wet spots in the ground and avoiding the dry leaves that get blown in from each fall season.

"Alright I'm inside, therefore, way ahead of you," Bucky remarked, "it's not great, but very doable."

He didn't realize that the two caught up with him until Diana gently tapped his human hand. Bucky jerked but was still concealed by the shelves of miscellaneous supplies that seemed to be as old and rusted as the building. And just on the other side, she could see people moving things that they shouldn't be able to move.

"Hello?" Bucky asked sarcastically, "how are you?"

"Good, what didn't we miss?" Sam retorted, "Nothing!"

"Stop bickering for two fucking seconds, it was entertaining before but you two are gonna give me a migraine for fucks sake!" Diana whispered harshly after glaring the two of them down, she could see a faint yellow glow cast on their faces.

Diana blinked a couple of times, the glow disappearing as Sam and Bucky glanced at each other.

"All right, let's go," Bucky started up again, turning to rush them.

"No, wait."

"I got a vibranium arm, I can take them."

"Diana can glow and I can fly, who gives a shit?" Sam argued, "wait, I wanna see where they're going."

"There's two people."

"You only see two?" Sam pulled up his arm device again and tapped away at Redwing's controls.

"That's what I saw."

"Let me see what Redwing sees," Sam mocked, "let me see... oh!"

Diana looked at his arm device and her eyes widened at the number of people moving around. The first two were alarming enough but now she wonders what the hell she's backing Sam up with.

"How many people you see now?" Sam asked, "One... two... oh! Here it comes again!"

"Four. five," Bucky sighed.

"Yeah, five."

"So they're strong, whatever."

Diana watched as one of the enhanced ones picked up a whole pallet all by himself, making her jaw drop. She might turn and hunt down the cargo plane with Torres to hitch a ride home.

She was too lost in her thoughts to hear Bucky and Sam but the unmistakable clatter of things falling off the shelves behind her made her spin around. Her blood went ice cold as she felt her face pale, her heart was now hammering in her chest so loud even Sam might be able to hear it.

The others stopped in their tracks and looked back at where the noise had come from. Diana had crouched down behind Sam and Bucky and took a deep breath before slapping both of them in the chest.

"All right let's move!"

The soldiers moved on after the command, loading up onto the trucks as they started up. Sam looked back down at his arm device, looking at the heat signatures to do one last head count but there was something he noticed that Diana could see bothered him.

"There's an eighth person," Sam said softly, "I think they have a hostage."

There was no hesitation after that, and there was no waiting for Sam's lead. Diana jumped up from her crouch and felt her energy encase her legs, enhancing them. She took off running, breaking any world record that may be out there, and Bucky was by her side. Sam was behind them, flying up and off.

Diana and Bucky had caught up with the truck with ease, Bucky leaped onto the back of the first truck where the hostage was spotted and he quickly opened it. Diana leaped into the truck once Bucky was inside, looking around in the dark space for the person. Her heart was still racing.

She didn't have to do much searching, a young girl stepped out of the shadows as Bucky speculated about the medical supplies around them. Diana kept her focus on the girl. She couldn't be older than 20, her young face was highlighted by the light shining in from the open door, and her brown doe eyes looked at the two curiously. She was biracial, her caramel skin was complemented by the splattering of freckles and red hair.

"Are you hurt?" Diana asked as she stepped closer with open palms assessing the girl for any injuries that may hinder getting her away from the Flagsmashers, "you'll be safe soon, we'll get you out of here."

The girl didn't say anything but a smile grew on her face. Diana didn't know her, but it wasn't the smile of someone who realized they've been saved. A foot to Bucky's chest sent him flying back into the truck behind them. Diana's jaw dropped as she looked back at the girl. Another kick and now it was Diana's turn to fly. She landed right into the Bucky-made dent, her breath was gone as she wheezed. Two pairs of strong hands gripped her arms and pulled her up. She stared at the girl and watched as she put on the same mask that the guy had in the photo Sam showed her.

Diana was on her back on top of the truck but she didn't stay there long as one of the Smashers stomped his foot down, leaving a dent where she once was. She scrambled to her feet and dodged a punch for her head. She had no time to plan or even get an attack. She dodged and blocked and soon she found herself nearing the edge of the truck. One wrong move and she would be a streak on the pavement.

With all her energy in one fist, Diana sent a punch with all her strength behind it. The attacker went flying on his back, allowing space for Diana to move further inward on the truck. The way she moved around, dodging punches and staying out of Bucky's way oddly reminded her of fighting Ultron with Steve those years ago.

Diana thought her saving grace would be with Redwing when the drone flew down, shooting at the ginger supergirl and her super friends, but she charged at it and caught it from the air, breaking it over her knee.

"I've always wanted to do that," Bucky admitted, looking exhausted as two of the Smashes held him up for the ginger girl to beat on. He was silenced this time by the guy who held him on his left with a fist to his face.

Diana sent blast after blast on them, her boiling anger now having an outlet. Sam flew in and kicked the girl back, making himself her new target. Diana didn't mind as she took on the Smasher from before, blasting at his knees and sending charged punches at critical points of his body.

"Good of you to join the fight, Sam!" Bucky mocked as Diana groaned.

"Less talky, more punchy!" Diana yelled over the howling wind. She meant to send another blow to the masked assailant she was opposing but ended up swinging at air when a blow to her gut sent her flying to her back.

She moved to get back up but a boot on her chest kept her down and limited her air intake. Panicked, her body started covering itself in its protective energy. Diana swung for his knee, making him cry out when it jerked left. When the boot was gone and her lungs were at full capacity again, Diana jumped up and dodged quickly enough for a familiar shield to fly by her face. Her heart sank knowing that it wouldn't be Steve dropping in, and it was even worse that they didn't have it earlier with Sam. She had more reaction time now to get out of its way when it bounced off of one of the Smashers that managed to get Sam on his back.

With the new distraction of John Walker and his buddy dropping into the fight, Diana was able to take another Flagsmasher down. She glanced over as the other guy dropped down from the rope dangling out of the helicopter and landed next to John, the two puffed out their chests as they tapped their forearms.

If Diana wasn't in the middle of punching super-soldiers, she would've busted out laughing at how ridiculous they looked. There was a pause in the fight now— a lull. The remaining Flagsmashers were reeling and the one guy whose leg Diana broke was still groaning in pain.

"Sam!" John yelled out, "John Walker, Captain America!"

Diana refrained from physically gagging as she spared a glance at Bucky, he seemed to have the same disgusted look.

"Not my Cap," Diana retorted as she glanced over at Sam, hopefully seeing John in person will help convince him to fight for the title back.

"Lemar Hoskins!" His friend yelled out, seemingly out of breath from swinging around and kicking Flagsmashers down. Diana will commend him for kicking that one ginger girl down, she doesn't like the fact that her stomach and back were probably covered in bruises again like the time she crashed into a train in 2015.

"Looks like you guys can use some help!" John yelled out.

Diana rolled her eyes at the comment and looked over as movement from John's right caught her attention. The young girl had tried sneaking up on him but the shield—

She couldn't watch him use it anymore, she found herself occupied with another Flagsmasher. The assailant seemed to be a bit more trained than his buddies as he sent her calculated hits and kicks. Diana was still charging her fist when the shield bounced off him. It was only instinct to catch it and energize it, using it to shove the guy onto his back. She didn't use as much energy as she did when she made an Ultron robot explode, but there was sure to be a mark on the man who lay at her feet.

Diana removed the shield and flung it in John's direction, not even looking at him before she jumped over onto the other truck where Sam was being ganged up on, Bucky had the same idea as the two of them landed together, each of them taking a Flagsmasher on, leaving Sam to only have to deal with one.

Sam spun around, leaving Bucky and his opponent to be the victims of his mechanical wingspan, the two went flying and Bucky's arm may have been his only saving grace as he plummeted toward the fast-paced pavement below them. The terrible shriek of his arm ripping through the metal of the truck made Diana feel like her ears were going to start bleeding.

She yelled out an indiscernible protest and faced her own opponent, a wave of her energy washed over her and she pulled a stone out, turning it into the spear she left at home. Diana didn't process how her energy coated the spear, she only swung and blasted, kicking the guy back before he rolled off the edge. She only watched for a moment as he dangled by his hands.

A chill down her spine as her senses flared made her look over her shoulder to see an incoming sign. Diana dropped to her stomach as Sam flew up. The Flagsmasher only tore through the sign. A groan tore through Diana as she jumped up, punching the woman after she shoved Sam off the truck.

Sam was okay, sure but it only made it harder for him to get to Bucky.

"That little girl kicked your ass!" Diana heard in her comm.

"It was an awesome kick, Sam!" Diana yelled over the wind, "she had perfect form!"

Diana didn't get to respond to Bucky's angered yell because the Flagsmasher that tore through the sign only seemed to know how to throw her weight around. When she put too much into her punch, Diana grabbed the woman's forearm with both hands and spun. The woman's body weight is what Diana used against her to send her flying across the truck, knocking out another Flagsmasher as she did so.

"Twofer!" Diana cheered as she looked over to see Sam and Bucky barreling toward the fields. She looked over at John and Lemar who noticed the same thing before looking back at her.

"Looks like it's just us!" Lemar yelled out to her as she kicked back another untrained fighter.

They were outnumbered, and the way Sam and Bucky barreled off, it didn't look good. They'll find the Flagsmashers again, but she needs to make sure her boys are okay, and if they are, that they aren't going to kill each other.

"It looks like it's just you guys!" Diana yelled out before turning the staff into a glider and jumping. The wind fought her a lot harder than it did when she jumped off the roof of the compound. Unironically, the glider she made was the one from the Avatar show.

Hopefully, Sam can see this over the grass and Bucky. Diana tumbled and rolled on the grass as well but not nearly as hard as her two partners did. She found herself able to get up with general soreness and ache and only a few cuts from the fight and the ground.

"Could've used that shield," she heard Bucky seethe as she approached them, noticing the way he laid on Sam who was still groaning.

"Get off of me!" Sam wheezed.

The sight of the two of them laying in the grass made an odd bubble of a giggle fly up her throat. The two looked over to see her walking over, confused by the sound of her laughter. She turned the glider back into a stone, ready to be put away.

"The hills are alive with the sound of music!" She sang out, making the two groan even more as Bucky rolled off of Sam.

She stepped over the older man and held her hands out for the both of them now that her stone was stored in her pouch once more. They both accepted the help and Diana pulled them up with a groan.

"Those were all super soldiers, guys," Bucky wasn't focused on Diana's teasing or singing anymore, the fight was the only thing he thought about now, "Diana, you were right."

The blonde grinned triumphantly, it definitely wasn't the time but she at least knew what she was up against and she knew how to handle them. On top of that, it seemed that they barely had any training, their fighting style was similar to how Diana started when she first joined the fight club at 18 when she was strapped for cash and rent was due.

"I know!" Sam was still out of breath as he agreed, he looked at Bucky directly now, "you're welcome by the way."

• • •

"I'M SORRY ABOUT Redwing," Bucky tried speaking up to break the silence. It was only then that Diana realized her comfortable quiet wasn't shared with her team.

"No you're not," Sam retorted, he glanced over at Bucky to see him concentrated on the road as he mulled over his thoughts, "what's going on in that big cyborg brain of yours?"

"It's computing," Bucky half-joked, making Diana snort as he elbowed his arm.

"You know what? I can actually see it, I can see the gears turning," Sam piled on, Diana finally looked over at Bucky and studied his face this time, she understood what Sam was describing, "Oh, they're malfunctioning, shutting down, yep, they're on fire—"

"We gotta figure out where the serums coming from," Bucky let them in on his thoughts, Diana agreed as she tried remembering everything she read from what Natasha released in 2014 when the two of them took down Hydra.

"Yeah, and how in the hell after 80 years are there eight super soldiers runnin' loose?" Sam added on, his question slammed into Diana's mind.

"Oh god, what if there's more?" Diana asked, even though it was barely above a whisper, she knew that the two heard her on the quiet road.

At least it was quiet until an engine and the honk of a horn pulled the three's attention to their right where a military jeep pulled up next to their leisurely pace. Diana groaned as she caught sight of John and Lemar hanging out in the back. Bucky nudged her, making her look over to give him a pleading look. Her friend only shook his head.

"So that didn't go as planned," John spoke up as he opened the door. Diana didn't plan on getting in and she was glad that Sam and Bucky were on the same page.

Their stride never faltered as they headed to their rendezvous point where Torres waited for them. She could see why Sam had taken him under his mechanical wing, Diana had the strong urge to join him in it but she was sure she didn't have much to offer in the ways of mentoring someone.

"Look, at least we know what we're up against, huh?" John's grating voice interrupted Diana's peace once more, "and we're pretty sure it's one of the Big Three, so..."

"Aliens, Androids, or Wizards?" Sam asked, confirming they shared the same idea of the "Big Three". Diana wished there was a wall for her to shove her head through.

"Pretty sure."

"Okay, even if the Big Three was something we're gonna say, wizards still don't belong in that grouping!" Diana finally spoke up, sending a sharp stare at Sam, "and once again, where do super-soldiers fit in your three?"

"And there's no such thing as wizards," Bucky protested. Diana glanced over at him with a small smile. He flashed one back at her before letting it drop.

"Super soldiers for real?"

"Did you not see the very human woman tear through that overhead road sign?" Diana asked as she looked up at Lemar. He only shrugged.

"Wow, all right, well, then we gotta work together."

Diana covered her mouth, desperate to shove her laughter back down her throat at John's suggestion. There was no way in hell she would fight by his side. She managed to keep her composure as she bumped into Bucky's side, looking everywhere except for the truck and its occupants.

"That's not happening," Bucky voiced her thoughts in a slightly less abrasive manner.

"I think we stand a much better chance if we all just—"

"Just 'cause you carry that shield, it doesn't make you Captain America."

"Look, I've done the work, okay?"

Diana widened her eyes as she found herself staring only at the sky, she knew that neither Sam nor Bucky would let her veer off her path. She could feel her chest about to explode with the laughter she was desperate to contain.

"You ever jump on top of a grenade?"

"Yeah, actually, I have, four times! It's a thing I do with my helmet, it's a reinforced helmet, it's a long story, but any— look, it's 20 miles to the airport, you guys need a ride."

John glanced over at the driver— Gary, and asked him to stop, looking back at the three of them and sending a cocky smile. Diana felt her fists stiffening at her sides as she struggled to keep her composure. She didn't like these two, and she didn't want to be near them if she didn't have to. And she certainly didn't like the fact that John was right about the walk to the airport.

The three of them look at each other. The disappointment was a common theme in their expressions. After watching John and Lemar adjust the seating so they were side by side, Diana found herself sitting in between Sam and Bucky, the compact backseat offering very little in the way of comfort.

"Okay, so we've got eight super soldiers on a bulk supply run, why?" John asked, getting down to business immediately, which Diana preferred, if he started asking her about Thor or Clint or Bruce, she would lose her mind.

"They say their mission is to get things back to the way it was during the blip," Sam explained, "maybe they're just trying to help."

Diana shuddered as she thought of the blip and found herself grabbing onto Bucky's forearm along with Sam. She remembered what it was like to feel someone turn to dust in her hands. She held on tighter than she needed to, just wanting the reassurance that they won't disappear again.

"They had a funny way of showing it," Bucky spoke up.

"That serum doesn't exactly have a great track record," John commented, "no offense."

Diana sent a glare toward John who found himself shifting in his seat and focusing on Sam. Diana leaned over to Bucky's ear.

"He's talking out of his ass, you're great," She spoke in a quiet whisper, "it'd be funny if you chuckled while looking at John so it looks like I'm making fun of him."

Bucky chuckled softly and nudged Diana who broke into a grin, glancing back at John to see that his jaw set as he shook his head and once again directed his attention to Sam.

"We need to figure out where they're going," Sam put the conversation back on track, "how'd you track 'em here? The Flag Smashers?"

"Uh, no, we didn't track them, we tracked you, uh, through Redwing," Lemar explained, avoiding eye contact with Sam and scratching at his head behind his ear.

"You hacked my tech?"

"Sorry, it's not exactly hacking," John chuckled condescendingly, "it's government property... we're kind of the government."

"Like hell it is!" Diana piped up, "Tony didn't make Redwing for you guys to give to Sam he gave Redwing to him directly, what the hell is it with the US Government thinking that they own every single piece of Stark tech ever made?"

Diana held up her gauntlets, she didn't even realize her fists were covered in tight coils of energy, but she still calmed them down, making them dissipate.

"Does this logo say Stark Industries, or Property of the United States?"

John didn't answer her question because they all knew the answer. Diana huffed after that and crossed her arms, leaning back in her seat and glaring off into the distance.

"Does he always just stare like that?"

"You get used to it," Sam answered, to an untrained ear, he sounded friendly, but Diana knew him long enough that she could hear the attitude.

"Okay, look, you know things have gotten kind of uh—"

"Chaotic."

"Yeah, well, the GRC they're doing the best they can to get things up and running smoothly, post Blip," John said, the bumps in the road made everyone shake and his head had a way of swinging side to side.

"Reactivating citizenship, social security, healthcare, basically just managing resources for the refugees who were displaced by the return," Lemar chimed in, going further in something that Diana already knew by just watching the news.

"The Global Repatriation system does all that, I get that," Sam nodded, "so why are you two here?"

"Well they provide the resources, we keep things stable," Lemar answered.

"Yeah, violent revolutionaries aren't usually good for anyone's cause," John looked... smug. Diana wanted to yell at him, she did, but she kept her composure and did her best to remain stoic.

"Usually said by the people with the resources," Sam countered. Diana allowed herself to smirk at that lean on Sam a bit afterward.

"We got a lot of resources." John defended himself, but it only looked like he was digging himself into a bigger hole.

"If you guys, if you joined up with us, we could just—"

"No." Bucky's words should have been final, but Lemar started to smirk.

"I got mad respect for the three of y'all, but you were kind of getting your asses kicked till we showed up," Lemar said, he looked over at Diana, and his expression changed, "though you could save me anytime."

Diana squinted her eyes as she analyzed him with a frown, shaking her head. She wasn't made uncomfortable, more so just disappointed in his lack of game, and professionalism. Though the same could be said about her at times. Diana sighed and looked to her left, watching the way Bucky's jaw set and how his head tilted.

"Who are you?" Bucky asked, making Diana want to giggle.

"Lemar Hoskins," He answered.

"Look," Sam said, "I see a guy hanging out of a helicopter in tactical gear, I need a lot more than Lemar Hoskins."

"I'm Battlestar," Lemar said, "I'm John's partner."

"Battlestar?" Bucky asked.

Diana couldn't help it anymore. These two were just jokes at this point. Her laughter echoed out of the open truck into the fields surrounding them. She doubled over with it as one hand held her gut, and the other held onto Sam's arm for stability.

"Stop the car!" Bucky yelled over her thundering laughter and somehow, the driver— Gary— heard him and slowed to a stop, pulling over at a break in the road where there was a turn-off.

Diana and Bucky were moving to get out and her laughter died down a little bit, but was never-ending anytime she looked at either John or Lemar.

"Look, I... I get it, okay? I get the attitude, I do," John tried being friendly, "you didn't think the shield was gonna end up here, I get it Bucky, you too Diana."

Her giggles made her face heat up as she scrambled to get out of the seat with Bucky, accepting his helping hand when he turned around. She was still leaning on him even after both feet were on the ground.

"Fucking Battlestar and the arm bumps," Diana felt another round of hysterical laughter and had to turn into Bucky's shoulder to muffle it.

She probably should've been embarrassed for being so rude but she couldn't find it in herself to feel that way. She wasn't intentionally being rude, she just found it funny how Lemar seemed to have given himself the name "Battlestar" like it was cool or something. She couldn't say much since the English word for her name was Firefly but Světluška always sounded cool, even if she didn't immediately appreciate Costel talking to her after losing Pietro the way she did.

"And I'm— I'm not trying to be Steve," John seemed genuine, he was a lot more... humble when he spoke directly to Sam, "I'm not trying to replace Steve, I'm just trying to be the best Captain America I can be, that's it. It'd be a whole lot easier if I had Cap's team on my side."

Diana and Sam scoffed at the same time. Sam had gotten up out of the truck, moving to join her and Bucky on the road.

"It's always that last line." Sam shook his head as he spoke, sharing a look with Diana once he finally looked over.

John's face fell as his tousled, blond hair moved in the small breeze that was pushed from the meadow that came from across the street. Diana, Sam, and Bucky turned to the pathway, preparing themselves for their 20-mile trek to the airport. 20 miles of walking was better than 20 miles in a truck with a condescending man.

Cap's team? Diana was a founding member of the fucking Avengers, she damn sure wasn't Steve's sidkick. And yeah, Sam and Bucky joined later through Steve but they're Avengers too, they weren't there to answer Steve's every beck and call.

Shaking fists clenched once more, Diana wished Sam took on that shield six months ago, but there was nothing they could do now. Besides, the Flagsmasher's have made themselves bigger fish for Diana to fry.

And she wasn't going to let them get away.

━━✦❘༻✶༺❘✦━━

8.3k words

holy SHIT this took forever. like WTF BRO!!!!

and I truly tried to put more of this chapter in but that fight on the trucks was literally only 17 minutes in. So... yeah...

this is definitely gonna be the longest part of the series and definitely the longest book... I can't wait to dive further into the cap squad as I violently ignore the fact that Sam and Bucky aren't gonna be in the same movie in the future of the MCU (what the FUCK feige, you're a fake ass hoe for that)

anyways, thank you all for reading and I hope to feed off your votes and comments in the future!!

— greta