Vitus 《Black Widow》

// Prologue

1988, Bucharest, Romania

"Mission Report: July 29, 1988."

"Two of the three targets have been eliminated. The child got away unharmed."

"But the parents were killed?"

"In the worst way possible."

"Good. Leave the infant to suffer. That will be all."

"Yes, master."

His hair rested over his shoulders as he positioned himself in the pod.

"Goodnight, soldier."

The ice froze over his body, leaving him in a cryogenic sleep until he was to be awoken again.

Little did Hydra know, he could still dream in this state. But what he was seeing weren't dreams, they were visions.

A young girl was being trained in combat and assassination in a much less painful way than him.

She was elegant and graceful, yet violent and murderous. She was also gorgeous, but more than he cared to admit.

But who was she?

1993, Athens, Greece

The five year old girl ran through the busy streets of Athens. Her legs were considerably long and lean for her age, allowing her to gain some distance.

As she manouvered through the market, she bumped into the hundreds of legs that stood in her way.

An older man scolded her. "Ψιτ! Παρακολουθήστε όπου μπορείτε're!" 'Hey! Watch where you're going!'

The girl swiftly grabbed a huge plum from his cart and smirked as she sprinted away.

Just as she was about to sneak out of the market, a large foot tripped her and shifted her from her path.

A set of hands grabbed her by the waist and carried her over to a military vehicle. She squirmed around as best as possible, but it only caused the large hands to tighten their grip.

The man that was holding her shoved her into the back of a truck and sat down next to her before shutting the doors.

His face was emotionless but his bright blue eyes sparked with personality. His metal arm tightened every few minutes as though it was rebooting itself.

Another man revealed himself from the shadows with a sickening grin.

"Evelina, I'm surprised to see that you're still breathing. Impressed, but surprised.  How did you do it?"

Evelina responded with silence.

The man with the metal arm scoffed. "Master, she's not going to answer."

The older man glared at his apprentice in anger. "Did I ask you to speak soldier?"

The younger man shook his head in regret. "She's just a kid," he mumbled under his breath.

The so called 'master' ignored his soldier's remark and continued interrogating Evelina.

"Where are you from?"

Evelina examined the man, but refused to make eye contact. "I don't know. A woman taught me how to walk one day, and told me to run away the next. I started running, but then I never stopped."

"I see. Well I'm here to make a home for you and to teach you. Evelina, you are going to grow into a strong young woman. Our people will make you a fighter, our best one yet. Doesn't that sound exciting?"

Evelina didn't understand much of what the man was saying, but she nodded anyway.

"Soldier, keep an eye on her. This is gonna be a long ride."

The master exited the back of the truck as it slowly began to move.

About an hour into the ride, Evelina grew bored and impatient. To keep herself occupied, she watched her guard's every move.

She noticed that he tended to twitch his thumbs around and fiddle with his sleeves. Sometimes he'd even perk his head up and analyze his surroundings as though he was trying to remember something.

The man's actions entertained Evelina, so she handed him her uneaten plum.

He looked at it, puzzled, while Evelina smiled.

She shifted her body towards the man without hesitation. "Someone told me that these help you remember stuff about your past."

The man realized what her intentions were and gave her a crooked, but still hearfelt smile.

He pulled out a pocket knife from its holster and cut the plum in half, giving one of the halves to Evelina.

As the man slowly ate his food, Evelina looked up at him in awe. "What's your name?"

He looked back down at her, and without thinking, responded with, "James."

Evelina held out her hand in front of James. "Well it's nice to meet you, James."

They shook each other's hand and Evelina continued to eat immediately after.

James lightly chuckled under his breath. "You too, Evelina."