» healer // b. barnes

» twelve. her

1987. Hydra facility: Siberia, Soviet Union

I sat still in the chair, waiting for Karpov to continue. He smirked and walked behind me, my eyes trailed him until he was out of sight. I heard clicks of plastic and knobs turning. Suddenly, the screen in front of me turned on. Everything was in black and white. Images flashed by quickly. Before I could even understand what the picture was, it was onto the next one.

My eyes were glued to the screen. I wanted to look away, but I couldn't. Some of the images presented to me were very, very grotesque.

I felt a sudden warmth pressed against the back of the chair. Karpov moved up right to my back. I heard another click of a button and a blinding white pain shot through my body. It only lasted for a few seconds.

Karpov was not satisfied with my response and shocked me again, but it was amplified. My whole body shook in agony. After that round was done, I was sweating and panting.

Eyes glued to the screen. Face forward. Head up. Follow the orders. Dead bodies. Crying children. Destroyed cities. Shoot. Kill. End it.

"Alone," Karpov yelled. A shock followed. My mind frazzled. Desperately trying to repair itself before the next round. Dead children. Broken homes. War. Famine. Shoot. Kill. End them.

"Blister." Two shocks. Assassins. Missions. Follow the orders. I blinked. A shock was punishment. A tear fell. Three shocks were punishment.

"Approaching." A shock in deep my stomach. Knives. Hand to hand. Don't be weak. Stab. Kill. Complete your mission.

"Son." My mind was broken. Sons cried for their parents. Missing parents. Colors appeared. Red white and blue. They broke those families. I didn't get a shock that time.

"Darkness. Gun shot. Dawn. Sin." Sins of the enemy. Must be cleansed. Cleanse the world. Order. Snake head.

"Eleven." Fire. Didn't forest. Land destroyed. Affect of war.

"Power." It stopped. The shocks. The video. It ended on a black and white drawing of intricate lines interconnected. Healing. My assignment .

"Asset?"

"Ready for assignment."

Healing was my old assignment. I have a new purpose. Shoot. Kill. End it.

» » »

My body ached from the hours of hand-to-hand that Karpov had been training me. He hadn't broken a sweat yet. I was drenched.

"Harder!" He screamed in my face. Silvia landed on my noes from how close he was to me. I have a sharp nod, never looking him directly in the eyes.

He motioned to me to attack him. I did. My body screamed in protest of the movements. In my distracted moment, Karpov landed a fist to my face.

"You disgust me. Now start actually focusing. Maybe tonight you won't get your special treat."

By 'special treat' Karpov meant the blue goo. It always made me feel better and without it, I felt cold and trembled the entire night.