---
"Hahaha! Nolan we are wrecking these guys!"
Klaue laughed wildly, mowing down enemies with his rifle. With his cybernetic arm, he felt no recoil at all firing single-handedly with ease, trailing right behind Nolan.
"Damn it! These two are monsters!"
"We need Winter Soldier support! We can't handle this alone!"
"Why the hell is a lab researcher fighting like this?!"
"Is he even a real scientist?! What the hell?!"
Nolan moved like a phantom each stride, each shot surgical. He blasted through obstacles with explosive precision, switching to his assault rifle and dropping HYDRA soldiers one by one with pinpoint accuracy.
The soldiers couldn't aim for his vitals they'd been ordered to use tranquillizers and tasers. But those projectiles were slow, easy for Nolan to intercept with his enhanced reflexes and vibranium shield.
And Klaue's security team? Providing ample cover fire.
In mere moments, the two of them had broken through the safehouse.
"There's a river just ahead!" Klaue shouted, now mostly recovered. "I've got a speedboat stashed there!"
"Then let's move use that arm properly! The energy reserves should still be full!"
Nolan yanked two smoke grenades from his belt and tossed them behind. Klaue dropped his overheated rifle, his cybernetic arm transforming into a sonic emitter. He swept it toward the enemy—
THUMP! Blood exploded from the noses and ears of nearby HYDRA agents.
"Damn, this thing works," Klaue grinned.
"I tuned it to the average human heartbeat frequency," Nolan said, eyes scanning ahead. "But when you're up against tougher targets, you'll need to recalibrate. The arm will collect feedback data in real-time."
"Got it," Klaue nodded, sticking close.
Soon, the sound of rushing water grew louder.
"There! That's the river!"
Klaue's face lit up. Freedom was just ahead. Sure, he'd lost a cache of data and Vibranium, but he was alive.
Suddenly, Nolan's instincts screamed. The hairs on his neck stood up. Without hesitation, he raised his shield behind his head.
CLANG!
A heavy blow struck the shield. Nolan's mind raced.
He knew who this was.
He used the force of the hit to roll backwards and create space. Klaue turned in shock to see their attacker.
Curly brown hair. Cold eyes. A lean but lethal physique. And that unmistakable metal arm, far more advanced than Klaue's.
"The Winter Soldier," Nolan muttered.
Even without a name, that silhouette was iconic.
HYDRA's elite weapon is Bucky Barnes. Like Nolan, he'd received a variant of the super-soldier serum. But unlike Nolan, Bucky's version was flawed. His mind was unstable. His autonomy was compromised.
But his instinctive combat prowess? Second to none.
Klaue didn't recognize him. He launched a sonic blast, sending Bucky stumbling backwards with blood dripping from his nose.
"Keep hitting him! I'll hold him off!" Nolan called.
Bucky's eyes locked onto Nolan. The target was clear.
Perfect. Nolan had spent a week training for this.
He charged forward, shield raised.
BANG! BANG! CLASH!
Shield and metal fist collided. Nolan was stronger and faster, but Bucky had years of battlefield experience. Every time Nolan seemed to gain the upper hand, Bucky's instincts reeled him back into control.
It was a stalemate. Hardware vs skill.
But more footsteps approached.
"Move it!" Klaue shouted, waving his sonic arm. But Bucky was quick to shift focus. Each time Klaue prepared to fire, Bucky changed angles.
"I'm here for him!" Bucky growled. "You stay out of it!"
Klaue hesitated, torn. If he left Nolan, he might escape.
Nolan narrowed his eyes. "You really think HYDRA was gonna let you walk? They had a spy in your bed."
Klaue's eyes flickered with anger. He gritted his teeth and swung his arm again.
This time, Nolan pressed the offensive pushing Bucky into position with a flurry of blows just as Klaue fired.
WHUMM! WHUMM! WHUMM!
The feedback readings started to stabilize.
Bucky staggered. Blood poured from his nose and ears.
He dropped to the ground twitching, barely conscious.
"Just a second-rate knockoff," Nolan spat. "No vibranium. No future."
Nolan raised his shield to crush Bucky's skull—
But more Winter Soldiers were incoming.
"Forget him! We need to move!" Klaue yelled.
Nolan emptied his rifle into Bucky's chest. BANG, BANG, BANG! Blood sprayed across the dirt.
Then he pulled two grenades from his belt, popped the pins, and dropped them beside the twitching soldier.
Tick-tick-tick…
"GO!" Nolan Shouted.
Klaue's jaw clenched. This guy really hates HYDRA…
And Nolan didn't give a damn if this was Steve Rogers' old pal.
HYDRA had come for his head.
That made them dead men walking.
Not even Stark himself would get a pass if he got in the way.
BOOOOM!!!
The twin blasts ripped through the jungle trees shook, and the ground trembled.
Just ahead, the speedboat came into view.
The two of them leapt aboard.
Nolan sliced the mooring line with his shield. "Start it!"
VROOOOM—!
The engine roared to life.
Behind them, the safehouse erupted into a massive explosion an inferno engulfing the entire hill.
"Heh. They wanna chase me?" Klaue grinned, holding up a detonator. "Screw that I blew the whole base sky high."
Nolan turned to him, gaze icy.
"You tried to abandon me back there."
Klaue's smirk froze.
"I didn't actually do it…"
The truth was, he'd heard what Nolan said. He knew HYDRA had him marked. If he lost Nolan now, he was as good as dead.
And now he understood something:
Being a Vibranium dealer meant nothing to real power players. To them, he was just a vendor a dispensable pawn.
But Nolan?
Nolan was different. A brain like his could convert Klaue's wealth into an unstoppable force.
And in a world ruled by strength…
That was everything.
----
100 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter!