Not The Only One - A Winter Soldier Story

Chapter 7

Fair warning: once again Winter Soldiers killing people will occur. 

     The jostling of the shipping container woke me up. With nothing else to do, I ate the unappetizing combo of canned meat and ration crackers. Once I finished them off I was left feeling restless like a caged animal. 

    In a few hours, the container came to a full stop. Slipping down to the ground, I made my way through the train yard until I found the Lev Tolstoy and my target's train car. 

     When the train started to move, I punched out a window with my metal arm and came in through the now-open space.

     The next moments were a blur as I sprayed mothers and their children alike with bullets from my submachine gun, bashed their heads, slit their throats, and threw knives into their bodies.

      Eventually there were only two people left. The woman leaned forward and her brown hair cascaded over her face and the baby daughter she clutched to her chest. 

     A few bullets later and my targets were eliminated.

     Now I was the only one alive left in the car. I sat down, surrounded by bodies, and covered in blood waiting to pass the Vyborg train station.

     When we neared my destination I jumped off of the train, tucking my body into a ball before the inevitable impact with the ground. I lay stunned for a moment before getting on my feet.

     I managed to find my way to the back of the train station without encountering anyone. Two soldiers stood waiting for me. After grabbing my arms, they put the black bag over my head and led me away. 

     I was completely numb. The world rushed around me without me being conscious of it. 

     The first thing I saw once the bag was taken off of my head was the man in the beret. He sat at a desk in a large green and white hallway.

     "Отведите ее в душ и приведите в порядо," he ordered gruffly after taking a look at me.

     The two soldiers took me into a small locker room with a tiny shower. A crude brown bar of soap and a rough grey towel lay on a bench in the corner.

     I stripped out of my blood covered clothes and unbraided my hair which was dark and crusty with dried blood.

     One of the soldiers said something about hair being thick on my legs and elsewhere. The other replied that he would mention that I needed to be waxed.

     Turning the tap revealed that the water was lukewarm at best, but I did not mind. It just felt good to have it flow over my dirty body. I leaned my head back and let it rinse over me.

     As the water ran over my perfectly formed muscles, I had the strange feeling that my body had not always been like this.

     Rubbing the bar soap on my head, I worked up a lather. I scratched my scalp deeply to get my hair as clean as possible.

     Even though the soap was harsh, I scrubbed every inch of my skin with it. Who knew when I would be allowed a luxury like this again?

     Stepping out of the shower, I grabbed my towel and quickly dried myself. A sports bra, a pair of underwear, a tank top, and a pair of cloth drawstring shorts were tucked into my towel. I put the all black outfit on and was led away by the two men.

     We walked down a long hallway until we came to a room with a thick metal door.

     Inside there were various pieces of medical equipment, cabinets, counters, and such, but what caught my attention was the bed with a tray on it.

     My supper was a piece of still warm fish, a serving of canned pickled salad, and a slice of bread thinly spread with butter. The food quieted my stomach, but could not quiet my mind.

     When I finished, the men told me to lay down on the bed and fastened me to it. They flicked off the light as they left, closing the large door behind themselves.

     Alone in the dark, I closed my eyes waiting for sleep to take me far from the horrors the day had brought.

~

     "Как она?" the doctor asked.

     "В таком же состоянии, в каком она уехала," Colonel Karpov answered without looking up from the papers on his desk.

     The doctor breathed a sigh of relief. "Хорошо. Все наши тесты указывают на здоровую беременность и безопасные роды. А завтра мы проведем осеменение, если вы согласитесь."

     To this news the Colonel gave his phrase of highest praise. "Отлично."

     After dismissing the doctor, Karpov dialed the Major General's number. "Женщина-солдат вернулась."

     "Лично мне бы ничего не хотелось, кроме как стерилизовать ее и повесить вас, но это не подошло бы высшим силам," his superior snapped.

     The Colonel hated to ask, but after a comment like that he felt must. "Сэр, а как насчет Детей Зимы?"

     The Major General laughed. "Вы имеете в виду программу разведения? Полковник, у нас сейчас кризис. У нас сейчас нет времени вынашивать и рожать ребенка. Так вы действительно думаете, что у него будет время, чтобы он вырасти и обучился?"

     Karpov took a deep breath. "Сэр, я думаю не только о сегодняшней битве или завтрашней войне. Я думаю о будущем."

     "Тогда вы должны знать, полковник, что будущего не будет, если мы не выиграем сегодняшнюю битву и завтрашнюю войну." He paused a moment. "Что заставляет вас поверить в то, что Дитя Зимы - это хорошо?" Major General asked in a tone that was almost sincere.

     "Зимний Солдат и Женщина Солдат хорошо восприняли сыворотку и были ценны для нашего дела. Логично предположить, что их потомство поступило бы так же, если не лучше," Colonel Karpov replied.

     "Они оба были агрессивными и нестабильными. Зимний Солдат имеет долгую историю. А еще я слышал, что твоя любимая маленькая Женщина Солдат тоже недавно убила одного из наших лучших врачей. Что, если бы их ребенок унаследовал двойную часть этих качеств? Мы создали бы монстра для собственного разрушения, а не мощное средство для продолжения нашей работы. Действующая немедленно программа Дети зимы прекращена. И если вы попытаетесь пережить это, морская свинка Женщина Солдат не будет единственной, кто умрет в наказание," the Major General warned before the line went dead.