Yelena Belova sat in a private briefing in GW Bridge’s office aboard the Infiltrator. The photograph she held in her hand was of a tiny, electronic device. Bridge sat behind his desk smoking a cigar.

“That’s an extreme magnification of a Super-Power Inhibiting Nanite,” he said. “SPIN for short. These little bastards have the power to shut off the metahuman abilities of anyone whose bloodstream they inhabit. Information about SPIN tech is few and far between but here’s what I do know: when they’re first injected into the bloodstream, they don’t act instantaneously. They sit and wait, only activated by a primer. But they don’t lie dormant in that time—they react to the host’s powers, determining the best path to inhibit them when the time comes.

“They’re a failsafe against marvels. And anyone who knows about them has an interest in them.”

“Yourself included?” asked Yelena.

Bridge tapped off the ash in a small tray. “What do you think, Widow?”

“I know better than to ask why.”

“Good,” said Bridge. “They’re still in the prototype stage, only one batch developed so far. The company that designed them is GeneTech. It’s a valuable side project and the investments they get in this have also been used to fund some of their…riskier special projects.”

“What sort of projects?” asked Yelena.

“That I don’t know. What I do know is the potential applications of SPIN tech could be disastrous for our cause. There are lots of people who are interested in these things.”

“Like sterilizing a superhuman population?” asked Yelena.

“At the very least,” said Bridge. “Imagine if an organization like AIM or Hydra got their hands on these things. They could infect superheroes and the victims wouldn’t even realize it until it was too late. Nor could they warn anyone else, because they’d have no way of knowing what’s been done to them.”

“Assuming the SPIN tech doesn’t just kill them outright,” said Yelena. “Yes, I can see your concern, Bridge. Why are you only sending me? Given my past, I’d imagine you’d feel wary trusting me with such sensitive cargo.”

Bridge’s eyes narrowed. “You’re assuming I have no way of tracking you, Widow. Do you think I’d convince my superiors to release you into my custody without taking the necessary precautions?”

“It still doesn’t explain why I’m going on this mission alone.”

“Because I’m curious.”

“About?”

“About how you’ll stack up in comparison to Romanov.”

Yelena flinched at the mention of Natasha Romanov, the other woman currently utilizing the Black Widow alias. Natasha defected from her native Russia and was an agent in good standing with SHIELD. Yelena, on the other hand, was a captive. Even a cell with no bars was still a cell, and that was exactly what Bridge had put her in.

Bridge handed her a file folder. “Here’s a layout of the facility. You’ve got twenty-four hours.”

WIDOW’S BITE

By Hunter Lambright and Dino Pollard

GeneTech

Century transported the Black Widow to a location nearby the GeneTech facility. The only thing Bridge told the alien warrior was Yelena had a solo mission to embark on in order to test her skills. Century asked no questions.

Yelena was dressed all in black, her outfit had no identifying marks whatsoever. The only weapons she carried were the bracelets on her wrists, storing her widow’s line and widow’s bite. They should be all that was necessary for this mission. The mask she pulled on had special lens built into it, capable of a variety of scans.

The chain-link fence was about twenty feet tall and had rotating surveillance cameras atop each post. At the summit of the fence were several strips of barbed wire. The Black Widow scaled the fence, remaining beneath the camera’s blind spot. Once she got close to the top, she focused her attention on the camera, mentally keeping track of its movements and how long it took for the camera to make a pass from one side to the other.

As the camera panned to her left, Yelena moved right, remaining in the blind spot. She built up some momentum by rapidly raising and lowering her body until she was sure she had enough. She sprung up and curled into a ball, flipping over the barbed wire and landing just as the camera completed its scan.

She scaled the side of the building. The fingertips of her gloves and soles of her boots were composed of an advanced suction technology that, when enabled, allowed her to cling to surfaces. A ventilation duct at the top of the wall was her destination. Yelena altered the setting on her bracelet and a thin, focused laser cut through the vent. It was a tight fit, but she was able to squeeze into the duct.

Her goggles displayed a layout of the facility and she followed the map as it was projected over her surroundings. The duct came to a stop and the Black Widow removed the vent, peering out into a corridor. Several cameras were attached to the walls, panning back and forth. Again, she kept track of the movements and her goggles displayed the pressure-sensitive grid of the paneled floor. They were pressurized according to a pattern. According to Bridge’s intel, the pattern tonight was based on the constellations visible in the southern hemisphere from January to March.

The Black Widow dropped down as the cameras panned, landing on two inactive tiles. She waited for the right moment and sprung over to the wall beneath one of the cameras, clinging to it and shimmying past. She sprung again diagonally to land beneath another camera. Only one left to get past and then she would reach the door. Despite the security-heavy corridor, the door itself still required a code to enter. Yelena reached down to her belt, drawing a tiny device about the size of a calculator with a digital display. She sprung again, landing in front of the door and affixed the device above the keypad. She activated the device and it ran through all the possibilities in seconds before it found the proper code, one digit at a time. The locks released and the door opened in towards the room.

Inside, the Black Widow found a wall of lockers, each one with a serial number stamped on the front and with a keypad. She searched for the serial number Bridge had given her and once she found it, affixed her electronic lock-pick over the keypad. Again it ran through the sequence before the door opened.

She took the case out and set it down on a nearby table. Carefully, the Black Widow released the latches and inside the case were four metal canisters and an injection device. Closing the case once more, Yelena moved towards the exit. As she opened the door, however, she saw another woman dressed in a similar fashion as her and armed with matching bracelets.

The woman raised her arm and spoke: “Hand over the case.”

The Black Widow gripped the case in one hand, using her other to aim her own bracelet. “If you wanted it, you should have gotten here first.”

“Then I’ll have to take it from you.”

The intruder fired an electric discharge. The Black Widow deflected it with one of her own, following by launching her widow’s line. It missed the intruder, but struck the wall behind her and zipped Yelena towards her opponent.

The woman ducked before Yelena’s feet could strike her face and leapt across the corridor. She landed on inactive tiles on the floor. Which meant either she just got lucky or she had the same intel as the Black Widow.

Yelena found her movements difficult while clutching the case, but she had no other choice. She back-flipped, landing beneath a camera’s blind spot, clinging to the wall. Both her and her opponent waited for the cameras to pan away and then flew towards the center of the corridor, both of their legs connecting in mid-air, deflecting each other’s strikes.

They both landed opposite of where they were originally, both clinging to the wall. Yelena noticed that her opponent had similar technology to her own. “Where did you get your tools?”

“From my employer.”

“Who are you?” asked Yelena.

“The Black Widow.”

That enraged Yelena Belova and she pounced towards the woman again. The woman jumped to her right, avoiding Yelena’s strike and clinging to the wall. Before Yelena could strike again, this second Black Widow blasted her in the chest with a discharge from her bracelet.

Yelena was knocked off her feet and landed on the pressurized tiles. The alarm began to wail. The second Widow quickly grabbed the case from the downed spy and gave a quick bow, then retreated through the vent.

The door at one end of the corridor opened and security forces had their weapons trained on Yelena. “Don’t move! Hands in the air!”

Yelena did as she was told, raising her arms up. Then she fired a widow’s line, connecting it with the ceiling. She swung on that into the midst of the soldiers. They were at too close range to fire on her without risking harm to their partners. But the Black Widow was able to cut loose on them, her legs and fists flying, discharging her widow’s bite whenever she found an opening to.

Within moments the guards were down and the Black Widow went through the door they left open for her. She sprinted through the corridors and as she came to a junction, three more guards rounded the corner. Yelena sprung into the air, her feet landing on the chest of one guard. Another received her widow’s line through the neck and she pulled on it for leverage to fly towards the third and punch him in the jaw.

Her goggles showed her the way out and she moved down the corridor even further. She found herself in the lobby and there was a whole armed squad waiting for her, their guns at the ready. The Black Widow quickly reached for her belt, tossing something to the ground. It was a strobe light that blinded them, but her goggles protected her. She made it past them as they stumbled about, going through the front door. It was raining outside, coming down in torrents.

The Black Widow shot a line at the camera atop the fence and zipped up, soaring over the barbed wire. She landed in a roll on the other side and got back to her feet and into a sprint without needing a second’s hesitation.

A few miles away, a man in a red suit known only as the Kingmaker sat in a limousine, checking his watch impatiently. He heard a few raps on the window and lowered it. Once he saw who it was, he smiled and opened the door.

The second Black Widow entered the limousine and handed him the case. She removed her mask, revealing short black hair and Chinese features, then sat across from him.

“I trust that’s what you needed?” she asked.

The Kingmaker opened the case, inspecting the contents and nodded. “Very impressive. This is why you’re the best, Monica. Any problems with your opposite number?”

“Not too much.”

“I’m amazed a product of the Red Room was so easily bested,” said the Kingmaker.

“I’m not. I was trained in the Lost Sector,” she said. “Now where does this leave us?”

“As of now, you’re free of your debt and free to leave. Unless you’d like some more work…”

“We’re through, Kingmaker,” she said. “And don’t think I’ve forgotten what happened the last time.”

“You have nothing to worry about, my dear,” said the Kingmaker.

“You’d better pray you’re right,” said Monica as she left the limousine.

The Kingmaker activated a switch on his armrest. “We’re ready to go. Let’s get out of here.”

The limousine moved, driving down the street. After a few minutes, it came to an abrupt stop. The Kingmaker hit the switch again. “What’s going on? Why did you stop?”

The only response the Kingmaker heard were the sounds of the heavy rain outside his door. He pressed another switch and the divider between him and the driver lowered.

“Is something wrong with the intercom or are you just an idiot?” he asked. “Why are we—”

The Kingmaker froze. The driver was slumped back in his seat, his head limply resting and his eyes wide and lifeless. The Kingmaker grabbed the briefcase and moved for the door. Before he could open it, it opened for him and he saw someone else standing outside.

A woman dressed all in black. Wet strands of short, blond hair clung to her face and neck. And she looked none too pleased. The Kingmaker quickly shuffled towards the other door, but the Black Widow kept him in place by aiming her bracelet.

“Don’t even think about it.” She climbed inside the limousine, keeping her bracelet trained on him. “The case. Give it.”

The Kingmaker reluctantly slid the case over towards her. With her free hand, Yelena opened the case to ensure the product was still intact. Pleased, she closed it again and focused her attention on him.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you.”

“I’m just a middleman, that’s it.”

“Not good enough.”

“Wait!”

Yelena paused, giving him a chance to speak.

“I’m privy to a lot of information. Information you could probably use,” said the Kingmaker.

“Can you tell me where I could find someone?” asked Yelena.

The Kingmaker nodded. “In exchange for my life, I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

“Good. Because I have a score to settle.”

Monica Chang stepped off the elevator, holding a bag of groceries in one hand. In her other, she fumbled with her keys until finding the appropriate one. She slid it into the lock of one of the units and stepped inside.

Once she shut the door behind her, something grabbed her from behind and the groceries fell from her arm, landing on the ground. The Black Widow stood with her lips positioned right at Monica’s ear. And the Black Widow held in her hands a garrote pushed up against Monica’s throat.

“So you thought this was to be a new lease on life, didn’t you, Monica Chang?” asked the Black Widow. “You thought you could take my title and I would let you walk away? Only a true child of the Red Room can be a Black Widow. You are nothing but an imposter.”

Monica tried to speak but the wire was pressed so hard against her throat that she could barely breathe.

“You pride yourself on your sneakiness, don’t you?” asked the Black Widow. “You may think this is some vendetta, but I’m just going to help you with your sneakiness.”

She twisted the garrote, tugging it harder. Monica made a sound, but it was quickly silenced as blood ran down her throat. The Black Widow released the garrote and kicked her forward, knocking her to the ground. Monica looked back up at her and the Black Widow half-smiled.

“Now no one will hear you again. Or hear your lies that you are the Black Widow,” said Yelena. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a package to deliver.”

NEXT: The Seven Seas