Nighttime.
S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier.
Steve Rogers's figure wove through the darkness. Over this period of time, he had already memorized the map of every single area inside the Helicarrier.
And a few days ago, he had found a hand-drawn map in his apartment, which marked all the known surveillance cameras inside the Helicarrier.
In addition to that, there was a hard drive containing a program capable of paralyzing S.H.I.E.L.D.'s surveillance systems.
However, the effect would only last for a few minutes.
At this point, he already knew that his apartment was covered with listening devices everywhere, and his cute, beautiful neighbor next door seemed to be a bit suspicious as well.
He did not know how Bant had managed to deliver the items into his apartment without anyone noticing (Ghostfreak: Relying on me, of course!), but this was exactly what he needed.
After inserting the program into the main control computer, Captain America quickly sprang into action.
At this moment, he felt as though he had suddenly returned to decades ago, back to the times when he infiltrated Hydra bases.
In a sense, that was not entirely wrong.
He looked down at the map, which illustrated all the restricted areas on the Helicarrier. His target was the archives room.
But in reality, Captain America had known about the existence of those classified locations for a long time.
It was just that in the past, his traditions as a soldier prevented him from questioning what kind of secrets were locked away in there. But now, cracks were beginning to appear in his trust.
And when all the truths broke through the surface, whatever trust remained would be completely melted away, just like ice exposed to the scorching sun.
To be honest, this operation went even smoother than Steve had imagined.
The surveillance cameras captured no trace of his movements, and the password to the archives room was safely cracked with the help of the hard drive Bant had provided.
It did not even trigger an alarm.
But Captain America knew his time was limited. It would not be long before S.H.I.E.L.D.'s technicians realized what was happening. He had to be quick!
Meanwhile.
Inside the main control room.
Nick Fury had stormed in with a dark scowl on his face.
He had already discovered that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s systems were being hacked. Yet, when he swiftly marched into the main control room, he found that the employee who was supposed to be at his post maintaining the firewall was actually eating popcorn while watching a football game on the big screen.
The kid did not even realize what was happening until he barged right into the room.
Nick Fury was so furious he wished he could pull out a lightsaber, instantly transform into a Jedi Master, and cleave that idiot in half on the spot.
"Hill, fire him!"
He pointed an accusatory finger, scaring the employee so badly he dropped his popcorn all over the floor.
But right now, no one cared about this derelict-of-duty fool. Over a dozen technicians surged into the room together and began maintaining S.H.I.E.L.D.'s network defense systems.
"Have you still not found out who is attacking us?" Nick Fury braced his hands on the desk, his eyes practically spinning as he watched lines of code flash rapidly across the screen.
"No, the opponent's skills are incredibly formidable." Over a dozen technicians gathered together, yet they remained completely helpless.
One had to understand that if you took any of these people out into the world individually, every single one of them was a world-class master hacker. Yet now, they were actually struggling just to defend against the opponent's offensive.
"It wouldn't happen to be Bant Parker, would it?"
He licked his chapped lips and frowned.
In Nick Fury's mind, the first person who possessed such a powerful network system was Tony Stark, and the second was Bant Parker.
Recalling that Bant had just visited the Helicarrier a few days ago, even though the kid had been under surveillance at the time and should not have been able to pull any tricks, Nick Fury still immediately thought of him.
However, Hill shook her head.
"It shouldn't be. Even Bant Parker's artificial intelligence couldn't possibly toy with us to this extent, unless he partnered up with Tony Stark."
Hearing this, Nick Fury dismissed the thought that Bant was the main culprit.
Tony Stark had no reason to help Bant attack S.H.I.E.L.D.
Bant had helped Tony, yes, but as far as he knew, that transaction had ended with Tony helping Bant acquire Hammer Industries.
What could Tony possibly gain from attacking S.H.I.E.L.D.?
"It seems there is another threat..." Nick said softly.
He thought for a moment and formulated a guess.
This attack could not have happened for no reason. The fact that the attackers possessed such powerful cyber capabilities, yet they had known absolutely nothing about them before, was enough to prove that the opposing party had been keeping themselves hidden the entire time.
Hidden...
He muttered silently in his heart.
'Could it be Hydra?' Nick Fury thought to himself.
Recounting all the major events that had happened recently, the most important one was undoubtedly him using the excuse of purging Hydra remnants to rope in the two Spider-Men, Bant and Peter.
Looking at it now, Hydra had probably jumped out on their own!
His gaze sharpened, and he immediately became excited.
Was this not exactly like someone handing him a pillow right when he wanted to sleep?
If they could track down the opponent's lair through the network, wouldn't the location of a Hydra base be revealed?
When the time came, he could present this to Bant and Peter, letting those two kids know that S.H.I.E.L.D. was truly taking down Hydra. Would he still need to worry about winning them over then?
"No matter what, you must track down their location!" Nick Fury quickly ordered.
A few minutes later, a fellow S.H.I.E.L.D. agent raised his head and shouted, "Found them!"
"Where are they?"
"Wrocław, western Poland," the agent replied.
At the same time, on the computer screen, a map rapidly zoomed in, ultimately locking onto a small area in Europe.
"Poland?"
Hill was momentarily taken aback. "I remember that used to be the financial center of East Prussia, right?"
"During the German rule, it was also called Breslau," Nick said.
It really was Hydra!
"Avengers, it is time to assemble!"
"Avengers, it is time to assemble."
Inside the Plumbers building, Tony Stark and Bant Parker stopped their work. Bant leaned back in his chair and smiled faintly.
That was right, the ones attacking S.H.I.E.L.D. were the two of them.
The reason they did this was partly to create an opportunity for Steve, and partly to expose the location of a Hydra base right before Nick Fury's eyes.
Bant could imagine that it would not be long before Nick Fury summoned all the Avengers and launched an operation against Hydra.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Steve Rogers had already found the files regarding Operation Paperclip.
He flipped through them continuously, feeling a deeper and more profound chill in his heart with every page he read.
The enemies he had fought his entire life had actually been personally invited into their home by his own friends after he was frozen in ice.
It was like a veteran of a resistance war who spent his entire life killing the invaders, only to find out in the end that those very invaders had transformed and become the masters of his country.
"Peggy... I want to do the right thing, but right now, I truly do not know what the right thing is anymore."
After his anger faded, Steve felt a deep sense of sorrow.
He realized that eras rolled forward like the wheels of a chariot. He was nothing more than a tiny grain of sand among them; what could he possibly accomplish?
But he did not stay depressed for long.
No matter the situation, he would never give up the fight.
Even if he was entirely alone, he would put his life on the line and wear Hydra down to the bitter end.
"I should see what Bant's thoughts are first."
He silently put all the documents back, keeping his expression neutral, while recalling the advice Bant had given him in his heart:
Do not trust anyone.
Next, feigning complete ignorance, he exited the archives room.
He walked down the corridor.
A short while later, over a dozen agents walked out of the main control room.
"Captain, why are you here?"
Nick Fury saw him and was momentarily stunned, then said happily, "Never mind, you arrived just in time. We just located a Hydra base. Get ready, we are moving out immediately!"
"A Hydra base?"
Hearing Nick Fury's words, Captain America was momentarily taken aback.
Hydra, who had been radio silent all this time, just delivered themselves to their doorstep like this?
Was it really such a coincidence?
He glanced at Nick, unsure in his heart whether this Black man in front of him was trustworthy or not.
But he maintained a neutral expression and asked in a low voice:
"Is it that urgent?"
"Delays invite trouble," Nick Fury said. "I have already notified Spider-Man and Hacker. The opportunity is fleeting. If we are late, the venomous snakes will slip back into their holes."
Hearing this, Captain America nodded.
He forced himself to stop thinking about who was trustworthy and shifted himself into a state of war.
He quickly sprang into action, changing into a darker, stealthier uniform and strapping his shield to his back. Ten minutes later, he boarded the Quinjet on the deck.
Aside from him, the members of the STRIKE team were also joining the operation.
Crossbones did not seem to be acting unusual in any way. He greeted Captain America and said, "Captain, we are fighting side by side again."
Steve smiled faintly and said nothing.
Crossbones continued, "I never expected Hydra to still have bases around." He fastened his seatbelt and asked, "Captain, does this bring back a little bit of the feeling of charging into battle with your Howling Commandos seventy years ago?"
"It is still very different from seventy years ago," Captain America replied.
At least back then, he could absolutely trust his comrades-in-arms.
But now...
Among these people sitting right in front of him, how many of them were actually Hydra?
He closed his eyes, let out a breath, and ordered, "Head to New York first. We have two more teammates waiting for us there."
Peter stood at the top of the Empire State Building.
He had been woken up in the middle of the night by a phone call from Nick Fury.
Who could have expected that the plan to deal with Hydra would be launched so hastily?
"I am not prepared at all," he said, rubbing his hands together.
"Don't worry, I prepared something for you." Bant stood not far from him and tossed him a metal briefcase.
"What is this?"
"The Iron Spider Armor Mark I."
Bant said casually, "It's not nanotechnology yet, so just make do with it for now."
"Whoa!"
Peter was so happy he almost jumped into the air.
He pressed the button on the metal briefcase. The next moment, a Spider-Suit resembling the Iron Man Mark V armor deployed from the transforming case, equipping itself onto Peter's body.
Compared to the Mark V, the Iron Spider Armor Mark I was slightly more lightweight.
After all, Peter did not need to rely on the suit to provide him with combat power. This armor only needed to have passable defensive capabilities.
For this, Bant had melted down and incorporated the small amount of Vibranium he had extracted from Kraven's dagger into the suit.
The effect was not massive, but it was better than nothing.
Just as they were talking, a Quinjet tore through the sky and hovered directly above their heads.
Captain America stood holding his shield, looking down from above.
"Avengers, assemble!"
/-\
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