Chapter 1:
[Spartan POV]
[Years earlier, Nightclub, New York City, USA, Earth-6160]
[Rooftop.] Both Karai and I watch as Nelson Branco, the Viceroy gang leader, exits his car and enters his nightclub along with his security team. "I count 30 armed hostiles inside," Karai says, looking through her sniper rifle's scope, "This won't be a clean and easy run." "Never expected it to be," I say, firing a grapple-line toward the nightclub's roof. [Inside.] Drop the guy on the balcony first. Rush up behind another goon, I quickly wrapped my arms around his neck, putting him in a back-chokehold. He drops unconsciously to the floor. I sprint to another thug. The man was caught by surprise. He didn't have time to react as I grabbed hold of his head and slammed him down to the floor. Bad-guy-4 spots me and starts to set his gun at the ready. I zig-zag across the room and hip-throw the goon through a nearby table. Four others come through the door. Four whistling objects fly past me, dropping the four goons. "Thanks for the save," I say to Karai over the comlink. "Hacked their security system. I locked the top floor down. No one is getting in or out. I'm moving to you now," Karai says.
Three tangos come out and surround me. The first guy comes at me with a wide haymaker. I deflect the attack, go around his back, deliver two body shots to the right kidney, and then knock him out with a hammer punch. The second guy swings a poor hook-punch. Block it, hit the guy with two gut punches, and stump out his kneecap. He drops, screaming out in pain. I leave him to his agony. The last-one-standing rushes at me with an iron pipe, swinging it wildly. I duck under the swing, grab the iron pipe, rip it out of the attacker's hands, grab him by the head and ram it down to my knees, knocking him out cold.
I advance on Branco's main office door but stop in my tracks as Branco himself kicks open the door, wielding an SMG. "Fucking mask freak!" he yells out. When Branco sees me, he opens fire. I jump to cover, then toss a smoke grenade for cover. The area is quickly engulfed in thick white smoke. In a panic, Branco starts to fire in all directions, missing me with every shot. "Show yourself, you fuck! You think I'm going to let a freak in a mask take me down! This city is my Kingdom! My fucking castle! My empire!" "No! Tonight, your empire will burn to ashes," a voice yells out. Karai's. Using the smoke as cover, she shoots Branco in both his knees, dropping the crime boss.
Branco screams out in agony, clenching his injured legs. He desperately tries to reach over for the SMG that fell beside him. As his fingers reach the handle grip, I stomp on his hand and kick the weapon away. Reach down and grab Branco by the throat, getting him to his feet. Karai punches him in the face. He falls. She jumps on him and punches Branco again and again. When Karai stopped, Branco's face was a bloody mess. Nearly unrecognizable. He's still breathing, barely. I draw my pistol and finish Branco off with a single shot to the head. Suddenly there's a booming bright flash of light. Multiple tactical suited soldiers come storming into the nightclub, weapon ready. We notice the SHIELD insignia on their uniforms. The troopers shoot us with stun-bolts. Everything goes black.
[Unknown location]
Opening my eyes, I find myself in a holding cell with Karai, hands cuffed behind our backs. Karai starts to regain consciousness. "Where are we?" she asks, dazed. "No idea," I tell her. "You're in a holding cell on the Helicarrier," a voice says. We turn to face the source of the voice. Outside of the holding cell stands an African American man with an eyepatch. "My name is Nick Fury. Director of SHIELD," the man says, "Let's cut straight to the point. I've been tracking you two. Corvo and Samus, or rather Spartan and Karai. The PARAGADES. A real dynamic duo. No question you're effective given that the both of you systematically cripple the Viceroy gang. I know an asset when I see one, and you two are it. I want the PARAGADES to join SHIELD." Completely taken aback, Karai and I look at each other in shock and confusion. "Why?" I ask. Fury cracks a small smile, "There was an idea. Bring together a group of individuals, unite them to become something more, to fight the battles no one else could, to protect and defend the world against all threats."
[Years later, Secret SHIELD base]
Karai and I enter the lab. We volunteered to take part in SHIELD's SUPER-SOLDIER program. A bio-enhancement program based on Project Rebirth. A team of scientists prepares us for the procedure. Once ready, we enter a chamber. Howard Stark, the lead scientist of the project, presents two BIO-ENHANCERS. Collecting the syringes, the both of us inject the compound into our necks. It instantly takes effect.
[Present time, UN building, New York City]
EPYON, a crime/emergency alert system, tags a code-red op. [On-site.] A team of SIGMA commandos and I scale the side of the UN building. A group of terrorists took control of the UN summit. The Ten-Rings, is a terrorist organization dedicated to destroying world peace by any means necessary. In short, a group of anarchists. No one had any idea how they managed to get past security, but that wasn't the main issue at the moment nor my concern. My job is to get in, eliminate the threats, and get out. I tap my comlink, "SIGMA-1 is in position," I say. "Copy. You got two hostiles on the floor above you," Karai says. Two shots. "It's clear," she tells me. I make my way in through the window with four SIGMA commandos following right behind me. [Inside.] "Okay, we split up here. You two take the West sector. You two take East. I'll take North. Watch each other's six. Everybody goes home tonight. The only ones who leave in a body bag are the bad guys." We split up. I enter the main room, where I sight the hostages rounded up in the center. Karai makes entry by the window above. The four SIGMA commandos from the other entrance. I signal everyone to be ready for a sync-shot. Everyone gets ready. "On my go," I whisper. I fire the first shot, killing a man with a headshot. Five more bodies drop simultaneously. We move to secure the hostages. I tap my comlink, "Threats eliminated. Hostages are secured."
[SHIELD HQ, New York City]
[Office.] "Well done on the rescue mission," Fury says to us, "Coulson gave me a full mission report." "I feel dirty for saving a bunch of politicians who've done some questionable things," Karai remarks. "Ditto on that," I say in agreement. "I don't like it as much as you do, but it's part of the job," Fury says, "We don't pick or choose the op." I shrug my shoulders, "Maybe so, but I don't like sticking my neck out for a bunch of corrupt bureaucrats." "Duly noted," Fury says.
[Nick Fury POV]
I turn my gaze back to my desk with a sigh, studying over the candidates' profiles for the AVENGERS initiative project. So far, there are Some promising candidates. Clint Barton (Hawkeye), Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow), Samus (Karai), and Corvo (Spartan). Two assassins and two soldiers. A good start so far. At that moment, my personal phone buzzes with an incoming call from Maria Hill. I answer. "Sir, my team and I found something in the Arctic."
[Spartan POV]
Just as Karai and I exit the mess hall, our comlink rings. "Spartan, I need you and your partner to come to my office. Now," Fury says. "On our way," I say, walking off. As we reach Fury's office, the man walks out, indicating for us to follow. We follow right behind Fury to the command center. "Do we have a visual?" Fury asks the tech guy as we enter. "Yes, Sir. Putting it on screen now," the tech guy says. We all turn our attention to the primary monitor. The monitor shows the salvage team in the Arctic led by Maria Hill. "Sir, we have visuals on the body? It... It's still alive," a salvage team member says. "Can you confirm an ID?" Fury asks. "It's him, Sir. Steve Rogers. The living legend himself. Captain America." I notice the shine in Fury's eyes.
[1 day later]
Steve Rogers is brought to SHIELD HQ. Karai and I rush toward med-bay. [Med-bay.] A medical team is already working on the super-soldier. He's placed under a heat lamp, safely melting away the ice he's encased in. "How is he doing?" Fury asks. "Vital signs are stable," a medical staff member says. "Any signs of brain damage?" Fury inquires. "No brain damage," the lead doctor says, "Hell, I'm surprised this man is even alive after being exposed to sub-zero temperatures and encased in ice for 70 years. This shouldn't be possible." "Well, they always said Captain America is the man that can make the impossible possible," I say. "Once he's defrosted, I want him in a secure room. Spartan, Karai, you'll be acting as security," Fury orders. "Copy," Karai and I say.
[Steve Rogers POV]
[Years earlier, Soviet Russia]
[Hill.] The Howling Commandos and I perch ourselves right on top of a hill, reconning the facility. The heavy rain gives us a decent cover. I straighten sharply, "There's an aircraft heading our way." Right above us, a carrier craft flies straight toward the Leviathan base. A squad of tactically-suited troopers fast-rope out of the craft. With precision and speed, they eliminate the patrolling guards. "HYDRA Commandos," I growl, recognizing the gear they're sporting. We infiltrate the base, staying low, moving fast.
[Inside.] I raise a hand to signal the team to stop their advancement. Hear footsteps making their way toward us. Two sentries. Once they come around the corner, we jump them. I eye the surroundings and double-check it. Clear. Together the team and I push on into the base, dropping a few goons along the way. We prowl the hallway until we reach the control room. All of us stack-up by the door; I hold up three fingers and start to count down. It blows open. The team quickly storms the room, dropping all armed troopers inside. Once clear, we sneak to the lower level.
[Lower-level.] Going stealth, we breach into a large silo, spotting a missile platform. The superweapon SSR intelligence informed us about. The very weapon we were sent in to destroy. Leviathan troopers inside are completely unaware of the situation or our presence. I station myself behind a large container, out of sight. 'The base appears to be under HYDRA's control.' The troopers stand at attention, watching a speech by the Leviathan commander on a stage up ahead. He addresses the troopers. As the commander finishes his rhetoric, a sarcastic clap echoes through the room. The troopers and commander gaze around, puzzled. A man emerges from behind the commander, clapping his hands as he struts forward, "Arousing speech, commander." The Leviathan commander turns to face the intruder, "Who the hell?!" "A silver tongue. A mark of a good leader. But in your case, a lair," the mysterious person states.
Several troopers rush to the commander's side and train their weapons on the intruder. The troopers advance, but they're held back by the commander. My eyes widen in shock when I catch a clear view of the masked man. 'Zemo!' The Leviathan commander snaps a question, "What do you want?" "To purge the unwanted rivals," he tells the man. Zemo quick-draws his pistol with lightning speed and buries one bullet into the head of the Leviathan commander. As he falls to the ground dead, a squad of HYDRA commandos rappels down from the ceiling. Weapon at the aim, the commandos begin to gun-down the troopers. The team goes to engage the enemy forces while I sprint toward Zemo. "ZEMO!" I yell out, grabbing the masked man's attention.
Zemo is Red-Skull's enforcer and HYDRA's own SUPER-SOLDIER. Contrary to popular belief, I spent more time battling him than Red-Skull. The man is an embodiment of an extreme megalomaniac: overconfident, ruthless, relentless, and sadistic. He feels absolutely no remorse for his actions and is extremely proud of them. All that he wants is to create chaos and destruction. He hates anything and anyone who challenges him. Hell, I go as far as to say he's a monster who surpasses the Red-Skull's depravity.
The crazed madman looks down on me and leaps off the platform, "Captain. Excellent, you bested Red-Skull. Your life is mine to take!" I charge forward, jump in the air, and hit Zemo with a shield-bash, knocking him back. He straightens and draws his sword, and comes at me. I manage to dodge his attack, but a few breakthroughs through my defense, tagging my shoulder and chest. Using my shield, I go on the offensive. The two of us clash with hard blows. Zemo swings his sword. I block, quickly grab his arm and arm-throw him to the ground, disarming him of his sword. Zemo jumps to his feet. I stay on him, not giving him a moment to breathe. Slam him toward the wall and bash him with a storm of punishes. Zemo traps my arm, palm-strikes me in the face, knees him in the gut, then front-headlock-drops me to the floor. Recovering fast, I upper-cut Zemo and bash him over the face with my shield, sending him flying. Zemo raises, mask cracked, "Enough of these games." He pulls out a handheld device and triggers it, engaging the missile launch sequence. As the missile starts to take off, I leap onto it.
[In the air.] I grab a tight hold onto the missile, using my enhanced strength, scaling toward the guidance system unit. Rip open the panel and ready a frag-grenade. From out of nowhere, Zemo grapples me in a back-choke-hold. I break out of it by slamming an elbow to his gut, then kicking him off of me. He falls to the blazing boosters. Rush back to the open panel and toss in the frag-grenade. Everything goes black following the deafening bang.
[Spartan POV]
[Present time, SHIELD HQ, New York City, USA]
[Security-room.] We're stationed in the security room right across the hall from Captain Rogers's. The man's quarter is designed to replicate a 1940s theme hospital. "He's not going to fall for it," I say, watching the sleeping super-soldier through the security monitor. "You sure?" Karai challenges, giving me a side look, "I did tell Fury that maybe we should've thrown him in virtual-reality, but he was strongly against the idea." "I can't say I disagree," I tell her, "But back to the topic, you saying you would fall for this setup." Karai sighs, "Probably not. If the files on him are accurate, his enhanced senses will pick up on something quick. Like us." Hours passed. Both of us notice a slight movement. "Umm, I think he's waking up," Karai says. I tap my comlink, "Agent Kendra, he's up." "Better call Fury. I'm almost sure things are going to go sideways quick," Karai warns. The security feed shows Agent Kendra walking into the room, "Good morning, or should I say afternoon." Steve peers at her suspiciously, "Where am I?" "You're in a recovery center in New York City," Agent Kendra tells him.
He didn't believe her. 'Shit.' Steve looks around his surroundings. He knows something is off. The man eyes the radio as if it confirms his suspicions. "Where am I really?" Steve asks in a firmer tone. Kendra smiles nervously, "I'm afraid I don't understand?" "The game. It's from May 1941. I know because I was there," Steve tells her. 'Oh, fuck.' At that moment, Kendra triggers a silent alert. Both Karai and I rush out the door. A security team rushes into the room, armed with stun weapons as we run down the hall. A moment later, the four men are thrown out of the room. Cap steps out through the gaping hole.
"Woah, Woah. Captain Rogers, stop. We're not your en-," Karai tries reasoning with the World War II super-soldier, holding her hands up non-threateningly. Cap grabs her arm and arm-throws her to the ground. I grab him from behind in a control-hold, "Stand down, Captain. We're not your enemy." The first super-soldier breaks free of my hold, then reaches back and throws me toward the wall, cracking it on impact. "Ow," I groan. Steve makes a dash to his shield on a nearby table and then runs out the door. Karai and I force ourselves back to our feet and take off after him. The intercom comes to life with a voice calling for a code-13. "Belay that order. All units stand down; let him go outside," Fury orders. We stop our chase.
[New York City]
[42th street.] When we get outside, a SHIELD tac-team surrounds Steve on all sides. The Super-Soldier stands in the middle of Times Square. His face is a mixture of emotions, amazement, confusion, and awe. "At ease, Soldier," Fury says. Steve turns around to face us, sizing up each of us, debating if we're enemies or not. Finally, Fury walks over to him, "We were going to break it to you slow and easy." "Break what?" Steve questions, confused. Fury sighs, "A lot has changed while you were MIA. You've been asleep, Cap. For nearly 70 years." "Did we win?" he asks. Fury smirks, "Yes, we did, Cap." The soldier's expression flashes relief.
[Steve Rogers POV]
[Weeks later, Rogers's apartment, New York City]
Using a computer Fury had given me, I started to go through everything I missed in the last 70 years. The world changed so much while I was away. A mixed bag. 'The wheels of progress may be slow, but it's moving.' I mostly got down the bare essentials: history, science, technology, and culture. All of the members of the Howling Commandos were gone. Dum Dum Dugan, Junior Juniper, Jim Morita, James Montgomery Falsworth, Gabe Jones, Jacques Dernier, Happy Sam Sawyer, Pinky Pinkerton, and Bucky. The only comfort is those who survived the war had long, fulfilling lives. The file on Peggy hit me hard. She passed away peacefully in her sleep a month ago.
The next file was on Howard Stark. Disease. I drop my shoulders in grief. Currently, his son is running Stark Industries. Tony Stark. He also happened to be the armored hero known as Iron-Man. Clint Barton and Natasha Romanov are next. Well, I read what isn't covered in black ink. It's obvious to me that Clint and Natasha are SHIELD's black-op squad. The following profile was on the PARAGADES. Spartan and Karai. A vigilante team. Operates in New York City. Skilled, adaptive in combat, and hyper-lethal. The PARAGADES got on SHIELD's radar when they took out the Viceroy gang. SHIELD tracked the duo down and recruited them, another team with a page full of black marks. Feeling restless, I decided to go to the gym.
[Boxing gym, New York City]
I punch the bag over and over. Every blow is harder than the last but still in control. Flashes of memories of the war hit me like a wave. Find myself getting lost in the endless ocean. The last mission plays out vividly in my head. My battle with Zemo and Bucky's death. In a flash of anger, I strike the punching bag, sending it flying across the room. I quickly compose myself. I set up a new bag and then noticed Fury and the two black-clad soldiers, Spartan and Karai. I salute the three. "How are you feeling, Captain," Fury asks. "Fine. Just a little restless," I tell him. "Then I came at a perfect time," Fury says. He hands me a tablet, "I'm putting a team together, and I want you as its team leader." It doesn't even take me long to make a choice. I was always the type that jumped at the call of duty. To be the defender for the defenseless. "Yes. I'm in," I say. Fury smirks, "Welcome to SHIELD, Captain." Both of us shake hands.