Chapter Three:

Beginning the Search

I did not waste any time.

After what happened in downtown Brooklyn, Captain America had to take action. Just because the war was over, and HYDRA had been defeated, it didn't mean the Star-Spangled Man with a Plan wasn't needed.

New York proved that, and I was not going to stand idly by while the Ten Rings caused trouble for my country. And since The Mandarin was out there, since he masterminded the recent attack, he had to be taken care of right away.

With the recent terrorist attack still fresh in mind, and with the revelation that The Mandarin was at large, I headed to my place to grab my shield. And that trusty star-spangled shield was right under my bed, just in case. With that one in hand, the next thing that was needed before I took action was the mask and the uniform.

I made my way down to a SHIELD outpost, where the agents had my suit taken care of. The world didn't need a normal guy from Brooklyn, the world needed Captain America.

Once the costume was acquired, I went to a changing post, and got out of my normal attire, then I slipped into the uniform. And once the mask rested on my head, Cap was ready to get back in action against injustice!

At first, I thought about giving Tony a call, perhaps Doctor Banner, and the rest of the team.

Then, I reconsidered. Did the world need The Avengers just to take care of a terrorist attack ran by some guy calling himself The Mandarin?

In technicality, the Ten Rings were a major threat in the War on Terror, and they'd played a major role in Tony's decision to become Iron Man, which did lead to the eventual formation of the Avengers. However, the Avengers were formed to protect the world on behalf of people such as Director Fury.

Right now, as a friend of Iron Man and a member of the Avengers, it all fell to me to handle the threat.

After making sure I had everything, I chartered a SHIELD jet and left American airspace, deciding to begin my search in the Middle East. The United States army had their hands full, dealing with terror groups over there. And, after hearing about how Tony dealt with the Ten Rings in Afghanistan, why not go search the place where it all began?

It was a several-hour flight, but we made it to Afghanistan. And luckily, the Afghan people didn't try to shoot down the jet. To make things more relieving, we landed in friendly territory in a region that was controlled by the country's government in conjunction with some of our troops.

I told the acting commander that I was here to look for terrorists, and then we discussed the matter on the Ten Rings. It was then that I brought up The Mandarin.

"Yeah, that's why we're here." I told the group.

"We're not stopping you from your mission, Cap." A soldier said, he flashed a salute, "Besides, we know not to mess with the Star-Spangled Man with the Plan."

"So, what's your plan, cap?" Someone asked.

Honestly, I hadn't thought about that. So, I rattled off what I currently had in mind; "Take out terrorists, find their leader, and neutralize him."

After talking with the military leaders and the Afghans some more, I hitched a ride on a helicopter that flew out to the desert, away from friendly territory. And it was in that region where the battles were fought, where the men in uniform fought the terrorists, and where Tony was captured, where the final step to become Iron Man was taken.

The temperature was humid, the sun boiling down, dust swept across the terrain and got everywhere on the shield until it fell off. I kept my guard up, scoping around for the first sign of anything connected to the Ten Rings.

From what I was told, the terrorists had set up shop somewhere in the mountains, where they would attack convoys before they would launch attacks on towns. It had been a while since there had been any activity from anyone like the Ten Rings in the area, but word had it that a group of them were operating here.

My heels pressed hard into the sand with each step I took, my eyes scanned the terrain, keeping an eye out for hostiles.

But right now, it was quiet, too quiet.

However, if I was a terrorist operating in this region, where would I be hiding?

Captain America wasn't a vigilante, I wasn't a mercenary, I was a soldier fighting for a cause, a country, and the shield represented the force of freedom that had brought down the reign of HYDRA and the Third Reich.

And then, I heard voices, and my movements slowed. Those accents, a mixture of different languages, I could make out Arabic and other Middle Eastern languages. Clicking sounds carried across the air, and the voices became louder. I saw someone pop out from behind a rock, wearing something black that obscured his face.

My arm moved, raising the shield. Tension grew, boiling closer to the tipping point, I had found something, and it had been waiting.

Gunfire exploded and bullets bounced off the shield, men in uniforms and masks poked their heads up from behind the rocks, firing machine guns and rifles. The bullets struck the shield and bounced off it, I looked up, seeing how many attackers there were.

Two, four, eight. There were twenty, no, thirty militants in total.

And I didn't have a regiment with me. Had it not been for the serum, I'd be powerless.

In that moment, my mind worked a strategy, and I charged. A grenade flew at me, but I blocked and sent it flying. I ran towards the first group of terrorists, and threw the shield before they could reload their weapons. The first two fell, a third ducked. I shield-bashed him, and then knocked out the fourth. Ten more attacked, all shooting and ganging up.

I looked at one of the terrorists, seeing the arm band on his wrist; A red band with ten black circles with ten swords in them.

The symbol of the Ten Rings.

'Bingo!'

I let my shield go flying, smacking down more terrorists, and I kicked down another as he came my way. We tussled, and the shield rammed his face, breaking the militant's nose. I blocked, ducked, and rolled out of the way of every incoming attack. More terrorists came, more terrorists fell, and I took down the attackers.

The fighting began to wind down, several Arabic militants cried out, and they ran, running for the hills. I heard vehicles, seeing jeeps with the American flag rolling in, American troops securing the area after watching the action.

As they captured or knocked out any remaining terrorists, I turned my attention to one of the Ten Rings operatives I'd just incapacitated. He was coming around, and he yelped when he saw me.

"You!" He cried.

"I won't hurt you." I said, "But you're going to answer a question."

"What is it? You won't get anything from me!"

"Where is The Mandarin?"

"The Mandarin, we don't know, he's not here. He's elsewhere, you have to look elsewhere."

Just then, my earpiece buzzed, someone was trying to get in contact. It was decided that it would be best to answer. I turned the terrorist over to the boys in uniform, then I answered the call.

"Cap, I hear you went on a terrorist hunt." Nick Fury's voice said on the other end.

"The Mandarin's real, Director Fury, and we just took out some of his militants." I replied.

And that was when I saw the Helicarrier flying in, Director Fury had been informed of my actions. Hopefully, we didn't have to discuss calling off the search, and SHIELD was aware of the many terror threats. They did have a file on the Ten Rings, detailing everything about them, but finding their leader was not going to be as simple as finding Bin Laden…