It was dark again—no, wait, her eyes were just closed. Slowly, Elizabeth's shut eyes had blinked themselves to an open; her aching body adjusting itself to its current laying position on a cot as her eyes did the same to the sudden light.
/Light?/ The blonde girl was surprised as her open eyes fell on what seemed like a transparent window to a room, inside which fluorescent light pulsed over a silver operating table. At the sight, she had shut her eyes again, though only to yet again open to the new, almost strange reality in front of her. Once she had confirmed it was in fact real, she scanned the rest of the room she was currently occupying. There was a silver stool in the corner, next to a table that came off the wall with a chain to keep it upright, and a door ahead of where she laid with a small window, giving the room another source of light. Small, plain, and simple.
Steadily, she had stood from the cot in curiosity, though only to find that all her burns and cuts had been covered in various gauzes and bandages; her bruises past their dark stages and beginning to fade in a slight yellow tone. Her slip had been replaced as well, though this time instead of a pure white, it was a blood red, making her cringe as a specific skull emblem began to dance across her vision.
"Good, you're awake." The new voice was sudden, making Elizabeth jump from shock as her body began to fearfully shake again. As the figure who accompanied the voice came into view, her fear started to fade as she finally faced someone who she knew wouldn't hurt her.
After all, Alexander Pierce was on her side.
"Pierce... How'd you find me? What happened? Did you manage to get Phoenix from—," the questions came hammering down first, her mind completely jumping over the fact that whatever vocal damage she experienced by her own screams was now seemingly healed, before her eyes had landed on the figure standing in the doorway Piece had entered. "What's he doing here...?" now her words were barely inaudible; her body beginning to shake again as she realized yet again Nicholas Whitehall was in her presence. Her stomach had contorted itself in the most gruesome of ways as his cold, dark eyes met her once-gold-now-dulled-to-a-bronze ones.
"Mr. Whitehall is here merely as your first motivation for compliance, Doctor." Pierce had begun behind Eliza as a breath hitched itself in her throat.
/Anyone can betray anyone.../
"You say first as if I'd need another." the blonde girls attempt at composure was merely an act, for inside she was beginning to malfunction once more, preparing to collapse against the cot she woke on any second before a door opened, though not on this side of the room.
"I say first because you'd /wish/ you didn't need another." but Pierces words were nothing but ambient words in her ear as her gaze fell on the room on the other side of the window; two of those clad-in-black men entering and standing by the door before another two dragged a limp body.
Eliza's stomach continued its contorting movements as she studied the the limp figure, realizing it was a man's, and also quite familiar.
The men carrying the body had lifted him up and onto the silver table she observed earlier, now giving her a full view of who exactly this was and wishing she had looked away while she had the chance.
"Dom..." The name came out almost as a whisper as she took a step towards the glass; her heart beginning to race in her chest as her mind began to fully process the situation. /Of course/ Pierce was a part of Hydra; a part of the decomposing parasite and so high in a rank no one would suspect. /Of course/ he had somehow found out about her ties to the eldest Stark son, and so of course he was unconscious in front of her, about to be used as a tool destroy whatever individuality she had left inside.
Her lip began to quiver as she felt a "please don't hurt him" begin to escape, though the strength she used to stand up was now being moved to her mind, allowing her to formulate words that may get her somewhere. "You wouldn't dare... His name is too public for you to just wipe off the grid—,"
"Do you know how fast Stark's drive their car's on public streets?" Somehow, that was Pierces beginning argument as his now cold eyes met Elizabeth's own; her hand beginning to toy with the end of fabric on her slip, needing something to keep herself occupied and standing instead of screaming and collapsing. "Close to a hundred and thirty miles per hour. A collision at that speed would mean an instantaneous death." she had shut her eyes at these words; the story Pierce was telling her being a replica of what could be published in the papers for the next day. And no one would question it.
It wasn't anywhere close to silent now, for her breaths were heavy in her chest, making the blood rush faster and louder around her ears, creating a low humming sound all the while. If she wanted to say something this was her chance, because in the next few seconds everyones attention seemed to fall to the body in the room over.
It was loud, and it was sudden; Dominic's intake of air as he suddenly sat up from the silver table, looking everything over in seconds with his deep blue eyes. Now it was Eliza's hearts' turn to sink, contort even. He was there, and he was now a weapon.
"The arc reactor would keep his heart beating even after your so called accident, no one would—." She had stopped herself mid sentence, feeling her eyes glaze over as a hand went to her mouth in order to cover a silent sob.
"What average American would pay attention to those details?" Nicholas had begun to speak on his end of the room, though Eliza hadn't given him her attention as she watched the Hydra men begin to tie down Dominic's arms with restraints, moving to the ankles as he began his resistance. "Besides," he had went on, only causing the small girl to visibly wince at his voice. "it wouldn't be a surprise if it just... Popped out."
And the whirring began.
She didn't know what machine it was, or how it even got there without her noticing; all she knew was as soon as it turned on, she had screamed, and unknowingly, she had screamed Dom's name.
At the mere sound, Dominic on the other side froze, hearing the voice as his eyes fell towards a mirror in the room and everything seemed to look clear in his eyes.
"Liz...? Liz!" but before he could yell any louder, the whirring noise had come to a stop, causing the man to attempt to double over on the table and groan in pain; the noise hadn't stopped because it turned off, oh no, it had stopped because it had come into contact with the one thing that left the eldest Stark son standing. It had latched itself onto the glowing arc reactor in his chest; the low humming sound filling the room as Elizabeth finally stopped screaming, breathing heavily as everyone stared down into the other room.
"Was this just to provoke her—?"
"No... Somethings wrong... Maybe the timing was off, or the electricity went o—," Pierce hadn't had a chance to finish speaking, for his words were interrupted by Dominic's shallow breaths as the whirring begun again; the frail girls screams soon to follow.
It was quite the scene really; there was not a single place you could take a focus, for in one room you had a girl screaming to save the life for a man she had loved, and in the other the man willing to give his life for a woman whom he had loved. If it were a comedy, you would have laughed, however that action was left for the Whitehall boy and Alexander Pierce, who were grinning like two idiots while holding the small girl back as to keep her from banging on the glass.
"You have close to twenty seconds to make your decision." Nicholas' voice was like poison on her ear, causing her voice to crack mid "LETHIMGONOW,PLEASE!" as she had sobbed instead, listening to the breathless man on the other side still managing to speak.
"Liz," large intake of air as the whirring still went on. "don't tell them anything; don't give them what they want I'm—," another large intake, causing the girls eyes to water as she attempted once more to pull from the grasp of the two men. "I'm fine." he had finished, his skin beginning to pale itself to a paste as Elizabeth only continued her screams along with her struggle.
"Ten seconds."
"Really? I'd say seven."
"Don't get smart with me, Whitehall; maybe you've forgotten but I—,"
"Stop! Stop it, I'll do it! I swear! Just let him go!" their banter only worsened her condition, making the words of compliance jump from
her mouth and causing her to stop, earning both hesitation and stares from the two men as Pierce let go of her arms.
"Repeat that for me please."
"I'll finish the damn algorithm," she had begun as fast as she could, hearing the whirring ahead of her and Dominic's attempt at reassurance, only making her wince in her place as another sob threatened to escape. "just please... Let him go." her voice was but a whisper as Pierce had stared at her, making her want to scream as she could hear the Stark struggling to keep a hold onto his life on the other side. But with a simple hand-gesture towards the window, the whirring stopped; the machine letting go of the one thing that the Stark's life depended on and pushing itself back into the corner of inexistence.
Everything was silent, except for the dim hum of the arc reactor coming back to life, and the rush of blood around Elizabeths ears; her eyes trained on the almost lifeless body of Dominic Stark practically in front if her, watching as the color of his complexion subtly returned before his head had turned to face her despite him actually only seeing his own reflection. Unknowingly or not, a breath had hitched itself in her throat; the classic, brown eyes meet blues scenario played out in the worst way ever as she took a step back, only to feel a hand on her shoulder.
"Compliance will be rewarded, Dr. Childs. You'll see." she hadn't turned to see Pierces reaction as he spoke, for her eyes were fixed on another's as her heart hasn't seemed to cease its rapid beating, though finally breaking away the contact with a wince at Nicholas' final words to her.
"Hail Hydra."