The Unknown Enemy ∘ Marvel [3]

Chapter 35: Without Fail, She Falls

"I don't take orders from you." The voice he had previously thought to be soft had found a stern tone, defiantly stating that he had no right to ask this of her.

Colton Bradley kept the phone close to his ear, quickly shuffling down the stairs as he heard yet another gun shot pierce the air. It was followed by another, accompanying the shrill screams and the stampeding of feet from the floor above. He had distanced himself from the focal point of the violence, but it still persisted. His pace became faster, "Sure, but you do listen to Pierce. This came from him."

Colton had not had a good day. He hadn't had a good week. Between Caris screwing up enough to let Sienna Firman escape from the hospital, not telling him that HYDRA was going to ambush his cabin without knowing he was their operative, Sienna figuring out his true allegiance, getting hit by her famous right hook that broke his nose and dislocated his jaw, plus Caris disappearing, it was safe to say he wasn't loving life at the moment.

Then he finally made it back to the Triskelion. What did he get? A demotion and a slap from Director Pierce that made his face hurt even more. After all his years of hard work establishing Firman's trust and getting close to her friends, it was blown away by her putting some faith in her very incriminating older sister. Now Pierce didn't have HYDRA's latest creation in check and Bradley was going to take the blame. His punishment would come after Project Insight launch.

Had the Director's prized Winter Soldier failed? Not entirely. He had been thwarted at the cabin and had a deep slash in his thigh to prove it. Yet he had driven Firman back to the rest of SHIELD's most wanted, where they had all been briefly apprehended. He got the credit. Not Agent 21, who had worked undercover for months trying to gain the trust of the unlikely Avenger. Acting as an excited new recruit, providing menial backup that was never truly needed, and befriending a painfully awkward weapons specialist he had become fond of. All of that effort was dashed aside the moment Sienna's fist connected with his face. Then the de-thawed master assassin finished his job for him.

But guess what? Captain America was actively trying to sabotage that plan and Colton didn't doubt Firman was with him. That gave him a chance, because the Soldier had failed at something.

The words hadn't triggered anything and he had a hunch why. That guess might grant him another chance.

Steve Roger's voice had finally faded overhead, the man retiring from the speech to presumably attack the launching carriers. The still base that had been previously captivated by the dramatic call to arms had erupted into a panic. Countless shots began to fire off as the personnel turned on each other to take one side or the other after the immediate confusion ensued by the revelation of an unknown enemy in their midst. Swarms of agents rushed to exits, others to their posts, some to armories. The floor beneath the agent's feet trembled as the earth moved under them to reveal the three helicarriers crafted to execute the organizations true intention.

"I need Pierce on the line then." The voice on the phone demanded, not giving into Bradley's request so easily, "This has to come from him directly."

Colton turned into a corridor, finding the first door on the left after a brief jog. He used his free hand to reach inside of his jacket, pulling out his ID card. Once procured, he pressed it against the scanner mounted on the wall, "He's busy entertaining the Security Council right now, or was until Captain America showed up and they launched Insight early."

There was a long, drawn out pause on the line before the woman muttered out a very poignant, "What?"

A green light flashed and the door handle's locking mechanism unhinged itself after the machine granted him access. Bradley hastily twisted the knob and continued moving forward through the next blandly decorated hall the opening led to, "I'm sure the news will reach Sokovia in a few minutes. Rogers just told the whole world about HYDRA and he's planning on stopping the helicarriers. You can bet who's with him."