Choices
It was approximately forty-two minutes until the STRIKE team would arrive at the warehouse to collect their 'property' and the Machine could feel something gnawing away at her. A new emotion. Anxiety, fear…maybe a mixture of both, but she hated it. Thoughts were running around in her head at a lightning pace, different voices telling her to run, to stay, just to do something. Pushing herself to her feet, she began to pace nearby the car, catching her reflection as she turned around. Her gaze fell to a metal patch on her neck that lay where skin once did. It was new. It must have been stitched into her neck in the last 48 hours, but she couldn't remember it. The Machine realised she must have been injured, running her fingers over the red skin that connected to the metal as she wondered how she had been hurt. Pain blossomed around the foreign object, making her grimace, as she tore her eyes away, only to look at her arm instead. Metal had been stitched into the tissue near her shoulder, just above her wrist, and her elbow had been reinforced with titanium. Bile began to claw its way up her throat, as she felt the coldness spread out from the metal, causing her to shiver. She wanted to tear the metal out, to leave a gaping nothingness behind—
"Rookie?" Rumlow's voice cut through her thoughts, as she whipped around to face him.
His gaze shifted to her arm, where he saw she had started to scratch against the metal above her wrist, red lines growing where her nails caught her skin. With a sigh, he ushered her to sit back down on the crate, a few drops of her blood still drying on the wooden surface. He had seen this before, not to this degree, but there was a reason why the Machine had been given an inhibitor. How was any human supposed to cope with parts of metal being stitched into them where skin, bones and organs used to be?
"Hey, hey. Stop that" Rumlow scolded, seeing that the Machine had continued to scratch, almost breaking the skin now.
"It shouldn't…I shouldn't…" The Machine stuttered, scrunching her eyes shut.
"Look, I need to tap into your feed, okay? We need to wipe it before the others get here" Rumlow explained, as the Machine's eyes snapped open.
"No…no, don't—" She began, knowing how much it would hurt, but he cut her off quickly.
"I have to. We can't have Hydra seeing any evidence of disloyalty, you know that" Rumlow pointed out, as she let out a shaky breath.
With a resigned look, the Machine slowly nodded, as Rumlow pulled out a small briefcase, making her realise he must have already canvased the area before he came to rescue her. From the Avengers. Why didn't that sound right anymore? She made the right decision going with him, didn't she? A pulse oximeter was soon placed on her finger, as well as an electrode on the side of her forehead, which she refused to flinch against. Rumlow carefully brushed her hair over her shoulder, giving him access to the nape of her neck and began to cut a fine strip of skin with a scalpel. The Machine grit her teeth at the familiar pain, knowing what would come next. A retractor was used to pull her skin away, a line of blood running down her back, which Rumlow dabbed at with a towel. He could feel how the Machine had tensed, and placed his hand on her shoulder, giving her a small squeeze. Cleaning his other hand, paying close attention to his fingers, in particular, he then took a deep breath and placed his forefinger into the wound. The Machine bit her inner cheek at the painful sensation, feeling as Rumlow rummaged around in the back of her neck for a few seconds before he found what he was looking for. Pulling out one of the metal wires that created her central nervous system, the Machine couldn't stop the soft whimper from leaving her lips. There was a burning sensation a moment later, as her eyes closed on their own accord. She could tell Rumlow had attached his device to her CNS, now having full access to her feed remotely. Images flashed behind her eyes as Rumlow began to search through the missing 1143 hours of footage that had been caught. As if a door was opening in her mind, the Machine began to remember her first encounter with Captain America and Black Widow, how she had got the wound in her neck, being taken to the engineers to be 'fixed' and seen—
The Winter Soldier.
Rumlow watched their encounter in the vault with interest, seeing the slight smile on the Soldier's face as he had passed the Machine cloth to clean herself up. How he could hear the strange fondness in her voice as they spoke. Rumlow's eyes flickered to the monitor, noticing how the Machine's heart rate had sped up while he played out their interaction. Gritting his teeth, he tapped a few buttons on his device, ready to delete it from her databanks when he felt something cold press against the back of his neck.
"I'd think about your next move very carefully" A familiar voice purred, as Rumlow tensed at hearing Black Widow's threat.
"Do I get a next move?" Rumlow answered, as the gun was pressed further into the nape of his neck.
"What have you done to her?" Steve questioned, coming into Rumlow's view.
Steve waved a hand in front of the Machine's face, frowning when she didn't even blink. It was as if her mind was no longer there anymore. Steve moved behind her, his eyes finding a strange looking tattoo beside the wound on the back of her neck. His jaw clenched when he realised it was a barcode. They really saw the girl in front of him as no more than a Machine, a piece of weaponry, Steve realised.
"Don't touch her" Rumlow spat out when he saw Steve reaching out towards the Machine.
"Why isn't she moving?" Natasha pushed, as Steve's hand stilled, still outstretched.
"I was taping into her CNS. Just don't touch anything, alright? You've got no fucking clue what you're doing" Rumlow explained, as Steve's eyes went to the device Rumlow had been using.
"You can see whatever she's seen?" Steve realised, watching the footage on the device, which showed the Machine being lead down a dark corridor.
"Most of the time the feed runs live between the Machine and the Handler, but thanks to you two, we've been blind" Rumlow stated.
"How do I wake her up?" Steve insisted, placing the device back down.
"You don't. I'm the only one who can do that" Rumlow retorted.
"How convenient" Natasha murmured, raising an eyebrow in Steve's direction.
"That wire coming out of her neck is attached to her brain, you tug a little too hard and she's dead, so…how about you give me a little space and let me do my damn job?" Rumlow exclaimed, the challenge clear in his tone.
"One wrong move and I put a bullet through your head" Natasha warned, reluctantly pulling away, as Rumlow let out a long breath he had been holding in.
"Like I'd expect anything less from one of the great Avengers" Rumlow scoffed, sarcastically as he turned to remove the device attached to the wire.
Meanwhile, the Machine had become lost in her old memories, finding one, in particular, came to the forefront of her mind. She wasn't surprised to find it included the Winter Soldier again, especially considering she knew he had been awoken. The Machine hoped she would see him again as she let herself become immersed in the memory.
Considering that the Machine and the Winter Soldier had a king-size bed in their motel room, it was almost comical the way neither of them would use it. The Machine had been watching for a while as the Winter Soldier dozed off on the floor, his back leaning against the motel wall, and hair falling around his face. She was yet to see him sleep and had begun to notice black circles growing underneath his eyes. The Soldier was always on high alert, his shoulders tense, and limbs ready for any attack. That's what made the peaceful expression on his face while he slept so strange. The Machine allowed her eyes to trail down his metal arm, finding scratches there she hadn't noticed before. Her eyes flickered to his other hand, frowning when she saw how worn down his nails were, realising he had most like been scratching the arm. It was a trait she sometimes found herself doing for reasons unknown to her. Just another similarity.
"Stevie" The Soldier mumbled, his tone softer than the Machine had ever heard before.
Was that the Winter Soldier's real name, she wondered? The Machine crept a little closer, coming to crouch down beside the older man, who had begun to twitch in his sleep. She could see how his whole body was shaking now, his breathing growing erratic. The Soldier's forehead suddenly contorted in pain, his metal hand clenching into a fist, as a cry left his lips. The Machine debated whether to wake him, noticing the signs of a nightmare and found her hand reaching out for his ankle before she could stop herself.
"Soldier" She murmured, touching his bare ankle, giving a soft squeeze.
The Soldier's eyes instantly snapped open, and a split second later his metal hand was reaching out to grab her. The Machine had seen this coming, rolling to the side, and pushing herself to her feet in one swift move. She eyed the Soldier warily as he blinked a few times, seeming to realise where he was.
"You…you shouldn't have let me sleep" The Soldier panted, with a shake of his head.
"I have nightmares too" The Machine admitted, after a few seconds.
"It was a memory...I'm supposed to report myself if I suffer from this malfunction" The Soldier frowned, clearly conflicted.
"...I won't tell anyone" The Machine spoke up, as the man's blue eyes snapped up to hers.
"When you were...programmed, did they wipe your memories? From before?" The Soldier questioned, watching as she nodded.
"I don't remember anything" The Machine confessed, as she sat down on the bed, eyes directed to the ground.
"I...I see a man in my dreams sometimes. I don't think he was a previous handler...he was something else..." The Soldier trailed off.
"Stevie?" The Machine suggested, as the Soldier's mouth went slack for a moment, a question on his lips.
"You were saying his name in your sleep-" The Machine offered.
"It is not important" The Soldier mumbled, slowly standing upright, flexing his metal hand as he did so.
"Understood, Sir" The Machine nodded, obeying what she thought was a command.
"Don't call me that" The Soldier replied, with an uncomfortable expression.
"Would you prefer the Winter Soldier as your title?" The Machine questioned, earning a firm shake of his head.
"You are not giving me many options" The Machine went on, as the Soldier simply grunted, turning to peek out behind the curtain.
"How about...Mr Silent but Deadly?" The Machine exclaimed, the words falling off her tongue before she could stop herself.
She was surprised to see the Soldier's lips twitch into a smile for a split second before he seemed to realise what he was doing. The Machine felt a strange emotion bubbling up in her chest. Amusement, maybe? It was overwhelming trying to decipher her newfound 'feelings' and not an entirely pleasant one. Things had been so much easier when her only thought was about keeping her handler happy.
"...Buck" The Soldier mumbled, after a few seconds, earning a confused look from the Machine.
"That's what the man in my dreams calls me. You could call me that...if you want" The Soldier shrugged, averting his eyes to the ground.
Want was still a strange concept to the Machine. She debated over it for a moment, deciding she didn't want to continue calling the man Sir and feeling privileged that he would allow her to call him a personal name. No handlers ever allowed her to do that.
"...I like it. Thank you, Buck" The Machine announced, watching how his forehead wrinkled at her comment.
"I need to check the perimeter" He stated, before making a hasty exit, grabbing the hoodie from the car they had stolen.
The Machine tilted her head as he slammed the door shut, wondering if she had done something wrong.
"…This whole time you've been a double agent?" Steve couldn't help but ask, as the device clicked off.
"Oh, Cap. You didn't actually think we were friends, did ya?" Rumlow chuckled, mockingly.
"I'm not going to apologise for wanting to think the best of people" Steve retorted, as Rumlow carefully pushed the wiring back into the gaping wound in the Machine's neck, barely listening to the blond.
As soon as the wiring was back in position, or as close to it as Rumlow could get, he rushed back around to the front of the Machine, crouching down in front of her. Steve's forehead wrinkled as he watched Rumlow pull away the electrode still on her forehead, before moving to lightly touch her cheek, brushing his thumb slowly against her skin. With his other hand, Rumlow reached out to take her hand in his, wrapping his fingers around her palm. Natasha flinched when she saw how the young girl suddenly squeezed his hand back but remained still otherwise.
"Hey, that's it. There you go. You're waking up. It's just us, Rookie. It's just us…" Rumlow trailed off, as the Machine's eyes snapped to his.
He repeated these words over and over until they saw the brunette began to twitch, leaning forward a little. It was like she was thawing in a way.
"It's…just us" The Machine croaked out, as Rumlow nodded.
"You've conditioned her to respond to you" Natasha realised, her eyes widening a little.
"You don't know what you're—" Rumlow began, but she cut him off quickly.
"You've made sure you're always there when she wakes up. But a few times you've purposely made yourself scarce, just to show how important you are. Whoever you work for, they've put a lot of time and money into her…and you've made sure you're not expendable" Natasha explained, as Rumlow dropped his hand from the Machine's cheek.
"It's called survival" Rumlow muttered, noticing how Steve tensed at his words.
"You're using her to keep yourself alive, there's a difference" Steve spat out.
Before Steve had time to react, Rumlow had whispered something in the Machine's ear, which seemed to immediately spur her into action. The Machine grabbed the crate she was sitting on with both hands and slammed the wooden object against Steve's head, causing him to stumble backwards. The crate splintered in her hands, as she used what was left to press against the blond's neck, knowing the sharp object would easily be able to penetrate the fragile skin there. A loud bang had the Machine's head snapping around to see Natasha had shot Rumlow in the knee, as he stumbled to the floor. The Machine's eyes went wide as she saw the blood dripping down his leg, instantly dropping the sharp wood in her hand, feeling panic rush through her veins.
"Stand down. Now" Natasha warned, as the Machine moved to place both her hands behind her head, falling to her knees.
"I will do whatever is necessary to protect Agent Rumlow" The Machine replied, wanting to rush over to help stem the blood rushing out of her handler's leg.
"You okay, Rogers?" Natasha called out, earning a thumbs up from Steve in response.
"All these concussions are starting to make me feel nostalgic" Steve murmured, as he moved to stand by her side.
"Why are you here? Why have you not followed the coordinates I gave you?" The Machine inquired.
"We came to help you" Steve answered, watching how the Machine's forehead wrinkled at his comment.
"I do not require any assistance—" The Machine began, but Natasha stopped her instantly.
"Why did you stop him from shooting me?" Natasha questioned; her gun still aimed at Rumlow.
"I made a tactical error" The Machine stated.
"Why?" Natasha insisted, watching the conflict grow over the Machine's face.
"I…I acted on instinct" The Machine replied, unsurely.
"A human instinct. The need to protect life, not to snuff it out" Steve explained.
"Jesus, Cap. You're not about to burst into song, are you?" Rumlow huffed, tensely.
"Is this what you really want? To fight against us?" Steve asked, ignoring Rumlow's comments, his attention only on the Machine.
"I don't want. I follow orders. That is what I was made for—" The Machine started, but was cut off by Steve, a look of sorrow on his features.
"You weren't made! You're not a Machine, Katy! You're a human being, just like the rest of us. You're no better or worse…you're just the same" Steve exclaimed, crouching down in front of her.
"No. You're…you're wrong. You don't know…I'm not…" The Machine stuttered, her eyes darting around.
"You were kidnapped when you were ten years old. You had a life before. A family. Don't…don't you remember any of that?" Steve pushed, as the Machine slowly shook her head.
"She can't. The memories were deleted from her CNS a long time ago" Rumlow mumbled, as the Machine's head snapped towards him.
"Why?" Steve frowned.
"Improves efficiency" Rumlow replied, causing Steve's jaw to clench in anger.
"Why was she taken?" Natasha couldn't help but ask, as the Machine continued to stare at Rumlow with confusion.
"That wasn't a request" Natasha insisted, moving to press the gun against Rumlow's forehead.
"After the turn of the millennium, it became clear that artificial intelligence was the next big thing. All the countries in the world were dabbling their hands in it…the people I work for wanted to try something a little different. Turning a person into something…artificial. A living, breathing person, with the same abilities as a computer. They started their experiments. Why do you think her number is K-80? She was the 80th model in the line" Rumlow explained, as even Natasha appeared a little shocked.
"…There were others like me?" The Machine spoke up, with wide eyes.
"All the other experiments failed. You were the first success…the only success" Rumlow murmured, averting his gaze to the floor.
"Why? What's different about her?" Natasha queried.
"Her age. The experiments before then had always been adults. I don't understand it, but the scientists said it had something to do with her limbic system still developing. Made her brain more pliable" Rumlow went on.
"You said she's the only success?" Steve frowned.
"They tried to experiment on more kids. Some survived the process, but even then…they would never be useful in battle" Rumlow replied.
"What happened to them?" Natasha questioned, despite already thinking she knew the answer.
"They were destroyed" Rumlow muttered.
"Murdered" Steve gritted through his teeth.
"Why was I given an inhibitor?" The Machine asked, in a small voice.
"The experiments before you, they didn't all die immediately. A lot ended their lives. They couldn't cope. The inhibitor was created to stop the experiments from overthinking. Numb their emotions" Rumlow exclaimed, having the sense to appear guilty.
"So, without her inhibitor…" Steve trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence.
"Yeah" Rumlow nodded, his eyes darting to the Machine's for a moment.
"I didn't try to kill myself the last time my inhibitor malfunctioned. I won't this time either" The Machine insisted.
"Why all the metal? Why not just leave it at creating a new CNS?" Natasha pushed.
"They wanted to see just how close to a Machine they could get. They couldn't exactly start stitching metal into a normal person, knowing what happened to the others experiments. Besides, she was already…" Rumlow trailed off, with a sigh.
"What?" The Machine asked, a sharp tone to her voice.
"Already ruined" Rumlow mumbled, making the Machine frown.
"I am a fully functioning asset. I…I'm not ruined" The Machine spat out, as Rumlow opened his mouth to reply.
"Project Insight. That's what was on the USB drive I downloaded—" The Machine began, but Rumlow cut her off quickly.
"Are you trying to get us both killed?!" Rumlow gaped, angrily.
"Wouldn't terminated be the more accurate term? I am only an experiment after all" The Machine retorted, leaving Rumlow taken aback.
"What is Project Insight?" Steve pushed, as the Machine slowly tore her eyes away from her handler.
"A plan to proactively destroy any potential threats before they can happen. Approximately twenty million people will be classified in this group and will be eliminated" The Machine explained, as Steve and Natasha shared a look.
"How?" Natasha inquired.
"I do not possess this information, but the coordinates I gave you should be able to give you such answers" The Machine clarified, as the redhead nodded.
"Let's get going then—" Natasha began, when Rumlow suddenly twisted around to face the Machine.
Natasha was ready to pull the trigger on her gun in a split second, expecting the man to attack the Machine, but was surprised when he instead grabbed her hand. The Machine's brow furrowed as Rumlow leant in, placing his other palm against her cheek like he always did when she would wake up. The older man could feel how the Machine relaxed against his touch.
"What are you doing, Rookie? They're the enemy, remember?" Rumlow insisted as the Machine tilted her head.
"I know" The Machine replied.
"Why did you tell them the plan?" Rumlow pushed, as the Machine mulled over his words.
"On instinct. Human instinct" The Machine stated, her eyes finding Steve's, who gave her a small smile.
"Katy. I need you to listen to me very carefully. You have a choice right now. You can stay here with him, help in killing millions of people…or you can come with us, and try to do some good" Steve told her, as Rumlow pulled her to look away.
"I order you not to—" Rumlow began, but Steve cut through his words.
"I'm not going to tell you what to do, Katy. I think you deserve to choose for yourself" Steve insisted, as her eyes darted between the two men.
"…The STRIKE team will be here in ninety seconds—" The Machine began, but was cut off as Rumlow suddenly moved his hand to grab the nape of her neck, his fingers digging into the wound that still lay there.
The Machine let out a cry as she felt him tugging on the wires within, pins and needles erupting over her entire body. Black dots quickly clouded her vision, causing her to scrunch her eyes shut as she tried to push him away from her. A loud gunshot a moment later had Rumlow's hand slipping away, as the Machine's eyes fluttered open, finding he had been shot in the arm by Black Widow. She could see the redhead was lining up the gun to shoot Rumlow in the head and immediately shoved him out of the way, as the bullet whizzed uselessly through the air.
"No! Don't…don't kill him" The Machine exclaimed, a pleading tone to her voice.
"He deserves to die" Natasha pointed out, as the Machine's jaw clenched.
"I still need him" The Machine admitted, frowning at her own words.
Need?
Is this what needing something felt like? She couldn't let Rumlow die, even if that was just her programming taking over. With pursed lips, Natasha grabbed Rumlow's shoulder, wrenching his hands behind his back and quickly handcuffing him before he could do any more damage.
"You're not thinking clearly. You need to come back with me. We can fix your inhibitor, everything can go back to how it was" Rumlow explained.
"I don't want that. I don't want to go back to what I was" The Machine realised, as Rumlow shook his head, straining against Natasha's grip still on his shoulder.
"Are you okay?" Steve asked, his eyes drawn to the blood rolling down her back.
"I'm fine, Captain" The Machine replied, watching as he held out a hand to her.
After a few seconds, she took up the offer, allowing him to help haul her upright, feeling a wave of dizziness hit her. Steve gave her a warm smile, before patting her on the shoulder like you would to a fellow comrade. Was that what she was now? Did the Avenger really see her as an equal? The Machine realised she liked that idea.
"I think we've got company" Natasha murmured, as they heard the sound of vehicles screeching to a stop from outside.
"Don't worry. I can handle this" The Machine exclaimed, earning confused looks from the pair.
Only seconds later, the two doorways to the building were ripped open and four members of STRIKE began to hurry in, stun batons in all their hands. This came to no surprise to the Machine, who knew Hydra would want her back fully functional. Rollins and another soldier came in through a window at front of the building once the other team members were in position. Natasha raised her gun towards Rollins, frowning when she saw the Machine raise her hands out.
"You sure you can take them all on?" Steve whispered, surprised to see a slight smirk grace the Machine's lips.
"Consider it done" The Machine answered.
With a small flick of her fingers, the stun batons in their hands came buzzing to life, the electricity seeming far greater than usual. Rollins was the only man with enough sense to drop his weapon, as a moment later, the rest of the team were electrocuted with their own weapons, the electric pulse shooting up from the handles and into their skin. Natasha's lips twitched into a grin as she watched the rest of the men flop to the floor, knocked out cold.
"Nice trick" Rollins muttered, his tone lacking its usual confidence.
"Jack, get out of here" Rumlow ordered, from where he was slumped on his side.
"Not gonna' happen, boss. I'm not to return without the Machine" Rollins admitted, as the girl in question tilted her head.
"Your mission will be unsuccessful" The Machine retorted, taking a few steps forward.
Rollins was instantly racing towards her, branding a pocket knife in his hand. He took a swipe at her, causing the Machine to duck quickly, twisting around so that she was to the side of her opponent. The Machine gave a hard kick to the back of Rollin's knees, having him stumbling forward before she sent her elbow down into his back. With Rollin on his knees, she turned around and used her leg to push him further into the ground, allowing her to place pressure against the back of his neck. She leant forward and easily grabbed the pocket knife from his hand, hearing a bone in his finger snap as she tugged it away. The Machine then brought the hilt of the weapon down onto his skull, knocking him out cold as she pushed herself to her feet, having taken down her opponent in a matter of seconds.
"Did I prove myself sufficiently, Captain?" The Machine questioned, spinning the knife in her hand and placing it into the waistband of her trousers.
"Well, I was impressed. Natasha?" Steve responded, turning to his friend.
"The footwork was a little sloppy" Natasha smirked, with a shrug.
"They'll be sending another team soon. We need to move" Steve advised, already heading towards the nearest exit.
The Machine's eyes flickered over to Rumlow, who had slumped onto the floor, a pool of blood growing underneath him. She felt her chest tighten as his dark eyes connected with hers, forcing her to walk towards him without a second thought. The Machine was quick to remove the belt he was wearing, and wrapped it around his upper thigh, using it as a tourniquet. How long would her handler last without medical attention?
"Brock. Brock! Stay awake" The Machine exclaimed, patting his cheek, bringing his head to rest on her lap.
"T-traitor" Rumlow muttered, watching the hurt flash across her face.
"Project Insight is wrong. You know that too. We can take you with us—" The Machine began, but Rumlow summoned all his strength, to shove her away from him with a snarl.
"Traitor" Rumlow repeated, more forcefully this time.
"…I saw the memory you tried to delete. I know they woke him up. Where is he?" The Machine insisted, as Rumlow scoffed.
"After all this time, you're still chasing a fucking ghost," Rumlow told her.
"Is he with Pierce?" The Machine questioned, seeing the way Rumlow grit his teeth.
"Jesus, is that why you're…you're doing this? So, you can what…get him back? It's pathetic" Rumlow sneered.
"He's my friend. So are you" The Machine stated.
"No. I'm your handler" Rumlow insisted, watching her eyes soften a little.
"I'm staying" The Machine announced, hearing a huff come from Natasha's lips.
"They'll take you back in and they won't let you go this time" Natasha advised, as the Machine shook her head.
"He'll bleed out. I won't let him die" The Machine insisted.
"I wouldn't do the same for you" Rumlow mumbled, beginning to slur his words from the blood loss.
"This is your programming—" Steve suggested, but the Machine quickly cut him off.
"No. I left a friend before, I won't make the same mistake again" The Machine insisted, as Steve's forehead wrinkled, wondering what she meant.
"The Winter Soldier won't even remember you" Rumlow spat out, knowing that's who she was talking about.
"Then I'll make him" The Machine retorted, as Steve shared a surprised look with Natasha.
"You know him?" Steve asked, finding a million questions were on his tongue.
"Steve" Natasha hissed, turning around to find two members of the STRIKE team were waking up.
"Katy, we've got to go" Steve insisted, placing his hand on her shoulder.
"No" The Machine exclaimed, shrugging his hand away, as Natasha pursed her lips.
"Sorry about this" Black Widow muttered, before she slammed the handle of her gun down on the younger girl's head, knocking her to the floor.
The Machine's eyes slowly fluttered close as black dots grew in her vision until she passed out, going completely still. Steve crossed his arms at Natasha's actions, quirking an eyebrow her way, looking unamused.
"What? It worked, didn't it?" Natasha shrugged.