The air seemed to thicken with every passing second, and for a moment, I wasn't sure if the ground beneath me was solid anymore. The woman—Natalie—was standing right in front of us, the air charged with something electric. I couldn't tear my eyes away from her, but at the same time, I wasn't sure if I should trust her. I had spent years with Hydra manipulating me, twisting my mind, making me believe whatever they wanted me to. And now, here she was, claiming to be one of us.
"You're... one of us?" Steve asked, his voice a mix of suspicion and confusion. His shield was still firmly in his grip, and his posture hadn't relaxed in the slightest. He wasn't buying it just yet.
Natalie's face remained unreadable. There was an air of solemnity about her, something that immediately put me on edge. "Yes. I was once part of Hydra's inner circle. Like you, Bucky. Like you, Steve. I didn't choose to be part of their machine, but I was born into it. Just like you were." She glanced at me, and for the first time since she'd appeared, I saw something in her eyes—something that was familiar. Guilt. Regret.
"Why didn't we know about you?" Steve's voice was calm, but there was a weight to it, a demand for answers. "If you were part of Hydra, why didn't you—why didn't we ever hear about you? Why did you leave?"
"I didn't leave," Natalie replied softly, her voice trembling just slightly. "They erased me. They erased everything. My identity, my memories, my—my life. They did to me what they did to you, Bucky. But unlike you, I didn't have someone like Steve to pull me back." Her voice faltered, and she clenched her fists. "I was a tool, just another asset to them. They trained me, made me believe in their cause. But I woke up, just like you did, and I couldn't stay. Not after seeing what they were doing."
Steve and I exchanged a glance. It was hard to process. Another person who had been through the same hell we had. Another victim of Hydra's unrelenting machine.
"I never had anyone to turn to," she continued, her voice trembling with emotion. "I was alone. But you two... you had each other. You had the Avengers. You had the strength to keep fighting, even when they tried to tear you apart. I couldn't stop them in time. And now, I need your help."
"Help?" Steve repeated, clearly still processing everything. "You want our help after everything you've done with Hydra?"
I could see Steve's wariness. His loyalty to the cause was unwavering, but I could tell that this wasn't an easy thing for him to accept. I couldn't blame him. I wasn't sure I could accept it, either.
"I didn't do anything. I couldn't," she replied, shaking her head. "I was powerless, just like you were. But I've spent years trying to dismantle Hydra from the inside. I've been watching, waiting for the right moment to strike. When I saw the Avengers finally coming together, I knew it was time. You're the only ones who can end this."
The silence hung between us for a long moment. Her words cut through the tension, but there was still so much left unsaid. I could feel my stomach churn. We were supposed to be here to stop Hydra, to bring an end to everything they had been building, but how much of this was orchestrated by them? How much of this had we been blind to?
Steve spoke first, breaking the silence. "How do we know we can trust you?"
"Because I'm the one who's been feeding you intel all along," she said, her voice steady. "I've been helping you stay one step ahead of them. Every lead, every piece of information you've received, it's all come from me."
"Wait, what?" I said, my mind racing. "You've been helping us all this time? How did we—how did we not know about you?"
"Because I had to stay hidden," she explained. "Hydra's reach is vast. They have eyes everywhere. If they knew I was alive, they would've killed me on sight. They still think I'm dead. But now, with your help, I can finally end this."
I could see the weight of her words sink in for Steve. He was processing it, but I could tell that he wasn't ready to fully trust her just yet. It made sense. She was asking for a lot. Trust is hard to come by in our world, especially when it comes to people connected to Hydra.
I crossed my arms, my gaze fixed on her. "If you've been helping us all along, then why haven't you contacted us directly? Why did you wait until now?"
Natalie's eyes darkened, and for a moment, I saw something cold flicker in them. "Because Hydra has eyes everywhere. And I couldn't risk bringing attention to myself. If I had, it would've put everything you've worked for in jeopardy. But now, it's too late for them. They're making their move, and we have to be ready. There's no more time to wait."
Steve's eyes softened just a little. "You want us to help you bring Hydra down."
"Yes," she replied, her voice firm, "but I can't do this alone. They have a new weapon—something more dangerous than anything you've faced before. I've seen it. They've been experimenting, creating something... something I fear could change everything."
I could feel the gravity of her words settling in. What could possibly be worse than the threats we had already faced? Hydra had always been dangerous, but this sounded like something beyond our capabilities.
"Tell us everything," Steve demanded.
And she did. She told us about the new weapon Hydra had been developing. Something so powerful it could bring entire nations to their knees. It was a project years in the making, one that had started long before Steve and I had even been frozen in ice.
"They call it the 'Synthesis,'" Natalie explained, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's a combination of enhanced human subjects, combined with cutting-edge technology. They've been trying to create the ultimate soldier, but they're not just interested in physical strength. They're trying to merge mind control, artificial intelligence, and genetic enhancements into a single being. If they succeed, they'll have an army unlike anything the world has ever seen."
The room went silent as we processed her words. Synthesis. It was a name that sent chills down my spine. The thought of Hydra creating a super soldier far beyond anything they had before was terrifying.
"How do we stop it?" Steve asked, his voice grave.
Natalie took a deep breath. "We need to infiltrate their main facility—where they've been building the Synthesis project. It's hidden away in a remote location, but if we can get in, we can destroy it before it's completed. If we don't, we'll be facing something the world isn't prepared for."
Steve and I exchanged a glance. It was clear this was the big one—the mission that would either make or break everything.
"Then we have no time to waste," I said, my voice steady. "We're going after it."
Natalie nodded, her expression solemn. "I knew you'd understand. Let's go."
As we prepared to move out, the weight of everything that had brought us to this moment pressed down on me. The mission ahead was the most dangerous we'd faced, but it wasn't just about Hydra anymore. It was about stopping the weapon they were creating, ending the terror they had been building for decades.
And with that, we began our journey to bring the fight to Hydra's doorstep.