CUT OFF ONE HEAD...
Steve turned the lights on; SHIELD's logo printed on the far distant wall ahead. It was a huge space,filled with desks,the dust of time imprinted on them.
We went even further in,the emptiness never fading. It felt almost as if we were trespassing,not in the literal way that we actually were,but in an entire different level. Almost like we were disrespectful.
This was a SHIELD establishment,and here we are,us three only here to dig up SHIELD's secrets.
Our eyes fell on a wall filled with framed pictures,all in line,black and white.
“That's Howard Stark”,Natasha pointed out at the picture of a handsome young man,dark hair with a distinctive mustache.
“Stark?”,i asked confused.
“Tony's father”,Steve explained,his eyes fixed on the pictures. “He was...a friend”
“Oh..right,right”,i shook my head,feeling rather dumb. “I've read about him. He helped in developing that serum of yours...”,i mumbled and Steve nodded silently.
“Oh- and that-”,i exclaimed,pointing at the young woman next to him on another picture. “That's Peggy Carter”
Steve looked at me surprised.
“Who is she?”,Natasha asked me.
“She's the founder of SHIELD”,i moved my head,my eyes squinty. “She was..a great woman..You knew her,right?”,i turned to Steve.
His jaw was clenched,his fists tight; but he didn't utter a single word. My brows were knitted. Perhaps I was overstepping.
“How do you know that?”
“Oh,i...i've been doing a lot of reading,you know,trying to catch up with this world and all..”,i let out a shot,awkward chortle and she nodded with a smile.
“Let's keep moving”,Steve's voice came out cold and hollow as he moved ahead.
He stopped in front of an old,dusty rack; it was filled with spider webs,it's shelves empty,though somehow,there was an air current flowing from behind.
Steve pulled it away,until an elevator was revealed right behind.
“I don't get it. Why hide that?”,i mumbled.
“Let's find out”
We went all the way out; a wide,equally empty and dusty room was revealed as soon as Steve turned the lights on.
Many computer screens,extremely old technology,although i'm the last person to speak of that.
Keyboards,monitors,all kinds of things,everything laid out throughout the entire room.
“Can't be that..this thing is ancient..”,Natasha commented as we were looking around,stunned by everything.
Shortly after she noticed a small,black devise,looking much newer,much cleaner than everything else. A drive port she called it; she put the flash drive in.
The screen in front of us lit up,a black background with green letters,reading:
Initiate System?
Natasha typed a yes.
“Rogers, Steven,born, 1918. Romanoff, Natalia Alianovna,born, 1984. Pearse,Persephone,born 1993” , a muffled voice suddenly came out,it's accent rather distinctive.
We all kinda jumped around until we noticed a small camera moving around to study us,on top of the computer screen; in it,green faint lines formed a face,it's supposed lips moving as it spoke.
“What's that?”,i asked baffled.
Then,a picture was shown of a much smaller screen,of a man with round glasses.
“Arnim Zola”,Steve spoke,his eyes fixed on that picture. “ A German scientist who worked for the Red Skull. He's been dead for years “
“Swiss Captain. Swiss”,the voice corrected him. “Also,do I really look that dead to you,Captain?”
“Well you certainly don' look alive”,i noted in an almost high pitched voice.
“Ah,you. The alien “
“I beg your pardon?”,i snorted,leaning back. “I am no alien”
“Actually Pers,you kinda are”,Natasha whispered to me.
“Am not! I've seen your movies- my skin in neither green nor gooey!”,i snapped at her,feeling deeply offended.
“Nevertheless,your file is certainly exciting. So many information indeed”
“So you have access on our files”,Steve said,his arms crossed.
“Oh,Captain. I have access on everything! What a fascinating era to live in”
“I don't get it. What's the point..i mean,what is your point ?”,i asked,my mouth slightly opened.
“To keep up the work of course”,he said in a light yet somehow also deep voice. Steve flinched.
“HYDRA is dead,had been for many years now Zola”,he noted,his words dragged out from his mouth.
“HYDRA?”,i asked,perplexed. “That's...”
“Cut off one head-”
“Two more shall take it's place...”,i spoke on his part,my eyes widened. “Steve,if that's what Fury meant...”,i turned to him,Steve's eyes studying Zola,his expression stiff.
“Then it's more serious than we though..”,he mumbled.
“SHIELD wouldn't allow that- Fury wouldn't”,Natasha said,almost angrily.
“And that's what accidents are for,dear” ,he said a screen now showing a series of documents,first Howard Stark's death announcement due to a car accident,then Fury's.
This was much,much bigger than anything we'd previously suspected. This goes way beyond Fury and even Pierce or Rumlow.
“A new world shall arise,Captain,out of the ashes of this old one”
Steve smashed the screen,though Zola's head appeared on the next.
“What's on the flash drive?”,he asked him,glowingly impatient.
“Project Insight required an algorithm. I helped a little”
“Project...what now?”,i asked,turning to Steve whom seemed to understand.
“Three new Helicarriers...”,he mumbled,though it was clear enough for me to hear.“synced to a network of targeting satellites...What is that algorithm for?”,he turned to Zola again.
“I'm afraid this will not be concluded in our meeting Captain. Besides..what good will such knowledge do to a dead man?”,he chuckled.
“A dead man?”,i repeated his words.
“We got incoming guys”,Natasha hummed,looking on her phone screen. “30 seconds. It's...SHIELD”
- The door suddenly closed,too soon for me to notice and try to do anything about it. It was far too enhanced for me to try and bend it all the way until it opens; we didn't have that much time.
- It was coming,Zola's laughter echoing through the entire room.
- I tightened my fist,as strongly as possible,trying to act quick; I punched sideways,pushing my arm as a stone wall embraced us up ahead,Steve trying to cover us with his shield as it was coming,mere nanoseconds from hitting.
- I pushed my other arm on the opposite direction,both my arms forming an x in front of my chest as I pulled another layer of wall,my footing in desperate need to remain in place,steady as possible.
- I took in a deep breath; it hit-
- My ears were buzzing.
- I barely grasped what had happened; a great explosion,too much smoke,too many debris,laid all around.
- I was on my knees,my arms still crossed in front of me; my nose was bleeding,the force I put on holding the walls too great for someone whose master element isn't the land.
- Something had hit me on the stomach too,i think. I had blood on my mouth as well. Everything was so...so dusty. Everything ached.
- “Pers- Pers!”,Steve's shouting made me turn around,my arms now dropped.
- The walls,the only thing staying somehow tall still,was now crashed down to shreds.
- He helped me stand up; he wasn't dead,but he was hurt,as was Tasha.
- Thankfully,the walls worked,even by a little. If I hadn't lifted them,we'd be toast.
- He had one arm around me,Natasha following as we ran. A team was going to scan the place,we didn't have any time to lay around.