Shattered Foundations
The file in Celeste’s hands felt heavier than any weapon she had ever wielded. Its pages, yellowed with time but meticulously kept, held pieces of her past—fragments of a life stolen from her. Her fingers hovered over the cover before she finally pried it open.
"What does it say?" Bucky asked, his voice unusually soft, edged with concern.
Her eyes scanned the documents, heart pounding. Reports detailing her supposed origins—an unidentified anomaly discovered by HYDRA, her biological structure analyzed, her abilities tested under conditions designed to push her past her limits. Her hands trembled as she read phrases like ‘subject demonstrates resistance to known human thresholds’ and ‘potential as a prototype superior to Schmidt’s serum.’
“I was an experiment,” she whispered, bile rising in her throat.
Steve’s gaze hardened. “They saw you as a weapon.”
Celeste clenched the file, light crackling at her fingertips. The memories remained fogged, but this confirmation was enough. She had been here before, in places like this. HYDRA had used her, and she had survived.
But what had she lost in the process?
Before she could dwell further, gunfire shattered the tense silence. The remaining HYDRA forces weren’t finished with them yet.
“Time to move!” Bucky yelled, pulling Celeste from her thoughts.
With a surge of adrenaline, they pushed forward, the walls of the facility echoing with the sounds of combat. Celeste fought with renewed determination, slicing through the enemy lines with light-forged daggers. But the weight of what she had learned pressed against her with every step.
As they reached the extraction point, she glanced back one last time. This was only the beginning.