A/N Welcome to the new story! As always, let me know what you think. I appreciate constructive criticism. This is story is set in the Marvel universe, but the plot and some of the characters are my own. I'd appreciate no stealing/copying of any sort. Cheers :)

Warnings (For the entirety of this story) – dark themes, age-gap, sexual content.


1953, Romania

I've never left the Facility. I've never seen the outside world. None of us have. All twenty-seven of us girls were raised in the underground Facility since birth, but not by our parents. We never knew them either. We only knew instructors, doctors and scientists. Most, if not all, dressed the same, but few of them ever lasted long enough to remember.

As for the outside world, we studied and learnt of it through textbooks and weekly classes. We were taught the laws, the culture and about the people who matter. It's a strange place. A place I'd sometimes dream about; the ocean and land, big cities and small countries. I tried to imagine how the wind or sun would feel on my face. Up there is nothing like down here.

Down here it's cold, punishing and without comfort.

"One, two, three" clapped Madame to the sound of symphony "Point the toes Rachael. Not so sloppy. Yes?" her Russian accent is thick as she spoke.

Dressed in a black pencil skirt and grey blouse Madame, as we referred to her, is a tall and petite brunet in both beauty and elegance; even if she is in her mid-forties. Although she never likes to show it and could be harsh in her words, we all know that she cares about our success.

Standing in line with the other girls, were all dressed in matching black leotards and cream coloured stockings. Our feet are bound with bandages for support. With a straight face, I watched as Rachael glided across the wooden floor boards in front of us; her blonde hair in a tight bun. None of us complained as we danced for hours on end. Our lessons are routine for all of us.

Blinking in response, Rachael tumbled to the floor on the last number. Her body made a loud thud as she collided with the wooden floor boards. Clutching her left ankle, the blonde winced at the obvious pain but tried not to show it too much. The rest of us didn't move to help her; it's against the rules.

"Get up" snapped Madame, her eyes firm on the girl before her. It had taken Rachael far too long to move as she hobbled back to the end of the line. Continuing with our lesson, Madame smacked her hands together while she crossed the room. Her high heels made a loud clicking along the way "Begin Katya"

Stepping forward, I held my body straight and in position. I waited for the symphony to start before I followed in suit; graceful and swift like a swan. Dancing is a necessary pain, it teaches us to be light on our feet as well as flexible. It hurt excruciatingly at the beginning when we first started dancing; our feet ached, our toe nails split and we had blisters for days. But over the years our bodies and minds hardened and we learned to hold back the feeling of pain.

Jumping up high, I stretched my legs wide and pointed my toes. Landing with precision, I twirled with my arms held above my head for the last minute of the dance. When it had ended, Madame took the needle off the recorder just as a none-too-enthusiastic clap sounded in the room. I could tell the gesture didn't belong to Madame, it was coming from the other side of the room.

I looked up to see the girls standing with their heads held high. It was then that I realised the person to be none other than Doctor Krupin. In charge in overseeing our training, Krupin is a polite man in his late forties; dressed in an ashy brown suit and wire framed glasses. Although as polite as he may be, he certainly isn't a man you would cross. Like Madame, he takes our training and preparation very seriously.

"Good afternoon my girls" he greeted us with a smile on his face.

"Good afternoon doctor" we all replied in unison.

I'm curious as to why he's here. It's not uncommon for Krupin to look into our progress, but he tends not to bother when it came to ballet. He leaves it mostly up to Madame to instruct us and if needed, to inform him if any issues were to arise. Removing myself from the dance floor, I stepped back in line with the others.

Krupin walked to stand beside Madame. He looked at each and every one of us with his green eyes; scanning for every bit of detail "You all might be wondering why I'm here" started Krupin "As you may know, Graduation is soon. Through the course of your sixteen years of life, you've been trained in the art of espionage; to push your mind and body beyond the limits" Krupin clasped his hands behind his back "In the following months, each of you will be undergoing group and single training with a new instructor. You will listen, you will follow and you will learn. This is the time to show your knowledge and skills, and to show what it takes. Remember my girls, it's survival of the fittest – only the strong may live"

After doctor Krupin had left, we were soon dismissed our lesion. It's time to go to the shower before dinner. Proceeding down the dome cement corridor, we turned into the bathroom; a large room filled with half walled stalls and metal shower heads in the middle corners. Tiled with plain white, it's relatively clean like the floors which are made out of a light grey linoleum. Putting our towels and clothes on the bench lining one of the walls, we each picked a stall to shower in.

Taking our time, none of us rushed as we washed ourselves; some liking the hot water and others too busy fixing their wounds from ballet. Scrubbing at my skin with soap, it felt nice to work out the kinks and tension in my muscles. Leaning my head back, I felt the water drip over my hair as I wiped my face clean. It wasn't long until the alarm signalling dinner buzzed through the room and we quickly finished up.

Drying off, I placed on our usual uniform that's a form fitting long grey shirt and pants with white shoes "Katya" I heard someone call from behind me. Turning around, I found it to be Rachael. She's still sitting at the bench with her towel wrapped around her.

"What's is it?" I questioned while walking towards her. I don't know why I bothered asking when I already knew the answer.

"My ankle" she whispered, not wanting the last of the girls walking out to hear. I noticed her left foot is slightly raised off the ground and it had started to turn purple and yellow. Walking over, I leant down on my knees and cupped my hands around her ankle. She immediately hissed and grabbed onto the bench so tight her knuckles turned white.

"You've broken it" I spoke with a dull tone and sigh. At a time like this it's neither good nor convenient to have an injury so severe. It would be best to take her to the Doctor; the man who fixes us after combat training. But if I did, then Krupin would know. I moved over some towels "Lay down" I ordered.

"Why? What are you going to do?" her face went taught. She's worried. Pushing on her shoulder she laid back with her right leg bent while the left was laid flat. Grabbing a dry wash cloth, I twisted it and told her to bite down; I don't want someone to hear.

"Hold still and don't scream" Rachel nodded hesitantly before bracing herself.

Kneeling on the ground, I held her ankle and grabbed the soul of her foot. Twisting it, I pulled it up and then back before a crunch sounded out. I could hear the muffled screams she let into the towel. Grabbing the bandages that were used for ballet, I wrapped it around to secure her ankle in place. Getting up from the bench, she removed the towel from her mouth and wiped away the tears.

"Now" I said while looking up at her "Don't tell anyone. Leave the bandage on, you'll need it for training tomorrow. If there's something you need, come to me and only me, no one else. Understand?" she gave me a quick nod of her head "Now, we need to go to dinner"