The Frozen Battlefield
The mission came swiftly, the air thick with the scent of gunpowder and frost as the Howling Commandos moved through the snow-covered terrain. They had intel that a HYDRA base nestled deep in the mountains housed prisoners, weapons, and secrets that could turn the tide of war. Steve led the charge, shield raised high, with Celeste and Bucky flanking him.
Her breath came in steady puffs, heart hammering as they breached the perimeter. She had fought before, she knew it instinctively, but this was different. This was war, and war had no mercy.
Gunfire erupted, bullets slicing through the cold night. Celeste ducked behind cover, summoning a blade of searing light. The warmth of it pulsed through her hand, a stark contrast to the icy battlefield.
“Move in!” Steve’s command cut through the chaos, and she obeyed, vaulting forward with Bucky at her side.
She fought with brutal efficiency, her blade carving through enemy lines. But as they pushed deeper into the facility, a chilling sense of familiarity gripped her. The sterile walls, the distant hum of machinery—she had been in a place like this before. No, not like this. This place.
A wave of dizziness struck her, memories threatening to surface. Needles, restraints, the searing pain of experiments. She staggered, gripping the wall for support.
Bucky noticed instantly. “Celeste?”
“I—” Her vision blurred, the present folding into the past. She could hear screams—her own, or someone else’s?
Then the alarms blared, snapping her back to reality. HYDRA reinforcements swarmed in, and Bucky yanked her behind cover.
“Stay with me,” he urged, gripping her arm.
She took a shaky breath and nodded. She couldn’t fall apart now. Not yet.
As they fought their way through, Steve reached the prisoners—dozens of men, starved and battered. But among them was something else. A file. One with Celeste’s name on it.
Bucky picked it up, glancing between her and the pages in his hand. “Celeste… I think you need to see this.”
Her fingers trembled as she reached for it. The past wasn’t just coming for her. It was already here.