The Winter Soldier's absence brought C4 relief. Since her risky stunt, she hadn't been able to focus. Something felt wrong with her magic. The Soldier's emotions and thoughts rolled off him in waves and she could block it out like she normally could. C4 tried not to think about, pouring her concentration into tracking the action and keeping watch on the radar.
The Soldier, on the other hand, felt empty. It wasn't the same as remembering, but the memories she showed him started to fill that vast void. Even after she pulled away, he could feel the anger and fear she projected. That was gone now though. He had orders and for some reason, that overpowered all other thoughts.
"He's on the move." C4's voice came through the earpiece. "Headed north on Rockwell." Fury's movements were leading him straight to the Soldier. The Soldier was only few blocks west of Roosevelt.
C4 monitored the traffic patterns. Rockwell led up to the Roosevelt Bridge which was packed with traffic. "My guess is Fury will turn on 17th street. He just passed north of your location."
The Soldier grunted. They should've given him a bike rather than having him run down a vehicle on foot. He headed North, this time running down the open street causing a ruckus. People gasped and drivers became distracted by the armored soldier running in public. He crossed 15th without slowing down. A large truck narrowly missed him, blasting a horn before wrecking into another vehicle.
The Soldier could see the intersection of 17th street ahead, and saw Fury would likely pass before he got there. He sprinted forward anyway. "Hurry," C4's worry was unnecessary. Fury turned right into him.
The Soldier quickly pulled out his launcher and fired. Fury didn't hardly had a chance to see him before his SUV flew into the air. The Soldier gracefully sidestepped its trajectory.
C4 was able to watch the action through a city camera. The Soldier stalked towards the smoking vehicle. She would be surprised if Fury was still conscious. It would be easy to finish the job. With his metal arm, he ripped off the door and then froze. C4's heart dropped. "What's wrong?"
"That lucky bastard. Climbed through a sewer cover right under the car. I'm going after him."
"Wait! Don't. I have a map of the system. I think I know where he's going."
SHIELD and Hydra were not dissimilar - two factions that used intelligence and control to shape the world as they saw fit. With Hydras infiltration, C4 had access to the bugs in the apartment of SHIELD's asset, Captain America - the location was almost within view of C4's apartment setup. In fact, it was so close, C4 even watched as the SHIELD co-leader Nick Fury crawled out of one of the street manhole and hobbled out of view towards his destination. A few minutes later, she watched Steve Rogers a.k.a. Captain America cruise past on motorcycle.
"You're going to have company soon." C4 warned the Soldier over the com.
"I'm almost in position." C4 heart a grunts as the asset climbed up to the roof of the building. In a few moments, he was in view of the apartment. Music had began playing through C4's computer.
"Do you have eyes on the target?" The soldier let out a few expletives in reply. "Winter." C4 rarely use his code name to address him. It was odd, being used to hearing him called "the asset" or "the Soldier". It reminded her she didn't know if he had a real name. But it did get his attention.
"I need to move. The reading is skewed and I'm not sure if I have a real shot."
C4 knew Rogers should be there soon, but there was no sign of him yet. Without eyes as well as ears in the apartment, C4 was concerned. A door opened. "Rogers in in the apartment."
"Copy. I think I have an angle on the target." The Soldier was calm and collected. This was his zone. Sniping. C4 read about his skills, in addition to seeing them in person on their first mission. She was worried about his performance after the incident, but he seemed cool and collected. "Its not as good as I thought." C4 deflated, she head a conversation begin between Fury and Rogers. "He seems to be seated at an odd angle and Rogers is almost right behind him. Should I take it anyway?"
"Negative. Wait for a clean shot." C4 listened carefully. Fury knew the apartment was bugged, speaking facetiously of being kicked out of his house. She presumed he was signaling to Rogers through writing or some other way since the Avenger seemed to be catching on to the situation. C4 continued to monitor the bugs, but she knew the Soldier would get his job done. It was only a minute before C4 heard the bullet piece through the wall of the apartment.
The Soldier got his clean shot when Fury stood up - a mistake he would not live to regret, C4 thought humorlessly. "The target is down."
"Get out of there before you are seen."
The Soldier finished resetting his and turned to leave, but something caught his eye. "I think it's too late for that." Captain America jumped through his window into the building below the Soldier. The chase was on.
C4 monitored the Soldier's position. "There's another manhole ahead to your left if you can get to it without being seen."
"I'll make it happen." C4 could actually see the Soldier come into view. Her set up was adjacent to the building he was on. Just before he made it to the end though, C4 watched Captain America barrel through the wall behind the roof. He chucked his shield, but the Soldier caught it in his arm. He threw it back and jumped immediately to the ground.
C4 cringed. It was a steep drop, but it didn't seem to phase the Soldier. He quickly skirted around the corned of the building just before his pursuer came to the edge of the roof. C4 couldn't make out his face but something stopped him from jumping down. Even if he didn't see the Soldier, it is what she expected him to do. Perhaps it was shock, C4 mused. The world outside of Hydra knew nothing of the Soldier until now, and it was unlikely that vibranium arms were common... or vibranian anything for that matter.
Whatever the reason, it gave the Soldier time to get safely into the sewer.
"I'm heading up." The Soldier had made his way through a short segment of the sewer to an opening on the other side of her building. C4 had received another standby message. Apparently, Fury wasn't quite deceased yet, and was being transported to a hospital. C4 had hoped they would get orders to move, but it looked like she would be able to avoid the Soldier as easily as she thought.
Her heart pounded. She felt his presence outside the apartment door, and opened it. Their eyes met immediately. Hers were wideset and thin, unironically like a cat. They were a golden brown, piercing, sharp and guarded, but if he looked closely, the Soldier could see a pink hue almost streaking in around the outside of the iris. His were a soft blue, normally dull and lifeless, but now they searched hers.
It was only for a second before he stepped into the room. She quickly shut the door behind him and locked it. By the time she looked back he was by the window - more to the side of it since they were avoiding a direct line of sight. A thin curtain was pulled across, but for the most part, it was see through. A thick silence settled between them. Below the traffic had picked up as men and women travelled home after work, and the streets filled with tourists and locals alike headed out to eat or shop, utterly unaware of the assassins that looked down on them.
C4 did not normally take the time to ponder what gave their lives meaning. She couldn't possibly understand them anyway. It seemed so pointless - the frivolity of earning money, just to turn around and spend it. She never had money of her own though really. She could hardly remember her family, save for the fatal bombing that took her parents and ultimately led her to Hydra. It was just enough to fuel her on her missions, to mute any empathy Strucker may have missed in shaping her to be the perfect killer. The world was a cruel place, and being Hydra's best kept secret was simply her place in it.
C4 wasn't sure when she stopped staring at the street and began to observe the Soldier. His eyes were hidden from her but his body was tense. He must have felt her gaze because he turned towards her. It was like a weight hit her. Frustration. Confusion. She never felt someone's emotions so freely.
"You can't tell me about myself." She nodded to confirm even though it wasn't a question. "But who are you?" His question unsettled her - more than she already was. She didn't know why the Soldier was affecting her so much. Perhaps it was because he knew more about her than anyone had before.
"I'm just a soldier, like you." It wasn't the answer he was looking for, and she knew that. At the same time though, it was the whole truth. Her family was dead. She had no friends, no purpose, no life, other than Hydra.
He stepped towards her. "Do they wipe your mind?" She shook her head. He stepped closer, only a few feet now. "Do they put you under cyrofreeze?" Again she shook her head. Again he stepped closer. He was right on top of her, and she was frozen like a deer in the headlights. "Do they force you to kill?" She didn't know what to say. They didn't make her kill people. But at the same time, it was her job - she didn't really have a choice otherwise, did she?
"I'm just a soldier." She whispered, finally breaking eye contact. She made to pull away but the Soldier grabbed her chin.
"You're more than that." But she wasn't really. She looked back up at him. The Soldier could feel her fear. For the first time, she wasn't unreadable. Something changed. He could feel her, just like she felt him. The connection was chaotic and uncontrolled, but it also grounded him. Perhaps it was because he felt something outside of his own confusion and emptiness. What he felt was her brokenness. Her fear as she grasped at her last semblance of control, when, for the first time in a long time, she felt so exposed.
That's what pulled him in. Her eyes staring at him unbelieving, wild, but vulnerable. Like she thought he could know her darkest secret and deepest thought. Maybe he could, this was new territory for her.
A tone beep over both their coms giving notice of a new message. She quickly shoved past him.
Disappointment overwhelmed the Soldier. He was so close to something. He didn't know what it was he was after. Connection. Knowing what was real. Answers. He just wanted something.
Rendevous point. The message said, containing a location file. "Time to go." C4 cleared her throat, her voice thick. She didn't meet the Soldier's eyes after that.