Project Vita Nova || Yelena x oc

Chapter 22

Yelena watched as the building exploded, her mind and body completely frozen in place. They had figured out Valary's plan when Steve noticed that he was missing the remote detonator for the charges that had been placed everywhere in the base. So that plus Valary's warning to get the Quinjet away from the base had tipped the team off in the nick of time.

Natasha had taken the co-pilot seat and flew the super jet away from the explosive fireworks, taking the controls away from Yelena who had been flying it previously. She stopped flying several miles away as she turned the jet around to look at the new amount of blazing wreckage that now adorned the barren land.

It felt like Yelena had just been stabbed, almost in a similar way that Delick had stabbed Valary. But it wasn't a real knife that had punctured the blonde's body. Instead it was a mental blade that had stabbed her through the heart. She could feel her body become numb as she looked at the burning underground base. In there, somewhere under all that wreckage and charred stone laid the one girl that Yelena cared the most deeply for. She could remember the gentle touch of the girl she loved. But she could feel Valary slowly slipping from her grasp. It happened again. Someone she had grown so close to had left her, abandoned her. But Yelena refused to accept it this time.

"We have to go back for her." Yelena said in a rough whisper. It probably wasn't the best idea given the fact that the site was on fire and that Steve and the rescued kids needed medical attention. But she was certain that Valary wasn't dead. She refused to believe that she was.

"Yelena, I'm sorry but there's no way she survived that." Natasha said bluntly, but with a calm tone. She could tell how much Valary meant to her sister, and she hated seeing her in pain like this. But Natasha didn't want to lie to her sister, and there was no way a normal human could survive that kind of explosion.

"You don't know that! She could still be down there. I know she's alive." Yelena argued, her voice raising in temper.

Steve had stirred from where he was sitting in the back of the jet with the three kids that Yelena had rescued. He wasn't terribly injured, but it probably wasn't a good idea for him to be moving around. He was covered in burns and parts of his suit had been charred from the multiple electric shocks Tren had dealt to him. The kids were nursing other wounds that had most likely been inflicted by Delick or Tren.

"Contact Fury. Update him on the situation and he can head up search and rescue with first responders." Steve called from his seat in the back. Natasha looked at Yelena for a silent approval, who just huffed in response.

Yelena didn't like how long this was taking, and she would rather that she be there to help look for Valary. But she also didn't want to argue with her sister over this. They had reached a compromise that would end with Steve and the rescued kids receiving medical attention and with someone searching for Valary. It would have to do.

So that was the plan they executed. Yelena took over flying the Quinjet while Natasha contacted Fury and did what she could medically for those who needed it. After a half hour of flying, they dropped the captain and the rescued kids off at a nearby hospital. Sam and Bucky had arrived a few minutes later to stay with Steve and the others while the two sisters would go back to help with the search for Valary.

On their flight back, the two girls sat in silence for what seemed like forever. Natasha could feel the uncertain emotions seeping out of Yelena when she glanced over at her. Yelena was lost in thought as she kept her eyes trained on the horizon, ignoring the concerned look that her sister was giving her.

"Yelena-" Natasha started.

"Don't. Don't say it." Yelena snapped, still keeping her eyes forward.

"Say what?" Natasha asked in a quiet voice.