How to Make a Monster
Captain America Winter Solder Part 4
Who knew some meager sheets of paper and some cheap ink would be able to bring The First Avenger to his knees? To state “The truth will set you free” is a fool's concept, a farce of imaginary applications. A document that seemingly fell from the sky, bypassing top-notch security and delicately placed on Steve's tabletop.
Unbashful Truth
Honesty makes a mockery of everything that Steve stood for. A suffering soldier plants it on the couch while being pelted with hindsight. His brother, who would’ve given his life to protect others, now drags society into a nihilistic abyss. A pupil’s adoration becomes brimstone, as a haze of bloodshed engulfs peace. Liberty bleeds dry as fangs of corruption pierce James Buchanan (Bucky) Barnes's jugular.
Steve’s foundation dissolves as reality warps into a toxic cesspool. He can lie to himself until his face turns red, white and blue, but shit still stinks. A star in the making now brings the heat of a celestial object to downtown Philly. The sanctuary of denial is set ablaze when cold, hard facts are the kindling to the flame.
Atrocities seem to be coming in daily, but none have ever hit so close to home. Bucky was a hero of the highest order. Cap swears that his comrade resides in the afterlife, only for veracity to take a champion’s death relegated to the birth of malevolence.
A Murderous Rebirth
The star to his stripes endured a punishment he wouldnt put his worst enemy through. Heinious activity was on the forever-forecast as days turned into eons. A tutelage in detestation was the only thing offered. Carnage was his teacher; blessing him with a lesson plan in violence. However, no matter how many chemicals they pumped through his veins, there may have been a sliver of the original Buchanan lost in the midst of insanity.
Transforming a dedicated soldier of liberation to a demon that kills without hesitation takes time. Needles, infusions, hypnosis: nothing was off the table when creating the perfect warrior. Even a blank slate can crave emancipation, and the organization that found him did its best to keep the beast contained.
He became the best Soviet tool one could imagine. A ghost in the wind, only leaving devastation in his wake. Uprooting foreign economies during lunch break and flossing his teeth with assassinations for dinner. Not just working for, but embodying the Red Scare. All of these events occurred without Cap’s knowledge, but that notion does nothing to deafen his pupils’ screams.
Failed Coping Mechanism
Excuses rise from the grave, but no amount of reason can soothe the wounds of stupidity. Why must he be forced to rationalize that Bucky has been a menace periodically this entire time? Recovery is out of the question as the sins of James rest aggressively on Steve's shoulders.
Blame morphs into a heat-seeking missile. In truth, he was oblivious to the world crying out in pain around him. Whenever The Winter Soldier appeared, he vanished just as quickly. While Steve was out saving the masses, he failed to rescue the one who may have needed it most. Now Steve's ignorance has not just come to bite him; it wants his head.
The validity of these facts mangles Steve's values as he bounces between rooftops. The shield becomes useless when the internal strife goes on a rampage.
If he just questioned his own judgment, would he be in this predicament?
Was there a chance to stop this atrocity from ever taking place?
How does one prevent the tragedies of the past from dominating their future?
While hearsay torments The Boy in Blue, one cant help but ask, What is he going to do next?
Also, please read Captain America: The Winter Soldier Pt. 4 by Ed Brubaker
Monsters sometimes get to choose if they will remain a monster or become something more.