The Winter Soldier remained unmoved.
Tony Stark's questions were nothing but meaningless noise to him.
His program only contains targets and instructions.
Barbara's eyes sharpened as she hid behind the pipe.
no.
Tony Stark is the most important piece in the boss's plan.
Barbara.
She was no longer the intellectual and gentle archaeological consultant.
He lowered his body to the ground on all fours, letting out a low growl.
Yellowish downy hairs sprouted wildly from under the skin, covering the entire body.
Her face was elongating, her mouth and nose were protruding, her teeth were becoming sharp, and her pupils were turning into the vertical pupils of Beast.
"Roar!"
A wild roar echoed through the underground space.
A yellow and black afterimage suddenly darted out from behind the pipe.
The Winter Soldier, who was preparing to kill Tony, sensed a deadly threat.
He decisively abandoned the weakling in front of him, turning his arm to block at his side.
"When!"
Three claw marks appeared on the Winter Soldier's metal arm.
He was knocked back several steps by the force of the impact.
Coulson's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
Barbara Minerva?
That gentle, erudite external consultant?
What the hell is this?
Clearly, Fury hadn't told him about Barbara's secret.
The Cheetah flicked the metal shavings from her claws, her vertical pupils sweeping across the entire area.
The three Winter Soldier closest to her surrounded her in a triangular formation after taking down their target.
They blocked all of the Cheetah's escape routes.
One of the Winter Soldier felt a blur before his eyes and a chill run down his neck.
The Cheetah held his Adam's apple in her hand and then tossed it aside.
He fell straight down without even letting out a scream.
The Cheetah darted between the other two Winter Soldier.
Their claws, like the Grim Reaper's scythe, easily sliced through their combat uniforms and muscles.
She grabbed another Winter Soldier's arm, and with a powerful twist of Cheetah waist, she ripped the arm off his shoulder.
The scene was extremely bloody.
" Coulson!" Cheetah's voice rang out, "Take Stark and retreat immediately!"
Coulson suddenly realized what was happening.
He glanced at the last remaining member of the Wild Dogs squad, then at Tony Stark, whose wrist had been crushed but who was still staring intently at the Winter Soldier, and roared, "Get out of here! Get out of here!"
But Tony wouldn't listen.
"I'm not leaving!"
He struggled to get up from the ground.
"I'm going to kill him! I'm going to kill him with my own hands!"
Annoyance flashed in the Cheetah's eyes.
madness.
A man blinded by hatred will only hinder her mission.
Her figure disappeared from the spot.
Coulson only saw a blur before his eyes.
By the time he realized what was happening, Cheetah was already behind Tony Stark.
A clean and decisive chop to the back of Tony's neck.
Tony's roar stopped abruptly; his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed limply to the ground.
"Waste."
Cheetah cursed under her breath, and with one hand lifted the 6'6" Tony Stark up as if he were a chicken.
"What are you standing there for? Do you want to die here?"
She yelled at Coulson.
Coulson quickly helped the injured Marco up, and the two of them stumbled back towards the passage they had come from.
Cheetah carried Tony to cover their retreat.
Any Winter Soldiers tries to get close will be torn to shreds by her in the most brutal way.
Her claws, fangs, and tail became her most deadly weapons.
As I rushed out of the base entrance, a biting cold wind hit me.
S.H.I.E.L.D.. warplanes were nearby.
"Quick! Get on the plane!"
Coulson, supporting the injured Marco, staggered toward the open hatch of the fighter jet.
Without hesitation, Cheetah carried the unconscious Tony in one hand, strode up the slope, and casually tossed Tony into the cabin.
Tony's body rolled twice before finally coming to a stop against the bulkhead.
Coulson and Marco followed closely behind, scrambling and crawling into the plane.
The hatch slammed shut behind them, shutting out the wind and snow.
The fighter jet roared into the air and took off vertically.
After setting up the return-to-home procedure, Coulson returned to the cabin, panting heavily.
Marco leaned against the corner, injecting himself with painkillers and clotting agents.
His gaze finally settled on the figure standing in the center of the cabin.
Barbara Minerva.
The yellow and black fur on her body was visibly fading away, and her ferocious beast face was returning to its intelligent and gentle appearance.
A few seconds later, the wild, killing Beast vanished, leaving only a naked woman.
Coulson turned his face away, unable to look any longer.
Barbara didn't care at all. She walked to the locker, pulled out a S.H.I.E.L.D.. uniform jacket, casually wrapped it around herself, and then went to the unconscious Tony to check on his injuries.
"Fractured wrist, concussion, but not in life-threatening condition."
"What... what exactly are you?"
Barbara looked up at him, her eyes now normal.
"A secret Fury didn't tell you." She didn't answer directly, "I'm his insurance, specializing in handling situations you can't handle."
Coulson opened his mouth, as if to ask another question.
Just then, a loud explosion came from below.
"Boom!"
The warning lights inside the cabin were flashing wildly.
Coulson rushed to the porthole and looked out.
The underground base they had just escaped from was now completely engulfed in flames.
"It must be Hydra!" Marco shouted from the corner, "They've activated the base's self-destruct sequence!"
Coulson stared intently at the sea of fire, his fists clenched until they turned white.
He almost, just a tiny bit more, was buried alive with his squad.
"They'd rather destroy everything than let us take anything."
Barbara pulled her coat tighter around herself and walked over to him.
"The most important thing now is to bring Stark back safely and report to Director Fury."
Coulson looked back at her, then at the unconscious Tony Stark on the ground.
The mission was a complete failure, and it almost cost the entire team their lives.
He also discovered that the advisor sent by his chief was a monster he knew nothing about.
He felt like Joker.
The fighter jets flew into the distance and quickly disappeared into the sky.
On the icy plains, the burning ruins gradually returned to silence.
The only sound was the crackling of the Flame.
A figure emerged from the heart of the flames.
The Flame seemed to possess a life of their own, and spontaneously parted to make way for him.
Jim Hammond, the Human Torch.
He was also carrying a man in his arms, Bucky Barnes.
Bucky had already passed out, and the metal arm had disappeared.
Jim glanced at the sea of fire he had created, his face expressionless.
He rushed into the base after the S.H.I.E.L.D.. plane left.
After quickly knocking out Bucky Barnes, they then dealt with all the remaining Winter Soldier inside.
They then detonated the explosives that Hydra had planted there.
The entire process takes no more than three minutes.
He raised his hand and gently tapped his earlobe.
The scene has been cleaned up.
Motoko Kusanagi's voice came through the miniature communicator.
What's the goal?
"Assets have been recovered."
"Bring it back; he'll probably like this new toy."
"Clear."
Jim ended the communication and his entire body burst into Flame.
Under his masterful control.
Surprisingly, the Flame didn't burn Bucky.
A blazing pillar of fire shot into the sky, flying in the exact opposite direction from S.H.I.E.L.D..