A/N: This story has been a work in progress for almost one year now. It still isn't finished but I do know where I am going with this and how it will end. This is post CA:CW, so there are going to be spoilers with the coming chapters. It is also a crossover with multiple universes: Agents of SHIELD and X-Men. This chapter takes place directly after AoS 3x11 - Bouncing Back. I will give spoiler warnings as I go on with each chapter. This is also very heavy based with my own original characters. I hope you all like it.
Roksana smiled softly as she felt their unborn child move. Looking over toward the window, she sighed as she watched the shadows flicker across her husband's face from the small candle on the table next to him. Calling out quietly in Russian, she said, "Sasha, it's late. Come to bed."
Aleksandr looked toward the woman carrying his child, the woman he loved. The way the full moon's light shone through the thin curtains gave his Roksana an ethereal appearance. His breath caught in his chest at the vision before him. He never thought that he would ever have this. The thought of holding his son or daughter brought an ever going emotion within him. A fierce need to protect the small child at all costs. It also brought a deep feeling of something like coming home. His family was his home.
As he stood from the windowsill and started toward their bed, Aleksandr thought back to a time before he met his beautiful wife. He had no memory of his early life. The doctors told him he had been injured fighting for his country, Mother Russia. That he had injured his head and he had lost his arm, but not to worry because they had given him something far greater that would help him fight even better against their enemies. That's the first memory he had, of waking up to a cold so deep in his bones he thought it would never leave and the press of cold metal against his left side. He thought he would forever serve his country. That is until he met Roksana. She had been a beacon of light in a place filled only with darkness. He still remembers the first time he saw her. It was only in passing as he scoped through a crowd to find and kill his next target.
He remembers though how she stood up for a small boy with blond hair, who looked like a brisk breeze would carry him away. He had actually stopped in his sweep as a headache so fierce overtook him, his brain retaliating for some unknown reason. The only thing that quieted the roaring pain was her smile as she brushed the small boy's hair away from his face and offered her assistance to get him home safely. He had watched them until they disappeared around the corner. He kept thinking back to her though, even as he completed his mission. That had been over three years ago.
As he slipped under the bedcovers, his metal left hand curving around Roksana's swollen belly, Aleksandr sighed in content. It hadn't been easy to get where they were, a young two year old daughter sleeping in the next room and another on it's way. He couldn't have done any of it without Roksana. From the first moment they actually met, she showed him nothing but kindness and compassion. He had tracked her down to her home after his mission was a success, wanting to feel the comfort that small boy had shown he felt from just her touch. It was his first time (he could remember at least) breaking protocol, but he needed to know how it felt, to feel anything at all.
Even without knowing his full story, she had just to look in his haunted eyes and she took him into her home. When he woke the next morning to the smell of breakfast filling the air, the first home cooked meal he could remember, he had asked her why she had trusted a complete stranger. She had smiled softly at him as she told him, 'My father always quoted a dear friend of his to me. He said, "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle". I try to always remember that.' When he had told her that he could have killed her, she threw her head back and laughed, a sound he hadn't heard since he woke with his new arm. She plated the eggs she made and walked toward him as she smiled, 'If you had wanted to kill me, I doubt you would need to be so close. No, I knew from your eyes…' She had looked down at him then, brushing his hair back that just barely reached his eyebrows. 'Your eyes tell your story for you. I can tell you've lived a hard life and now you wish to rest.' At the look of shock in his eyes, Roksana had set down the plate of food and sat in front of him, her hand resting on top of his gloved metal hand. 'You have nothing to fear here. I will help you however I can. But first, you need to eat. You look famished.'
They had been running from the K.G.B. ever since. He never looked back. Over the years they had formed their small family and he finally felt like he could breathe easily. Of course he was constantly on high alert, waiting for them to come for him, their most valued weapon. He also remembered, everything over time. He remembered his life before and the lie that Hydra had told him. He even knew his real name. However, he wasn't that man anymore. His family thought him dead and the things he committed against his own country gave him nightmares almost daily. No, he couldn't go back to them. He had his own family now. His home.
He kissed Roksana softly on her lips before drawing her to his chest. He wasn't going to let his past taint this moment though. He could hear his daughter's soft breathing in the next room and feel the rise and fall of his wife's chest against his own. He smiled, something he did much more often now, as he felt his unborn child move. He sighed contently as he settled down to finally go to sleep.
The sound of breaking glass woke him to a living nightmare. One that wouldn't end for a very long time.
Anastasia woke with a cold deep in her bones. She could feel the restraints holding down her arms and legs. As if they could ever restrain her. She immediately began to struggle against the restraints, letting her powers work to disintegrate the metal to ash. Before she could finish though a whirring sound filled the air as electricity began to race through her brain. She screamed in pain as her brain started to try to heal itself as fast as it was damaged. However, Hydra had perfected this many years ago. A two hour session of electroshock would give them twelve hours of compliance before she remembered everything again. It would be enough this time. As her screams quieted down and she panted in her chair, her handler stepped forward and spoke in Russian, "Soldier?"
Anastasia slowly stood on unsteady legs, clenching her jaw. She responded in Russian, "Ready to comply."
Her handler smiled at his fellow agents. He showed her a picture of a man and told her, "Find him and bring him back alive, at all costs."
Anastasia looked at the picture before she tilted her head and let her mind reach out to the farthest parts of the world, her eyes turning blue. She found him in seconds and looked at her handler. "Mission confirmed. Asset ready."
Anastasia silently stood on the landing skid of the helicopter as it flew toward SHIELD's secret base. Her handler shouted over the noise, "We'll be waiting his arrival. Complete the mission." With a single nod, she closed her eyes and started to sift through the minds of everyone in the base, seeing what they saw. She found her way in. Her eyes opened, a blue fire starting to fill them as she stepped off the skid, falling toward the ground. Just as she was about to hit it she disappeared from the sight of her handler and appeared suddenly in an empty room within the base.
She moved quietly and deftly, avoiding any contact with any agents. She stopped as she came to the room that held her mission. She saw the keypad and immediately started to sift through the minds of everyone on the base, looking for the code. She found it after only a few moments and quickly typed it in. The door slid open and revealed a man in a catatonic state. Stepping forward she confirmed he was her mission, before she placed her hand on his head. A soft glow formed between her hand and his head as she began to heal his brain and his other injuries. She gasped softly as she took on his pain, pushing it back in her own mind.
Werner woke with a gasp to the sight of Anastasia standing over him. "How? Who are you?"
Alarms started to go off though, as the system he was hooked up to read out his normalized vitals. Anastasia looked out the door before turning to him. "Stay behind me. I will get you out." She moved toward the door, looking back once to make sure he followed her. She heard a dozen feet running toward them. She smirked softly before running forward before sliding down on the floor, easily taking two agents out from under them. She pushed herself to her hands before doing a backflip and wrapping her legs around the third man's neck. She twisted her body, snapping his neck in the process. She let him go and brought her legs out wide, kicking two other agents in the head and knocking them out cold. She had one left, which she easily dispatched with a solid punch to his chest, with the assistance of her psionic blast. She did all of this within ten seconds.
Anastasia turned back and motioned for Werner to follow her. He stared in shock for a second before quickly following her. They were almost out of the facility when Hunter came running around the corner with his gun pointed at them. "Now, look here, I really would like to solve this without having to shoot you." He paused briefly, before shaking his head, "Actually that's a lie. I really do want to shoot you." With that he pulled his trigger.
Werner flinched as he ducked to dodge the bullet. He looked back up after a few seconds though and saw it stopped in midair. Hunter stared in shock before he fired off the rest of his clip. Each bullet stopped mere inches from hitting Anastasia. She smirked again before moving forward, the bullets falling to the ground as she passed them. Running, she jumped up and slammed her feet into Hunter's chest. He flew back into the wall behind him, hitting it hard. Gasping for breath, he struggled to get his bearings before he felt a hand wrap around his neck and lift him in the air. His vision started to blur as his brain became oxygen deprived. He did see Anastasia's eyes turn blue just as he blacked out.
Anastasia didn't hear May coming, so she wasn't expecting the punch to her face. She let go of Hunter and stumbled away, falling to her hands and knees. Anastasia wiped blood from her lip. She could taste it in her mouth. Copper and distinct. She hated the taste of blood. Which meant that the woman who had caused it would pay. Looking up at May, who had momentarily knocked her out, Anastasia felt anger fill her. She growled softly before pushing herself up, forming her two psionic katana swords to attack. Slowly she started to stalk toward her. May was kneeling over Hunter, trying to wake him. Her voice came out in a rush, "Hunter wake up."
He groaned in pain as he opened his eyes to see Anastasia raising her swords. He yelled out, "May watch out!"
They both rolled out of the way just as the swords pierced through the ground. Anastasia looked at Hunter and May through the curtain of her dark blue, almost black hair. She smiled viciously at them as she said, "I am going to enjoy this." Her eyes suddenly changed, becoming completely blue, like fire. She attacked them without remorse. May and Hunter were on the defense, not able to get any type of solid footing to fight back. They only had their guns as weapons and each time they fired, their bullets wouldn't even come close to hurting her. They each dodged Anastasia's swords and she continued to slash at them in anger. She almost looked like a child throwing a tantrum. A very angry tantrum. Finally, Anastasia saw the door leading to their extraction point. Her sword disappeared briefly as she blasted the door off it's hinges and yelled to Werner, "Run!"
That moment gave May the advantage she had been looking for. She lashed out and roundhouse kicked Anastasia in the face. She stumbled backwards as their fight brought them out onto the open field as Werner ran to and climbed into their awaiting helicopter. Her mission was almost complete, to protect him at all costs and by any means. Anastasia could hear another aircraft coming in fast. She knew what she needed to do.
May and Hunter were breathing heavily as they shot off their last two bullets off their last clips. Anastasia easily deflected them with a swipe of her hand. She felt the wind around her stir as an aircraft landed. Hunter cried out in joy as May told her, "You're outnumbered. Stand down!"
Anastasia looked back as a team ran out of the aircraft. Looking back at May, she smirked and said, "Am I now?" With that Anastasia sent out a psionic blast, knocking everyone off their feet. She started running toward the helicopter as it took off, knowing exactly where the helicopter would be that held the now revived and healed Werner. She gave herself a large psionic push off the ground with her foot as she jumped up toward the distant helicopter. No normal human could have ever made it. But she wasn't normal.
Anastasia smiled as she felt the air blow through her hair. The feeling brought up a memory of a man with angelic wings and a smile that warmed her cold heart. As she soared through the air she felt her own powers wanting to be released completely. She began to hear the cries of people in her mind, calling for her. Just as she almost let it wash over her, Anastasia's fingers grasped the landing skid. She pulled herself up easily to stand on it as she looked back to the team on the ground, pushing back the voices and sealing her powers. Complying to her mission directives.
Coulson pushed himself up as he looked at the young woman as she pulled herself up into the helicopter. He looked back at Skye…Daisy as she brushed dust off her pants. "That was at least 100 feet she just jumped. Is she…?"
Daisy shook her head as she watched Werner get away again. She looked at May and Hunter as Bobbi and Mack checked on them. "I don't know. If she is an inhuman, she's been one for quite some time. I don't even have that much control over my powers." After hearing the debrief from May and Hunter, Daisy knew that they needed to find this woman. It sounded like the woman had an immense amount of power. If she wasn't going to be on their side, then she was going to be an extreme threat to everyone.