Chapter 7

It had become Daisy's habit to pick a random file, and then read all the ones linked to it before bed. Yet, sometimes, something would catch her eye and the random file wasn't exactly random. When Daisy saw the name Camp Lehigh, she couldn't help but be curious. Steve had told her a thing of two about his training, but Daisy wanted to know how S.H.I.E.L.D saw it. The number one thing Daisy had discovered over the past few weeks of reading was that S.H.I.E.L.D never saw events the way the rest of the world did.

The file spoke about the camps early work as an SSR training Camp but much to Daisy's surprise the camp didn't end with the war. It was repurposed, and, in the end, became the "final resting place of Arnim Zola."

There was a link to Zola's file, and Daisy followed it, scanning towards the end, trying to figure out why Hydra's head scientist was buried at a SSR, then S.H.I.E.L.D facility.

She found her answer the under the heading "Collaboration with S.H.I.E.L.D." Apparently someone considered him rehabilitated and allowed him to work on something called Project Insight.

Of course, Daisy had to click on that link, and so everything fell apart.

Normally Daisy would head into the Triskelion with Steve, but she was gone before he woke up. If she saw him Daisy knew she would burst out the truth. She couldn't do that to him not when she didn't know who was involved. Pierce would know what to do. The Secretary of the World Security Council would know how to stop Hydra.

Daisy wasn't a naturally paranoid person, but she had been trained by Natasha. All night her mind had been turning over the possibility that Hydra wasn't destroyed, not fully. Project Insight was terrifying, a fleet designed to wipe out any possible threat, based on an algorism designed by a Nazi. That just seemed like a really, really, really terrible idea to Daisy. No one, not even S.H.I.E.L.D, should have that kind of power. S.H.I.E.L.D wouldn't want that kind of power so long as S.H.I.E.L.D was just S.H.I.E.L.D. There had to be something else. There had to be Hydra.

But who? Who around Daisy was secretly a Nazi? She trusted Fury, Maria, Clint, Nat, Steve, Pierce, her dad but besides that? There were hundreds of S.H.I.E.L.D agents at the Triskelion. Any one of them could be Hydra, and they surely wouldn't take well to the Starkling knowing their plan. Daisy would go right to the Avengers with she knew, but only once she had a clue how to figure out who was Hydra and who wasn't. That was why she needed Pierce.

Daisy found her way up to his office just as the sun was coming up. The whole building was empty except for a few night guards, but she knew Pierce would be there. He always would send Daisy emails first thing in the morning, with vague questions about how her exploration is going. He would be in his office, and so Daisy went there before the sun was up, before any traitors could be there as well.

"Daisy," Pierce greeted, sounding legitimately surprised by her visit. Daisy had figured he was keeping up with the files she'd accessed, but apparently he didn't know. "What can I do for you?"

She looked around, trying to find any signs of cameras or bugs. If she was an evil Nazi she'd certainly be watching the World Security Council, make sure they didn't know. Pierce must have realized what she was doing, because he spoke. "My office is secure, I assure you. What is on your mind?"

He motioned for Daisy to sit, but she was too anxious too. How could she just sit down and chat when she knew what she did? "I was reading something last night…" Daisy began, a bit in her stomach. Was she wrong to trust Pierce? He'd done good by her, promised her a lot in the future, but did Daisy really know him. If anyone could be Hydra… No. No. Secretary Pierce couldn't be Hydra. If he was then there was no S.H.I.E.L.D at all.

"Secretary Pierce I think S.H.I.E.L.D has been compromised by Hydra."

Pierce had been smiling, but as Daisy finally stood still to make her confession, his face grew dim. "You found Project Insight."

Daisy's heart pounded against her chest-thud, thud, thud. No! No! No! No! "You know." There was no question in her words when Daisy got the words out, just an acceptance of the horrible truth. "You know about Zola and Insight you… You're Hydra!"

Pierce stood, pressing a button on his desk to lock her in. Daisy heard the door swish shut, and didn't try to break free. She was stuck… with a Nazi. A Nazi in control of World Security.

"Daisy Stark…" Pierce began, pacing around the young woman. Daisy's heart continued to beat against her, but she didn't feel half as scared as her body did. When she looked at this man, this monster, it was with anger, not terror. "Do you know what your father used to say when unveiling weapons of mass destruction?"

She hadn't known her dad for long before he stopped doing that, but Daisy knew. Of course she knew. "I think the best weapon is the one you only have to fire once."

"That's exactly what Project Insight is- the weapon that only needs to be fired once. Not only will people be too scared to fight back, but all those with the inclination towards sedition will be gone. 'The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe.'"

The scary thing was that Daisy knew he was right. No one would fight back against Hydra because the average man did want to be safe, and Insight was specifically designed to target all those who weren't average, who would fight back. "H.L. Mencken."

"You know the quote," Pierce smiled, causing chills to grow up Daisy's spine. "I always knew you were bright, and yet you never cease to amaze me."

"I wrote an AP essay on it," Daisy answered simply, realizing she was no longer afraid. Her heart, which had been ever present in her chest, was back to normal. Pierce had just given Daisy what she needed, courage, because she was not one of those 'average men' and she would take freedom over safety any day. "And I wrote about Nazi Germany, and how Captain America never thought of his safety, only freedom."

Pierce scowled at her words, "I thought you would see it my way. You understand that S.H.I.E.L.D hides so much from this world, or else you would never have started reading classified files."

"There's a big difference between reading classified files, and killing thousands of people, including everyone I know and love."

Daisy had blatantly rejected his offer of world domination, but Pierce seemed undeterred. "They don't have to die Daisy, not if you help me. You could make them all see that Hydra is what this world needs. We could bring peace to this world, together."

The words were tempting, and yet the offer was not. "Sorry Palpatine, but if fear is what you call peace, I want none of it," Daisy decided, pulling her gun fast. Pierce looked at her surprised, probably wondering why it had taken so long for Daisy to bring it out.

"You don't have the balls."

Part of Daisy wanted to make a snide remark about how she didn't need balls, but it got stuck in her throat. He was right; she couldn't shoot him. Natasha had spent hours teaching Daisy how to shoot straight, but she'd never taught Daisy how to shoot. "Nope," Daisy agreed, shooting the door handle, and dashing from the room.