In front of him, the main screen was split up into four, equal, smaller screens. Each quadrant showed a different angle of the room, but still showing the young lady who sat in the center of the long rectangular table. She seemed to be the main focus of the cameras. He was able to use the arrows on the board that was attached to the screen to select a different quadrant. That way he could enlarge a specific section and have it take over the whole screen. This was useful. He would be able to see more details.

While he knew how to work what sat in front of him, the Man didn't understand this technology. He was wowed by it; He had never seen anything like it. It was smaller than a television, but had the same properties as one. It wasn't a typewriter, but again, it had the same properties as one. Almost like the two had been combined to make one - but was it a smaller television or a sleeker designed typewriter? He wanted to pick it apart and see what it was made of. Foolish. This was a tool. A tool designed to help him find answers he needed in order to take down his enemy. Nothing more.

Shaking his head slightly, he forced the Man back into the darkness. He was not allowed to try to come out during such times. He knew this. Stupid. The Man was never one to listen well and always seemed to try and fight to have control. Idiot. That's why They always let him be in charge. He knew how to get the job done, knew how not to be distracted by the Man, - he was Their greatest asset.

He returned his attention back to the four screens. Back to the women in the professional looking outfit. In each of them, simultaneously, she reached for the glass of water in front of her. Quickly, she chugged it, then poured herself another glass before repeating the action. She was nervous. Her leg bounced in a sporadic rhythm and her fingers drummed against the table. The sound was beginning to pound against his mind, similar to the dull thud of one of the various contraptions They put him in when the Man acted out. Annoying.

His eyes scanned the keys on the board for a way to mute the noise she was making. The Man buzzed in the back of his head, carefully offering up a small memory of a radio with a symbol on it that was used for the volume. There was a similar symbol on the board in front of him and, after he pressed it, the thumping of her fingers stopped. It had worked. Useful.

He memorized the button he pushed; he would need to unmute the sound again later. Currently, it was just the young woman in the room. Soon she would be joined by one of Them in order to be questioned about his mark. The man he had seen on the roof after completing his mission. It seemed she was unaware of the cameras in the room - or maybe she just didn't care enough. Her mind seemed to be elsewhere anyway. Her eyes kept flicking to the door, her hands twisting against each other. She clearly didn't know what was going on. Odd.

The Man was nudging at him from just under the surface. He tried to silence Him; he needed to focus on the young woman on the screen, but the Man wouldn't let him. He couldn't divulge in whatever the Man was trying to tell him. He was supposed to be focusing on more important matters, not these silly games. But still the Man wouldn't retreat.

Because she's familiar.

No, she wasn't. Not to him. He didn't know anyone except Them and the Man, who wasn't usually this annoying. While he was in charge, the Man was muted, never made a fuss and just accepted what was happening. Because He was weak. There was a reason They kept him in charge. And now He was trying to take control? All because of some woman? Goddamnit.

The plates in the metal arm shifted as it moved on it's own accord. The Man had figured out a way in. Before He could do anything stupid or reckless, he shoved the Man back into his place, where He belonged. Extending the arm again, the plates whirred and moved as it reacted to him. Good. He was back in charge. Why was the Man being so stubborn?

Because she's familiar.

God he was infuriating. He couldn't wait until They finalized the means to erase the Man forever. There was no need for Him. He was just a distraction, a weak chain in the link, a soft, sympathetic being. All He had ever done was cry out and beg for Them to stop. He couldn't take the pain, which was why when They brought him out of the Chamber, They made sure He was silenced before He could try anything or realize what was happening. Just a few simple words was all it took.

His flesh hand twitched. The Man managed to slip through again. Fuck. He took in a deep breath, figuring he might as well indulge Him. Maybe He would remember His place once this need was taken care of. They would never need to know about it. About the slip up. He had learned from past mistakes what They would do if He showed His face. If He tried to do anything stupid, tried to take over in any other way, he could shut Him down quickly and forcefully. So he watched the Man control his hand, moving his fingers to the arrow keys.

One of the screens went full sized, the main camera that showed all her features. The Man used the keys to zoom in on the young woman's face. She had sharp features, deep brown eyes that had a bit of sagging skin under them from lack of sleep. Her dark hair was pulled back away from her face, but part of it fell down over her shoulders in gentle waves.

A memory from the Man broke through the surface. It was fuzzy, just like most of His memories. He was useless even when He was trying to prove a point. It was a girl's face - it could of been any girl, not the young woman who was on the screen. The Man thought she was familiar, someone from his past. She wasn't. The past was over seventy years ago. Not that He knew that though. Idiot.

Time was an unnecessary thing to him. It didn't matter or mean anything. All that mattered was what he did for Them. He understood time had passed; there were plenty of things that had changed each time he was brought out from the Chamber. But he didn't pay attention to them. They made sure to drill in everything he needed to know. Literally. That way, he only had one goal: the mission.

Taking back control, he forced the Man away. That was enough of that. He needed to focus on the task They wanted him to complete. If he didn't...well, he didn't plan on that happening. The Man was always the one fucking up and forcing Them to use the Chamber or the Machine.

On the screen, one of Them walked into the room. The young woman sat up straighter in her seat, but her face relaxed. She trusted the man who had stepped in. Good. She would be more unsuspecting when it came to what he asked. Yet, the Man was doing everything in his power to break free; he wanted to warn her. Why had this young woman suddenly pulled Him from the deep hole They had locked him in?

For the past seventy years, He had been in there. A few times, in the beginning, He would try and fight Them. Try and stop Them from doing what they ultimately succeeded in doing. But that just caused pain and suffering. It had taken Him a few punishments to learn that lesson, but nevertheless, He learned it. He became quiet and agreeable, only stirring here and there. They were pleased with the results. And soon, there was barely any sign of the Man anymore. Just the Soldier.

But after what happened on the roof - after that man had tried to attack him, it was like the Man had woken up. They had been able to subdue Him for a long while, but this young woman had made Him more determined. Damnit.

This would cause trouble. He needed to pay attention to what was happening in the room, but the Man was becoming incredibly annoying as He continued to poke at the back of his mind. If he gave into the Man's urges and shut the device off, he wouldn't know what he needed to. If he continued watching the video, the Man wouldn't shut up. Choosing an option would cause either trouble or frustration.

The Man was becoming more and more irritating. As the young woman talked, He kept offering up different blurry memories of a girl who looked and sounded similar to the young woman on the screen. As much as he tried to ignore Him and keep Him repressed, his patience was beginning to wear thin. And he didn't have much patience to begin with.

Shutting his eyes shut tightly, he tried to block out the memories. But they just came faster and faster - like a slideshow. Visual images coupled with distorted sounds that didn't quite match up with the memory itself. "Hey! Save some for me!" A tire swing. Spinning skirts. "Ow! That's too tight!" Birthday cake. A butterfly hairpin. "You're a real piece of work, you know that?"

The plates of the metal arm moved smoothly into a fist as he reacted to the Man's incessant flood of memories. In one fluid motion, he struck the screen of the device with the metal fist. The screen crackled and hissed as he pulled his fist from the hole he had created. The electricity from the device ran up the metal arm, causing a buzz to vibrate through it. He shook it off; he had felt worse pain before. The screen had gone dark. There was no sign of the young woman anymore. The Man fell silent at the realization, the memories fading. Finally.

Before he could refocus, two pairs of rough hands grabbed him and yanked him up from his chair. They said nothing, but he knew what was coming. And he knew better than to fight against Them. Even though he had gotten the Man to shut up, he didn't complete the mission. Failure was not an option. At least what was coming next would shut the Man up for a long while.

Meanwhile, in the room that definitely wasn't a waiting area, Q was trying not to freak out. Agents had taken Steve off to go talk to Secretary Pierce, which didn't seem good at all. Plus, everything he had said to her earlier in the morning was beginning to weigh on her. She had never wanted to leave the Triskelion more than in that moment. Except she couldn't. That would raise even more suspicions than her staying. She needed to play their game until she was back with Steve and somewhere where it was safe.

After several minutes of waiting, the door finally opened. Halliday stepped through and shut the door behind him, giving her a small smile. He had a notepad, file folder and pen in one hand, using his free hand to unbutton his suit jacket.

"Halliday," she breathed out, surprisingly relieved that he had walked through the door, "What the hell is going on?"

"There's no need to freak out, Proctor." he assured her as he took the seat across from her, "Just came in here to ask you a few questions."

"About what?" she asked, brow furrowing in slight confusion. She didn't realize she needed to be questioned about anything. Halliday gave her a tight smile as he flipped open the folder.

"About Project Van Winkle." he answered, spinning the folder over to show her that it contained the same materials that she had been given six months before. Compared to where they were now, six months ago seemed like such a long time.

"Why would you need to know anything about that?" she asked, still confused. Fury had assigned the project, not Halliday and he hadn't been looped in on anything during the project. Not even fully redacted summary reports.

"Because we will be taking you off the project." he said matter of factly, spinning the folder back around to face him.

"What?" she leaned forward, surprised and even more confused than she had been when he first started talking. "Why?" There was no reason for her to be taken off the project at such a critical time. Now, more than ever, was it important for her to be with Steve while they figured out the whole "SHIELD being compromised" thing.

"I need you to tell me everything about your time with Captain Rogers." he ignored her question, moving on, "We have the audio files from the time you spent in his apartment," he glanced up at her with a knowing look. She tried ignore the sudden rock in her stomach when she realized he had heard some of the things she had said, "But we'd also like to get your personal insight. Please." he gestured to her, indicating that it was her time to talk.

Something was off. She sat back in her seat, folding her hands on the table as she let her eyes travel over the agent in front of her. Her former boss. She may have only spent six months with Steve, but she had spent several years with the man sitting across the table. She knew him like the back of her hand.

His appearance was calm, too calm. His face was a little pinkish and his nostrils flared on their on accord. And the way he talked. It was tight and straight to the point - questions were ignored because he didn't want to get caught off guard by something he wasn't prepared for. He used a lot of we's and failed to make it personal. He was lying.

"What's really going on, Halliday?" she asked, leaning forward more. He immediately leaned back.

"We just need to know everything about your project." he said matter of factly, not meeting her eye. She stared at him until it became uncomfortable and he finally looked up - then quickly looked away and cleared his throat.

"Agent Proctor, I would suggest working with us instead of trying to figure out if there was something else happening." he tilted his head to the side before meeting her eyes again, "We're on the same team here, remember?" he raised his eyebrows up a bit. They stared at each other for a long time as she watched his skin return to normal and his Adam's apple stop bobbing up and down. He was calmer, more under control. She had lost her chance.

"Fine." she sighed out, "Everything you need to know about Project Insight has been documented from the moment we began." she stood up from her chair, "If you would just let me head down to my office and grab my packets -"

"I'm afraid that isn't possible." he stood up as well, hand out as if to stop her from going anywhere. She paused, looking from his hand, then to his face.

"Well, why not?" she asked, arms crossing over her chest, "What aren't you telling me?" Steve's words were stuck in her head like a bad song: SHIELD had been compromised. Her eyes darted over to the door and then back to where he was standing in front of her. If she needed to, she could take him. She was scrappy and all bones - a nicely landed elbow in the face would be enough.

"Proctor," he took in a deep breath, "I'm sorry to tell you this, but -" before he could finish his thought, the door suddenly swung open.

"Yo, Halliday," Dawson raised his eyebrows up at the other agent, "They need you up at ops." he clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth and threw a casual thumb over his shoulder. Halliday sighed before nodding, eyes darting over to Q before landing back on Dawson,

"Keep an eye on her." he said, pointing the notepad in his hand at the other man before walking past him. Dawson nodded, but didn't say anything.

Once Halliday left, Dawson quickly crossed the room and grabbed her by her elbow, "Come on, we gotta go." he said urgently, voice low. She pulled her elbow out from his grasp, fixing him with a hard look,

"Not until you tell me what the hell is going on. And what the hell was that!?" she flung her hand toward where Halliday left. Dawson sighed, shoulders slumping down before his hand came to rub at his forehead,

"If you had just listened to me at the hospital -"

"Oh, so now this is somehow my fault!?" she cut him off. She was not about to be blamed for doing her job.

"This really isn't a good time!" he yelled back at her. Her eyes went wide and she shook her head, leaning back and throwing her arms wide,

"When is a good time!?" she cried out.

"Oh my God!" Dawson shouted out, slicing his hand through the air before taking in a deep breath. He set his stance, one hand on his hip, another pointed directly at her as he leaned forward a bit, "SHIELD's been compromised by Hydra, there's rogue agents - high up rogue agents - and they're after Rogers which means they're after you." he talked quickly and tightly, pushing his hand forward and toward her. She didn't respond. He knew SHIELD had been compromised as well. How had he figured it out? Before she could ask, he interrupted her, "Which means we have to get the hell out of here!" he shouted out, eyes going wide and brows raising up. She jumped at the volume of his voice and then nodded quickly.

"Yep, yeah, got it, understood." she gathered up her things, ignoring Dawson's muttering about how he didn't know how she had made it this far. But before they left the room, she paused, "How do I know I can trust you?" she asked, making him groan.

"I'm the one breaking you out, aren't I?" he asked back, widening his eyes a bit before gesturing toward the door, "Now? Can we go?" he asked, exasperated by her. She nodded and gave him a small smile before walking out of the room.

Falling into step with her, they walked down the hall together and he kept close - glancing around at everyone they past. She had never been this close to him before and for the first time since she met him, he looked nervous and anxious. His fingers were playing with the edge of his blazer and he had been chewing on the inside of his cheek ever since they left the room.

"How did you find out that SHIELD was compromised?" she asked quietly, trying to have him talk so he wouldn't gnaw a hole in his cheek.

"Fury told me." he responded, voice quiet, but serious. She did a double take, looking at him with wide eyes. Fury had told two people before her. Why didn't he tell her? Did he not trust her?

"When?" she whispered.

"Before whatever the fuck happened at Rogers' apartment." he explained, eyes shifting over to an agent they passed on their way to the main lobby. He sighed, "I don't know much, but I know we have to get out of here." She nodded and looked ahead,

"And what about Steve?" she asked. He stopped in his tracks, getting her attention. She turned back to see that there was a smirk on his face and his eyebrows were raised. There were zero signs of the anxiety and nervousness she had witness moments earlier.

"Steve?" he asked, "What happened to Captain Rogers?" he pushed his tongue out into his cheek and placed his hands on his hips. Q made a face and raised her hand up, trying to be casual.

"Well, it's his name." she shrugged and Dawson laughed.

"Holy shit, you slept with him!" he rolled forward on his toes, clearly excited about what he figured out. She tried to control her reaction but could feel her face beginning to flush.

"Wha-no, no, that would be completely unprofessional." she forced out a laugh before falling serious, "Don't we have more important matters to take care of?" she crossed her arms over her chest and raised her eyebrows up as she quickly changed the subject. The smile fell off his face and transformed into an unamused look.

"Fine, but we're talking about this later." he pointed at her as he walked by.

"Oh, yeah, right after we figure out how to escape from a compromised SHIELD." she grumbled out before following after him. "So what about Steve?" she circled back to her first question. He sighed, waving his hand in the air,

"He can take care of himself." Now, it was her turn to stop walking. He walked a few more paces before he realized it and turned around with a heavy sigh, "We have to goooo." he dragged the word out for emphasis, swinging his arms toward the lobby that was through the double doors they were a few steps away from. She crossed her arms over her chest,

"Not without Steve." she said matter of factly.

"He can. Take care. Of himself." he answered her, pinching his fingers together and motioning them down with every sentence. "He's the world's first superhero. He'll be fine." he raised his arms up and out.

"We have to find him." she shook her head, "Who knows what Pierce will do with him. Or who he has after him." she started walking again, exiting out into the main lobby. "I'm not leaving without him." she said seriously with a glance over her shoulder at Dawson.

Turning back front, she started for the elevators. There were so many people walking in so many different directions. Almost all of them were unaware of what was going on. She took in a breath and tried to act as normal as she could; there were probably people in the lobby who did know what was going on and she didn't want to cause them to think twice when they noticed her.

Suddenly, Dawson grabbed her arm and yanked her back right as something came crashing through the glass ceiling of the main lobby. She held up her arms to block her face from any shards of glass that came flying through the air as whatever came out of the sky landed with a hard, loud thump. Screams echoed around the area, there was the ringing sound of metal hitting the ground at an intense speed and, for a split second, Q swore her heart stopped. She looked down to see that it wasn't something, but it was someone.

"Steve!?" she cried out, arms dropping to her sides. He let out a groan, lying against his shield for a moment as if he needed to catch his breath. Then he curled his fist and used it to push himself up. Glass fell off his body as he stood up, but he paid no mind to it. He glanced around where he had landed, eyes falling on her for a split second before shifting away. She watched him take in a deep breath before he started to run off toward the stairwell that led to the garage without even another glance in her direction.

"What the fuck just happened?!" she yelled out, splaying her hands out and shaking them a bit while speaking for everyone loitering in the lobby after Steve fell through the ceiling. Again, Dawson's hand came around her arm.

"We gotta get the hell out of Dodge." he quoted before tugging her toward the main doors. Q kept her eyes on where Steve had landed amongst the glass from the ceiling; things just seemed to be getting worse.

Things were certainly getting worse for Steve. After being separated from Q and then during his conversation with Secretary Pierce, he had was confident that something that was off, which made him question Pierce's motives for having such a conversation with him. It's not like they had ever had one before the events of the night prior. And what Pierce had said, didn't seem right to him. Steve tried to be as casual as possible, telling him what he wanted to hear, but not telling him everything.

And he thought he got away with it. Until he stepped on the elevator. He was headed to Ops to try and find Dawson - figuring he would know where Q was being held, when Rumlow and some of his STRIKE team stepped on the elevator with him. Then some agents stepped on as well, then even more STRIKE team members. It became pretty clear to him that it was a set up. And while Rumlow said it wasn't personal, Steve didn't believe him. Not only did he have...something with Q, he also never really liked Rumlow. It seemed like he had figured that out.

Still, he managed to get out of the situation by jumping out of the elevator and plummeting through the ceiling of the main lobby. Was it his smartest idea? No. But it got him out of the elevator before the compromised STRIKE team could get to him first.

He somehow managed to time it so he landed right at Q's feet. If he had been a few seconds earlier - he probably would've landed on top of her. She looked shocked, confused and a little scared all at once. He should've said something, anything, but he couldn't linger and put her in more danger than he already had. So he ran off.

That was stupid of him. He should've at least taken her with him. Grabbed her hand, picked her up, threw her over his shoulder - really anything to get her out of the Triskelion and out of danger. Was it really safer that he left her there? Maybe. She wouldn't be a fugitive from the one home she had really had. Or what was left of it. But now he was worried about what would happen to her since he had left her. Would SHIELD use her to their own personal gain? They probably were doing that already, but now it could turn into something worse. He really shouldn't have left her there.

Pushing his worry about her aside, he focused on his plan of action. He had escaped the Triskelion, which was the most important step. He had to figure out what to do next - like where to go. Not to his apartment; that was a crime scene and most likely the first place SHIELD would look for him. He could go to Q's. Since she was still at the Triskelion, it would be empty and she had told him no one really knew where she lived. That would be safe for a bit.

While he knew he couldn't stay there for long, it gave him a place to nail down his plan. He had to retrieve the flash drive Fury had given him before he died. There had to be something on there that was important. Steve had hidden it in the vending machine at the hospital and he was pretty positive it would still be there. But before he could go anywhere, he had to ditch his uniform. That made him stand out like a sore thumb.

Q's apartment didn't offer much. Her closet was all full of clothes she usually wore, but there was a duffel bag in the back. Thinking he might as well see if there was anything useful in there, he grabbed it and opened it up. Inside, there were a pair of sweatpants, a zip up hoodie, a white t-shirt and a pair of sneakers all stuffed inside. It looked like something similar to what Frankie had worn during his visit. He pulled them out and quickly began to redress himself, silently thanking him for forgetting to pack his laundry.

Before he left for the hospital, he spotted Q's reading glasses on the bedside table. He remembered something Dawson had said about how no one recognized Superman because he was wearing glasses. Without a moment's pause, he swiped her glasses from the table and put them in his pocket as he was leaving.

A/N: I know not all that much happened this chapter, but I just kinda wanted to set up what's to come! I hope you all enjoyed reading it. TBH I didn't get as many reviews on the last chapter as I was expecting to and that made me uh...kinda sad and I feel like you guys didn't like it lol so if you could please review this one, that would be great! Thank you to those few people who reviewed the last chapter!