Part 2 – The First Ghost
Colonel Fury placed his hand on the hand-print analyzer, and with a quick discharge of steam, the capsule opened, and the first Ghost Warrior SHIELD would activate opened his eyes and took in a large lung-full of air before sitting up in the capsule.
What the Colonel wasn't expecting was the Ghost Warrior's eyes were silver and had no pupil.
As he swung his feet off the edge of the capsule, he stepped down onto the floor and stumbled a little bit before standing upright in front of the Colonel.
"Colonel Fury sir," he said as he saluted him.
"What is your designation trooper," Colonel Fury asked.
"I'm afraid I don't have one, sir," the Ghost Warrior said, "Since Ghost Warriors aren't naturally born we aren't given names. Seeing as I am the first, and there is no protocol for this situation it would only seem natural that as you woke me up, it should fall to you to give me a name, Colonel."
"Ok," Colonel Fury said, he pondered for a few moments before speaking, "Ok, your first name is… Barrett and your last name is… White."
"Barrett," he said, "Barrett White, it has a nice ring to it. I like it."
"Good, because you will respond to either that or Captain," Colonel Fury said as he walked over to a small shelf, and picked out a SHIELD Agent suit: a pair of black leather boots, blue slacks, a thick black leather belt, a white under-shirt, and a long-sleeve blue zip-up shirt with the SHIELD symbol on both arms with three metallic silver bands running around the left arm, "Because that's the rank I am assigning you."
"Thank you, Colonel," Barrett said as he was handed the uniform by Colonel Fury.
"Put that on, and let's get to work," Colonel Fury said.
"Yes sir," Barrett said.
The undershirt was the first thing on, then the slacks, the socks that came with the boots, the boots themselves, then the shirt which zipped up with ease, and then finally the belt.
"The colors work on you," Colonel Fury said, "Welcome to SHIELD."
"Thank you, Colonel," Barrett said.
"Come on, I've got your first assignment," Colonel Fury said.
"Yes sir," Barrett said as he followed the Colonel out of the room.
"What are you trained to specialize in Captain," Colonel Fury asked.
"I was designed for unconventional warfare and espionage," Barrett said as they entered the elevator to the main level, "With specialties in long-range engagements, hand-to-hand combat, social arts, and stealth."
"Perfect," Colonel Fury said as the elevator began climbing, "Your first objective is a P.O.W. rescue."
"Another SHIELD agent," Barrett asked as the elevator opened on the main floor, and they stepped out.
"No," Colonel Fury said, "Someone much more important."
"An Avenger," Barrett asked.
"Yes," Colonel Fury said, "Ms. Marvel."
"Carol Danvers," Barrett asked, "She's been captured?"
"Here's the report," Colonel Fury said as he handed Barrett the after-action report.
"So the HYDRA discovered ancient Kree batteries, and used them to create advanced weapons for the Nazis," Barrett said, "You sent a four-man strike team in to ascertain what they were, and thanks to Wolverine, Ms. Marvel was captured."
"That is correct," Colonel Fury said, "Right now the Council refuses to grant permission to send in another strike team."
As Barrett and Colonel Fury were moving through the ship, Barrett noticed that everyone was looking at him differently, then again not that many of them had white hair, silver eyes, and just showed up.
"That's why you woke me up," Barrett said.
"Yes," Colonel Fury said as they entered the Helicarrier's armory, "I would like to keep you here and test you further before we send you out into the field being as you're the first of your kind. But we don't have a choice, Carol Danvers is very important to our operations, and we need her out of there."
"How am I going in," Barrett asked.
"Anyway you want," Colonel Fury said as he stood across the table from Barrett, a plethora of weapons laid out in front of him, "With whatever weapon you want."
Barrett was very quick to gravitate toward the knives first, what his hand first fell on was an M9 Bayonet, "To big," he said as he put it back before picking up a standard Karambit, "Too small," his eyes then fell on a medium-sized knife, what he picked up was a Huntsman knife with a six-inch blade and a five-inch handle, "Perfect," he holstered the knife, and placed it on the opposite side of the table from where Colonel Fury was standing.
Barrett instantly knew what he wanted when he saw it: a Springfield Armory TRP with an olive drab finish, wood grips, and a threaded barrel. Upon closer inspection, there were several other features: a bored chamber, custom skeleton trigger, Novak night sight, combat hammer, beveled mag well, ambidextrous safety, and an extended slide stop and release.
Barrett placed the pistol next to the knife, "Rifle," Colonel Fury asked.
Barrett walked around the table before finding something he could work with: a custom Vektor R5 with a UTG quad rail mount, ERGO rail covers, an Aimpoint sight and a 3x Aimpoint magnifier.
Placing the gun against his shoulder, he did a quick sight check: very dead on. He then checked the bolt: smoother than a glass of whiskey.
"Never knew a long-range specialist would like an assault rifle," Colonel Fury said.
"Going to need something I can maneuver once I'm inside," Barrett said as he strapped the knife to his belt and the pistol to his right leg.
"Indeed," Colonel Fury said, "Now, when do you want to leave?"
Barrett picked up a twenty-round magazine for the R5 and slapped it into the rifle.
"Immediately," he said.
Five hours later…
Two guards in the northern tower of Ms. Rochelle's castle were talking about the blonde bombshell the stupid Americans left behind as they ran with their tails between their legs.
What they didn't know was that several hundred yards away, a pair of M1580 binoculars was watching them.
Barrett had covered himself in a bundle of moss and leaves to act as a make-shift ghillie blanket.
They both carried SIG SG 552s with mounted flashlights, DBAL D2 laser pointers, and Trijicon ACOG scopes.
The sniper in the eastern tower had set his DTA SRS-A1 down next to him to have a smoke.
Knowing how an enemy moves can be a huge advantage for a Ghost Warrior, it would help him determine how to plan his assault.
The castle was almost completely made of stone, perfect for sneaking, not to mention there was a storm front moving in that evening which would disguise his movements perfectly.
As he was examining the south wall, he noticed a small crack that traveled all the way up the wall that he could easily fit his hands into: perfect for climbing.
Barrett pressed two fingers to his earpiece, "Nest, this is Platinum Cobra," Barrett said, "Nest acknowledge."
"This is Nest," Colonel Fury said, "What do you have Cobra?"
"I think I've found a way in," he said, "I will make my assault tonight."
"Indeed," Colonel Fury said, "Bring our girl home Captain."
"She'll be back in time for dinner before you know it," Barrett said.
That night…
The storm that was rolling in was in no way a hurricane, but the thunder was booming, the two guards patrolling the wall kept on talking about how nice Ms. Marvel looked.
They turned around to check on a sudden whistle they heard over the rain, and two bursts from a fully-automatic assault rifle dropped them like stones.
Running over to the bodies, Barrett grabbed them by their legs and dragged them out of sight as he checked his surroundings: clear.
The scaling of the crack in the wall wasn't exactly a small feat, especially when it had been raining for about two hours prior.
Barrett paused just a few inches below the top when he heard two more men talking about the rain, a departure from calling Ms. Marvel a hot, stupid American.
As soon as they turned around, Barrett slowly raised himself onto the ledge and drew his knife and 1911.
He grabbed the first one around the throat, driving the knife into his ribs, getting his lungs, then putting a suppressed .45 round in between the second guard's eyes.
The first guard still tried to scream, but he didn't get the chance as Barrett yanked his neck sharply to the right, and he went limp in his arms.
As he let the man fall to the ground, the knife slid out of the man's ribcage and began dripping with blood.
Taking a moment to observe it he wondered what type of blood he had pulsing through his own veins.
He didn't have time to think as he heard footsteps approaching, quickly kicking the bodies off the edge, he jumped into cover behind a low wall, and watched from behind cover as two guards walked by him.
Navigating the grounds without getting caught in the spotlight was a small obstacle: over the years wear and tear on the walls of the castle had left debris scattered all over the place, and there was the fact that the guards had moved equipment around.
The security office was just ahead, a quick magazine change would be all he really needed to.
Of course, everyone was in close proximity so timing it perfectly would be trouble, but not too much as he charged across the grounds, and threw himself into the door right as a single thunderclap exploded in the skies above them.
The four men inside turned to see Barrett drop one of the guards with four rounds to the chest.
The others reached for their weapons, but as Barrett slid across the counter he landed against, he dropped one who managed to get his hand on his S&W M&P only to have Barrett fire five rounds, throwing him out of his chair as he fell forward.
The third managed to get his pistol out of the holster, only to have Barrett fire five rounds, dropping him against the floor.
The fourth managed to pick up his M4 only to have Barrett empty the rest of the magazine into his body.
Barrett landed on the floor and walked over to the security camera station: he found Ms. Marvel on camera 6. The room was about five feet by seven feet. By the flat, square layout of the cell, the view of the trees through the small window he could see that she was most likely on the fourth floor on the west side of the castle.
He then noticed the number of injuries on her, but he didn't have time to think of that as he knew he had a mission to achieve.
Walking over to the exit, he quickly, but steadily ascended the steps, making sure to scan the area in front of him.
As he arrived on the third floor, he suddenly heard a series of footsteps above him.
He jumped into cover behind the archway, he quickly unscrewed the lightbulb above him as he heard two guards walk past him, and walk down the hall.
There was defiantly heavy security above him, he was on the right track, and there was no way he could get by all of them.
Looking at the side wall he realized something, old architects of medieval castles would often build small spaces between rooms to maximize soundproofing.
Going through the cells, he finally found the one that should have been right below Ms. Marvel's.
He made sure to pack a small amount of C4 before leaving the helicarrier, a small piece against the wall, a small blasting cap, and a chance to wait for the thunder to explode was all he needed to blow a hole in the wall, and open a passage between the two walls.
The supports were wood so as he was climbing them he needed to be careful as he scaled the beams to where he hypothesized Ms. Marvel was located.
One of the bricks was loose, and all he had to do was simply pull it out, only to find himself staring at Ms. Marvel's gloves crossed behind her back, covering the bottom of her costume.
Trying his best not to touch her, he knocked two more bricks out of place, and let them fall to the ground floor of the castle before whispering, "Carol Danvers," Ms. Marvel looked as far as she could over her shoulder to see someone looking up at her through a ten inch by eight inch hole in the wall, "I'm with SHIELD, here to get you out of her."
"Who are you," Ms. Marvel asked.
"I'll explain later," Barrett said, "Can you free yourself?"
"No," Ms. Marvel said, "The chains are made of Aniumantium. I can buckle them, but I won't be able to break them."
"Alright then," Barrett said, "Guess we'll have to do this the old fashion way."
"Explosives," Ms. Marvel asked.
"And risk harming the VIP," Barrett asked as he rummaged around in his satchel, "I may be young, but I don't want to know I don't want to get on Commander Fury's bad side."
"Then how," Ms. Marvel asked.
She got her answer when Barrett dropped a small bag on the edge of the opening and produced a small device connected by a telescopic rail, "New SHIELD technology," he said as he attached them to the cuffs, and magnetically locked them in place.
A simple push and the device began to emit a small high-pitched whirl before there was the distinct smell of melting metal.
Aniumantium gives off a distinct nickel-like smell when it starts to melt, the two halves that Barrett placed them on were right over the locking mechanism, so as soon as it melted through the mechanism, the lock simply popped off, and Carol was able to free herself.
"Thanks," she said as she turned around to face the hole, "You have a plan for getting us out of here?"
"If you can open a bigger hole in this wall, then yes," Barrett said.
Carol simply punched the wall, causing Barrett to shield his face as the dust settled, "That big enough," she asked.
"Yep," Barrett said as Carol entered the well with him, only to have the two guards standing outside her cell to turn and see her enter a hole in the wall.
As soon as they entered, they had no time as Barrett ripped the 1911 out of its holster, and emptied the pistol into the two of them.
"Timetable just moved up," Barrett said as he reloaded the 1911, holstered the pistol, and using both hands as breaks, slid down the void to the first floor where Ms. Marvel had already arrived.
"What now," Ms. Marvel asked.
"Just through there please," Barrett said as he pointed at the wall to his left.
Ms. Marvel planted her arm through the wall, knocking it down, and allowing Barrett to enter back into the control room.
"Which way now," Ms. Marvel asked.
"Out the way I came," Barrett said as he walked over to the door to see the sounds inside the castle were completely ignored by the men in the courtyard.
As they were making their way back across the courtyard, Ms. Rochelle was walking to the cells to personally interrogate Ms. Marvel.
Her hair was pinned upwards in a double-bun, and she wore a pink dress with to cuts outs in the sleeves over the biceps and forearms and an oval was cut out over her top to reveal the top of her cleavage.
Her high heels made a sharp clicking sound as she walked down the halls with her guards, "She has yet to reveal anything," the guard walking with her said.
"That will change today," Ms. Rochelle said as she handed the guard a pulse rifle, and smiled, "If she refuses to give us anything, use this on her as much as you want."
As she arrived on the fourth floor, she saw most of the guards watching the finals of the soccer (football for European viewers) match when she noticed the door to Ms. Marvel's cell was wide open.
She rushed up to see the two guards she had posted outside were dead, the chains were on the floor, there was a huge gaping hole in the wall, and Ms. Marvel was missing.
"Uh-oh," the guard said as he looked at Ms. Rochelle who ran over to the window.
As soon as she saw Barrett and Ms. Marvel making their way across the last remaining yards of the courtyard, she screamed, "ESCAPE! ESCAPE!"
Alarms then started going off all across the grounds as Barrett turned around to see the guards grabbing their weapons.
"Now we can jump," Barrett said as he and Ms. Marvel jumped off the second level of the courtyard, allowing Ms. Marvel's flight to slowly guide them to safety.
Several guards lined up on the edge of the wall to fire at them, "This how you saw the end of this rescue mission going," Ms. Marvel asked.
"Not exactly," Barrett said as they ran into the woods, bullets whistling everywhere, and the sound of alarms slowly fading as they ran further and further away.
The Quinjet pilot waiting for them immediately spooled up the engines as he saw the two of them running through the tree line.
The two of them jumped on board just as the jet began rising into the air, and most of Ms. Rochelle's men came running through the tree line after them.
Before they could raise their weapons though, the back gate of the jet closed, and the jet rocketed off towards safety.
"Not the worst rescue I've been involved in," Carol said as she sat across from Barrett, "Now… you want to tell me your name?"
"My name is Barrett White," he said, "I'm SHIELD's newest weapon."
"What does that mean," Ms. Marvel asked.
"You'll get your answers when we arrive," Barrett said.
What do you think of that now…