[Leipzig/Halle Airport. The Tarmac.]
The teams charged.
It was a collision of metal and magic. Iron Man slammed into Captain America. War Machine battled Falcon. Black Panther hunted the Winter Soldier.
"Sebastian!" Tony yelled, blasting Hawkeye with a repulsor beam. "Secure Barnes! Do not—I repeat—do not kill him! We need him for intel!"
"Understood, Sir," Sebastian replied calmly.
He didn't run. He didn't fly. He simply vanished.
[The Hunt]
Bucky Barnes was running toward the hangar. He punched a drone out of the air.
"Sam! On your left!" Steve yelled.
Bucky turned.
Sebastian was there. He wasn't attacking; he was walking pace-for-pace beside Bucky, as if they were strolling in a park.
"Mr. Barnes," Sebastian said pleasantly. "You seem out of breath."
Bucky swung his metal arm. Hard.
Sebastian caught the Vibranium wrist. He didn't budge. He looked at the metal arm, then at Bucky's terrified eyes.
"You are running to Siberia," Sebastian whispered, leaning in so only Bucky could hear. "To the bunker. To Zemo."
Bucky froze. "How do you know?"
"I know many things," Sebastian twisted Bucky's arm, forcing him to his knees. "I know about December 16, 1991. I know about the road. I know about the car."
Bucky paled. "Stop."
"Why?" Sebastian smiled cruelly. "Are you afraid the Young Master will find out? Are you afraid the Captain will see you for what you are?"
"GET AWAY FROM HIM!"
Steve Rogers slammed into Sebastian with his shield. The impact would have leveled a tank. Sebastian slid back five feet, his heels carving grooves in the tarmac.
"Captain," Sebastian straightened his tie. "Always interfering."
[The Double Team]
"Bucky, go!" Steve yelled, raising his fists. "I can't hold him long!"
Bucky hesitated, then sprinted for the hangar.
Steve engaged Sebastian. Shield bash. Kick. Upper cut.
Sebastian dodged them all with hands behind his back.
"Your form is emotional, Captain," Sebastian lectured, ducking under a shield swing. "You are fighting to protect a lie."
"I'm fighting for my friend!" Steve grunted, landing a heavy blow on Sebastian's shoulder.
Sebastian didn't flinch. He grabbed the edge of the shield. He yanked it out of Steve's grasp and tossed it aside like a frisbee.
He grabbed Steve by the throat and lifted him off the ground.
"And that," Sebastian's eyes glowed fuchsia, "will be your undoing."
[The Escape]
"Hey! Let him go!"
Scott Lang (Ant-Man) suddenly grew into Giant Man. A massive hand swept toward Sebastian.
Sebastian dropped Steve and leaped backward. He looked up at the sixty-foot giant.
"How... tedious," Sebastian sighed.
He looked toward the hangar. Bucky and Steve were almost at the Quinjet. Black Widow was blocking them... but then she lowered her weapon. She was letting them go.
Sebastian's earpiece crackled.
"Vision! War Machine! Stop that jet!" Tony screamed.
Vision fired a beam. War Machine fired his sonic cannon.
They were aiming for the engines. They were going to destroy the jet before it could take off.
If the jet is destroyed, Sebastian realized, they don't get to Siberia. Tony doesn't see the tape.
Sebastian narrowed his eyes. He picked up a piece of debris—a heavy bolt from a destroyed truck.
He threw it.
Not at the jet. At War Machine.
PING.
The bolt hit War Machine's targeting sensor.
"System error!" Rhodes yelled. "My targeting is off!"
His sonic blast went wide, missing the jet. Vision's beam grazed the wing but didn't ground it.
The Quinjet roared into the sky, escaping the airport.
[The Aftermath]
Tony landed next to Sebastian. He ripped off his helmet. He was shaking with rage.
"They're gone," Tony whispered. "Rhodey missed. Vision missed. And you..."
Tony looked at Sebastian.
"You had Cap by the throat. Why didn't you stop them?"
Sebastian bowed his head.
"The Giant, Sir," Sebastian lied again, gesturing to the massive Scott Lang who was now being tied up by Spider-Man. "He presented a significant threat to your safety. I prioritized the immediate danger."
Tony looked at the sky. He looked broken. Betrayed by Steve. Betrayed by Natasha.
"They're going to the Hydra facility," Tony said. "I have to go. Alone."
"I shall prepare the stealth jet," Sebastian said.
"No," Tony held up a hand. "You stay here. Help Rhodey. Help the kid. If I bring you... I might kill them."
Tony looked at Sebastian with haunted eyes.
"I need to do this myself. Friend to friend."
Sebastian paused. He hadn't expected to be left behind. But... this worked too. If Tony went alone, he would be vulnerable. The despair would be raw.
"As you wish, Young Master," Sebastian bowed low. "I shall await your return."
Or your call for help, Sebastian thought. When your heart finally breaks.
Tony flew off in pursuit of the Quinjet.
Sebastian watched him go. He pulled out his pocket watch.
"Tick tock, Mr. Stark," Sebastian whispered to the wind. "The truth is waiting in the snow."
[End of Chapter 36]
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