Breathe

Chapter 1

"Elara Eastwood."

A crisp red folder stamped with the black HYDRA insignia slid across the sterile metal tabletop.
The Winter Soldier opened the file on his next mission to reveal the mentioned girl. He scanned the first page without any detail of significance giving clue as to why she was important.

Elara Eastwood. The girl's life appeared perfectly normal. Tragic and trying, but nothing out of the ordinary. Her parents died when she was eight. Only child. Moved around in the foster care system until she turned eighteen. She had managed to make a good reputation for herself in free lance photography and even owned a few galleries. She made a good living. Elara was twenty-two. According to the file she had been diagnosed with depression and anxiety but was never really treated for it.

The Winter Soldier studied the page a few times over and was unable to pin point the cause for Hydra's interest in her. Before he asked his superior, his question was answered.

Alexander Pierce folded his hands on the cool steel table and gestured to the file in the soldier's hands. "That... is the girl we have been looking for. While she looks relatively ordinary, she is in fact one of SHIELD's newest recruits."

The infamous Winter Soldier cocked his head and squinted incomprehensibly at the old man. The girl in the file in no way fit the description of a SHIELD agent. She was small, skinny, and lacked the high levels of education SHIELD required from their base computer agents.

Pierce sighed and continued, "You know her. She goes by the alias "Eir". Thor gave her the name after the Norse healing goddess. She isn't so much of an agent, but a healer. She possesses the ability to heal any person of any physical wound no matter how fatal. It is because of her that you were unable to assassinate Nick Fury the first two times. The 3rd time she was on a photography stint up in New York and wasn't able to make it back to D.C. in time to save Fury's life. She's a crucial member of Captain America's special forces team that has been infiltrating and destroying various HYDRA bases over the last six months. She poses a detriment to your mission, your future missions, and the future of Hydra."

"So you want me to eliminate her?" The Winter Soldier deadpanned.

Alexander Pierce laughed. A bitter, humorless laugh of a man gone too cold. "Ah you are so blind to the possibilities, Asset. That is why you follow the orders instead of making them."

The Soldier tightened the fist of his metal arm making a small mechanical whirring sound, but he said nothing.

Pierce finished," I want you to bring her in alive... and relatively unharmed."