A/N: Guess who keeps getting distracted by the internet? It be meeeeee
Natalee was thrown into a small concrete smell, landing roughly on the floor. Her bruised sides screamed in pain and she struggled to find her breath. It was damp and cold, the air burning the back of her throat and her bleeding nose with it's faint salty smell of the ocean. Her lips were parted, any effort to get enough air in her lungs, her teeth stained with blood from her mouth. Her arms were hugged over her ribs, no doubt a few of them were either cracked or broken. The people that had taken her had left her in her compression shorts and her tanktop, exposing the bruises and the blood that covered her soaked body. She was pale and wheezing, her eyes dull and clouded, strands of wet dark red hair clung to her forehead and her freckly shoulders. She was trembling from the cold, staring at the two guards' boots, unable to bring herself to move.
The blonde woman spoke, a faint trace of a Russian accent in her voice. "Was this really necessary?" She asked the man. "You could not find handcuffs? She's fifteen"
He scoffed. "Really? You've read the files on Red Archer and her team. She was ten when they escaped, you really think she doesn't already have an escape plan? Handcuffs are probably a warm up for her" He approached Natalee, who strained to try to roll over, gritting her teeth at the searing pain surging through her body, the muscles in her back tightening in protest. A tear escaped her eye, rolling down her cheek to mix with the blood. A smirk appeared on the man's face as he pulled his gun. Two bullets were sent into her leg, one in the side of her thigh, the other just above her knee. Natalee groaned loudly in pain. The man turned back to the blonde woman. "There, see? She's not getting out of here" He passed her, his shoulder hitting hers, as he left the cell. "You can take first watch" He called over his shoulder.
The blonde woman huffed and rolled her eyes, turning her head as she looked in the direction the man disappeared. Natalee noticed the red scope tattoo on the side of her neck, behind her ear. She shifted, holding her left wrist out to look at the same red scope tattoo inbedded in her skin. She knew who this was.
*SCENE BREAK*
Nikki groaned as she woke up back in the lab. She sat up, rubbing her neck. Natalee was gone. She pulled her phone from her pocket and opened a program Natalee had installed on both her and Nikki's phones. There was a light green blip on a radar map. Natalee was close and had activated a stress beacon. She got to her feet, running her other hand over her other pockets, checking quickly for her weapons. Everything was still there. Why would the people that knocked them out only take Natalee and leave Nikki with all her weapons?
"You had better be alive, you asshole" Nikki whispered to herself and headed for the door.
*SCENE BREAK*
The blonde woman was about to leave when Natalee spoke. Her words were slurred and mumbled, the blood in her mouth making it hard to speak. "Boris" She said, her voice barely a whisper. But the woman heard her. Her shoulders tensed but she didn't turn. Natalee spat a small stream of blood from her mouth, some of it getting stuck to her cheek. "I recognized...your brand" She tapped the spot behind her ear weakly, where the woman's tattoo was, though she wasn't looking. "You and...your brother were the best team the Renegade had. Unstoppable" Natalee shifted to try and push herself up more. Her muscles screamed in pain and she gritted her teeth. The woman turned, anger and hurt in her dark eyes.
"What would you know about it?" She spat, her hand resting on the gun on her hip.
Natalee's bloodshot eyes met hers, blood smeared over her eyelid from the gash on her eyebrow. "They were afraid of you... Of the both of you. But your brother started to rebel, didn't he? And then they...they made you kill him" Natalee spit another mouthful of blood to the side. "Why are you still working for them, Yelena?" Her voice was dark and hoarse. The woman, Yelena, closed her eyes and sighed. When they opened, they were softer.
"It's not that simple" She murmured, her hand slowly drifting away from her gun.
"We escaped. You could have too"
Yelena scoffed. "Escaped? Little girl, your team...your family, they are being hunted down. You think this is going to stop? They are not going to stop until every last one of you is back in their control" She said.
A bloody smirk appeared on Natalee's bruised face, her eyes were heavy but she had to try to get Yelena on her side. "Then I'll bring them down with me. You think the threat...like that...is going to stop me?"
Yelena opened her mouth to say something but a noise from outside distracted her, causing her to turn her head briefly. She checked out into the passage way, slowly returning to the room. "There are people coming for you, yes?" She asked.
"Should be" Natalee said. Inside, she was proud of herself. Yelena had turned to her side. A knife suddenly hit the ground in front of her, piercing the floor. She looked up at the woman, who's own lips turned in a smirk. Natalee's watch was tossed next to the knife.
"I was never here" She said and left, leaving the door open.
*SCENE BREAK*
"Are you sure you don't need me there?" Billie asked. Every word dripped with worry. "I can be there in like twenty minutes"
Nikki sighed, lowering her binoculars. "I hate to say it but Natalee might not have twenty minutes. You probably know more about the Renegade than I do-"
"Exactly why I should be there"
"But is it really worth it to wait?" Nikki asked. There was a defeated sigh on the other end. "That's what I thought. Listen, I have D.J. on speed dial if things go wrong. He can be here with the whole Defenders team in like twenty seconds" Tossing the binoculars aside, she climbed down the metal ladder, into the shadows of the storage units in the cargo port. There was a ship not far, the word Turncoat painted on the side. Must be the Renegade. She took a deep breath. "Please don't be dead, Natalee" She whispered to herself as she broke into a run.
MEANWHILE...
Natalee was limping, leaning more on the outside of her left foot. Her vision was a little blurry and her body felt like it was on fire. She left faded bloody footprints in her path. Blood dripped on the floor behind her, mixing with the water dripping off her hair. Her bare legs were bruised and littered with scrapes and cuts.
Her breathing sounded echoed in her head. Like it wasn't hers. Footsteps made her slow. She strained her ears. They were heavy, like boots, probably a Renegade guard. Stepping as quietly as she could, she wiped the mix of blood, sweat, and dirt from her eyes and peered around the corner. The guard was facing away from her. Natalee took a shaky breath and crept towards him. Her blood pounded in her ears and she could feel herself shaking. Though from fear or the cold, she couldn't tell.
Now a few feet away from him, she pushed herself to jump, plunging the knife into the back of his neck, covering his mouth with her hand. The guard fell to the ground with a thud. Glancing around quickly, she felt for his gun, finding it in a holster on his hip. Unclipping the cartridge, she had thirteen bullets. In the small area she was in, the gun would only attract more attention. Deciding to keep with her knife, she slipped the gun into her waistband and continued on.
*SCENE BREAK*
A gloved hand grabbed the railing of the Renegade cargo ship. Then another. Nikki pulled herself up, quickly canvassing the area like Sharon taught her. She pulled herself over the railing and hid within the shadows. Another deep breath and she crept along the wall. "Okay, Nikki, the ship isn't that big. Finding Natalee should be easy" She whispered and scoffed at herself. "Natalee, I swear, if you're aready dead, I will resurrect you like Jesus freaking Christ and kill you myself" She grumbled, pulling her gun. S.H.I.E.L.D. only issued rubber bullets to junior agents.
Ahead of her was a vent cover big enough for her to fit in. She swallowed hard, holstering her gun so she could easily move. Luckily the screws came off easily and she set the vent cover aside. "Hopefully this goes somewhere useful" She whispered as she slid into the cramped crawl space.
*SCENE BREAK*
Nikki quickly grabbed the vent cover before it could fall and create attention. She poked her head in, hanging upside down. It seemed to be a lab. Her eyebrows furrowed and she pulled herself up so she could lower feet first into the room.
There were vials of green liquid. She ran her gloved fingers over the glass of the case. There was the sound of a lock and she turned to the door as it opened a few inches. A muffled voice made her blood run cold.
"I'm just checking, thought I heard something" The voice called and she had just enough time to jump out of sight as the door opened all the way, now hiding behind one of the cabinets. An armed man slowly entered, his heavy boots echoing. The door closed behind him and Nikki slowly pulled her gun. Her sleeve caught a beaker and it fell to the floor, but didn't break. The man's head turned and Nikki silently cursed herself. She heard the click of the gun and took a deep breath. Thinking quickly, she shot the light above him. It disctracted him enough for her to jump over the counter, shooting him in the chest a couple times. It made him stumble, and drop his gun, but didn't take him out. She narrowly missed a punch, only to be grabbed by the back of her suit. He threw her against a table and she rolled out of the way as a knife hit the table where her head had been. She grabbed a microscope off the ground and threw it, hitting him in the head. The man fell back against a cabinet, lightly touching the spot on his head.
Seeing the blood only seemed to make him more angry. He pulled the knife he ran at Nikki and she kneed him in the kidney. The knife grazed her chest, just next to her collarbone. She grunted in pain and was jump kicked in the chest, sending the fifteen year old flying into a counter. The glass containers shattered around her, their contents spilling around her and glass getting in her hair.
The gun was back in his hand, aimed for her. Blood trickled down from his forehead and his nose, his eyes wild and angry. He was panting. Nikki winced as whatever was in the vials burned as it entered her bloodstream via the gash in her shoulder. She covered it with her hand, her heart pounding in her chest. But before he could pull the trigger, a knife pierced his hand.
The man screamed as he dropped the gun. A familiar head of red hair appeared in the doorway, a gun pointed at him. Natalee pulled the trigger, shooting him in the head. Blood pooled around his head as he lay dead on the floor.
"Natalee!" Nikki pulled herself to stand, her hand still over the gash in her shoulder. Her friend looked terrible. "Oh my god, you look awful" She ran over to help her stand. Natalee glanced in her reflection in the metal cabinets. It was the first time she had seen herself. She was covered in smeared blood, almost hiding the bruises that were scattered over her chest, arms, and legs. Her eyes were bloodshot and she was pale. Nikki carefully pulled one of Natalee's arms over her shoulder.
"Grab his gun" Natalee murmured, pointing to the man now dead on the floor. It smelled awful. A mix of blood and... oh no. Natalee's cloudy bloodshot eyes widened and she looked down at Nikki's now uncovered shoulder. There was a green gooey liquid around her wound. Natalee touched it with the pads of her fingers.
"Ow, Nat, I'm fine" Nikki insisted. But Natalee was staring at the goo on her fingers.
"We need to leave" She said quickly. "Grab his gun. We won't get out of here with rubber bullets"
"Natalee, I've never used-"
"First time for everything" Her friend said and pointed at the gun again. Nikki released the red head to grab the gun, returning to help Natalee stand up.
Natalee was feeling weaker, barely able to move her feet. She was leaning heavily on Nikki. The floor seemed to sway and everything sounded echoed. Definately a problem. "Let's get out of here" Nikki said. "If we can at least get on deck, I can call D.J."
"Who...else knows you're...you're here?" Natalee's words were slurred. Her eyelids drooped.
"No one. You told me not to say thing. Keep your eyes open, Nat, I can't carry you out of here" Nikki said as they left the lab.
*SCENE BREAK*
The two girls seemed to be lost in the maze of hallways. They had been taking out guards left and right. Nikki wasn't too sure where they were, having gotten in through a vent. "Do you know how to get out of here?" Nikki asked as they approached a turn. Natalee just grumbled and the brunette sighed. A guard turned the corner, gun in hand. Natalee tried to shoot at him, missing the first two shots. There was clicking. Her gun was empty.
A circular shield suddenly hit the wall, slicing the man's head off. His body slumped and his head rolled down across the floor, stopped by a black boot belonging to a male in a black suit much like Don's. Red sleeves, white star on his chest, a red fin on the helmet. He tore the shield from the wall, attaching it back to his arm. It was black with a big red star on it, the points coming off like tiny blades. That's how the man's head was sliced off, Nikki thought to herself. She wouldn't be able to fight him with Natalee as injured as she was.
What surprised Nikki was Natalee's tone as she spoke. "You're late" She stated.
"You know him?" Nikki looked at her injured friend in shock.
"He's a...friend" Her bloody lips turned up in a tired smile.
"Is he here?" The male asked. Nikki figured he must be in his middle teens, judging by his voice.
"I don't know" Natalee shook her head. "Slavic Death let me go"
"I'm sorry, who is this?" Nikki asked.
"Red Guardian, but Cole is fine for a friend of Natalee's" The boy, Cole, said. "And you're Nikki" He said with a grin. There was running footsteps and two men rounded the corner. They stopped and pulled out knives. Cole turned and kicked the decapitated head like a soccer player shooting a ball. It flew towards the men, spraying blood on the floor and the walls. It hit the man on the right in the side of the head, causing him to hit the wall, and it hit the other man in the side of the head, causing the same reaction. The two men fell to the floor, unconcious.
"Nice shot" Natalee commented. Nikki looked at them like they were nuts. Natalee grunted quietly and slumped against Nikki, a wave of pain and weakness hitting her. Under his helmet, Cole's eyebrows furrowed.
"I'll carry her" He said, holding out his arms. Natalee protested quietly as he picked her up, carrying her bridal style. He held out his shield. "Take this"
Nikki shook her head. "You need that to protect her" She said. "Or at least, like, put it on your back so you don't get shot from behind"
Cole nodded. Natalee wrapped her arms around his neck so he could attach the shield to his back, similar to how it attached to his arm. He unclipped his helmet and pulled it off, a head of red hair falling over his eyes. He put the helmet on Natalee, brushing his hair from his face. "Just in case we get shot at from the front" He told Nikki, who nodded. Cole adjusted Natalee in his arms, who was fighting to stay awake.
*SCENE BREAK*
Surprisingly, the three managed to escape the Renegade ship undetected just before it left the dock. Nikki pulled her phone from her pocket. "Who are you calling?" Cole asked, setting Natalee on a crate. She pulled the helmet from her head, dropping it next to her and leaning back against the crates, watching the ship begin to pull away.
"A friend of mine, don't worry" Nikki said as her phone rang. "D.J., hey. I need you at my location right now. It's a long story, Natalee's really hurt and needs serious medical attention"
"What?"
"What part of long story and Natalee needs serious medical attention did you not understand?" Nikki snapped.
"Shit. Sorry, sorry, I'm on my way right now" D.J. sounded like he was running so Nikki hung up. She sat next to Natalee, who was breathing slowly.
"Just hang on, Nat" She whispered, getting a nod from the red headed girl. Cole nudged Nikki's uninjured shoulder, nodding for her to follow him. They stepped away from their friend to talk.
Cole held his phone out. "I need your phone" He said. Nikki narrowed her eyes, unsure what to think. "I want updates on Natalee and I can't exactly risk coming to see her in Avengers Tower, now can I?"
Nikki sighed, opening a new contact and putting the phone in his hand. "I guess not. Natalee seems to trust you"
Cole didn't look up from the phone as he put in a number. "She seems to trust you too. That's hard to do with my kind of people, especially her. I'm going to think of you as a friend, someone who won't give me away" He handed it back. It was under the name RG.
"As long as you don't kill anyone I know, I don't really care" Nikki admitted. There was the sound of a plane, though a plane didn't land next to them. It was D.J. in his Arsenal suit. Cole's hand rested against the gun on his thigh. "Easy, this is the guy I called. He's going to take Natalee back to Avengers tower" She explained. Cole's shoulders relaxed and he went to carefully pick Natalee up.
"Make sure she's taken care of" He said as he shifted Natalee into D.J.'s metal arms. The Stark boy carfully adjusted Natalee in his arms.
"No problem...whoever you are. Nikki, you need a lift too?" He turned to her.
"I'll meet you there" Nikki said. D.J. took off and headed for Avengers Tower. "I'm assuming you want to keep your help a secret?"
Cole sighed and picked up his helmet. "I only came out of the dark to help my partner. If her parents or S.H.I.E.L.D. found out she knew me, it could get her into trouble. And that's the last thing I want to do" He said. "Text me updates"
"Sure" Nikki nodded with a small awkward smile. He gave her a nod as he strapped his helmet back on and ran off into the shadows. Nikki's eyes narrowed as he disappeared. Hopefully he won't be a problem.
A/N: Guys this chapter is really long, go me