SuperSoldier (SI-OC/MCU) ENG

26: Uprising

26: Uprising

"You seem nervous," Charles adjusted his coat and looked up at the man who had asked him the question. He seemed to be in his thirties; Charles knew his name—Gabriel Jones, one of the soldiers John had selected to follow the team on their mission.

"A little," he said, feeling the vehicle they were in hit another bump, causing it to shake slightly.

"It's normal. I was just as nervous the first time I was deployed," said another man with slanted eyes, James Morita, or Jim, as he had asked to be called.

"Nerves must be quickly overcome, or they can cost you dearly. Listen, kid, when the shit hits the fan, don't hesitate—just follow orders and shoot who you need to shoot. That will keep you alive." Charles nodded at the advice, looking at the weapon he had been given, a rifle modified by Howard Stark.

Shooting... He had never touched a gun in his life, but he knew how to do it thanks to some of the memories he had seen from James. He hoped that would be enough.

Suddenly, the vehicle they were in came to a stop. They heard voices—it was a checkpoint. They had passed a few before, and everyone knew what needed to be done. Charles swallowed hard and looked toward the rear door, which began to open. A German soldier poked his head in, flashlight in hand, pointing it at them.

His eyes seemed to inspect the "cargo" until he was finally satisfied that he hadn't found anything unusual, and he closed the door again.

Charles sighed, lowering his hand. Another success—a useful skill that hadn't occurred to him but was something John had told him to try before they set out.

In essence, he was simply making the soldier see what he needed to see to let them pass the checkpoint without complications—a simple "illusion" if he had to give it a name.

"I still can't get used to that," said another soldier, one named Dugan, looking at Charles in amazement.

"But it's useful," Steve commented.

Charles smiled a little. Of course, the existence of his abilities had to be revealed to the team members who weren't metahuman. After all, they would be fighting together in the battles to come. Although it wasn't explicitly stated that they were metahumans, they were presented as other super-soldiers secretly created by the United States.

It was easier and simpler to explain than having to give a long and tedious talk about genetic evolution and how it could allow the emergence of supernatural abilities.

In this way, they only had to explain the basic concept of their abilities. Of course, not everything was revealed. John had advised Charles not to disclose the full extent of his powers for various reasons, so the regular soldiers on the team only knew that Charles could make people see "things" like illusions.

Charles understood why. After all, as a mind reader, it was easy for him to know that people might be quite uncomfortable if they knew someone could delve into their most private thoughts.

Not that Charles would do that, of course—at least not without a good reason. He usually preferred to only skim some surface thoughts, but looking deeply into others' minds was something he didn't actively seek out. James was a prime example of why.

Charles, who still didn't fully control his powers, was forced to experience people's memories and feelings firsthand when he looked into their deeper thoughts and memories if he wasn't careful, which was, of course, quite bothersome.

"The captain says to start getting ready, we only have a few more kilometers to go," the hidden window in the vehicle opened, allowing Cassandra to stick her head out from the front to inform them.