Investigating an energy flare in the
Canadian Northwest, the Avengers find themselves hanging from a
precipice in an abandoned complex at the mercy of the Red Skull who
wants something he thinks they have. Black Widow fires a sting at
him, bringing the roof down on the villain, giving the heroes time to
reach safety—but in that time, the Skull manages to vanish. Natasha
finds all this significant but she won't share details with her
compatriots. They have the wounded Ivan Petrovich Bezukhov with them
and Hercules takes the risk of the long climb out of the pit to
retrieve the medical kit from the Quinjet....
In the Caribbean, an armored agent
descends into an intact pit housing a scientific complex, hoping to
avoid the disaster that hit Canada....
Nearing the top of the climb, Hercules
comes upon a critically injured Captain America and goes to his aid.
Unfortunately, it's the Red Skull in a holographic disguise and he
shoots Herc in the back with a blast. He then materializes down below
and takes out Crystal with a punch, then proves to be just as fast as
Quicksilver, taking him out too. Black Widow engages him in
hand-to-hand combat....
In the Caribbean, something goes wrong
and that installation goes up in a nuclear holocaust as well....
Natasha's agility briefly evens the
odds against the armored Red Skull, who, as he reminds her, occupies
a cloned body of Captain America. She takes the worst of it until she
manages to short-circuit his armor with a sting but it doesn't knock
him out. He is about to stomp on her head when he receives a call
from an agent in the Caribbean. Widow is about to sting him on the
back of the neck when he suddenly teleports out leaving Natasha
bitterly disappointed at her failure....
Hours later the team has returned to
Avengers Mansion where they are met by an armored Captain America who
needs their help for his final mission....
Story continues in CAPTAIN AMERICA #440.