Civil War

by TVfan

My version of Marvel's Civil War storyline. (Story arc summary) The Red Skull works with Lukin to allow for his return and with the power of the Cosmic Cube while Lukin gets a cube of his own. From there, the Skull then turns to a measure that may threat America. Incite civil war over superhuman registration. And Cap must find a way to stop it without proving "registration" right.

10. Plans Falling Apart and Coming Together

-1All characters appearing in Captain America and other Marvel titles are copyrighted to Marvel Entertainment and Stan Lee. All real persons mentioned in this story belong to themselves. No infringement of these copyrights or offense to the people mentioned is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder or persons. All original characters are the property of TVfan.

Note: I'm using the events of the "Winter Soldier" story line as the main canon to this story, but I'm also going to say that this story is in the same "Universe" as my "A New Life" story in the Spider-Man section, since Captain America and Spider-Man are both Marvel Characters. This story takes place six months after my "A New Life" story and obviously some time after "Winter Soldier" in the comics.

Second Note: This is my version on Marvel's current "Civil War" storyline and will differ greatly in many ways from what has been published. Mostly because I don't like the idea of heroes fighting heroes and the fact that is the main point of Marvel's current storyline, and the fact that they killed Steve Rogers at the end of it.

Civil War

By TVfan

Chapter 10: Plans Falling Apart, Plans Coming Together

Red Skull Palace, Red Skull Reich

The Red Skull sat quietly inside the main nerve center of his palace watching several TV news screens to gain some basic information about global events, although at the moment, there was only one event that was concerning him the most.

"The UN?" Sin asked as she brought in a stack or reports, largely dealing with the construction the 'Skullstag Building' across the street from his palace, which he intended to have operate the way the Nazi Reichstag had operated for Hitler, as a rubber stamp.

"Yes," the Red Skull answered, "There are 'events' soon to be happening there that will probably be of great importance to my plans."

"But we are not members of the UN," Sin commented, "How can they influence our plans?"

"It is not a direct way, but their affecting my plans will come on a technicality," the Red Skull replied, "S.H.I.E.L.D. is officially run and controlled by the UN, not by any individual government. The General Assembly has summoned Director Maria Hill before them."

"She's been vocal about her support for the Registration Act and from hat I've seen recently, has been behind some rather interesting methods of trying to catch Rogers," Sin commented.

"Yes, and if the UN has summoned her, it is likely that her term as 'Director' may be at an end," the Red Skull growled, "and if that happens, it will be a major blow to my plans."

"It won't change the American law," Sin pointed out.

"True," the Red Skull nodded, "but if the UN appoints a new Director who either doesn't support the Registration Act, doesn't like the current American administration, or doesn't like America in general, I will lose the only real weapon I have in their present 'civil war'. I had thought that the pro-Registration heroes and anti-Registration heroes would come to physical blows. Especially considering the opinions of many members of both sides."

"Perhaps they sense your manipulation," Sin suggested, "and do not want to divide themselves in case you attack them."

"They know that it will be a long while before I risk a direct war with the United States," the Red Skull shook his head, "they may sense my involvement, as I can not doubt the good Captain's ability to believe in freedom. But I did think that there would be some 'realists' in their superhero community that would realize that despite my power, I'm in no position to risk a war, and would insist on Registration."

There was a brief silence for a few moments that the Red Skull returned his attention to the screen in front of him.

"I suppose the fighting could escalate, but right now it would seem that it would have to be between the government and the hero population as a whole," the Red Skull sighed.

UN Headquarters

Director Hill sat quietly on a bench outside the General Assembly area and waited patiently for them to call for her. She had no clue why she had been called before the General Assembly and was slightly frustrated by recent events. One was that Steven Rogers and a team of traitors had defeated her 'Thunderbolts' and had disappeared with them. The other thing, and the one that really made her mad was the fact that two UN diplomats told her men to let Rogers escape. She now practically assemble a new 'Thunderbolts' team and send them after Rogers. She felt that coming before the UN was a waste of her time and a distraction from important matters.

She then stood up as a man in a suit came into the room and motioned for her. She followed him into the General Assembly area and was lead to a chair inside a small cubicle along one of the edges of the room.

"Maria Hill, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.," the man said Hill stepped in front of the chair.

"You may be seated, Madam Director," the UN President spoke politely.

"You called for me?" Director Hill asked.

"Yes," the UN President answered with a nod.

Meanwhile in the gallery, several pro-Registration heroes stood by to watch what was going on.

"Something tells me, that the Director isn't going to get out of this one," the Janet Van Dyne commented looking through the glass at many of the members of the UN General Assembly.

"If she doesn't, she's brought in on herself," Tony commented.

"But still, we need her," Hank Pym said firmly, "They can't just fire her."

"They can't, as I don't think she's done something where a country is willing to accuse her of a crime on par with treason," Tony answered, "but they can remove her as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D."

"What will that do the Registration Act?" Mr. Fantastic asked.

"That will depend on who they nominate to replace Hill, if they do indeed remove her as Director," Tony answered, "although I would highly doubt if they nominate anyone who seems to have strong ties to the present administration. And regardless, it won't change the legality of the Registration Act, just who will enforce it."

"The act itself is starting to become rather scary, if you as me," Susan Richards spoke up from beside her husband, "Hiring criminals to kill one of America's greatest heroes to satisfy an act that technically speaking he is not in violation of can not look like the actions of a good or just cause."

"That was Cap's position from the beginning," Tony commented, "the law from the beginning is unjust."

"Can't we fix it?" Reed asked.

"None of us are sitting Senators or Representatives," Ben Grimm commented, "And with all the mud they're throwin' for this year's campaigns, I'd be glad to see all politics disappear. Then I'd get some peace."

"Quiet, they've started talking to Director Hill," Janet spoke back to the group.

"Director Hill, I'm sure you understand what happened here yesterday?" the UN President asked.

"Yes," Director Hill answered, "Steven Rogers and his allies attacked S.H.I.E.L.D. agents forced them into a battle that lead them here. During the course of this battle, Rogers's allies used two diplomats of the General Assembly as hostages to escape capture."

"That is not what our diplomats told us," the UN President answered and gestured to the British and Canadian diplomats.

"We will not deny that there was a battle, Director Hill," the British diplomat spoke up from the table that the Security Council diplomats were seated at, "but we feel that this battle was not the result of some attack on the UN by Captain America."

"The UN was not attacked by Captain America," Hill answered, "the title belongs solely to the United States government. The UN was attacked by Steven Rogers."

"Very well, Steven Rogers never attacked me or my Canadian counterpart," the British diplomat responded, "the only person to 'attack' us was a know costumed criminal known as the Green Goblin."

"Any of those attacks were not meant for you," Hill answered, "As I explained, Rogers's ally used you as a hostage. He had no choice but to fire in order to defeat his opponent."

"So you do not deny that the Green Goblin was in your employ?" the Canadian diplomat demanded from his seat.

"He is licensed S.H.I.E.L.D. agent to enforce the Superhuman Registration Act," Hill answered, "I do apologize if he has taken his mission slightly overboard, as we had not had time to train him in dealing with criminals who take hostages."

Fury's Bunker

Cap, Buck, Fury, and Sharon watched a small television screen on the wall.

"They seem to be grilling her pretty tough," Buck commented.

"And she's trying to give as good as she takes," Fury commented, "Although, it's largely giving them more fuel. It was at times like this where I told them 'I was busy' and let them deal with their own problems."

Cap remained silent. Losing Hill as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. might be a big victory for him in fighting the Registration Act once he had driven the Skull out of America. However, none of them knew what was going to happen. For all they knew, Hill would only get a slap on the wrist, or they could nominate someone who was even worse. For the time being he was content to watch and see what happened.

"The only thing we can do is wait and see," Cap answered, "All we can do is wait and see. Remember, that they might only reprimand her. From what you've told me, Colonel, is that they haven't liked you for years, but it took you disobeying orders and getting accused of treason to lose your job as S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Director."

"Maybe, but with a lot of the pressure going on with the Registration Act and that the fighting over it has lead to damage being done to the UN building and members of the UN being threatened," Fury answered, "they might not decide that Hill's decisions are wise."

"Maybe, but they still can't fire her," Steve answered, "A victory here will only buy us time to get the Skull away from the government."

"Then thankfully, I've gotten the robot ready," Fury said with a smile.

UN Headquarters

"Again, you do not deny employing the Green Goblin?" the UN President asked firmly.

"No I do not deny it," Hill sighed, "He is employed by S.H.I.E.L.D. to enforce the Registration Act. An act which diplomats representing this institution allowed to be broken allowing the terrorist known as Steven Rogers, pretending to be the American hero, Captain America, to break."

"This hearing has nothing to do with the Registration Act," the UN President answered.

"It should," the American diplomat spoke up, "If Hill was doing her duty to enforce a legal law within a member nation, the UN should comply with each member nation to enforce that law."

"Maybe, but S.H.I.E.L.D.'s charter by the UN does not allow S.H.I.E.L.D. to employ known criminals to enforce said laws," the UN President reminded the American diplomat, "S.H.I.E.L.D. is perfectly allowed to enforce individual member nation's laws if those laws are to help insure peace and justice around the globe and the Director is allowed to cooperate with any member government at his or her discretion."

There was a brief pause before the UN President continued.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. is not however cleared to use known criminals to enforce those laws," the UN President said, "To my knowledge the Green Goblin is a known criminal in the United States and is supposed to be doing time for various crimes including money laundering and murder."

"That is true," the US diplomat answered sounding nervous, "He is."

"I am to understand that every nation's justice departments or ministries are allowed to make deals with those they have arrested in order to accomplish specific goals?" Hill asked.

"Yes," the US diplomat spoke up eagerly, "The Justice Department and the FBI have brokered a deal with the people that Director Hill recruited. They were legal employees of the US government."

"But not of S.H.I.E.L.D.," the UN President answered, "the Green Goblin stated that he was an employee of S.H.I.E.L.D., not the US government."

"Haven't you heard of the 'Dirty Dozen'?" the US diplomat asked angrily.

"I believe that is a movie, and one that bears no similarity to this situation," the UN President answered.

"It tells the story of me from prison fighting for their country on a suicide mission against Nazis," the US diplomat explained.

"Rather interesting you say that considering who your government has allied itself with," the Israeli diplomat said in a disgusted tone.

"The affairs of the US is not on trial here," the US diplomat growled, "it is this body's eagerness to allow known terrorists to run wild throughout the world."

"Actually, what is on trial is the breaking of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s own charter by its director," the UN President said firmly.

"They really seem to be arguing over Hill's 'Thunderbolt's' team," Janet commented.

"Mostly whether or not it's legal," Hank corrected, "She hasn't denied that she formed them."

"Legal for the government, but apparently not legal for S.H.I.E.L.D.," Tony nodded.

"That's something that unsettles me about all this," Susan spoke up, "I mean hiring guys like the Green Goblin to fight Captain America? Suppose the Goblin decided just to go rogue. I'm sure he could have found someway to break the collar they put on him."

"Hill only did that because she thinks we aren't adequately supporting the Registration Act," Reed commented, "Our position could get tougher the longer we wait to fully enforce the act."

"We have to wait until Cap can insure that the Red Skull can not gain anything from a superhuman 'civil war' over the act," Tony responded, "There is also the fact that Cap is right that there are a lot of things in the act that no one should support."

"But you said that there are some even worse ideas out there, right?" Hank asked.

"Yes," Tony answered, "The Registration Act might be the best solution for the moment and if it stays it might satisfy the government not to pass the other ideas they've come up with, but that is not Cap's position."

"Cap would prefer that we keep our freedom, regardless of the act," Janet commented.

"He does," Tony nodded, "If he's able to beat the Skull, he'll then do the only thing he can do now to stop the Registration Act, take it to the Supreme Court."

"The Supreme Court?" Janet asked.

Tony nodded, "He's already talked with She-Hulk and Daredevil about it."

"I did not break any law," Hill said firmly, "I just did what was necessary to protect my country."

"This has nothing to do with the law," the UN President answered, "It has to do with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s charter, which you admitted to breaking."

"You really think I am in the wrong here?" Hill demanded.

"As far as the charter is concerned, yes," the UN President said firmly.

"Everything I did was for the betterment of my country," Hill said back defiantly, "You can't fire me because I was protecting my country from evil."

"Maybe not," the UN President answered, "but we can remove you from command of S.H.I.E.L.D. and that is why you're here."

"I protest," the US diplomat argued, "America is the leading nation in the war against international terrorism and I will remind the assembly that the Islamofascists will destroy everything if you punish the Director for doing her job."

"America has not been attacked on her own soil since September 11, 2001," the UN President told him, "Director Hill's actions have not been on the international level, which considering current events, perhaps S.H.I.E.L.D. ought to do more to try and confront Al Qaeda and others, instead of hiring known supervillians and attacking those who, if America still followed just laws, would probably be more then happy to help America fight these villains."

"I would not have had to hire these villains if the heroes that 'support' the Registration Act put on their 'adult' underwear and killed Steven Rogers and his traitorous allies, like they were supposed to," Hill grumbled, forgetting that there was a microphone in front of her.

"The present conflict over the Registration Act and the actions taken by the heroes is not our concern," the UN president said firmly, "I would actually congratulate Tony Stark for being able to keep both sides from fighting one another."

"All that has done has weaken the country," Hill said back firmly, "Stark is nothing but a tin-plated coward who refuses to fight while a man who pretended to be his friend attacked the President of the United States on national television."

"I saw the Washington incident on television," the Canadian diplomat commented, "He seemed more interested in fighting the Red Skull then the President, and when he threw his shield, it did not come remotely close to hitting any of the American people there. And I have heard old war stories from World War II from Canadian veterans. Captain America seemed to even help their units from time to time. From what they told me, he could split grains of wheat with that shield when he threw it. Considering how far 'off' his throw was from hitting either the President or the Vice President, I believe the information you have received from the American government has been fabricated."

"Regardless, Steven Rogers is a traitor to his nation and his people," the US diplomat said bull headedly, "Removing this woman as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. would remove all the strength that the Registration Act has."

"How so?" the British diplomat questioned.

"By the wording of the law, S.H.I.E.L.D. was named as the official enforcer and judge of superhuman capabilities," the US diplomat said, "Without her, Rogers will over run this country with his communist sympathizers."

"Your army and FBI should be more then capable," the German diplomat commented sarcastically, "and given who you've allied yourself with, I'm sure you'll make your present Axis very happy as you oppress your own people."

"America needs Director Hill," the US diplomat argued, "She is the teeth of the Registration Act. Stark and all of his 'supporters' are nothing but melting butter. Too soft to effectively deal with the threat that Rogers poses to the United States. We need to be firm and show terrorists that we will not bow to the whims of a madman. Surely I'm not the first American to believe this."

"You're not the first person to believe it," the German diplomat told him, "although I think like the first person to believe it, you've lost all sight of what is truly threatening to you."

"Regardless of her necessity for the success of the Registration Act in the United States," the UN President spoke, "this hearing was to deal with Director Hill's disregard for S.H.I.E.L.D.'s charter which has led to members of the UN General Assembly being threatened by the conflict that she has decided to involve S.H.I.E.L.D. in. Director Hill has by her own admission been proved guilty of violating the S.H.I.E.L.D. charter, by that, as President of the United Nations, I place her fate in the hands of the General Assembly. All those in favor of removing Hill from her post as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. say 'aye'."

There was a large chorus of 'ayes', although they were all in different languages. Only a very small handful of nations opposed Maria Hill's removal as 'Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.' and they were not enough to save her post.

"What do we do now?" Hank asked.

"Hill will hold the post until the UN can pick a suitable replacement," Tony answered, "and that will take time. For now we must continue to insure that we do not fight with Cap and his supporters. The Skull might decide to pull something now that his primary supporter has been removed from power and we can not afford to have the one person who really knows how to stop him get in trouble. We will meanwhile keep up our peaceful attempts to try and persuade those on the 'other' side to agree to registering."

"Why don't we just get together with Cap and take the Skull out?" Ben Grimm asked, "He can't hurt us if he's beaten to pulp."

"That might work, but the Skull's politically allied himself with the United States," Tony sighed, "If we just attack him, we'd create a bigger problem at home for superheroes."

"Politics, schmolotics," Ben grumbled, "We all know the Red Skull is a bad guy. Probably even worse then Doom in many ways."

"Maybe, but the world is changing, and not necessarily the way we want it to change," Tony sighed, "There are lots of things that Cap doesn't like about the way things are changing, and there are bound to be some ways that we won't like the way things are changing. The best we can do is try and insure that the best of every possible situation is gained… and in our present situation, that means letting Cap challenge the Registration Act while he tries to find a way to defeat the Red Skull."

X-Mansion

Things were quiet as various members of the mutant team, the X-Men watched the closing remarks on the news coverage from the UN Building.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. can't seem to keep its Directors," Emma Frost said with a chuckle, "First they fire Fury and charge him with a crime, now Hill is removed from command."

"Maybe now that she is gone, things will quiet down in the Superhuman community," Beast commented from a nearby couch.

"It doesn't remove the Registration Act," Charles Xavier spoke gravely, "The troubles there will continue."

"We ought to do something," Kitty Pryde commented as she looked at the screen.

"What is there to do?" Scott Summers asked, "The Registration Act does nothing to mutants. What can we do?"

"Kitty is referring to the man behind the Registration Act, Scott," Xavier spoke gravely, "Not with the act itself."

"The Red Skull?" Emma asked.

"That would be the primary concern," Xavier nodded, "Although also the biggest part of the problem."

"I wasn't aware he hated mutants," Scott commented, "Although I would say that his reputation is a bit overdone, considering that Magneto beat the tar out of him once."

"He doesn't hate mutants," Xavier answered, "at least he doesn't hate mutants that will follow his leadership."

"Then he isn't the concern of the X-Men," Scott answered, "between my brother abandoned in outer space and our kind vanishing from the face of the Earth, we can not afford to be involved in the fighting."

"But he would destroy the school if he came here," Kitty commented, "Shouldn't that be reason enough to help Tony and the Pro-Registration Heroes or Cap and the Anti-Registration heroes fight him?"

"I thought you said he doesn't necessarily hate mutants?" Scott asked.

"The Red Skull is a Nazi, Scott," Beast commented, "If he were to conquer the country he would probably destroy the school because the Professor and Kitty are Jewish, not because they are mutants."

"Then I'm surprised the Professor didn't send us after him the instant he returned," Scott answered with a lot of venom in his voice.

"I made my choice based on what is important for my students and for the school," Xavier answered, "I do not like the Red Skull, and should he make a move directly against the school, I would fight him with all of my power. My primary responsibility is to the school and the students. If you decide to lead the X-Men against the Red Skull, I will support you and will do everything in my power to help you."

"Hmm," Scott sighed, "The Skull is not the X-Men's concern at this time. I won't stop anyone who wants to fight him individually, but with the global mutant population so low as the result of the Scarlet Witch's mental breakdown, we can not afford to send everyone into a fight with him."

Fury's Bunker

Cap turned the television off when it was announced that Hill would not be the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. anymore. Naming a new Director would take time and Cap had other things he needed to do.

"Colonel, you said something about the LMD being ready?" Cap asked as he turned back to the other people with him there in the room.

"Yeah, I got it ready," Fury nodded, "All we need to do is get the paperwork in order to put it on an airplane to the Red Skull's little island."

Fury then lead the group to the lab he had been working in to try and repair and rebuild the LMD that Buck had recovered. The LMD was laying on a table with a sheet over it.

"Cap, Agent 13, kid, I present to you the new espionage LMD," Fury announced as he pulled the sheet off the robot and activated the robot.

Cap and the others looked on with surprise as the robot got up and stood before them and spoke with a heavy German accent.

"Hello, Captain America," the LMD said, "I am Lester Manfred Diechscher, robot agent for freedom."

Sharon and Buck were slightly surprised but quickly recovered. Cap, however, did not look entirely pleased.

"Colonel, his face looks like Thor's," Cap answered.

"He doesn't have his body though, and his face only looks similar," Fury answered, "No DNA was used to create this."

"Yes," Cap sighed, "But one, the Skull might recognize the face, and two, when the original Avengers 'disassembled', Thor left on some mission to Asgard and never returned. We do not know one hundred percent if he is alive or dead."

"Should that matter?" Fury asked, "If he thinks it's Thor, he'll scan him to test to see if he is an Asgardian, which the LMD will not 'pass' because it is a robot."

"It does if Thor is still alive," Cap answered, "If he is, he'll know about that robot and he'll see that as a violation of his person."

"I am not this 'Thor' you speak of," the LMD spoke.

"Listen, Cap, if he is alive and he has a problem, send him to me and I'll tell him what I'm going to tell you now," Fury said firmly, "The Red Skull has largely been using the Cosmic Cube's powers to create his own island nation, giving him the 'status' as the legitimate leader of a government. You and I both know that he is trying to copy as much of the old Third Reich as possible."

"The Red Skull has been seeking to create his Fourth Reich ever since he was revived from his 'suspended animation'," Cap pointed out, "You know that."

"Yes, and now it appears he's succeeded," Fury answered, "at least in creating the nation. Now, the real question is how long it will last."

"I don't think we follow," Buck commented as they all looked at the former Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. with a somewhat confused look on his face.

"The Skull has been sending out advertisements calling for anyone of German ancestry and of 'right-wing' political views to come to his 'Empire'," Fury explained, "Now, these attempts wouldn't have been successful if America had either contained the Red Skull or decided to destroy him, but since they've decided to play some sort of political game where they ally with him, they've given him a great deal of legitimacy among many of these groups."

"A lot of that was probably done with the Cosmic Cube's power," Sharon commented, "I still find it hard to believe that so many good people would so easily believe a man so evil."

"You're probably right, but again, that thing requires a force of will in order for it to be effective," Fury reminded her, "He'll never brainwash Cap with that thing because Cap will always be determined to stop him. Anyway, as more and more people head into the Skull's new Reich, the Skull is going to have to play to many of the old Nazi propaganda theories about what was virtuous and what was not."

"So this thing is supposed to play into Hitler's whole 'blonde haired blue eyed' definition of an Aryan?" Buck asked.

Fury nodded.

"Man," Buck commented, "Always seemed weird to me that in Hitler's case, it was a brown haired brown eyed, and in the Skull's case, a bald red skinned and red eyed person is telling people with blonde hair and blue eyes are superior in everyway to everyone else."

"Anyway, the LMD is to play into that sort of philosophy," Fury continued, "We'll send him to the Red Skull Reich with a load of guys that already support the Red Skull. The Skull will then have to hold back on doing anything to try and see what it is, and even if he does, it's only a robot and we can easily try again."

"Fine," Cap sighed, "We'll use him. I think you'll draw fire because of his resemblance to Thor, but so long as it doesn't pretend it is Thor, we'll see if this thing can deceive the Red Skull."

"Is the camera installed?" Sharon asked.

"Yeah, the camera's in the eyes," Fury nodded, "and he'll begin giving us a live feed as soon as he gets to the Red Skull Reich."

Washington DC

George Bush sat quietly in a private office inside the White House thinking over recent events and things that were still going on. It was all part of a meeting with the American diplomat in the UN, and since the Oval Office didn't have the ability to have a 'video conference' set up, he had moved to a different office inside the White House.

"What can be done?" Chaney asked as he paced the office.

"I did everything I can," the US diplomat said nervously, "I told them of her importance, but they decided to vote her out anyway."

"She was the Registration Act's strongest supporter in a position of power," Chaney growled.

Bush meanwhile found himself silent and sighed heavily. The situation he faced was not a good one. In addition to the other problems he had to face, he had the entire 'Registration Act' mess to deal with. His favorite hero had gone underground and was against the Registration Act, further challenging the stories that he had been told that 'Captain America' would support everything and anything the Republican Party did. A handful of Senators and Congressmen, including some Republicans and few of the people who had voted for the Registration Act after Stamford were now questioning that it was the right thing to do and were now calling for a relooking at the act to try and amend it without annulling it. And the Registration Act, itself was not the worst part of the issue.

The worst part of the issue was the Red Skull. Nearly every Democrat and several prominent Republicans did not hide their opposition to the alliance with him. Lieberman, Dodd, and McCain were all the most vocal about opposing the Red Skull, but there were many others. He found it hard to understand. The man was helping America fight the War on Terror, a war that he had promised victory in for America. He thought everyone liked victories. He had said that the 'Red Skull' who had perpetrated all the crimes against the US and other nations earlier was a Communist, and he checked various S.H.I.E.L.D. and CIA reports and found there was a man named Albert Malik had used the identity, but couldn't find anything on the fate of the man. Chaney had told him that these men were largely traitors and that when the Democratic Party ceased to exist, they could take stronger actions to let them know that they were wrong.

"I know she was the Registration Act's strongest supporter," the US diplomat answered, "but apparently, the laws governing who S.H.I.E.L.D. can accept as agents is quite firm. We can not use criminals."

Chaney grumbled then rather angrily.

"Who is the Security Council currently suggesting to be the replacement for the replacement for Director Hill?" Bush asked.

"At present, they are thinking about replacing her with Tony Stark," the US diplomat answered.

"He supports the Registration Act, doesn't he?" Bush asked.

"Yes, but not firmly enough," Chaney informed the president as he turned to face Bush, "If they nominate and accept Stark as the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., he will allow Rogers to continue his war against America while only talking to him and not arresting him."

"A lot of people who have supported the Registration Act support Stark," Bush commented, "They congratulate him for not forcing a major fight between the two sides. They also say that if both sides of heroes were to fight each other, we'd have bigger problems."

"We are already at war and we must be firm," Chaney said back, "Rogers has betrayed us and started the war. If we don't kill him, he will destroy the country. We can not show any weakness."

"I know," Bush sighed, "but should we really destroy our own country because one man is against one law?"

"No, but it's something we have to do," Chaney answered, "If we don't fight Rogers he will create a Communist state in New York by drawing more Anti-Registration Heroes to following him. The sooner we crush Rogers the sooner we can create a new Captain America who truly loves his country and the sooner people will realize that Registration is the only way."

"Let's see what happens," Bush suggested, "We'll only embarrass ourselves if we fight against whoever is nominated to replace Hill, and since Stark does support Registration, perhaps he will support us."

"Yes," Chaney nodded with a sigh to the US diplomat, "Stark is not our preferred choice, but things could change."

"Yes, sir," the US diplomat nodded and the screen showing the teleconference link had been terminated.

JFK International Airport

The LMD now named Lester carefully made its way through security. Carrying no carry on bag, most of it was very easy. If 'Lester' could sweat, he did so as he approached an X-Ray machine that was one of the last security checkpoints he had to go through.

"Please step forward, sir," one of the national security men guarding the X-Ray machine ordered.

The LMD slowly walked through the X-Ray machine and then looked over to the national security man with a very nervous look. The man then waved him on.

"There is an unusually high amount of iron in your system, but nothing that is isn't healthy," the man answered, "Move along."

Lester then sighed and walked on to the main waiting room and sat down in one of the chairs clutching a set of tickets that would take him to the Red Skull Reich, and his mission. As Lester waited for the plane to begin boarding, he noticed several men sitting around in business suits. Each of them had a pin that said 'RAID' pinned to the tie.

"You all heading to the 'Reich' too?" Lester asked one of the men nearby.

The closest man looked at 'Lester' with a look of suspicion.

"Who the hell are you?" the man asked.

"Lester," Lester answered.

"And you're going to the 'Reich' as you call it?" the man questioned.

"Yes," Lester answered, "I was hoping for a good job there."

"They have lots of jobs here," the man grumbled.

"Yes, but my record gets in the way around here," Lester answered, fabricating a story to get these people to trust him.

"What did you do?" another man asked.

"Mostly propaganda of how I thought things could be, but I got fired from every job I had because it was viewed as 'racist' and I even got charged for one of 'em," Lester answered.

"Hm," the first man commented, "Well, where you're going a lot of that won't matter."

"That's good," Lester answered.

Fury's Bunker

Norman Osborn sat alone inside one of the cells that he had been placed in after Hill's 'Thunderbolts' had been defeated by Cap's team of heroes. He hated being beaten and he especially hated the fact that he was in jail while he was sure that his own foes were dealing with the Registration Act. What hurt him more was that when the Registration Act crisis was over, he would be sent back to prison and he certainly didn't want that. Osborn was about to lay down for the night when he heard a sudden explosion, which made him sit up. He was about to get up when the door to his cell exploded, knocking him back against the wall. Smythe then stepped into the gap, smoke coming from his own blasters.

"You'd best hurry," Smythe said in an urgent voice, "They will soon discover that I rebooted all of my systems. It is time we got out of here."

Elsewhere, Cap was startled by the explosion as he and the others watched what they were getting off of Lester's cameras.

"What the devil?" Cap asked.

"That came from the cells where stuck Hill's 'Thunderbolts'," Sharon answered, "Come on."

They then ran at high speed toward the small detention area just in time to see Smythe blast a whole in the wall while the others leaped through it.

"You fight an admirable battle, Captain," Smythe spoke, "but we have little interest in rotting in jail as we do fighting for Hill's plans."

Smythe then ran out.

"After them!" Cap urged, "We can't let them get away."

Cap, Buck, and Sharon chased after them and into the sewers that surrounded Fury's Bunker. The escaped crooks ran hard and ran quick, keeping Cap and the others far enough behind them that the heroes were only just keeping up. They then rounded a corner and disappeared out of Cap's sight, but not entirely out of earshot. What followed a terrified scream and a series of gunshots.

"You don't suppose that S.H.I.E.L.D. sent someone to punish those guys?" Buck asked.

"Hill will hold the post of 'Director' until the UN can nominate and confirm a new one," Sharon answered, "That means that if S.H.I.E.L.D. is after them, they're here to 'rescue' them."

"Then who is this?" Buck asked.

"I'm afraid that is all to obvious," Cap answered as the rounded the corner.

Buck then watched as Cap then tackled a man in black commando gear holding a high powered rifle. The man's uniform had white gloves and a white skull sewn onto the chest of the uniform.

"We don't need your kind here, Castle," Cap growled at the man.

"Who is his?" Buck asked.

"Marine Corps Captain Frank Castle, known as 'the Punisher'," Sharon answered, "Wanted for desertion by the Marine Corps, wanted for the murder of various criminals and gang members."

Sharon looked down to see Smythe, Eel, and Boomerang laying dead on the ground, each with a single bullet wound through the head.

"And once the law learns of this, the murder of these three," Sharon added.

"Let me go, the others are getting away," Frank growled, but did not struggle against Cap's efforts to restrain him.

"They aren't important anymore," Cap growled and lifted Frank into the air.

"These people were villains, Cap," Frank answered back, "bad guys, murderers, trouble makers."

"Everyone knows what you've been through," Cap answered, "but at the present time, murdering people, even bad people, will only make things worse."

"Removing scum that will only come back to hit you later?" Frank questioned, "That's bad?"

"It is when the people you murdered are agents of the government," Sharon told him, "Legally anyway."

"Then that shows how bad the government has really come," Frank answered, "If the government believes that criminals are good agents. You let those guys go and they'll only come back to strike against you."

"They might now that you've killed these three," Buck commented, "The specific agent of the 'government' that was in control of those guys got fired today. When the government finds out about what you've done, they might hold Cap responsible for the murders and demand that more violent action be taken."

"And when you've seen war, you'll learn that sometimes violence is the only solution," Frank answered, "It is the only way with scumbags like these punks. Do you think they'll every truly repent and become law abiding citizens?"

"First of all, I HAVE seen war," Buck answered with some anger in his voice, despite the fact that he was certain that the Punisher didn't know who he was, "Second, the 'enemy' in this situation is a misguided law."

"And what about the Red Skull?" Frank asked, "He has to be involved in it, considering how often he's visited the country in an 'official' manner."

"He is involved," Cap answered, "but the fight he has initiated is not one that can be won by fighting him directly, and considering the power he presently wields that might be dangerous."

"So you're just hiding now?" Frank demanded.

"No, I am trying to do things in a way that causes as little collateral damage as possible," Cap answered, "My primary enemy is the Registration Act, but that is only the Skull's primary tool. He intends that America's super heroes fight each other and destroy the country as the result of their abilities coming into direct conflict with one another, and there are plenty of heroes who believe in Registration the way it is. America's heroes can not afford to fight each other and give the Skull what he wants."

"So you're fighting both the Skull and the Act?" Frank asked, "Why don't do you just kill the Nazi and put and end to it all?"

"Because the government thinks all of the things he did in the past, all the people he associated with was done by a communist agent pretending to be him," Cap answered, "If I were to kill him, I'd do nothing to clear my name here because the government sees the Skull as an ally."

"Shows how bad the government has gotten," Frank grumbled, "They allow murderers to go around slaughtering innocent families and allies itself with genocidal maniacs."

"Maybe, but one of the blessings of a democracy is that the people who run the government can change their minds," Cap answered, "The Skull hasn't done enough to make America a tyranny, yet, and I intend to change the minds of the people in the government before he succeeds."

"And letting crooks get away is going to make the government listen to you?" Frank asked.

"Maybe not, but the murder of these other three could complicate the plans to separate the Skull from the government," Cap answered, "Now, will you come peacefully, or do I have to knock you out?"

"You know I don't fight cops or anyone who enforces the law," Frank answered.

"So why aren't you trying to arrest him?" Sharon questioned, "Technically the Registration Act is law, and all of us here are 'criminals' for defying it."

"Because Cap is an icon to everyone," Frank asked, "More so then anyone realizes. Any side he is on can not be truly 'criminal'."

"Well, the overall situation is very weak," Cap spoke back, "I can not have you running around killing people, regardless of how evil they are."

"I'll be calm," Frank answered.

They found Fury waiting for them when they returned to the bunker.

"How many did he get?" Fury asked.

"Three," Cap answered, "Smythe, Eel, and Boomerang."

"Well, hopefully it takes a while for S.H.I.E.L.D. to find them," Fury commented, "Meanwhile, Lester has boarded the plane. We'll begin getting results soon."

UN Headquarters

Tony Stark walked quietly to stand before the Security Council in the smaller room where the Security Council met. All of the members of the Council were there.

"I'm going to assume you know why you've been called here?" the UN President asked from a specific chair given to him so that he could be present.

"I would assume that it has to do with finding a replacement for Maria Hill as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Tony asked.

"Yes," the British diplomat answered, "It is important S.H.I.E.L.D. has a proper leader. One who understands the rules that S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded on and does not break them."

"It is also important that the Director recognize global threats and cooperate with governments trying to protect and insure global safety," the American diplomat added.

"I understand," Tony answered.

"If I may be so bold as to ask, where do you stand politically?" the Chinese diplomat asked, "Hill attached herself so much to serving the American President that she was perfectly willing to break the laws concerning S.H.I.E.L.D.'s charter. The last thing we need is another 'Maria Hill' running an international organization."

"If you're asking whether or not I support the Registration Act, then yes I do," Tony answered, "But I will not be picking up where Hill left of in enforcing it. If the US government wants to kill Captain America, they'd best occupy New York and do that themselves. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and other Pro-Registration heroes will focus on trying to persuade Anti-Registration heroes to back the act in a peaceful and non-combative manner."

"Would you mind explaining that?" the American diplomat asked.

"There are things going on that are bigger then the Registration Act," Tony answered, "And at present the Red Skull is among them. You may believe me, you may not, but the Red Skull is not here to be friendly with anyone and something tells me that he wants the heroes in favor of registration to fight the heroes who are against registration."

"But if Rogers had not decided to break the law, we wouldn't face the present problem, now would we?" the American diplomat asked.

"Possibly, but I've looked over the act, sir, there are a lot of things that most people would view as needlessly oppressive," Tony answered, "and with heroes, most of us form strong enough opinions that we're willing to fight for what we believe in, and because of either our powers, training, or access to technology, the last thing any country can withstand is thousands of super powered beings fighting each other, regardless of who's right or wrong. And as I said before, I believe the Red Skull is potentially the real enemy America and the world faces. And in hard times like this, with a real villain out there, America can not afford to be fighting a civil war. If we fight each other, America will not have any heroes, just super powered citizens fighting each other. America needs its heroes, regardless of other issues or how bad it might make some people think America is."

To Be Continued…

Andrea: "Unhappy the land that has no heroes!…"

Galileo: "No. Unhappy the land that needs heroes."

Bertolt Brecht, German dramatist, Life of Galileo (1939)