On with chapter two, I know is to fast but like I said before, I have a lot of chapters already for uploading and I don't want to waste my muse ideas over this story.
For those who had review, favorite and follow this, thank you so very much, it is my pleasure to have you enjoying this story and I will try to not let any of you down.
As always the disclaimer is the same, you recognize it, it's not mine.
SEARING ENTERPRISES CITADEL – BERGEN CITY, NORWAY – OCTOBER 17, 5:27 AM
Run. That was all he could do, all he could think on doing. Footsteps pounded after him: heavy, lumbering, but clearly with physical strength that he didn't posses. The hard asphalt masked the total number of his pursuers; but he couldn't afford the time to turn around and check. And so he kept running, willing his tired legs to move faster; moving through hallways, skirting around corners and changing directions so fast only a professional could keep track of him, only they could keep track of him.
He had to get to the forest; there was no other way. The road towards the Loonelva River was perhaps a little easier to both flee upon and utilize, but it was too open, too many light in the way. Too exposed. He knew they wouldn't dare shot him, kill him or generally destroy all their work done upon his wavering body. But the river was still in the open, he needed a place to hide.
And so he ran.
The footsteps followed him, relentlessly pursuing their prey, screaming at him to stop or else.
He was lucky there was no moon that night, and the weaker lights of the stars were veiled in a thick cloud cover, winter was approaching fast. The darkness made it easier to flee. Easier to hide and the forest would be the perfect place. The forest is just in front.
For a moment, he can taste freedom and safety, the pain is gone squashed by his desire to escape, it looked as though the chase would end and maybe this time it wouldn't be as it always ended. Very rarely over the past few months had he managed to escape them, to slip out of their grasp, but he is always found. They always find him and he is to be punished for his disobedience.
He would rather it didn't come to that again. The cost of fighting was too great, left him too vulnerable, he wasn't in any condition to fight as before, and he doesn't have his friends to go look for him again. But this time is not like the last one, he can feel everything is going around, he is in control of everything and yet he has being stripped of any power he may have possessed. His family hasn't responded to his cries of help, his bond with them is gone. HE doesn't hear him either.
His legs are failing and the noises of the his captors is still close, yet he knows he is close to lose them, the trees are separating him from them, only his shadow darting in and out of their vision gives them the hope to keep going. He takes a sharp turn towards the left, letting them of guard and a small cry of victory bubble on his throat as he embrace to the hope that maybe this time he did lose them.
But then he ran straight into something solid and fate changed its course again.
He stumble to the ground, hitting his back against a tree and letting out a muffle yelp of pain as the searing wounds on his back claimed attention. Tears suddenly stung his eyes as he realized it was over again, he was doom and this time he didn't know how much he can't take.
"Damn, watch where your going!" the man he had crashed upon said. It was a voice he had heard before, faintly.
Snapping his head up to look at the owner of the voice, he barely got time to crawl backwards as another figure materialized behind the first one.
As if noticing the panicked look, the man turned around, and arm moving to elbow his attacker just below the rib cage, but he didn't stop there. Not giving his enemy time to recover, swept his leg planting the intruder onto the ground with a pained cry and pulling a gun out of thin air.
"Who are you?" his savior asked the one at the ground.
"You should remember me we work together...Willie"
The man glared at the guard on the ground, the soft click of the safety button making both guard and boy flinch.
"Huh? You look different" the gunwilder remarked leaning dangerously over his prey "What were you doing to this boy?"
"He is the boss son, we were worried when he ran into the woods, I'm just trying to take him back to his father"
The boy scramble to his feet, shaking his head so hard that it made him dizzy as he yelled "He is lying, they want to hurt me!"
"Shit"
There were soft pounding of more people around and the stranger obviously realizing it looked at the kid. It was clear he didn't want to risk a full on battle in there, with no weapons and a civilian in the middle, so he do the only thing he though logical.
Kick the attacker in the head to render him unconscious.
"Come on, I know a good hiding place"
The boy didn't hesitate to take the offered hand and follow his hero deep into the forest.
SHIELD OUTSKIRT SAFEHOUSE – BERGEN CITY, NORWAY – SEPTEMBER 20, 9:15 PM
The journey had being uneventful, even for an agent that was accustom to such long trips like himself had founded his routine fairly quickly and relaxed almost instantly. Phil had agree on doing the full debrief once they had arrived at the safe house since Clint had complained, something about not being able to focus on the debrief while in mid air and piloting the Quinjet.
They had arrived just a little bit past eight into the International Airport; SHIELD didn't have any base close to the city so they had to pull some strings to be allowed to land there and to have a car waiting for them at the tarmac.
The seven hours of flight were slowly catching up to Clint, and with the fact that they had departed at night from New York, it didn't add well to the mix.
He kicked the door of their safe house open dropping his bag beside the door, and in a zombie like state, moving towards the closest cot. Phil was trailing behind him with the rest of their gear and watched with an amusement fond smile as his agent all but collapsed on the bed, a slight chill making him shiver.
"You should take a shower before sleeping, it might help you deal with the jetlag" the handler suggested.
Clint struggle to stand back up, but manage to nod as he unzipped his bag, pulling out a change of clothes to sleep in he moved towards the bathroom. The door closing behind him with an almost unperceptive click.
Phil rummage through his own bag and piled the mission papers on the table, trying to distract himself with the information in front of him. He had already read it a few times and almost memorized all that it had to be taken in account for this to succeed. He marked the things he thought will drag Clint's attention and the ones the archer had yet to know but definitely needed to keep in mind.
Ten minutes later, a still dripping wet Barton, walked back into the room. He was dressed in black sweat pants and the custom grey SHIELD tee shirt. There was a towel around his neck as he still tried to dry his damp short hair. He seem more awake now and alert, the shower probably helping him ease whatever it was bothering him.
"Do you like to go over the debriefing now or should we wait until tomorrow?"
"Let's do it now, better get on with it fast than waste a day" Phil nodded pushing the chair across from him as an invitation for the archer to sit. Which he immediately did picking up the closest file from the stack "So, SHIELD suspect this company is working in a smuggling child ring but doesn't have any proof of it, right?"
"Not only that the last two agents we sent to infiltrate reported sightings a couple of teenagers around the area, and overhead the chief doctors talking about some sort of weird experiment they plan on conducting"
"Weird" Clint muttered not captivated by the information. Several years working for SHIELD could take the fun even in the most dangerous and perfect mission.
"Yeah, well, to make things more interesting, a month later of that report the agents proclaimed they had misheard everything and that nothing wrong was happening in the facility, also discarded the fact that kids were actually held in there just out of the blue"
The tone of voice Phil used –calm yet a little bit condescending- had Clint leaning back on his chair crossing his arms, a pensive look on his face that indicated, Coulson had succeed on dragging his attention in the matter.
"So that is even weirder," the agent replied flipping over one of the files already discarding the information in that one and concentrating on the ones Phil had being reading on "Why would they file a report and then dismissed just like that?, it doesn't make sense, and is not as if the people at Searing could convince them with money or other stuff to join their side, SHIELD doesn't train slackers"
"That is why Fury wanted a different set of eyes on this mission" Phil supplied "Another fresher opinion, someone who will not be easily influenced by anyone and will keep a straight head and eyes open all the time"
"Okay then so, how are we gonna get me in? is not like I just can waltz into the place, it probably must have very high security and I'm not going to pull a Natasha and just bat my eyelashes expecting for them to let me in"
Phil put a different set of papers on the table just within reach of his agent as he spoke "You're gonna pose as someone looking for a guard job, our agents had being pulled out of Searing Laboratory giving you the chance to replace them, SHIELD is providing you with a fake identity that would grant you access to the facility according to the standards this company wants from their guards"
Clint was nodding along as his handler recited the information, reading over his new identity "So… William Teint?"
"Former sniper of the US Army finished his service last year, jumping from job to job since then. No live relatives as far as the government is concerned"
"Marital status?"
"You don't need Romanoff for this, so none, you are on your own William"
Clint offered a cocky smile taking the documents of his new identity and packing them on the only bag he is to take on the mission "Oh, you have to give me something more Philly"
Phil continued to read on, ignoring the comment that got Clint slouching back in his chair as he muttered something close to 'never getting the good stuff'.
"It is important that you gain the trust of the higher ups in order to get full access to the facility and its projects, Clint, you really need to focus, if our Intel is right, then children lives depend on you"
"I understand Coulson, don't you worry about a thing" Clint stood up, patting his handler shoulder on his way to his cot "I'll go in tomorrow, see if I can convince them to hire me and then everything will flow smoothly, you'll see, nobody messes with kids on my watch"
Phil didn't bother to answer to the confident in his agent voice. Even so he has a very weird feeling coming from this mission, it wasn't a bad feel but it didn't help to ease his nerves and keep his head clear. He wanted to tell himself it was just the long hours of journey messing with him and Clint constant habit to try to annoy him until he snapped. But something inside him told him. No, scream at him to stay high alert this time and not let Clint cockiness overpower the agent skills and efficiency.
With a sigh of resignation he also moved to get a shower and some sleep, hopefully by tomorrow the feeling may have subside a little or be totally gone.