Project 43: Healing

Good to see you

The next day Elias, Steve, and Bucky got back into their jet after saying goodbye to Domink and Victor. Steve and Bucky thanked the men for their help and Elias promised to visit more often. He hugged his friends tight, even Victor who slipped Elias a package with a bunch of money and a Belizian passport, just in case.

The plan was simple. When the three soldiers took off from Belize, they sent a signal to Natasha, who would appear in Northern Africa for just long enough for the Joint Counter Terrorist Center's soldiers to fly off instead of showing up at the raft. Steve had somehow been able to figure out which signal he needed to send to the raft in order for them to let the jet in, after which they would pretty much punch their way through. Elias would take over the security room and replace the security cameras while guiding Steve and Bucky through the prison.

It hadn't been easy getting a message out to Natasha, but Steve had a couple of lines he tried before one of them caught something. The woman had been able to teach Elias how to use a tablet through the phone, tho it had taken a couple of hours of Natasha screaming at Elias to press the button the man wasn't able to find. 

Elias felt increasingly uneasy as the jet neared the coordinates Steve had been able to fish from somewhere. It was a mix of the nerves and whatever was happening in his body. Elias was sure he was running a fever and every day his movements seemed to turn stiffer. He was still hoping it would get better, since what choice did he have?

After a while of transmitting the frequency Steve had sworn on, lights started to shine from under the waves and slowly, the huge circular prison ascended from the depts. Elias watched in awe as the water rushed out and a small landing pad appeared.

"Remember, we're not here to kill anyone," Steve said as he slowly lowered the jet down. Elias and Bucky looked at each other with raised eyebrows, but rugged, knowing they wouldn't be able to hold back as much as Steve wanted them to.

As soon as the jet doors opened, Steve threw his shield to knock out the first guards. Elias and Bucky started shooting as soon as they were out of the jet and after clearing the landing area, Elias ran off.

Steve and Bucky continued to fight the highly trained guards, as Elias busted down the door to the security room. He noticed one of the men shifting towards the table of controls, and in one swift motion, Elias threw a knife through the man's hand, just before he was able to sound the alarms.

The three men in the room didn't stand a chance, as Elias effortlessly moved around the room, and in a minute, they were all unconscious and lying on the floor.

Elias sat down in the chair and looked around at the millions of knobs, buttons, and inputs in front of him and felt himself getting overwhelmed. It was so much more than he had practiced with, but he knew what he was looking for.

Finally, Elias found the fight hole and pushed the flash drive in. Soon enough, the cameras flickered and started playing the loop Natasha had prepared for them. Elias regretted not taking more advice from Natasha when they were still living together, but back then, he hadn't thought he would ever have to do missions again. It was sad how he seemed to always be thrown back in, no matter how hard he tried. 

Elias didn't have much time to think about how horrible his life was when Steve called through the earpiece:

"Which way?"

"Second hallway to the right," Elias answered quickly watching the men move on the tablet he had plugged into another thing on the endless table in front of him.

After a while of Elias warning the men of oncoming guards, and guiding them through the maze-like building, Steve and Bucky arrived at the right holding cells.