Burn

Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own anything pertaining to MCU or Marvel Universe. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to anything or anyone living or dead is pure coincidence.

Prologue

Steve looked for one last time over Natasha's shoulder, his eyes taking an emotional turn as he saw once again the empty screen. His incessant pacing was driving his comrade crazy, yet the constant movement was the only relief he had. That and biting the shit out of his nails. He usually kept himself clean and cut; hair trimmed on the side of his head like the army had taught him and face shaven so no credit card slid against his cheek would announce even a millimeter of grown facial hair. He was an extremist in his hygiene, but that was the essence of Steve Rogers. His nails were hence always trimmed in an oval shape and the cuticles clean. Yet now they were savagely bitten until his flesh bled and Nat had to slap his hand away from his mouth.

"We just need to be patient," Nat said, her voice monotone, her back still turned to him. She had her flaming hair in a twist above her head, which was unusual for the Russian spy. Well, considering the unusual hour at which they were still working, he would just as much expect anything.

"You really think this is going to help us?" he asked as he once again brought his thumb to his mouth. He nibbled, his thoughts wired with different equations and problems.

Natasha sighed; her ultimate signal that there was no use in persisting. She draped one leg over the arm of the chair, her black pajama pants reflecting the electric blue of the screen. Her fingers continued to click on the mouse, the computer zapping from one page to another, creating an array of ghostly light in the tiny computer room.

"Why would he come back anyway?" Steve asked all of a sudden. His anxiety was eating at him worse than ever. His desire to protect the ones HYDRA was persecuting was being squashed when he was rendered useless.

"He probably knows something that we don't," she mumbled, her mind preoccupied as she tapped away on the keyboard.

Steve was growing impatient. His mind was taking roads untraveled and it was driving him insane. "How could he get HYDRA intel right before it got destroyed?" he persisted.

"He's a demi-God, Rogers," Nat answered, as if that was supposed to answer every and all questions.

Steve vividly remembered the time when Loki was viciously attacking New York, his pet aliens doing his dirty work. His only imaginable goal was complete control over human kind. He was defeated and presumed dead, until his presence was detected in the outskirts of Montreal. The system that Nat and Clint had set up using their skills in computer science had detected a facial recognition of the famous demi-God, and since then, Steve was determined to understand why. The only clue left behind was the HYDRA insignia on Loki's shoulder.

Natasha had wired a computer system that generates recognition among files. She was currently zooming through all HYDRA files and information about Montreal and it's surrounding towns collected through hacking. The system, as the red-head had mentioned, would detect similarities and links between HYDRA and the metropolitan area.

Suddenly, just as Steve was losing faith, the screen illuminated green and froze. He hurriedly made his way over Nat's shoulder and stared, wide-eyed. The screen was showing the only link detected between HYDRA and the little town called Lightwood. It was a citizenship card, a girl with dark curls and eyes the color of midnight was staring right up at them, a sly smirk on her lips. A record of her medical inquiries and her schooling hung under the picture. She had been a great high school student, stunning grades that persisted into her college education. For HYDRA, she had a genetic alternation that made her a perfect subject for project X17.

"Why would Loki want a HYDRA failed experiment?" Nat mumbled to herself as she scrolled through the documents.

"Because she wasn't a failed experiment," he answered as he leaned in and pointed to the title of the last document.

Subject x98 ready to comply