Chapter 20 Paranoia Part III

I don't own Captain America

Going to follow the basic trajectory of James Bond: Spectre just fair warning.

Part 3 of 4 for the Paranoia series

Previously

July 1947: Hydra has survived through the end of the war and immerged reborn as a more illusive enemy. Now Hydra is more clandestine and has infiltrated government agencies of both the United States and the Soviet Union which include SHIELD and Leviathan respectively. Hydra's mission for domination of the world and draconian anti-freedom principles haven't changed, but their method of accomplishing their goals have. If Hydra remains to grow, then the danger they'd cause to innocent people around the world would be astronomical, so that's why the Rogers are committed to stop them.

But after Steve had discovered Hydra's infiltration, Colonel Phillips restricted him from all field operations until further notice after his little unauthorized trip to Paris that caused an international incident. Regardless of the restrictions placed on Steve, he took it upon himself to stop Hydra and is willing to disobey orders and break the law to do it because the cause is just. But he's afraid he already tipped his hand to Hydra because of his public incident in Paris, so he trusts no one except a select few individuals for fear of Hydra agents inside the government, especially in SHIELD. But with help from his wife, Margaret "Peggy" Rogers, and the original five Howling Commandos, he's now not alone on taking down Hydra. But they're all outside the law on this.

Shortly after Steve got grounded, he and Peggy, James Montgomery Falsworth, Jacques Dernier, and Timothy "Dum Dum" Dugan left for Washington DC to infiltrate a Hydra meeting taking place at the Gibson Grand Hotel in Washington DC at midnight. While that group left for the meeting, the rest of the original commandos consisting of Jim Morita and Gabe Jones stayed behind in the Howling Commando field office and cover for the Rogers, falsify reports, and attempt to dig up anything else on Hydra on their end.

When Peggy briefly infiltrated the meeting she was able to gain useful information about Hydra's presence in the United States. Not only did she learn that Hydra has gained significant influence in the United States and the Soviet Union, but she also learned that Hydra has a large number of assets in the U.S., which includes a large number of influential individuals and businesses. Influential individuals like Hugh Jones of Roxxon Oil Corporation, and the famed Hollywood actress Whitney Frost. Peggy figured there were more rich and powerful people in the meeting she didn't recognize or see, but she was more focused on things being discussed in the meeting. But before she could learn any more details she was discovered and was forced to escape. Once Steve extracted Peggy from the meeting they quickly made their getaway in their borrowed car but were pursued by a Hydra assassin who was assigned to assassinate the Schatten or "Shadow" in German. The Schatten is the only firm lead they have on finding more about Hydra's infiltration, so finding him was priority. During the high speed car chase, Peggy was able to kill the assassin and obtain the dossier the assassin had on the Schatten. With that dossier, Peggy, Steve, Dugan, Dernier, and Falsworth found the location and the Schatten's real name. The Schatten is actually Mattäus Wolf, the former executive officer of Hydra General Reinhardt. Also according to the dossier, he is located deep in rural Maine.

The Rogers and the three commandos now have their next destination, but the commandos fear that the commercial airlines would want to search their suspicious looking duffel bags that are carrying a variety of weapons and explosives. Although airport security is lax, the commandos don't want to take any chances and neither do the Rogers. So Peggy called Howard Stark at 4AM to see if he has any private planes near DC, and it turns out that he has three at the Potomac Airfield. Stark happily and willingly allowed Peggy to commandeer one of his planes. But before the call ended, Peggy warned Stark of Hydra and SHIELD because he would be an obvious target for them. In his usual manner, Stark assured Peggy that he would be cautious which didn't exactly make her feel any better.

Now the Rogers and the three commandos are on their way to Maine to talk to Mattäus Wolf before Hydra can try assassinating him again…

0800 (08:00 AM)

In the clear blue skies over the eastern seaboard of the United States, a lone dual engine silver Beechcraft Model 18 twin tail airplane belonging to Stark cruised at over 22,000 feet on its way to Maine. The sleek polished silver plane shined brilliantly in the morning sun as it flew through the clear skies. Though the aircraft is mostly polished silver, it also had the highly recognizable white and blue Stark Industries logo painted on both of the plane's twin tail vertical stabilizers making it look iconic of Stark. But Stark isn't the one flying it nor are any of his many private pilots…

The plane is expertly piloted by Peggy while Steve sat in the copilot seat navigating. In the passenger compartment are the luggage and the three commandos, Timothy "Dum Dum" Dugan, James Montgomery Falsworth, and Jacques Dernier sprawled out on the passenger seats fast asleep since the plane left Potomac Airfield. Although Peggy talked to Stark around four in the morning to get the plane, they didn't get to the airfield, and takeoff till six. They needed to hurry because they didn't know when Hydra would try to make another assassination attempt on Mattäus Wolf, so time was of the essence. For the group, it's already feeling like a long day ahead of them, and its already been a long week.

In the cockpit, Steve remained surprised at the aviation skills of Peggy since he didn't know she could fly. He knows his wife very well but he's always surprised at her surprising amount of talents. He started to wander and stare at her aimlessly for the hundredth time since they took off. He stopped thinking about Hydra for one moment and started to think of his wife. To him, she always looked incredible and he knew that many people would agree, but for some strange reason at this very moment she looked much more than incredible. Peggy wore her brown leather jacket zipped up to just below her collar bone, white collared button up maternity blouse, pair of dark green trousers, and her black combat boots. She wore her neutral make up with faint lipstick, her hair tied in a loose low pony tail, she had her Captain America necklace on her neck again, and her wedding ring back on her left ring finger. She looked ready to drop into Germany again while Steve looked like another kid on the block. He wore casual clothes consisting of a white and blue pattern plaid long sleeve button up shirt with the top two buttons unbuttoned, white under shirt, khakis pants, black shoes, his wedding ring on his ring finger, and his sterling silver bracelet on his left wrist.

Peggy noticed him staring and glanced over at him for a moment and smiled, "Not that I mind you staring, Steve..."

Steve shook his head as he returned back to reality, "right. Sorry."

"Like I said, I don't mind." Peggy responded with a chuckle. She glanced at him again, "What's on your mind, darling?"

Steve chuckled and shook his head, "I don't know why… but you just look so incredible right now. More so than usual for some reason."

Peggy giggled, "I'm dressed like a soldier, Steve"

"A very attractive soldier at that." Steve responded quickly with a smile. "A soldier with red lip stick and make up." He chuckled.

Peggy blushed and shook her head, "I don't know what to say..." No matter the situation, Steve always manages to make her feel weak in the knees. So to speak. He is such the romantic its almost funny. If the United States knew how sappy he was, then everyone would laugh. But she doesn't mind it at all because right now she can use the distraction.

"Needless to say…I think you always look incredible." Steve said smiling.

Peggy chuckled, "You don't look so bad yourself."

Steve shrugged, "I'll take that."

Peggy laughed, "There's got to be more than that…"

Steve looked at her confused, "Uh…I love you?"

Peggy shook her head with a smile, "Not that. But I love you too." She glanced over at him, "You seem like you want to ask me something."

Steve shook his head, "Incredible how you know these things…"

"Call it women's intuition." Peggy smiled, "So go ahead and ask me, Steve."

Steve chuckled, "When did you learn how to fly?"

Peggy laughed, "When did you learn how to drive like that during the chase?"

It was now Steve's turn to laugh, "Nazi Germany." He smiled at her, "Now your turn."

"Its always Nazi Germany…" Peggy said while shaking her head.

Steve chuckled, "Well its true." He nodded to Peggy, "Now tell me." He said warmly.

Peggy shrugged, "Well…Howard taught me on our spare time shortly after you disappeared. I guess he thought teaching me how to fly would relax me a little bit."

"Did it?" Steve asked curiously.

"I don't own a plane so I didn't get many chances to fly. But it's a good skill to have and that I thankfully retained." Peggy responded evenly.

"See, now this is a skill that I didn't know you had." He said pleasantly.

Peggy smiled over at him, "As I said. I'm a woman with many hidden talents."

Steve chuckled, "And my response remains the same. I look forward to discover every one." Peggy smiled and held out her hand prompting him to interlace his fingers with hers. They stayed quiet for a moment, enjoying this brief intimate moment together. They could use the distraction because they've been going nonstop since they left that meeting in Camp Lehigh a few days ago.

Suddenly Dugan appeared between them, "You two are so adorable, you know that?" Like the rest of the Commandos, he wore very casual civilian clothes consisting of a long sleeve collared shirt, dress pants with belt, and dress shoes.

Peggy sighed and let go her husband's hand, "And romantic moment destroyed."

Steve chuckled and looked at the map, "What can we do for you, Dugan?"

Dugan smiled, "what's the ETA?"

Peggy spoke up, "We've been flying for about a few hours, and we're heading toward the northern end of Maine. So we would roughly get there about…."

Steve checked the map, "an hour or two. We're getting a head wind so that's slowing us down."

Dugan nodded, "What's our landing plan. Or are we just going to rush out of the plane and catch a ride?"

Steve looked at the map, "Mattäus Wolf is in a cabin near Square Lake, Maine. There's a smaller auxiliary airfield near there, so we'll land there then borrow a ride." He paused, "Those smaller airfields should be less crowded anyway."

Dugan nodded again, "Got it." He turned around and left the cockpit to sprawl out on the seats again.

Peggy turned to Steve with a smile, "borrowing another car?" She chuckled, "I think we got to the point that we should just say we're stealing them now."

Steve chuckled, "Helps ease my conscious." He shrugged, "Plus they are unknowingly helping us stop Hydra."

Peggy laughed, "Fair point, darling." They suddenly turned silent for a moment.

Steve reached over a gripped her thigh, "Hey." He said about to change the subject.

Peggy turned to him with a warm smile, "Yes?"

"When this is all over. We'll go home and relax. I'll cook up some food, we'll put on some music, and we'll just lounge like there's no tomorrow. Just the two of us." Steve said warmly.

Peggy smiled, "Sounds perfect."

Camp Lehigh

SHIELD Section

Wheaton, New Jersey

0900 (09:00 AM)

Colonel Phillips walked into the SHIELD administration building just behind Director of SHIELD, John Weyland. Colonel Phillips wore his Army khaki service uniform with his garrison cover in his left hand while Weyland wore a fancy black suit with a white dress shirt and a black tie, and carried a dark red folder in his right hand. The Colonel spoke calmly as the two approached the door to the stairway, "Heard SHIELD is getting an accelerated timeline to become active. I'm sure in no small part to you."

Weyland smiled without looking back at the Colonel, "Good news isn't it? We won't be a hundred percent but we already have more than enough assets in place to do be effective in any place." As the two got to the door to the stairway, a tall, serious looking man in a black suit and tie opened the door for them, prompting them to enter. Weyland smiled as they started to walk up the stairs, "When SHIELD goes online, this organization will be the most sophisticated extra-governmental joint military and intelligence agency in history. A nimble global security force tasked in keeping the world safe if you will."

Colonel Phillips remained close behind Weyland as they walked up the stairs, "My sympathies on the Vice President and the Secretary of War of not being on board with Project Insight. Must've been a blow."

They got to the second floor and Weyland pushed open the door for the two of them, "Not really." The moment Phillips walked through the doorway, Weyland let it go so it closed behind them, "Its only a matter of time 'till those two see the light. Besides it's the President's approval that truly matters." The two of them started to walk down a well lit and well-furnished hallway that produced a relaxed and warm atmosphere. Weyland shrugged, "And you know what they say, Rome wasn't built in a day. Day and a half maybe." He finished with a light chuckle as they approached his main office. "The threat of infiltration, sabotage, and attacks by Soviet agents and domestic Communist sympathizers will prove to the Vice President and the Secretary of War that Project Insight is for the greater good. Believe me." When they got to his office, Weyland let Phillips in.

Weyland made his way to his desk While Colonel Phillips remained by the door with his hands crossed behind his back. Phillips sighed, "Look, John…"

Weyland placed his red folder on the center of his desk and interrupted the Colonel, "That spy ring situation in Canada and those two Americans who were arrested for being spies for the Soviet Union is exactly why we need Project Insight. What happens if Soviet sympathizers decided to destroy something important that resembled the United States? Like the Empire State Building or something else. Project Insight's special complex computer algorithm weighs in a number of factors that can tell us who we need to stop to prevent something like that before it happens. This can even tell us who's a threat to our national security so we can eliminate him or her where ever they might be before they even have a chance to harm us…" He paused, "Its like…knowing the future." He smiled warmly at the Colonel.

"And it can target American citizens as well…"

"If they're a threat, then we must deal with them." Weyland responded calmly.

Phillips sighed, "Look, John…" He shook his head, "I know security is a fact of this world now. But Captain Rogers has a point. This is fear tactics. This project is targeting people before they even commit a crime… this makes us no better than the Soviets."

Weyland shook his head, "Come on, Colonel." He nodded to the door, "Its too late if we react after the fact. We could stop things like this from…."

It was the Colonel's turn to interrupt, "That is different. What factors are you weighing in? Personality, political position, what someone says? This is leading to censoring what people believe and what they can say. This goes against everything that we stand for." He nods, "Yes, we should investigate, assess, target, maybe even do some surveillance. That might be lengthier than plugging it into your fancy computers, but we can figure out if those individuals actually do pose a credible threat to us. If they aren't than we won't have to compromise our integrity." He shook his head, "All those computers operating are very linear… how do you expect them to account for every variable."

Weyland shook his head, "I didn't want to have to do this… but it looks like you and the SSR still can't control your agents or assets." He opened a drawer and pushed a button on an audio recorder.

The recorder started to play and Steve's voice echoed through the room, "It's a good thing those two agents who were supposed to watch the entrance were reassigned. If they were here we might've not gotten to do the meeting… Sounds like all of you know what's going on?" Weyland fast forwarded the tape for a second then let it play again. Steve's voice again echoed in the room, "I won't lie to you, we'll be out numbered, probably outgunned, and will probably be charged as criminals. I will not order you to help us, but I will ask. If any of you refuse… I will not hold it against you."

Then the Commandos started to speak. Dugan's unique charismatic voice came through the recorder loudly. He chuckled, "Hell, Captain you know I'll always fight. Besides we've operated in far worse cases before.

Jim started to speak, "I'm in."

James followed, "Lets finish the job this time."

Then Gabe followed suite, "I'm in." The recorder captured the whole conversation.

Jacques in his French accent came through the speakers, "Vive la Capitaine Amérique." He then spoke in English, "I'm in."

Dugan spoke up again, "Well. We got one request."

Steve's voice entered yet again, "What's that?"

"Buy the first round of drinks when this is done." Dugan responded.

Steve laughed, "I'll buy the whole damn bar when we're done." The Colonel looked at Weyland with a shocked look across his face while Weyland looked at him with a serious look.

Peggy's voice came through the recorder, "Now, with that being said…Be careful with who you trust. Assume anyone outside this room is…" Weyland then shut off the recorder.

Weyland spoke calmly, "I guess something can be said with dealing with potential threats." He sat down in his seat, "Sounds like Captain Rogers, Agent Rogers, and the famed Howling Commandos are going rogue… which means they need to be dealt with."

Phillips remained shocked, "You watch SSR personnel?"

"SHIELD watches everyone." Weyland said calmly.

Square Lake, Maine

It's almost noon with the sun shining in the clear blue sky, and a single black Chevy pickup truck drove quickly through the windy roads in the dense Maine forests near Square Lake. The plain black pickup truck bounced on the bumpy, twisting road as it sped through the thick forest. Dugan bounced in the truck bed as the truck ran over another pothole in the road, "Agh!" He rubbed his head, "Hey, Cap! Can you miss at least one of the potholes?" He called out to Steve who is busy driving the truck dangerously fast. Both James and Jacques sat with Dugan in the truck bed while they did their best making sure the luggage doesn't get tossed out of the back from the bumpy road and Steve's crazy fast driving.

Peggy who sat in the passenger seat next to Steve looked at her husband with a funny grin, "Just because you can run crazy fast doesn't mean we need to drive this crazy."

Steve nodded, "We do need to get there fast don't we?"

"Well we very much like to get there alive, darling." Peggy said calmly.

The truck bounced again causing Dugan to groan, "The axel on this truck will be long gone by the time we return it to the guy at the airfield."

James sighed, "I think the truck won't even make it to the destination." He said as he pressed his weight on Steve's shield and bag to keep them from sliding off the back. Jacques remained quiet with a smile on his face as his two friends and comrades worried about Steve's driving.

Peggy turned around and looked at the commandos through the cab rear window, "Relax you boys. Steve is slowing down."

As the truck rounded the bend, Steve quickly slowed down and made a sharp right turn onto a small and nearly unseen uphill windy road. The sudden deceleration and turn caused Peggy to grip his arm and brace herself against the dash as she fought her own momentum. In the back, Dugan and the rest of the commandos shot forward and slammed into the cab of the pickup truck then to the side of the truck with a loud thud. As the truck accelerated up the tight road, all three of the commandos groaned in pain as they regained their composure. Dugan rubbed his forehead, "I didn't think he'd slow down that fast."

Peggy ran her hand through her hair and looked at Steve, "A little warning next time, Steve."

Steve glanced at her, "Sorry…" he said apologetically as he slowed the truck down gradually to navigate the tighter windy road.

After a while of driving up the nearly unseen uphill windy road, the truck came to a gradual stop in what seemed to be the middle of the woods. Steve turned off the truck and opened his door, "we'll get out here, so we don't spook him." He nodded ahead, "The house is about fifty meters up this road give or take. Let's go." He stepped out and grabbed his canvas bag that carried the hand held radio then slung on his back.

Peggy nodded, "Right." She hopped out of the truck then removed her pistol from her purse and slung her purse across her body.

Steve walked to the side of the truck, "James, Jacques grab all your gear and set up positions in the tree line, and watch the road and truck. Radio if there's any problems" He said pointing to the trees to the right of the truck, "Dugan, you're with us."

James stood up, "Got it."

Jacques acknowledged as well, "Oui."

Dugan nodded, "Right behind you, Cap." He said as he stood up and reached into one of the black duffel bags and pulled out his trench gun.

James grabbed Steve's shield, "Rogers!" He called out tossing Steve his shield.

"Thanks." Steve said coolly. He nodded at James, "Got radios right?"

James nodded back, "Got radios."

Jacques grabbed the duffel bags then looked over at Steve, "What about your gear Capitaine?"

"Don't worry about ours." Steve said as he started walking up the road. With that James and Jacques each removed a Thompson Submachine gun then slung the duffel bags on their shoulders and hopped off the trucks and pushed into the tree line.

After a moment of walking in silence up the wooded road, Steve, Peggy, and Dugan rounded the top of the hill onto a clearing and spotted a large two story wood cabin. The large wood cabin had a long covered porch that spanned all along the parameter of the cabin. Adjacent to the cabin is a rusting dark blue pickup truck, a medium sized shed, and a stack of chopped logs. But the cabin and the surrounding clearing looked lifeless like no one has ever been there in years. The wood on the cabin and shed looked faded and weathered, and the truck was severely rusted. The whole area didn't feel right. Steve gripped his shield and nodded to Dugan, "Go around back. Peggy and I will take the front."

Dugan nodded, "Got it." He said then went to jog around back.

Peggy looked at Steve, "Right behind you." She said as she and Steve started to walk toward the front.

Once the Rogers got to the front, they slowly walked up the porch steps and walked lightly to the door. Peggy gripped her pistol at her side and looked around as Steve gripped the door knob. Steve looked back at her and whispered, "Its unlocked." Peggy nodded quietly prompting him to slowly open the door. As Steve pushed open the door it creaked loudly as it slowly swung open revealing a house only illuminated by natural light. Directly ahead of them are stairs leading up to the second floor, to the right is a well-furnished living room complete with décor that matches the cabin in the woods feeling, and past the living room is a small hallway leading to the equally styled kitchen.

Steve and Peggy walked in slowly while scanning the interior of the silent cabin. The inside of the cabin didn't look as big as it did on the outside, probably because of all the furniture and décor that cluttered the interior. The woods flooring creaked under each step the Rogers took into the house. Peggy gently bit the bottom of her lip as she followed Steve deeper into the cabin. The silence was unsettling to say the least. Steve gripped his shield as he slowly walked through the living room with Peggy close behind him. Peggy then turned and made her way to the coffee table in the living room. She ran two fingers over the top of the table leaving a large trail behind as her fingers gathered a thick clump of dust. She whispered, "Doesn't look like anyone has lived here for years maybe."

Steve nodded, "Yeah. But the dossier pointed here. So he has to be here."

Steve spotted Dugan walking through the kitchen with his trench gun at the ready with the stock of the weapon at his shoulder and the barrel pointing downward. Dugan turned and saw Steve and Peggy, "Cap." He said with a nod.

Steve whispered, "See anything back there."

Dugan met them in the center of the hallway while shaking his head, "Just dust and spider webs. Doesn't look like anyone has been here for months. Maybe years." He paused, "Is he even here?"

Peggy nodded, "He should."

Out of curiosity, Steve looked to his left and pushed open a door located next to a six foot tall mirror and revealed a cluttered basement, that looked lifeless and dusty like the rest of the house. Steve sighed and shook his head. Dugan spoke quietly, "Maybe we should check up top."

Peggy nodded, "He's right. We still haven't checked upstairs."

Suddenly Steve spotted something at the base of the mirror. He tilted his head and spotted a slither of light peering through the bottom of the mirror. He looked at the mirror up and down for a moment prompting Peggy to look at him with curiosity, "What are you doing?" She said softly.

Steve moved closer to the mirror and started to feel the parameter with one hand, "One second." After a moment he moved to the top and felt a switch. The moment he flipped the switch the trio heard a familiar sound of a door unlocking, but the sound came from behind the mirror. Steve paused and nodded at Dugan then pushed the mirror forward, swinging it open like a door revealing a whole other basement. The trio took a step forward and peered inside, and were ultimately surprised at what they saw. They saw a man with dark hair slouching on a chair in the center of the basement staring at a long bulletin board on the wall. The bulletin board had pictures, newspaper articles, and red yarn connecting each object together and linking it to one picture at the center of the board. The basement was cluttered with trash and boxes spread out along the floor. It was more like a living space than an actual basement. It had a desk, bed, chairs, shelves, and a camp stove, but it had no bathroom.

The man knew that his secret passage way was open and that someone was watching him, "Do me a favor…make it quick…" He said weakly in a thick German accent. He knew very well Hydra was going after him.

There was no doubt in the trio's mind that the man in the basement is Mattäus Wolf. Steve relaxed and spoke calmly, "In the kitchen, Mr. Wolf." Wolf recognized the voice and turned his head weakly just as Steve turned and left the doorway.

Dugan and Peggy stayed at the doorway and stared at Wolf as he slowly got to his feet. Dugan leaned over to Peggy and whispered, "What's that smell?"

Peggy whispered back with an emotionless expression, "Given there is probably no bathroom down there, I think I know what that smell is." She said staring at a bunch of metal containers lining the right side of the basement.

Dugan groaned, "That's nasty."

"When he comes up, go down there and search the basement." Peggy whispered her order. Dugan looked at her with pleading eyes not to go down there. "There's obviously a lot of information he put together. See if you can find anything interesting."

Dugan stood there in silence but Peggy nodded silently to the basement. Dugan sighed, "Yes, Peggy."

Mattäus Wolf sat down weakly at the head of the kitchen table and coughed, "I always knew my sins would catch up to me…but you're the last person I thought to see before I die." He said referring to Steve. Steve stood at the other end of the table with his arms crossed and an emotionless expression. He had put his shield down against one of the table legs, and had his canvas bag on the dusty table. Peggy silently leaned against the stove behind Mattäus Wolf as they listened to him speak weakly. Wolf coughed again, "So what do I owe the pleasure, Captain Rogers?"

Steve got a good look at Wolf and saw that the man looked like he aged nearly twenty years since the last time he saw him in November of 1945. The man was pale, incredibly skinny, and looked old. Immediate signs of severe malnutrition. Steve spoke calmly, "My wife was at a meeting recently and your name came up."

Wolf smiled weakly, "Flattered that the SSR talked about me."

Peggy walked forward and placed the Hydra ring Steve acquired in front of him. "It wasn't the SSR. It was Hydra. Your people, not ours." She said as she walked back to her spot at the stove.

Wolf picked up the ring slowly, "Ah…" He said softly as he observed the silver ring with a small Hydra Red Skull on it. "A while ago, I was poisoned while I was eating. Its slowly doing its job… I don't have very long… Hydra doesn't have the decency to kill you quickly." He put the ring and slid it across the dusty table leaving behind a dust free streak, "So, here we are Captain Rogers." He leaned back in his chair, "Two dead men enjoying the day."

Steve cocked his head to the side, "What did you do?"

"I disobeyed him…" Wolf said quickly. "I followed him as far as I could." He shook his head, "But he…changed."

"I see. You grew a conscious."

Wolf retorted sharply, "Our game is our game. I did my fair share of killing. But I was too blind to see Hydra's true intentions until it was too late. The butchering of families, women, and children… how is that justifiable? I didn't join for that…"

"Yet you still took part in it… and here you are. An ex officer for a Hydra general and someone who once held a prominent position in the Neo-Hydra movement." Steve said coldly.

"Its not so easy to slip away."

Steve leaned forward, "Since you're no longer with Hydra then tell me who's running it now."

Wolf quickly responded, "Armin Zola… and supported by the Council of Nine."

Peggy spoke up, "The what?"

Steve nodded, "Explain."

Wolf shifted in his seat, "When Doctor Zola was recruited by your government a few years ago, he quickly took the opportunity to please your government with his ideas, all the while plotting to regrow Hydra within. He quickly heard about the Council of Nine through an American businessman who invested in the Nazi war machine in 1939. From there he quickly persuaded the Council to become loyal to the ideology of Hydra." He then started to cough painfully for a moment before continuing, "The Council of Nine, or simply known as the Council, is a group of powerful and influential individuals, mostly businessmen, who seek to seize power and control of the United States government through manipulation of politics and the economy."

Peggy spoke up, "I see. A powerful group like that would increase the sphere of influence Hydra would have in the United States."

Wolf nodded, "Doctor Zola was able to convince the Council to swear their allegiance to Hydra. Hydra became a very good investment for the Council, and they made Zola their new leader." He spoke weakly, "With your country recruiting ex-Hydra and ex-Nazi personnel to help your country, Hydra had already a strong foundation inside your government. The power Hydra already possess and it potential made the Council of Nine quickly join them." He leaned forward, "Your government gives Zola so much freedom…it makes it easy for him to bring Hydra back from the ashes." He smirked, "Then…with the development of SHIELD…It only made it easier for Zola."

"Well…Where can we find him?" Steve asked calmly.

"You won't find him." Wolf said weakly.

"The poison in your food or drinks in the past suggests that he doesn't like you very much. And clearly the feeling is mutual. So why don't you tell me how to find him?" Steve said a little bit more forcefully.

"You can't stop him. You can't stop Hydra. What difference does it make if I tell you or don't tell you. You cut off one head, two more shall take its place." Wolf said defiantly. Peggy looked at Steve with a concerned look.

Peggy spoke up, "What do you have to lose?"

Steve stepped closer and said sternly, "Where can I find him?"

"He's Everywhere. Everywhere!" Wolf leaned forward, "He's in SHIELD, he's in Washington, kissing your lover, he's eating dinner with your family! He is everywhere and nowhere." Wolf said with equal intensity. There was an intense pause of silence in the room as Steve was at ends with what to do.

Suddenly Wolf reached down and grabbed a small revolver in his right ankle holster. Peggy quickly reacted and were about to pounce and take the weapon, but Steve held up his hands to signal her to stop. As Wolf pointed the gun at Steve, Peggy looked at Steve with concern and worry in her eyes. Wolf struggled to cock the hammer of the revolver back but he eventually did. After an intense moment of Wolf pointing a loaded pistol at Steve, he slowly lowered it on the table and spoke weakly, "There is already enough pain and destruction in this world… And I was part of the cause of it." He coughed, "The only way for evil to triumph, is if good men do nothing…isn't that right?" He said referring to the famous quote made by Edmund Burke. "I'll burn in hell for my sins…but I will tell you." Peggy and Dugan relaxed. "Go to New Orleans and find the O'Neil Night Club. Go to my private office in the basement...You'll find what you're looking for there." He said it more slowly, "O'Neil Night Club. New Orleans" He leaned forward and smiled, "You're a kite dancing in a hurricane, Captain Rogers…" He slowly brought his pistol up to his throat, "So long…" He said briskly as he pulled the trigger, shooting himself through the throat with the back of his head exploding outwards. Peggy flinched at the moment Wolf shot himself.

Steve looked down and sighed as he shook his head slightly. He looked up, "You alright, Peggy?" Peggy nodded silently.

Suddenly they heard heavy footsteps rapidly approaching from the basement. Dugan quickly appeared in the kitchen with his trench gun at the ready, "You two alright?"

Both Steve and Peggy nodded simultaneously. Peggy answered softly, "We're alright, Timothy."

Peggy walked up to the table and took the Hydra ring and put it her pocket. She then went to Wolf's corpse and gently closed his eyes. Dugan lowered his weapon and looked at Steve, "What happened? Did he say anything?"

Steve nodded, "He shot himself… but he told us about Zola, but said to go to the O'Neil Night Club in New Orleans and we'll find what we're looking for there" He said as Peggy started to search Wolf's body.

"Night club?" Dugan asked confused.

As Peggy searched she spoke up, "That's our next destination. He only gave us that…"

Steve shrugged, "yeah, we don't know. We'll have to go to the club and take a look for ourselves." He looked at Dugan, "Find anything down there?"

Dugan nodded, "Other than piss and crap filled containers, I confirmed Zola is the one in charge." He looked over in the direction of the basement, "downstairs Wolf had pictures and newspaper articles all connected to Zola and Hydra. The murders of those rich people Peggy mentioned earlier and even cases of Communist espionage in Western countries, Wolf connected them to Hydra and Zola."

Peggy looked up and hummed, "Hm."

Steve nodded, "We got where we need to go." He took out his hand held radio from the canvas bag on the table, "Falsworth, Jacques. Come in, over."

After a moment the radio crackled to life with Jacques on the other end, "Oui, Capitaine"

"We met with Wolf and got what we needed. We're heading back. Stand by at the truck."

"On it." Jacques said quickly.

Steve nodded, "Last thing." He looked at Dugan, "Dugan, get on the landline and get the Field Office on the line. Report what we found to keep them in the loop."

Dugan nodded, "On it, sir." He said as he went to go find a phone.

Steve grabbed his shield off the floor and walked over to Peggy, "You okay?"

Peggy placed her pistol on the counter and started to rub her baby bump gently, "I'm okay, darling." Steve wrapped his free hand around her waist and looked at her with an apologetic look. Peggy smiled up at him, "I just can't wait for this madness to end." She sighed, "I'm so tired of fighting Hydra."

Steve nodded, "You and me both."

Peggy chuckled, "This makes me want to quit my job and live the simple life. Just raise a family…"

Steve smiled slightly, "We'll stop them. Like always."

Peggy turned to him, "Are you still thinking about leaving the Army and stop being Captain America?" She asked softly. Steve was about to answer but Peggy continued, "Sorry. I didn't mean…"

"Its okay, Peggy. It's a simple question." He said softly. He nodded, "Yeah, I'm thinking about it. I got…"

Suddenly Dugan interrupted them standing next to the pantry of the kitchen, "I reported into Jim and Gabe."

Steve nodded, "Anything new?"

Dugan shook his head, "Nothing. Neither SHIELD or the SSR have called for a report about you checking in."

Steve looked down, "Hm."

Dugan nodded, "What's wrong, Cap."

"A gut feeling." Steve nodded, "Alright, lets head back to the truck."

Peggy looked back up at Steve, "I guess we can talk about this later." She said referring to their earlier conversation. Steve nodded with a small smile.

New York City

Brooklyn Bridge Park

Pier 3 Greenway Terrace

1200 (12:00pm)

Colonel Phillips in a gray suit, tie, and fedora, sat on the center of a bench at the edge of the Pier 3 Greenway Terrace of Brooklyn Bridge Park. The view from his bench gave an excellent panoramic view of the Brooklyn Bridge, East River, and Manhattan. A very picturesque location for many of the cities inhabitants and tourists looking for a nice place to relax and enjoy the day. Except he wasn't there for the view. He was waiting for someone.

As he sat idly on his bench, he started to think of how everything has changed in a span of a few days. A few days ago, Phillips was busy focusing on trying to make the merge of the SSR with SHIELD more seamless, but he ran into difficulties because many government officials looked at much of the SSR as obsolete. So he was busy trying to consolidate as much of the SSR as possible in SHIELD so his people don't lose their jobs. But then the note Steve wrote changed his reality. The note said, "Hydra has infiltrated the government, Hydra is in control of SHIELD." Initially the note sounded farfetched and impossible with the thought of Hydra being able to survive the end of the war. But Steve's note really got him thinking, because that's not something Steve would say lightly. Phillips figured that during Steve's unauthorized trip to Paris, he must've found out something about Hydra because why else would he suddenly tell him about it. But ever since he wrote that note, Phillips couldn't shake the feeling that Steve may be right. Like Steve, Phillips knew that the SHIELD project titled Insight sounded like a terrible idea. But because of the note, he started to look at SHIELD differently, he started to see them as wrong. The whole agency seemed, felt, and looked wrong. Everything was wrong. Steve started to look right with every passing hour. But then SHIELD Director Weyland played the recording of Steve, Peggy, and the original Howling Commandos preparing to act aggressively on their own. It became clear that Weyland and SHIELD are going after Steve. With that Phillips' gut and preliminary evidence told him that Steve was right and that Hydra is controlling SHIELD. When in doubt go with the gut.

The thought of Hydra being back and infiltrating the government suddenly occupied his mind while he sat quietly on the bench. The extensive damage Hydra can do to the government, and the country is unthinkable. No one knows that Hydra is back aside from him, Peggy, Steve, the original Howling Commandos, and Stark (which Phillips briefly mentioned this subject to) which makes Hydra incredibly dangerous. If Colonel Phillips tried reporting Hydra's infiltration, who would believe him? No one would think a dead enemy would come back, and he would most likely get targeted by Hydra agents within the government. No, the threat the US government is primarily focused on is the Communists, which makes the US blind to other immediate threats. Besides, the only substantial evidence Colonel Phillips has in his possession is the word of Captain America. And Phillips knew that Director Weyland most likely reported that the Rogers have gone rogue, which would give him the operational authority to utilize any assets available to go after the Rogers and the Commandos. Assets could be anything from field agents from both the SSR and SHIELD, FBI, or even local police. Needless to say, Colonel Phillips can do nothing to help the Rogers from his current position. Him, Stark, the Rogers, and the Commandos are so far the only ones standing between Hydra and their completion of whatever goal they have in store.

He sighed as he leaned back and stared out across the river. He saw someone he was secretly eyeing for the past fifteen minutes sit down on his right. The mystery person had his face turned away from him so he couldn't visually tell who it was. The person wore a dark blue business suit with white stripes, red tie with white stripes, and a grey fedora. The man also used a cane and had a very apparent limp when walking. Colonel Phillips looked up to the sky and said in a low voice, "Sousa." He said almost a hundred percent sure that was him.

Sousa kept his fedora on and turned to face the Colonel, "Colonel." He said briskly.

"We're waiting on one more." Phillips said plainly. "At least I hope he gets here."

Sousa spoke softly, "Is this about Steve and Peggy?"

"I'll tell you when our other person shows up." Phillips responded softly.

Suddenly Stark sat down on Phillips' left, "Sorry I'm late." He said in a low tone. Stark wore a brown suit, black tie, and a brown fedora.

"Now that we're all here." Phillips paused, "Was anyone followed?" He nodded, "I know this place is pretty public but there is so many people here that its good for cover."

Sousa responded in question, "I don't think I was followed?"

Stark followed, "Not anymore than usual."

"I'll take it." Phillips said coolly.

Sousa responded calmly, "What's going on?"

Stark spoke up interrupting Sousa, "Peggy called me last night."

Sousa spoke up in a tense tone, "I have pending orders to arrest the Rogers and the original batch of Howling Commandos. Apparently the Rogers have gone rogue and need to be contained."

Phillips looked at Sousa, "One moment, Sousa." He looked back at Stark, "What did she say?"

"Last night, Peggy called asking for a plane. She didn't tell me where she and Steve were going, but all she said was to trust her. I gave it to her and she told me that Hydra was back and they infiltrated the government." Stark nodded, "She also informed me that Hydra has been eliminating anyone who is a threat to them and their plans."

Sousa became confused, "Hydra?"

Phillips sighed, "I'll be damned…Steve was a hundred percent right…" He shook his head, "Hopefully we're not too late." He tensed, "We have to do something. I have limited authority in the SSR and SHIELD now because of Director Weyland. Which means, Director Weyland will try to obtain operational authority of the SSR to arrest the Rogers and the Commandos. We have to act…and rapidly."

Sousa spoke up, "The guys up in SHIELD haven't told me anything. What's going on? Why are we talking about Hydra?"

Before Phillips can respond, Stark spoke up, "Hydra isn't gone."

"What?" Sousa asked shocked.

Phillips responded, "Hydra's back."

"How? That's impossible, they fell during the war. How?" Sousa said in confusion.

"We thought they did. But they went underground, so to speak." Phillips sighed, "Now they have infiltrated our government including SHIELD. I don't know how they did this, and I don't know how far they've gone, but clearly they've been infiltrating us since the end of the war." He paused, "The only reason Stark and I know this is because the Rogers recently informed us about this. And this is something they wouldn't say lightly and so far they look to be right. Hydra is the reason why we're here in the park." Phillips looked at Sousa, "You're here because we're going need your help. And Peggy seems to trust you and she spoke highly of you, so that's good enough for me."

Sousa nodded, "Yes sir…You can count on me, sir." He said hesitantly trying to take in what Phillips just said about Hydra.

Stark leaned forward to look at Sousa, "You alright?"

Sousa nodded again, "Just a lot to take in, in a short period of time. But you can count on me."

Phillips nodded, "Good."

Sousa spoke up with a little more confidence, "What do you need me to do?"

"First, I don't know whose Hydra and who isn't, so be careful with who you trust. The safe bet is to keep this between ourselves." Sousa and Stark nodded in agreement. Phillips nodded, "We have to help the Rogers and the Commandos anyway we can." He turned to Stark, "Stark, head to the Howling Commando field office, I assume you know where that is."

Stark nodded, "I do."

"Good. That place is compromised; SHIELD has that place zeroed in. So go there and cue any of the original Howling Commandos there in some discreet way. The Rogers explained everything to them a while ago, so it shouldn't take long. Then get weapons, explosives, any gear or intelligence they have and get then out of there, and report back to me."

Stark nodded, "Got it."

Phillips looked over at Sousa, "SHIELD will relay information about the location of the Rogers to you and other SSR offices. But since the Rogers and the Commandos come from New York, SHIELD will likely rely on your office the most to help arrest them. This will be a joint agency case, so do what ever you need to do to slow SHIELD down. You'll be in the perfect position to do so." He paused, "Since SHIELD will provide information on where the Rogers are, take note on where they're going and keep track of them, so we can help them if we get the chance."

Sousa nodded, "Got it. What about you?"

Phillips nodded, "I'm going to find a way to bring down SHIELD at Camp Lehigh. But right after we're done here, I have to go to a meeting with Director Weyland, the President, and his cabinet in the White House." He paused and looked back at Sousa, "Sousa, I need you to come with me to the meeting."

Sousa nodded, "Understood."

"One last thing to both of you." Phillips looked at both Sousa and Stark, "Be careful with who you trust. Some of your people in your working with might be Hydra, so be cautious."

"got it." Sousa responded. Stark nodded quietly.

Phillips focused on Stark, "Especially you, Stark. We might need your expert engineering abilities and one of your fancy firecrackers to bring down SHIELD."

Stark nodded, "You can count on me."

"Good. This is what we have to do…"

White House

Washington D.C.

1400 (02:00pm)

After a short flight from New York to Washington D.C., Colonel Phillips and Chief Sousa were at the White House to attend a security meeting. Colonel Phillips in his full military dress uniform held his cover in his left hand and walked alongside Sousa, who wore the same well-pressed dark blue suit from earlier. They walked at a relatively fast pace through the halls of the White House toward the Cabinet Room for the meeting. As they turned the final corner to the meeting they saw the doors were open and a large number of well dressed men were leaving the room. Phillips and Sousa became confused because they thought the meeting was taking place at 1430. They saw Director Weyland in a black suit with a white dress shirt and a black tie, carrying a dark red folder in his left hand, and he was shaking the hand of Secretary of War, Robert P. Patterson as Phillips and Sousa approached them.

Secretary of War, Robert Patterson smiled at Weyland, "Thank you very much. Looks like we need this."

Weyland gave a friendly smile, "No, thank you. Wish you all the best, sir." He said as Patterson nodded with a warm smile and walked away just as Phillips and Sousa stopped in front of Weyland.

Phillips looked confused, "What's going on?"

Weyland looked up and gave a shocked look, "The meeting was pushed ahead. Did you not get the message?" He said quickly.

Phillips replied in a serious tone, "No. We didn't."

"Last minute decision as I can remember." Weyland said evenly.

"President and his cabinet on board, I take it?" Phillips replied.

"Yeah, who can blame them. The Soviet Union rejected the Marshall Plan, and the Greek Civil war is taking a negative turn. The pressure to stop the Communist is on." Weyland said as he moved between Phillips and Sousa. "Project Insight has been officially sanctioned. The project will take effect in less than 48 hours. It's a major step forward." He said while walking with Phillips and Sousa walking close behind. Sousa did his best with his limp, but he wasn't losing the pace. "The Security environment changes every…"

Phillips interrupted him, "As you said before…"

Weyland stopped and turned to the Colonel, "Look. The President and the Secretary of War asked me to take charge of the intelligence community…"

"Yes. And?" Phillips replied coldly.

"And I should tell you, I've spoken with the Secretary of War…" Weyland paused as he looked Phillips in the eye, "And in light of the new information I've given him…they decided to close down the SSR and all its assets with immediate effect. And… the government is going to arrest the Rogers for conspiracy to commit treason." He said softly.

Phillips tensed and replied sternly, "You don't know what you're doing."

Weyland shook his head, "Its nothing personal. It's the future." He shrugged, "And… you and Captain Rogers are not. Super soldier or not, he's become dangerous in the eyes of the government…"

"You're a cocky little bastard aren't you." Phillips replied coldly.

Weyland chuckled lightly, "I'll take that as a compliment."

"I wouldn't." Phillips squinted, "This isn't over yet." He turned and walked away. Sousa paused an eyed Weyland with a cold look for a moment before following the Colonel. Weyland shook his head and watched them leave.

New Orleans, LA

2100 (09:00pm)

After nine hours of flying and one refueling stop in Maryland, the Rogers and the three Howling Commandos finally landed at Moisant Field commercial airport in New Orleans, Louisiana around nine at night. Peggy was able to land the plane at the airport with little hassle because she used a fake name and said she was carrying Howard Stark for a business trip in the city. Shortly after landing they took a taxi cab to the O'Neil Night Club that Wolf had mentioned earlier in the day. The group left all their gear in the plane including Steve's shield, and they only took with them side arms that they concealed for self defense.

Bourbon Street

French Quarter

The taxi dropped off the Rogers and the three Commandos a block away from the club in the famous Bourbon Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans. The New Orleans nightlife was very much alive at this time with the street jam-packed with people on both the sidewalks and street making it hard for cars to navigate the tight single lane streets. The beautifully designed French and Spanish styled architecture gave a very pleasant nostalgic feeling to everyone in the streets. The nightlife in Bourbon Street was very electric with bright lights shining in the buildings, street music, and the sound of energetic and happy crowds making their way through the street. Steve, Peggy, Dugan, Jacques, and James, still in the same clothes they wore all day, started to push their way through the crowd toward the O'Neil Night club.

Jacques looked around and smiled, "Makes me miss France."

Peggy gripped Steve's arm as they walked through the crowd while at the same time adjusting her brown purse that was across her body with her free hand. Steve chuckled, "Welcome to Bourbon Street."

Peggy looked at Steve with surprise, "You've been here before?"

Steve shook his head, "Only heard stories. Heard its quite a place." He nodded, "I can see why."

"Would be a nice place to visit when this whole mess is over." Peggy said with a nod.

Dugan laughed, "Planning Steven Junior's first vacation already I see." He said behind the couple.

Peggy shook her head, "I don't know about this place being the first place to visit, but its definitely up there on the list."

James spoke up, "Did you two figure out a name for your baby yet?" He said while pacing next to Dugan.

"Not yet. But we did briefly talk about it. Let's take down Hydra and we'll continue this conversation." Peggy quickly replied.

Before the conversation went any further, Steve interrupted them, "There's the club." He said nodding to one of the buildings ahead of him on the left side of the street. The club is located in a French styled building adjacent to a wide alley way. The building had a French styled balcony with columns, and a large square neon sign that stuck out on the front that read, "O'NEIL NIGHT CLUB".

Dugan stepped around the Rogers, "lets get in there."

Steve stopped him by quickly placing a hand on his shoulder, "Not that way."

James spoke up, "Which way are we going then?"

Steve pointed his thumb to the alley, "Through the back."

O'Neil Night Club

The Rogers and the three Howling Commandos walked into the dim alley between the club building and its neighbor. The alley was dim and the bright lights in the street did little to illuminate much of the alley. The alley was cluttered with trashcans, trash, boxes, and discarded newspapers scattered all along the alley way. But the moment the group walked into the alley, they focused on the lone bright alley light on the right side of the alley that hung over a closed metal door and illuminated the far end.

After a moment of walking through the alley, they got to the door that belonged to the club. Steve nodded, "This is our way in."

James walked over and tried opening the door but it was locked from the inside, "Locked." He said plainly.

Steve nodded, "I got it." He gripped the door handle and pulled with a little force and yanked the door wide open, breaking the lock and the strike plate on the door frame. Steve went in first followed by Peggy, Dugan, James, and Jacques.

They suddenly found themselves in a large kitchen with the everyone staring at them with surprised looks because the once securely locked alley door was suddenly forced open. The large numbers of cooks, waiters, and waitresses in the kitchen were all staring at them with blank and surprised stares. There was a tense moment between the Rogers and the three Commandos, and the people in the kitchen as an awkward silence overcame everyone. The kitchen was surprisingly quiet with only the faint sound of the swingy New Orleans jazz club music playing in the background. Steve nodded, "Good evening, everyone." He said awkwardly.

One of the cooks whispered, "Is that Captain America?"

The other cook nodded with a whisper, "I think so." Now suddenly everyone had a pleasant surprised look on their faces.

Peggy smiled disarmingly, "I'm sorry, but Is this the O'Neil Night Club?" She said standing right next to Steve. A number of people in the kitchen nodded silently to the question.

Suddenly two men in black suits and ties entered the kitchen with serious looks on their faces. One man looked Latino while the other was white, but both men had very sharp clean haircuts and rough expressions on their faces. The men quickly made their way to the Rogers and the three Commandos then stopped right in front of Steve. Everyone in the kitchen started to look at each other with curiosity and concern with what would happen next. The Latino man spoke in a thick accent to Steve, "The entrance to the club is out in front." He said coldly.

Steve nodded, "Sorry about the door."

Peggy answered trying to sound intentionally dumb, "I'm Sorry, I just wanted to see the kitchen." She said failing to deescalate the tense situation.

The white man focused on Steve and spoke in a thick Irish accent, "better keep your fat broad on a leash before she finds herself getting hurt somewhere in this town." He started to run his hand up Peggy's arm, "If you understand what I'm saying."

Suddenly Peggy grabbed the Irishman's hand and at the same time punched the man square in the nose with a solid hit causing him to fall on his back and onto the dirty kitchen floor. Before the Latino man can react, Steve throat punched him causing him to fall to his knees, gripping his neck, and coughing in pain. He then kicked him in the chest sending him to the kitchen floor hard and knocking the wind out of him. The Irishman had a broken nose with blood pouring out of both nostrils like a fast flowing river but he was still conscious and a little dizzy from the hit and the fall. Steve squatted down, "I was going to try to resolve this peacefully but…" He looked up at his wife then back at the man, "But you called my wife fat." He smiled confidently, "Never call anyone fat…especially a woman. If you understand what I'm saying." The three commandos laughed silently to themselves behind Steve.

Peggy put her foot down on the man's chest, "As my wonderful husband said. Never call a woman fat. If you know what's good for you" She smiled devilishly.

Steve nodded, "Where's the private office?" There was no immediate answer from the Irishmen. Steve shook his head, "Tell me, and you won't end up getting reconstructive surgery after my wife beats it out of you in this kitchen."

The man groaned and started to ramble, "Out the kitchen, go straight down the hallway and turn left. There's someone in the office at the moment…"

"Thank you kindly." Steve said with a smile. He stood up and looked at everyone in the kitchen, "Any rejections to letting us through?" Everyone shook their head. Steve smiled, "Great. Then we'll be going that way." He said nodding to the kitchen doors to the club. He turned to his group, "Lets go."

Peggy nodded, "Right behind you, darling." She said removing her boot off the Irishmen's chest. With that Steve and Peggy started to make their way through the kitchen.

The commandos paused for a moment before following the Rogers. Dugan squatted down at the groaning Irishmen, "She's pregnant by the way. Not fat." He shook his head then licked his finger, "Wet Willy." He said as he wiggled his finger in the Irishman's ear. The man shuttered from the unpleasant sensation. "Idiot." Dugan whispered as he started to follow the Rogers out.

James shook his head, "Wanker." He said as followed Dugan. Jacques spat on him as he followed the group out of the kitchen.

As soon as the Rogers and the commandos left the kitchen, the Irishmen sat up with a groan. His nose was still pouring out blood onto his suit and tie, and he felt incredibly dizzy. He slowly picked himself up off the floor and wiped his bloody nose with his hands then looked at his partner who remained unconscious on the floor as business in the kitchen started to continue as usual. Everyone in the kitchen went about their usual business and cared little about what just happened to the two club henchmen. The Irishmen groaned again as he slowly made his way to a phone on one of the metal kitchen counter tops. He quickly dialed the phone and got in contact with the operator, "Hello, Operator? I like to make a call to Camp Lehigh, New Jersey, please."

The Rogers and the three Commandos followed the directions the Irishmen gave them, and went straight out of the kitchen, down the hallway, then turned left to go down a small flight of stairs to the basement level. Once they went down the flight of stairs, they found themselves in a dull green painted short hallway that made a sharp right turn at the end of the hall. Straight ahead of the group at the end of the corridor is a single door with two men dressed in black suits and ties guarding the door with a tense posture. The two men instantly became more defensive at the sight of the Rogers and the three Commandos.

The two men quickly stepped away from the door and started to approach the Rogers with stern looks on their faces. One man spoke with a harsh tone, "this is a private area. Please return up stairs to the club." He said signaling the group to stop.

Steve, Peggy, and the Commandos did not stop nor did they look at all hesitant as they closed the distance with the two men. The second man spoke up, "Are you deaf? Go back up to the club." He said with an equally harsh tone as the first man.

Steve stopped just in front of the two guards while Peggy and the Commandos stayed just a few steps behind him. Steve gave an apologetic smile, "Sorry about this, fellas." He said to the two men. Before anyone knew it, he punched the man to his left in the throat then in a flash punched the other in the face knocking him to the floor unconscious. Just as the man who got hit in the throat went to his knees, coughing in pain, Steve punched him across the jaw sending his to the wall unconscious.

Peggy touched Steve's back and said softly with a hint of amusement, "Nice."

Steve nodded, "Right." He went to one of the unconscious men and kneeled down and started to search the body. After a few seconds of searching he grabbed the man's .45 pistol.

Peggy tilted her head and saw a silver ring on the ring finger of the man Steve was searching, "Steve." She said softly.

Steve unloaded the pistol and racked the slide back to eject a chambered round, "Hm?" he responded softly.

"Look at the ring he's wearing on the hand next to your foot." She said pointing to the hand.

Steve lowered the pistol and took a look of what she pointing at and saw a silver Hydra ring with the red skull. He nodded, "well, we're definitely in the right place."

Jacques spoke up, "What's next?"

Steve stepped over the two unconscious bodies to go peek around the corner to get acquainted with his environment. Around the corner on the other end of the hallway he saw a single unlabeled door that he guessed was either a bathroom or a supply closet of some kind. He looked back to his group, "The office door got to be right in front of us. Peggy, James, Jacques and I will go in and search the office for clues and some sort of safe."

Dugan spoke up, "What about me?"

"Hide these bodies in the room around corner."

Dugan sighed, "…you got it, sir."

"Fantastic." Steve said with a smile. He flipped the pistol around so he held it by the barrel.

James looked confused, "You already have your pistol, Cap."

Peggy too was confused, "Steve?"

Steve smiled, "All part of the plan." He stepped toward the door, "Stay behind me." He said as he gripped the door knob.

He quickly opened the door and stepped inside a green painted spacious private office. The room is accented by fancy wood flooring and wood crown molding, and complete with clustered file cabinets and bookshelves, and decorative paintings lining the walls. Directly in front of the door is a large cluttered desk with an expensive leather desk chair behind it. Steve noticed a very notable medium sized painting of New York hanging on the wall behind the desk as he stepped inside cautiously. His wife and his fellow commandos followed close behind. A part of him thought there would've been someone in the office, but he didn't immediately see anyone. Suddenly he saw a bald white man with round glasses in a plain black suit and tie get up from behind the desk. The man gasped, "Hey!" He yelled as he tried to reach for his gun on the desk. Steve reacted quickly and threw the empty pistol that was in his hand at the head of the bald mystery man with rocket speed. The pistol made contact with a ginormous thud, sending the man tumbling backward into the desk chair and back wall of the office. The man like his two guards outside became unconscious.

James gasped, "Nice throw!"

Jacques nodded in awe, "Oui. You should play sports once you get out of the Army."

Steve shrugged, "Well I'm not the pitcher for the '27 Yankees, but I think I did alright."

Peggy chuckled and shook her head, "Lets go, boys. Search the office, look for safe's and any documents relating to Hydra. There were Hydra guards in the hallway so there obviously some sort of value in this place. We just have to find it."

Steve nodded, "Yes, Ma'am." He said as he headed toward the desk.

James chuckled, "How come he gets to call you 'ma'am' while we can't."

Peggy smiled, "because he's cute when he does it."

Dugan walked in, "Hey, we can be cute too! Also, what are we talking about?"

"Nothing." Peggy shot back humorously. "But I will say this…that's why I'm married to him and not married to any of you." Peggy said with a smile as she joined Steve to look through the office.

Dugan sighed, "She's cold, man."

James laughed, "take care of those bodies?"

"Better believe I did. Those men will wake up with a massive headache in a broom closet." Dugan said happily.

Peggy stopped in the middle of the office, "Are you two just going to stand there and gossip or are you going to do your job?"

Dugan sighed, "On it!" He said turning around and closing the office door.

Jacques walked around the desk, "What do we do with this guy?"

Steve came over and picked the unconscious mystery bald man up and plopped him down on the office chair, "If he wakes up soon, we'll question him. He looks pretty important since I saw him sitting behind the desk."

Peggy joined them behind the desk and started to look through the clutter, "Looks like he was looking for something."

James looked at the trio as he fished through the file cabinets, "Looking for what?"

Peggy shrugged and shook her head as she went through the drawers, "I don't know." She shook her head again, "This office is a mess already. Everything is disorganized. Almost like they were looking for something in particular."

Steve turned and removed a medium sized painting hanging on the wall behind the desk and found a small safe. "Well that's a start" he said.

James spoke up, "Got the combination?"

"I don't think we need one." Steve said as he gripped the safe handle and pulled with all his. After a few seconds he tore open the door from the safe.

Peggy smiled, "Your strength will always amaze me."

Dugan nodded, "It will always amaze us."

Peggy chuckled, "Anything interesting?"

Steve shook his head, "No." He said as he searched through it, "Just money and a little black business book about financials." Steve shook his head, "Time to get messy." He looked at Peggy, "turn over every piece of furniture, tear open every book, go through every file, open any crevasse, look behind every painting. No stone left unturned." He nodded, "Wolf mentioned that we'll find what we're looking for here. Let's start by tearing this place apart"

Peggy nodded, "Got it."

Everyone started to do exactly what Steve said. The moldings and the other paintings on the walls were removed from their place but found no safe behind them. The filing cabinets were then moved from their place near the walls to see if a safe of some kind was located behind them. But there were none. Then the filing cabinets were dumped and searched for anything of importance which became a task for Jacques and James. The two of them searched through the mess of files looking for any documents relating to Hydra, but so far they found nothing but financial documents about the club. Peggy went through the desk and practically took it apart to see if there was anything hidden in it. At the same time, she checked any papers she found in and around the desk. Dugan and Steve went through and sacked all the of bookshelves to see if anything was hidden in them. They thoroughly searched through countless books and décor and found nothing useful. Dugan even tore apart the base of a bookshelf to only find he was chipping away at wood.

After an hour of ransacking the office they found nothing. Steve ripped off a shelf of a bookshelf and tossed it on the ground. The plank landed next to James who sat on the floor with his backs against a tipped over file cabinet on a little break, while Jacques continued to dig through the thousands of files on the floor. James sighed, "we found nothing so far."

Steve sighed, "This can't be it."

Peggy stopped looking searching through the desk for the millionth time. She stretched and rubbed her baby bump yet again, "I don't know, darling. We went through everything."

"So far all we found is club financials and club related items… Could Wolf have misled us?" Dugan said plainly as he stepped back toward James.

Steve sighed again, "No. This can't. Be. It." He said again slowly. He turned to walk away from the bookshelf, but just as he took his first few steps away from the bookshelf, the floor creaked unnecessarily loud. The room went quiet, and for some reason the floor creaked strangely loud this time.

"What is it?" Dugan asked curiously. James and Jacques looked at Steve to see what he was doing.

Steve shifted his weight on his foot again making the floor creak once more. The creaking floor caught Peggy's attention causing her to stare curiously at her husband. Steve looked down and paused for a moment as he started to think. After a brief pause he decided on his course of action. He quickly stomped down on the creaky planks causing a small square segment of two different wood floor planks to break. The square hole he broke was too small for his entire foot go down, but he struck the planks in the right spot with his heel to make a clean break. What he found was not just a random hole in the floor, but discovered was a small hidden square compartment of some kind. Peggy stepped forward, "What is it, Steve?"

Steve shrugged, "I don't know." He said as he bent down. Everyone approached Steve as he slowly reached into the hole. He gripped something that felt like a handle, "I feel a handle down here." He said as he twisted it then suddenly the bookshelf to his right made a loud metallic click, followed by the left side of the bookshelf slightly moving open about two or three inches like a door.

Steve stood up and scanned the bookshelf up and down for a moment then slowly gripped the left side of the bookshelf and cautiously swung it open like a door. As the thick bookshelf swung open it revealed a man sized opening at the center of where the bookshelf used to be. Steve chuckled, "of course…" He said as he stared into a dark secret room behind the bookshelf. He approached the opening and leaned into it, "A secret door…" He chuckled again. He turned around, "Dugan, James. Stay out here and make sure no one disturbs or us. And make sure our new friend doesn't wake up."

James nodded, "Got it."

Dugan looked over at the unconscious man, "I think you might've killed him."

Steve didn't respond as he slowly stepped into the dark room. As he entered the room, the room became dim rather than dark as his eyes adjusted to the minimal light coming from the private office behind him. As he slowly walked in, he looked to his right and flipped the light switch on the wall to turn on the lights in the small room. The room became lit up with a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling that illuminated the majority of the compact square room. In the center of the small room are a chair and a square table. On the table, is a projector facing the far right wall that had a standalone white projector screen in front of it. On the table next to the projector are several film reels, film reel cans, and papers. On the wall to Steve's immediate right is a metal shelf carrying ammunition, explosives, and a variety of other objects. Immediately to his left is a vertical gun rack holding high powered rifles of different makes and models and submachine guns of various origins. Next to the gun rack is a large cork bulletin board with various pictures of people, letters, and documents pinned to it. Below the bulletin board is a desk with a lamp, cardboard box loaded with more film reel cans, binders, books, papers and other clutter that occupied much of its surface. The wall in front of Steve had another vertical gun rack with all Thompson submachine guns, and next to it is another large cork board with random papers pinned to it. Under the cork board are metal containers, filing cabinets, and base cabinets that spanned the rest of the wall with a mess of clutter on top of them. The room ultimately looked entirely disorganized.

Steve silently stepped deeper into the room and started to make his way around to look through everything. Peggy and Jacques followed and started to scan around the room with curious looks. Steve turned back around and walked to the metal shelf on the wall to search through them. Jacques turned and joined him to look through the clutter on the shelves while Peggy slowly made her way over to the desk to look around it. She stopped in front of the desk and looked at the cork board and felt sadness sweep over her once she realized what the photos that were pinned to the board were. She saw a series of black and white photos consisting of Mattäus Wolf, a woman, and a little girl. Peggy felt sadness take a deeper hold on her as she covered her mouth with her hand. She inferred that the woman and the little girl in these photographs was his family. But when they went to the cabin earlier in the day, they didn't find a trace of anyone else in the cabin. The family either left or their dead… either or it wasn't a pleasant thought.

Steve was oblivious to what Peggy was staring at as he grabbed a small stack of messy papers from one of the metal shelves and started to go through them, and found nothing of interest. He put them back in their place then turned around to head to one of the filing cabinets on the opposite wall while Jacques continued to go through the shelves. Steve stepped to one of the filing cabinets and opened the top drawer and started to fiddle his way through the files and found out that the files all had names of people written on them. As he went through them, two names caught his eye, Brett Hall and Charles Dafoe. Two people who were no doubt murdered by Hydra. Steve removed Brett Hall's file and opened it to see a red stamp that said, "TERMINATED" on the front page next to Hall's photograph. The entire file was a complete dossier of the man, complete with numerous pictures taken on different times. Steve put Hall's file back then grabbed another one. This file was of a woman and was formatted just like Hall's with a red stamp on the front page that said, "TERMINATED" as well. Steve put the file back and spoke up quietly, "Mattäus Wolf has a bunch of files of terminated targets…a lot of files… This has to be his field office of some kind." He looked around the room and took in everything he saw, "He had to be an assassin."

Peggy turned to him, "An Assassin?"

Steve closed the drawer of the filing cabinet, "He had to be. These weapons, files, maps, and explosives. It looks like he could wage his own war." He nodded, "And the Hydra agents who came to visit the office earlier looked like they didn't know about this room either."

Jacques spoke up, "looked like Wolf couldn't live with himself anymore." He said as he spotted a black notebook under a box of ammunition. He removed the notebook and start to go through it.

Steve nodded and kneeled down to open the bottom drawer of the filing cabinet, "Who could blame him." He opened the drawer and saw a lonely thin file occupying the drawer. He took it out and stood up then walked to the table in the center of the room to go through it. He put it down on the table and started to go into the thin file and saw a series of black and white photographs of a certain mountain. He looked through them and saw that the photos were of different angles of the same mountain. But the very last photo of the series was different. The photo was of thick forest with a red circle drawn over the center of the photo in marker. Steve looked at the photo closely and saw a concrete looking structure barely visible in the picture.

Peggy was still busy focusing on the cork board when a small paper pinned to the bottom right corner of the board caught her attention. The paper had 8-digits written on it in black pen that read, "9724-6440". She removed the paper from the board and turned to Steve, "Darling." She handed the paper to Steve, "Found coordinates."

Steve took the paper and nodded, "Hm."

"why does he have random coordinates?" Peggy asked curiously.

Steve shook his head, "I don't know." He said as he went through more of the file in his hand. He turned a page in the file and saw writing in pen that read, "Frequent places in the past year: New York City, Camp Lehigh, D.C., Maryland, Virginia." Virginia was circled multiple times with black pen. Steve thought out loud, "He was tracking someone..." He came to a sudden realization, "He was tracking him. He was tracking Zola... And he sent us here to stop him."

Jacques lowered the notebook and spoke up, "Since Wolf used to be active in Hydra, wouldn't he know where Zola would be?"

Peggy shook her head, "Not if Zola was intentionally trying to remain hidden, and only exposing himself during certain meetings like yesterday."

Steve nodded, "It makes sense. Hydra calls him 'Number 1' and they barely use his name, or not at all if anything. Which makes him harder to track." He looked at the file and stared at the circled word, "Virginia". He took a deep breath, "But he managed to track him somehow. To Virginia." He saw a small note on the bottom of the page that read only one thing, "Project Insight." Steve knew of Project Insight but not enough details to fully comprehend

"Where in Virginia?" Peggy asked.

"Those coordinates." Steve said thinking out loud again. He took the paper with the coordinates written on them and started to look around the room for a map.

As Steve looked for a proper map with grid lines, Jacques understood the Hydra notebook he found, "Capitaine, this notebook I found has more than just financial information."

Steve stopped and looked at Jacques with a curious look. Peggy asked the question that was both on their minds, "What is it?"

"This notebook has a long list of individuals and businesses that invested or donated money to Hydra. It has how much money these people have invested in Hydra, what date, and the date of the next payment." Jacques closed the notebook, "But, I don't know whether the people and businesses in this notebook were forced to give money or were willingly giving money to Hydra, but this is hard copy proof of how Hydra is gaining funds."

Steve nodded, "That's a good catch, Jacques. Take that back with us." Jacques nodded in response.

Steve found a proper map that was folded into a square. He returned to the table and unfolded the map and started to search where the coordinates pointed to. Jacques and Peggy stepped forward to the table and started to look at the map as Steve plotted the coordinates. Peggy spoke up, "So where was he heading?"

Steve pointed to the middle of a mountain range in Virginia, "No where." He paused, "The middle of the Shenandoah Mountain Range in Virginia."

"What's the plan?" Peggy asked.

Steve turned to the door, "Dugan, James, get in here!" He called.

Dugan and James entered the small room with haste. Dugan spoke, "What's up, sir?"

"Got our next destination. We're going to take the head off the snake. Hopefully for good this time."

"Where are we going?" Asked James.

"Right in the middle of the Shenandoah Mountain Range in Virginia."

Dugan groaned, "What is with Hydra and mountains?"

"So how do we get there?" James asked.

Steve nodded, "There's no straight overland route so the fastest way is by air."

Peggy spoke up, "Any airports nearby that we can land on?"

Steve shook his head, "We're not landing."

Peggy looked at him with concern, "What?"

"James, Jacques, and I are going to drop from the sky while you and Dugan head back to New York." Steve responded calmly.

"I want to go with you." Peggy said hesitantly fully knowing Steve's counter. Dugan didn't protest and knew the reason for Steve's decision.

Steve shook his head, "No." He said softly.

"But, Steve…"

Steve cut her off softly and leaned toward her, "I know you can take care of yourself, but… I need you to go back to New York..."

"But…" Peggy interrupted softly.

"I don't want to argue with you… but if something were to happen and I couldn't…" He couldn't say what he was thinking so it was his turn to hesitate, "I would never forgive myself…Just please trust me on this."

Peggy nodded, "I do." She said quietly.

"You need to go back to New York…" Steve repeated with a bit of desperation in his voice.

Peggy conceded and nodded, "Okay..." She said hesitantly. The three commandos understood the position of both Steve and Peggy. They knew their Captain wanted to make sure Peggy and the unborn baby stayed safe and out of harms way, and they knew Peggy wanted to make sure the Captain wasn't alone and vulnerable.

James came up and reassured Peggy, "Look, Peggy… We're going to be with him so you have nothing to worry about." Peggy nodded.

Jacques nodded, "We'll watch out for him. We promise."

Peggy smiled at the two of them, "Thank you."

Steve nodded at Peggy, "I'm not sending you back to New York to put you out of harms way, I'm sending you back because you have an important part. I need you to go with Dugan and patch in Colonel Phillips and the rest of the Commandos. Because we still have SHIELD to take care of." Steve turned to his commandos, "James, Jacques. Are you in?"

James nodded, "Wouldn't miss it." He chuckled, "Like we have a choice."

"Oui." Jacques replied.

Steve smiled confidently, "Outstanding. We're going to need parachutes. Hopefully Stark has some on the plane or the very least the airport has some."

James nodded, "When do we go?"

"Tonight. Try to beat the sunrise and drop in the cover of darkness." Steve said plainly.

Dugan nodded, "Don't worry, Captain. I'll watch Peggy's back in New York." Steve nodded at Dugan.

Steve smiled, "I have a feeling she'll be watching yours." Peggy looked down and gave a smile.

Peggy stepped closer to him and wrapped her arm around her husband, "We better leave now then…" She said with a hint of worry in her voice. She couldn't help but worry even though she understood the reason for his planning. Steve couldn't blame her, and to be honest he was worried about her returning to New York too, even though Dugan was going with her. That was the main reason why he tasked Dugan to go back with her because he didn't want her to be alone with the threat of Hydra being everywhere.

"Lets go." Steve said confidently. "Grab anything of importance and let's go." He said as he folded the map and closed the file. He turned and handed the map, the coordinates, and the file to Peggy, "Hold onto this for safe keeping, please." Peggy nodded in response as she took the items and folded them again so they could fit in her purse.

Just as they left the small secret room Steve spotted the man he threw the pistol at start to bob his head up and down, signaling that he was returning consciousness. Steve turned to Peggy, "Looks like our friend is up."

Peggy nodded, "Question him?"

"Yeah." Steve nodded. He held up the file, "Wolf mentioned Project Insight in this. Obviously it's a Hydra initiative in SHIELD but I think we need to know more. Let's see if this guy knows anything."

Peggy nodded, "Right."

The man got a series of gentle pats on the cheek from Peggy so he could finally compose himself after being unconscious for sometime. The man finally composed himself and found himself on the office chair and in front of the desk with Jacques, Dugan, Steve, Peggy, and James all standing in front of him. The man recognized Steve, "Captain America…"

Steve nodded and spoke calmly, "I need some questions answered." The man remained defiantly silent. Steve started to rattle off all his related questions, "What is Project Insight?"

"Never heard of it." The man said.

"What is the algorithm it uses?" Steve asked quickly.

"I don't know what you're talking about." The man said quickly. Peggy knew the man was lying. Steve stepped forward and forcefully gripped the man's collar. "Is this gesture supposed to mean you're going to try and beat it out of me? Because that really isn't your style, Rogers." He said defiantly.

Steve chuckled, "Yeah, I get that a lot." He smiled at him, "But it isn't me you should be worried about." He stepped aside and looked at Peggy, "Its her."

Peggy stepped forward and slammed her heel into the man's groin area causing him to scream in high pitch in pain. Dugan whispered, "Now that's just wrong." He chuckled, "Funny how she went for that first."

The man hunched forward with tears building up in his eyes, "I'll talk, I'll talk."

Peggy nodded, "You sure? Because I found that quite entertaining."

The man put his hand up in distress, "Project Insight is a program that uses an algorithm created by Doctor Zola." He took a deep breath, "For choosing, Insight's targets…"

Steve spoke quickly, "What targets?"

The man quickly recited what he knew, "You!" He nodded to Peggy, "Her! the radio host in San Francisco, the Secretary of War, the FBI director, the high school valedictorian in Iowa City, Howard Stark, General MacArthur… anyone who's a threat to Hydra." He composed himself, "Now or in the future."

"The future? How could it know?" Steve asked confused.

The man chuckled evilly making everyone feel uncomfortable. He quickly turned serious, "how could it not? Everything people do nowadays has a paper trail, hardcopies, and official records." He started to list examples, "tax records, bank records, voting pattern, medical history, personal files, employment, your god damn social security." He became serious, "Zola's algorithm evaluates people's past, to predict their future."

"And what then?" Steve asked.

The man shook his head, "They're going to kill me…" Peggy stepped forward and put her heel on the front of his chair in between his legs.

"What then?" Steve asked with a little bit more force in his voice.

"Then Hydra loyalists around the world will begin to scratch off people on the list to assure Hydra dominance in the future… no matter the cost to themselves."

Steve stepped forward and punched him across the jaw, knocking the man unconscious again. "That should keep him out of it for an hour or two." He turned to his team, "We got to go. And we need to hurry."

Steve opened the door of the office, slowly, and peered out to check the stairs ahead of him and the corridor to his left. He scanned multiple times and determined that the coast was clear, "Coast is clear." He said as he swung the door open and stepped out. Peggy and the three Commandos followed close behind as they all walked out. Jacques held the black Hydra notebook securely in his hand so he wouldn't lose it. The faint sound of swingy New Orleans band music filled their ears as the group reached the stairs. Once the group calmly made it up the stairs to the ground level, they were on their way to exit out through the kitchen that was straight ahead down the hall. The music was much louder now and had quite a lively beat to it. But as they walked passed an archway, Steve spotted something suspicious when he turned his head.

He quickly stopped and pushed the group back behind the archway then pressed against the wall. Peggy looked confused, "What is it?"

Steve said plainly, "Suspicious looking men weaving through the dance floor between the crowds." He said as he peered around the corner of the archway to see the main club floor. Everything looked lively as usual with a large amount of patrons in the club still enjoying themselves. From his vantage point, he could see the half-circle elevated stage on his left with the band playing energetic and lively tunes, the dance floor just in front of the stage with the large amount of well dressed patrons dancing energetically, and numerous circular dining tables behind the crowd with people enjoying their meals. But he spotted a series of suspicious men weaving through the crowd. Numerous shady single men dressed in various types of suits and ties walking through the crowd slowly, while checking the faces of everyone they passed. The crowd didn't seem to notice them, but Steve sure did. Steve leaned back toward his group, "Group of men searching the crowd in the club. Most likely looking for us."

Jacques whispered, "Hydra or SSR?"

Steve shook his head, "I don't know. Might even be SHIELD at this point. Can't see any badges." He then slowly peered again and saw a man with a nice clean cut walking toward the archway. He looked back at Peggy, "One is coming this way."

Peggy nodded, "Well we'll find out who he's with."

After a moment of waiting the man rounded the corner. "Sorry about this." Steve quickly said as he punched him square in the mouth sending the man to the floor. He then dragged his body behind the archway and toward the dimly lit corner in front of the stairs. Steve stood up and returned back to his position next to the archway, "Check the body."

Dugan and James started to search the body for anything. Dugan pulled out a side arm, "He's carrying a standard issue M1917 Revolver, .45 ACP." He pressed the cylinder latch and dumped the rounds onto the floor then put the pistol down.

James dug into the man's pockets and found a small black leather wallet. He opened it, "Agent Dean Marshall of SHIELD." He tossed the wallet down on the unconscious man, "Is he Hydra?"

Peggy shrugged, "I don't know." She looked up at Steve, "What do you think, darling?"

Steve quickly turned around, "Hard to tell." He peered around the corner again, "Someone must've tipped them off that we're out here. I don't know how else to explain how they got here."

"But what are SHIELD agents doing all the way down here? I didn't think they were that active yet let alone that widespread yet." Peggy said.

Jacques shrugged, "Limited operational authority does sound a little vague."

Steve nodded, "Convenient." He observed the crowd on the club dance floor, "its best we keep our distance and try to slide out through the kitchen like our usual plan." He nodded, "But I think we can use a little distraction."

"Like what?" Peggy asked.

"A loud one." Steve said with a smile as he pulled out his pistol. He kept his smile, "When you hear the signal, make a break for the kitchen, slip out to the alley, turn right out of the alley, and get us a ride out of here." Everyone nodded.

Peggy spoke up, "Be careful, Steve."

"I will." With that Steve pressed his pistol to his side with his finger straight and off the trigger, and slipped around the corner into the energetic crowd. He eyed one of the men he was sure was another SHIELD agent. As he got deeper and deeper into the crowd he angled his pistol to the floor and away from his foot. Once he was sure he wouldn't shoot anyone in the foot, he pulled the trigger twice, shooting off two incredibly loud .45 caliber rounds into the floor. The moment he pulled the trigger, the two loud consecutive bangs made people instantly scream in surprise and duck for cover in fear all at the same time. Steve ducked like everyone else and at the same time pointed to the suspected SHIELD Agent, "Oh my God, he has a gun! He has a gun!" He yelled over the screaming people. The SHIELD agent recognized Steve yelling and reached for his side arm in his holster but lost Steve in the crowd of chaotic frightened people as the hysteria and chaos quickly escalated.

Everyone started to make a desperate break for the front door in fear of a shooting. Peggy smiled, "That must be the signal. Come on." She said taking the lead to the kitchen with the three commandos close behind her. Just as they left, Steve stayed hidden in the crowd as he made his way to the front door. The chaos provided excellent distraction and cover for the escape.

Peggy and the three commandos came out of the kitchen and into the alley without a hitch. The kitchen staff and the waiters in the kitchen also rushed out into the alley and into the street. Thanks to Steve's little distraction the street was flooded with people so it would make it incredibly difficult for anyone to find them. But just as Peggy and the Commandos walked out of the alley into the chaotic and busy street, two men in suits and ties stepped in front of her.

One of the men spoke over the screams of frightened people, "Agent Rogers. You need to come with us."

Peggy just tilted her head and smiled. Then after a moment she quickly slugged the man across the jaw then instantly turned to the other and did the same before he could react. The two men turned and fell onto the concrete unconscious. She turned to the commandos, "Lets go." She said as she stepped over the bodies and turned right, and walked onto the sidewalk.

Dugan stepped over the bodies and said in a loud voice, "You brought this upon yourself."

James laughed, "When in doubt punch your way through everything."

Jacques quickly caught up to Peggy and called out to her over the sounds of chaos in the street, "Where's the Capitaine?"

Peggy spoke evenly, "He'll catch up."

Sure enough Steve found them and caught up to them. He ran up to Peggy and said, "You all get out okay?"

Peggy smiled, "Oh yeah." She said confidently.

"Peggy drove her knuckles into two SHIELD agents." Dugan said amused.

Steve looked proud, "Atta girl." He said with a chuckle.

"Lets get out of this tight street and get a cab back to the airport." Peggy replied.

Steve nodded, "Sounds like a plan."

After taking a cab out of Bourbon Street back to the airport, the Rogers and the three commandos were soon back in the air heading to Virginia. Stark's silver dual engine Beechcraft was fueled and fully capable of making the flight to the Shenandoah Mountain range which should take roughly four hours. Just after taking off from the New Orleans Moisant Field commercial airport, Steve, James, and Jacques got changed into their gear minus the parachutes. Steve got into his complete "Stars and Stripes" combat uniform, but left his helmet, gloves, and shield off to the side so he can relax on the flight a little. James and Jacques changed into dark green combat blouse, trousers, and black combat boots then conservatively painted their faces with black face paint to better blend in the night. Once the trio changed over, it now became a waiting period before they jump.

0300

(03:00 AM)

The interior of the plane was dimly lit with the plane's interior lights barely illuminating much of it. Everyone in the plane was operating on very little sleep if none at all. Steve sat in the back of the plane with his commandos as Peggy piloted. He couldn't help but worry about Peggy because she was pregnant, and he knew from basic knowledge that sleep is very important while pregnant. He hoped she was doing okay and that everything would turn out alright. He knew that Peggy was probably concerned about him as well, and he couldn't blame her. Being married is great, but now whatever you do concerns another person no matter what it is. But if anyone asked him or Peggy, they'd both say being married with one another was the best thing that has ever happened to them. Being married was by far the best thing to Steve than gaining the serum, but without the serum he wouldn't be with her now so… it's a little complicated to say.

He looked out the window of the airplane to the dark night sky and sighed as his mind wandered again. He thought about wanting to live a simpler life. Finally settle down and raise a family with Peggy. Yes, he got everything he wanted in terms of being a Soldier, but he wanted more. Always want more. He chuckled and shook his head as he continued to think to himself. He fought tirelessly through the war with years of continuous fighting, he made a name for himself, he saved countless lives, and even took them. He had his fair share of bad decisions, bad dreams, and sleepless nights. But now with the war over, instead of peace and quiet he found himself still fighting. He's fighting a secret war with hidden enemies. It almost seems that all he does is fight and fight some more, but now with a little bit more breaks in between. And he's currently outside the law fighting an enemy he thought he destroyed. He couldn't help but want a simpler life…

The plane rocked from turbulence bringing Steve back to reality. Steve shook his head and saw his commandos sprawled out on the seats, fast asleep. He chuckled silently to himself. Suddenly he heard Peggy call him, "Steve!"

Steve stood up, "Yeah?" He asked as he slowly walked up to the cockpit while guiding himself to fight against the turbulence. He reached the dimly lit cockpit and leaned in, "I'm here."

Peggy quickly turned to look at him and for a second took in his calm and confident look on his face. Even with the dim lights she could see every detail of his handsome face. She looked forward and said, "We're about twenty minutes out."

Steve nodded, "Got it. Do you know what time it is?"

Peggy nodded, "Its about 0300."

Steve chuckled, "Thanks. Those flight lessons Stark gave you sure came in handy. I didn't know what we'd do without them."

Peggy shrugged, "We didn't 'fondue', Steve."

Steve sighed, "Oh boy. I grew up poor, okay? That was a new thing to me."

"Its okay, I'm just razzing you, darling." Peggy said with a small smile.

Steve nodded, "Right." He said as he turned around to make his way back to the passenger compartment. He got to James and Jacques who were sleeping next to each other and gently kicked them awake. The two commandos jolted awake in surprise. Steve nodded, "Gear up. Drop in twenty."

Both James and Jacques nodded in silence as they both sat up. The two commandos grabbed the two duffel bags near them and opened them up to get ready. They both took out a US Army canvas Musette bag, pistol belt with suspenders that had a gun holster and Thompson Submachine gun ammunition pouches clipped to them, a Thompson submachine gun, and explosives. Once both James and Jacques loaded the Musette bags with explosives of various types and extra ammunition they loaded their weapons then started to get their parachutes on. Steve strapped on his helmet, checked his war belt, put his leather gloves on, and then he too began to put on his parachute.

Dugan was awake as well, and he was watching his three brothers in arms gear up. "It's a good thing we found those parachutes in here."

James tightened his harness, "Why would Stark need parachutes anyway."

Steve chuckled, "I don't want to know." He said as he adjusted his helmet.

Peggy called from the cockpit, "ten minutes, boys!"

Steve nodded, picked up his shield, then approached the cockpit to talk to his wife. He leaned into the cockpit, "Alright."

Peggy quickly glanced at Steve, "Alright."

Steve gave a small smile, "Another jump out of a Stark plane."

Peggy looked back at him, "I'm pregnant, Steve…"

"huh?" Steve asked confused.

"We're raising our baby together. So don't even think about not coming back alive." Peggy said softly.

Steve smiled, "I love you."

"I love you too." Peggy replied truthfully but gave a worried smile. Steve leaned in and kissed her for a moment. The kiss felt like an eternity but Peggy broke the kiss to make sure the plane was still on course. She turned to him again, "Remember you promised you're always coming back."

Steve kissed her briefly, "Always." He turned around and headed back to his commandos.

Peggy whispered to herself, "Go get him, tiger."

Steve returned to his team and nodded to Dugan, "Open it."

Dugan complied and walked up to the aircraft door and pulled it open. The air pressure in the cabin dropped as the door swung open. Dugan yelled over the sound of the roaring engines and the fast flowing air, "Good luck, Captain!" He called out as he stood by the door to keep it open.

Steve nodded as he walked up to the door to get ready to jump, "Déjà vu." He said to himself as he gripped his shield to his chest as he started remembering his first drop to a Hydra compound during the war. James and Jacques walked over and stood behind him and got themselves ready. Steve turned his head to the cockpit and waited for Peggy's call. After a long intense moment of waiting at the door, Peggy yelled back, "Go!" Steve instantly jumped out of the plane followed by James and Jacques in rapid succession. Dugan popped his head out of the plane and squinted to fight the fast flowing air and saw three parachute canopies pop up far below him. He smiled then closed the door. He called out to Peggy, "Three canopies!"

Peggy gave a relaxed smile to herself as she flew the plane.

On the ground, Steve regrouped with his two commandos after burying his parachute in the dirt. The forest and sky were incredibly dark and it was extremely hard to see in this pitch black atmosphere. But thankfully, the trio landed within a few yards of each other so it was easy to regroup. Having no strong winds to push them about also made it extremely helpful. Talk about luck. Steve gripped his shield as he crouched down next to his two commandos who were busy burying their chutes in the dirt. "Everyone make it down, okay?" He asked.

Jacques nodded, "Oui, Capitaine."

James shook his head, "Those trees didn't make it easy…"

"Next time we'll drop in a clearing." Steve replied cheekily.

The two commandos picked up their weapons and chambered a round. James whispered, "Where to?"

Steve pointed to a mountain that was barely visible in the dark, "North East. We got quite a hike, let's go." The two commandos nodded.

Empire Diner

New York City

0600 (06:00AM)

In the dark morning of New York City, the outside of the Empire Diner was lit up by a large neon sign. The 24-hour diner in the middle of Downtown Manhattan illuminated the dark New York City streets with its bright neon sign and its interior lights. The architecture of the building was modeled as a "Sterling Streamliner" and resembled that of Burlington Zephyr train with its sleek looking exterior and comfortable interior. Inside the diner was a typical layout for diners with booth tables and counter seating, and provided a casual atmosphere with the feel of characteristically typical American culture.

For now, Colonel Phillips was the only guest in the diner. He sat alone in a small booth table in a 24-hour Diner while drinking a cup of hot coffee. He was back in civilian clothes consisting of a black suit dress pants, a white dress shirt, and a dark blue tie. His black suit jacket was folded neatly next to him as he stared out into the dim morning sky. He doesn't even know when the last time he slept. The last few days started to blur together.

He took a sip of hit hot coffee and heard diner front door open behind him. He didn't turn around and sat silently drinking his coffee. Suddenly he heard Peggy's voice, "Good morning, sir." He turned around and saw Peggy, Dugan, Stark, and Sousa walking into the diner. Peggy adjusted her leather jacket as she stopped by Phillips, "Sorry to interrupt your coffee, but we have some news."

Phillips looked surprised to see Peggy, "Peggy…its such a relief to see you."

Peggy gave a warm but tired smile, "You too, Colonel." She said as she sat down in front of the Colonel.

Sousa spoke up, "Peggy recently informed Stark and I about what's going on." He unfolded a map and pointed to the Shenandoah Mountains Range, "Captain Rogers and two of the Commandos are heading toward this mountain, here."

Stark nodded, "As you may know with your security clearance, Colonel. In that area is a secret mountain military installation with a series of underground bunkers that was built to store information, classified technology, and can be used as a fortified head quarters for top leaders in the event of enemy attacks on the mainland."

Peggy nodded, "Steve, and Howling Commandos, James Falsworth and Jacques Dernier are on the mountain right now…"

The Colonel interrupted her, "We can't help them…" He said regretfully.

Dugan jumped into the conversation for only a brief moment, "Sir…"

Peggy was completely shocked and interrupted Dugan, "But, Colonel, we know where they're going. Hydra is probably…"

Phillips took a sip of his coffee then nodded, "Weyland and SHIELD is watching everything we do." He looked up at Sousa and Stark, "We're only handing them more information." He put a tip on the table then scooted off the booth.

Peggy stood up too, "Colonel, we can't just abandon Steve."

Phillips put his suit jacket on, "We have to. We'd only make him more vulnerable."

Stark interrupted, "But, Colonel, we know exactly where he is."

"Yes, I know, but if we suddenly mobilize right now then we tip our hand." Phillips buttoned his suit jacket, "Just make sure the other Commandos are ready just in case. We're going to need all the help we can get." He paused, "Steve is on his own…for now." He then turned and walked out of the diner.

Peggy sighed lightly and bit the bottom of her lip in worry. Stark patted her on the back gently, "He'll be fine, Peg. Trust me."

Peggy rubbed her baby bump again, "I know he will."

Shenandoah Mountain Range

0900 (09:00 AM)

Steve with his shield in hand, walked alone on a small flat dirt road that cut through the trees on a relatively level part of the mountain side. The road he traveled on was just barely wide enough for a truck to get through. The tall trees of the mountainous forest provided relieving shade from the hot sun that was already shining high in the sky. The gentle mountain breeze whispered through the trees as Steve walked down the road alone. He looked up at the trees canopies and watched the sunlight flicker through the tree tops. He adjusted his helmet as he rounded the bend in the road and saw in the distance two concrete bunkers with gun slots flanking the road with a metal razor wire gate in between them. The both of the bunkers also had tall razor wire fences that stretched and disappeared into the forest. Behind the bunkers and the razor wire fences, Steve could see the mountain turned rocky and quickly steeped up at a sharp angle. He couldn't see much else behind the bunkers and fences, but he did get a good feeling of déjà vu.

He smiled to himself, another Hydra mountain base he has to go through. His plan of going through the front door hasn't changed either. It's a tried and true strategy with the least amount of questions and problems for him. As Steve got closer to the gate, he started to pick up the pace with a light jog. He was surprised as he got closer that no one was trying to attack him, which put him on edge. He started to feel like it was a trap so as he ran he gripped his shield a little tighter and brought it a little bit closer to him. Something seemed really off…

As Steve got within ten feet of the gate, the gate suddenly opened automatically for him like he was expected to be there. Behind the gate, he could see only three men in well pressed black suits and black ties standing still in the middle of a small court yard. He could also see a large airplanes sized armored door attached to a concrete bunker that was built in in the rock behind the three men. Steve slowed down and came to a slow walk as he cautiously passed the gate. He walked slowly into a small court yard and approached the three mystery men in black suits and ties. The court yard behind the bunkers and razor wire fence was completely empty leaving only him and the three men alone in the middle of the gravel court yard. Steve slowly approached them and came face-to-face with the three men.

Steve remained silent as he tensed and gripped his shield. The man in the middle slightly bowed his head to him and spoke in a formal tone, "Good morning, Captain Rogers. I want you to know how excited we all are to finally meet you, and for you to come and see this advanced facility." Steve didn't know what to say because he was expecting a little bit more chaos, not a formal welcome party. Steve just stared at the men defensively. The man gave a disarming smile, "Please, I don't know what caused your defensiveness, but we are on the same side, Captain. We are just excited to meet you. You'll find that everything is in order." Steve nodded silently then holstered his shield on his back. "Your host wishes for you to relax and join him in the interior facility."

Steve nodded, "Of course." This whole thing is disconcerting to him. Everything feels wrong.

"One last thing. Since this is a secure facility we must respectfully ask you to remove your firearm. Only authorized personnel may carry a weapon, I hope you understand." The man said respectfully.

Steve countered, "Its my policy to keep my gun."

The man repeated, "I apologize, Captain Rogers. We don't mean to create hostilities; this is for security purposes."

Steve thought for a moment then nodded, "Of course." He complied and removed his pistol slowly then flipped it around so the pistol grip was toward the man. The man gave a disarming smile and gently took the pistol from Steve then slowly handed it to his partner on his right. The partner took the pistol and slipped it into his pants in the back. Steve figured that he could handle any situation with his shield alone, so he calculated that handing them his firearm wasn't a problem. He also figured that he got his easy ticket into the facility without fighting through the entire complex by complying with these men. If he stays on guard, then he should be fine.

The man nodded, "Splendid. Now…" Just as the man turned, the armored door behind the three men slowly opened in with an extremely loud metallic sound. The man spoke over the screeching metal, "If you will follow me." Said the man as he turned and walked toward the opening door.

Steve nodded and followed closely behind the man. The two other mystery men then turned and flanked Steve and stayed closed behind him as the group walked into the mountainous facility.

As soon as the group entered the mountain, the armored metal door began to slowly close. The group were now in a large aircraft hangar sized room with a number of military vehicles, including tanks, parked in an organized manner. Steve looked around but kept a composed and unreadable expression on his face as he walked with the group. The man he followed veered to the left and went through a man sized armored door with him and the other two mystery men following close behind. For the next few minutes, Steve walked in silence with the group through a series of spacious well lighted subterranean hallways. But as they walked, Steve was surprised at the lack of people walking through the plain hallways of this facility. All of the hallways didn't have any variety and they all looked exactly the same.

Finally, the group came to a stop in front of another door. The lead man opened another door but held it open for Steve instead of entering the room. "Your host is in here, Captain." The man said respectfully.

Steve looked at the man who gave a warm but uncomfortable smile. He then turned to look at the two men behind him and saw that they had emotionless expressions plastered on their faces. He turned back to the lead man and gave a nod, "Thank you." He said then entered the room.

As soon as Steve walked inside, the man closed the door behind him. Steve found himself in a pitch-black room with only one bright light illuminating one thing at the center of the room. At the center of the room is a circular pedestal with a thin rod attached to a small blue orb glowing brilliantly. The blue orb shined so bright that it looked like it could've been brighter than the light shining above it. Steve was confused and scanned the dark room around him. After gauging the atmosphere in the room, he slowly approached the blue orb that looked like it was almost floating above the pedestal.

The small orb looked strangely familiar. After staring at the orb for a moment, Steve heard a familiar German voice coming from the shadows behind it, "Do you recognize it?" Steve tensed. The new mystery man continued, "I'm sure you recognize it. Do you know what it is?"

Steve knew, "its from the cube… the Tesseract."

"Yes exactly." The man said as he appeared from the shadows. The man is none other than Doctor Armin Zola. Zola looked relatively unchanged, and wore his usual circular glasses and a pressed grey suit and tie. He stopped behind the orb but in view of Steve, "An impressive unlimited source of power. The power of God's if you will…"

Steve responded calmly, "You sound an awfully a lot like Schmidt."

Zola slowly smiled, "I'm glad not much has changed with you since you went into the ice, Captain. Still head strong."

Steve nodded, "Well I can say the same for you. Not changing at all."

Zola kept his smile, "I can't tell you how much I've been looking forward to this. Me and you…a reunion. I'm so glad you came here, Captain Rogers." Steve tensed and heard the door he came through open behind him. Zola nodded, "Shall we?"

Steve stepped into the hallway once again and found himself surrounded by six men in black suits and ties. He figured they were armed, so he remained calm and did nothing to show any form of hostilities. For now, he needed Zola alive. Since he's face-to-face with him, he has questions he needs answered. So, Zola being dead does little for him to understand the "why". Steve remained quiet as he turned to face the door. He turned his back toward the six men so it showed his vulnerable side as a way to assure them that he wasn't going to show any immediate hostilities. After a moment, Zola finally joined him in the hallway. Zola nodded, "Follow me."

The group started to walk down the seemingly never ending hallway. Zola took the lead with Steve right behind him, and the six men following in two columns behind Steve. After a silent moment of walking, Steve spoke up, "What is this facility."

"Information." Zola responded quickly. He kept looking forward, "Information is all. Is it not?" He spoke with confidence, "Information can be secret, and secrets can be dangerous. Secrets that can turn the populace of a country against its government, or make a country plunge into civil war like, Greece." He paused, "Another example is private information. Private information can be used incriminate an individual." He paused, "But even better… that information can be manipulated to be used to frame another." He chuckled, "Or the contemporary usage of information is to determine possible threats." Steve became shocked as a sudden realization swept over him. Zola chuckled as they continued to walk, "Another example, you must know is that your beloved SSR is now officially dead." He started to slow down as they approached a pair of steel double doors, "Which that leads me to speculate as to why you came." The group stopped at the double doors, and Zola turned to face Steve, "So, Steve, why did you come?"

Steve replied plainly, "I came here to stop you…"

Zola smiled, "And I thought you came here to die."

"Well its all a matter of perspective."

Zola chuckled, "Speaking of perspective…" He then composed himself and nodded toward him, "You should've stayed dead."

Steve returned the smile, "Now that's a matter of perspective."

Zola kept his confident smile and signaled to the door, "Come." Two of the men in suits stepped forward and approached the doors. The man on the right side typed in a code on the keypad on the wall unlocking the doors. Once the doors were unlocked, the two men together opened the pair of metal double doors for the group.

The group walked into a very spacious well lighted room that was filled with rows upon rows of bookshelf sized computers. The room almost seemed to stretch indefinitely with these computers. Steve noticed that these large computers were similar if not the same type of computers as the ones in the SHIELD section of Camp Lehigh. Steve continued to follow Zola quietly with the group of guards walking close behind them. The atmosphere became tense the deeper they walked into the room. All these computers in a single room gave him a bad feeling. The group continued to walk in silence as they got to the dead center of the room which is the central control point. The central control point of this room looked awfully similar to the one in the subterranean bunker in SHIELD. This central control point also had an array of large computer terminals forming a backward "C" with the opening of the inverted "C" facing in line with the main double doors.

Zola stopped and turned around, "How is this for perspective…Everything you worked for amounted to nothing. Everything you given for your country was for nothing. Hydra still exists because your government recruited us…us your former enemy. Now we thrive under the freedoms of your country, free from our atrocities and crimes in order to strengthen your country against the Soviet Union." He smiled, "The principles of your once isolationist country is now changed into one of intervention. Your country now spends more money and resources in other countries, for what? To be an unelected global power in the name of freedom?" He chuckled evilly, "Then there's you… an enhanced individual who doesn't know when to stop. A man who incites challenge whether it be from Hydra or the Soviets…or even perhaps your own people. Americans hunting the famed Captain America." He laughed, "Now that's interesting topic." He stared directly into Steve, "An enhanced individual who they can't control. A dangerous combination. And a tale of a hero turning into a villain." Zola continued in a dark tone, "Then there's your beloved Peggy." He chuckled and shook his head, "She would have been better off without you returning into her life." Steve cringed again. "Now she has everything to lose. She can lose you, and your baby… all because of you. You made her vulnerable. You. You'll be the architect for all her pain." Steve began to grow in shock with that information Zola mentioned about Peggy.

There was an intense pause for a moment. The Zola laughed again, "I must be honest with you, Captain. I did not anticipate you ever returning. If your dear Peggy was alone without you, I calculated that she would've been a bigger problem to deal with alone. But your return made everything, and especially her much more vulnerable. Again, you should've stayed dead."

Steve nodded and refused to be phased, "How did you know I was coming?"

"We calculated that it was only a matter of time before you found this place, so we waited for you to come." Zola chuckled, "And here you are… Captain Rogers. Brave and alone."

Steve tensed, "Hydra should've died with the red skull." He still couldn't fathom that Hydra survived.

"Cut off one head…two more shall take its place." Zola continued, "Hydra was founded on the belief that humanity could not be trusted with its own freedom. What we did not initially realize is that if you try to take that freedom, people resist. The war taught us much. Humanity needed to surrender its freedom willingly. Since the war ended, SHIELD was founded, and I and many other Hydra scientists were recruited. The new Hydra quickly grew a beautiful parasite inside SHIELD. It was rather easy since your people and the Soviets were easy to manipulate." Steve listened intently, "Because of the clashes between ideologies of both the United States and the Soviet Union, Hydra was able to secretly establish a substantial influence in many parts of the world. Including your country and the Soviet Union. This Cold War that your countries are now engaged it gave us the catalyst to feed crisis and instability. And When history did not cooperate…history was changed."

"How?" Steve said in shock.

"Accidents will happen. Do you think it was coincidental that influential people around the world ended up dead. Calvin Chadwick who was a powerful businessman and a senatorial candidate who was conveniently murdered. General George S. Patton said to have died because of a 'car crash', and General Alexi Zhukov who was once a popular general to the Soviet people and the Soviet Army died from Soviet secret police. Coincidental is it not?" Zola smiled, "The clash between democracy and Communism is making the world so chaotic that the people are willing to sacrifice personal freedoms to gain more security or independence. Once this purification process is complete, Hydra's new world order will arise. Our footholds in the two world's superpowers already gave us what we needed for us to complete our goals..."

Steve clenched his fist prompting the guards to prepare to draw their weapons. Steve spoke urgently, "How are you going to do this?" He held back so he could get more answers.

"It requires…Insight my dear, Captain."

Steve nodded and understood the tangent, "I know Insight is part of SHIELD and means you orchestrated it."

"That is correct." Zola responded with a smile.

Steve responded, "SHIELD is controlled by Hydra, so Weyland must be one of yours."

Zola nodded, "You could say that."

Steve nodded, "How is it possible that you managed all this?" He asked sternly.

"A good story…" Zola smiled, "But unfortunately for you, you won't be around to here it." He nodded.

Steve then looked to his left and saw the man in the suit pointing a gun at him. Before Steve could move, he saw a bright flash and a loud bang…

CLIFF HANGER! Been writing this chapter since June. Sorry for the delay.

Have something this up coming few weeks, but should update soon.

Reference to NCIS Agent Gibbs

Going to edit a few past chapters. Rework them but still keep the plot of each.

Uncharted 4 reference (Great game)

The Mountain Complex I made was like a cross between two military installations built during the Cold War except this one was built during the Second World War.