APODEMIA ➣ ||P. PARKER||

••chapter four••

The bright light blinded me immediately when I blinked my eyes open, my heart began racing and I shot up from the bed I was in. A weird, odd, and peculiar hospital room, it was all white and a large wall made of glass was stationed in front of me, only a door to the side. Many people with perfectly neat suits stood on the other side, all watching me. 

All eyes were on me, I hear their conversations through the glass which is not exactly soundproof.   

"All her scars are healed..."   

"HYDRA did something in the facility..." 

"...Is she human?" 

My eyes glanced around the white room, trying to look for a potential weapon but nothing could be of use. It was only a heart monitor and a bed in this room. Also, I was not in the hospital gown that I was previously wearing, the hospital gown from HYDRA. A new and clean hospital gown now rested on my weak form. 

A woman with brown hair tied up into a neat bun opened the door, and was followed by a dark man with an eye patch, he was bald and wore a long black coat, well, everything he wore was black. 

I folded my hands and kept a cautious lookout, keeping a blank face, I made no move to speak but will only speak if asked to, that's how they disciplined us in HYDRA. But I'm guessing that the HYDRA facility is destroyed, gone, but was I now free?

Meanwhile, the woman with brown hair cleared her throat. "We'd like to take you into questioning." 

I was escorted into a dark room, only a desk, a lamp, and two chairs on opposite sides, a pair of technological advanced handcuffs were placed on by an armed guard. 

The dark man with all black clothing and a black eye patch was the one who was sent to interrogate me. In his hands was a file, he placed it in front of me and flipped it open. 

"Name is Alisa Orlov, as of now is age eleven," he stated, sitting down in the chair across from me, "born April the twenty-fifth, two thousand and one. Did I get that all right?" 

"Yes, sir," I confirmed. 

"You along with your parents disappeared in April of two thousand and eight." 

"I believe so," I replied, "That's when I got taken to HYDRA." 

"You've been with HYDRA for four years, and in that four years I believe you know plenty," He laid out a couple of photos: the leftover rubble of the destroyed HYDRA facility, and a blurry picture of me running across the rooftop of a building in my stealth suit, the face was covered with a mask and goggles, but it was me. "We'd like to know what happened in the HYDRA facility, and more about the Rebirth Program." 

Before I answer, I thought about my play carefully, and asked, "Who is 'we'?" 

"S.H.I.E.L.D," he answered, "I'm the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D, Nick Fury. We are in S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters in Washington D.C. The Triskelion. Now answer my question, what happened?" 

I was hesitant to answer because of how I would be treated after this whole interrogation, I could be executed, kept prisoner, or be used as their own weapon. And I wanted freedom, a normal life, I wanted back a childhood and a chance at a normal life. 

But do I deserve another chance...? 

"I tell you what I know, and exchange for that you let me free, I won't be yours or anyone else's weapon. Give me a normal life and change my name. We got a deal?" I offered, a bit of desperation shown through my voice, I wanted another chance. 

He thought about what I had said for a moment, then finally replied with, "Deal." 

I began diving into everything I knew, my voice showed not a drop of emotion, for it can still be a weakness. "There were about thirty or more of us, girls and boys, oldest I'm guessing were about fourteen, youngest might be five. We were all kids." 

He nodded as he listened, taking this very seriously. 

"We got injected with this... chemical, a serum, and many of us showed these unnatural abilities afterward, those who didn't- maybe about three or four- and the ones who didn't excel in the courses we were taught, they were sent to be training dummies. 

"We killed them like targets. We got trained in assassination, firearms, knives, and much more really. And, during these courses, many- many more than half were killed for not doing well or harmed and killed by peers. 

"I just... we all thought we were helping society, HYDRA fed us these lies... And then slowly we found out that we were destroying society instead, many kids wanted out when they finally realized and were killed. They wouldn't free us because they already turned us into killing machines, let us back into the world and we can expose them. HYDRA took no chances. I was the only one left, eventually." 

Director Fury told me to elaborate on what I had explained, I did so willingly, in exchange he also answered my questions. It felt as if lasted for hours, and maybe it did though I don't know the time. 

After the interrogation, I was told to stay in the dark room with only a lamp as the light source. I waited patiently. 

Almost an hour has gone by before Director Fury, the woman with brown hair, and a few more people came into the room, accompanied by armed guards.

Again, I showed no emotion, but on the inside, I was scared to the core.

"I will take custody of her," Rumlow volunteered and bad gut feel rose in my chest, the serum enhanced my senses, and I trusted the serum, but I didn't trust the Rumlow guy. "I found the girl, maybe she trusts me?"

And what custody? What does that word even mean?

"No need, Rumlow," Fury told him. "She needs a real and stable family."

"I second to that," the woman with brown hair agreed up.

"What is 'custody'?" I asked, only a split second later to realize that I had spoken without command.

"Custody means the care or guardianship of someone or something. In this case, we are talking about who to take you in." The woman with brown hair told me, I hear the professional yet caring tone in her voice. "My name is Maria Hill, Deputy Director of S.H.I.E.L.D."

"May I ask who will take custody of me?"

Ms. Hill answered, "That is what we are confirming, by your request you would wish for a normal life?"

"Yes." I answered.

In my opinion, a normal life with loving parents would be the best for me right now, to spend my already destroyed life without anything unordinary. No secret organizations, no killing, no agents, none of that.

"All right, then," Ms. Hill replied. "I will sort out the paperwork and make sure your new identity is safe."

I nodded.

"Per your request also, your name will be changed."

Changing my name can ensure a bit of safety from HYDRA, it was a new identity, a cover. "Thank you,"

"Your last name will be changed to the respective adoptive parents."

"Yes, that would be desirable,"

"What will the first name be?"

I thought about it for a moment, I didn't want it to be too far from my real name, but I wanted it to serve as a reminder of who I was really was before the shitty events. A few seconds passed before I answered confidently, "...Alice."