Frank Simpson returns from the war to a hero’s welcome; Captain America is there to greet him and so is his father. His dead father. Simpson Sr. tells Frank he is proud of him—then draws a gun and shoots him…
This is an illusion granted to the dying Nuke by Dr. Mindbubble to ease his passing. A giant mechanical dragon bears down on the colorful villain and Ran Shen—the Iron Nail—proposes they join forces against a common enemy: SHIELD….
In the aftermath of the explosion at The Hub SHIELD base (issue #15), Nick Fury Jr. regains consciousness down by the river beneath the center. Dr. Mindbubble appears to him floating on a giant bubble and exposing Fury’s innermost fears of inadequacy. Fury tries to flee but he cannot escape the madness….
In Brooklyn, Steve Rogers and Jet Black walk down a street while they discuss the ethics of heroism, with Jet recommending a bit of pragmatism in dealing with enemies. A banker rudely pushes in front of them to enter his bank where he turns his wrath on his employees. The Iron Nail’s Shaolin Scientist Squad leaps from hiding to punish him for his capitalist sins. Steve and Jet return and mop up the baddies, who, defeated, teleport away. Steve gets a call from Maria Hill to rush to The Hub. Soon, Captain America is surveying the damage with the death toll set at 106. They trace the source of the blast to a bomb secreted inside Nuke, and learn that the Falcon and Nick Fury Jr are among the missing. Hill also reveals that Weapon Minus is free; this was a secret weapon designed as a countermeasure to the super-soldiers. Then Jet Black discovers the whereabouts of the injured Falcon and the discussion is tabled for now….
In Phoenix, Nick Fury Jr. and Agent Coulson enter a Hydra base and force one of the agents to log onto a computer where they discover the plans for a new Helicarrier called Gungnir…then we learn that Coulson is really Dr. Mindbubble and this was all a fantasy put into Fury’s head to manipulate him into conquering a SHIELD base….