What the hell is "Hail S.H.I.E.L.D."!?
Steve was completely dumbfounded.
He looked at the righteous-looking Sitwell in front of him and the Commandos around him with unfriendly gazes, and a bad thought suddenly occurred to him.
Could it be that he had misunderstood?
These people weren't HYDRA at all, but genuine S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, and the most loyal ones at that—after all, they even shouted "Hail S.H.I.E.L.D."
So they attacked him because they saw him shouting "Hail HYDRA"?
Everything suddenly seemed to make sense!
No wonder they reacted so strongly and struck so hard. His actions just now were no different from admitting to being a terrorist right in front of an anti-terrorism squad.
Steve's expression stiffened.
If that were the case, hadn't he made a huge blunder?
In the eyes of these S.H.I.E.L.D. loyalists, had he really become Captain HYDRA?
Steve looked at Sitwell and the other Commandos, offering an awkward but polite smile.
"If I said this was a misunderstanding, would you believe me?"
"What do you think?"
Sitwell and the Commandos clearly had no intention of listening to Steve's explanation.
The Pierce that Darian was impersonating had long since given a strict order: to prevent anyone from impersonating HYDRA members, the slogan was specifically changed to "Hail S.H.I.E.L.D." From then on, anyone who dared to shout "Hail HYDRA" within S.H.I.E.L.D. would be treated as a spy and beaten mercilessly.
They didn't care about the other person's identity; the rule of HYDRA was to obey orders.
If they were told to beat someone up, they couldn't hold back even a shred of strength.
Even if they couldn't win, they had to fight!
The Commandos didn't hesitate, pulling out Tactical Daggers and lunging fiercely at Steve.
Steve could only defend passively, not daring to strike back at all.
Just now, thinking they were HYDRA, he didn't mind fighting, but now that they were likely S.H.I.E.L.D. loyalists, Steve didn't dare to strike again. Otherwise, he would truly solidify his identity as Captain HYDRA.
Seeing that Steve wasn't fighting back, the Commandos beat him even more vigorously.
Steve was the number one thorn in HYDRA's side. An opportunity like this to openly pummel Captain America was something even the Red Skull of the past hadn't encountered, so they certainly weren't going to miss it.
Under the dense siege, Steve gradually fell into a disadvantage. His hair was a mess, and his uniform was crumpled, making him look very disheveled.
Even the surface of his shield was covered in scratches, and the red, blue, and white coating began to peel off in flakes, faintly revealing a layer of dark blackish-red.
At first, no one noticed.
But as the scratches increased, the shield's surface became like a scratch-off card, and the pattern underneath grew clearer and clearer.
In less than a minute, the pattern on the shield's surface had completely changed.
The star and stripes pattern that originally symbolized the American spirit had vanished, replaced by a skull-octopus emblem filled with an evil aura.
It was the exclusive symbol of HYDRA!
Steve: (((;A;)))
HYDRA members: ∑(A°)
In an instant, everyone's movements stopped.
Sitwell and the Commandos gaped in horror, their expressions no different than if they had seen Nick Fury dancing in black stockings right in front of them.
Seeing this, Steve's heart skipped a beat.
Darian had used permanent spray paint to change the pattern on this shield, and it couldn't be rubbed off, so it could only be temporarily covered with special coating.
However, that spray paint was far too stubborn. Once the coating encountered severe scratching, it would easily peel off. Under the repeated scraping of the daggers, the coating on the shield's surface finally fell away, revealing its original appearance.
Worse still, it happened right in front of a group of S.H.I.E.L.D. loyalists.
Now he really couldn't explain it away!
At this moment, Sitwell and the Commandos were so shocked they were speechless.
One must know that the pattern on Steve's shield was the American National Emblem, symbolizing his loyalty to this land and his belief in freedom.
But they never expected that beneath the star pattern lay the HYDRA symbol they were most familiar with.
In other words, Steve's loyalty was never to America, but to HYDRA!?
They couldn't help but think of Steve shouting "Hail HYDRA."
It was so smooth, so natural, far more practiced than any of them.
Perhaps the man had secretly practiced it countless times in some quiet corner to be able to shout it so wholeheartedly.
Could it be... Captain America is actually one of us!?
He's not Captain America at all, but their Captain HYDRA!?
Sitwell and the Commandos were immediately filled with awe.
They never imagined that Steve had hidden himself so deeply; everyone had been fooled by him.
No one would have thought that HYDRA's number one enemy was actually HYDRA!
As for the struggle between Steve and the Red Skull back then, they rationalized it as an internal power struggle within HYDRA, or perhaps a grand play staged by the two of them.
"Actually, I can explain this..."
Steve looked at his HYDRA shield, trying to make a final struggle.
Sitwell raised a hand to interrupt: "Captain, you don't need to explain. We understand."
Steve:"..."
No, I don't think you understand.
At this moment, both sides thought the other was on their side.
Just as Steve was about to explain, a voice suddenly came from nearby.
"Stop! Stop fighting!"
Darian walked slowly from a distance and pointed at Sitwell's group, scolding: "What are you doing? This is Captain America, the national idol of the United States!"
"You've beaten him into such a sorry state, running and crying for his life... If his fan club saw this, what would happen to Captain America's glorious image?"
Steve: "..."
Don't talk nonsense, I can do this all day!
Seeing it was Darian, Sitwell quickly explained: "Officer, you can't blame us. The Captain shouted 'Hail HYDRA' right in front of us, which is why we attacked him."
Times have changed.
Now that Darian was his top superior and the current person in charge of HYDRA, Sitwell naturally didn't dare to be negligent.
Of course, on the surface, Darian was a Level 8 Agent, which also made him the superior of this Level 6 Agent.
Darian chuckled: "I know about this. Recently we heard that HYDRA has appeared within S.H.I.E.L.D., so Steve just wanted to test you to see if there were any HYDRA moles among you. He even changed his shield to the HYDRA symbol specifically to test your reactions. Fortunately, you've passed the test and proven yourselves to be loyal S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents."
Although Sitwell felt confused, since Darian had put it that way, he followed along: "I see. It seems we misunderstood the Captain."
"I'll take responsibility for Steve; let's just leave it at that."
Darian waved his hand grandly and emphasized: "However, this was a secret test. Remember not to spread word of this."
"Understood."
Sitwell and the Commandos nodded.
Darian asked: "By the way, why are you here?"
Sitwell didn't hide it and replied immediately: "The former Director sent us over."
Sent by Nick Fury?
Darian's brow furrowed.
Why didn't that Bald Egg notify him about changing the script on the fly?
"Alright, you guys go."
Sitwell and the Commandos nodded, then put away their weapons and dragged the unconscious Rumlow away from the scene.
Seeing them leave, Steve finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Thanks to you just now, otherwise it would have been trouble."
Darian didn't answer but stared at him searchingly: "Steve, you're not really Captain HYDRA, are you? Why was your slogan so practiced?"
Steve knew immediately that everything he had just said had been heard clearly by Darian through the earpiece.
He quickly explained: "Of course not! I thought they were HYDRA, so I wanted to use the slogan to disguise my identity and make them lower their guard. Who knew they weren't HYDRA at all? I got it wrong!"
Actually, there was no misunderstanding; it's just that I had already changed HYDRA's secret password.
Darian had expected someone would eventually use this password, but he didn't expect the first person to use it would be Captain America himself.
Treating HYDRA as an enemy on the surface, but secretly practicing the HYDRA slogan hundreds of times, huh?
Darian patted Steve on the shoulder: "It's fine, I believe you. Even though you're holding a HYDRA shield and shouting 'Hail HYDRA,' you're still Captain America in my eyes."
Steve: "...."
After you put it that way, why do I feel like I'm oozing HYDRA vibes from head to toe?
Steve rubbed his brow: "Only the two of us need to know about this; don't tell anyone else."
Darian was stunned, and his expression became subtle: "Steve, don't you know that you've been on the team's public channel this whole time? Everyone in the squad can hear you speaking."
Steve: "???"
"So you really didn't know."
Darian blinked and said into the communicator: "Attention everyone, no one is to leak the fact that Steve shouted 'Hail HYDRA'!"
"Repeat, no one is to leak the fact that Steve shouted 'Hail HYDRA'!"
"Only the seventeen of us need to know about this; we absolutely cannot let an eighteenth person know. Understood?"
"Received!" * 15
A chorus of uniform responses rang out in the communication channel, even carrying a slight tremor of suppressed laughter.
Steve: "....."
Reality was too stimulating; his brain chose to temporarily block this memory.
Steve took a deep breath and forced his attention back to the mission: "Sitwell said just now that Nick Fury sent them. Could Nick Fury have already discovered our actions?"
"Not sure."
Darian shook his head; he didn't know what that Bald Egg was up to either.
Time was tight, so Steve didn't overthink it and replaced the Targeting Template for the third Helicarrier with Darian.
The mission went very smoothly without any obstacles.
After the mission was completed, Steve said into the communicator: "We're done here. What's the progress of the other teams?"
"Team One, mission accomplished."
"Team Two, complete."
"Team Three in position, ready to control the target area at any time."
"Team Four—"
Reports from the various teams following the script came through the channel; everything sounded like it was going smoothly.
But just then, Natasha, who was responsible for monitoring Nick Fury, suddenly spoke: "Captain, I have an abnormal situation here. Something's not right; I need you to come and confirm it personally."
Darian narrowed his eyes at the words.
This wasn't in the script; was Natasha adding her own scenes?
"I'm coming right now."
Steve responded immediately, turning to rush toward the location Natasha had given.
Darian followed closely behind, feeling curious to see what kind of scene Natasha had added for herself.
The two quickly arrived at the Strategic Room on the top floor of the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.
This was the place where the highest-level operational plans were made and an important location for S.H.I.E.L.D. leadership to contact the World Council. Only the Director and a few core high-level members had access.
But at this moment, the door was actually ajar, and a cool white light leaked through the crack.
"Captain, come in quickly, I've found something."
Natasha's voice came from the room, carrying a rare sense of urgency.
Hearing this, Steve immediately pushed the door open and entered.
The space inside the room was huge. In the center, a holographic screen was streaming encrypted data. Natasha stood before the screen, her brow furrowed, her fingers sliding quickly across the control console.
"What's the situation?" Steve stepped forward quickly.
"Nick Fury just used top-level authorization to activate an Emergency Protocol. I've decrypted part of the command stream."
Natasha spoke quickly, her expression tense: "It mentions a Cleanup Program. I suspect he's targeting our squad; he might have already discovered our plan."
"What?"
Steve walked to Natasha's side and looked up at the scrolling code on the screen, his brow furrowed deeply.
Well, he couldn't understand it at all!
Just as Steve's attention was fully drawn to the screen, Natasha quietly moved half a step closer.
The anxiety in her eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a chilling coldness as her right hand moved toward her waist.
Bang!
The gunshot exploded in the enclosed communication room, making their eardrums ache.
Steve turned his head in shock to see Natasha shot in the forehead, falling backward and crashing heavily to the floor.
He looked at Darian, who had fired the shot, and said in disbelief, "Darian, what are you doing?"
Darian narrowed his eyes: "This Natasha is a fake."
Steve's expression froze. He immediately looked at the Natasha on the ground and found that she was actually holding a Miniature Syringe, clearly having been prepared to stab him just now.
He quickly took two steps back, his expression becoming solemn: "What's going on? When was Natasha replaced?
I didn't notice a thing."
With Steve's observational skills, ordinary disguises couldn't fool him at all.
But this Natasha before him, whether in appearance, demeanor, tone, or even those subtle little movements, was almost identical to the real one.
If Darian hadn't suddenly fired, he wouldn't have noticed anything wrong at all.
"As for that question, why don't you ask this fellow in front of you."
As Darian spoke, the fallen Natasha actually stood up slowly, the bullet dropping from her forehead.
And in Darian's line of sight, she had already turned into a green-skinned being with pointed ears and a chin like a washboard.
[NPC: Natasha Romanoff (Layla)]
[Codename: Black Widow (Skrull)]
[Favorability: -20]
[Evaluation: Knock-off alien, goblin race, served as a slave for a black-hearted broker for decades just for an unfinished apartment.]