Winter Soldier

In Umbrella’s reception room, a glass of whiskey on the rocks sat on the table. The blonde woman seated on the sofa drained the amber liquid and ice in a single gulp.

"Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. have both fallen into the trap." Sean tapped his fingers against the tabletop and looked at Mystique Raven. "You understand what you need to do now, don’t you?"

This key member of the Brotherhood of Mutants had not followed Magneto to Africa. Instead, she had remained by Sean’s side as a bargaining chip, someone he could use when necessary.

"How can you be sure Hydra will make a move against Nick Fury?" Raven asked, puzzled.

She had witnessed the chase and attack in Washington D.C. today. This young man seemed to possess an uncanny ability to foresee the future. Hydra, lurking in the shadows, had truly lost its patience and prepared to crush S.H.I.E.L.D. in one stroke.

"Fury wants to launch Project Insight. That’s Hydra’s opportunity. If Alexander Pierce wants to seize the supreme power of monitoring the entire world, then the current Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. is undoubtedly his greatest obstacle."

Sean spoke with ease. He had merely given things a slight push, using the White House and the military to pressure S.H.I.E.L.D. into sharing power. To escape his current predicament, Nick Fury had naturally accelerated his plans.

Little did Fury know that Alexander Pierce had coveted this for a long time. He needed an opportunity to avoid the Avengers, then strike with absolute precision. He could not leave them any room to retaliate.

In the original timeline, that Black director had narrowly escaped at the last moment and passed vital information to Captain America, causing Hydra’s plan to fall short and allowing the situation to be turned around.

But as an observer, Sean naturally would not allow that to happen. Without Nick Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D. would become utterly harmless. By then, the White House and the military would surely be more than happy to bring this special organization under their control.

Then they could reorganize S.H.I.E.L.D., break up and mix in its original members, purge it from top to bottom, and completely dismantle its internal structure… Alexander Pierce’s plan was quite perfect, giving Sean a solution of his own.

"With your current strength, you could crush everyone— even the Avengers are no threat to you. Why use this method to bring them down?"

Confusion filled Raven’s eyes. She knew that even someone as powerful as Erik had lost to Sean, and that had not even been all of his strength.

"That would be too simple and crude, and it wouldn’t cause my opponents any pain." A faint smile curled Sean’s lips. "People like Nick Fury have firm wills and convictions in their hearts. Pure force won’t make him submit. On the contrary, it will give him a chance to put on some heroic sacrifice."

"Isn’t that how those cliché movies go? Faced with a villain’s threats and persecution, the hero refuses to compromise, stands unbowed, and finally marches bravely toward death… That’s fulfillment. I don’t want my opponent to feel that way."

"Then what are you planning to do?"

Raven shifted back slightly. Looking at the warm smile on the young man’s face, she could not help but shudder inside.

"To defeat someone completely, you must do more than erase their physical existence. You must destroy their will."

Sean spoke casually. "I hope Director Fury likes this gift."

Not long before.

"The director is missing." Hill urgently contacted Captain America.

At present, only Steve could take charge of the situation within S.H.I.E.L.D. From the information Nick Fury had intentionally or unintentionally revealed in the past, there were definitely unreliable moles within the organization. Therefore, she chose to keep the news secret and notify Captain America alone for the time being.

"At 2:40 p.m., the director left the briefing at the White House and got into his car. When he reached Pennsylvania Avenue, he suddenly vanished. At that exact time, Pennsylvania Avenue was closed off due to underground pipeline construction."

"Six minutes later, the black Cherokee carrying the director sped onto 17th Avenue, and then we lost contact."

Hill calmly laid out each piece of information for Captain America’s consideration.

"Did the scene leave behind any clues?" Steve asked with a frown.

"The black Cherokee first came under extremely heavy fire. Its bulletproof shell was covered in damage. Then it appeared to suffer an enormous impact. The vehicle rolled across the ground, leaving skid marks. The electronic equipment inside was damaged. We suspect an Electromagnetic Pulse Weapon was used."

"Only one photograph was captured at the scene."

Hill’s expression was grave as she pulled up the satellite image. All surveillance footage from the time had been erased. Judging from the countermeasures, the other side was extremely cautious and professional.

The kidnappers who took Nick Fury away seemed like highly trained soldiers. They carried out their combat mission with purpose and planning, leaving behind no trace that could be followed.

Hill thought calmly. The reason she had become a commander of S.H.I.E.L.D. at such a young age was not merely because of Nick Fury’s trust and promotion, but also because of her own exceptional abilities.

An outstanding commander had to possess a rational mind, a composed attitude, and extraordinary awareness of the bigger picture and strategic vision.

"This is the man?"

Steve looked at the somewhat blurry photograph. It showed a tall man in a black uniform, his face covered by a mask, with his right hand reflecting a metallic gleam.

The figure gave him a vague sense of familiarity…

"Yes. This man is called the ‘Winter Soldier,’ the Former Soviet Union’s ace assassin. He has carried out numerous assassination missions—among them, an attempted assassination of Tony Stark. He excels with firearms and possesses outstanding combat ability."

Hill did not notice Captain America’s unusual reaction. She pulled up the dossier on the operative codenamed "Winter Soldier," which detailed the many assassination missions he had carried out. Aside from the attempt on Tony Stark, he had never failed.

"There’s a strong possibility the director has fallen into his hands."

Captain America pondered for a moment before raising a critical question. "Why did he capture Fury?"

Although Nick Fury was the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., he himself did not hold much value. If they wanted to pry secrets from his mouth, it would be easier and more satisfying to simply shoot the Black man dead.

Even if S.H.I.E.L.D. lost a leader, they could simply promote another one. The special organization itself would not suffer much of an impact. Moreover, such an act would clearly anger the Superheroes. No matter how one looked at it, it was an effort that brought no benefit.

"Uh…" Hill hesitated before giving the answer. "Because of Project Insight!"

"Project Insight?" Steve repeated the unfamiliar term. Clearly, he had yet to come into contact with S.H.I.E.L.D.’s true core.

"It uses the targeting satellites of three next-generation Sky Carriers for network synchronization. We launched the Lemurian Star into outer space and used DNA-reading technology, along with a massive database for screening, to complete this plan—this is the ‘Project Insight’ the director proposed to the World Security Council. It is meant to prevent crimes before they happen and suppress the possibility of threats emerging," Hill said calmly.

"You think this is protection?" Steve, who firmly believed in the spirit of freedom, frowned deeply. "You’re pointing guns at the entire world!"

"The frequent occurrence of superpowered crimes and the enormous pressure facing S.H.I.E.L.D. have left us no choice." Hill sounded helpless. "The director said that if we want to eliminate danger, we must stay one step ahead of those people—Captain, now isn’t the time to discuss this. We have to rescue the director."

"Gather the Avengers. I’ll track down this assassin."

Steve sighed silently. Deep down, he did not like Nick Fury’s way of doing things. It pursued efficiency and goals too relentlessly. If Peggy had not founded this special organization, he would not have stayed here.

For a seventy-year-old man, even if his outward appearance remained youthful, his heart had gradually grown old. The country did not need him. His family and friends had left this world. Steve was lost, unable to see the path ahead.

"Winter Soldier."

He looked at the photograph once again, and the faint sense of familiarity in his heart grew ever stronger.