Steve Rogers, who is both Captain America and also HYDRA's Supreme Leader, enters the office of Roberto "Citizen V" Da Costa and says 'Hail HYDRA.' Da Costa is unnerved but Rogers clarifies that he's just joking around. Rogers then says that he knows Da Costa has done some questionable things, but Da Costa isn't in trouble; even though Rogers is now technically Da Costa's boss since he's in charge of SHIELD, Rogers would still rather treat Da Costa like a friend than an underling. Rogers then asks for coffee and muses that Advanced Idea Mechanics, which has a notorious reputation, was so quickly rehabilitated after Da Costa took it over, turned it into American Intelligence Mechanics, and brought it under SHIELD's command. Rogers notes that the new AIM is beloved and respected now, and it was all thanks to Da Costa branding the organization with the American flag. Da Costa, perturbed, messages an underling to bring him two coffees.
In engineering, Aikku "Enigma" Jokinen brings a coffee to Dr. Toni "Iron Patriot" Ho and asks if they can talk. Ho is absorbed in fixing a malfunctioning armor suit and tries to blow her off, but Jokinen insists and says they need to discuss all the guns Ho is building. Ho says she's not building guns even though the room is full of them, but when Jokinen pushes back Ho clarifies that all her weapons are 'non-lethal' and so aren't real guns. Jokinen points out that the weaponry, such as a concussion beam Ho points out, is still very dangerous and should really be considered 'less lethal' rather than 'non-lethal.' She demands to know when Ho will be finished. Ho protests that she takes occasional breaks but Jokinen says she barely eats or sleeps, and even when she's alone with Jokinen she's still thinking about the weapons she's developing. Jokinen adds that Ho became similarly obsessed when she was trying to free her, Jokinen, from an entity called Pod without killing Pod in the process. She demands to know who Ho is trying to save now. Ho admits she doesn't know, then returns to the armor suit she is trying to fix.
Rogers notes that Da Costa clearly wants to save America and muses that America really could use a firm hand to guide it on the right path. He says it's admirable that Da Costa wants to be the leader it needs, but on the other hand, Da Costa needs to know when to defer to a superior officer. Da Costa asks if he's in trouble after all and Rogers says no, but he does need to know if Da Costa will actually obey his orders even if he disagrees with them. Da Costa asks if Rogers is talking about illegal orders, and Rogers says of course not. The coffees then arrive and Rogers lightly jokes that the staff must be psychic because they knew how he likes his coffee. Da Costa says he would never forget how Captain America takes his coffee, but Rogers probes further and asks if Da Costa's staff are trained in psychic techniques. Da Costa admits that Charles Xavier trained him in some techniques to resist mind control and he in turn trained everyone that works for him. Rogers clarifies that these aren't standard SHIELD techniques, and when Da Costa asks if that's a problem, Rogers says that if it is they can hopefully do something about it so that Da Costa's troops aren't forced to resort to nonstandard, weakened techniques if they're hit with psychic attacks.
In an underground lair, General Robert "Red Hulk" Maverick battles Arthur Nagan, a man with the body of a powerful gorilla. Maverick has been in his Hulk state for long enough that his safety overrides kick in and force him out of it, allowing for Nagan to catch him and threaten to kill him. He mocks Maverick, who says he's not afraid but just embarrassed that he needs help. At that point, Doreen "Squirrel Girl" Green shows up and attacks Nagan along with his minions, simultaneously chastising Maverick for being ashamed of needing help. Maverick slinks off in shame but is then contacted by someone in AIM's science division who tells him that he may have developed a medicine that will enable Maverick to bypass his safety overrides. It's unapproved because the scientist's superiors thought it was too risky, but Maverick says he wants the medicine anyways. The scientist agrees and hangs up, then makes the HYDRA salute and says 'Hail HYDRA.'
Rogers tells Da Costa that he has to rely on the units under his command, and several of Da Costa's recent decisions are problematic. In particular, he's concerned that Da Costa turned Maverick into a Hulk and recently released him in a populated area. This means, he says, that Da Costa is in fact in trouble for being too reckless. He says that he, Rogers, serves America and loves the country, and demands to know why Da Costa doesn't. Da Costa protests that he loves America, but Rogers says that Da Costa seems to be looking at America from the outside and deciding that if only he were in charge he could fix everything. He blasts Da Costa for being 'elitist' and says that if Da Costa really loves this country, he should prove it by following orders unflinchingly and without hesitation. If he can't do that, Rogers says, then he should at least stop faking patriotism.
On the alien planet K'rii-VI, Sam "Cannonball" Guthrie and Izzy "Smasher" Kane fly after some criminals. Sam has their baby Josh strapped to his chest in a baby carrier, and he worries that Josh might get hurt since the criminals are shooting, but Kane points out that Josh's innate force-field ability is actually stronger than Guthrie's and so Josh is basically shielding Guthrie from attack. Kane notices that Guthrie is distracted and asks him what's wrong, and Guthrie admits that it's the commute between Earth, where he lives five days out of seven, and K'rii-VI, where his family lives and where he spends his weekends. Kane asks if Guthrie can just ask for more time off but Guthrie says that, while Da Costa would likely grant such a request, he's not in charge anymore and so can't help him. Kane suggests that Guthrie just move to K'rii-VI but Guthrie says that he doesn't want to give up Earth. When Kane presses him, though, he admits that being with his family on the alien world is pretty great. He decides that the next time he goes to Earth he'll tell Da Costa that he's quitting AIM and moving to K'rii-VI for good.
Erik Selvig, another HYDRA agent, approaches Rogers while Rogers trains with a punching bag. Rogers says he got some intelligence he needed, specifically about AIM being shielded against hypnosis. This means that his minion Johann "Doctor Faustus" Fenhoff can't just brainwash them. However, Rogers thinks they can work around it, especially since one of Da Costa's team is already compromised. Selvig asks about Da Costa himself and Rogers says that he turned up the pressure on Da Costa, and so while Da Costa doesn't think that Rogers is actually HYDRA he's now skeptical of Rogers' motives. That means that, if Da Costa does decide to move against him, he'll hesitate for a moment to figure out how Rogers will react. In that moment, Rogers says, he will take aim at Da Costa.
A few days later, Da Costa is in his flagship, the helicarrier Douglass, when he sees images of a Chitauri invasion, a mob of supervillains attacking New York City, and HYDRA agents invading Sokovia.
Tropes
- Batman Gambit: Rogers' scheme to make Da Costa wary of him. If Da Costa had just blown him off, it wouldn't have worked. If Da Costa had become too suspicious and figured out that Rogers was planning on taking over the country, it also wouldn't have worked. The plan would only work if Da Costa became just wary enough that, if he later decided to rebel, he would hesitate for long enough that Rogers could exploit his hesitation.
