BIOHAZARD,
chapter six: lovely mess!
37 hours left.
THE SOUND OF THE ALARM RESONED EXPLOSIVELY IN THE BLOCK. The lights went on, tinting the room red. Avery and the rest of the team gave a start as they rose automatically. All the soldiers sat in their beds, putting on their uniforms clumsily, trying to show that they were awake enough to be able to take a gun in their hands - which really, they couldn't. Avery adjusted his shoelaces and discreetly kept the knife under his pillow. Jake frowned at the movement but didn't decide to comment on it. The two girls in the team put on a new shirt of the same color - while they were booed by a couple of soldiers who whistled at them in a shameless way. Violet turned and shouted an insult in Russian, silencing anyone who dared to say another comment out of place.
All the soldiers got up and laid out their beds - like one of the many hygiene rules - to leave in the direction of the stairs. The team followed the rest of the cadets and recruits to a pavilion that was full of tables to form a single line, which would give them the first meal of the day. As the soldiers left the line with their food, they were located in different places, thus filling the pavilion completely. Avery sat next to his companions, at one of the tables at the end. Anika took a sip of her coffee - clearly, without sugar - while Jake and Violet looked at Avery intently.
"What happened yesterday?" Jake asked. "What did the commander want?"
Avery took a sip of coffee, feeling hot liquid running down his throat, burning his tongue a bit. The mercenary grimaced, trying not to be suspicious of the situation at hand. "The commander told me we'll have a mission and we'll do it with the soldier." Violet looked at the mercenary with an eyebrow. "Let me finish, asshole. He led me to an isolated pavilion where they keep the book."
"Why would he do something like that?" Anika Birkin asked softly. "He doesn't even know you."
"Apparently he's coming into trust with me," the mercenary replied, rolling his eyes. "I have seen where it is stored and I know one of the codes. It will be a piece of cake."
Violet began to nod as she released a sarcastic comment. "Yes, of course. Whereas we're in a base full of soldiers who could kill us with a snap of fingers if they wanted to." He looked at Jake. "How many hours do we have left?"
The elder Birkin glanced at his watch, showing the SHIELD logo and the number of hours, minutes and even seconds. His eyesight returned to the brunette, who looked at him with attention. "37 hours and counting the minutes that remain. I don't understand why Howard asked Fury to do this."
Avery frowned. "Howard...?"
"Howard Stark," Anika replied quietly. "One of the directors of SHIELD. He sent Fury."
"Then Fury is not the director of SHIELD..."
The redhead smiled sideways. "Nick Fury is an agent, who is wanting to become one of the directors. He is our superior."
"Okay, so I was tricked by an agent to do this?" Avery asked as the Birkin siblings nodded, trying not to laugh. "No need to clarify, idiots."
"We like to be honest, you know?" Jake replied, leaning forward.
"Well, well" Violet interrupted the team, attracting the complete attention of the same. "From now on, no more distractions and no more jokes. This is the real game and we must play it carefully."
"Thank God, you've finally gotten in tune with the whole team," Avery said clapping subtly as his partner sent him a murderous look.
"Close your beak, Muller," the mercenary muttered, pointing a finger at him. "You have got us into this and you will be the one who will execute the plan. We will help you to achieve it."
Avery, somehow, was firm and satisfied with the change of sudden attitude of his partner Violet Quinn - although he wondered where it had come from, but he preferred not to ask - and nodded looking at the rest of the team. "As our dear Dominika said before, we will follow a plan and as soon as we have the objective, we will leave before dawn." He took a sip of black coffee and, swallowing it, left it on the table. "Begin to study common patterns in soldiers and commanders. Look for some strategy to evade the first five floors. Violet and I will study Karpov's patterns and the camera where the soldier's book is stored."
The group nodded and the four crashed their fists. Game on.
━━━━━━━━
32 hours left.
Violet Quinn rolled over on the cold ground, feeling her body burn - that each limb was deep in misery that threatened to destroy her body in some way. The brunette gave a snarl and rose slowly, her brown eyes focused on the fixed figure of the soldier. His blue orbs, as cold as winter itself, stared at the mercenary who slowly put on a fighting pose. The soldier's eyes then looked at Avery deliberately, as if trying to find out something that was very buried in being - in his own black hole.
Avery was alert to any movement, noted how the pattern of mobility with the soldiers was and knew that Commander Karpov was in the same place since the psychological training had begun. The three remaining members of the team were seated, hands and ankles tied - without escape and with great efforts not to suffer. They stared at a screen that gave a message, hypnotizing them partially. Each soldier remained silent and staring straight ahead. However, Avery kept a cautious eye on the people around her. Every half hour they selected a cadet to face the weapon that HYDRA had in their hands. It had been five hours since breakfast and that worried the team a lot. Violet was the one who confronted him at that very moment and, Avery fearing for her, no one of the cadets could stop him - of course, at least someone dares and ends up having a broken neck.
"Dovol'no (Enough)" The commander declared and touched a button. He let out a shrill scream, weakening everyone with a simple sound. Violet fell to the ground and touched her head, feeling that the deafening noise would end up breaking her eardrums. The soldier screamed and covered both ears, falling to his knees next to Violet. Avery tried to move, but something was blocking his way: he was tied to the chair. The noise stopped after about five minutes. Muller swallowed and felt a thin high-pitched sound - indicating that some auditory cells were dying thanks to the impact of the deafening sound.
The next four hours were hell, as they showed images of the soldier, of what the greatness of HYDRA was like and how they should render loyalty to him. Loyalty, that word didn't exist for Avery Muller. The word 'loyalty' was something that his mind didn't understand or that he no longer incorporated into the system. 'Loyalty' was a word that incited treason, betrayal of one's country, betrayal of one's neighbor - betrayal of oneself. He could no longer be loyal to anyone, he decided never to be. The only thing that mattered at that moment was the mission, like a good mercenary and charging for what was done - regardless of the consequences that were left on the path he traveled. Muller couldn't get rid of the cry that the cadets gave: Hail HYDRA, Hail HYDRA, Hail HYDRA, Hail HYDRA!
It was something that tasted bitter on his tongue, something that was toxic - Avery Muller shouldn't give loyalty to anyone, especially Commander Karpov. The mere fact that he was caught among hundreds of Russian soldiers who were willing to give his life for an organization forgotten in World War II, made him feel dizzy, stupefied, he even felt that everyone had given up on the person they were before. To surrender. Avery shouldn't allow that, shouldn't surrender to them. He...he had to fight. With that he remembered that this exercise felt as if they were with the Winter Soldier himself, with Karpov saying those same words to torment him - just as he does with the soldier. Those words produce the same effect as looking at a screen and only at that screen, believing in something that blinds and clouds the judgment of anyone sitting in a chair and paying attention to it. Avery didn't. Avery was committing acts of treason. His teammates also did it. They wouldn't surrender to HYDRA.
The video finished and played again, the small team began to feel tired because that video would be another hour of torture. They couldn't move, they couldn't do anything - if not watch that video again, waiting for it to end a good time.
━━━━━━━━
26 remaining left.
"Gruppa nikolaya (Nikolay's group)" Karpov called, his voice echoing in the training pavilion. The mercenary's group rose up and showed a firm stand against the commander-in-chief. Karpov motioned with his hand for them to follow him. The small group obeyed and climbed the stairs to join their commander. "You will train with the soldier."
"Huh, this will be the second time they kicked my ass in the day" Violet murmured, rolling her eyes. "Otlichno (Perfect)."
Commander Karpov chuckled as he led the cadets into the elevator. He slid the big door up and they all entered, as soon as the security fence was put in place, Karpov pressed a button and the elevator started to lower - deeper and deeper. Avery wondered how low they could go. The elevator went down five more floors and the doors opened, revealing the soldier, who was examined by medical personnel.
Avery's green eyes fixed on the soldier's blues, who already looked at him as soon as the mercenary had set foot in the room. The group observed their surroundings and the only thing that separated them from the murderer of HYDRA who managed to change the story with a bullet was a metal fence, with thick bars - as if he were a wild animal. Anika glanced at the commander and said, "What is this?"
"Let's say this is a prison for criminals who have betrayed or have even tried to destroy HYDRA," he replied, with a crooked smile, as if that were something natural. Avery walked to the "wall" that separated them and analyzed the soldier, while Violet crossed her arms.
"Do you want us to train with him, sir?"
"You'll need it, Dominika," the commander replied, watching the mercenary's movements. "Tomorrow you will have your first mission."
"What?" Jake asked, alerted, knowing that the next day they were approaching the time frame given by Fury.
"As I said, cadet," replied the commander, looking at him seriously. "We'll give you the details in the morning" Then, he looked straight ahead. "Nikolay, you will be the first to enter."
Avery looked back alertly, meeting the pitiful looks of his companions and that playful grin that danced on the lips of the commander. That wasn't a joke, and in a million years would be a joke. And he was a good soldier, all right, at least he would make her believe that. Karpov observed that the cadet straightened up and walked towards the door, and then nodded to another guard who allowed him to enter. Avery put one foot inside and felt that he was so close to an abyss that he had no return. He moved slowly towards the soldier and the medical staff moved to one end.
Muller stood guard, while the soldier walked slowly towards him, somehow he had to leave that base and he would: with the soldier's book in his hands. Avery threw a punch at the killer's face but he dodged it agilely, bringing his elbow to the mercenary's abdomen. The air that Avery contained ended up leaving his lungs leaving him without air. The soldier continued with a punch that caused a wobble and ended up throwing Avery away, his sword colliding with the metal bars that contained the fight.
The green-eyed mercenary quickly got up from his place and ran to the soldier, threw punches to the face, hooks to the body and the only thing he managed was to kick him in the torso to finish with a punch in the face. Avery tried to take advantage and throw another blow to his face but the soldier held his blow and made a key to immobilize the mercenary completely. Avery struggled against the soldier's grip and shifted the weight of his body so that the soldier would lose balance. But his feet were planted like a rock on the ground, refusing to move.
"Shit," Avery babbled, thinking of a position to get out of his grip.
"You can surrender, if you wish," the soldier spoke.
Wow, that was unexpected. Avery froze at the sound of that hoarse voice, singular and damn near his ear. The mercenary shuddered and used that as an advantage to jump and duck, throwing the soldier against the bars. The soldier got up quickly, pulling a knife from his pocket. Avery rolled his eyes to see that HYDRA's weapon would not be so easy to beat. He dodged one, two and even three cuts, rolling to the side. He hit the soldier twice more and tried to knock him down, but the boards reversed leaving the green-eyed mercenary under the edge of a long, sharp knife. The soldier's blue eyes watched Muller's face at the same time as he exerted pressure on the neck with the knife. Avery used all his strength to counteract the pressure and thus beat him.
If he failed, he would end up with a knife embedded in his neck and the consequences would be a death thanks to a hemorrhage near an aortic vein. End of the mission. Everything could go to hell. But he would not fail, not now at least. Avery felt that the point of the knife was almost near his Adam's apple, not touching it but the touch of its tip was almost lethal. He did not cease to exert upward pressure. The team, watching the fight from outside, remained silent - wishing it would end soon. Avery also hoped that soon everything would end. Suddenly, he turned his head, moving the knife at the same time so that it was nailed to the opposite side where his head had turned. He gasped, feeling a sudden relief in his veins.
"Khvatit, soldat (Enough, soldier)" Replied the commander in chief.
The Winter Soldier got up, keeping the knife in place; He looked at Avery with broken breath, while he just crawled toward the exit. How much had happened? Fifteen minutes, more maybe. If in less than five minutes, Avery had already lost his breath. He crawled to the door, which was already open and Avery's figure was greeted by Jake and Violet, who helped him up.
"That has been intense" Anika added smiling sideways.
Avery glared at her. "It's a pleasure to make you enjoy my pain, Claire."
She smiled as she nodded, trying to make her teammate a little more cranky. Karpov ordered them to close the cell and watched the team. "You are fighting a weapon, a weapon that can kill you with just a bullet in the head. Here at HYDRA you are also weapons or at least, that is what we plan to do with you."
"We can't beat him," Jake replied, nodding at the soldier, but the commander thought the opposite.
"Tomorrow you will," he said, without expressing another wish. He looked at the guard and nodded, the cell door opening. "Who's next?"
━━━━━━━━
24 hours left.
All the cadets entered the stable, each one placing himself in his respective bed. Avery brushed his thumb over the cut the soldier had made on his cheek, which was not prominent, of course until it started to bleed a little. The small team leaned back on its bed and the lights went out. Somehow, the soldier's shouts were heard from the Playground and that caused Muller to jump up. The shouting ceased fifteen minutes later and Avery got up slowly. The lights in the corridors suddenly went out, leaving everything in complete darkness and then red lights came on.
Avery slid slowly to the ground and looked at Violet, who was imitating his actions. Both were barefoot and with that, the two mercenaries slipped silently towards the exit of the stable. They found themselves inside the corridors illuminated by red lights, they walked glued to the walls of the same avoiding to be discovered by the cameras. Violet followed her companion without hesitation, both sneaking away from the guards guarding certain entrances. The two mercenaries turned and the green-eyed man remembered that there were a couple of stairs that gave access to the pavilion where the soldier's book was kept. The two walked stealthily towards them and climbed up silently. There they observed that two soldiers turned two keys and the metal doors opened. Violet observed every detail that happened in that room.
"Zavtra mne ponadobitsya soldat, my otpravim yego s malen'koy komandoy Nikolaya (I'll need the soldier tomorrow, we'll send him with Nikolay's small team)" Said the commander-in-chief. "Yesli my poluchim syvorotku super soldata, my prevratim komandu v soldat, takikh kak serzhant Barns (If we get the super soldier's serum, we'll turn the team into soldiers like Sergeant Barnes)."
Avery frowned and decided to get closer, but her partner stopped her. Commander Karpov continued. "My ne dolzhny pozvolyat' soldatu proyavlyat' kakiye-libo priznaki slabosti, ponyal? (We must not allow the soldier to show any sign of weakness, understood?)" Suddenly, the soldiers nodded, releasing a baritone of responses at the same time. The mercenary moved and that reproduced a screech, alerting the people who were in the room.
Karpov walked toward the stairs with his gun held high, pointing at anything that moved. But seeing that the stairway itself was desolate, he lowered the weapon. However, he didn't know that under his feet, Avery Muller and Violet Quinn were hiding. That didn't bother the commander, but limited him to keep the book and the doors closed behind him. Avery observed that the commander was going down the stairs quickly, and then walking towards the opposite corridor where the stable was sleeping. The two mercenaries returned by the same place they came, joining in the small bathroom of the block.
Avery looked at the pavilion, wondering if anyone had woken up - but that was the only thing that played in his favor. Violet closed the door slowly and focused her brown gaze on Avery. "What the hell are we doing here? This is crazy."
"I know," he murmured as he squeezed his eyes. "We must think of a plan and fast. There are 24 hours left."
"Tomorrow we will have the mission, that will take time away," Violet replied with a sigh. "Our plan will only be limited to distract, steal and get out of here at full speed. The soldiers are weak, so that will be simple."
Avery raised an eyebrow. "What about the soldier?"
"There must be some file in the file about him," his partner said in a whisper. "How to distract him and Karpov."
Muller nodded. "Okay, tomorrow we'll put the plan in motion and if one of us four should die...I'll accept the consequences."
Violet pursed her lips, denying and accepting at the same time that this mission has no turning back. Both left the bathroom and slowly returned to their beds, entering again to that dream that would gobble them up to the alarm to wake them up.
━━━━━━━━
not edited