"Karl, if you do that, it'll only make things even more tense."
Nick Fury was worried, because he knew Karl wasn't just talking—he would actually do it. The Capitol building had already been sent flying once before, and the newly rebuilt one probably still hadn't finished airing out the formaldehyde.
"That tension isn't my problem. Besides, the strongest forces they can mobilize are just a few Avengers. Do you really think they're a match for me? Or that they'd even be willing to become my enemy?"
Fury was speechless again. Just as Karl said, no one in the Avengers was his opponent—not even Thor or Hulk. And right now, Thor was still in Asgard, while Bruce had disappeared somewhere to study how to control the Hulk.
"Fine. I came today to ask for your help—help me find the mastermind behind all of this. Once we catch him, the Avengers won't be controlled anymore."
Nick Fury finally revealed his true purpose. He was already prepared for Karl to name an outrageous price. Money? If he didn't have it, the Security Council certainly would.
But this time, Karl did something unexpected—he didn't take the opportunity to extort him.
"Alright. I'll help you this time—for free."
Fury froze for a moment, but instead of feeling relieved, he became uneasy. He couldn't understand why Karl had suddenly changed his behavior, not even trying to take advantage of him.
And the more it was like this, the more uneasy he felt—because he understood one thing very well: the most expensive things were often the ones that came for free.
Karl's reasoning was actually simple. In his previous life, he hadn't watched Captain America: Civil War, so he didn't know who was really behind everything. Now that even a fake Bucky had appeared, he was curious—who could possibly manipulate the entire Avengers team like this?
They say the more a person has, the more easily they grow bored. At this point, Fury had nothing Karl was interested in. He wasn't short on money either—the dividends from Stark Industries alone could support his family for generations. Aside from something new and unknown, nothing really caught his interest anymore. Being rich could be surprisingly dull.
Now, finally, there was something he didn't know—and it piqued his curiosity.
"R-Really?!"
Fury looked incredulous.
"Of course. I want to see who this mastermind really is too."
---
Following the lead provided by Sharon, Steve arrived at an apartment. With a kick, he broke the door open.
Inside, he found peeling walls, worn-out furniture, and even windows covered with newspapers. It looked more like a temporary shelter for a drifter than a proper home.
Steve scanned the room, searching for useful clues. There were indeed signs that someone had been living here.
He casually picked up a black notebook from the top of the refrigerator and began flipping through it.
"Be careful, Cap. A special forces team is approaching your location."
Sam's voice came through the earpiece.
Steve knew he had found the right place.
As he was reading the notebook, he suddenly sensed someone approaching from behind and quickly turned around.
A man stood there wearing a cap, dressed plainly, with medium-length hair and a scruffy beard. It was a face Steve would never forget.
"Do you know me?"
Steve asked. He knew the real Bucky would never carry out such attacks. He suspected Bucky had lost his memory.
"Steve, I learned about you in the museum."
This "Bucky" had been implanted with the real Bucky's memories, so of course he recognized Steve. But by saying he'd learned about him in a museum, he was clearly trying to make Steve believe he had amnesia—so he could get closer.
"You don't need to be nervous."
Steve noticed the tension in Bucky's demeanor. This only reinforced his belief that Bucky had lost his memory.
"I didn't go to Vienna. I wouldn't do something like that."
In reality, he had planted the bomb. But to maintain the illusion of amnesia, he couldn't admit to being there.
"Cap, the special forces team has entered the building."
Sam's voice came again just as Steve was about to speak.
"They're not planning to take you alive."
Steve looked at Bucky.
"Cap, they're coming up. You need to leave now."
But Bucky showed no urgency at all. Instead, he calmly removed the glove from his left hand, revealing a fully metallic arm.
"Cap, they're here!"
As Sam's words fell, the window behind Steve shattered, and a flashbang was thrown inside.
Reacting instantly, Steve covered it with his shield. The explosion was muffled beneath it, producing only a dull thud—completely ineffective against him.
At the same time, the door was blasted open, and the special forces team rushed in, opening fire on both Steve and Bucky.
Bucky raised his metal arm, blocking all incoming bullets, and launched a brutal counterattack. Every punch from that metal arm took a life.
Like Steve, all Winter Soldiers had been injected with the Super Soldier Serum—including this fake Bucky. The special forces stood no chance.
"Bucky, stop! You're going to kill them!"
Steve tried to stop him.
But unexpectedly, Bucky turned and slammed Steve to the ground, punching straight through the floor.
"They all deserve to die!"
After all, he was a fake. He didn't value human life at all. The implanted memories couldn't truly make him Bucky—he was still just an anonymous Winter Soldier.
As more special forces flooded in, Bucky decisively charged out of the apartment and began slaughtering them in the stairwell. No one could withstand even a single blow. He cut through them like a force of nature.
He fought his way downward. Steve followed closely, rushing out just in time to see a surviving soldier reporting Bucky's position over the radio. Steve snatched it away and crushed it in his hand before sprinting downstairs.
By then, Bucky had already descended several floors. Steve leapt down, landing in front of him and blocking a downward punch with his shield, saving a soldier's life.
But Bucky didn't care at all. He jumped straight down through the stairwell's central gap, burst out through a side exit, and leapt from a balcony onto the rooftop of a neighboring building.
Steve followed with a leap of his own, landing on the roof and immediately giving chase.
Suddenly, a figure dropped from the sky, tackling the sprinting Bucky to the ground.
The figure landed gracefully—a sleek black-and-gold suit clung to his body, and sharp claws extended from his fingers.
It was none other than Wakanda's current prince—Killmonger, Erik.
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