An Epitaph to War

12

May 1945

"Подготовь ее," a man ordered.

(Prep her.)

Liesl Barnes was strapped into a chair and a liquid was injected into her arm.

She screamed and the pain eventually lessened.

Moments later, purple sparks flowed from her fingertips.

In a venomous tone, Liesl asked, "What did you do to me?"

For her comment, she was struck across the face.

In return, she fired a blast of purple, knocking the man down. "I know a man worth ten of you who would've beaten you up."

She was pulled from the chair and her mind was wiped before she was put into cryo.

However, her abilities remained dormant for decades until a certain man forced her hand.

June 1970

Three gunshots sounded. Liesl stood opposite a target, facing three bullseyes.

"Ваша цель улучшилась."

(Your aim has improved.)

Liesl scoffed. "У меня всегда была хорошая цель."

(I've always had good aim.)

A man walked in and said, "Мадам, тренеры здесь."

(Madame, the trainers are here.)

Liesl glanced at Madame before being shooed away.

As she walked the halls, she passed a man with piercing blue eyes.

The man stared at her a moment before looking away.

She frowned, deeming the man familiar. But she couldn't remember meeting him.

The Soldier, meanwhile, was unknowingly feeling the same. The hazel-eyed woman made him feel something he hadn't felt in years. He knew he had to get her out of this place. The bigger question was how.

One of the men turned to the Soldier and said, "Вас назначили на Эбеновую вдову. Она только что прошла мимо нас."

(You have been assigned to the Ebony Widow. She just passed us.)

Against his better judgment, the Soldier shot back, "Почему такое причудливое название для черного?"

(Why the fancy name for black?)

"Поэтический, наверное. Возьми ее. Обучите ее. Но не влюбляйся."

(Poetic, I suppose. Get her. Train her. But don't fall in love.)

Not falling in love would be easy; at least that's what the Soldier hoped.

Liesl made her way to a training room and found the Soldier already there.

She was the first to speak. "Так. Ты мой тренер. Как мне тебя называть? Владелец? Солдат?"

(So. You're my trainer. What do I call you? Master? Soldier?)

The Soldier remained outwardly unfazed, but her quip reminded him of someone from long ago. "Солдата будет достаточно, Чернокожий."

(Soldier will suffice, Ebony.)

The two exchanged blows and the Soldier made note of her moves. She was good; he couldn't deny that. But he was better. Or so he thought.

She got on top of his shoulders and wrapped her legs around his neck. "Достаточно, Солдат?"

(Had enough, Soldier?)

The Soldier dropped her to the ground and stared into her eyes. Without a second's thought, he kissed her.

Liesl slapped him and glared. "Для чего это было?!"

(What was that for?)

The Soldier shook his head. "Я не знаю."

(I don't know.)

Recognition slowly began to stir. "Liesl?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Кто, черт возьми, такая Лизл?"

(Who the hell is Liesl?)

He tried her mother tongue, hoping to draw out a long hidden memory. "Liesl, ich bin's."

(Liesl, it's me.)

The longer she stared at the Soldier, the more she recognized him. Finally, after several agonizing moments, she whispered, "Bucky?"

He nodded and pulled her close. "It's me, doll."

Tears began falling down her cheeks. "I
thought I'd never see you again!"

"Nor I you. We have to keep this quiet. If they find out, who knows what they'll do to us."

Liesl nodded. "Yes, I understand."

Bucky took a moment to take her in. "God, what did they do to you?"

Liesl studied him with the same intensity and she touched his left arm. "Buck, what happened?"

"I fell off a train."

"You what?!"

"Shh!"

"Sorry. Oh, Buck, if I'd've been there-"

He shook his head. "I'm glad you weren't, doll. It was agonizing. But you didn't answer my question. What the hell did they do to you?"

Liesl shuddered. "They did enough. Turned me into a weapon. You're lucky I didn't put a bullet in your head."

"We do seem to have this string of fate."

Liesl glanced back. "Someone's coming. No English. Block me."

She threw a punch and Bucky blocked it with a nod before saying, "Молодец, Эбони."

(Well done, Ebony.)

For the next few months, the fated lovers were able to play their bag of tricks against the KGB and HYDRA. But it didn't take long for their superiors to catch on.

The Soldier was still to train the Widow, but both would have to be monitored, as no one wanted to risk them remembering who they were and running away.

One evening, the Soldier's handler walked up and asked in a gruff tone, "У вас романтические отношения с Черной вдовой?, Солдат?"

(Are you and the Ebony Widow in a romantic relationship, Soldier?)

"Нет, мы не," the Soldier lied. "Это строго профессионально."

(No, we're not. It's strictly professional.)

The handler stared at the Soldier a moment and nodded.

As soon as the door shut, Liesl emerged and asked softly, "What was that?"

"We have to be more careful," Bucky replied. "They're catching on."

"Then so we shall." She ran a hand through his hair. "I love you, Buck."

"I love you too, doll."

Ultimately, the love they shared would be their downfall.

A mere few months later, Liesl was dragged away. As she was taken, she screamed out in her mother tongue.

"Bucky! Ich liebe dich!"

(Bucky! I love you!)

Once again, the two were wiped from each other's minds.

But somehow, some way, the Soldier and the Widow had some sense and recognition of the love they shared.