[Zhongyingmei] Who is my father?

It all started with the mission to protect the VIP that Hawkeye mentioned.

The genetic engineer who escaped from Russia is over half a century old, and he is one of the persons in charge of 'Project Z' who has been involved since the very beginning.Perhaps it was because he was unwilling to work for Hydra any more, or that SHIELD provided him with more irresistible benefits. In short, after a chaos that almost caused the entire Siberia base, he brought his wife and daughter to Washington, Seeking asylum from the U.S. government, but as everyone knows, he just crossed from one smuggler to another hell controlled by another smuggler.

At that time, the fact that Hydra was parasitic inside S.H.I.E.L.D. had not yet been revealed, but Nick Fury may have been faintly aware of it, and sent Hawkeye-Clint Barton to participate in the preliminary work of this protection mission.Pierce didn't dare to act rashly in this situation, but just got the special forces ready, and issued a standby notice to Zero. Once he inserted the security around the villa into their people, Hydra would send them The best killing machine, fatal with one blow.

"It's not that you have to do this, but I personally think it's better to be on the safe side." Looking at Zero standing in front of him with a blank expression, Pierce said to him slowly at that time: "Zola also thinks that you He is the right person to do this... Although in the end, it is just a bit of bad taste."

His words were vague and pointed, but Zero didn't know what was in them.He just put on his equipment silently as usual, and was taken out of the base by the special forces team in silence. Then one evening, he disguised himself as an undercover agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. by the family's side, and began to wait for the most suitable time to make a move.

That was his first and only exposure to what a real home was like.

Although Nick Fury's people were gradually evacuating, the special forces did not dare to act rashly before checking whether the other party had left surveillance.And Zero stayed in the corner silently as always, observing everyone's movements, and soon, he cast his eyes on the bright human lights in front of him for a long time.

It was difficult for him to express exactly how he felt at that time.

Zero's previous missions have always been one-hit kills, and they leave when they are done, never staying on the scene for even a second longer.Therefore, what he remembers most is only the scene seen through the scope, only the target, only the blood spread all over the ground under the bullet or the blade.But now, facing the most ordinary life of ordinary people, every opening and closing of the door, every laughter on the dining table, every kiss on the cheek and forehead, is like an awl, piercing into the softest part of his heart. corner of.

For the first time, he envied and longed for something, so longing that even the blood that had been frozen by the cold current all year round became warm.Compared with the warm lights in front of them, the pale fluorescent lights in the Hydra base seemed so unbearable.Only once, even if only once, he also wants to be the most important existence in someone's heart, to become a chick protected by soft wings, instead of drowning in blood that never sees the light of day, without a past, and can't have a future.

Some thoughts should not appear, because once their shadow is caught, they will grow and spread like weeds.The genetic engineer who escaped from Hydra sometimes looked into the distance, as if he was worried about something, and his wife would comfort him in a low voice.And Zero never had the idea of ​​​​going to investigate, because their youngest daughter usually ran into the yard at this time, bounced and played along the fence around the house, and then sat under the tree where he was hiding, using Weave garlands of plucked freesias.

When he never knew it, something completely different from before began to take root in Zero's heart. 'Joyce' began to wake up in the gap between his indulging in this, ignorantly guided by the protagonist who has not yet discovered his existence, like a dog discarded by the trash can, through the gaps in the cardboard box, He stared blankly at this beautiful but cruel world.

And at this moment, having completely diverted S.H.I.E.L.D.'s attention from the vicinity, Hydra issued an order to Zero to clear the target.

The always ruthless killing machine hesitated.No matter what the reason was, for the first time, he felt compassion and reluctance for his goal.The weapon with humanity is no longer the sharpest knife in their hands.However, Hydra wouldn't let Zero get out of control so easily - they forced him to point his gun at everyone in the villa, whether it was the panicked genetic engineer or his masked The weeping wife, and even, the youngest daughter who put Freesia in Zero's palm with her own hands.

In the violent struggle and trembling, the mask on Zero's face fell into a pool of blood.But in front of him, the dying man looked at his face, as if seeing something extremely terrifying, his eyes suddenly widened.But soon, he calmed down again and laughed at himself.

"It turns out that they have already trained you to this level." He closed his eyes, and covered the cold hands of his family members around him: "I didn't expect that it would be you who came to kill me in the end..."

The last words he left in this world disappeared in the evening wind whistling outside the window. Zero stood alone in the mess, with countless gunshots from Hydra agents behind him, suddenly felt that something was dying in his heart, and something was waking up.

He was out of control.

He killed everyone present, and nearly destroyed the entire base, at the expense of his right hand, which was severed by an explosion in the ammunition depot.And after turning everything upside down, Zero fell asleep tiredly, and instead, 'Joyce' woke up in his body, bearing the pain of being broken and reorganized for him, and from then on, for him Bearing everything that should belong to Zero.

"Would you hate me, Joe?"

Slowly waking up from a deep sleep, the first thing I saw was the familiar ceiling in my room.Joyce lay there in a daze for a while, then turned over in the direction of the sound, and met Zero's deep but stormy eyes.

The figure in memory coincides with the present world again.With the comparison, it is actually not difficult for him to see the changes in the opponent over the years.Whether compared to the past or the present, Zero from the future rarely has that sense of lost daze.It was as if he had spent many years to finally understand what he was living for, and finally had a clear purpose and direction, and he no longer needed to be protected behind him like a big enemy, blocking the oncoming wind and rain in the world.In any case, Joyce felt he should be happy for him.

Even now he looks tired and haggard, his eyes red from lack of rest, but he's still the Zero he knows, the only reason for his existence.

"Why should I hate you?" He patted the open space around him, stretched out his hand, pulled Zero who was sitting on the edge of the bed into the quilt, let the starlight outside the window not block them, and sprinkled them all over: "I was originally for you And was born."

"But I abandoned you when you needed it most."

The despair of the shattered memories and the excruciating pain of connecting the mechanical arm were all because of his self-abandonment, and Joyce borne them for him one by one.He abandoned him in the treacherous Hydra, making him pay for his mistakes. Zero's brows were tangled together, and he looked at Joyce with trepidation and guilt, like a child who did something wrong, because he was afraid of being abandoned, he could only hold the other's wrist tightly: "I always only ask for it from you. You exist because of my selfishness, but I can't give you anything at all."

Saying this, as if remembering something extremely painful, Zero closed his eyes suddenly, and his voice became hoarse: "So, you will leave me in the end."

A sad silence hung in the air.Joyce didn't speak, but once again brushed every inch of the other's face with his eyes, and finally he could only sigh silently, covering his cheeks with his hands.

"You don't need to give me anything."

He touched each other's foreheads, exchanging body temperature with each other, like chicks cuddling each other in the heavy rain.Joyce could feel Zero's hot breath brushing over the corners of his mouth, the slightly trembling eyelashes brought up a small airflow, and even the heartbeat blended with each other.

They were originally the same person.

"I am you, and you are also me..." Sensing Zero's movement, Joyce also closed his eyes, and said softly, "Since I was born for you, I am willing to give everything for you. No matter you Whatever you ask for from me, remember, it's all my sweets."

- I will never hurt you.

'Joyce' exists for Zero, and he has always kept it in his heart from the moment he was born.His main character will always be a child who cannot grow up. He must make up for his missing part, and must serve as the cornerstone of his humanity. He must lead him to look at this cruel but gentle world, and find more people who can love him. people.

And likewise, Zero, who is so dependent on 'Joyce', cannot accept a world without him.All his feelings come from this, and they are all tied to one person. Without the other person, he really can't go on.

"I will protect you."

Thinking of the world he once longed for from hell, Zero couldn't imagine it could be any better than it is now.He traveled upstream through the years, until now he seemed to be alive again.As long as Joyce is still within his sight, he has enough courage and everything, even if death is the enemy.

"No matter what, I will protect you, Joe." He gently pressed his lips against Joyce's forehead, and they were about to leave: "You will protect me too."

"Of course," Joyce replied, "always."

It's not about good or evil, right or wrong, it's just that I can't live without you.

They are very clear.

"So, having said so much, shouldn't you also answer me a question honestly?"

After cuddling each other under the starlight for a while, Joyce squinted his eyes, seeming to enjoy the satisfaction of being finally fulfilled.

"... Oh." Probably knew what he wanted to ask. Zero shrank back under the quilt unhappily, and said in a muffled voice: "I won't lie."

"That's good." Joyce nodded: "Then you answer me, why have you never told me about this? If it's just such a memory?"

Zero's loss of control is not an accident, and the killers trained like that will always have a day of backlash.It's just that he really couldn't understand why the other party kept silent about it?Is it just out of guilt that he was born for that reason?It's not like Zero's style.

"I never intended to deceive you." Zero reached out and grabbed Joyce's arm under the quilt: "I didn't know at the time whether I realized that you were taken away by number four or left Hydra Then... I thought about telling you."

"But?" Feeling that there was a story in it, Joyce raised his eyebrows.

"But we met that long-faced mage, when we were grabbing pancakes in New York." Zero replied honestly: "After the fight. He told me, if you remember that memory, I will lose you forever. "

Oh.

Damn Strange.

"Do you believe that trick?" Joyce choked, not knowing how to feel: "Don't you think he was deliberately trying to deceive you after losing?"

And Zero seemed to remember something terrible, and shrank back into the quilt again, almost curling himself into the opponent's arms.

"But, that did come true."

After being silent for a while, he spoke in such a low voice.