Arc Six. Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Seven. Totally Bucked

While Fury and his team secured the helicarrier control room, Flash and Captain America made their way to the Fire Control Centre. They knew that even if the ship was still operational that removing key components from the controls would disable the guns. The giant airship would just be a floating platform, unable to engage any civilian or military targets.

With the truth, that Hydra had taken over, Steve had no compilation about taking out the soldiers, and even Flash happily fired his pulse weapons down corridors before launching himself into groups.

The corridors eventually became quiet. A limited number of soldiers on both the ground and in the air meant that resistance was limited. Even Hydra hadn't planned on their betrayal suffering its own betrayal, the new cuffs were supposed to be foolproof, and nobody could foresee that the symbiotes could defeat them so easily. Losing the two Enhanced hurt their chances, even with superior numbers and firepower.

After silently counting on his fingers Steve held up a single finger and kicked open the door to the control room, ducking down behind his shield as Flash rolled past him and aimed his weapons.

Standing behind the fire control main console was a single agent. Black body armour and a face mask, covering scraggy hair greasy and unkempt. "Stay back or I will detonate the room," and he held up a dead man's switch in a silver-coloured arm.

As Steve and Flash looked around, the room was filled with bricks of C4, not only on the walls but on the floor pylons as well. If whoever this was detonated the room, they would be sucked out and fall to their deaths, even if the explosion didn't kill them first.

"Captain and Webb, Once the Helicarrier reaches 30,000ft the operation will begin. You will stay there and stay quiet until we have ascended," the man said emotionlessly, holding the trigger in front of his chest with his other hand covering it. Even if Flash or Steve got a shot off, it would defect off the silver armour of his arm, dooming them all.

"You don't have to do this," Steve said and raised his hands. "I'll put down the shield okay, no tricks." and he lifted it and slid it onto the two magnetic clips on his back. "See, now, we can talk. If my eyes aren't failing, we're going down, not up. Which means we've got control of the helicarrier. You haven't won, there is no need to sacrifice yourself."

"My orders are to defend the fire control system. We wait until I have new orders." The man spoke emotionlessly as if repeating back something parrot-fashion. "If you attack me, I will detonate the room, and the guns will fire on a pre-programmed sequence."

Flash, stop being an idiot and use Webb to bind the detonator to his hand, and yes I can read your thoughts, yes I can do it from where I am, and yes, I don't normally but this is an emergency.

What the shit Parker?

Listen. Natasha was hurt but the control room is taken, the helicarriers are all disabled except the one you are on. You need to get the guns offline before they fire, but you won't be ascending. Maria took care of that but you won't get any help, everyone is busy.

Fine, just stay out of my head, it's weird and creepy,

Flash nodded at Cap, and as Steve gave him a look he raised both hands and fired webbing, covering the man's hand with the sticky fluid and glueing it to his chest. Steve spun, unhooked his shield and launched it towards not the man but the walls and as it bounced from wall to wall it severed the detonators cords, leaving only a few, which Flash took the opportunity to sever using tendrils from Webb.

As the man struggled they watched as he pulled the webbing free from his chest and a mechanical whine could be heard as he flexed his fingers, tearing through the web around his hand. Letting go of the button he looked confused as the bombs didn't detonate, "Failure to detonate, orders changed to defend console against all intruders and terminate them," and tearing the webbing from the back of his hand he raised his fists and advanced on the pair.

The man ducked under a web shot from Agent Webb and swept his leg out at Cap, who jumped over it and dropped down to catch him with his shield. Rolling back, he pulled out a gun and fired twice at Cap and then twice at Webb, Cap hiding behind his shield and Webb simply taking the shots to his armour.

"Give up, you can't fight us both,'' Cap said as he bounced his shield behind the man and as he dodged to avoid it Webb sent out lines to stick his feet to the floor.

"The firing control panel must be defended," he intoned.

Flash, stop fucking around, use Webb and short the panel out.

I told you to stay out.

But following Peter's advice, he let his symbskin flow over the controls and as they sparked the whole room dimmed and the eerie red lights of the emergency system came on.

"Control Room compromised, terminate hostiles," and the man pulled out another pistol, loaded it with a clip painted red and chambered a round.

Flash, stop messing around and kill this guy.

No, we don't kill, stay the fuck out my head Parker.

People Will Die. People have already died Flash, get that into your fucking head. Being a hero doesn't mean saving everyone, it means saving who you can, and right now, the helicarrier is being hoisted above the coastline by a friend, but if that gun starts up he will drop it and you into the ocean, get a grip and stop messing around.

"Cap, we have to stop him, Parker says we're that last one, and once the gun starts they'll destroy the carrier to stop it."

Cap nodded, "then we do this the hard way," as the man lifted his pistol and fired a resounding bong! filled the room and Flash clasped his ears as the noise made Webb scratch in pain. "Alien disabled, Neutralizing Captain America," and he advanced.

Cap swung the arm with the shield on it towards the man, who lifted his own and blocked it with his forearm, firing once more Flash could only hold his head as the noise made Webb scratch again. Cap was stuck, if he threw away the shield then the man had a clear line to fire, keeping it meant Webb was disabled for the fight but Cap had no choice. If the control room wasn't theirs then everyone on board, Hydra or not would die.

Cap swung his shield at the arm of the man, who blocked it and drove a fist in his stomach, harder than he expected. Cap backhanded him with his shield and the man stepped back, fired once and then swept at his feet again. This time cap stabbed down with the edge and caught him across the shin. As the man rolled back he lifted his pistol and fired once more, filling the room with a deafening ding! This time however there was no scratch and as he looked over Flash had dragged himself over to the wall and was busy rewiring one of the C4 charges,

"Hey shit head, look up," and like clockwork the man did. Webb flopped down onto him and as he tried in vain to fight the unbonded symbiote Flash touched twisted two wires together, rolled over to another charge and did the same.

As the first exploded, a section of the wall dented, and as Flash rolled and touched together another set, the second explosion tore out the buckled part of wall and the trio was sucked towards the opening. Sending out tendrils, Webb anchored itself to the wall and pushed the man out of the hole, listening for his screams as he plummeted towards the water.

Cap grabbed Flash, and Webb once more rebonded with him.

"Hey, he knew you. Who's Bucky?" and even as Cap dragged him out of the door and sealed it behind him, his expression never changed, but as Flash felt Webb touch his mind he knew,

He had just killed Steve's best friend.

In the other helicarrier, Abomination was busy standing over a group of soldiers, who from the smell had wet themselves, "right you lot, listen up. If any of you fuckin idiots fires at me I'll smash yah. If any of you fucking idiots even looks at me funny I'll fuckin smash yah, and don't think about taking hostages, cause I don't know 'ho's a fuckin nazi and 'ho's not, so I just fuckin smash all of yah, got it?" and the soldiers all dropped their rifles. "Good, now go fuckin sit in the corner while I smash some other poor sods," and gaining speed he ran down a corridor, uncaring if a wall or bulkhead got in his way.

Outside the third helicarrier, Tony and his Iron legion had finished removing the last of the engines, his Iron Legion was drifting the carrier towards the ocean but its massive weight was too much for the limited number of drones he had outfitted with the new protocols.

"Yeah, I don't know if anyone can hear me or not but if I knock out any more then these things are gonna fall on New York,"

"That won't be a problem, Iron Man, keep firing," Tony received over the channel, unaware of who was speaking.

Behind him, Magneto floated up into the air, Jean hovering beside him,

"I can take care of the large ships but the smaller pieces will be too much, guide them into the water, someone else can clean the mess up later," he shouted as the wind whistled past them. Stretching a hand out, each of the three giant helicarriers froze and cracked as he held them in place. Jean, holding her head, as she caught any loose panels that fell. Making sure they were guided away from the population below.

As Jean pulled the smaller debris away, Magneto gently moved his hands and with a screeching creak, the helicarriers began to move out over the water, even as explosions, where he could guess the Hulk was fighting, and the smaller Iron Legion he could feel with his powers, destroyed the other two. The larger of the three was eerily silent.

"Iron Man, can you please let everyone know that I am going to drop each carrier now."

As his radio screeched with interference Tony sent out a general broadcast.

"Okay people, everyone out, the carriers are disabled but we can't leave them floating up here forever."

As each carrier was evacuated, some by force and some by choice, Magneto waited until Jean gave him a nod, "that's them all Erik," and with a wave of his hands, the carriers fell from the sky into the ocean. With a roaring screech of metal, each carrier sank and with the damage, some exploded, covering more of the ocean with burning wreckage and as they watched, a voice spoke.

"Typical." Storm floated towards the pair, "An ecological disaster. Could you have not just dropped them back in their hangers?" and as she whipped up the wind and water, it spouted up and the tainted fuel-filled spouts edged towards the abandoned Triskellion building.

"There are people there Storm, I didn't want to risk it," but she tutted and the water spout kept itself separate,

"At least make me a barricade," and Erik raised an eyebrow at her. "Please, I will provide more congenial greeting later, but I would prefer to keep this fuel and waste out of the sealine," and tutting Erik once more began to crush and rend the Helicarriers, forming them into a bowl-shaped chasm in the water,

"There, happy?" Erik said curtly and Storm nodded.

"Mother Earth will thank you Erik as will I, once this mess is cleared up. Jean, it is good to see you, and I have a favour to ask, may you introduce me to Peter?" and Jean looked over at Erik apprehensive.

"I had no idea you knew the boy Jean, but as he did offer us a small reward for our time, I feel that a visit from one of Charles's pets may be sufficient," and as Storm tutted and scowled at him he floated down, hoping to find Wanda before he left for Genosha.