Poisoned Youth | Marvel616

Spades

    "I'm searching for any undocumented air traffic now, " General Alvarez said over the comms, "search for any information in the building and bring anything and everything back with you." His weathered, brown eyes listened to army air reports throughout the world. He honed into hundreds of voices at a time.
     "Are you sure all of his experiments were there?" Lyudmila asked beside the general.
     "No, I just faced against the bear," Miriam answered from the cockpit. Malcolm was beside her tending to her wounds.
     The old man quickly took off his headsets. "There is an unidentified plane flying low to the ground in Switzerland."
      "If I had to guess he's heading towards Geneva, but even then there are a million places he could target."
      "I know, " Alvarez sighed, running his hands through his greying hair. His skin reminded Luda of her father's worn, leather shoes.
       The militaristic building offered little to no heat. Aurore's breath appeared in the air as her muscles shuddered from the cold. The interrogation room was dark and soundproof. Its white floors showed faint stains of blood.
         "What were you going to do with her?" Dimitri Vikhrov yelled, slamming his fist against the metal table. His long nose flared in anger.
        "Take her away from you." Blood dripped on the table from her bruised and battered face. She lurched forward inviting her husband to hit her again.
        "Don't forget, whatever happens next is all your fault, Nikita."
     Aurore was inches away from the man's face. His facial hair was coarse and dark. His pointed teeth sneered at her. "Anything you'd like to tell me?"
      The man's blue eyes almost seemed human. He was a completely different person from the animal who attacked Miriam. "I can promise you I have nothing to hide. The Black Widow and precious Taisiya will be attacking the Genevan World Trade Center. Dimitri is attacking the Russian Bank."
        Aurore creased her eyebrows. Nobody ever gives up information that easily, not unless it's a trap. "It's Cobra, there's going to be an attack at the World Trade Center in Geneva presumably by Taisiya and Inna Abdulova. At the same time, Dimitri is attacking the Russian Bank. The subject gave all the information up willfully. It's either a trap or a lie."
        "It's not like we have any other options," Luda responded.
         General Alvarez sat back in his chair, "I agree. Team one, take the jet to Geneva. Lyudmila, you need to set out for Russia."
        "We're closer to the bank than Luda is. Besides, Mir is-"
        Alvarez roughly cut Malcolm off, "Geneva is too high of stakes to just send one person. Miriam will be fine. It's the name of the game, son."
         "What do you want me to do with Smirnov? Do I have permission to shoot to kill?" Aurore asked, looking at the bear-like man with disgust.
          "No. Bring him with you when you head back to the states," Alvarez ordered.
          Aurore sighed and turned towards the man. Smirnov, realizing what was happening, broke the metal from the chair. His veins and muscles popped unnaturally. As he got up, he rushed towards Aurore.
          "You have to be kidding me, " she grunted as the man pushed her against the metal door. Alexander Smirnov's green eyes met her own. His teeth were bared and ready to clench down.
         Aurora quickly let several needles out from her bracelet. A flash of pain crossed the lieutenant's eyes that was quickly replaced with red-hot anger. He knew better than to let her hands go free. His claws went through her hand, but Aurore refused to scream. Aurore headbutted him in the nose. Blood filled his nose as he lost his scent, but he never faltered. Smirnov threw her across the room and smiled at the sickening thud of her body.
         White-hot pain blinded Aurore's eyes as she quickly staggered to her feet. Smirnov ran forward in pure anger, nothing but violent thoughts crossed his mind. As soon as he was at arm's length, Aurore grabbed the knife on his belt and rammed it into his shoulder. The man stumbled back a few inches giving Aurore enough time to stab his left eye.
        Alexander grabbed his face and screamed out in pain. The assassin grabbed a handful of needles and sent it into his pressure point. His eyes rolled back into his skull as he slumped to the ground.
         "This is Cobra. I'm heading to the jet. Might be a bit longer, I have a large load." Aurore said to the team as she grabbed the unconscious man by the collar.
          "Are you ready, soldier?" General Alvarez asked as Lyudmila stepped out in her tactical suit.
        "Yes sir, " she responded quietly
        "Lyudmila, no matter what, I want you to bring back any information you can find. Especially samples of whatever biological terror Vikhrov is planning on using. Even if it puts civilians in danger." 
        "But-"
         Alvarez impatiently cut her off, "We don't have time for questions. It's time to go."
        Luda nodded her head and entered the cockpit. A sickening feeling rose in her stomach. She wasn't able to escape the feeling that something wasn't right.
        Aurore managed the cockpit as Malcolm and Miriam stayed in the back. "We're approaching Geneva. Prepare yourselves."
        Malcolm turned to Miriam. His dark eyes furrowed with frustration and fear. "Miriam, you should stay here. You can be our eyes and ears." 
        Miriam smiled softly as she gingerly placed her injured leg on the floor. Her thigh was aimlessly stitched together and tightly bandaged. "I'll be fine. Really. Don't worry, " she gently placed her hand on his cheek.
       "Mom, I'll be fine. Don't worry." The young Miriam held an ice pack to her bruised cheek.
      "Yes, you will be fine as soon as you stop getting into fights. Was there even a good reason?" Aria Alperstein asked exasperatedly.
      "Well, this other girl kept picking on Meghan and it was just upsetting her."
      "And another adult couldn't have handled it? You're in so much trouble." She angrily shoved the first aid kit underneath the sink.
      "Tatti would have done the same thing." Miriam pouted as she crossed her arms.
      "Can you even remember your father? Or how he died? You were barely four. He believed he could stop bullets and save a pregnant woman. Instead, he just wound up dead leaving his kids behind."
      The young girl's face twisted with concentration trying to block out her mother's words. Angry tears ran down her face as she ran out of the small bathroom.
      The memory jolted feelings that Miriam buried deep down a long time ago. She didn't remember her father very well, but a part of her was always missing. The yearning to know what he was like never fully went away even if she ignored it.
      "We're landing now," Aurore said as she slowly dropped the plane.
      The three of them made their way into the main city and tried to blend into the crowd. Aurore kept her hand in her pockets at all times to conceal her bloody, bandaged hands. They all kept their heads low avoiding any attention. 
       "Alright, so what's the plan?" Miriam asked quietly.
       "You and Aurore will help evacuate the building and I'll go find this Taisiya and Inna chick."
       "You can't do it all by yourself," Miriam argued.
       "Besides we don't know what Taisiya can do. Inna is a super freak, and she could be even worse for all we know," Aurore agreed, "I'm sure the cops can handle the evacuation."
        Malcolm sighed knowing there was no point in arguing. The World Trade Center spanned before them. Its walls almost looked completely made out of glass. The building took up almost a full block and stood four stories tall.
        "Under the jurisdiction of the United States Government, we're going to need this whole block evacuated," Malcolm said, showing the police guarding the building a fake badge from the Department of Defense.
        "Why? Under whose orders?" The man asked in French, crossing his arms challengingly.
         "The Secretary of Defense," he snapped, handing him a paper, "I'm going to need you to make contact with your boss now."
         Aurore and Miriam walked into the building. Their suits were still hidden underneath civilian clothes. They looked no different from the businesswomen coming in and out of the offices.
       "Everyone in the building please evacuate safely and quickly." A man said over the speakers.
     Cops herded the people out and kept the crowds in control. The girls pushed against the waves of evacuators looking for any signs of Taisiya and Inna.
      "If they're going to do something. It's going to be now. We have a pretty short time frame. I say we split up," Miriam said.
      "Are you sure you should be by yourself?" Malcolm asked.
       "She'll be fine, lover boy," Aurore scoffed teasingly.
       "Fine. I'll take the first two floors."
       Miriam walked up the stairs trying to conceal the pain in her leg. Workers from the upper floors were still trickling down with their hands full of papers. Small offices lined the upper floor that seemed virtually empty.
       "You're an idiot," Miriam mumbled to herself as she entered the air vents. "If you wanted to poison a whole building, this would be the quickest way to do it," she reasoned.
       The vent was dark and smelled of lint and dust. She quickly crawled her way through it and led herself to the main airway. She climbed up a small shoot to the roof of the building. The evening sun glinted against her eyes as she looked up to see a black silhouette.
      "Are you the only one on your team to have some sense?" she snickered. "It was smart, really, to check the airways, but you're still wrong." A girl, no older than Miriam's age stood before her. She had her dirty blonde hair braided in a bun revealing sharp, green eyes.
       "I'm assuming your Taisiya, " Miriam looked the girl up and down with disgust.
      "And you are Miriam. Project three's little lap dog, " she smirked, "I hope she won't miss you too much."
     Taisiya Angelova turned two knives in her hands. She walked forward confidently not seeing a simple soldier as a threat.
     "Will Vikhrov miss his replacement? You're around her age, aren't you? Throwing knives just like her?" Miriam asked watching the anger grow on her face.
     Taisiya sprinted forward and aimed for Miriam's stomach. Miriam stepped to the side and kneed her underneath the ribs. A knife wound burned on the side of her abdomen.
     "I'm not her replacement. Vikhrov is like a godfather to me. He took me in and trained me just so I could kill the bitch after her mom left me an orphan, " she hissed as she landed a quick blow to Miriam's injured leg.
      She gasped in pain but wouldn't let herself fall or show weakness. Miriam dodged another knife and grabbed her wrist twisting it until it snapped. "If you're so important to him. Why are you up here being lookout instead of down there where the action is? I don't see you handling the chemicals or weapons."
       "There is no action you fool. All Inna has to do is touch someone and it's over. She's the weapon."
      Taisiya yelled out as she stabbed Miriam in the leg. Her eyes were wild like a trapped animal. Grimacing in pain, Miriam landed a sharp blow to the girl's head with the butt of her gun.
     "God I wish I could've shot you, to begin with." Miriam handcuffed the motionless girl to the air fans before rushing down the halls, "This is Nephilim. Don't let anyone else leave the building. We need to get everyone else who has left."
     "What are you talking about? We need to evacuate-," Aurore asked annoyed.
     "Inna Abdulova is the weapon. It's transmitted by touch. Share her description to the police."
      Every footstep sent searing pain up Miriam's leg. A blood trail followed her everywhere she went, but she refused to stop or take a break until she got to her team.
       "Officers, we're looking for a 5 foot 5 woman in her early thirties. She has black hair, brown eyes, and long scars on her neck. Avoid touching anyone here at all cost," Malcolm explained.
       The room got louder as people dissented against being kept in confines. The heat made the room feel like a sauna making anger crawl into everyone's brain. A scream erupted into the large lobby as a young woman slumped over in violent seizures. Soon others followed and the medics frantically swarmed the area trying to save as many people as they could.
      "She's clearly not in here," Malcolm snapped angrily
      "If all she needs is one touch she could be gone for all we know."
      "Look we've got everything blocked off. We just can't seem to find anybody."
      "This is a political attack, so it's not like they're going to want any unnecessary casualties," Miriam said as she limped to the group. Paramedics surrounded her at the sight of blood.
      Malcolm's face filled with concern but he knew it wasn't the time to coddle her. "Alright, start having your men search alleys or any isolated places. Look for anyone dressed head to toe or avoiding touch. Aurore, go with them. I'll stay here to watch over the civilians."
     Aurore smiled at the prospect of leaving the hot, stifling room and finally fighting by herself. She slipped out into the streets and covered her green suit. Green, it seems, has left a bad taste in everybody's mouth. It's just a reminder of the biggest betrayal the world has known. Even other countries mourned the loss of Captain America.
     A woman walked through the side streets and alleyways. Inna looked like a widow decked in all black. Thick gloves adorned her hands.  The only skin showing was her face. She seemed to blend in with the shadows, only noticeable to the trained eye.
      "I was wondering when you'd find me, " Inna said to the figure at the end of the alleyway.
     "You didn't make it easy, " Aurore said, grabbing her needles.
      The two clashed like a train. Inna's strength left Aurore gasping for air. Her punch left her spiraling. Blood poured out of Aurore's nose as she threw a punch at Inna. Inna smirked and grabbed her face with her hands. A burning sensation ate away at Aurore's skin.
      "I've had enough poison in my system for a lifetime. You can't do anything to me," Aurore smirked. The pain jolted memories and reminded her of her training.
      Inna's eyebrows furrowed in disbelief. Aurore kicked her in her stomach pushing her away. The former Black Widow took Aurore's feet from underneath her.
      She stood above her menacingly gun aimed at her head. "For the Soviet Union, " she said in Russian.
       Aurore used her hands to propel herself off the ground and knocked the gun out of her hands. Inna grabbed her neck cutting off her airflow. She grabbed a handful of needles and stabbed them into her arms. She gasped for air as Inna slowly became paralyzed and appeared almost lifeless.
     "Inna Abdulova has been apprehended and stopped, " she got on her knees to examine the women, "She seems to excrete a much more potent version of black widow toxin with her spider hairs. Hopefully, regular anti-toxins will help the civilians."
     "Good job, Aurore, " Malcolm said over the comms, "We're done on our end, Luda. What's your status?"