Chapter Text
“Mission failed,” the Handler’s proxy informed the Soldier’s Handler.
“The Soldier never fails ,” the handler growled. He turned to face it. “How the hell did you fail a simple assassination? In and out, no witnesses. That’s all there was to it. How did you fail?”
The Soldier could not answer.
“Mission report,” its handler snapped.
The Soldier stumbled out of the chamber, the usual feeling of disorientation sweeping through its body. It was held up by strong arms as it struggled to orientate itself. The Soldier was pulled to a familiar room, allowing it to get its bearings. It was placed in the chair in the center of the room, surrounded by technology and people.
“We’re ready, start the procedure,” the man in front of him ordered.
The rings that were previously hanging above the chair whirred to life, descending towards its head. Strong metal straps held its body down.
The procedure commenced.
The Soldier felt its ears ringing and its throat was raw. It did not know why. It watched the rings retreat to their original positions above it. The Soldier returned its attention to the man in front of it when he spoke.
“Желание.
“Ржавый.
“Семнадцать.
“Pассвет.
“Печь.
“Девять.
“Доброкачественный.
“Возвращение на родину.
“Один.
“грузовой вагон.”
The Soldier carefully rearranged its referral to the man in front of it. It looked at the new Handler, carefully avoiding eye contact.
“Good morning, Soldier.”
“Ready to comply,” it responded.
Its Handler, Karpov, it soon learned, explained the mission. The Soldier was to extract information from the home of James Lionheart, an American diplomat that had ties with SHIELD. The Soldier was required to extract any important information pertaining to anything connected to Hydra, and leave unnoticed. Any witnesses were to be eliminated immediately.
The Soldier was transported to the target’s home in a black sedan. It was provided with minimal stealth gear. Fifteen knives were hidden among its vest, combat boots, and sleeves. Two pistols rested on each leg. Two were hidden on the inside of its boots. It was given a few devices to disable any security systems and one upgraded flash drive to store digital information. It had the skills to hack any devices it might need to extract information from.
The infiltration of the target’s house was simple. The Soldier used a device to disable the camera and alarm system before entering the house. It went straight to the location of Lionheart’s hidden basement.
The basement’s far corner held one filing cabinet and one PC. The Soldier quickly hacked into the computer and extracted all data from it into the flash drive. The files from the cabinet were secured in a bag on its back.
As it emerged from the basement, the Soldier heard a heartbeat near it. It spun around, pulling out a gun pointed straight at the person to its right. Its eyes recognized the shape of a child. The Soldier didn’t hesitate. A child was easy to eliminate.
Becca was leading Bucky and Steve across the city’s streets, Steve struggling to keep up with the siblings.
“Bucky!” His sister turned to look at Bucky and Steve. “You two need to hurry up back there.”
“Give us a second,” Bucky laughed. “You have to slow down, or Steve’ll have an asthma attack.”
Steve wheezed, catching up to them. “I’ll be fine. Keep going!”
“No way.” Bucky held Steve up before he crashed into the sidewalk. “We’re not leaving you behind.”
Steve sighed. “There’s no way I’ll make it to the other side of Brooklyn in time to come back for dinner.”
“I’ll carry you then,” Bucky shot the blonde a grin.
“What’s everyone going to think about you carrying a guy like a princess across the city?”
Bucky rolled his eyes. “Since when did you care what people think about you? We’re already halfway there, we’re not going back.”
“You’re going to do it anyway, aren’t you?” Steve asked, resigned.
“Yup.”
“Okay,” Becca huffed, “Let’s move already!”
“Alright, alright,” Bucky replied, scooping Steve up. He was incredibly light.
The Soldier’s shot missed its shot by one meter, completely avoiding the child. The sound alerted the other two people in the house. James Lionheart appeared at the top of the stairs, a gun in his hand. Lionheart’s wife, Jena, stood behind him.
The Soldier was not informed Lionheart had a child.
The voice of its Handler’s proxy carried through the communication device in its ear. “Soldier, have you completed your objective?”
It could take three shots and the mission would be complete. The Soldier could not move.
“Soldier, have you completed your objective?”
James Lionheart shot the Soldier’s flesh hand, the one that held the flash drive. The destroyed drive fell to the ground in a clatter. The Soldier smelled its blood.
“Soldier?”
The Soldier continued to stare at the child in front of it as Lionheart and his wife rushed over to stand in front of the child.
“Sending in backup.”
A team of ten Hydra agents blast through the front door. They immediately opened fire on the three family members. They dropped dead.
The Handler’s proxy entered the house. When he saw the broken drive, he turned to look at the Soldier. “What the hell happened?”
What happened? The Soldier did not know. “Unknown, sir,” the Soldier replied.
The proxy growled. “We will have to discuss this with Karpov.”
“Do I have a sister?” The Soldier asked as they returned to the base.
“No.”
The Soldier frowned, but didn’t speak further.
“We can’t put the Soldier in cryofreeze yet. It is needed for another mission.”
“We have to. The Soldier is getting its memories back.”
“I thought you wiped it.”
“That is not enough for the Soldier’s current state.”
“Then do something about it. The Soldier must be ready within ten hours.”
“That won’t—”
“Make it work.”
“… Yes, sir.”