BW:F Chapter 20

Nat doesn’t panic.

They’re either in Lowtown or the narrows of Hightown. Hydra really is keeping a low profile with facilities like this, although they don’t need much to contain a hulk that won’t wake up. Nat assumed that they’d ID Jen, but she hadn’t counted on them successfully tranquilizing her, which they have obviously done. Hulks are notoriously difficult to KO, and Nat has privately been thinking that’s why Hydra went for Blonsky through his Soul Mates.

Even if Jen can’t bust them out, it’s not as though nobody’s ever locked Nat in a dungeon before. She’ll be out of here in no time; she just needs to think of a plan B. She just usually doesn’t need one because people rarely take her seriously; she’s not the Avenger that people are afraid of, ironically.

The metal door opens before she can even finish her thought. She turns at a clatter to see a stun grenade land at her feet. OK, they’re taking her seriously.

There’s a loud bang and she lands on her back. Gloved hands grab her wrists and she’s dragged through dark tunnels full of pipes and dripping water to a large, open room. Her head is clearing, but it’s too late: her wrists and ankles are in steel manacles attached to chains, which rattle as unseen machinery and pulleys manipulate her body. She rises a foot off the floor, her body pulled into the shape of an X.

Still blinking away stars, she can see that Jen is in the same position.

Uniformed and masked Hydra soldiers carrying AKs gaze at her.

For the first time in a long time, she is uncomfortably self-conscious. It’s the penis. These men are wearing ski masks and goggles hide their eyes, but they’re all staring at it. Her blush doesn’t stop at her cheeks; her whole body goes red.

She clears her throat.

“It’s a little cold in here,” she says apologetically.

Goosebumps form on her flesh. The guards leave the chamber. The chains clink softly in the quiet. Nat’s mind sharpens; she remembers the descent down a ramp, and the temperature all but confirms it: they’re underground.

Nat prefers above-ground secret lairs to underground ones but underground is still better than in the sky. She doesn’t love flying.

There must be several dozen guards for a place like this. It isn’t just the real estate; the weaponry isn’t top of the line, and she’s only spotted a few objects that are real Hydra tech. This Hydra cell is operating on a budget.

Soon, she and Jen are alone, suspended naked in this chilly chamber. Nat is weirdly aware of how extra her nipples are being at the moment because of the temperature and exposure. Jen’s the same, but she’s still snoozing away. Nat’s impressed. Even SHIELD doesn’t have a way to put a hulk under like this.