The Human Torch virus slowly affects the sedated Namor as Zhang Chin explains to Bucky his ultimate goal: population control though global pandemic, saving the ecosystem—while he takes revenge against the Winter Soldier for the murder of his wife. The Man with No Face calls Chin’s attention to the fact that Namor seems to be immune to the virus—when Captain America’s shield crashes into the tank, shattering the glass. The Black Widow enters, firing an electro-burst that paralyzes The Man with No Face while Chin flees. An enraged Namor crashes out of the tank with violence in his eyes. He cuts a swath through the guards, while Bucky and Natalia pursue Chin. They find the mad scientist setting the timer on a device which will release the virus into the atmosphere. Bucky tries to disarm it while Namor battles The Man with No Face whose intangibility makes him a difficult foe to fight. Namor slugs Chin, fatally wounding him just as Bucky rips the deadly canister from the device. The Man with No Face cradles his dying master in his arms—but with his having become tangible to do so, Namor is able to snap his neck. The heroes recover the Torch’s body and destroy the lab. On the way home Bucky explains to Natalia that he had to face his past as the Winter Soldier to prove himself worthy to be Captain America. ("You two are going to make me airsick," is Namor’s reaction.)
Epilogue: Jim Hammond, the Human Torch, is given a hero’s funeral, that Bucky cannot attend for reasons of secrecy. That night he returns in his Captain America uniform to salute his fallen friend—and reveal that his mission was not just to face his past, but to rescue something from the past…for a change.