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October
Year 1 |
A HYDRA shuttlecraft makes its landing in the hangar of one of HYDRA's many headquarters worldwide. Almost all the HYDRA agents manning this station await the arrival of this particular shuttle, not only because it returns with the component needed to finish HYDRA's new Q-Ray, but because it contains two prisoners: former SHIELD agent Sharon Carter and current chairman of the Avengers, Captain America.
The shuttle's hatch opens and the crew begins to disembark. Two armed agents exit, followed by the prisoners. The gathered crowd cheers triumphantly. Two more armed guards follow the prisoners, and then an unmasked HYDRA agent emerges. It is former SHIELD agent Stan Johnson, a.k.a Steve Roger's former neighbor Bill Anderson. He raises the component high in the air, and the crowd erupts again.
Sharon leans closer to Cap and whispers, "We could have tried to escape and take over the shuttle before we got here. Now we're really stuck."
"No," Cap shakes his head, "if we'd taken the shuttle, HYDRA would still have the Q-Ray minus one component. We needed to come to the base and destroy the Q-Ray itself, and all HYDRA's files on it."
"You seem a little colder than usual, Rogers. Is it because you've just found out you've been living next to a traitor for the last few weeks?"
Cap gives Sharon a sharp look. "We're on a mission. We don't have time for personal issues."
While their comrades continue to celebrate, the guards lead their prisoners deep into the bowels of the installation. Cap and Sharon are put into adjoining cells, and the guards leave. Cap quickly surveys his surroundings. "There's not much here," he thinks as he evaluates the cell. "Iron bars on the doors, concrete walls, no windows, and a metal cot and mattress. I'll wait a little while... if I'm right, they'll give me all the opportunity I need."
Cap walks to the door and calls out, "Sharon."
"Yes?" she replies.
"How long until HYDRA's Q-Ray is ready?"
"That depends on how long they decide to celebrate before they put the component in. It should take them about half an hour to properly install it, and about two more hours for the Q-Ray to charge up."
"It has to charge up before it can be used?" Cap asks.
"The power has to be carefully regulated - that was one of the problems with Zemo's original model."
Cap sits down on his bunk. "Good. Then we can afford to wait a little while."
Cap is not kept waiting for long. Soon, Stan Jordan arrives on the detention level, accompanied by two armed guards. He approaches Sharon's cell and looks in. "Sharon Carter, the infamous Agent 13," he says as he looks her over. "Still running with SHIELD?"
"I'm a free agent these days," Sharon replies. "What was it HYDRA offered you, Jordan? Why switch sides?"
"Because SHIELD cut me loose undercover," Jordan answers angrily, as he recalls his past misfortunes. "They left me to die, and I very nearly did. Fortunately, I made it back to the States alive. I created a new identity for myself, moved into a little apartment in Chelsea and tried to forget about my old life, and about what SHIELD had done to me. But I was haunted in my dreams. I could never forget. And that's when I realized the only way I could have peace was to revenge myself on SHIELD. HYDRA contacted me, and gave me the chance I wanted. I've only been with them a few days, but already I've made some improvements in their Q-Ray design. Now it only takes half the time to fully charge."
Cap, realizing that they have much less time than they had originally estimated, decides he must get Jordan's attention. "And so you sold out your country, your world, just for some childish need for revenge?"
"The high and mighty Captain America speaks his mind, eh?" Jordan snorts derisively as he proceeds to Cap's cell. "What do you know, Captain? Do you understand what it was like to be betrayed like I was?" Jordan stares directly into Captain America's eyes. "You know nothing."
"I know enough," Cap says as reaches through the bars with lightning speed and grabs Jordan by the neck. "Let us out or I'll break his neck," Cap bluffs to the guards.
The two guards simply shrug and raise their weapons to fire at Cap's hostage. Jordan, shocked that his own men would turn on him, reacts immediately and kicks the guards' rifles out of their hands before they can fire. Cap releases Jordan, who blocks a punch from one guard while kicking the other in the shin. Jordan throws the first guard towards Captain America's cell, and Cap reaches through the bars to restrain the guard. Jordan scoops up one of the dropped rifles and uses the butt to knock the second guard unconcious. He then turns and does the same to the guard struggling to break Captain America's grip.
"HYDRA doesn't care about you," Cap states as he lets the unconcious guard slump to the floor. "They were only interested in your knowledge about the Q-Ray - knowledge you've already given them. You're expendable to them, and you always have been. In fact, it wasn't SHIELD that cut you loose while you were undercover. HYDRA arranged that."
"What?" Jordan asks, as if detecting the truth but not wanting to believe. "You - you've got to be lying."
"Captain America never lies," Sharon says from her cell. "The same thing happened to me. HYDRA tricked SHIELD into believing all undercover agents that worked on the Q-Ray project had been killed. They didn't want any competition. It's all in HYDRA's databanks. Check it out if you don't believe me."
"Stan," Cap says in a voice that is soothing, yet demands attention. "You were tricked, and you made some mistakes. But it's not too late to make things right. There are people who care about you. What about your friends, like Jeff Walker?"
Jordan gives Cap a quizzical look. "How do you know about Jeff?"
"Jeff is a friend of mine," Cap answers as he removes his mask, "and I had hoped that Bill Anderson would be one too."
"Steve Rogers?" Jordan gasps. "Captain America has been living as my neighbor?"
"That's right," Cap answers. "And I know Jeff has been worried about you; we all have. You can always turn to your friends in times of need. This isn't the answer, Stan. We can help you, but I need you to help us."
Stan ponders Cap's words for a second. He remembers the type of man he used to be, when he worked for SHIELD. He remembers how much he used to value integrity and loyalty, the very traits Captain America is showing now. He ponders, and then acquiesces. "You're right, Cap. I've been going against everything I used to believe in. I thought the raw deal I got justified everything. I was wrong." He unlocks the cells, freeing Cap and Sharon.
Cap dons his mask again and pats Jordan on the shoulder. "You're making the right decision, son," he reassures Jordan. "Now, first things first. Where is my shield?"
"It's locked up just down the hall - on the way to where the Q-Ray is being stored."
"Excellent," Cap nods. "You lead the way."
Jordan begins trotting down the hall, still carrying the rifle he grabbed earlier. Cap follows, while Sharon brings up the rear, armed with the other guards rifle.
"I don't know how you do it," Sharon mutters to Cap, "but when you go into your cornball routine, people will follow you right off a cliff."
"It's a gift," Cap replies with a wink.
Jordan stops in front of a storage locker and opens it. He retrieves Cap's shield from inside and hands it to the living legend.
"How much time do we have until the Q-Ray is ready?" Cap asks.
Jordan consults his watch. "They should have the component installed by now. I'd say 45 to 55 minutes."
"Then lets move," Cap commands, and the threesome proceed toward their destination in silence. Jordan's knowledge of the HYDRA base allows the trio to avoid contact with HYDRA agents, until they reach their target area.
"The Q-Ray is that room," Jordan motions, "right across that corridor. There will be at least a dozen men inside. Most of them are scientists and technicians, so they shouldn't be heavily armed."
"What will it take to disable the Q-Ray beyond repair?"
"Not much," Jordan admits. "The key is the regulated power flow. If you disengage the safety protocols, the entire device will overload, just like Zemo's model."
"What about the data on the device?" Sharon asks. "Where is it stored?"
"In the mainframe," Jordan says. "We take a left at this corridor, and it's about 75 yards down. There are three technicians that maintain it, and two guards are present at all times."
"How far is it from the mainframe to the hangar?" Cap asks.
"Not that far, really," Jordan replies. "There's an elevator five yards from the computer control room. The hangar is two levels directly above the computer control room. There's also a service elevator in the Q-Ray room that leads to the hangar."
"This shouldn't be too hard," Sharon concludes.
"Here's the plan," Cap states. "I want you two to make a dash for the computer control room. Disable the entire mainframe. Meanwhile, I'll overload the Q-Ray and then meet you in the hangar."
"Right," Sharon affirms.
"Alright," Cap says, "let's go."
Cap dashes across the corridor towards the Q-Ray. At the same instant, Jordan and Sharon begin sprinting down the corridor towards the computer control room.
Cap lowers his shoulder, and using his shield as a battering ram, smashes the door in front of him. Jordan had been right about the technicians - there are eight of them, and none are apparently armed. However, there are also three guards, carrying standard issue HYDRA rifles. Upon seeing Captain America, one opens fire. Cap's shield diffuses the blast as he leaps to cover behind some equipment.
"Be careful!" one of the other guards warns. "A stray blast could damage the Q-Ray!"
Cap steals a quick glance at the Q-Ray itself. He sees the power flow regulator, pulsing with energy. "Jordan said the Q-Ray would overload if the safeties were disengaged," Cap recalls. "There's no way I can do that unless I get past these three guards." Suddenly Cap hears an alarm klaxon sounding, and a monotone voice droning, "Intruder Alert, Intruder Alert."
"And I'd better do it fast," Cap concludes.
Sharon and Jordan are only halfway to their destination when they hear the alarms go off. "Come on, Jordan, let's hurry!" Sharon shouts over the alarms.
Unfortunately for Sharon and Jordan, HYDRA troops respond quickly to an alarm. Twenty troops appear at the far end of the corridor, sprinting towards the would-be saboteurs. Sharon and Jordan immediately open fire, and the HYDRA troops respond in kind.
"We need cover," Jordan shouts. "In here!" He ducks into the nearest doorway, with Sharon right on his heels.
"A supply closet," Sharon observes. "Great. Now we're really stuck."
"Maybe not," Jordan says as he motions to the ceiling. "The air vents - we could crawl our way to the control room."
"Alright," one of the HYDRA guards says, "let's split up. You go around the left, you go around the right, and I'll go up the middle."
However, before the plan can be implemented, the equipment that Cap was hiding behind topples over. Captain America leaps from behind it, shield at the ready, and attacks.
The first guard doesn't even know what hits him. He is treated with close- up view of Cap's shield just before he sinks into unconciousness. Meanwhile, the guards on either side turn towards Cap and raise their weapons. As they open fire, Cap lunges to the ground. The HYDRA agents, in their care- lessness, did not realize they were directly facing each other, and are each killed by the other's fire.
The technicians, having watched this entire scene, rush Captain America in the hopes of overwhelming him with superior numbers. "If I had a nickel for every time someone tried this tactic," Cap muses as he begins evading clumsy blows with ease, rolling with the punches that do connect, and all the while lashing out with blows of his own. A kick here, a punch there, and within minutes, Captain America has incapacitated his foes.
"I've had tougher workouts in Avengers mansion," Cap thinks as he proceeds towards the controls for the Q-Ray's power flow regulator. "I guess HYDRA doesn't give their technicians a great deal of training in hand-to-hand combat these days. But I'd better hurry - more troops with real fighting experience will be here soon."
The computer control room guards fidget nervously. They desperately want to join the others in the search for the intruder, but instead they're stuck at their posts. The intruders will never be able to make it to the lab, they realize, so they're really just wasting their time.
Then one of the air vents in the ceiling smashes open and a man in a HYDRA uniform drops from the ceiling, firing his rifle. Two of the three technicians are dead before the guards can react. They open fire on the intruder, wondering how a traitor could have entered their midst. The other technician scurries for cover as the guards and the intruder trade fire.
The firefight in the contained area is quite loud, so the guards can be forgiven for not noticing the careful removal of the air vent on the other side of the room. By the time Sharon Carter is noticed, she has jumped to the floor and begun opening fire. She quickly kills the scurrying technician and one of the guards, forcing the other to drop his weapon and shout, "I surrender."
"Coward," is all Sharon says as she retrieves his weapon.
Jordan moves to join her. "That's the main bank," Jordan indicates. The two heroes open fire, and the bank explodes. Meanwhile, the surrendering guard dashes for the exit.
"He's getting away!" Jordan warns.
"Let him go. We've got more important things to worry about," Sharon answers, "like getting out of here."
Suddenly, the entire level is rocked by an explosion.
"I'd say Cap's accomplished his mission," Jordan states.
"Then what are we doing standing around? Let's go!"
Captain America dodges the energy blasts from the guards in HYDRA's hangar. "I was hoping they wouldn't expect someone to arrive from the service elevator, but I guess when the Q-Ray exploded they were tipped off!" Cap thinks.
Cap leaps into the open hatch of the nearest shuttle and promptly seals it. "I'd better get this thing powered up fast," Cap decides. "I can use the ship's weapons to defend myself, and I'm sure Sharon and Stan will appreciate a swift exit when they arrive."
The shuttle comes to life, and Cap eases it into the air, hovering a few feet off the ground. From his superior position, Cap lays down suppression fire with his forward guns, while targeting other shuttles with his aft guns. "Can't give them an opportunity for pursuit," Cap notes.
As he continues to fire, Cap maneuvers the shuttle towards the main elevator. Seconds later, the elevator opens and Sharon and Jordan emerge. As he lays down cover fire, Cap lands the shuttle and opens the hatch. "Get in, hurry!" Cap calls. However, his admonition is not necessary. Sharon and Jordan immediately board the shuttle as soon as the hatch opens.
"We're on, Rogers," Sharon says as she hops into the copilot's seat. "Let's get out of here."
Cap seals the hatch and targets the remaining shuttles in the hangar. After eliminating the enemy's ability to pursue, Cap gives full power to the engines and soars away to freedom.
Once they are free and clear of the HYDRA base, Cap faces his allies with a grin. "Mission accomplished," he smiles.
"Not bad for a day's work," Sharon agrees.
"Well, Stan, or should I say Bill," Cap begins, "what are you going to do now?"
"First, I'm going back to SHIELD. I've still got a few bones to pick with them," Jordan replies. "Then, who knows? Maybe I'll go back to living the quiet life. What about you Sharon?"
"I'm sure I'll find plenty of trouble to keep me occupied," Sharon notes. "And you, Rogers? Going home for a glass of milk and some apple pie before your next adventure?"
"You know Sharon," Cap thinks, "that doesn't sound like such a bad idea."
Next Issue: Talkin' About a Revolution, Part One
Message from Matt
And so ends my run on Cap. I set out on this project with one goal in mind, and that was to portray Captain America as a person, not just Mark Waid's ultimate soldier. Captain America may be the greatest fighter, tactician, soldier, etc., that ever lived, but he's also just a guy from Brooklyn who came from humble origins and has never forgotten it. You see, I think Kurt Busiek is wrong. If Cap were a god, he wouldn't be the god of winning, he'd be the god of perseverance. He never gives up, but he's still just a fallible man. I think to portray him as otherwise does a great disservice to the character.
But that's a rant for another day.
I'll end this with a few thanks, first to all the readers. I hope you enjoyed what I've done here. Second, a special thanks to those who wrote in: Ralph Angelo, Mark Beaulieu, TJ Burns, Jason Kenney, and Randy Lander. Special thanks also to Dave Medinnus for getting the MV1 Cap title off to such a great start. Of course, thanks to Mark Bousquet, who not only suggested this title to me in the first place, but who has been very supportive of the work I've done here. I'll be leaving the title in his more than capable hands. And last but not least, thanks to Lonni Holland for giving my stories a home on the world wide web, and thanks to Van Plexico for giving me an opportunity to develop a talent I never knew I had.
Cheers,
Matt
March 5, 1999
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