Adult-FanFiction.org : Marvel 'Verse

A Bucky Barnes Winter Soldier Fic - The Constant	By : TheConstant1944 Category: Marvel Verse Comics > Captain America Views: 2391 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters. They are solely owned by Marvel and MCU. No money is made from this story.

Chapter List
- 38
- 39
- 40
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Hydra, The Constant & the Winter Soldier - Under New Management

An intelligent, young, bright American, Jackson Caldwell arrives at his new posting. Although he is only in his twenties he is keen, enthusiastic, and knows exactly where Project Winter Soldier should be heading. He has been brought in by Zola.
He will not make the same mistakes as Krupin.
Along with Hydra, he is going to save the world.
Hail Hydra!
Jackson Caldwell has got far in a short time and he is right where he wants to be. He appears to be a congenial young man, and this is because he has learnt that this is the easiest way to be to get what he wants. He gives people their small victories without letting them realise he wins the important ones for himself. Without them realising it he slowly strips them of their values and, if necessary, their importance. People believe him to be fair and just; they like him.
And this makes him more dangerous than people like Nikolay Lehmann and Leonid Krupin. At least you could see their naked ambition.
The thing with Caldwell is that he wants to remain in this position, in the middle of things. Back home he has important friends, friendships he has deliberately sought out, courted. In Hydra he has a good reputation, people rely on him. Being the Winter Soldier's Handler will only be one of many things he will be responsible for.
He will not spend all of his time here at the Camp. He will be here when necessary, of course, but he will ensure that he is always aware of what is happening. He sees himself as the puppet master, and the rest of the world do not know they are his toys. He is not stupid and he will do all that it takes to ensure people believe that he is there for them. That he cares. He knows exactly what people need.
You are not there to greet him. Neither is the Winter Soldier. You are both in cryo-freeze.
Five months later you are awoken.
The new base has done well under Caldwell's ownership. It is up-to-date on all the latest technology, much of which is not known of outside Hydra. As originally mentioned by Lehmann, it is not just there for the Winter Soldier: he is just one of the projects housed here. The base will train STRIKE teams as well as other special ops teams; something else that is under Caldwell's remit. Other specialised training will also be done here.
Caldwell is in charge of a few further projects in one way or another. There are other camp directors who will work together on bringing Hydra into the twenty-first century, always keeping it at the forefront of technology. All are dedicated to Hydra.
Back home In the United States Hydra has found a new home and is safe.
It is hidden. Nestled into SHIELD. Infecting it slowly. Poetic justice, Zola thinks.
*
Your quarters are now on the main floor which is on the surface. Both your clothing and the Winter Soldier's have been placed in there. The bed is a still double, but there is also the single one in the corner like before. Caldwell appears to have put some thought into the living space; you even have a small walled-off area leading off from your rooms outside. There is a small kitchenette and even your own bathroom. Both you and the Winter Soldier are able to breath fresh air, see the sun, and have a certain amount of freedom.
Jackson Caldwell comes to see you an hour after you awaken. He can see how nauseous you are feeling, and is quiet, and apologises for the intrusion. He tells you his long term plans and tells you that if you have any worries his door is always open.
You will reserve judgement on that. “And the Winter Soldier?”
Caldwell smiles.
“This is his home. We will look after him here. He is an important part of our plans and I can assure you, Freya...may I call you Freya?” He pauses waiting for your nod of acceptance “...that his health and physical wellbeing are paramount. I have a team of people for you to meet when you are feeling better. I have decided that it is best for him to remain on mission with the same team each time, where possible. His new lead commander is a young man called Adam Morton - an Australian. I expect he will introduce you to the rest of the team. He will be your main contact when arranging the Winter Soldier's timetable.”
You look down at the ground. Can you believe him?
He seems genuine...
“He is in good hands here, Freya.” Caldwell re-emphasises, smiling again as he leaves you in peace.
Over the next 24 hours you learn more about the new regime. The Winter Soldier and his team all have separate areas to the rest of the camp. These contain training areas, gun alleys, a large gym, food hall, and sleeping quarters. In the main camp there is a Helipad and even a small runway. These are also open to the Winter Soldier project when needed; they will be able to fly him into wherever he is needed, under radar cover. The food hall even has its own chef now. The guards are all vetted and Hydra-loyal. Marinov is still in charge of them, and his second in command is a guard you already know by sight; Serge Zolnerowich.
The rest of the small staff are made up of one doctor, Eric Jakobs, and two scientists - the French scientist Doctor Taffeteer, and a woman you have never met. There are also various technicians and the cryo team which still includes Stefan - although you later find out that Stefan now has other duties as well.
The programming team still consists of Peter and Elise but a new person has joined the team, a man named Timur Mosin. Any friendship you had built with Peter during Krupin's time is now politely forgotten. You pass them in the corridor, give in reports to them but that is all. Friendship with them is not encouraged, and even if it were they would be the last people you would seek out.
There are also trainers who will work with Adam Morton as part of the Winter Soldier mission team: Viktor Kozar and Rodion Bessonov.
There are cameras everywhere. Security is high. It seems more like a small community than a military base, but if you look under the smokescreen you would realise it is highly organised and highly deadly. There are gun turrets at every corner, high fences, guard dogs, and once again the whole place is surrounded by a dense forested area with only two main roads in and out and one back road which is little more than a track and looks as if it would lead to no where.
In other words, no one could accidentally see what is going on in there.
This is the way it was supposed to be. This is the way it was originally planned by Zola and the department heads of Hydra. The Winter Soldier is an assassin of the highest calibre, not just a hired killer as Krupin was using him as. He will be kept up to date with everything needed by Hydra. He will become more fluent in all languages, and his metal arm will be constantly updated with the latest engineering. He will be a force to be reckoned with.
Unknown to Freya, there is one thing that will never be changed: the Winter Soldier's programming. She will still be used as a failsafe without her knowing. Each time he starts to remember her...that is when they know their time is limited.
She is still the one who gives him away; the ticking clock.
*
He listens to her voice. Knows where he is. Knows he is safe. Knows who he is – no-one...but everyone. He is the asset. He is an assassin. He is Hydra.
He knows enough that he has been ill but is now better. Freya leaves, promises to see him later. He has a new Handler and is introduced to both him and the new team that will always be with him on mission. He looks for Freya but they tell him first of all he needs to go to programming.
He will always obey them. Hail Hydra!
When he comes out some time later he no longer looks for the woman; doesn't even know he had ever looked for her. His head is buzzing and at first it is difficult to keep focus and he has to concentrate. He is shown around the new base. Some of it is vaguely familiar, some of it strangely new. He is then taken to his quarters and meets the woman who will look after him. They have told him that he does know her, that she is always with him. He has already been instructed that she will provide all that he needs. For the first time that day he feels vaguely uncomfortable, it is as if he knows her but doesn't. As if she should mean something to him but she doesn't. The look she gives him is hopeful and he can see in her eyes he means something to her but he turns away. Does not see that light die away. Does not see the despair that replaces it. She thought he might be different now, but he isn't. He still doesn't know her like he should. Why? Why does this always happen after the programming?
She has given up trying to understand.
He thinks about what they told him. She is a nurse who looked after him when he was ill but she has loose morals; she likes the men, and that makes him angry and strangely jealous. They told him that he has some connection with her, they don't know why. They tell him she belongs to him but they make her sound dirty, disloyal. He is not sure what makes them think he would want to be with her yet alone...he shakes his head, he doesn't want to even think about that.
Jackson Caldwell is not stupid. Although he has some compassion for Freya's predicament, he brushes that aside. She is needed, her role is vital, she is the ticking clock. And so the programming still tells the Winter Soldier she is a whore, that he needs to keep her in check. That he can do anything he likes to her without retribution. Caldwell actually thought of putting in the programme that the woman must not be killed, but Elise tells him with one of her cold smiles that there is no need to. The Winter Soldier's overwhelming love for the woman always stops him going too far - always.
And so a new era begins.
*
January 2^nd 1955
The mission could be a difficult one. The target will be in a crowded place. There is nowhere for them to hide the Winter Soldier, and he will need his team there with him to run interference. He is flown in and knows his mission. He is not dressed in his usual uniform, not in black; none of them are. Instead he has on a dark suit, shirt, and tie. A long dark overcoat, hat and gloves complete the ensemble. He is going to the races. A normal everyday occurrence, only for this group of men they will not be interested in watching the horses, placing bets. They only want one thing and that is someone's life.
Such a small thing to ask for.
The target is important, very important, especially with the talks. But Hydra has learnt something, something it doesn't like, and so this man must be taken out of the equation before he can say he has changed his mind. Before he can make it known he no longer wants to go ahead with the plans for the Panama Canal.
The group of men stay together but are not out of place. They join in the crowds, look out over the race course. They have seen plans and photographs, they know exactly where their weapons are hidden and when the time comes they know exactly where they are meant to be. No one pays attention to them; they are just a group of friends out to enjoy the day. They carry in their hands folded up newspapers, a betting slip or two. If you studied the group you would realise one of them is quieter than the others, his eyes do not follow the horses, instead he is summing up the area, looking for any dangers. He listens to the voices around him, the language a mix of Spanish and a smattering of Portuguese.
The target is sat with a group of people in the Presidential Box. Although the day is cold, the sun is low and bright so that shadow prevents anyone from seeing him clearly. The President doesn't mind; he isn't really one for public appearances. He has come to enjoy himself, to forget about the talks for a day, forget about what he will have to do next week. For today he can just be himself.
Everyone is relaxed. He is sat looking through binoculars at the race course and is laughing with his bodyguard. They have both gone for different horses in the next race and the President is saying how he trusts him with his life but not with his choice of horses. They have a small side wager, nothing much, a bottle of the President's favourite drink which he knows his bodyguard also likes.
To the left of the edge of the box is a small stand of trees and bushes, swaying gently in the wind. After today these will be torn down, the ground opened up so no one could possibly hide anything in them.
After today, no one will need to hide anything in them.
The group of men move over to the trees. Still no one pays them any attention.
There is an announcement for the next race over the tanoy, which whines as someone readjusts it. The Winter Soldier listens to what is being said; the announcer talking excitedly in Spanish. The horses have been led into the starting stalls and the starters shot is heard and the horses are off.
People jostle forward and begin to shout. In the Presidential box the President and his bodyguard stand to watch and see which of their horses will win. The noise from the crowd gets to the point where it is deafening, the tanoy keeping people abreast of the race, the excitement in the announcer's tone. A series of loud bangs are heard and some people turn thinking firecrackers have been let off.
They do not at first understand what they are seeing.
A man is walking forward, machine gun cradled in his arms. He looks to be an ordinary man, with several others around him; all are holding guns. The man lifts the machine gun and aims into the box just as the bodyguard frantically dives in front of his President but it is of no use and he dies in vain as bullets shoot through his body and take down the President behind him. Five others are also killed. No one could be missed in the rain of bullets a machine gun can throw out in less than a few seconds.
No one.
It is obvious that the President is dead and the men who took his life melt back into the covering of the trees as screams start to make themselves known in the pandemonium. More and more people turn to see what is happening and the race becomes forgotten by everyone but the announcer, who is not in a place to see what is happening except on the race field. His excited voice announces the winner of the race.
The bodyguard would have won the drink.
Tomorrow the news will circulate around the whole world. Presidents and Royals from all countries will send their horrified condolences, but the killer will never be found. Stories will be made up, patsies found, but underneath it all in the quieter spaces, the story of a ghost will circulate. This is not the first time he has struck and they know it will not be the last. But no one, simply no one, seems to know where he comes from, who he works for. All they know is that he is to be feared, because he never fails. Warnings are circulated under the radar, nothing to back them up, just feelings from those who work in secret to try and protect the world.
It will not be enough. It will never be enough.
The first mission under Jackson Caldwell's leadership has been a success and he welcomes back his team, welcomes back the Winter Soldier.
A few days later, Jackson receives a confidential memo from someone within SHIELD. They know that he is part of the intelligence community, and over time Jackson has advised and worked with SHIELD, helping them as an organisation to grow. The person considers him a friend and ally. The memo asks if he has heard the rumours about the unknown assassin, shares information, and asks him if he knows any more than they do.
He dictates the reply to send back.
My Dear Peggy,
I am in much the same place as you about this assassin, and that is in the dark! I have talked with people I know but nobody seems to have heard the rumours you have alluded to about him. The only thing I can come up with is that someone has floated the idea that it is a team of people who carry out their contracts in much the same manner over the years. It then makes it appear as if it is the same man who is the assassin no matter how many years have gone by. This is to cause fear and confusion, rumours of a ghost. You and I of course know this could not be true! I have a contact within the Russian government who I am planning to grill next time I see him. I shall let you know if I hear any more.
Meanwhile, I am flying in next Tuesday and was hoping to have a meeting with you at SHIELD headquarters to discuss incorporating some of our STRIKE teams within SHIELD. I know it is a subject we have only touched on in the past but the programme is going well and I think SHIELD can benefit from them joining with you.
I know you are a very busy woman but maybe afterwards, your time permitting, I can take you to lunch? I would very much like that.
Your friend as always,
Jackson.
Peggy Carter is a very intelligent woman whom Jackson Caldwell intends to keep both as a friend and ally. She is older than he but that does not worry him; he has always been good at flirting with both men and woman to get what he wants. He also knows a hopeless cause when he sees one and so he would never push that angle too far with Peggy; a light bit of flirting here and there but she knows her own mind and is definitely not a pushover.
If she ever discovered that Hydra is growing within her own organisation, he is not sure what she would do. She has only one feeling for Hydra and that is an overwhelming hatred.
It is such a pity because he is sure, with her drive and ability, that she would go far. For now he must keep her on his side. Keep her in front of him so he can always see exactly what she is doing. He will never turn his back on her.
He will continue to watch and wait; with a little help from his STRIKE teams, that is.

Authors note: For image of newspaper please use: http://i.imgur.com/kkqqc4B.jpg
- 38
- 39
- 40
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

A Bucky Barnes Winter Soldier Fic - The Constant