As the elevator doors opened, Natasha and Steve glanced into the engulfing darkness. Gazing into the abyss-like room, Steve gripped his shield tighter as the elevator dinged, an indication to leave the safety of it. In response, almost hesitantly they stepped into the rooms embrace, instantly succumbed by darkness as each slow step was sought with reluctance before the elevator door shut behind them, causing the two to momentarily turn back before twisting back on their heels into the room.
Through the darkness, dim lights seemingly on a control panel, indicated the pathway into the room, their footsteps silent as they followed it. With each entirely focused on their surroundings, they refrained from haltering as the lights suddenly flickered on, sensing their presence before enveloping the room with light to reveal countless outdated forms of technology and machinery.
Furrowing their eyebrows, they continued onwards with intentions to study the main control panel, stepping up onto a higher levelled platform as they did so, "this can't be the data point," Natasha objected, her voice low as they stepped on the platform, "this technology is ancient."
Steve glanced at her in complete confusion, his eyebrows creased as he glanced around furthermore, his emotions mutual with Natasha as she stared around in disbelief though her eyesight was caught by a USB dock on the table. Stepping foreword, she retrieved her hard drive from her pocket with contemplation before defiantly deciding and placing it into a dock as suddenly the computers lit up.
INITIATE SYSTEM? the main computer spluttered out in a monotone voice, almost tasting the letters boringly as Natasha glanced up to it, its camera adjusting to view the pair as she slightly bent over to type as she mused, "Y E S spells yes," sending her command with a dramatic click, she smirked in achievement, a nostalgic faze sketching across her face as she added, "shall we play a game?"
Detaining a laugh at Steve's lack of one, Natasha stepped backwards and retorted, feeling obliged to explain her reference, "it's from this movie-"
"-I know," Steve objected, Natasha falling quiet at his almost offended reponse, "I saw," slightly shrugging, she returned her focus to the computer as it initiated.
As the computer booted, sudden flickers of green light sparked on the screen before an oddly familiar face with circular glasses appeared in green graphics as a voice announced, "Rogers Steven, born 1918," as Steve's eyebrows furrowed whilst the camera twisted to Natasha, "Romanoff Natalia Alianovna, born 1984," Natasha's face equally as confused, adjusting her weight onto one leg.
"It's some kind of recording?" she muttered, her assurance more of a question than a definite knowledge with the uncertainty and perplexing situation.
"I am not a recording," it objected, the computers voice obtaining emotion which momentarily multiplied their shock, "I may not be the man I was when the Captain took me prisoner in 1945," a German accent was clearly prominent in its voice, "but I am," in addition to this, his picture appeared on a screen beside the main screen, Steve instantly enveloped in disbelief as Natasha pondered if he knew him.
Glancing at the equipment, Steve gripped his shield before slowly walking the grand computer to study it for any suspicious entities, "Arnim Zola was a German scientist who worked for the Red Skull," Steve informed Natasha, his eyebrows furrowing, "he's been dead for years-"
"-false," Zola protested, cutting him short, "look around you, I have never been more alive," he countered before going on to explain, the computers around the room lighting up, "in 1972, I received a terminal diagnosis; science could not save my body- my mind, however, that was worth saving," he added as Steve turned on his heel, having made a full circle around him as he rejoined Natasha on the platform.
"How did you get here?" Steve questioned, standing beside Natasha as he stared at the computer image, awaiting a thorough explanation as he felt his long since buried anger resurface.
"Invited," he simply replied, Steve's face contorting as Natasha sought to unravel his sudden confusion.
"It was Operation Paperclip after World War Two. S.H.I.E.L.D recruited German scientists with strategic values," she explained as Steve glanced at her before then diverting his attention back to Zola, who flickered momentarily as he commented.
"They thought I could help their cause- I also helped my own," he chortled.
"HYDRA died with the Red Skull," Steve objected, his statement laced with slight doubt as his eyebrows furrowed, holding his shield closer.
"Cut off one head," Zola retorted, "and two more shall take its place," his grim reply echoed in Steve's head as he adjusted his grip on his shield.
"Prove it," Steve firmly demanded, adjusting his posture as he seemed to glue himself to his spot as Zola's voice notified he was accessing the archives.
The screen suddenly sketched with old footage of the Red Skull and the founders of S.H.I.E.L.D, Natasha and Steve instantly enthralled, "HYDRA was founded on the belief that humanity could not be trusted with its own freedom," Zola began, "but what we did not realize was that if you try to take that freedom, they resist. The war taught us much- humanity needed to surrender its freedom willingly," Natasha and Steve gazed at the screen intrigued, footage of Captain America taking prisoners playing as the two slightly shuffled foreword, countless videos of war adorning the screen.
"After the war, S.H.I.E.L.D was founded and I was recruited. The new HYDRA grew-," the footage highlighted the HYDRA agents amongst the S.H.I.E.L.D, "a beautiful parasite inside S.H.I.E.L.D. For seventy years, HYDRA has been secretly feeding crisis, reaping war. And when history did not cooperate, history was changed."
The screen sketched with glitches and flaws as footage rolled, presenting field reports of the assassinations carried out by the 'Winter Soldier,' top-level missions assigned by HYDRA. Natasha shook her head as she watched the footage unravel, revealing unbelievable truths, "no that's impossible, S.H.I.E.L.D would have stopped you-"
"-Accidents will happen," Zola retorted, the screen transitioning to reports of Howard and Maria Stark's covered up assassination that took the facade of a car accident and the murder of Nicholas Fury, the footage evidently highlighting the perpetrators were HYDRA. "We created a world so chaotic that humanity is finally ready to sacrifice its freedom to gain its security. Once the purification process is complete, HYDRA's new world order will arise."
Steve clenched his jaw as the screen suddenly twisted on to multiple victims and murderers, both in the name of HYDRA, "we won, Captain," Zola retorted as suddenly the footage revealed Sawyer sketched across the screen as Steve's face instantly contorted in horror as Natasha's contorted in shock, countless articles of her being beaten by her partner countless times who was unknowingly a HYDRA agent before she escaped with her life after almost being murdered in an alleyway.
Her image was from a news-paper article, subtitled of how she cheated death and was impossibly alive at the state her abusive boyfriend had left her in. The picture showed her tattered in bruises and slashed cuts, her hair dishevelled and her body destroyed with continous beatings. Another assortment of text potrayed that she filed a lawsuit to keep the ordeal silent so her parents would never find out but that it was not a newly formed event and had infact been a continuous torture of broken bones and bruised limbs.
"-Sawyer?" Natasha muttered in disbelief, glancing in terror to Steve who was firmly focused on the screen, stepping foreword to read it as Natasha felt a frantic gush of paranoia Sawyer wasn't safe and was due to be assassinated on the grounds of association as a loose end- even though she still didn't know her ex-partner was a HYDRA agent. For a moment, Steve glanced away from the horrific images of the continous abuse, feeling physically pained by the torture she endured and had never mentioned, and feeling physically sickened that anyone could hurt someone as adoring as she was.
"Now your death amounts to the same as your life; a zero sum- you are fully aware you can't save the ones you love but then you've never been relatively good at that-" without a seconds hesitation, Steve's jaw immediately clenched and he smashed the screen in pure rage as Natasha jolted backwards in shock, the glass cracking as Zola's voice suddenly mused from beside him on another screen.
"As I was saying," Zola nonchalantly continued, Steve furiously glancing to the computer beside him.
⌁
Retrieving a sugar sachet, Sawyer playfully rolled her eyes as Maverick stood beside her, inches taller than her as he tried to persuade her she'd picked up pepper as he retrieved a sachet of milk, Sawyer pouring the sugar into her hot chocolate as she then threw the sachet in the bin beside the condiment table. As he glanced down at her, he suddenly frowned at a bruise he caught for a split second on her neck as it peeked through her turtle neck but he refrained from mentioning it.
Nonetheless, his eyebrows furrowed as she continued to ignore him, Maverick however still urging on a conversation, "see, you've now got pepper in your hot chocolate, I did first think you were an odd one," he chuckled, rather distantly though as he pondered at the bruise on her neck.
"Unbeknownst to you, I actually use to work in a coffee shop," Sawyer playfully responded, slightly reminiscing as she stood aside for Maverick to place his sachet in the bin, a grin adorning his face as he raised an eyebrow, "so I guess you're now the embarrassed one," she corresponded with a grin.
"Oh yeah?" he teased, following after her as she made her way and sat down at the table they'd designated, placing their take-out cups on the wooden table as she stirred her beverage with a spoon.
"That and how you tried to kill me," she chortled, glancing down at her drink whilst she stirred it before she suddenly furrowed her eyebrows in acknowledgement, glancing up at him as he stared back intrigued as to what she was about to say, "you've not said a word about yourself, I'm completely hijacking these conversations," she slightly groaned, Maverick laughing as she grimaced in embarrassment.
"No, I'm in-love with listening to you and learning about you," he gently protested as she blushed, sheepishly averting her gaze before the conversation fell to a comfortable silence, Sawyer however still intent to learn about him.
"No, go on, educate me about yourself," she glanced up at him from her eyelashes as she sipped her hot chocolate, a grin growing on his face as he gave a defeated sigh.
"Well, if you insist, I am actually not American-" he smirked as she widened her eyes playfully, masking her expression with shock as he broke into laugh, "I never would have guessed?" she sarcastically retorted as he nodded with a grin, "yes, honestly, I am English."
"You really do learn new things every day," Sawyer sarcastically contemplated with a chuckle as she sipped her hot chocolate again, Maverick watching her contently with a grin.
"I don't live here, I'm on leave from the army-" instantly Sawyer glanced up, eyes widened with respect but albeit with the smallest disappointment he didn't live there, "I've been asked to transition to the Navy SEALs but I've got a few weeks before it finalises so I'm here until then," he added, Sawyer however still incredibly impressed as she closed her gaping mouth.
"Goddamn," she muttered in amazement, "that's awesome," she added, the Navy SEALs being one of America's most elite military units, if not, the most elite. "So, what you're saying is, I'm having a hot chocolate with a bad ass then?" she questioned, detaining a laugh as he flashed his stunning teeth, Sawyer feeling slightly smitten.
"Well," he fumbled with his words with a laugh, Sawyer laughing down at her hot chocolate as his mind wandered to the wound on her neck, his expression contorting, "all I can honestly say is, I'd make sure that no one would ever hurt you."
Slightly pausing, Sawyer curiously glanced up to find his expression sincere and genuine, sparking an intrigued question as to how he'd think she needed some form of protection before she cast a small, soft smile to him, obtaining their eye contact before she smirked.
"So you are a bad ass?"