Someone Came to Steal the Credit

When Alex returned to the camp, every member of the Howling Commandos had gathered there. Even Namor, who had never liked Alex, had come. Their expressions made it clear that they already knew something had happened to Steve.

"Alex, is there anything I can do to help?" Human Torch spoke up on his own initiative for the first time, his weathered face full of concern. "Just give the order, and I’ll do it."

"Thank you!" Alex stared at Human Torch for a long moment before nodding in thanks. Then he turned to the others. Blazing fury burned in his eyes, but his voice was chillingly cold. "I know who did this. Now I’m going to make them pay."

"Who?!" Logan and the others asked in unison.

Alex swept his gaze over them again before finally settling on Carter in the corner. "The Hellfire Club!"

"How is that possible?" Carter shot to her feet, staring at Alex in shock. "They’ve already reached an agreement with the Allies…"

"They don’t care, and neither do those generals." Alex’s voice suddenly rose several octaves as he threw back his head and shouted, "In their eyes, Steve was just an ordinary soldier, someone they could sacrifice at any time for their own interests!"

Carter froze. Two streams of tears slowly slid down her face before the dam broke completely, and tears poured down like rain.

Alex ignored Carter and turned to Howard beside him. "Howard, do you have any information on the Hellfire Club?"

"Just a few days ago, they tried to invite me to join the Hellfire Club." Howard shrugged casually. "But I turned them down."

Alex said nothing and simply continued looking at Howard.

"Coincidentally, Sebastian Shaw was the one who approached me." Howard gave a sly chuckle, looking quite pleased with himself. "And even more coincidentally, I left a mark on him. That mark is now in Las Vegas."

"A photograph or a map. I’m going to find him!" Alex’s expression grew increasingly savage as he practically ground out the words through clenched teeth.

The moment Alex finished speaking, Logan and the others stepped forward. "We’re coming too!" Even Erik joined them.

"None of you are going anywhere!" The moment they finished speaking, an unexpected person appeared outside the camp.

He wore a Stars and Stripes uniform and carried a shield bearing the same pattern. At first glance, one might have thought he was Captain America! Not only were his height and build similar, but even his face bore a slight resemblance. Anyone unfamiliar with Steve might truly have mistaken him for Steve.

"Who are you?" Others might mistake him, but Alex never would. He was Steve’s brother.

"This is the new generation’s Captain America. He will become the new Captain of the Howling Commandos and lead everyone into Berlin to capture Hitler alive." A military officer in a colonel’s uniform stepped out from behind the counterfeit Captain America. His pretty-boy face wore an infuriatingly arrogant expression. "And I am the new liaison officer for the Howling Commandos, Nemo."

Alex glowered at the fake Captain and this so-called liaison officer, then pointed at the camp gate. "Get out!"

The liaison officer seemed to still be immersed in his own fantasy. He neither heard Alex’s words nor noticed the anger on everyone else’s faces, and continued speaking to himself. "Our first mission now is to work with the Allies and liberate all of France…"

"You’re too damn loud!" Alex instantly appeared before the pretty boy and kicked him. The pretty boy immediately turned into a rolling gourd, tumbling out of the camp.

The fake Captain America’s expression changed at once. He stared at Alex in terror as though he had seen an evil spirit, let out a scream, spun around, and ran from the camp. The soldiers who had accompanied the two looked at one another. After a moment of silence, they obediently ran out as well.

Only moments later, the pretty boy and the fake Captain America reappeared, their faces full of rage. Several generals with gleaming insignia followed behind them.

"Alex…" One of the generals was an old acquaintance: Phillips, whom they had not seen in a long time. He had once been a colonel at the recruit training base, but had now been promoted to general.

Unfortunately, Phillips had barely called out his name before Alex cut him off without ceremony. "I’m going to Las Vegas right now. No one can stop me!"

"Alex…" Phillips was interrupted again as soon as he spoke.

"Don’t you just want the Howling Commandos?" Alex sneered and began taking off his uniform piece by piece. "Fine, you can have them. From now on, I’m no longer a member of the Howling Commandos!" Alex did not care about the Howling Commandos at all. Since someone wanted them, he could have them.

"Who do you think you are? Do you think this is a place where you can come and go as you please?" The pretty boy, his face still mottled with bruises and his body covered in dust, stepped forward again with a swagger. He looked utterly ridiculous.

No one paid any attention to the pretty boy. Logan, Natasha, Nick Fury, and every member of the Howling Commandos stepped forward, taking off their uniforms alongside Alex to show their stance through their actions.

"This is mutiny! This is a military revolt!" The ridiculous pretty boy once again made his presence known. "Guards, arrest every last one of them! Don’t let a single one escape!"

Alex snorted coldly. His body suddenly vanished, and the pretty boy vanished with him. In an instant, Alex reappeared alone, wrapped the members of the Howling Commandos in his power, and disappeared from the camp.

The generals did not pay much attention when they discovered that Alex and the others had disappeared. But when they realized that the pretty boy had vanished as well, their expressions immediately changed. "Where is Nemo?"

Suddenly, they heard shrill screams coming from overhead. Looking up, they saw a figure plummeting rapidly downward. From the sound, it seemed to be the missing Nemo!

"Quick, think of a way to save him!" The generals spun around in panic like ants on a hot pan.

"Don’t worry, he has a parachute on him. He’ll be fine." Phillips had sharp eyes and spotted the parachute strapped to Nemo’s back at once. It just seemed that Nemo himself had no idea that the thing on his back was a parachute, and he still had not opened it.

Phillips did not spell it out. Seeing the generals seemingly breathe a sigh of relief, he snorted and said, "I warned you long ago not to provoke them, especially while something had happened to Steve. Now you’ve seen what they can do!" Phillips strongly opposed the command’s decision, but he had only just been promoted to general and had no say in the matter. He could only watch these people act recklessly.

Unfortunately, Phillips’s words had the opposite effect, stirring the generals’ anger instead. "Guards, arrest them immediately! Don’t let a single one escape!"

Watching the furious generals, Phillips gave a soft snort and said faintly, "I’m afraid they’re already in Las Vegas by now."