[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/Bm2dij1.png[/img][/center] [h3]One Month Ago...[/h3] The briefing room was almost excessively sleek. Glass table, chrome pens, smooth grey walls, official looking office chairs and, of course, the extremely modern looking S.H.I.E.L.D. logo on the back wall. [i]It's enough to make a man feel nervous[/i], thought agent Smythe, dabbing at his brow with a handkerchief for the tenth time in the last few minutes. The air conditioning was extremely efficient, keeping the room pleasantly cool but waiting to give a briefing to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s notoriously abrasive director would make him sweat even if he were in the Arctic. Smythe checked his watch again. [i]Fifteen minutes late[/i] he mused. [i]It must be nice being so important that no matter who you keep waiting, they just have to accept it. Still, when the wellbeing of the free world hangs on your decisions, maybe you feel justified in taking a few extra minutes to make them.[/i] [b]CRASH[/b] Behind Smythe, a door slammed open and several figures all in black strode into the room. Spinning around, he saw a trio of huge men in dark suits and dark glasses standing by the door. He guessed that they were actually scanning the room but he couldn't shake the suspicion they were actually glaring at him from under their sunglasses. The three were still and silent for a handful of seconds before one raised his hand and spoke into a concealed microphone. "Room safe, Dome is clear for entry." He slipped back into statue mode on one side of the door, while one of his companions moved to stand by the chair at the head of the table, the one in front of the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo and the third took up a position on the other side of the door. A tense minute or so later, the man himself swept into the room; Nick Fury. Tall and imposing in his signature black jacket, Fury cut an unmistakable figure. He walked across the room, dropped into the chair in front of the logo and looked at Smythe expectantly. Smythe leapt up to salute but was waived down by the Director. "[color=gray]Stand easy. No, in fact, sit down.[/color]" Feeling almost admonished, Smythe sat and then slid his folder across the desk towards Fury. The man took it, flicked to the first page and glared at the words through his one visible eye. After a few moments he looked up at Smythe and barked. "[color=gray]Says here the asset engaged A.I.M. forces at 0300 local time. I thought the plan was to go in during daylight, during the shift change to maximise the confusion of the asset's exit. Why the alteration?[/color]" Smythe swallowed. "That was the plan, yessir. The plan changed." [hr] [right][b]Mission: Frozen Portent Time: 0250 Location: [REDACTED][/b][/right] "[color=steelblue]The plan's changed? Why?[/color]" scowled Brian Falsworth as he buckled on the iconic Union Jack helmet. Smythe scowled back, not used to explaining himself to field agents. "I picked up some chatter between the guards on the hacked frequency. They said the weapons are being moved at the break of dawn so if we want to acquire them, we need to move now." Falsworth, now standing in the cramped confines of the surveillance post and stretching the joints of his shoulder, gave a dry chuckle. "[color=steelblue]You mean if [i]I'm[/i] going to acquire them, [i]I[/i] had better move now, right?[/color]" Smythe rolled his eyes. [i]Give them a mask and a few enhanced abilities and they think they're Steve damned Rogers...[/i] "Fine, whatever makes you happy. Make the run through the woods, approach tower C unseen, remove the guard, enter the base without being detected, plant the explosives at the gate, acquire the vehicle the weapons are being transported in and then exit, using the explosives as a distraction." "[color=steelblue]Yeah, yeah, I know the plan, this isn't my first day in the playground sir.[/color]" "Get out there and do it then!" said Smythe, his temper fraying slightly. Normally he had a bit more control but he'd now been awake for thirty two hours on surveillance, eaten but once in that time and only caught wind of why the plan needed to change by accident. He was in no mood to be cheeked by the agent he'd woken from sleep a mere five minutes earlier. "[color=steelblue]Roger that, you should easily be able to hear my exit from here. I'll maintain radio silence unless there's an emergency.[/color]" said agent Falsworth from behind his mask. Smythe couldn't be sure but he suspected the other agent was grinning underneath it. He shot a last withering glance at the younger man as he slipped out of the hatch on the bottom of the surveillance post. It was currently attached to the side of a mountain with suction pods and in stealth mode so even someone watching very carefully at precisely the right spot would only see a dark shape drop out of thin air. With a sigh, agent Smythe slumped into the seat at the main observation screens and watched the thermal image of agent Falsworth close the ground between the post and the A.I.M. base at a prodigious speed. Even he had to admit that Union Jack's abilities were extremely impressive. They had to be, otherwise this mission would be being attempted by a full S.H.I.E.L.D. assault team rather than a single agent. He rubbed his eyes and yawned. [i]Soon, soon the mission will be over and I can have a hot bath. And eat food that wasn't microwaved.[/i] The red shape that was Falsworth on the screen reached the wall and leapt it in a single bound, swinging himself over the parapet and into tower C. Almost immediately, the other red shape in the tower went from standing up straight to lying flat on the floor and slowly cooling. [i]Good, guard neutralised with no alert showing on their frequency[/i] thought Smythe as he glanced at the time. 0300 exactly. [hr] "[color=gray]Alright, you did what you had to do.[/color]" noted Fury, moving on to the next page and scanning Smythe's hastily typed report. Now that the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. was reading it, Smythe really wished he spent a bit more time making sure all the words were spelled correctly. "[color=gray]So it all went wrong when the asset was acquiring the objective?[/color]" "Yessir. As it says on page three, there was an unforeseen complication. There was another enhanced in the field, so to speak." "[color=gray]Yup. Protocide.[/color]" "I..." for a couple of seconds, Smythe was speechless. [i]How could he have known? He hasn't read it yet![/i] Then it struck him; it's Nick fucking Fury, of course he knew. [i]He knew when he sent us there, no wonder the orders were so vague about what the weapons actually were.[/i] He cleared his throat and said "Yessir, Protocide. The asset approached the objective's transportation vehicle and moved in to eliminate the guards..." [hr] [right][b]Mission: Frozen Portent Time: 0305 Location: [REDACTED][/b][/right] Union Jack slipped from shadow to shadow, moving through the base as quickly as he could without taking undue risks. According to his handler, Smythe, he had less than ten minutes before the guard's did their regular check up on each of the towers. He'd planted the explosives on the gate without being detected so now he just had to remove whoever was guarding the truck and drive it the hell out of here. [i]Sounds almost too easy[/i] he thought as the vehicle came into sight. Three guards, each dressed in a uniform of muted yellow and wielding futuristic looking assault rifles. They'd probably be more threatening if they weren't also standing around at the back of the truck having a smoke and laughing between themselves. Moving like a panther, Union Jack crept closer and lay flat on the ground to scan the floor. No signs of feet on the other side, looks like just these three. He drew a silenced pistol from his belt, took in a breath and released it as he squeezed off three sharp shots. All three A.I.M. soldiers dropped without making a sound. Holstering the gun, Union Jack moved swiftly to drag the bodies under the truck. As soon as the truck moved, they'd become visible but things would be in motion by then anyway and a few more bodies could hardly put the base on higher alert than an exploding front gate. With one more scan of the area, Brian took a step away from the truck's rear doors towards the cab. [i]Home and dry[/i] he thought. That was, of course, when the fourth man opened the truck's rear doors, looked for his colleagues, saw a man in an armed man in a blue mask and went for his gun. Instead of cursing his luck, Brian launched himself into the fourth guard and sent them both flying backwards into the truck. As they crashed into something, Union Jack disarmed the guard with practised ease before hammering his helmeted forehead into his opponent's face. The man went slack in his arms and Brian took a step back, letting him fall to the floor. Less than three seconds had passed since the truck doors had been opened but there was no time to waste. Brian went to step away but stopped. The man's fall revealed what they had smashed into. It was a icy case made of a strange looking dark metal, about the size of a man. It looked like the impact of Brian and the now unconscious A.I.M. operative did some damage to it. Coolant gas leaked from broken pipes and the glass plated front seemed to have almost completely caved in. And under the melting ice and cracked glass, he could just make out a human face. It took a couple of seconds for Union Jack to realise that a man in a frozen box wasn't what he had been sent to acquire. All he had been told was that he was fetching weapons. [i]Dammit, dammit, dammit. Every time, every time they feed me some rubbish and every time I believe them. Still, the mission goes on.[/i] Brian turned to make his escape before one of the many, many remaining guards spotted the truck's open doors and decided to come and have a look in. He only made it to the back of the vehicle when he heard the ice begin to crack. He only managed to turn around as the fist smashed through the surface and only managed to draw his pistol as a heavy set figure in a red uniform burst out of the container with a bestial snarl. Brian's reactions are sharper than any normal humans and his marksmanship is world class, drilled into him by hundreds of hours of training, hundreds of hours at the firing ranges and almost a decade of combat experience. But he still only got off two shots at the other guy's centre mass before he was sent flying out of the truck in almost the exact way he entered it a minute or so ago. As they crashed into the dirt, Brian's mind raced a mile a moment. All thoughts of stealing the truck, blowing the gate and leaving left his head, replaced by the certain knowledge he was fighting someone just as fast, if not faster, than himself. This was do or die and Union Jack had no intention of dying on an A.I.M. base in the middle of [REDACTED], a long way from home. He swivelled his weight, bucked his hips and threw his opponent off of him, regaining his feet with all speed. As they faced off, agent Falsworth was able to get a good look at the damage his shots had done. He wouldn't be making anymore because his gun had gone flying in the collision so he'd have to hope those shots had made an impact. His counter part stood considerably taller than him and seemed to be built like a brick wall, with muscles on his muscles. He wore a tattered uniform of red with a white star on the chest, two small red holes near the centre of the star. Brian's shots, while sublimely accurate, didn't seem to have even registered with the frozen man. There was something else, too. He held a shield in one hand, a shield with a white star on a blue field and a handful of red and white stripes. [center][hider=Protocide image] [img]http://static5.comicvine.com/uploads/original/10/101073/2059186-protocide4.png[/img][/hider][/center] The moment of observation ended and the figure moved forward with all the grace of an avalanche. Unfortunately, he also moved with the force and speed of one. Brian was driven backwards, twisting out of the way of a stab with the pointed end of the shield, blocking a right jab with his forearm and absorbing several bone crunching body blows. His enemy had no finesse, no skill and made no move to protect himself but his speed and strength were simply too much of an advantage for Brian to find space to capitalise on his weaknesses. As he barely dodged out of the way of the sharp end of the shield, a kick threw him half a dozen metres and broke several of his ribs. He'd barely hit the ground before he had to start moving, however, as his foe was charging him down like a beast coming in for the kill. A big, angry beast with a pointy piece of metal in one hand. Union Jack struggled to his feet and did the only thing that made the only move that made sense; turned and ran. [hr] "[color=gray]So he ran? Smart kid. Did he break radio silence?[/color]" Smythe nodded emphatically. "Yessir, the second he decided to abort the mission, he let me know he'd be making an extremely loud exit." "[color=gray]Let me guess; he blew the gate to make sure the objective and the opposition didn't try to follow him?[/color]" "Sort of sir. The asset knew he couldn't outrun the objective so he used the gate to slow the objective down." [hr] [right][b]Mission: Frozen Portent Time: 0308 Location: [REDACTED][/b][/right] "[color=steelblue]Smythe, prep for evac because I'm coming out hot![/color]" Running with broken ribs is painful but not that difficult. Running with broken ribs while dodging fire from A.I.M. agents is very painful but not impossible. But running with broken ribs, dodging laser fire and trying to outrun someone faster and stronger than yourself is pushing impossible even for a super soldier. Brian ran, rolled over some crates and vaulted a small fence, forcibly ignoring the burning sensation in his chest and stabbing pains down his side. Behind him, he could hear his opponent following him, going through the obstacles Brian had avoided and taking down A.I.M. operatives rather than skirting round them. Even so, he was only about ten metres behind when the gate came into sight. At this moment, Union Jack's plan wasn't 100% fully formed but he knew he needed three things to happen; to get the frozen man between him and the gate, to blow the gate and to not get shot by anyone during the previous two steps. To that end, he snagged two smoke grenades from his belt and hurled them forwards to land in front of the gate. The thick smoke they produced contained particles of a material that interfered with infrared and x-ray images so A.I.M. would have a very hard time pinning him down inside that. But as Brian gave the smoke time to form an actual cloud, a meaty arm closed around his throat and something stabbed into his side. Luckily, it wasn't the side already damaged by the kick but even so, the pointed end of the shield punched through his suit and slid between two of his ribs. He gave a strangled gasp of pain before training took over over. Brian brought his head back with a sharp snap in the same moment as ramming an elbow into the man holding him. With a twist, he managed to break free and made it into the smoke before his opponent grabbed him again. This time he was lifted by one hand at his throat and brought down into the mud with a wet splat. His enemy leaned down and glared into his masked face. "[color=9e0b0f]Who in blazes are you, boy? And where in God's name am I?[/color]" he growled. Brian didn't answer immediately and not just because he could feel blood leaking out of his side. He was trying to work out the angle between himself and the gate. By his reckoning, the man on top of him should be shielding him pretty well from the detonation point of the gate's explosives. Not perfectly but he didn't feel like he had many options left. He carefully moved his hand down to his belt and the remote detonator as he stared back into the other man's bloodshot eyes. "[color=steelblue]I'm Union Jack, arsehole. And tell me, can your mother sew?[/color]" spat Union Jack and stabbed his finger down on the detonator. [center][h3][color=red]BOOM[/color][/h3][/center] The heat was intense and the shock wave plucked the giant off of Brian's chest and hurled him across the yard. In contrast, Brian barely suffered at all. He was a tad scorched, disorientated by the shockwave and sound but mostly unharmed. At least, no more harmed than before the detonation. As he stumbled to his feet, he could hear A.I.M. agents screaming at each other, the base's alarm klaxons wailing and the sound of bits of the border wall falling down. Limping out of the base, towards agent Smythe and blessed extraction, he looked back over his shoulder to the form of the man in red. Even after the force of the explosion, he already seemed to be stirring. "[color=steelblue]Tell her stitch that one for you, pal. I reckon we'll meet again.[/color]" Brian groaned out before turning in the surveillance pod's direction and starting to run. It hurt like hell even to breathe but he didn't fancy hanging around here while his opponent regained his feet and got ready to resume where they'd left off. In the distance, Smythe was already warming up the extraction vehicle. [hr] Fury's fingers drummed a rapid beat on the surface of the table. "[color=gray]Alright, sounds like the asset made the right call. How is he?[/color]" Smythe pushed another file across the table. "The second we got back to base, he received a medical diagnosis; cracked ribs, stab wound to one side, second degree burns on one side. They doped him up on pain killers and got to work. But he heals at a very fast rate so he should be ready for another operation within a week." Stroking his beard with one finger, the Director nodded. "[color=gray]Good. And then you were given the dossier on the objective, Protocide?[/color]" "Yessir, I read it on the way here." "[color=gray]Okay, good. You should know that you and the asset did the best job you could have done in the situation, these things happen. Tell the asset that the job isn't done then get yourself back to your post.[/color]" Smythe's heart sank. He'd hoped that he would be accompanying Union Jack on the inevitable follow up mission but it seemed he'd be dropped back into the normal rotation. "Yessir, thank you sir. Can I ask what you plan to do about Protocide?" "[color=gray]If you read his file, you know where he came from. And if you know anything, you know who else came from the same place.[/color]" "Yessir." "[color=gray]The asset will want to give it another go and you-know-who will want in. This is personal for him. I intend, agent Smythe, to give them both what they want...[/color]" [h3]One Hour Ago...[/h3] "[color=steelblue]Sam Wilson? I'm agent Brian Falsworth, pleasure to meet you. I've been assigned to your OP by the cyclops himself and I come ready briefed. I'll see you at the first floor elevator, alright mate?[/color]" [h3]Now.[/h3] With a smooth hiss, the elevator doors slid open. "[color=steelblue]Told you so, Agent Falsworth in position.[/color]"