Savior

4.

4.

"It began back in our hometown, my brother and I were going to visit our dad on his birthday, and it was that evening we got attacked by them." She was looking at her hands on the table. She licked my lips before continuing. "I don't remember much,but at some point a shooting began outside the house, and we could hear screams from the other people in the street. Our father told us to run, but my brother claimed it was his duty as a soldier, to protect us and the townspeople. But..." She bit her lip, as the memories played before her eyes, how her brother fell to the floor right before he arrived at the door, what was his plan anyway?

"But he barely made it to the door, when bullets made their way through the door and hit him, his body fell limp on the floor before me and our dads eyes. Our dad then told me to run before they got into the house. At first I didn't want to leave him behind, but he pushed me out of the backdoor forcing me to leave him. I knew there was no way I could go back in, so I ran as fast as I could away from the town, but in the end a man with a mask got me, as if he knew which way I would run. I don't know why they didn't kill me, but they didn't." She paused to look at the mirror, knowing Bruce would be on the other side looking in. She then looked back at Coulson. "I don't know what happened after that, or where I was for that matter, but I knew for sure I was in a cell. The following days the abuse began to happen, at first it was mental abuse, they told me that I wasn't worth anything and no one would come for me or even miss me. Even when I knew it was all a part of their plan, I slowly began to believe what they were saying, I did feel worthless and useless. Then they began to hit and kick me, leaving bruises and cuts everyday to drag my spirit down even more. I think they began to do that since I didn't succumb in the first place "

She could feel tears welling up in her eyes, and she wiped them away. She was taking a deep breath, so she could continue the story. "When they figured out I was at my absolute breaking point, they began to use me as a guinea pig for all their mixtures and now it wasn't only cuts and bruises they had left upon my skin, but also scars that would remind me of all the times they couldn't find a vein or from all the injections. Sometimes they would do it up to three or four times a day, because they didn't get any results by simple tests, such as my reflex or something like that, they would begin with the abuse again. At that time they would use methods such as burning, electro shocks and waterboarding. Sometimes I wished they would just have killed me, I believed it would have been so much better." She was interrupted by a hand that touched hers, at that point she didn't know she had been shaking. She looked up at Coulson, looking into his eyes. "You don't have to make that wish ever again, we are here to protect you." He gave her a reassuring smile.

She smiled a little at his words, and gave him a small nod. "Thank you. Anyway, I knew they wanted to break me down completely, and I didn't want to give them that, so I stayed strong even after I had hit my breaking point. So I stopped speaking until the day I got saved, I barely made a sound when they hurted me. Now when I think back on it, I don't know how I even managed to get through that hell, maybe it was because I thought back on all the good times I had in my life, so I simply just dreamed away to somewhere nice." That was how she finished her story of what she could remember. She looked from their hands and to his face again. He looked down for a few seconds and then back at her. "I think I know why they didn't finish you off when they had so many chances." He said, flashing her a small smile. She tilted her head a little. "You're strong, you fought back, you showed them you wouldn't go down without a fight. That might be one of those things they are looking for, whenever they are out to find some new... recruits... Plus you have a strong will, being able to keep up a wall even if it was ready to crumble around you. There are not a lot of people who can do that, but you can." She took her hands back, wiping her eyes again, only able to nod. Coulson reached for the recorder and turned it off. "Let's call it a day, shall we. Thank you for your cooperation. Do you think you could tell me more about the man next time?" He asked, getting up from his seat, she followed his movements. "I'll tell you what I can remember, and thank you for getting me out of there."

They walked out of the door. "Can you follow her back to her room Dr. Banner." It sounded more like an order than a question, as he disappeared down the hallway. Silence filled the hallway for a few moments before Bruce turned to her with a concerned look. "Are you okay?" She just shook my head bringing her hands up to her face, as her breath began to hitch. It was such a relieved feeling that came over her, for finally having told the story, and she wanted to let her feelings wash over her, she wanted to express them, but something in her prevented it from happening. Bruce was awkwardly standing there, sensing something was up, and he decided to pull her in for a hug, to comfort her. "I... " She choked. "It's okay, you will be okay." She looked up at him, giving him a firm nod. She finally had her breath under control. "Can we go back now?" "Oh, of course." He said and he headed to the door.

As they walked back to her temporary room, she started to wonder how many people were in this place. "When will I meet the others?" She asked, looking at the floor. "You can meet them tomorrow if you want to. At least some of them, the rest are on a mission." She nodded "Okay, getting to know a few people at a time, sounds good. How many of you are there?" "We're eight now, we got two new ones some time ago, and of course there will be some agents around too and visitors who also have helped us from time to time." The rest of the walk remained silent, the only sound there was their steps. They soon came to the room (Y/n) stayed in, and she turned to hug him again. "Thank you for being there." He wrapped his arms around her. "You're welcome. Now get some rest, you deserve it. You did great today, I just wanted you to know that. I'll bring you your dinner in a few hours." He said letting go of her. "I will." Was all she said before she went into her room. She went straight to bed, thinking about all those things that had happened. She had never in her life imagined it to turn out this way.