weapon

• something designed or used for inflicting bodily harm or physical damage •

• • •

The knocking on the door was a stark sound in contrast to the deathly silent corridor. Like a gunshot in the dead of night, or a jump scare in a stereotypical eighties horror movie. I waited impatiently for the metal door to open. When it did, I made sure to steel my expression into an expressionless mask. My posture straightened as if I were a rod and I rolled my shoulders slightly. I took in the two guards who had appeared where the grey, metal door had been. They looked tired but attempted to appear not so once they noticed my calculating gaze. They also dropped their fingers from the triggers on their menacing guns, much to my relief.

"Hail Hydra," I said, standing stiffly in front of the armed guards. They nodded and without a sound or change in expression, checked my I.D. which stood proudly on my chest. Once they were happy that I was who my I.D. said I was, they stepped aside and allowed me through. I shuffled past them into the gloomy, green tinged room and let my stiff posture fall slightly. I frowned at the quality and cleanliness of the room. 

It was filthy, covered in grime, slime and other disgusting matter. I sighed and sat down on one of the bench seats to the right of the entryway. I noticed the cold temperature. Surely it was below 0 degrees. Perhaps I should have brought a jumper. Yeah, that would have been a good plan. I scolded myself for a moment for not thinking ahead, knowing what we were doing today. 

"Mr Pierce, it's good to see you again," I nodded curtly. The man with looked at me with a bored expression and waved his hand slightly to signify a response. He was of average height and had sandy blond hair. He wore an expensive suit made by some designer no doubt. Why he'd wear something that expensive to a drab place like this was beyond me but whatever floated his boat, I supposed. I gazed at him for a minute or two with an expression akin to irritation. I tried to keep it off my features but I must have failed spectacularly guessing from the way that one of the many doctors littered around the room glared at me. You see, Alexander Pierce was a popular man in the Hydra organisation. Everyone seemed to love him, or at least admire him. Don't get me wrong, I admired him. To an extent at least. I admired the dedication he had to the Hydra organisation. I admired the way he held power over others. The way he can seem to make almost anyone do anything he wants. Him as a person however. Yeah, not so much. 

"Right, yes. Agent Miles," he said, not paying much attention. I huffed and rolled my eyes a little, knowing that the man would never really be interested in anything other than what was in his own current interests. Or Hydra's. But I wouldn't really have it any other way. I wasn't here for him, one man. I was here for the good of the organisation as a whole. Sometimes it felt as though I was doing the jobs of others who aren't as dedicated as the rest of us. I mean, if you aren't here to do your jobs, then why are you? I shook my head at my thoughts. As long as the majority of us were focused on the task, then Hydra would be okay.

"Are we nearly ready?" He asked one of the many doctors rushing around the room in their lab coats. The doctor huffed a little as he stopped to stand before him. He pushed back the glasses on his head with a stubby finger.

"Yes, sir. Just a few more moments and the operation can commence," he said in a rush. He held a white clipboard in his hand and I was almost tempted to snatch it out of his hands. However, I refrained from doing so, knowing that if I was to succeed in this organisation, I would need to act strictly professional and I daresay that snatching clipboards from doctors wasn't classed as professional. And besides, it wasn't exactly very polite either and I was nothing if not polite. A smile graced my features as I imagined myself as a nice person. I was only nice to people if I liked them, and I didn't like many people.

The doctors tinkered with the machine in front of us and I let out a small breath of exasperation. I was never a patient woman, that was for sure. I picked at my nails in boredom, my eyes following the scraping of one of my nails against the other. How long was this going to take anyway? There were definitely other things I could be doing. I looked up occasionally to check the advancements of the preparations before going back to my manicuring. 

"Excuse me, Mr Pierce, but I was wondering if perhaps I could have a chat with you," I spoke up eventually, looking at the man carefully and halting the assault on my nails. He didn't look up from the phone in his hand.

"About what, Miles?"

"This project, are you sure this is the right call. I'm sure our men can do without it for now. Should we not keep it our little secret until we really need it?"

I was sure I was making a reasonable point but the way Alexander was looking at me suggested differently. I wasn't exactly a fan of the look either. My eyes narrowed slightly and I pursed my lips, meeting his gaze with my own sour one.

"Agent Miles, look, I appreciate your opinion but I don't think you have the authority to question these matters. You may be one of our best, but that doesn't mean you get to question your superiors. Me especially."

I nodded, setting my lips in a thiner line. As much as I was in debt to Hydra, and as much as I tried to follow their rules, I couldn't help but have to bite my tongue sometimes. It was a natural urge of mine to want to crack jokes and generally be a completely sarcastic arsehole. That kind of thing wasn't really appreciated. Neither in the field or in the office. It was like Hydra was where humour came to die.

"Of course, my apologies."

He nodded and turned back to his phone. The cold was definitely starting to take it's toll on me now. Goosebumps were beginning to travel up my arms, sending a shiver up my spine every so often. I began to pick at my nails again, feeling as though Alexander wasn't in the mood for any kind of idle chat. Not that I'd really want to talk to him any more than I had to anyway.

"Is this going to take much longer?" I asked one of the doctors as they made their way past me. They shook their head and I pursed my lips tighter. Despite the fact that there was several other things I could currently do, or be doing, I couldn't help but realise that I wouldn't miss this for the world.

Hydra is the future, I knew that. Everyone in this facility knew that. They wouldn't be here otherwise. At first I was merely in the organisation to settle my vendetta. This, of course, suited Hydra just fine. Someone with qualities such as my own were far and few between and it was better for Hydra to employ them before S.H.I.E.L.D. could.

If not for Hydra, I would probably never be able to settle my feud. A few years ago, there was an invasion of aliens, called the Chitauri. They were defeated by the Avengers, a group of so-called heroes that the world fell in love with in a matter of minutes. What the world refused to acknowledge was the fact that these Avengers had just as much blood on their hands as the aliens. The world was blind to it. Ignorant like babies. My entire family was murdered as the Avengers tore up the city. We'd been in the city for the day. We were coming back from the Zoo for my brothers birthday party. Lunch was the next item on the itinerary and we were turning the corner to the street where the restaurant was, and rubble and debris flew everywhere. I was lucky to make it out alive. I didn't make it out without a reminder though. Deep cuts and wounds that would eventually turn into scars. Scars that would remind me of my family's deaths forever. Just the sight of them made my skin crawl.

After my wounds healed, and only nasty white lines and bumps remained, I went looking for help. Help to destroy the people who destroyed my life. Hydra contacted me. They said they would help me if I joined their organisation. They planned to take down S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers and offered for me to help. I accepted and began training. Within a few months I was much faster, agile and lethal. I specialise in knives. Why knives I have no idea. I guess there is just something about the sharp blades and fragility of them that draws me in to them. They were a sharp beauty, which I guessed I sort of related to. Or liked to think I related to anyway.

I rose through the ranks, earning myself a popular reputation and a higher pay grade. If there was a mission to be done, I was usually one of the first people called. Unless, of course, I was already on a mission.

"We're ready," one of the doctors said, snapping me from my thoughts. I let out a breath of relief. It was time. Hydra's best success was ready. I stood up, moving closer. I had to have a good seat for this. The cold seemed to magnify as I got closer to the machine and I fought the urge to shiver violently. I fixed my gaze on the glass and waited impatiently. My eyes flitted between the doctors rushing about the machines with various cables, vials and who knows what else.

Alexander grinned, standing straight and looking straight at the glass, his reflection grinning back at us. The look was slightly unnerving to be completely honest. I shuffled on my feet uncomfortably at the fact that I was so close to him.

"Commence," he said. The doctors tinkered with a few buttons and before I knew it, the frost was clearing away, leaving the weapon in plain view. My breath hitched at the sight of it. I was sure I probably looked somewhat like an owl in that moment. Not that I could help it.

The glass lifted with a hiss and Alexander grinned wider, if that were possible. By now he looked like the Cheshire Cat.

I smiled as one of the doctors started speaking in a foreign language, one that I didn't know. I could only listen as they spoke. I watched in fascination as the ice melted away, leaving the weapon glistening with water. Droplets running down its surface. This weapon would change the ruling of the world. Without it, we would surely fail. But with it, surely we could not. Failure was not an option for Hydra or myself and this weapon would ensure our success.

My smile widened as it started to move. We could have waited a while longer to reveal our weapon but Alexander had insisted that now was the time. And I went along with whatever he said. I had to. He was my boss after all. I had had doubts but they cleared away like early morning frost as the cold dissipated and the weapon dried.

"Ready to comply," It said.

Updated on the 8th of June, 2016.