The Irony of it All

29

Natasha groaned as she slowly climbed back into consciousness. The scalding heat was gone, replaced by a cold, empty feeling. As she forced her eyes open, she found herself in a metal cell. Most likely steel. It was dimly lit and as unwelcome as the cold was, it felt good against her burns.

It didn't take her long to realize she wasn't alone. Her first thought was that it was Steve. She could have sworn she heard his voice just before she faded into unconsciousness. No, that's not true. She heard a voice that sounded familiar. A voice that reminded her of comfort, a home, and love. But that had to be Steve. Who else could it have been?

The presence in the cell however, was not Steve. She could feel it. And as she looked around the small steel compartment that rocked and creaked as it moved along some poorly paved road somewhere, she froze, her blood running cold as her green eyes met with the cold gray eyes of her ex-husband.

Alexei, or what once was Alexei, was sitting in the corner of the steel transport. His humongous frame seemed so much smaller with his knees tucked to his chest as they were. His gray skin was glistening with sweat, and his once light brown hair was dark, long, matted, and stringy. He was panting, his face contorted in pain, but he focused on her when he saw she was awake. After a moment of tense silence, filled with pain and fear, he spoke. It was raspier than she remembered. Guttural almost, but it was him. And somehow, that hurt the most.

"I know you," He rasped.

"Yes," was her whispered reply.

He groaned in pain before continuing. "Where?"

She knew what he was asking. It surprised her a little that he couldn't remember. Disappointed her even. It also meant that this was harder to explain.

"You and I were married once."

"Married?"

"Yes. A long, long time ago."

"I know you," he said again. "But I don't remember."

"But you know me?"

He didn't answer at first. His head fell back with a "THUD" and lolled against the steel wall for almost a minute. "Tal'ya," he finally said, barely audible, startling her. "You liked to dance."

His eyes were closed, his pants hard as he curled in on himself as the pain increased. When the wave dissipated, his tense form eased and he leaned back against the wall. Natasha eased herself forward, careful so as not to startle him and so as not to get herself killed. "Alexei?"

"No! Red Guardian."

She swallowed the lump of fear that surfaced in her throat. "Red Guardian," she began carefully. "Tell me. What did they do to you? And why are you in pain?"

"Experiment. They wanted." He trailed off with a new wave of pain. "To Copy. Someone. They wanted soldier. Went Bad. Turned me into this. I need to feed on energy to live, but normal people aren't enough anymore. I need more. They promised me more. A whole powerful army to feed on. They give me substitute. But it makes me forget. And lose my senses. Go crazy. They like it. But it leaves me hungrier, and it hurts when I don't have any more."

Her blood ran cold. Dr. Krause had said that he planned on making an army with the baby she was carrying. A super soldier army. To kill off the competition and rule the world, typical HYDRA stuff. He forgot to mention the part where they wanted to feed her child to this monster.

Natasha cleared her throat. "So this pain you're in, is withdrawal from whatever serum they give you?"

He groaned loudly as a fresh wave passed, the massive black market vibranium shackles groaning in protest as he strained. "No more talking!" He roared. "You smell so good, but they put me in these restraints so I can't hurt you. I need more!", he panted. "And you smell like power."

She pushed away from him slowly, her arms coming up around her protruding belly protectively. She stayed there, on the wall, closer to him than she was before, but with a safe distance between them, as she listened to his groans and pants of pain. Her heart ached for him. She had rarely even given her dead husband a thought in the past years. He was just a memory. But now he was here, a prisoner, a monster, and she found, despite it all, she still loved him.

Love doesn't just fade away. She still loved Ivan even though he had put her through hell. He was the closest thing she had to a father, so in a twisted way, she did love him, though she'd never admit it. But this love. This love for a husband from long ago, a man who actually wanted to feed off her child's energy, this love hurt more. Because she knew in her heart, that a part of her was still in love with him.