Chapter Two
Little Bird
The winter solider stared at the measly girl lying on the ground. It had been three days since she arrived at the Hydra facility bound and blindfolded. She fought the whole way into the lab before finding herself in the chair the Winter Solider was most familiar with. He could still hear the savage screams as she blindly lashed out at her captors. They strapped her to the chair and shoved the rubber between her teeth. She continued to fight until her blindfold was removed, and she looked at each one of her abductors with hatred until she reached his own in the corner. The caramel color turned so dark that they looked like the pits of Hades. She lunged her whole body against her restraints and spit out the rubber teeth guard as she screamed profanities. The hatred in her eyes grew so fierce that even the stoic Winter Solider felt a shiver up his spine. Finally the technicians had enough of her noise and shoved the rubber guard back in her mouth, but not before almost losing their thumb to her vicious bite.
What happened next was something that even the killer would not wish upon his enemies. He watched her carefully as the machine placed the electric probes on her temples. Her chest swelled sharply but defiance never left her eyes. The head of Hydra nodded to the technician and the brain-washing began. The electricity surged through the probes slowly wiping away everything this girl was. Her identity, family, memories. All were gone with the flip of a switch. She didn't scream in the beginning. He vaguely remembered trying to do the same, but in the end, they all scream. The action of splitting the memories from brain was painful and most never made it to the end without fainting. The process finished fairly quickly and left the poor girl succumbing to the darkness that would soon invade her mind. She was limp in the chair. Her now caramel eyes vacant and he suddenly wished for the unruliness to stare back. The leader commanded him to take her to the cells in the basement and to keep her there until she complied to work for them. He grasped her small frame and hoisted her over his shoulder. She was light compared to his own body mass and he had no problems maneuvering her down the halls into the cells in the basement.
She laid on the concrete floor for three days. Never moving. The first wipe was always the most intensive. Hard laden memories were hard to scrub away from the brain. Hell, even he had flashbacks to a time he doesn't remember. He checked up on her every once in awhile to ensure she was still apart of this world and on the third day, he found her in the middle of her cell with her head between her knees. If she looked small before, she looked miniscule now. The side-effects of the wipe were a gnarly headache that persists for days on end and confusion. He could tell by her clenched face that she felt both currently. Once she finally looked up, he could see the shock in her eyes and then the fast conversion to a glare. Her body moved languidly to a crouch and she bared her teeth like a savage animal in the zoo. It was hardly menacing to watch a caged animal warily watch him but it was amusing nonetheless.
His first and only question was directed towards the girl to find the effectiveness out the brain-wash. Someone's name is the most important and deeply ingrained word in a person's mind. It's their identity and one of the first things they learn other than "mom" and "dad". They've said it their whole life and when asked who they are, one simply answers, "Well… I'm me." Their whole life has centered around their name and what that name will achieve, and the wipe destroys that. It takes away the purpose of life and that's why it's the most effective way to manipulate anyone. Take away their purpose and replace it with a new one. He didn't know his name before this but now as the Winter Solider, his mission was clearer than a sniper scope.
He had asked his question once and she defiantly stared him down. He grabbed the black 9mm from his side and fired a warning shot past her hand. She continued her stare unflinchingly and he was slightly impressed. He was expecting a blubbering mess but this was going to be much easier to work with. He asked once more and saw her hesitate. The vacant look returned to her eyes and she crumbled to her knees. Winter Soldier sighed as he placed the gun back in his holster. He phased through the bars and attempted to snap her out of it. He first tried snapping with his non mechanical arm and receive no response. Next he tried shaking her shoulder and her conscious began to return. He saw the light starting to come back to her eyes and then suddenly he was facing the concrete with a knee in his back. He wanted to look annoyed but he was pretty sure this was the closest to surprised he'd ever been. Angry with his miscalculated judgment, he quickly flipped the odds back to his side and straddled her while clenching her throat between his metal digits. She thrashed violently trying to disarm him but she was weak and at a disadvantage.
He asked the question one last time before he cut off her air for good. An inaudible whisper came from her mouth and he demanded her say it again, but this time less force on her throat. She was cooperating and that deserved an award. Positive reinforcement was a strong psychological motivation. She desperately screamed an "I don't know" finally and he was appeased. He was going to break her down slowly and then rebuild her to be just as lethal as himself. He rose from her body and watched as she grasped her throat and inhaled air as fast as she could. Her body instantly went into a protective and defensive fetal position. He walked away. Back into the darkness where he belonged, and where soon this girl would join him.