The day Howard and Maria left, the weather was beautiful.
The sky was a clear blue, and a few white clouds floated leisurely.
Tony drove them to the airport, and Mavuika went along.
In the terminal, Howard and Maria dragged their simple suitcases; they had decided to travel light, and if they needed anything, they would buy it when they arrived.
"The first stop is Greece," Maria said with so anticipation, holding a travel guide in her hand.
"The Acropolis in Athens, the blue-dod churches of Santorini, the ancient palaces of Crete... we plan to stay there for three months."
"And then maybe Italy," Howard added with a relaxed smile on his face.
"Or the south of France; we don't have a specific plan, we'll just go wherever we feel like."
Tony looked at his parents and suddenly had a strange feeling.
Growing up, the Howard he saw was always serious, busy, and overwheld by responsibility.
But now, this old man about to embark on a journey looked so... free, so happy.
"Rember to call," Tony said, his voice softer than usual. "Let know you're still alive, and haven't gotten lost on so island or been knocked out by local wine."
Howard laughed and patted his son's shoulder. "We'll be careful. You too, Tony. Managing the company isn't easy; don't work yourself to death."
"?" Tony raised an eyebrow. "I'm Tony Stark. I can manage the company, design new weapons, fix Mavuika's motorcycle, and attend three parties a week all at the sa ti. This is nothing."
The boarding announcent sounded over the loudspeaker. Howard and Maria hugged Tony, then hugged Mavuika, and then dragged their suitcases toward the boarding gate.
At the corner, Howard looked back, waving at Tony and Mavuika.
Then he disappeared into the crowd.
Afterward, Mavuika and Tony also turned around. The two walked out of the airport with the sunlight spilling onto them; Tony got into his sports car, and Mavuika got on the motorcycle.
The sound of engines starting rang out almost simultaneously, and then the two vehicles drove off in different directions.
After this, Tony, who had inherited Stark Industries, and Fury, who had learned of the explosion information, both beca busy.
Tony's life was filled with etings, negotiations, and decision-making.
He reorganized the company structure, pushed forward new projects, handled dia interviews, and had to deal with those trying to profit from him or cause him trouble from ti to ti.
Fury was even more secretly busy. On the surface, he remained that reliable senior Agent, handling routine internal investigations and security assessnts.
But in reality, he was fighting a silent war every day: analyzing data, tracking leads, screening personnel, and trying to identify those latent cancer cells within the massive S.H.I.E.L.D. organization.
Only Mavuika was free.
She had a place to stay; the Villa Howard gave her beca her ho on Earth. She rearranged the rooms and planted new plants in the garden.
She had a Flastrider, and if she ran out of money, she could just enter a few races.
She entered competitions irregularly, but every ti she appeared, she caused a sensation. Racing teams wanted to sign her, sponsors wanted to find her for endorsents, and even Hollywood wanted to invite her to film movies.
Mavuika declined them one by one, only accepting the prize money, which was enough for her to live very well.
If the vehicle broke, she would find Tony during his free ti to fix it. Life was very comfortable.
...
Bucky Barnes stood in front of the window of an old apartnt in Brooklyn, watching the pedestrians hurrying by on the street below.
This apartnt was not big, two bedrooms and a living room, simply decorated but clean.
The furniture was all new, but he had deliberately chosen less flashy styles.
Outside the window, one could see a corner of the East River. When the weather was good, the sunlight would scatter fragnts of gold on the water.
Eight months had passed since the night that changed everything.
Eight months ago, he was still the weapon of HYDRA, the Winter Soldier, with no mory, no self, only missions and killing.
Now, eight months later, he was Bucky Barnes, an ordinary tenant living in Brooklyn, at least on the surface.
Howard and Tony had arranged this identity for him: Jas Buchanan, a retired soldier who worked as a part-ti technician at a car repair shop after being dically discharged.
The file was flawless, with service records, dical certificates, and even a few blurry "old photos," all carefully forged by the technical departnt of Stark Industries.
"You need ti, Bucky," Howard said to him before leaving, his eyes full of understanding and apology.
"For decades, you've been controlled and used. Now it's ti to get your own life back. Although you have to live under an assud na for now, at least you are free."
freedom.
Bucky looked down at his left hand; that silver-grey tal arm reflected a cold luster in the morning light.
This arm was still proof of those dark years, a brand he could not get rid of.
Every morning when he woke up, Bucky had to spend a few minutes confirming who he was, where he was, and what year it was.
Those mories of being brainwashed, frozen, and awakened to carry out missions were like a broken mirror, the fragnts sharp and chaotic.
Sotis he would dream of those missions, the people he killed, the destruction he caused.
Then he would wake up in a cold sweat, gasping for air, until he confird that the tal arm was still there, confirming that he was really in the apartnt in Brooklyn, and not in a cryogenic chamber of HYDRA.
To help him stabilize his condition, Tony and Mavuika would occasionally co to see him, nominally to "check the operation of the chanical arm," but in reality, it was more like a visit between friends.
Howard and Tony had indeed considered using Bucky as bait to draw out HYDRA.
This plan was very tempting. Bucky was one of the most important assets of HYDRA, and his disappearance must have made the high-level officials of HYDRA uneasy.
If Bucky suddenly appeared in public, HYDRA would surely spare no cost to retrieve or eliminate him.
Tony even drew up a detailed plan during a late-night discussion: "We can arrange for Bucky to 'accidentally' appear in a public place, let the HYDRA informants inside S.H.I.E.L.D. discover him, then set a trap and wait for them to take the bait. Fury can mobilize the Agents he trusts, I can set up monitoring and defense systems in the surrounding area, and Mavuika can be the final insurance..."
But Howard vetoed the plan.
"This isn't fair, Tony," Howard said, his voice low.
"Bucky has been through too much—brainwashed, controlled, and used as a weapon for decades. Now that he's finally escaped, we're going to push him into danger again? Let him beco bait again, beco a target again?"
"But he has a responsibility—" Tony tried to argue.
"His responsibility has been fulfilled," Howard interrupted him.
"During World War II, he risked his life for his country and ultimately paid the price of falling off a cliff. For the decades that followed, although he was in a controlled state, his body and hands still bore the trauma of those missions. Enough, Tony. What he needs now is peace, ti, and to relearn how to live as an ordinary person."
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