The Swordsman removed his helmet and revealed the handsome face of Andreas Von Strucker. He stood before a round table that bore the familiar skull and tentacles symbol of Hydra. Around the table were twelve of Hydra’s top commanding officers. Behind the Swordsman stood both the Wizard and Blizzard, arms crossed over their chests.

“My father is dead, beheaded at the hands of one of his own men,” said Andreas. “The latest to don the Crimson Dynamo armor.”

“You’ll have to forgive us, this is all a bit surprising, Andreas,” said one of the commanders. “Especially since you and Blizzard have both been active with Zemo’s Thunderbolts for the past few months.”

“You question my loyalty to my family at your own peril,” said Andreas.

“It’s not your loyalty we’re questioning, Herr Strucker, we would just like a better understanding of the situation,” said another commander.

“Very well,” began Andreas. “When Zemo first set his sights on Hydra, I was asked by my father to infiltrate the Thunderbolts in the guise of the Swordsman. The Wizard here was my only contact within Hydra and together, the two of us surmised that Zemo had a mole within my father’s organization. Once the Wizard discovered it was the Dynamo, he had tried to string both him and Zemo along with disinformation but it apparently wasn’t enough. During the invasion of Castle Zemo, everything went out of control. The Wizard provided a teleport gate through which I and Blizzard traveled through in order to confront the Dynamo. Unfortunately, we were too late. As we arrived, we witnessed the Dynamo…behead my father. In retaliation, I took the Dynamo’s life myself.”

“How is that possible?” asked a commander. “Even with your abilities and your swordsmanship, how could you have killed a man with the power of an army?”

“You’re forgetting I was the one who reconfigured the Dynamo armor for Baron Strucker,” said the Wizard. “I had a failsafe implanted in the armor but by the time we realized what the Dynamo was doing, I couldn’t implement it. It has a limited range and we only got in range once he killed the Baron.”

“Following this, Zemo’s other lapdog, MACH-IV, traveled through the teleport gate as well,” said the Swordsman, ignoring the digression. “And Blizzard killed him.”

“Do we have any way to confirm this story?” asked a commander.

“The security footage was fried, possibly as a result of the Wizard’s failsafe,” said another.

“I saw something.”

The Hydra commanders looked to this man sitting at the table. Blizzard took a step forward, his fists clenching and the circuitry in his suit beginning to generate sub-zero temperatures. The Swordsman could feel the drop and raised his hand to his subordinate, a signal for him to relax—for now.

“I was in a control room at the time. I heard something outside and I saw the Dynamo dashing past and I saw him followed by the Wizard and the Swordsman.”

“And then?” asked a commander.

The man shrugged. “And nothing. That’s all I saw.”

One of the commanders stood. “I’ve heard enough. We have suffered a massive loss this day, but fortunately, the heir to the throne has stepped up to claim his birthright.” He raised his arm. “Hail Hydra!”

The other commanders followed his example, all of them thrusting their arms in the air and cheering out, “Hail Hydra!”

And the Swordsman smiled.

MASTERS AND SLAVES

Epilogue

By Steve Seinberg and Dino Pollard

A few days following the invasion and James Sanders and Edward Lavell—known respectively as Speed Demon and the Eel—both found themselves still in the fortified Hydra base.

“Unicorn?” asked Lavell.

“He’s staying on,” said Sanders. “Seriously, where else would a total fucking loon like him go? The man’s got no cred in the merc business these days, he’s still operating in that Cold War mentality. No one trusts guys like that, all living in bomb shelters and stocking up on spam.”

“What about the others, the Wrecking Crew, the Man-Ape, the Rhino?” asked Lavell.

“All bolted. Got their money and left. Heard something about the Wrecking Crew causing some trouble in New York recently, but that’s it,” said Sanders. “And Graviton? Who knows what the hell’s up with that guy. I hope he’s gone. Guy’s like Hannibal Lecter’s unpleasant cousin.”

“Got a visit from Wittman today,” said Lavell. “He told me Strucker wants me to stay onboard with Hydra.”

“Yeah, told me the same thing,” said Sanders.

“What do you think?”

“I dunno…I mean, the Baron wasn’t exactly the best boss I ever had. But the Swordsman doesn’t seem much better. It’s the way he looks at you…like he’s already figured out fifty different ways to kill you.”

“Yeah, but it’s a good gig, especially since that deal with the Masters fell out,” said Lavell. “I dunno man, I think I’m gonna stay. Seems like every week, there’s a new team of superheroes out there. Makes it tough for a guy like me to make a dishonest living.”

“I hear you there,” said Sanders.

“Plus, there’s something else. You hear about Gill?”

“Gill? You mean Blizzard?”

“Well, he was Blizzard.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I play poker with some of the tech guys who work for Wittman,” said Lavell. “They tell me they’re working on something for Gill, something big. Kind of a reward I guess for him helping out the Swordsman.”

“Really?” asked Sanders.

“Seems like the kid knows how to reward good behavior a lot better than the old man. And that’s not all. The tech guys say that they’ve been doing some work on the Dynamo armor, fixing it up and whatnot. Seems Strucker’s already got someone in mind to pilot it. If we stick around, pull our weight, maybe Strucker will reward us, too.”

“Think you sold me on it, Eddie,” said Sanders. “I believe I’ll be a company man for a little bit longer.”

Castle Zemo

Baron Zemo stood before the video screen displaying the image of the Swordsman, the Wizard and Blizzard standing before the Hydra symbol. Zemo had almost completely recovered from the wounds he sustained in the battle with Graviton. And now, he spoke with his former charge with his own lieutenants—the Abomination, the Radioactive Man and the Fixer—flanking him.

“You’ve done well, Andreas,” said the Baron. “But now, the time has come for you and Blizzard to return to the Castle.”

“That wouldn’t be wise, Baron. Not at the moment,” said the Swordsman. “It took some time, but I’ve been able to convince Hydra’s commanders that the Dynamo was in fact your mole within Hydra and that I was spying on you for my father. If I start running off, they may suspect something. As of now, they believe I had to blow my cover so I could attempt to save my father. But for now, we must step carefully. My apologies Baron, but you’ll have to trust me on this. Soon, Hydra will be at your full disposal but until then, we must be patient.”

The feed was cut and the screen went black. Zemo turned to face his own lieutenants to gauge their reactions to this turn of events. “This has been…unexpected. Fixer?”

“Could be a number of things,” said Ebersol. “Either he’s telling the truth and he really is being watched, in which case he’s right, we have to lay low for now. Or he’s lying and he really was working for Hydra this whole time. Or he’s telling the truth, but is afraid you’ll kill him on sight because you suspect he’s lying.”

“Dr. Chen? Emil?”

“The Swordsman makes me uneasy,” said the Radioactive Man. “But until I have more information, I can’t really make a judgment on his actions.”

“I don’t trust him,” said the Abomination. “But a key aspect of intelligence-gathering is counter-intelligence. Even if he can’t be trusted, he can still prove useful to your goals. Bottom line is this—Strucker is dead and his son is now in control of Hydra’s vast resources. We don’t have to trust him, but he can be very useful to us and we, in turn, can be very useful to him.”

“My thoughts as well,” said Zemo. “For now, we will follow the Swordsman’s plan and remain patient. But still vigilant. Meanwhile, we have another matter to worry about—Octavius.”

“He vanished in the aftermath of the invasion,” said the Fixer. “Which means Bullseye’s not as good as he wants everyone to believe.”

“Or that Octavius is simply better than expected,” said the Abomination.

“Octavius mentioned that Strucker had leverage on him, forced him to reveal our location,” said Zemo.

“You don’t believe him, do you?” asked the Fixer.

“Of course not, Octavius was covering his back. My guess is Strucker reneged on whatever deal they had and Octavius knew his only chance to live would be to try and weasel his way out of it by currying my favor.”

“Do you want us to track him down?” asked the Abomination.

“No, not for now,” said Zemo. “Because of his actions, we’ve already had to relocate the Castle. We haven’t the time nor the energy to spare to search for him, but I want everyone to remain vigilant. Octavius has just become a high priority for me, and he will remain that way until his heart stops beating.”

The Tiger Shark swam beneath the waves near a small island in the Caribbean, enjoying the feel of the warm water. He had often come to this little grotto for some rest and after the invasion of Castle Zemo, he felt the need more than ever.

But a sound came through the waves. The Tiger Shark knew what it was and swam to the surface. Once his head broke through the water, he saw two figures standing on land. He swam towards them and pulled himself up.

“Good to see you again, Todd,” said the Living Laser.

“A pity about Zemo,” said Klaw. “An interdimensional castle, an army of bloodthirsty shock troops, and Hydra was still able to invade. Are you willing to accept the truth about him yet?”

“Another pitch, then?” asked Tiger Shark.

“Look Todd, you know what’s going to happen with Zemo because it happens every single time,” said the Living Laser. “He’s got these delusions of grandeur. His father was the same way. So was Strucker. And look where they are now.”

“We all know no one will be able to conquer the world. If the Red Skull couldn’t hold onto the world long enough even when he had all that power, what makes you think Zemo will be any different?” asked Klaw. “Fact is, our leader isn’t blinded by megalomania or dazzled by a handful of shiny, magic rocks. No, our leader is smart enough and dedicated enough to stay focused on the ultimate goal.”

“Think about it, Todd. Seriously,” said the Living Laser. “Because this window? It won’t stay open forever. Sooner or later, you have to choose a side.”

“Where the hell have you been, Frank?” asked the Wizard, sitting in front of a video screen.

“I’ve been busy,” said Graviton. “Tell your new boss that I’m tendering my resignation, effective immediately.”

“But why so soon?” asked the Wizard. “Look, the Swordsman knows what he’s doing. You’ll get the kind of respect and treatment you deserve from him and he can help you get whatever you want.”

“There’s only one reason I helped Strucker in the first place. His idea was stupid and his death is proof of that. But I got what I wanted and now, if his son knows what’s good for him, he’ll lose my number.”

Graviton stood and turned away from the monitor. From his end, the Wizard watched as he saw a young, blond woman unconscious, one whom Graviton went to and lifted in his arms.

“Frank, is that Moonsto—”

The feed suddenly went black and the Wizard sighed. “That can’t be good…”

Castle Zemo

Melissa Gold sat on the roof of the castle, holding a photograph in her hands, tears in her eyes. The photo was of her and Abe Jenkins. The Swordsman told her that Abe had been killed but he refused to divulge any details. And Zemo’s failure to push him for any angered Songbird.

“Mel…”

She turned her head and looked over at Clint Barton. He was dressed in his Hawkeye uniform, but his mask was off and he held a beer in each hand. He handed one to her and she offered a weak smile as a thank you.

“You talk to Watkins?” she asked.

“That’s one way of putting it,” said Clint. “Made contact and he told me to fuck off. The V-Battalion signed up with Hydra so they could take out Zemo. Now, not only is Zemo still alive but the Swordsman is running Hydra. It’s been a lose-lose for them. For me, too.”

“What do you mean?” asked Songbird.

“I thought I could do some good here, steer the Thunderbolts to something more. But now I realize that’s not gonna work.”

“So you’re just going to let Zemo run free?” asked Songbird.

“So far, Zemo hasn’t been a threat to anyone except the bad guys. Maybe we’re better off just letting them fight amongst themselves for a bit.” Clint sighed. “I know it won’t last and I know we’ll need to come after them sooner or later. But right now, there are other things to worry about. Cap’s dead, the Avengers seem to have their hands full, and maybe staying here is counter-productive.”

Clint took a sip from his beer. “I’m going back to the Avengers, Mel.”

Melissa looked down as she sipped her beer. “I see…”

“And I want you to come with me.”

She turned to him in shock. Melissa opened her mouth to speak but for once, her voice completely failed her.

“I’m going to sponsor you for Avengers membership,” said Clint. “You’re not a Thunderbolt—not the current definition of one, anyway. It’s where you belong, Mel. So, what do you say?”

“I’ll do it.”

NEXT: Cold Snap