Treachery-Bucky Barnes X OC

Part 18

I was feeling much better after resolving things with Bucky. I hadn't realized how much tension I was constantly holding in my body, and with it gone I was moving and thinking more fluidly, relaxed and confident. That being said, I was still being careful, paying close attention as we walked through the outskirts of Uslan, a city in the southeast corner of South Korea. At this time of night, you could guarantee everyone out on the streets was either stupid, dangerous, or desperate, or just hadn't heard about the ridiculous crime rates.

We headed to the old office building we had been monitoring activity from, staying in the natural shadows. Bucky ran over and effortlessly pulled himself in through a busted window, flipping over the sill and landing with a barely audible thud. I followed closely behind, swinging my legs to the side and absorbing as much of the impact as possible in my knees. I had to admit, seeing Bucky in action was fascinating to me. He was using some of his training, but he was also deviating in small ways that he never could with pre-zapped instructions in his brain. I saw him improvising in small ways, and it made me realize that I could do that too, which left me slightly dumfounded. Now that I knew freedom, I never wanted to be without it again.

We made our way up the floors slowly, scanning each level for signs of activity. On the fourth level, we finally found something; a partial cup of coffee and some scattered papers that we scanned into the Quinjet files. We encountered soldiers on the fifth floor; not local militia or untrained guards like most smaller terrorist cells; these guys had full Kevlar and assault rifles (which, honestly, bad move on their part. There were one or two guys with pistols, but assault rifles in cramped spaces? You're begging for ricochet) and immediately started shooting at us as soon as we were in sight. I quickly teleported behind one group and started knocking them out with quick punches to the backs of their necks, kicking their knees out and subduing them as quickly as possible. Suddenly I panic and I stop, looking over to make sure Bucky was handling himself okay. He was; I don't know why I was so worried. 

After taking care of those, we moved more quickly, as our ultimate goal was to find and capture Aaron Tao so he could be interrogated further. The seventh floor turned out to be the jackpot, as we were met with a strangely calm Aaron Tao awaiting our approach. He glanced from Bucky over to me, his eyes widening in surprise before he let out a short laugh. "You've got to be kidding me. I was expecting him," he addressed me, nodding over to Bucky, "I'd even done my research. But you, I hadn't planned for." I looked at him, my face still as stone, as I had a panic attack internally. Bucky and Tao both assumed I was on their side, and it left me in a rather awkward position to say the least.

Bucky looked at me for an explanation. Theoretically,  no one outside of the compound knew I existed, and Tao was smirking at me like we were old friends. He snapped his fingers and men in Hydra tactical gear broke in through the windows, aiming dozens of weapons at us. I looked over at Bucky, and he visibly agitated, his usually focused eyes darting around the room as we both froze. 

"What name are you going by these days? Venetta, right?" At this point, I was beyond anxious, I was confused. Everyone familiar with my role in Hydra knew I was undercover; they were given orders not to give me away at any cost. Was Tao really so desperate not to get caught that he would sell me out? 

The answer was yes apparently, as Tao pulled a small green notebook out of a desk drawer. I panicked, moving to take that notebook at whatever cost. The code words. Not the code words. A soldier swiftly shot me in the arm with something like a tranquilizer bullet, but I wasn't falling to the floor. I quickly realized what the dart did when I tried to teleport behind Tao and only felt a slight fizzling sensation in my brain. I was too panicked to say anything, so I started taking out the guards between me and that notebook, my vision tunneling. I couldn't go back, I wouldn't.

Realizing his limited time, Tao recited the words like a man possessed, chanting with the fervor of a devout preacher mid-sermon. "бабочка, пятнадцать, апатия, пламя, перекресток, сажа, длительный, вдохновленный, нежный, замок."

And my mind was no longer my own.

I screamed, but there was nothing I could do. My control was walled off, handed over to the programming etched into my brain like a permanent inscription. I felt my face fall slack, my body falling to one knee. "Ready to comply," I said with no emotion, the Russian bloodily familiar in my mouth. I could see Bucky's horrified stare, his confusion, anger, and worst of all disappointment clear on his face. I was everything he hated, and I would never tell him what I had learned to be, what I had learned to feel for him. I willed my mouth to form the words that could save me, that could rescue the one thing I'd ever cared about. 

I stayed silent.

Hey look, things are happening. Sorry it's taking me forever to get places.

To my Zeezee,

For gummy sharks.

-Silver.