Little Mogadishu

Not too long ago, this mission run by Josiah X had been destroyed under the orders of the Taskmaster, who paid local street garbage to set fire to it. Josiah tracked down the Taskmaster and defeated him in combat. Shortly after that, he met Steve Rogers and was trained to become the new Captain America.

The mission, however, was not lost. Instead, with some funding from the Maria Stark Foundation as well as Josiah’s personal fortune, they were able to repair the damage and the mission had recently been reopened.

Irenia was a former nun who helped raise Josiah when he was growing up in an orphanage in the fifties. Although now she was getting on in age, she was amazed at how the Super Soldier Serum he inherited from his father kept him in a near-ageless state. She now ran this mission full-time—Josiah’s duties as Captain America kept him away quite a bit. Whether it was missions for SHIELD or the Commission on Superhuman Activities or if he was jet-setting around the world with the other Avengers, it always seemed like he had something else going on.

Irenia knew he cared about this place, though. Josiah had almost single-handedly kept Little Mogadishu from spilling out into complete chaos. Nothing, not even suddenly being handed the reins to the legacy of Captain America, could keep him away from his responsibilities.

The doors opened and a woman ran in. The girl was drenched, didn’t look as if she was more than sixteen. Her blond hair was straggly and stuck to her neck. Her body was covered by a trench coat and she coughed as she stumbled in, putting her hand on the door frame to keep herself from falling.

“Easy child, easy,” said Irenia, coming to the girl’s side. The young woman shook her head, her eyes filled with fear.

“No…don’t understand…” she said. There was an accent in her voice. Eastern European, Irenia thought. “They come for me…”

“Who?” asked Irenia. “Who’s coming for you?”

The girl tried to speak but instead, she just vomited. Irenia watched in shock but quickly composed herself and helped the girl over to a cot, sitting.

“It’s okay, let’s get you out of those wet clothes,” she said. Irenia removed the coat and gasped. The girl looked as if she had barely been eating. And her clothes—a tiny skirt, tall leather boots and a tight shirt that she was almost spilling out of. There were track marks on her arm and Irenia started to realize just what was happening here.

“I…I get away,” said the girl and then started to laugh a little. “They say they kill me, kill my family, but I get away.”

“Who did this to you?” asked Irenia.

“The bad men,” she said. “They promise, say they take me to America, say I have good job. They say me and my family, we will be taken care of. I will make money. But they lie. They not say…what I have to do here.”

Irenia went to a small closet and pulled out a robe. “Here, take off those clothes and put this on.”

The girl nodded and did as she was told, then sat down on the cot, looking down at her bare feet.

“Okay, you just lay there and get some rest, dear,” said Irenia. “I’m going to get you some blankets, I’ll be right back.”

The girl grabbed Irenia’s hand as she began to move away. “Please! You don’t send me back! You protect me, yes? You help me?”

Irenia knelt down by the girl and lightly kissed her forehead. “Yes, I promise I’ll help you.”

“Bless you.”

“What’s your name, child?”

“Anna.”

“Don’t worry, Anna. I’ll get you some help.”

The girl smiled as she laid her head down. Irenia went to the next room and came back with some blankets, laying them over the girl, tucking her in. She walked over to the desk and picked up the phone receiver that sat there, quickly dialing a number.

“Josiah, it’s me,” she said upon hearing the voice on the other end. “There’s someone here I think you should meet…”

THE AMERICAN NIGHTMARE

Part I

By Dino Pollard

Josiah sat in silence as he listened to Anna’s story, his eyes hidden behind the round sunglasses he wore. She told him about growing up in poverty in the Ukraine and how opportunities for women like her were few and far between. She told him about her uncle, who said he knew people. People that could help her get to America, people who would set her up with a good job and a nice place to live. And in time, she could save up enough money to afford to bring her mother over as well.

“America was to be land of opportunity,” said Anna, fixing her gaze on the cup of tea Irenia had fixed for her. “It was to be dream come true. Instead, it has been nightmare.”

“How long have you been here?” asked Josiah.

“One year, I think,” said Anna. “Hard to tell.”

Josiah took off his sunglasses. “Anna, I know this is difficult…but I need you to tell me about the men who brought you here.”

“We come by boat,” she said. “Then we are taken in trucks. It seemed to take forever. Once we come to New York, we are put in house. Ten of us in house, five in each room. Rooms are small. I think I am oldest girl there.”

“Do you know who runs the house?”

She shook her head. “Some bitch. Her and her sons run it together but we never know their names. We are to call her Mother but I never do. Her boys, she doesn’t tell us what to call them. There are five of them. They are big and they…”

Anna paused and shut her eyes. Josiah reached his hand across the table and set it on hers and she pulled away. She almost choked as she spoke the next sentence. “…they said they were breaking us in for customers.” Sobs began to squeeze out of her tiny body. “Said they must sample merchandise.”

“By all that’s holy…” muttered Irenia from the corner of the room.

Anna held back the sobs for just a moment and then she told them more. “One girl, she begged. Said she was virgin. And they…” The sobs began to come back and her voice rose in pitch, cracking as tears streaked down her face. “…they said those are best to break. She got it worse than us. For three days, she could not walk.”

Josiah looked up at the woman who basically raised him. “Irenia, could you get some water?”

Irenia slowly nodded and left the room. Josiah didn’t want her to hear any more of this horror show. Once she left, Josiah looked at Anna. “This is hard, I know. But I need you to give me more details.”

“There were many customers…sometimes ten in a day. Mostly, we see them alone. But sometimes, we were taken to other places. For…parties. Those were the worst.”

“Tell me about the marks.”

Anna rubbed the marks on her arm. “They stick us with needles. Make us take drugs. Keep us quiet. Keep us from running.”

“How did you get out?”

“One customer, he very drunk,” said Anna. “Fell asleep while in me. And then, I am able to go out the window. I run. I run in the rain, until I cannot go any more. And then I find this place.”

“Do you know how far you ran?” asked Josiah.

“I don’t know.”

“Do you remember what the area looked like?”

“I remember a place. Sign with big red lights. Every night, the light kept us up. Always on, never off.”

“What did the sign say?” asked Josiah.

“Laundry something, I think.”

“Okay,” said Josiah. He looked up at her once again. “Listen, I have to take care of some things. So I’m going to have Irenia take you somewhere else, somewhere safe. Somewhere with a nice bed where you can relax, understand?”

“You will go there, yes?” asked Anna.

“I’ll meet you there, yes.”

“No,” said Anna. “I mean you will go…there.”

Josiah didn’t say anything and Anna looked down.

“If you don’t want to say, you don’t have to.” Slowly she looked up and her blue eyes burned with hatred. “But if you do…kill those monsters.”

Josiah exited the room and saw Irenia waiting for him. She gave him an inquisitive look and he just shook his head. “You don’t want to know.”

“What will we do now?” asked Irenia.

“Take her to the house, keep her there,” said Josiah. “Get her whatever she wants—food, clothes, anything. Just put it on one of the cards.”

“Josiah…”

“It’s happening here, Irenia,” he said. “Slavery, right in my own neighborhood. I’m not going to let this continue.”

“I know, I understand,” said Irenia. “But I want you to remember, you are a part of something greater than yourself. You want to stop this and you should. But do it theright way. Prove that you’re better than they are.”

Josiah sighed, feeling just how heavy that shield he used in battle really could be. Irenia looked at him with concern. “Please…”

“I don’t know if I can. Not against monsters like this.”

“If you couldn’t, he never would have chosen you,” said Irenia.

He nodded. “When you get her to the house, call Sharon.”

“Isn’t this a bit small for SHIELD to deal with?” asked Irenia. “Why not call the police?”

“Because I’m not sure if they can be trusted,” said Josiah. “An operation like this, they might have some people inside the department. Call Sharon.”

The old woman paced in front of the window, a cigarette held between her wrinkled lips. She heard the door open and turned, looking at the two large men who entered.

“Niko, Dmitri, what have you found?”

“Nothing, Mama,” said Niko. “She has not gone to the police and we check bus stop, no one see her.”

“Did you check shelters?” she asked.

“Yes, we check shelters, too,” said Niko.

“Not all shelters,” said Dmitri.

“What do you mean? Why not all shelters?”

“It is raghead shelter, Mama,” said Niko. “Whites not welcome in Mog. The blacks, they kill any whites who go there.”

“What, you afraid of niggers?” asked the woman. “I thought I raised men, not little girls! Maybe I should send those whores upstairs to go look for her! Maybe they have bigger balls than you do!”

“Mama please, if she go there, she already damaged,” said Dmitri. “She no good to us.”

The woman slapped Dmitri and then Niko. “We are professionals! We do not leave loose end!” She pointed an accusatory finger at them both. “Now you go there now and you find her! If you don’t, then niggers least of your worries!”

CRASH

The two men pulled their mother to the ground as the window shattered and a round object flew into the house. It ricocheted off the wall and flew back into the hand of the man who threw it. The three of them looked up and saw the form of Captain America standing in front of the now-shattered window, a look of righteous anger on his face.

“Niko, you see who that is?” asked Dmitri. “That is new Captain America.”

“This operation is closed. You can either cooperate and come along peacefully, or I can drag you out kicking and screaming,” said Captain America. “The choice is yours.”

“Maybe we should do what he says…” said Dmitri.

“You are a disgrace,” said the old woman. “Kill him!”

Niko and Dmitri both drew their .45s and opened fire. Captain America brought the shield in front of his body and the bullets bounced off the indestructible red, white and blue surface. Captain America leapt forward, and landed briefly before springing up again, swinging one leg around in a roundhouse kick that knocked Dmitri off his feet. Niko tried to shoot him from behind, but Captain America wrapped his arm around the one Niko used to hold the gun and twisted, the arm breaking with a crack. Captain America turned and slammed the shield against Niko’s skull.

Gunfire erupted again and Captain America brought the shield up in defense once more, the gunshots accompanied by the sounds of cursing in Russian. Captain America glanced past the shield to take stock of his attackers. Two were on the staircase while one stood just behind the door frame leading into the living room. He stayed behind the shield until he heard the sound of guns clicking. They were out and now was his chance.

He threw the shield first at the two on the staircase. The one who was further down jumped to the side, landing at the foot of the stairs. His brother wasn’t so lucky, the shield struck him square in the chest before it flew back. In the instant it would take for the shield to reach him, Captain America had already sprung forward and taken the gun from the man behind the door frame and used it to pistol-whip him. Once he dropped the gun, he raised his arm and grabbed the shield.

CHK

“Haha, I have you now, Mr. America,” said the remaining man.

“Actually…” His foot shot out and struck the man between the legs. “It’s Captain America.”

He elbowed the man, fracturing the bastard’s nose and then kicked his legs out from under him before he stomped on his chest one final time for good measure. “And next time you try to shoot someone, make sure you don’t get too close.”

He looked back into the living room and saw the old woman getting up. Captain America hurled his shield and it became lodged in the front door she was about to exit from. She gasped and looked back at him and he pointed an accusing finger at her.

“Don’t even think about leaving,” he said. “You and I have some things to discuss.”

Later

The old woman and her sons were escorted into a paddy wagon in handcuffs. The nine remaining girls were loaded into ambulances and taken to the nearest hospital to have a check. Captain America stood by the entrance to the house, glaring at the old woman and her sons as they were carted off.

“Cap.”

He faced Agent Sharon Carter as she approached with a man dressed in a suit talking on a cellular phone.

“Sharon. Thanks for coming.”

“Not really my department,” she said.

“I know, I wasn’t sure who else to call.”

“It’s fine, I understand.” She sighed. “We have a problem, though.”

“What sort of problem?” asked Captain America.

“I’d like you to meet Agent Nielsen with the INS,” said Sharon.

Nielsen put his phone inside his jacket pocket and offered his hand. “Captain, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“You…” When Captain America held out his hand to shake, Nielsen just slipped him his business card. “…too.” He looked at the card then back at Nielsen. “What’s the problem?”

“The problem is these girls are illegal immigrants,” said Nielsen. “We’re deporting them back to the Ukraine, including the one who came to your mission.”

“You can’t do that,” said Captain America. “These women are in danger. This was just one part of a larger operation, one that began in the Ukraine. You send them back there, you’re sending them right back to the same fate. They may not even survive, if they turn up, it might be assumed they’re responsible for talking to someone.”

“We don’t have a choice in the matter,” said Nielsen. “I’m sorry Captain, but the law’s the law. And we can’t legally permit these women to stay in the country. They don’t have visas, hell they don’t even have passports.”

Nielsen’s phone began to ring. He took it from his pocket and checked the call ID. “So sorry, but I have to take this. Listen, call me if you have any questions, it was great meeting you.”

“The pleasure was all yours,” muttered Captain America as he crumpled the business card.

“Josiah…”

“Don’t start, Sharon,” he said. “You know as well as I do what will happen if those women go back to their homes.”

“What else can you do?” asked Sharon.

One Week Later

Irenia opened the door and saw the scowling face of Henry Peter Gyrich staring back at her. She leaned against the frame. “Is there something I can help you with, Mr. Gyrich?”

“Where’s Bradley?” asked Gyrich.

“He’s busy.”

Gyrich adjusted his glasses and pushed past Irenia, forcing his way into the house. “Hey, what do you think you’re doing?”

“My job,” said Gyrich. “And unless you want to end up in handcuffs, you’ll shut your mouth, understand?”

“Gyrich!”

The red-headed man looked to the top of the stairs as Josiah descended the steps, hands stuffed into the pockets of his slacks. He approached the smaller man, staring down into his face.

“While you’re in my home, you will show Irenia the respect she deserves. To do otherwise is hazardous to your health.”

“Why’s that? You gonna hit me?” asked Gyrich.

“I didn’t say I would do a damn thing.” Josiah cracked a little smile. “But Irenia here…let’s just say she prepared me for boot camp with all the beatings she used to give me. And you don’t have the benefit of a Super Soldier Serum running through your veins.”

“Cute,” said Gyrich.

Josiah walked past Gyrich and sat down in one of the chairs in the living room. “What do you want?”

“I got a call from Agent Nielsen over at INS,” said Gyrich. “You know who that is?”

“We’ve met, yes.”

“He told me all about your act of vigilantism last week.”

“Last I checked, Captain America was still permitted to stop crimes.”

“That’s right and I’ve got no problem with what you did, you can shut down all the whorehouses you want.” Gyrich came and stood in front of Josiah’s chair. “What I dohave a problem with is what you’re planning to do.”

“And what would that be?” asked Josiah.

“Nielsen said you seemed pretty upset about those girls getting deported.”

“I took them out of the frying pan and he tossed them right back into the fire. So you’re damn right I’m upset.”

“Nielsen is under the impression you might be traveling overseas,” said Gyrich.

“And?”

“Word of advice: don’t.”

“Are you restricting my travel now, Gyrich?” asked Josiah.

“You’re not some masked vigilante, Bradley—you’re Captain America,” said Gyrich. “And now, not only do you represent America but you’re also a bona fide diplomat thanks to your Avengers status. So if you go into another country and start busting heads, you could very well create an international incident.”

“Silly me, and here I thought the world wouldn’t mind if a few slavers ended up behind bars,” said Josiah.

“Yeah well, these are very powerful people with very powerful friends,” said Gyrich. “To some people you can very easily put a price on human life. And as long as the money’s flowing, it doesn’t matter who gets hurt in the process.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” said Josiah. “Thanks for stopping by, Gyrich.”

Gyrich walked towards the door, but paused as he opened it. “Bradley…” He looked down at his feet and shut his eyes momentarily. “Ever have those moments when you hate your job?”

“Doesn’t everyone?” asked Josiah.

“You just got to witness one of mine.” Gyrich walked out the door and slammed it behind him.

From the window, Josiah and Irenia watched as Gyrich walked to his car before driving off. Irenia looked up at the man she helped raise, who remained stoic. “You’re still going, aren’t you?”

“Do you even have to ask?”