Year 1990
.
Y/n sat across from Stan in his office. Stan leaned back in his chair with his gaze fixed on her with that familiar air of superiority.
The years had hardened Y/n but the mention of Ben’s name always struck a chord deep within her.
"I need you to come with me to Russia." Stan said.
Y/n’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of Russia.
It had been years since that fateful operation, years since she had last seen Ben who was now nothing more than a ghost in her life.
She didn’t want to go...didn’t want to reopen those wounds that had never truly healed.
But the thought of seeing Ben, of knowing what had become of him was too tempting to resist.
"Why?" she asked.
Stan’s lips curled into a cold almost mocking smile.
"I want to see what the Russians have been doing with Soldier Boy. After all, he was a valuable asset, and it’s time we checked on their progress."
Y/n swallowed hard. She didn’t want to go but she couldn’t deny the part of her that desperately wanted to see Ben again even if it meant facing whatever horrors awaited them in Russia.
After a long pause, she finally nodded.
"Alright, I’ll go."
Stan’s smile widened but it lacked any warmth.
"Of course you will..." He mocked her.
"...In the end, you always follow the plan I assign to you, don’t you?"
Y/n’s eyes narrowed slightly, her heart hardened. She had grown used to Stan’s manipulations over the years, his constant reminders that he held all the power.
But this time, she refused to let him get under her skin. She was going for Ben, not for Stan, not for Vought but for herself.
She remained silent and refused to give Stan the satisfaction of a response.
Instead, she simply stood up and walked out of the office, leaving Stan to smirk at her back.
As she made her way down the corridor, her heart was filled with emotions...fear, anger, sadness, but most of all, a deep yearning to see Ben again no matter what state he might be in.
As much as she dreaded the trip, she couldn’t ignore the pull that Ben still had over her even after all these years.
And if this was the only way to see him again, then she would go no matter what Stan said or did.
.
After one week-
After a week, Y/n and Stan finally arrived at the Russian facility where Ben was being held.
The facility was cold and sterile and the air was filled with the scent of antiseptics and something darker...something that hinted at the unspeakable experiments that had taken place within its walls.
Y/n’s heart pounded in her chest as they were led down a series corridors. Stan was calm as always but Y/n could feel her own emotions.
They reached a large reinforced glass window that overlooked a room.
Behind the glass, Ben lay strapped to a metal table, unconscious and vulnerable.
He looked different...his once formidable body now filled by scars and the marks of countless experiments.
The sight of him, broken and lifeless hit Y/n like a punch to the gut.
Her breath caught in her throat and for a moment she felt like she couldn’t breathe.
This was the man she had loved, the man she had betrayed and now he was nothing more than a test subject in a cruel experiment.
"They’ve been experimenting on him for six years...Trying to harness his powers, make him into something even more powerful. It’s impressive, really, what they’ve managed to do." Stan raised an eyebrow.
Y/n didn’t respond. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from Ben, couldn’t shake the image of him lying there so vulnerable and alone.
The doctors in the room moved around him as they adjusted machines, injected him with unknown substances all while he remained unconscious.
Her heart ached for him and she had to fight the urge to pound on the glass, to scream at them to stop, to beg them to let him go.
But she knew it would be futile. They were too far gone, too deep into their experiments to care about anything other than their twisted goals.
"Don’t let your emotions get in the way....Remember why we’re here. This is just another part of the plan." Stan interrupted.
Y/n’s jaw clenched and she forced herself to nod though every fiber of her being rebelled against his words.
She knew she had to keep her emotions in check, had to play the role Stan expected of her.
But deep down, the sight of Ben like this..so broken, so utterly defeated...was too much for her to bear.
As the doctors continued their work she felt tears sting her eyes and she quickly blinked them away.
But the image of Ben, lying there on that cold metal table would be burned into her memory forever.
Ben stirred on the metal table and his eyes slowly fluttered open. His senses were dulled from the drugs, but even in his state, he could feel something....a familiar presence, something he hadn’t felt in years.
Y/n.
He blinked and tried to clear the haze from his vision. As he looked around, he caught sight of the doctors and Russian music filled his ears.
Panic and rage surged through him and his instincts kicked in. With a growl, he tore against the restraints and snapped the leather straps that held him down as if they were nothing.
The doctors barely had time to react before Ben lunged at them. He slammed one doctor against the wall and the man crumpled to the ground unconscious.
Another tried to inject him with a sedative but Ben swatted the syringe away. and sent the doctor sprawling.
Y/n who had been standing behind the glass.couldn’t stay still any longer. Her heart raced as she rushed to the door of the room, desperate to see him to know if he was really there, alive and fighting.
As she reached the doorway her breath caught in her throat.
There he was, in all his terrifying glory...Ben, the man she loved but also the man she had betrayed.
He sensed her before he saw her. Even with everything happening around him, something inside him recognized her presence and he turned, his eyes locking onto hers.
For a moment, everything else faded away. The anger that had driven him to attack the doctors flickered with something else.
His eyes bore into hers filled with both rage and a deep aching love that he could never fully let go of.
“Y/n…” he breathed and his voice was rough and low.
But before he could say more the doctors moved quickly knowing they had only moments before he would become unstoppable.
They released the special gas, a thick noxious cloud that filled the room. Ben stumbled and his body betrayed him as the gas took effect.
His vision blurred and his limbs grew heavy but he fought to stay upright to keep his eyes on her.
Y/n's heart dropped as she saw the fury and longing in his gaze. She wanted to reach out to him, to say something, anything but she was frozen in place and her heart shattered as she watched him struggle.
Before the gas fully overtook him, Ben managed to choke out one last sentence.
“You…you came back.”
And then, with a finaldesperate look at her, his eyes fluttered shut and he collapsed to the ground unconscious.
Once again.
Y/n stood there, her heart in pieces. The love and anger she saw in his eyes haunted her, leaving her standing there unable to move, unable to breathe knowing that despite everything, despite the years and the betrayal, she still loved him...and he still loved her too.
Stan approached Y/n slowly. He glanced at Ben’s unconscious form behind the glass then turned his gaze to Y/n.
“He’s more durable than we ever imagined. They can’t even cut through his skin anymore. He’s become… something else. Something more dangerous.” Stan informed her.
“What do you mean by ‘too powerful’? What have they done to him?” She asked.
Stan hesitated and a rare moment of uncertainty flashed in his eyes.
“That’s the part I’m not entirely clear on myself. From what I’ve been told, he’s stronger than ever before
....physically, mentally. But how they’ve managed to enhance him to this extent… I don’t know. The Soviets have done something to him, something that’s pushed him beyond what we thought was possible.”
Her breath hitched as she looked at Ben lying there motionless but still a threat.
“It’s best to keep him under Russian observation, Y/n. If he comes out… if he escapes… he won’t just be a danger to the world. He’ll be a danger to you. You saw the way he looked at you. You didn’t help him, not then, not now. And he knows it.” Stan added.
A cold shiver ran down Y/n’s spine as she recalled the look in Ben’s eyes before he fell unconscious. There was pain, yes, but also a deep rage.
“He… he wouldn’t…” she started.
She wasn’t sure anymore. The Ben she knew was gone replaced by something far more unpredictable.
“You betrayed him once, and now, seeing you here, still standing by and doing nothing to help him… that will only fuel his anger. If he ever gets out, he’ll come for everyone. And you, Y/n, you’ll be at the top of his list.”
Stan placed a hand on her shoulder.
“We’ll keep him here, where he can’t hurt anyone. Where he can’t hurt you.”
But Y/n’s mind was far from reassured. She knew deep down that Ben’s rage could never be fully contained.
And if he ever broke free there would be no place safe from the storm he would unleash.
A/n: the real fun begins.