Ring, ring, ring.
"Steve, your phone!" Bucky called out from inside the farmhouse where he'd been helping Christy arrange the nursery for their upcoming arrival.
Steve looked up from the fence post he'd been repairing, genuinely puzzled. "My phone? Who even has this number?"
"That would be our favorite one-eyed spymaster," Bucky replied with a wry grin, holding out the secure communication device.
Steve wiped his hands on his work shirt and accepted the phone with growing curiosity. Since moving to Bucky's farm, he'd enjoyed an unusual period of peace. No emergency missions, no cosmic threats, no calls in the middle of the night asking him to save the world. The sudden contact from Fury suggested that peaceful interlude was about to end.
"Fury? What's the situation?" Steve answered in his typically direct manner.
"Captain, we're initiating Operation Pest Control—the complete elimination of Hydra from S.H.I.E.L.D.," Fury's voice carried an edge of grim satisfaction. "While my people handle the internal cleaning, I need you to investigate a facility in New Jersey. We've detected unusual energy signatures from that location, and I suspect it's a major Hydra installation."
Steve felt his jaw tighten at the mention of Hydra. Despite everything he'd sacrificed, despite being frozen for seventy years, the Nazi organization that had murdered so many of his friends was still operating in the shadows.
"New Jersey?" Steve confirmed, already mentally preparing for deployment.
"Agent Romanoff will meet you at the coordinates I'm transmitting. This is our chance to end them once and for all, Cap. Don't let it slip away."
"Understood," Steve replied, then ended the call and handed the device back to Bucky.
The moment Bucky saw Steve's expression, he knew exactly what was happening. Without hesitation, he moved to a control panel mounted on the wall and began entering a complex security code.
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.
The farm transformed instantly as hidden weapon systems emerged from concealed positions throughout the property. Anti-aircraft guns rose from beneath fake haystacks, automated turrets deployed from the barn, and armored barriers slid up from underground storage. Within seconds, the peaceful homestead had become a fortress capable of withstanding a military assault.
"Bucky, you don't need to go to these extremes," Steve said, though he understood his friend's paranoia. "Hydra doesn't even know you're here."
"The hell they don't," Bucky replied firmly, checking the status displays on his security system. "If S.H.I.E.L.D. is moving against them openly, Hydra will activate every asset they have. That definitely includes trying to get revenge on the Winter Soldier who broke their programming."
Steve recognized the determination in his friend's voice and knew better than to argue further. Instead, he placed a reassuring hand on Bucky's shoulder.
"Stay safe. Keep Christy and the baby protected."
"You too, Steve. And remember—Hydra's had decades to evolve their tactics. They won't be the same organization we fought in the war."
Steve nodded and walked toward the aircraft hangar that Bucky had disguised as an oversized equipment shed. Among the various vehicles stored there was a stealth-capable fighter that would get him to New Jersey without appearing on any radar systems.
As the fighter lifted off and disappeared into the sky, Bucky returned to the house, his expression grim as he began implementing additional security protocols. If Hydra wanted a fight, they'd get one—but they'd have to come through him first.
Three hundred miles away in Stark Tower, Tony was deep in his workshop when Jarvis interrupted his latest design session.
"Sir, there's a developing situation that may require your attention," the AI announced in his typically understated manner.
"What kind of situation?" Tony asked without looking up from the holographic interface he was manipulating.
"S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Triskelion headquarters is under attack by unknown assailants. Additionally, Captain Rogers has departed for New Jersey on what appears to be a mission-critical assignment."
That got Tony's attention. He paused his work and turned toward Jarvis's interface, processing the implications.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. can't even secure their own headquarters? And Steve's running solo missions during a crisis?" Tony shook his head. "Something big is happening. Keep monitoring the situation and alert me if things escalate further."
"Of course, sir. Shall I prepare the Mark 52 for potential deployment?"
"Not yet. Let's see how this plays out first."
Tony returned to his work, but his concentration was fractured. The technology Marcus had shared with him was revolutionary—gravitational manipulation, matter conversion, autonomous targeting systems—but implementing it required absolute focus. The knowledge that S.H.I.E.L.D. was under attack while his teammates were scattered across the country was deeply unsettling.
"As long as I can complete this integration," Tony murmured to himself, "Earth will have much better defensive capabilities."
His obsession with technological superiority had only intensified since the attack on his Malibu mansion. Relying on others for protection had nearly gotten him killed, and he was determined never to be that vulnerable again. The orbital weapons platform Marcus had described was exactly the kind of force multiplier that could level the playing field against cosmic threats.
Meanwhile, at Marcus's secluded workshop, the sound of an approaching aircraft interrupted his delicate work on the Final Empowerment core. The energy signature was unfamiliar, but the quantum-dampened engine design suggested advanced S.H.I.E.L.D. technology.
Knock, knock, knock.
"Marcus, are you available?" came a voice from outside his workshop.
Marcus paused in his engraving work, his enhanced senses immediately detecting something unusual about his visitor.
"Interesting," he said aloud, then called out, "Come in, Talos. Though I have to ask why you're still wearing Fury's face."
The door opened to reveal what appeared to be Nick Fury in every physical detail, but Marcus's perception cut through the Skrull's shape-shifting abilities without effort.
"I should have known you'd see through the disguise," Talos replied with obvious nervousness. "But I can't drop the transformation here—too many potential surveillance systems."
He produced a secure communication device and activated it, revealing the real Nick Fury on a small holographic display.
"Marcus," Fury began without preamble, "S.H.I.E.L.D. is conducting a major purge operation to eliminate Hydra infiltrators. It's a crucial step in allowing displaced populations to return to Earth safely. I need your assistance with a related matter."
"What kind of assistance?" Marcus asked, setting aside his empowerment work.
"Hydra will likely activate sleeper cells and hidden facilities in response to our operation. I need someone with your capabilities to hunt them down and eliminate them before they can regroup."
Marcus considered the request. He'd been looking for an opportunity to field-test his new Riven Crystal enhancements and the nearly completed Nightmare empowerment. A hunt for Hydra facilities would provide perfect combat scenarios.
"What's my compensation for this pest control service?" Marcus asked pragmatically.
"A Diviner—one of the obelisks that can trigger Inhuman transformations or turn people to stone on contact. S.H.I.E.L.D. has had it in storage for decades, but I think you'd find it much more useful."
Marcus's eyes lit up with interest. A Diviner containing Terrigen crystals would be an invaluable research material, potentially allowing him to understand and replicate Inhuman transformation processes.
"Deal," Marcus said immediately. "Give me a few minutes to prepare."
He moved quickly around his workshop, storing the foundry and his collection of newly created Riven Crystals in his dimensional storage. The Final Empowerment was nearly complete—only the final engraving remained—but that could wait until after he'd hunted down some Hydra facilities.
"Time to see what these new toys can do in actual combat," Marcus said with anticipation, already planning how to test each enhancement against different types of targets.