Mario moved through the S.H.I.E.L.D. building, his invisibility potion still holding strong. The two-story atrium outside Fury's office had been converted into a war zone, upper level filled with office cubicles and conference rooms, lower level packed with administrative staff who were now scrambling for cover as Hydra agents poured in from every entrance.
Gunfire echoed off the glass and steel surfaces. The scene was chaos at its finest, suppressing fire keeping the good guys pinned down, and zero concern for collateral damage.
And it only got worse once Mario stepped out of the office.
The assault rifle felt perfect in his hands, minimal recoil, and incredible fire rate. But what really made it special was the faint magical shimmer.
[Power V | Piercing V | Infinity I | Durability III]
The past two days hadn't just been about clearing rubble. He had experienced a flash of inspiration and created this rifle with double crossbow enchantments. It had consumed every enchanted book related to ranged weapons he'd fished up, but once he built a proper trading hall, he'd never have to worry about supplies again.
These guys really don't know when to quit.
He squeezed the trigger, and the Piercing enchantment proved its worth immediately. In Minecraft, each level of Piercing allowed arrows to pass through one additional target. In reality, it transformed his already-powerful rounds into hypervelocity penetrators that made armor-piercing ammunition look like BB gun pellets.
BANG.
A single bullet went through three Hydra operatives, their bodies jerking backward as the round carved a tunnel through flesh and bone. The entrance wounds were small. The exit wounds... less so.
"No wonder Fury's so desperate to build the Avengers," he muttered, dropping two more hostiles with controlled bursts. "Regular soldiers without special gear are just expensive target practice against people with powers."
This was 2008. Iron Man had barely been active for a few months. Hydra didn't have access to their advanced energy weapons yet, no Tesseract meant no glowing blue death rays. They were stuck with conventional firearms, so he killed them with ease, venting his rage at what they'd done to his people. The occasional bullet that slipped past his defenses was nothing a healing potion couldn't fix.
The invisibility finally wore off, and his form suddenly materialized in the middle of the firefight. Every Hydra gun in the atrium immediately swiveled toward him. Bullets immediately converged on his position.
A shield appeared in his left hand just as the first rounds arrived, deflecting the initial volley. With his other hand, he pulled a grenade and lobbed it toward the largest cluster of hostiles.
BOOM.
The explosion briefly reduced the volume of gunfire.
Stark Industries really doesn't fuck around with their ordnance.
Before the smoke cleared, he pulled an ender pearl from his inventory and hurled it into the crowd. His rifle resumed its work, cutting down Hydra agents.
It was like mowing grass.
That's when several S.H.I.E.L.D. helicopters appeared outside the massive floor-to-ceiling windows. The glass-walled atrium made the interior battle perfectly visible from outside.
He was reaching for his sniper rifle when violent muzzle flashes erupted from somewhere beyond his line of sight. All three helicopters exploded mid-air, tumbling from the sky in flames.
He didn't have time to process what had happened. A grenade launcher round slammed into his shield with enough force to shave off another chunk of durability.
Mario looked up to see the Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes, already loading another round.
Before Bucky could fire, a spinning disc of red, white, and blue intercepted him mid-motion, striking his shoulder and disrupting his aim.
Rogers vaulted over the second-floor railing, landing in a three-point crouch that would've looked absurd if it weren't so tactically effective. He immediately transitioned into combat, eliminating enemies around him with his shield and a liberated assault rifle.
Bucky discarded his damaged launcher and snatched an assault rifle from a nearby corpse, bringing it to bear on Rogers.
Because of the mask and his drastically altered appearance, Rogers had no idea he was facing his best friend. To him, this was just another enhanced enemy combatant.
Bullets pinged off the vibranium shield.
Mario couldn't help noticing that Cap's shield looked like a bullseye. Probably by design.
No way Bucky's not pulling his shots. Some part of him remembers Steve.
But that couldn't be allowed to continue. Heroes didn't get stains on their records, and Rogers believed Bucky had died falling from that train in the Alps. Better to keep it that way.
He strode toward the Captain. "This one's mine!"
Steve hesitated for less than a second before nodding. "Understood."
He didn't know why Mario wanted this particular opponent, but the man's reflexes and that cybernetic arm marked him as more than human. If Mario could handle it, he had plenty of other targets.
The Winter Soldier didn't care who his opponent was. The moment Mario approached, he swung his rifle around and squeezed the trigger.
Click-click-click.
Empty.
Mario raised his own weapon, which thanks to the Infinity enchantment would never run dry, and opened fire without hesitation. He had no reason to show mercy, Bucky was Steve's friend, not his.
And he was already planning to hand the Winter Soldier over to Tony as partial payment for new equipment. The body would work just as well as the living man.
If Rogers eventually learned the truth about Bucky? That wasn't his problem. Right now, the Winter Soldier was his enemy.
Bucky's enhanced reflexes kicked in. He dove behind a desk, using the office furniture as mobile cover while retreating toward an emergency stairwell.
Gunfire erupted from the building's entrance. Mario checked his mini-map and saw dozens of white dots flooding into S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.
Where the hell did Fury get this many reinforcements? This wasn't in any of the movies.
But he pushed the question aside. Bucky was all that mattered right now.
He pursued at a dead sprint.
CRASH.
A figure in red and gold armor smashed through the floor-to-ceiling windows in a shower of glass, repulsors flaring as Iron Man made his entrance.
Inside the suit, Tony was already processing what he was seeing. "JARVIS, is that... Captain America? How old is he now? Shouldn't someone have forced him into retirement?"
"Steve Rogers was born July 4th, 1918. He is currently ninety years old."
"I'm regretting accepting Fury's call. I'm pretty sure this violates about a dozen labor laws." Tony paused. "JARVIS, mark all hostiles engaging the man with the shield."
Targets lit up on his HUD. A shoulder-mounted mini-gun deployed and began eliminating marked threats.
"Sir, I'm detecting the presence of Mario Argento."
"Where?!"
Tony's attention immediately shifted. J.A.R.V.I.S. framed Mario with a bright red outline as he pursued someone through the chaos.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me. What's he doing here?"
He raised his palm and fired a repulsor blast at a Hydra agent aiming at him. The man flew backward, slamming into a wall.
Should've vaporized him, Mario would have thought if he'd been paying attention. But his focus was entirely on Bucky.
Tony flew toward Mario, arm raised to fire. To his surprise, Mario dodged the repulsor blast without even looking.
"Enhanced individual," he noted. His eyes tracked to Bucky's cybernetic arm. "JARVIS, lock on target. Prepare micro-missiles."
Before he could fire, a metal desk flew through the air and slammed into him with enough force to knock him from the sky. He crashed into a wall, servos whining as they absorbed the impact.
Mario glanced at Tony with surprise. He hadn't expected Fury to convince him to help. The timeline was completely scrambled now.
He dodged another thrown desk and fired at Bucky. The Winter Soldier tried to use office furniture as a shield, apparently unaware of the Piercing enchantment's capabilities.
The bullet went through the desk and through Bucky behind it. Not a headshot, but a clean chest wound that sprayed blood across the carpet. Even enhanced healing couldn't immediately compensate for that kind of trauma. He collapsed, coughing blood.
Mario immediately moved to finish him off and claim his prize.
Iron Man landed in front of him, blocking his path.
"Hold up!"
Seeing Tony standing between him and his target, Mario felt a flash of guilt. He quickly tried to explain. "Hey, you agreed to this! I'm just following through on our deal!"
Tony's faceplate retracted. "This isn't about that. My villa's being renovated. I just want Dum-E back. Keep everything else."
"Dum-E? Oh, right. The robot arm. It's still in LA, didn't bring it back this trip."
It wasn't a lie. The haul from Tony's mansion had been massive, and Dum-E had just been grabbed on impulse. The robot wasn't even particularly advanced, Tony had built it as a kid. But it clearly had sentimental value.
"No problem. Next time I'm in LA, I'll bring it to you personally."
Tony nodded, seemingly satisfied. "There's something else. Can I meet with Ivan? I want to talk to him about his father. I owe him an apology."
Mario's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You trying to poach my engineer?"
"No. I just want to talk about Anton. My father... there were mistakes made. I'd like to address them."
Tony had learned the full story about Anton from Fury, and guilt was clearly eating at him.
Mario shrugged. "I'll tell him you asked. But whether he wants to meet you is his decision, not mine."
"Fair enough." Tony's faceplate snapped shut. "Now if you'll excuse me, Cap looks like he could use backup."
He rocketed back toward the main battle, leaving Mario free to approach Bucky's position.
Except when he got there, the Winter Soldier was gone. Only blood on the carpet showed where he'd fallen.
"Goddammit, Tony, you set me up!"
He hurriedly checked his mini-map. Before he could locate Bucky's dot, a metal fist emerged from behind an overturned desk and slammed into his ribs.
The force launched him backward, sending him crashing through a line of cubicles. Bucky hadn't retreated when he'd collapsed, he'd been playing possum, waiting for the right moment to strike.
"Damn..." Mario climbed to his feet.
Bucky charged forward. Mario raised his shield just in time to catch the fist. This time his feet didn't slide backward even an inch, but he watched the shield's durability drop significantly.
Mamma Mia, that punch hits harder than a grenade.
Which only made him want the arm more. Maybe he should convince Ivan to go full cyborg. Imagine an enemy breaking through his armor, only to have Ivan rip it apart from the inside and step out with all five limbs replaced by metal, crushing skulls like grapes.
That would be pretty badass.
He pulled a golden apple from his inventory and consumed it. His health bar instantly filled, and he felt a surge of strength flow through his body.
Is this from the temporary max health boost?
He noticed two golden hearts appear above his regular health. This was his first time using one, so he was working on theory here.
If golden apples increase max HP, and I ever get mods that boost health permanently... I could basically become the Hulk.
But that was a problem for future. Now he had a cybernetic arm to collect.
He drew his rifle and fired. At this range, Bucky had no choice but to protect his head with his metal arm.
The bullet lodged in the cybernetic limb. Mario winced. Please don't break...
He kicked Bucky in the stomach, then fired several more rounds into non-vital areas. Finally, the Winter Soldier collapsed unconscious.
Mario crouched beside him and examined the metal arm, trying to figure out how it attached. After several minutes of frustrated twisting and pulling, he gave up and pulled out a Hydra capture net from his inventory.
He wrapped Bucky completely, binding him so tightly that even enhanced strength wouldn't break free.
Steve doesn't know about Bucky. I'll take him back, let Ivan study the arm. Keep him alive for now, I can trade him to Tony later for equipment.
Tony was cursed with knowledge. The further time progressed, the more dangerous he became. Trading Bucky for Stark tech was the smartest play.
Decision made, he hoisted the wrapped bundle over his shoulder.
That's when waves of U.S. Army soldiers poured through every entrance, quickly securing the atrium. With multiple individuals supporting them, Hydra's forces were rapidly eliminated.
Mario eyed the military presence. "So Fury called in the Army? Must be one hell of a backroom deal between them."
The Army and S.H.I.E.L.D. had no official chain of command connecting them. S.H.I.E.L.D. answered to the UN Security Council, making it a global organization, while the military answered to the Pentagon and the President. Neither could give direct orders to the other without going through proper channels.
But that wasn't his problem. His objectives were complete: Pierce dead, Hydra crippled, and Bucky's cybernetic arm secured.
Time to take his prize home and figure out what the hell he was going to do with the Winter Soldier.