"Ah..."
In his mansion, a figure lay on a lounge chair in the yard. It was autumn, and the weather was a little cool. The bright sunlight shone on him, keeping him warm and toasty.
"Now this is the life!" Cassius casually picked up a glass of red wine and took a sip. A pack of cigarettes sat on the table beside him.
"Who's messaging me?" Cassius felt his phone vibrate and was a little puzzled. Not many people had his number, and no one usually texted him. He picked it up and saw a message from Wanda.
[Wanda]: Cassius, I'm in trouble. I hope you can help me. Tony and Steve are fighting, and they might even come to blows. You're the only one who can stop them.
"Is this really happening?" Cassius recalled the events of Captain America: Civil War. The conflict had split the team in two, and if it hadn't been for Natasha's betrayal, things would have gotten much worse.
He knew Wanda would try to stop them, but with Tony's current state of mind, no one could reason with him. The thought gave him a headache.
"Whatever. Since the little witch is asking for my help, I guess I'll go." This was the first time Wanda had ever asked him for help. He couldn't just ignore her.
"Hela!" Cassius got up and went inside, putting on a jacket.
"What do you want?" Hela stood by the front door with an annoyed look, responding when she heard his call. She had been standing there all day, acting as his doorman. To say she wasn't frustrated would be a lie.
She, the great Goddess of Death, had never suffered such humiliation. But she couldn't do anything about it since she was bound by the Loyalty Pact.
"Come with me. We're going out." Cassius decided to bring Hela along. After all, he couldn't just leave his new subordinate here to guard the door forever. Besides, Hela's immense power would be useful for dealing with some of these mundane tasks.
"Good!" Hela's lips curled into a smile. She was finally getting out of the house. How could she not be happy?
"Mr. Cassius, can I go with you?" Lorna came running down the stairs in her slippers. She wanted to go out and have fun but didn't want to go alone. Hearing that Cassius was leaving, she naturally wanted to tag along.
"This is a business trip. You'd better stay at home and watch the place." Cassius ruffled Lorna's dark green hair, speaking in a helpless tone. Although he could protect Lorna, this wasn't a fun trip. It would be better for Lorna to stay at home.
"Okay..." Despite her reluctance, Lorna could only nod obediently.
....
Meanwhile, at a German airport.
A large SUV sped along the airport runway.
Steve was driving with a grim expression, not saying a word.
In the passenger seat, Sam Wilson turned to look at Steve, his eyes filled with mixed emotions. He knew exactly what was happening, and with Tony's personality, he could easily guess what was about to unfold.
"Your arm is so cool! Where'd you buy it? Maybe I should get three later?"
"But I think I might be able to get a metal arm just like it tonight!"
"Hey, what other functions does your metal arm have, anyway?"
A young man in the back seat looked at Bucky's metal arm, muttering incessantly. Sitting in the back right seat, Bucky's patience wore thin. He turned his head, giving the guy a flat look. "Scott… you talk more than Sam."
He couldn't understand why this guy hadn't stopped talking since he got in the car. It was as if he had an endless supply of topics to talk about. Even when Bucky ignored him, he didn't stop. If Scott kept chattering, Bucky felt he would go insane.
"Hehehe..." Scott raised his hands, trying to calm him down. "Don't be so grumpy, and show some respect, okay?" He just wanted to know how he got his metal arm. Why was he suddenly so angry?
"I can be respectful… if you stop talking." Bucky's jaw tightened as he fixed Ant-Man with a hard stare. This was the first time he regretted not carrying earplugs with him. This guy's chatter was giving him a headache. The situation was critical, and who knew what was about to happen? Yet, this guy still had the mind to chat.
"I can't sew my mouth shut..." Scott shook his head, looking seriously at Bucky. Just as he was about to continue talking, Steve in the driver's seat finally spoke. "Alright, both of you be quiet."
Steve's attention was focused on his surroundings. He didn't think Tony would give up so easily. He was sure they were already on their way. He just hoped they could get Bucky to their destination as quickly as possible. Once they found the mastermind, they could clear Bucky's name. He didn't want his friend to bear this stigma for the rest of his life.
Steve then drove the car toward the depths of the airport.
On the vast airport runway.
Bang!
Suddenly, a red figure dove down with a loud bang, blocking the car's path. It was a gold and red suit of armor, and as the faceplate opened, it revealed the person inside. It was Tony Stark who was blocking the car.
At the same time, several other figures emerged from the sides. Black Panther T'Challa was the first to step out. Clint Barton also stood beside Tony. War Machine Rhodey in his armor and Vision descended from the sky, looking grimly at Steve and the others. Black Widow Natasha and Thor walked out from behind some shipping containers, followed by a somewhat conflicted Wanda.
"I knew you'd come." A look of disappointment, but mostly resolve, flashed in Steve's eyes. He stopped the car, and the others opened the doors and got out. He would not stand by and let his friend be taken away. Though they all came to stop him, he was firm in his decision. Instead of following the orders of Secretary Ross, he chose to believe in his own judgment.
The once-united Avengers were now divided into two factions.
"Steve, where'd you pick up this punk?" Tony's eyes were serious, but his tone was mocking as he looked at Scott Lang. "This guy's been in jail for years." He was hoping that Steve would just hand over Bucky and they could bury the hatchet.
"I'm not a punk." Scott grinned, stretching his body before he spoke. "But I have been to jail."
"Are you two really going to let it get to this? You have a really deep... friendship!" Thor scratched the back of his head, forcing a smile. "I don't think it's necessary for things to get this out of hand."
He was standing there, but he had no idea what to do. He may be carefree, but he wouldn't believe just one side of the story. In his opinion, it would be best for them to sit down and talk.
As for this "Bucky" person? They could just ask him for a good explanation. But no one responded to his words. He could only awkwardly look away, even pretending to whistle nonchalantly.
"Tony, enough. Step aside." Steve knew there was no way to resolve this peacefully now. If Tony was going to fight, they had to be ready. Their priority was to get the Winter Soldier out of here.
"Steve, I don't want to see you make a grave mistake. Just hand over Bucky!" Tony's strained smile vanished, replaced by a serious expression. "T'Challa lost his father because of Bucky!" He had made up his mind and would not compromise.
"A grave mistake? Have you ever considered that the truth is not what it seems?" Steve said, frowning. "I just hope you can give me some time!"
He looked at Bucky beside him, his eyes filled with determination. He would not let Tony take Bucky away without knowing the whole story. He had asked Bucky, and Bucky told him he didn't do any of this. Although some things happened later, it was because Bucky was being manipulated. As long as he could find Zemo, everything would be revealed!
"Time? Please." Tony let out a sharp laugh, eyes narrowing. "You're covering for Bucky, and we both know it." He wasn't buying a word of it.
"You really want to do this?" Steve's grip on the shield tightened as he shifted his stance. Since it had come to this, he would just have to grit his teeth and fight his way through. The most important thing now was to get the Winter Soldier away.
"Sam, don't follow Steve down the wrong path!" Tony, unable to convince Steve, looked at Sam beside him. He hoped that as a fellow Avenger, he would see things from his perspective. What they were doing now was an act of betrayal! They were taking Bucky away without any permission!
"I believe him." Sam said, though he didn't know if what he was doing was right. But he believed that Steve wouldn't make the wrong choice.
Hearing this, Tony's expression hardened. Steve was clearly in the wrong, but he was still stubbornly misguided. Tony was even willing to let bygones be bygones; if he just came back, Tony could pretend nothing happened.
"Tony, I'm sorry," Just then, to Tony's surprise, Clint Barton slowly walked to the other side. He resolutely stood beside Steve. "I also think your idea is too extreme."
He chose to believe that Steve had made the right choice, and that Bucky might have been framed. He had noticed many small details at the time and ultimately chose Captain America. Although he didn't know how it would end, he felt this was the right choice.
"Barton! You actually..." Tony never expected Barton to suddenly switch sides. If he had remained neutral, that would have been one thing, but to side with Captain America? This made his already immense anger turn into pure rage. He turned to the others. "Anyone else want to quit?!"
"I don't want to help either side. I just hope we can all sit down and talk." Wanda stood aside without hesitation. "I don't want to hurt anyone."
Although she knew her power would greatly increase either side's chances of winning, that's not what she wanted. She just wanted everyone to get along.
Thor shrugged and said with a pout, "I just want to be a spectator." He still didn't understand the full situation and wouldn't get involved so casually.
The less-visible Vision spoke gravely. "Tony, I believe in you."
Black Widow Natasha stood silently behind Tony, but her expression was incredibly complex.
Steve and Tony looked at each other, and the answer in their eyes was clear. The next second, everyone moved in an instant, lunging toward their opponents. Tony and Steve clashed, neither of them holding back.
"Let me through!" Steve blocked a punch from Tony and then slammed his shield into Tony's face, making a loud metallic clang!
Tony didn't reply. Instead, he lunged forward, his repulsor cannons firing. In that critical moment, Steve blocked it with his shield.
Falcon flew quickly in the air, and War Machine Rhodey's attention was immediately on him. Since they were former teammates, Rhodey didn't fire any missiles. Instead, he chased after Sam, trying to knock him out of the sky. The two circled in the air. Even though Falcon wanted to fight back, he couldn't make any difficult turns.
Clint Barton, very tacitly, chose Black Widow Natasha. After all, the others were basically on the level of monsters.
"Bucky, you go first!" Steve, who had a moment to spare, gritted his teeth and shouted to Bucky, who was trying to avoid Vision's attacks. It was no use to drag this out. As long as Bucky left, there would be no reason to continue fighting.
Bucky gritted his teeth and quickly ran toward the distance.
At that moment, a man in a black jumpsuit suddenly kicked him away. It was Black Panther T'Challa!
At the same time, the scene had already turned into a chaotic mess. Steve was about to rush over to help Bucky, but Vision immediately turned his attack to Steve.
Ant-Man also targeted Iron Man, and even after pulling out some wires, he was quickly blasted away by a fire extinguisher.
Wanda, watching the scene from afar, couldn't act recklessly. But when she saw Black Panther was about to kill Bucky, she gritted her teeth and used her Chaos Magic to throw the Black Panther away!
War Machine Rhodey had already noticed the defenseless Bucky and was about to go for him when his expression suddenly became incredibly grim. He turned around and saw that Ant-Man had suddenly become gigantic, even grabbing his right leg.
This sight shocked everyone, and they all stopped what they were doing, staring blankly at the scene in front of them.
"This is amazing! He can actually get bigger!" Thor, who was watching the show from a distance, widened his eyes. For a moment, he looked like he was about to jump in.
While everyone was stunned, Steve and Bucky exchanged a look and quickly ran toward the runway. But Tony flew in low and tackled Steve to the ground. The two of them started fighting, neither of them able to gain the upper hand.
Bang!
At that critical moment, two daggers drew a graceful arc in the air and slammed into the ground. A terrifying green energy erupted, and with a booming sound, everyone was stunned by the power.
"Everyone, stop!" A noble and elegant woman in a black suit slowly walked out, her voice calm but echoing in everyone's ears. The terrifying pressure made everyone stop what they were doing. The voice made everyone feel fear. Everyone's eyes were fixed on the figure.
It was the Goddess of Death, Hela.
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