𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐙𝐄𝐑𝐎. | ❛ Prologue. ❜

DOCTORS AND SCIENTISTS HURRIED AROUND THE ROOM, some of them mixing herbs and chemicals into bottles and syringes while others observed the young female who was laying down the cold steel table, her eyes barely open as she watched the scene unfold with blurry eyes.

Gathering everyone around the table, the head doctor, Dr. Williams, hovered over her with an affiliative smile, trying to reassure the young woman to keep calm under the procedure. "I see you're awake, Barzinji." Dr. Williams said in a gentle tone, making everyone in the room go into positions.

Jamie's breath hitched, her heart pounding in her chest. She was about to pull her hands up but was stopped by the straps that were holding her down. She took a look at her surroundings before letting her head fall back on the table, exhaling.

Here we go again, she thought.

"Are we ready to start the procedure?" The head scientist asked everyone, walking over to the table with a syringe in her hands. Dr. Williams gave her a nod and lifted Jamie's sleeve, gently stroking her arm before putting the needle into her skin.

She let out a small hiss, clenching her jaw as the needle went deep into her skin making her squirm around the table, which made a few doctors attentive to her actions and stood closer to the table. Dr. Williams put her hand up, signaling the others to stay back.

Jamie breathed in real slow as pain engulfed her body. It took over parts of her brain and then to her whole body making her yell out in pain as they put another needle into her skin, but this time placed it on her neck.

"S-Stop, p-please." she whimpered in pain as black capillaries appeared into her skin.

Dr. Williams gave her a sympathetic smile, grabbing her hand, "It's almost over, sweetie. You won't feel a thing after.'' She tried to comfort the younger woman, but her blood-curdling screams filled in the room, making a few cover their ears.

Jamie's eyes turned black, the veins snaking under her eyes as her body shook vigorously. She cried out once again, aggressively tossing her body to the side, pleading them to stop.

"Doctor, you're gonna kill her." A coworker, who was holding up the herbs, worriedly looking at his boss.

Dr. Williams shook her head and turned her head to the scientist, "I won't, she's almost done. Go back to work." her strict tone filling the room, making him stumble upon his words. He sat back down on his chair and went back to work, his hands trembling as he heard her screams.

Jamie's screams and cries erupted through the walls, causing the walls to crack. She felt her insides burn from the fluids entering her body. She sobbed in surrender, finally breaking off the straps and sat upon the table.

Dr. Williams stood up from her seat and stepped back, the others following her actions while some of them stood near the girl, making sure she wouldn't attack them.

Jamie let out another scream, this time breaking the light bulbs, causing the glass to break into million pieces, soaring through the air and falling down, making everyone cover their bodies as the glass fell over their skin. The blackness in her skin disappeared along with her eyes that turned back to her original color.

She felt her body weaken, panting as her blurry eyes tried to adjust the sounds around the room, but she fell back on the table, letting her head hit the cold table. She allowed her eyes to keep open. She turned her head to the side to see that her hands were stained in red, the color pooling underneath her fingers.

She let a harsh-stifled yell, whimpering in pain as they examined her body. Jamie was hurt everywhere. Her head hurt too much. Her body hurt too much. It seemed that everything hurt too much and she kept her eyes closed this time because she didn't want to see it, it would only hurt too much if her eyes were open.

Jamie woke up gasping for air. She put her hand on her throat, feeling her pulse arising. Holding back a cry, she shook her head trying to erase the painful memory. She shivered, her skin breaking into goosebumps as her eyes took in every ray of light.

She sat down on her bed with her head in her hands, breathing heavily. Blindly reaching to her side, she felt the cold sensation on her fingertips, her phone laying carelessly beside her pillow. She took the phone with shaky hands, unlocking the phone as she took a look at the time, her eyes widening.

Pulling her duvet to the side, her feet dangled on the bed. Running a hand over her hair, a knock pulled her out of her thoughts. Rubbing the back of her neck, she listened to the knocking a few times before letting her feet drop down the wooden floor.

Walking over to her closet, she grabbed her robe and put it on, leaving her bedroom. Sauntering towards the front door, she took a quick glance at the mirror before opening the door.

Nick Fury stood at the door with a firm look on his face, nodding at her in greeting before getting inside her apartment.

Jamie let out a chuckle, "Come in, I guess." she muttered under her breath, shutting the door and making her way inside the living room where Fury was headed at. She noticed a file in his hands and narrowed her eyes. Deciding not to say anything, she went to the kitchen to grab a drink.

"The missions doing okay, Barzinji?" Fury asked her, his gaze diverting away from her figure towards the table at the center of the living room. Papers, video equipment, and cameras were spread around the table.

She roamed inside the fridge, grabbing a water bottle. "Yeah, I'm almost done. Just a few things I need to finish. You're getting the report soon, sir." she answered back with a smile before taking a few sips of water. He nodded in satisfaction at her answer.

Without going any further, Fury dropped the file on the table, the one Jamie was curious about. She furrowed her eyebrows and picked up the file. The title made her frown, a look of confusion etched onto her face as she opened it, her eyes taking in the information.

Fury, who had a solemn expression on his face, let out a sigh, "Avengers Initiative is an idea I've been working on for a while. I thought about bringing together a group of remarkable people to fight battles that no one ever wouldn't be able to." he explained to her, watching her face fall for a moment before turning back to her blank expression.

Jamie let her fingers rest on her lips and clenched her jaw, "It's not just about the Avengers. It's more than that, isn't it?" she implied, looking up from the folder, giving him a look.

Fury chuckled and nodded his head, "We're at a threat, Jamie. Something unknown." he claimed before walking over to her, flipping through the file as he landed on a page, a picture of a shiny blue cube titled The Tesseract.

She studied the cube for a few seconds before voicing her thoughts, "Who does that belong to?" she asked, curiosity filling her voice.

"His name is Loki, and he's not from around here," he told her with a hand movement and started to explain the issue, telling her that she's the right person to join the team due to her enhanced abilities.

"You know I don't do that anymore, sir," she said in a quiet voice, letting out a sigh as she gave him back the file.

Fury nods in understanding and lets out a sigh, the pair falling into silence. He didn't want to force her, so he put the file on the table, "Just in case you change your mind." he said before leaving her apartment.

Jamie sat down on the couch and held her throbbing temple. She looked back at the folder and stared at it, letting her mind wander. Visions and images popped into her head, making her flinch. She quickly looked away and put both of her hands on her face.

Deep breaths, Jamilla. she thought

Rubbing her face, she stood up from the couch and shook away the thoughts, and went back to finish one of her last assignments, trying to forget about Fury's visit and also the demons haunting her.

▹

After succeeding in one of her last missions, she went straight to the shower. Stripping off her suit, she walked leisurely to the shower, her toes flinching at the ceramic floor. Water dripped down her face as she sighed in relaxation. The sensation of the steamy water calmed her sore muscles.

Stepping out of the shower, she dried her body with a towel and put on her underwear and some sweats, and a big t-shirt. The file was on her nightstand this time, untouched after a few days.

Natasha Romanoff, a teammate and also a close friend of hers called her after Fury's visit. Knowing her decision not to join the team, she wanted to talk about the project and give her reasons for joining. Not only did she want her friend to join, but she also wanted Jamie to face her fears and move on from the past.

Jamie didn't want to admit it, but she was scared. She couldn't admit it to her, including herself. She felt conflicted and doubted that she was the right choice for this. What if she messed up again? Or what if she wasn't good enough?

"Don't start with the "I quit a long time ago." or "I don't do that anymore", Milla," Natasha said through the phone, sighing at the end.

Jamie roamed through her drawers, rolling her eyes as she listened to her friend. "Well, what do you want me to say, Romanoff?" she replied back, putting her sword inside the drawer, gently shutting it.

"Look, I know it's been hard, and you need to stop being hard on yourself. You're way better than this, сладости." she said in a soothing tone.

Jamie slightly simpered at the nickname and sighed, bringing a hand over her face. "I don't know, Nat," she said, her voice barely a whisper.

"Think about it. Maybe this time things will get better. You know I'm always there." she reassured her.

"I will. Thanks, Nat. I'll see you soon," she said before hanging up.

Looking at the file on her nightstand, she grabbed her phone and dialed Fury's number. "Barzinji." Fury's firm tone made her clench her jaw. She looked down at her lap, exhaling before replying back, "So, when do we start?"

━━ 𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 ;
here's the prologue, folks!
i'm very excited for this book,
and i hope you'll stay here for awhile. <3

don't be a silent reader! your comments
make my day and give me motivation. <3

TRANSLATION
сладости - sweets