New York, two in the morning.
Artoria's eyes snapped open. In the darkness, her golden-green pupils glimmered with vigilance. Her instincts screamed danger.
As a Servant, her senses far surpassed any ordinary human's. Right now, she could clearly feel several armed men, disciplined and professional, approaching the apartment building.
She rose soundlessly and slipped into Voss's room, gently shaking her Master awake.
"Master, wake up," she whispered.
Voss blinked groggily. "Huh? Artoria? What time is it?"
"Armed men," she said with deadly calm. "At least six. They're downstairs—and they came here to kill."
The fog of sleep vanished instantly. Voss sat up straight. "How many?"
"Six for sure," she replied. "And more waiting nearby."
Voss's stomach sank. The inevitable moment had come. "Wake the others. Quietly."
Artoria nodded and moved quickly. First she nudged Tom and Jerry awake in their tiny houses. The two were confused at first, but they caught on fast.
Next, she slipped into Aqua's room. The so-called goddess was snoring with a pillow in her arms, drool leaking from her mouth.
"Aqua, wake up."
"Mmm… five more minutes…" Aqua muttered, rolling over.
Artoria sighed, then shook her harder.
"What's the big deal? I was dreaming about wine…" Aqua cracked an eye, pouting. "Waking a goddess at night is blasphemy."
"Enemies are here," Artoria said flatly.
"Enemies?" Aqua bolted upright. "Where?"
Minutes later, the whole group gathered in the living room. Tom crouched at the window, peering down with night vision. He spotted six men in black tactical gear setting up positions, and a helicopter idling in the distance.
Tom dropped back down and gestured furiously.
"Six men, full gear, plus air support," Voss interpreted. He frowned. "They're serious."
"Master, should I eliminate them?" Artoria's hand rested on her invisible sword. "They can't touch me."
Voss shook his head. "No. I've got another idea."
He began pacing. Coulson and Steve had only visited two days ago—no way this was them. Which left one explanation.
"Hydra," he muttered. "They want to capture me. Squeeze me for intel."
Aqua yawned. "So? We beat them up, problem solved."
"No," Voss said firmly. "If we reveal our true power here, Hydra will take us more seriously. And…" He hesitated, remembering Steve's parting words, and the guilt of turning down his invitation.
"And what?" Artoria asked.
"And I want to help Steve," Voss said at last. "If Hydra's moving now, Fury's team is in danger. They'll need backup."
Jerry hopped onto the table, tilting his head in question.
"My plan is to let them take us," Voss explained. "We pretend to surrender, let Hydra drag us to Washington. Once we're inside S.H.I.E.L.D., we back Steve and Fury from within."
Aqua's eyes widened. "Pretend to surrender? That's insane!"
"It's dangerous," Voss admitted. "That's why I won't force you. If you'd rather not, we'll fight here and run tonight."
The room fell silent.
Tom was the first to move, planting a paw on his chest with a proud thump. He was in.
Jerry scrambled onto Voss's shoulder and tapped his cheek with tiny paws. He was in too.
"Hmph, if those two furballs can do it, then I, a goddess, obviously can!" Aqua declared, hands on her hips. "Besides, it sounds fun."
Finally, all eyes turned to Artoria.
She was quiet for a moment before answering, voice steady. "Master, wherever you lead, I follow. That is my oath, and my honor."
Voss's throat tightened. "Thank you… all of you. Truly. Long live friendship!"
"Oh, quit the waterworks." Aqua waved him off. "What's the plan?"
Voss outlined it quickly. Everyone nodded.
Ten minutes later, the apartment door exploded inward.
Brock Rumlow stormed in with five men, rifles raised and ready.
What they found froze them mid-step.
Every light in the living room was on. Voss and his roommates were sitting neatly on the sofa, waiting like polite guests.
"Welcome," Voss said, raising his hands with a helpless smile. "I surrender."
Rumlow blinked. This… wasn't in the manual. "You… knew we were coming?"
"Of course." Voss shrugged. "Pierce wants to see me, right? Fine. But one condition."
Rumlow narrowed his eyes. "Condition?"
"Don't trash my new apartment," Voss said seriously. "The landlord still has my deposit."
Rumlow stared. He'd handled dozens of black ops raids. Never had he run into a target like this.
"And my roommates come too," Voss added, gesturing to the sofa. "They can't live without me."
Rumlow eyed the group: two women, a cat, and a mouse. Weird, but harmless. "Fine. But you'll submit to a search."
"No problem." Voss stood. "We're very cooperative."
The agents frisked them quickly. Nothing suspicious—though one nearly jumped out of his skin when Tom let out a sharp "Meow!" mid-search.
"It… talks?" the man stammered.
"Of course not." Voss smiled. "You're hearing things."
Rumlow didn't buy it, but with the target secured, he wasn't going to waste time arguing.
"Move out."
They were herded upstairs to the waiting helicopter. Voss cast one last look at the apartment he'd barely lived in, silently hoping they'd all return to it someday.
The helicopter lifted off, carrying them into the night sky over New York.