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HIDDEN INFORMATION

"The human mind is truly the
scariest thing of all." —Unknown
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SHIELD Headquarters

Location: Washington, D.C.

April 2, 2014

STEVE Rogers was still taken aback by the recurring images of Nick Fury's death, the man with the metal arm and young woman from last night. So much has happened in such little time, that there was no way all of this was considered a mere coincidence.

Many questions left unanswered.

Who was that man? There was something about him that made him... familiar. And why kill Nick Fury? Did he know about the flash drive? Why did Nick Fury trust him more than his team? Why was the young teenager involved with the assassin? Was she an assassin as well? All those questions were still a mystery yet just waiting to be solved. Rather in due time, it will.

Steve had a slight problem; he only had Natasha with him and even then he didn't completely fully trust her. As for the rest of the Avengers; every other member were occupied at the moment. Stark and Banner were probably locked up in their lab inside Stark Tower, sorry the Avengers Tower. Barton or Hawkeye was most likely on some classified mission somewhere in the world. And last time Steve heard from Thor; the God of Thunder was back on Asgard with his new sister-in-law celebrating their anniversary.

Nonetheless, Steve was forced to face the reality that no one besides Natasha could help him. The elevator dinged softly, as Steve exited the elevator to one of the many floors at SHIELD Headquarters. He was curious about the aftermath of last night, like how insistent Rumlow was about taking him to Secretary Alexander Pierce's office.

The blonde soldier hastily walked towards the Secretary's office just when he noticed a familiar blonde agent leaving the older man's office. Steve kept his composure yet couldn't help but narrowed his azure eyes at the woman. After last night Steve gathered that Kate, his neighbor/disguised nurse, was Agent 13.

"Captain Rogers," Kate greeted as they passed by each other, looking somewhat down. Still, Steve gave a curt nod in greeting.

"Neighbor," Steve retorted as the woman blushed nervously, quickly shuffling her feet away from the Captain. Steve stopped in front of Pierce's office; as the older man greeted him with a kind smile.

"Oh, Captain, I'm Alexander Pierce."

"Sir, it's an honor," Steve greeted formally before they shook hands firmly.

"The honor's mine, Captain," Pierce replied. "My father served in the 101st. Come on in."

Pierce motioned as Steve observed the Secretary's office with some interest after the mention of 101st Airborne Division. He noted that it was spacious and carefully spaced out, something that someone as powerful as he would have.

Steve noticed at his desk lying were a couple of pictures of a much younger Nicholas Fury engaged into a discreet conversation with a younger-looking Alexander Pierce. The location seemed to be in some type of government official meeting because in the background were some CIA agents on their post.

"That photo was taken five years after Nick and I met when I was at the state department in Bogota," Pierce explained as Steve quietly listened with a sharp ear. "E.L.N. rebels took the embassy and security got me out but the rebels took hostages."

"Nick at the time was Deputy Chief at the SHIELD station there and he comes to me with a plan," Pierce continued as he began to pace around the room, "He said he wanted to storm the building through the sewers. I said, 'No, we'll negotiate.'"

"It turned out the E.L.N. didn't negotiate, so they sent out a kill order. They stormed the basement and what do they find?" Pierce asked rhetorically, obviously not wanting Steve to answer. The Secretary stood in front of Captain America before sitting down in one of the chairs in his office. Steve followed in pursuit and copied his action, sitting down in another chair as well. "They find it empty. Nick had ignored my direct order and carried out an unauthorized military operation on foreign soil and saved the lives of a dozen political officer as well, including my daughter."

"So you gave him a promotion?" Steve asked, raising an eyebrow at the Secretary.

"I never had any cause to regret it." Pierce quickly responded. Steve didn't say anything but returned his attention to the photos. He flipped through them, mostly seeing Fury and Pierce, yet the last photo was quite distinct from the rest. Only the picture he had contained just a woman.

The photo Steve hold showed a beautiful brunette woman with sparkling amber eyes; the peculiar thing was that her eyes flickered from grey to dark emerald green ones from certain angles. Her attire was a nicely done black gown, her makeup was minimal, but her ruby lips were slightly curled into an inward smirk.

"Who is this, if I may ask?" Steve wondered curiously.

"Ah, I see you've found the picture of Diana," Pierce stated as he watched the captain stared at the photo.

"Do you remember I mentioned that I had a daughter, Captain?" Steve Rogers nodded in confirmation. Did that make Diana the same daughter that Pierce had previously mentioned Fury saving? "Well, this is her, well my adopted daughter, Diana. Unfortunately, she left on her own a decade ago due to some issue she had to sort out. Although we were not related by blood, the bond was stronger than any bloodline."

Steve Rogers felt something familiar about her like he once saw her somewhere after he woke up. Her eyes are what made Steve wonder if he perhaps met her? Even if it was two years ago that he was unfrozen, Steve knew he saw her beforehand. The question was from where then?

"Before she left, Diana was one of the best SHIELD agents around during the beginning of the 21st Century. She was headstrong yet wise beyond her years. Diana wanted to become a field agent you see, therefore I was a bit hesitant about her joining," Pierce pauses momentarily, smiling at the profound memory.

"But, after finally realizing she was stubborn and wouldn't let the opportunity go, she joined a year later. She was considered the best in combat and top field agent for two years. Nick noticed her potential as he officially made her a Level 8 agent, a month after. You may not know this Captain, but Nick had a soft spot for her. Although he didn't show it, Nick believed that she would be the key to something extraordinary one day."

"She sounds... like, everyone, she knew loved her." Steve noted.

"Yes, she always had something about her that made you feel like you can completely trust her. And that'll always be the case, she would always execute her promise without a doubt." Pierce nodded, as it was silent for a few moments.

Steve skimmed to the last photos, seeing Diana in all of them. One was with Pierce and Fury standing beside her, estimating that the brunette woman was about half a foot shorter than Nick Fury. Yet, everyone in the picture had a smile, Diana showcase her bedazzling smile, Pierce giving a large proud grin, and Fury showed a ghost smile at the camera. Diana held her clearance above her chest, a sign of achievement and accomplishment for her. Judging by her physical appearance on the picture, she must have been around her early mid-twenties when she first joined SHIELD.

Steve then thought about what Pierce said when she left about a decade ago. This made him wonder if Diana may have found something about SHIELD that perhaps forced her to be in exile in the meantime. Possibly being enforcement to go undercover, leaving behind everything she once knew. But why? Maybe she was threatened?

Steve lastly stared at the final photograph, there was Diana but with a young toddler sitting on her lap. The father wasn't present, but they were both smiling brightly at the camera. The little girl looked like a carbon-copy of Diana, from their heart-shaped face, iridescent eyes, and straight brunette hair. There was no mistaking that Diana was the mother to her young daughter.

"You see Captain, although she wasn't my blood daughter, she gave me the greatest thing in the world, a granddaughter. She was an amazing mother just like her mother before her. Although her lover abandoned her when he found out she was pregnant. He left her, not wanting to do anything with the unborn child. She was heartbroken at first yes, but Diana eventually began to thrive from her mistake."

"Did you ever forgive her?" Steve wondered.

"Of course, it wasn't her fault for him to abandon her. But, I did warn her that he wouldn't be there for her since he was busy traveling to different countries around the world. Still, I stepped in to take care of my granddaughter, Aurora. She's a little ray of sunshine, and already was becoming her mother."

"Was?"

"Yes, they were attacked in 2004 when intruders entered their home and Diana was forced to leave SHIELD. Leaving my granddaughter under my care, and... it was the last time I ever saw Diana." Alexander whispered the last sentence, his face showed regret, but it was part of the plan.

"Captain, why was Nick in your apartment last night?" Pierce asked Steve, immediately changing the sentimental subject. Steve glanced back up at him, placing the pictures back into the file as he looked firmly at Alexander.

"I don't know." He replied. That wasn't the answer, Pierce was looking for.

"Did you know it was bugged?" Pierce questioned further, as Steve nodded, "I did because Nick told me."

"Well, did he tell you he was the one who bugged it?" Steve just stared at Pierce, sensing his tone was made to sound like an interrogation than a meeting. Steve then wondered if Pierce used the photos from his desk as some type of leverage for him. Perhaps, Nick was right about not trusting anyone.

"I want you to see something," Pierce told him as the screen flickered to another image, Steve turned his attention behind his back. It started playing, it was a video of Batroc being interrogated by SHIELD officials. The blonde soldier listened intensely as the interrogator asked Batroc, who had hired him to hijack the ship from his last mission.

"Is that live?" Steve pointed out.

"Yes, they picked him up last night at a not-so-safe house in Algiers," Alexander answered.

"Are you saying he's a suspect?" Steve asked, "Assassination... it's Batroc's line."

"No, no. It's more complicated than that." Pierce stated, continuing to watch the live-feed video. "Batroc was hired anonymously to attack the Lemurian Star. And he was contacted by email and paid by wire transfer then the money was run through seventeen fictitious accounts. The last one going to a holding company that was registered to a Jacob Veech."

"Am I supposed to know who that is?" Steve query as Pierce handed him a file.

"Not likely. Veech died six years ago." Pierce explained to him as Steve skimmed through the file, see the pages for any information. "His last address was 1435 Elmhurst Drive. When I first met Nick, his mother lived in 1437."

"Are you saying that Fury hired the pirates?" Steve responded, not believing what Pierce was interjecting. "Why?"

"The prevailing theory was that the hijacking was a cover for the acquisition and sale of classified intelligence. The sale went sour and that led to Nick's death." Steve looked back down at the file once more, but something was missing. Something in his gut told him that Fury wouldn't do something to this extreme, especially if it meant having people in potential harm or be worse... be killed.

"If you know Nick Fury, you'd know that's not true," Steve replied firmly.

"Why do you think we're talking?" Pierce got up from his chair, before walking towards the high-tech window. 

"You see, I took a seat on the council not because I wanted to but because Nick asked me to because we were both realists," Pierce told him, peering over the city of Washington D.C.

"We knew that, despite all the diplomacy and the handshaking and the rhetoric... to build a better world sometimes means having to tear the old one down. The people you love and hold most dear having to make sacrifices for that better world as well." The Secretary said as he glanced back at Steve, this time with a harsh expression plastered onto his face. Steve kept a stoic face, making it difficult for Pierce to read his expression. "And that makes enemies."

"Those people that call you dirty because you got the guts to stick your hands in the mud and try to build something better. And the idea that those people could be happy today...makes me angry." Pierce spoke, but it sounded like if it was directed to Steve Rogers... or someone else.

"Captain, you were the last one to see Nick alive." Pierce mentioned," I don't think that's an accident and I don't think you do, either. So... I'm going to ask again. Why was he there?"

"He told me not to trust anyone," Steve told part of the truth. And Steve believed in his gut that it included Alexander Pierce as well.

"I wonder if that included him." Pierce retorted, but Steve was just silent at the moment.

"I'm sorry... but those were his last words. Excuse me." Steve said before standing up and grabbed his shield off the chair. He clipped it onto his back, as he proceeded to exit the enormous office.

"Captain," Pierce called out, as Steve turned to look at him one last time."Somebody murdered my friend and I'm gonna find out why. Anyone gets in my way, they're gonna regret it. Anyone."

"Understood." Steve just spoke, before giving the man a curt nod in response. But, Steve wondered if now this was a lot more problematic than Fury's recent murder. And he was going to find out soon.

🕸

"I know who killed Fury," Natasha announced, although she was against the wall by Steve, who was glaring down at her. His eyes flickered over the former assassin, but knowing her she would make it difficult to show the truth.

"Most of the intelligence community doesn't believe they exist. The ones that do call them the Winter Soldier and the Phantom. They're both credited with over two dozen assassinations each. In the last fifty years for the Winter Soldier, and the last two years for the Phantom. Especially, since she started after the attack on New York in 2012, assassinating only high government officials. Based on that, she's the newest recruit."

"So they're a ghost story?" Steve questioned, but Natasha ignored it.

"Five years ago, I was escorting a nuclear engineer out of Iran. Somebody shot out my tires near Odessa. We lost control, went straight over a cliff. I pulled us out. But the Winter Soldier was there, therefore the Phantom wasn't active at that time." She told him, remembering the memory that will haunt her alongside her childhood academy.

"I was covering my engineer so the Winter Soldier shot him straight through me." Natasha lifted her shirt, showing a nasty scar from the incident. "Soviet slug. No rifling. Bye-bye bikinis."

"Yeah, I bet you look terrible in them now." Steve retorted sassily, ignoring the look from the female Avenger.

"Going after them is a dead end. I know, I've tried." Natasha reasoned with Steve, holding up the flash drive, "Like you said they're a ghost story."

Steve thought for a moment before he took the flash drive from her, "Well, let's find out what the ghosts want."

Natasha debated mentally about whether to tell him more about the newer recruit. The former assassin didn't even know if she was part of Fury's assassination because all the information Steve gave her was that Fury was shot from his apartment. Natasha only saw the young woman- or teenager- once on her mission a year prior. But, she will never forget the look on the assassin's face when her mask was slightly off.

"One last thing, Steve," The redhead called out, causing Steve to eye her. "The Phantom isn't a woman..."

"But, a girl. I know," Steve answered, but Natasha's eyes widened slightly from shock.

"How do you know?" She voiced the sentence slowly and carefully. Steve recalled the fresh memories from last night, closing his eyes briefly before opening them.

"Because last night she was there," Steve spoke softly, but Natasha heard every word. "Still, I don't understand why a young girl be an assassin?" Steve was disgusted- no, revolted- by the fact of a young teenager tracking down and killing people without a second thought. Teenagers were supposed to enjoy life, not take others away.

"Because she looks innocent. No one will think twice if they see her face. All they see is a mask of the person behind it, not some sadistic murder." Natasha revealed the painful truth of how the real world works. And unfortunately, Natasha knew the dangers of it from the very beginning.

Steve nodded unsure, vowing himself he would do anything to help save the young teenager before it's too late. Making a promise that he will do anything to the best of his abilities to make her feel and act more human than some merciless killer. No matter, the consequences, in the long run, his top priority is to hunt the ghosts down before they could do any more bloodshed and destruction.

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Location: Washington, D.C.

April 3, 2014

AURORA dreaded that it would already be nine o'clock, she only met Alexander Pierce a few times but that was when she was around five years old. But that was about seven years ago since they last saw each other. Aurora could faintly remember his facial features but what stuck to her the most was his piercing blue eyes; staring at her with intense curiosity and a vivid smirk plastered on his lips.

Of course, she heard stories of the man; he was once part of SHIELD but after being misled by HYDRA the man betrayed SHIELD discreetly. Over two decades; Pierce eventually became one of HYDRA's leaders but still was part of SHIELD as a way to infect the organization secretly. His main goal was to create Project Insight; advance technology that can practically calculate anyone's future based on emails, scores, etc. And if they were a threat to HYDRA, they would be eliminated.

The teenager had training in less than an hour, meaning it was time for her to get her ass off the bed. She changed as quickly as she can when she realized that there was no food in the mini-fridge. She growled from frustration and hunger as she grabbed some cash and left. Aurora turned to her left and came across a nearby food shop, practically beaming at the sight of food.

She hurriedly grabbed a carry basket grabbing all the food she wanted, overjoyed that now she'll have breakfast. Once done with shopping and paying, she walked back to the hotel digging in on everything she had just bought. Aurora was munching on a chocolate donut when her mirror beep loudly. Confused, she glanced at the notification saying that she'll be training somewhere else. However, she then realized it was 11:49 a.m., she had less than ten minutes to leave.

"Shit!" Aurora yelped, as she quickly stuffs the donut inside her mouth. Aurora shuffled her feet towards the closet, changing into her training clothes and trainer shoes. She took her brunette hair and braid it into a fishtail so that it wouldn't distract her while she was training.

Aurora quickly responded as she got the location from her mirror, as she started walking out to the fire escape. Fortunately, it was about six minutes away from her location but Aurora being stubborn; ran the way there in less than three minutes.

It seemed like a small business restaurant but it was just a disguise for all HYDRA agents. Aurora pulled the door open as she walked in, there were a few people inside but it was all agents, some of which knew her. A female nodded stiffly at the teenager, signaling Aurora to follow her to the underground training room. She obliged following the strict woman done, and once she was there; many male trainers and a few female agents were training.

Aurora passed by the training ring and instead focus on weaponry. Although, Aurora ached to train with her powers, frankly, nobody else has abilities like the young HYDRA agent. Nonetheless, the Sokovian scientists built a chamber specifically for her back at the Research Base.

The assassin traced her fingers along the blade of the dagger, smirking that she'll train with this today. Once done with her weaponry training she'll do hand-to-hand combat next. And it was going to be a long day... of torture and pain.

After four hours of excruciating training, Aurora stumbles back to the hotel room with many bruises on her arms and legs. She stiffly laid down for two hours wanting to take a nap while she was at it. Aurora realized she had to take a shower but she was sore all over her body.

Aurora groggily woke up as she didn't comprehend that she slept for three hours, but for her, it was worth it. She yawned a couple of times, before staring at the clock; 8:29 p.m. Aurora still had time, so she decided to take a quick shower and then leave.

"God, why does this always happen to me?" Aurora complained, collecting some clean clothes for herself.

She stipped off all the sweaty clothes; before she stepped inside the warm water. The water soaked her whole body causing her muscles to cried for joy. Aurora sang along with the tune happily, the song playing in the background called 'Dancing With Myself' by Billy Idol.

So let's sink another drink

Cause it'll give me time to think

If I had the chance I'd ask the world to dance

And I'll be dancin' with myself

Oh oh, Dancing a-with myself,

Oh, oh, dancing with myself

If I had the chance I'd ask the world to dance

If I had the chance I'd ask the world to dance

If I had the chance I'd ask the world to dance

Oh, oh, oh, oh oh

Oh, oh, oh dancin' with myself.

Oh, oh, dancin' with myself, oh, oh,

Sweat, sweat, etc.

Her fresh bruises were still there but it wasn't turning a dark shade of violet, so it wasn't too serious. Aurora used a peach-scented hair soap, sighed gently contently of finally being clean from her gruesome training. After finishing singing along, she stepped out and dried her hair and changed into her mission suit. Her iPod shuffled her playlist as it started playing, 'I'm Still Standing' by Elton John.

You could never know what it's like

Your blood like winter freezes just like ice

And there's a cold lonely light that shines from you

You'll wind up like the wreck you hide behind that mask you use

Aurora heard a faint secret knock from the door, knowing this time it was the Winter Soldier. It was a way to know who was at the door when she was there. He let himself in, as Aurora continued to get ready for her next assignment.

Aurora didn't feel an ounce of self-conscious as she started to sway her hips gently along with the rhythm. Aurora knew that the Winter Soldier was there but this was the only time she somewhat acted as a true teenager. Young and free-spirited. The young teenager then collected her sunglasses and placed them onto the bridge of her button nose.

Aurora turned down the music softly, still singing the lyrics in her mind. "Let's go," The young assassin nodded as she created a portal to Pierce apartment. First, the Winter Soldier walked through and then did Aurora; they glanced at the dark-lit room and sat down at the table. She then noticed a faint movement coming from the light as she finally saw the man. He still looked pretty much the same last time she saw him.

Pierce goes to his kitchen to get a late-night drink from the fridge when he quickly sees the Winter Soldier and Phantom sitting behind him. A weapon was on the table; a gun that was out of reach from both assassins. Both were staring intensely at the HYDRA leader, him reciprocating the action back. Pierce slowly closed the fridge door, when suddenly a feminine voice called out, "I'm going to go, Mr. Pierce. You need anything before I leave?"

"No. Uh... it's fine, Renata, you can go home." Alexander answered slowly, continuing to stare at the duo. "Okay, night-night." His housekeeper called out, as she leaves.

"Goodnight." Silence for a few moments, but Pierce broke it, "Want some milk?"

Neither HYDRA agents reply at their superior. Alexander approaches them slowly explaining their next assignment, "The timetable has moved. Our window is limited. Two targets, Level Six." Aurora nodded stiffly having the feeling that she knew who were those agents. "They already cost me, Zola. I want confirmed death in ten hours."

However, Alexander's housekeeper; Renata rudely interrupts them as she enters the kitchen, without realizing the assassins in front of her. "Sorry, Mr. Pierce, I...I forgot my phone."

Renata stared at her boss, before noticing the Winter Soldier and Phantom with blank expressions. Pierce groaned softly, "Oh, Renata. I wish you would have knocked."

Pierce picked up the gun from the table as he shoots her. A shrill scream escaped from the woman, yet it was futile for her cause. It had to be done, no one had to know about the duo assassins. Aurora didn't felt any remorse for her, even if she barely knew the woman. The teenager felt her lips tugged to a smirk, her eyes filled with ambition.

"Done," Aurora was the first to talk, accepting the assignment. The man continues to stare at the young girl, remembering his adopted daughter. Just like her, Aurora's a true warrior; doing what needs to be settled for the greater good. Even if Aurora didn't know about her true heritage, Alexander wanted the brunette teenager to not get too involved with Project Insight. With his conversation earlier today with Captain Rogers, Alexander realized she was too big of an asset to lose.

Pierce couldn't complain though, Aurora turned out to be a great assassin, having powers that can practically outmatch anyone. Including the Avengers. And Pierce will be anticipating for that day to come, where they all fall onto their knees in submission... and Aurora reigning all over the world.