BLOODSTRIDE-(Natasha RomanoffxOC)

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"Don't you fucking touch him!"

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Jaime awoke with a groan, wincing in pain as she attempted to move. Her eyes darted down to find bandages covering areas where there had been bleeding wounds. Looking around, she realized she was inside a truck. She was surrounded by HYDRA agents, and none other than the Winter Soldier himself.

Suddenly, the truck came to a halt, and she was escorted to a room within a bunker-like building. As she was led through multiple rooms, one particular sight caught her attention. She stopped in her tracks, watching a boy with bleached blonde hair darting around in a confined space. He moved with a speed that her eyes struggled to follow. Next to him, a girl with bright red eyes was playing with blocks. But these weren't ordinary blocks they hovered in the air, surrounded by a mysterious red glow emanating from her hands.

The HYDRA agent behind Jaime shoved her forward harshly. Off balance, she tumbled to the ground. The agent proceeded to kick her multiple times before he and another agent lifted her off the ground. They took her to a room filled with several HYDRA agents and a peculiar machine. Seated in the machine was the Winter soldier, his expression distant and detached.

"Sir, he's unstable." Jaime heard one of the HYDRA doctors say from behind a metal door. Turning around, she saw Alexander Pierce approaching, with Rumlow trailing behind him like an obedient dog.

Her blood boiled with anger, and her eyes narrowed as she watched the two men advance towards the man she considered a brother.

"Mission report." Pierce demanded, as Bucky stared ahead with empty eyes.

"Mission report now." he pressed, growing impatient.

When Bucky remained silent, Pierce stepped closer and slapped him across the face.

"Hey!" Jaime exclaimed, storming forward towards Pierce. "Don't you fucking touch him!" She shouted, pointing at the man. But before she could reach Pierce, she was yanked back and thrown to the floor. Multiple agents descended upon her, delivering blows until she ceased resisting. Once she stopped fighting back, they pulled her up and placed her on a chair.

"The man on the bridge. Who was he?" Bucky asked, his voice tinged with confusion.

"You met him earlier this week on another assignment." Pierce replied coolly.

"I knew him." Bucky murmured, his eyes drifting towards Jaime. "And her too." he added, his eyes welling up with tears.

"Your work has been a gift to mankind. You've shaped the century, and I need you to do it one more time." Pierce declared. "Society is at a tipping point between order and chaos. Tomorrow morning, we're going to give it a push." he continued, his voice dripping with ominous intent.

Bucky's eyes met Jaime's, filled with a desperate plea. His anxiety was palpable, unsettling Jaime as she had never seen him this nervous before.

"But if you don't do your part, I can't do mine. And HYDRA can't give the world the freedom it deserves." Pierce added coldly.

"But I knew him." Bucky reiterated, his voice laden with sadness and confusion.

Pierce sighed, shaking his head before rising from his chair. "Prep him." he ordered tersely.

"He's been out of cryo for too long." the HYDRA doctor remarked, a hint of sympathy evident in his voice.

"Then wipe him and start over. And once you're done with him, work on her." Pierce said, pointing at Jaime. "What do you want us to do with her?" the doctor inquired.

"Project Firestorm." Pierce declared. "And make sure you suppress her ability to teleport." he ordered coldly.

The two doctors forcefully strapped Bucky into the chair of the ominous machine, inserting a mouthguard to muffle his screams. As they activated the device, Bucky began to convulse and hyperventilate. A mechanism moved in front of his left eye and encircled his head, emitting sparks of electricity before fully engaging.

Bucky's agonized cries filled the room as the device seared his brain, erasing targeted memories. His body contorted in pain, hands clenched into fists, and he bit down hard on the mouthguard, struggling to endure the torment inflicted upon him.

Jaime squeezed her eyes shut, unable to bear witnessing her friend in such agony. She attempted to turn her head away, but the agents forcibly redirected her gaze, compelling her to watch Bucky's torment. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she pleaded with them to halt the torture. Bucky's screams echoed in her ears, evoking painful memories of their shared past and the times when she too had screamed in agony. The raw anguish in his voice was a haunting reminder of the soul-crushing pain they were both enduring under HYDRA's merciless grip.

When the machine finally came to a halt, the agents pulled Bucky out, and he immediately collapsed to the ground. Unmoved by his condition, the agents only followed orders, and their directive was now to focus on Jaime. They ushered her into another room and secured her to metal chains, suspending her above the ground.

An agent held a mouthguard in front of her, instructing her to open her mouth so they could place it inside. Ignoring his command, Jaime was worn down by the relentless abuse and the lingering pain from her injuries.

In response, the agent delivered a brutal punch to her stomach, causing her to cough and spit out blood. Seizing the opportunity, he forcefully inserted the mouthguard. After securing it in place, he callously tore off her shirt, leaving her in her pants and sports bra. With a mocking farewell, he exited the room, leaving Jaime in dread of what would come next.

Moments later, a blinding light shone in her eyes, followed by a searing ray that engulfed her. Jaime screamed in agony, thrashing violently against the chains as it felt as though her body was being consumed by flames. Her DNA was being altered, they had stripped her of her ability to teleport and replaced it with Pyrogenesis, the ability to generate and control fire.

After the machine had finished its work, Jaime was utterly drained of strength, barely able to support her own weight as she hung from the chains. When the agents removed her mouthguard, they found it smeared with blood and saliva. Disgusted, one of the agents slapped her across the face. Too exhausted to react, Jaime struggled to keep her eyes open. As the chains were removed from her wrists, she crumpled to the floor, the burning sensation from the metal chafing her skin a minor discomfort compared to the ordeal she had just endured.

The agents hoisted her up and returned her to the now-empty first room. Jaime's body tensed with dread as they positioned her exhausted form in the same machine that had wiped Bucky's memories moments earlier.

"Wait, no, please," she managed to utter before the agent shoved the soiled mouthguard back into her mouth, his smile menacing and cruel. Coughing, she nearly choked on her own blood that still clung to the mouthguard.

They strapped her in and activated the machine. It crackled with electricity before focusing its energy on her head and left eye. A searing pain shot through her, as if a knife were piercing her eye and her head was being scorched from within. Screaming in agony, her entire body convulsed from the unbearable pain and fear. Clenching her fists and teeth, memories flashed before her eyes, fading into darkness—except for one. The memory of Steve and Natasha remained intact, a testament to the unbreakable bond they shared that not even HYDRA could erase.

After the torturous procedure, the agents transported Jaime to a cell and unceremoniously threw her inside. Exhausted and in immense pain, she immediately succumbed to sleep.

[1278]