Chương 78: A Path to Freedom (pt.3)
2014
Middle of the Indian Ocean
The Lemurian Star, Upper Deck
(Omniscient POV)
Captain America silently approaches the control room of the ship, where he finds Batroc sitting comfortably in the captain's chair, surrounded by a dozen other pirates who are busy looting supplies, lying scattered haphazardly across shelves lining the walls.
Several crates containing various electronic equipment lay open around Batroc's desk area, as well as numerous boxes filled with gold ingots stacked high above.
"S.T.R.I.K.E has secured all hostages successfully. Moving them out to the EVAC point, now." Brock's voice came clearly over the comlink as Captain America shook his head in appreciation at how efficiently Brock and his men handled things.
Returning his focus to the task at hand though, Cap made sure nobody was watching before slipping closer to the control room unseen, taking cover just below one of the many windows lined up along the outside room.
Batroc patiently sits amidst his armed minions, as he watches recordings being played from multiple cameras stationed strategically throughout the hold and cargo decks.
Watching attentively, Batroc leans forward in his seat as he notices something off with the video feeds coming from one particular security station located close by. As he stares intently at the monitor, Batroc suddenly stands abruptly from his chair, shouting furiously amongst his followers.
"[In French] Something doesn't feel right! Contact the bridge immediately!!"
His henchman scramble excitedly to comply, rushing over toward the phone console situated conveniently against the bulkhead. They began punching numbers on the keypad until eventually reaching the command center.
Meanwhile, Captain America watched on carefully from his concealed position as the pirates attempted unsuccessfully to reach somebody on the cut phone lines.
Finally realizing they weren't getting through due to interference, Batroc throws his arms outward aggressively, "[In French] Damnit, go down and check-"
Batroc suddenly stops speaking as the ship abruptly halts moving altogether.
"Engine room secure," Natasha informs Cap over the radio.
Cap nods approvingly as he listens in silence. With the ship halted and the hostages secure, Cap readied himself mentally for battle as he prepared to spring forth.
Inside, Batroc stands still in disbelief, shaking his head vigorously as he attempts futilely to comprehend why everything seemed to be going to shit so unexpectedly.
Before he could come up with answers, Cap smashes in through the window using his shield as a battering ram. Landing hard beside several of the startled pirates closest to the glass pane.
Continuing his momentum, Cap rushes towards the nearest pirate without warning, slamming his fist straight into his face and sending him sprawling backward onto the floor unconscious. Cap then turns his attention to the remaining members of the gang, hurling his shield forcefully at two pirates attempting to flee while charging at the others.
In less than ten seconds, almost every last pirate in the control room had been dealt with except for Batroc, who somehow managed to slip away undetected.
"Crap!" Captain America curses as he looks helplessly at the empty space left vacant by Batroc's absence.
Moving hastily past the unconscious bodies littering the ground, Cap makes way for the exit hatch leading to the belowdecks as he prepares to search for Batroc personally.
"Natasha, Batroc's on the move. Circle back to Rumlow and protect the hostages." Cap calls out over the radio as he runs briskly down the passageway. Looking briefly upward when he hears footsteps sounding from behind him.
Reacting quickly, Cap swings his shield around just in time to block an incoming kick aimed at his back. Turning completely sideways instantly, swinging his arm downward in retaliation as he catches Batroc aiming his pistol at his chest. He manages to get a shoot-off but misses entirely as Cap grabs his wrist and twists violently upwards breaking his grip and forcing his gun into disarray.
Falling backward awkwardly as his feet drag uselessly beneath him, Batroc recovers his balance quickly as he rotates midair landing smoothly on both knees before standing upright again. The large mercenary brandishes his knife threateningly as he glares challengingly at Captain America, ready to fight tooth and nail.
Gritting his teeth, Cap takes another step forward preparing for combat as he hurls his shield overhead once more.
Batroc leans backward, narrowly dodging the flying piece of metal as he, simultaneously, aims his own throwing knives blindly at Captain America's torso and shoulders respectively. Ignoring the projectiles harmlessly bouncing off the armor plates covering his suit, Cap continues advancing relentlessly toward the enemy leader.
When he reaches within range of attack distance, Batroc sidesteps slightly to avoid the super soldier's fist.
Cap misses the punch, but a swift follow-up roundhouse kick sends Batroc stumbling further back into the wall behind him as he tries frantically to regain composure. Only managing to do so very gradually thanks to the pain radiating from his broken nose.
As Batroc regains his footing, he lunges at his opponent wildly slashing at his throat and abdomen repeatedly with his blade. Aiming for vital organs as he tries to inflict fatal blows. But unfortunately for Batroc, his plan goes awry as Cap simply shrugs off the barrage of attacks effortlessly, dodging them by leaning aside.
The two continue their fight, with Batroc faring surprisingly well against the super soldier, his acrobatic fighting style proving difficult for Cap to counter effectively since he can barely catch glimpses of his movements amid constant distractions and chaos created by Batrocs wild strikes. This meant that despite the odds seemingly heavily weighted in favor of Cap...he couldn't afford to let his guard down either.
After several minutes of intense struggle, Batroc finally gets tired of wasting energy attacking Cap without result and decides instead to retreat. But as he starts to turn, Cap swiftly moves in, grabbing hold of his arm from behind and yanking it painfully inward, tripping Batroc dangerously near falling flat onto his ass. Before kicking him viciously in the right leg and his stomach, then performing a downwards somersault kick to his head, knocking him down senselessly.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Cap pulls Batroc roughly to his feet before tossing him through the door of one of the adjacent rooms in the passageway like a ragdoll, crashing loudly inside upon impact. Laying motionless on the floor momentarily before groaning weakly as he struggles feebly to rise once again. But before he can even attempt to stand, Cap leaps and knocks him out with a strong punch to the face.
Taking a deep breath, Cap relaxes for momentary relief as he sees that the fight is officially over.
"Well...this is awkward." A feminine voice states softly from inside the room, causing Cap to look curiously about, trying to locate its source. Suddenly, he noticed Natasha hovering over one of the computers and staring blankly back at him like a child caught doing something wrong.
"What are you doing?" Cap asks her incredulously.
"Ah..." She stammers nervously, looking embarrassed. "...nothing really…just backing up the ship's hard drive... It's a good habit to get into, especially these days…" she adds lamely as Cap narrows suspicious eyes at her uncomfortably.
"You're supposed to be helping Rumlow evacuate the hostages. What the hell are you doing here?" He asks as he moves over to Natasha and looks at what she is downloading on the screen. Watching closely as files begin copying automatically onto an external storage device.
He frowns deeply as he realizes exactly what she was in the middle of doing. "You're saving S.H.I.E.L.D Intel?!"
Seeing she was caught, Natasha shrugged and turned back towards the computer terminal. "Yup, whatever I can get my hands on."
Cap shakes his head in confusion and disgust, unable to understand the reasoning behind such actions. Especially considering that the intel contained therein were their own files.
"Our mission is to rescue the hostages." He reminds her firmly.
"No. That's your mission." Natasha responds as she finishes backing up all the files and pulls the flash drive out of the USB port and places it in a compartment on her belt. Then turning to address Cap directly. "And you've done it beautifully..."
She begins walking purposefully ahead to leave, only to stop short as Cap grabs her arm.
"You just jeopardized this whole operation." He warns ominously as he forces her to face him. The anger evident in his tone.
"I think that's overstating things." She replies, but her expression remains defiant as she speaks.
"...You don't know me very well if you believe that statement is enough to explain your actions, Agent Romanoff," he growls coldly.
Despite herself, however, Natasha felt uneasy under Cap's stare and decided to let him in on what was currently going on...or at least partially anyway.
"Look, Fury gave me a separate assignment...if you have questions ask him yourself after we complete our objective, okay?" Her words sounded curt but sincere nonetheless.
Captain America looked conflicted for a brief second before nodding reluctantly and releasing her arm. However, there was no mistaking the fact that he wasn't happy about having Fury running secret missions behind his back. Especially when those assignments could get innocent people killed.
But knowing he wouldn't get any more answers out of Natasha, he lets the matter drop temporarily as he turns his gaze to where most everyone else onboard the large ship seems busy evacuating the civilians safely aboard the EVAC helicopters waiting nearby.
"Alright, let's get those people clear first." He tells Natasha quietly as he heads toward the helicopters, "I'll take this up with Fury later."
*********
Washington D.C
The Triskelion (S.H.I.E.L.D Headquarters)
Few Hours after the 'Rescue Mission'
After arriving back at the Triskelion, Steve immediately marched toward Fury's office with purposeful strides. Stepping confidently along the corridor until reaching the thick wooden door.
Steve knocked lightly twice before pushing open the heavy oak doors, which swung wide, revealing Fury sitting alone at his desk, reading papers intently. He glances up irritably when he notices the newcomer.
"You just can't stop yourself from lying, can you?" Steve questions angrily as he marches across the room, ignoring the other man's irritated reaction.
Fury leans back in his chair stiffly and folds his arms defensively as he stares boldly back at Rogers.
"…I did not lie...I merely omitted certain details." He explains calmly yet sternly, trying desperately to placate the irascible hero. "Agent Romanoff had a different mission than yours."
Rogers snorts derisively. "As the one running the mission, don't you think I should've known that beforehand? Those hostages could've died, Nick!"
Sighing indifferently at being called by his first name, Fury raises an eyebrow skeptically. "I sent the greatest soldier in history to make sure that didn't happen."
"That doesn't give you permission to play with their lives! You put us all at risk because of some stupid game you're playing behind the scenes!" Steve yells furiously, slamming his hand down on Fury's desk.
Fury just rolls his eye exasperatedly and shakes his head slowly at the man's childish antics.
"Look, I didn't want you doing anything you weren't comfortable with, so I tasked Agent Romanoff to handle the task. She's comfortable with everything."
Steve scoffs bitterly at that reply, shaking his head dismissively. "I can't lead a mission when the people I'm leading have missions of their own they aren't telling anyone about!"
A little taken aback by how angry Steve sounded, Fury sits silently, contemplating whether or not he wants to try convincing the young supersoldier otherwise. Because while he'd prefer for the situation between himself and Rogers to remain cordial, he knows better than anybody that sometimes a soldier's ideals could get in the way of the bigger picture.
"It's called compartmentalization. Nobody spills the secrets because nobody knows them all." He states plainly.
"Except you. And apparently Agent Romanoff." Steve retorted sarcastically.
Sighing sadly, Fury rubs his chin thoughtfully before standing abruptly and stepping away from his desk. Walking over to Steve, who watches him approaching warily.
Looking thoughtful for a moment longer, Fury sighs resignedly then closes his eyes briefly before speaking carefully.
"Alright, you want to know what Romanoff was doing for me?" He asks cautiously, watching anxiously as Steve nods grimly, awaiting the answer.
"Follow me." Fury instructs as he leads Steve outside his office door to walk alongside the hallway.
The pair walks briskly through the hallways, passing various offices filled with agents working diligently to fulfill their duties. Eventually coming to a halt beside a nondescript unmarked steel door, hidden among countless others in the building itself.
Pulling out a keycard to unlock it, Fury opens the door and steps inside, gesturing impatiently for Rogers to enter.
Once both men step inside, the door shuts securely behind them as the room begins to move downward steadily, descending rapidly to the restricted lower levels of the building below ground level.
After traveling several floors, the elevator finally stops moving, opening suddenly allowing them to exit via another set of double doors. Once beyond the doors, Steve immediately notices the several giant Helicarriers parked neatly next to each other on opposite sides of a long hangar bay. All lined up side by side, perfectly parallel to one another.
"Project Insight." Fury begins to explain as he and Steve continue walking down the concrete catwalks lining the entire length of the huge underground facility. "Three next generation Helicarriers synced to a network of targeting satellites tha-"
"That were launched from the Lemurian Star." Rogers interrupts as he starts to put the pieces together. "That was the real priority of this op, huh? Not the hostages?"
Shrugging noncommittally, Fury continues walking casually forward past dozens of workstations manned by technicians busying themselves with maintenance tasks. Until eventually stopping at a particular station located close to the edge, overlooking the main helipad area within the massive hangar space.
"Partially," Fury says cryptically as he turns to face the Captain head-on. "The satellites can read a terrorist's DNA before they even step outside their hole. With Project Insight, we can neutralize a lot of threats before they can even happen. We needn't worry ourselves anymore about the collateral damage caused during combat operations. Which means fewer civilian casualties overall and lessening the public backlash against S.H.I.E.L.D. Making it easier for all of us to do our job better."
Steve says nothing for a moment, staring at Fury with a look that clearly conveys skepticism mixed heavily with disbelief.
"...I thought the punishment usually came after the crime." He remarks dryly.
Walking closer to him, Fury shrugs offhandedly.
"We can't afford to wait that long...the world has changed since World War II." He argues bluntly.
"Who's this we you keep talking about?" Rogers demands sharply as he crosses his arms tightly over his chest.
Fury sighs at that question and gives a small shake of his head as he takes note of the uncharacteristic harshness in the soldier's demeanor.
"After New York, the World Security Council came up with new rules governing international relations involving superhumans. The United Nations needs to protect humanity from rogue metahumans now, instead of simply reacting to problems afterward. Project Insight is the answer...it will help ensure peace prevails throughout the globe rather than chaos erupting everywhere every time someone with enormous power gets pissed off." Fury explains patiently.
"So, you think holding a gun at everyone on Earth and calling it protection is gonna solve everything?" Steve counters cynically.
Fury scoffs softly in response. Looking genuinely annoyed by the man's self-righteous attitude.
"I've read your files...you guys did some pretty nasty stuff back in World War II, remember?" He points out calmly. "Think about that before you try to take the moral high ground."
Steve takes a deep breath and tries to keep calm despite feeling sickened and betrayed by Fury's admission. Knowing full well that, unless someone changes course soon, many innocents will die unnecessarily due to a misguided desire to protect national security.
"Yeah, we made some compromises back then. Sometimes in ways that made us not sleep so well. But we did it so the people could be free. This isn't freedom, this is fear." Steve insists stubbornly.
Fury lets out another scoffing sound and gave the man a sideways look. "S.H.I.E.L.D takes the world as it is, not as we'd like it to be. It's getting damn near past time for you to get with that program, Cap."
He says pointedly as he looks over at the vast cavernous interior of the base, where thousands upon tens of millions of dollars worth of advanced military hardware were stored.
"Don't hold your breath," Steve responds flatly, turning away and walking off without looking back at Fury again.
*********
New York City
S.H.I.E.L.D Headquarters, S.T.R.I.K.E Team Barracks
(Brock POV)
After successfully rescuing all the hostages and returning to SHIELD HQ, my men and I eagerly headed back to the barracks. The weight of the mission clung to our tired bodies, and the prospect of a hot shower and clean clothes was a welcomed relief.
We swiftly shed our gear, feeling the grime of the raid peel away with each piece we removed. The air in the barracks was filled with a sense of anticipation and renewed vitality.
Once I had finished dressing, I made my way to my private quarters. Before settling in, I couldn't resist stealing a glance outside the window, where the city skyline was gradually brightening with the gentle arrival of dawn.
My mind wandered aimlessly for a while thinking about how much better life would become once I didn't have to do mundane tasks like this anymore, before looking down at my watch and letting out a sigh of impatience, as I realized I didn't know when I would receive the summons I was waiting for.
Being aware that I was now in the midst of the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, I anticipated that Pierce would eventually call upon me to capture Captain America, but my memory of the movie wasn't exactly perfect.
So until then...there weren't many options available other than sitting tight and waiting till they called.
I made my way to the bed and settled comfortably atop the soft sheets. Content with the knowledge that this would be the last time I slept in this place, I closed my eyes slowly, allowing my thoughts to fade away with the rising sun above Manhattan...
The world around me began to fade as, unbeknownst to me, a crimson-red mist started to surround my body.
Abruptly, I awoke to a jarring realization. I was no longer in my familiar bedroom.
The surroundings had transformed entirely, revealing a harsh yet captivating realm of scarlet deserts and colossal ruby volcanoes, spewing forth rust-colored ash into a crimson sky.
Scarlet deserts stretched out before me, their sands contrasting against the crimson sky where a breathtaking sunset painted the horizon behind towering red mountains. And there, seated atop a grand throne in the heart of this surreal realm was a figure I knew all too well.
A towering figure clad in bulky crimson red armor, with nothing but eerie glowing red eyes pierced through the realm that swirled around us.
"Welcome home, child," a deep, resonant voice reverberated in my mind. "Welcome home."
***********
A/n: Hey guys, I hope you are enjoying the story so far, and as always, thanks for reading!
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