Eternal Winter

XXI: Ambuscade

December 31 2025

Area Classified

The day was still early, pale sunlight illuminated the darkness that filled the inside of their mortal souls. They darted around the apartment in an organized fashion, throwing on their sturdy, bulletproof suits, grabbing weaponry and waiting for their guests to arrive. 

The sound of bullets being loaded into its temporary home echoed and bounced across the plain white walls. Every metal casing filled with the darkest of gun powder had its future target written across them. A personal goodbye from the person clutching the trigger with such ease and determination.

There is something so cold and inhumane about taking a life. How easy and simple it is yet it holds onto you until you find yourself taken from this life. Nonetheless, it is an assassins duty to cleanse their employer of their competition or threats. However, there is no difference between those two words when it comes to the illness that consumes you when it comes to your hunger for money or the growth of your business. At the end it leads to the extinction of humanity.

Every time Natasha and James load a bullet into the chamber flashes of casualties taken by their hand appear before their eyes. A chilling reminder of the burdens they drag with them where ever they go. The alarming sound of the location system brought them back to reality.

"The Jeep's satellite sensed three moving vehicles about four miles from here." Wanda yelled from the next door.

Natasha was in her room, zipping up her new uniform. A black catsuit wrapped around her skin like she was dipped in tar, and her wrists gripped by a new and altered Widow's Bite. The electricity moaning with red light under its casing and the tubing that leads to the belt hanging tightly on her hips. She stared at herself in the mirror as she zipped it up to her neck. A leather strap that ended with the zipper had two Black Widow symbols on both sides in the deepest of reds.

Her dark auburn hair fixed into a light bun, and her green eyes glowing with adrenaline. She slipped on her leather finger-less gloves and sturdy new combat boots to finish the look. Her suit was tough, feeling almost impenetrable with the steel fibers sewn into the stretchy material. 

Natasha's hands went down her waist, feeling the uniform that she will be living in from now on, becoming familiar with her new partner. James slipped in, Natasha catching him in her reflection.

He stared her down, taking in the entire look. "Wow, a suit built for a warrior but made for a queen." James said as he mockingly bowed.

She smiled and took in his look. His suit fit him perfectly, hugging his muscle and looser at the legs. His metal arm exposed, gleaming like the moon in the darkest hours of the night, his boots crawled up to his knees and straps cinched on his arm and legs. James' suit was all too familiar to her but something caught her eye.

"What's that?" She said as she pointed at his sleeve.

He looked down at where she was pointing. "Oh that. Just a little piece of you to always be with me."

It was a the Black Widow symbol sewed into the sleeve of his left arm. Her smiled grew brighter as she placed a kiss on his soft, irresistible lips. "I'll always be with you." She said as she gave him one quick kiss before they walked out of the room.

Everyone met back in the tech room, sitting and watching the satellite images that came from the Jeep. There were three black SUVs with tinted windows, and no way of seeing who or what was hiding in there.

"They've been taking their time, whoever they are." Wanda said, leaning on the desk behind her. She was also in a black catsuit, however hers was paneled with scarlet red and her light brown hair was twisted into a braid.

"Of course they are." Clint said. "Because they know that we know."

Natasha squinted at the screen. "No look," She pointed at the corner of the screen. "There's a man behind those trees and it looks like.." Her eyes widened. "Gas masks now!"

They all ran into the neighboring room where all the weaponry laid comfortably on the metal tables. James ran to the glass cabinet where the masks were placed, throwing them to everyone. The masks were like muzzles with tinted goggles, keeping their eyes clear from hazardous gases or chemicals.

"I feel like Darth Vader in this." Clint said as he tightened his mask.

They grabbed their weapons, latching them onto holsters or gripping them tightly in their fingers.

"There's a high chance that we will be in contact with snow so there is a built in camouflaging system that is in contact with your suit, press the button on your right wrist and pull on the hood and you'll become the colors of your surroundings." Wanda said as they finished loading up. 

It was time.

They all dispersed across the residence, taking hold of any possible entries. 

"Press the button on the left corner of the mask." Steve said to everyone as the ran to their places.

Their voices came to life in each other's ears, an earpiece built into the gas masks. 

"There are three possible options for this situation. One, they throw a gas bomb in here or two, they charge in here then fill the air with gas." Steve's voice echoed into their ears.

"What about the third?" Clint asked.

"They light us up like the fourth of fucking July." Sam said, laughter filling up their ears.

"Well then, happy birthday to you Rogers." Clint responded.

Then it was quiet, no signs of life escaped into the air. The silence sent chills down Natasha's spine.

Silence disappeared as the sound of rushing cars grew closer and the team gripped onto their ammunition.

Natasha was at the door, her Glocks in both hands, waiting to set her bullets free.

"It's showtime motherfuckers." James said as bullets began to pierce through the windows, sending showers of shattered glass across the floor.