Story #2Shall Freedom Endure…
Writer:
Roger McKenzie. Penciler:
Luke McDonnell. Inker:
John BeattySynopsis
On a wartime mission
Captain America and
Bucky ran into a trap and Cap was attacked by an armored Nazi called
Stryker who was to kill Captain America on film for
Hitler’s enjoyment. Things did not work out that way however, Cap escaped from Stryker’s bear hug with a judo flip and then proceeded to toss his foe across the room before using his shield to destroy the armored suit’s circuitry. They left the film of the Nazi’s defeat for
Der Fuehrer’s instruction. Now, many decades later, that film is being reviewed by the henchmen of Stryker, son of the original armored Nazi, who wants revenge against Captain America for his father’s disgrace. His scheme: strip away his costume and shield and Captain America can easily be destroyed. On a late night several weeks later, Captain America appears at a new military museum to approve his display. When he sees the tribute, Cap gets a shock: it is a statue of him raising a Nazi flag and threatening Bucky. Stryker spring his trap: his thugs disguised as figures in the exhibit come to life and overpower the hero. When he wakes up, Steve finds he is dressed in a Nazi uniform and tied to a huge swastika, while Stryker wears the Captain America outfit. While filming the gruesome proceedings for posterity, Stryker abuses Cap, trying to get the hero to renounce his allegiance to America. Shouting "Never," Cap breaks free and escapes into the darkened museum. Under cover of shadow, he subdues Stryker’s goons one at a time, leaving the mastermind for last. The villain savagely beats Cap with his own shield, insisting he is nothing without the costume to hide behind. But Steve will not go down. Finally in the Captain America exhibit, Stryker damages the base of the Cap statue which topples, impaling the villain with the Nazi flag. Cap reclaims his costume and shield, regretting that Stryker never realized that these trappings only represent freedom—which can never be destroyed.