Andreas Von Strucker sat behind his desk, feet perched up on the surface. The Swordsman helmet sat at the corner. Mounted on the wall behind him over the Hydra symbol were the twin blades he used while in battle.

“I’m pleased you chose to accept my invitation. Over the past few years, you’ve done some fine work for my father. Your file shows you’ve amassed one of the highest kill counts of any assassin we employ. From overthrowing heads of state to taking out law enforcement agents pursuing us. Quite impressive indeed.”

“Thank you.” The athletic black woman who sat in the chair before Strucker had tattoos which seemed tribal in origin over her face. She took Strucker’s words in stride—she didn’t need him to bolster her ego.

“You were quite loyal to my father, weren’t you?” asked Andreas.

“No,” said Dakini. “I was loyal to Hydra. Still am. Wolfgang wasn’t going to be in charge forever and it was only a matter of time before he died. You’re here to carry on the family legacy and that’s fine by me. What I want to know is what exactly do you want with me?”

“I think you already know the answer to that.”

“Mention was made of a job that I’ve wanted for some time, but the details were scarce. I didn’t want to assume anything until I heard it direct from you,” said Dakini. “So what’s the verdict, boss?”

“I can assure you, the mission is yours, Dakini. Cassandra Romulus is simply too dangerous and too much of a wild card to risk allowing to live. You are to track her down immediately and eliminate her.”

Dakini attempted to contain her excitement. The last time she faced Romulus, she barely survived with her life. That wasn’t something she was going to allow to happen again. This time, the tables had turned and Dakini knew she would emerge the victor. “Any idea where I can find her?”

“My father was a very paranoid man, kept tabs on all his top operatives,” said Andreas. “One of those, naturally, was Cassandra. Whenever on leave, she would repeatedly visit a spot along the Champs Elysees. You should go to Paris immediately and search this area for her.”

“What’s so special about this spot?” asked Dakini. “Must have some significance for Romulus.”

“It does. Actually, it’s the spot where Wolfgang first asked her to enter Hydra’s experimental super soldier program. This was the spot where Wolfgang irrevocably changed her life—and yours, come to think of it.”

“You want her gone, consider her gone.” Dakini stood and Andreas called out to her.

“Just a moment, my dear. You haven’t even inquired about payment.”

“This is the one job I’d take for free,” said Dakini.

“Be that as it may, I don’t believe in overlooking good work. Bad for the soul. Hydra will naturally provide all your travel expenses as well as a sum of your choice.”

“That’s a pretty big price tag, Andreas.”

“This is a pretty big hit. Do you accept my terms?”

“I accepted them the minute you called,” said Dakini. “I’ve been waiting a long time to get back at that damn bitch.”

THE ROMULUS GAMBIT

Part II

By Steve Seinberg and Dino Pollard

Mentallo stood in the spot where Zemo had told him to wait, clad in his modified SHIELD bodysuit. He had just concluded his telepathic chat with Cassandra Romulus and now awaited the Thunderbolts to tell him what they thought of his plan.

It was a dangerous game he played and if his ruse were to be uncovered, he knew Zemo wouldn’t hesitate in siccing one of his more volatile Thunderbolts on him. But dangerous was the only way Marvin Flumm knew how to play.

A crackle of energy and a glowing doorway opened, courtesy of Zemo’s moonstones. The Fixer was the first one out, followed by an attractive young blond woman in a form-fitting purple bodysuit. Mentallo had heard of Lady Mastermind, one of Jason Wyngarde’s daughters, but this was the first time he had seen her in person. He half-expected Zemo to emerge from the portal next, but instead was taken aback when he saw the massive, imposing figure of the Abomination. By Blonsky’s side was the savage-looking Tiger Shark, already baring his impressive teeth at the telepath.

“Zemo agrees,” said the Fixer. “Thunderbolts, say hello to Mentallo.”

“It’s a pleasure, I’m sure,” said Mentallo. His eyes passed over each of the Thunderbolts, settling on Regan Wyngarde for a few moments. A slight grin appeared on her face, and the Fixer did not fail to notice that silent connection they seemed to share.

“Where is this Romulus woman?” asked the Abomination.

“Paris, although with the time it took you to get here, we may already be too late,” said Mentallo. “Honestly, interdimensional transportation just isn’t what it used to be.”

“Don’t get cute, Flumm. Just because Zemo thinks you’re worth our time doesn’t mean I do,” said the Fixer. “So if you don’t watch yourself, I might have Tiger Shark here eviscerate you.”

“I’m just letting you know the situation, old buddy,” said Mentallo. “And I can’t help being cute. No more than you can help being an ass.”

“Enough, the both of you. Zemo put me in charge of this mission and I won’t allow either one of you fuck it up,” said the Abomination. “I’ll contact the Baron, tell him we need a transport to Paris.”

“Good,” said Mentallo. “Hope you’re ready for a stakeout, boys and girls.”

Not long after Dakini departed, Speed Demon and the Eel entered the Swordsman’s office to find the new Supreme Hydra standing by the large window and looking out, hands clasped behind his back. He made no effort to face his agents as he spoke to them.

“I trust you were watching?” he asked.

“Just like you said, boss,” said Speed Demon. “That camera feed Wittman set up works like a charm.”

“Good,” said Andreas. “Then you already know where to go and who to watch.”

“Just a question, but why are we watching her?” asked the Eel. “You said it yourself, she’s good at what she does. Don’t think she’ll need the back-up.”

“You’re not back-up, you’re my contingency. Dakini was almost killed once by Romulus. Should she fail again, I need someone waiting in the wings,” said Andreas. “You’re to shadow Dakini, so be very circumspect. But should anything strange happen or should Romulus either evade or kill Dakini, then you are to intervene. Cassandra Romulus is too dangerous to live.”

“No worries, we’ll make sure she’s in the ground. One way or another,” said Speed Demon.

“Good. I don’t think I need to remind you that failure is not an option.”

“Nah, we got it,” said Speed Demon.

Paris

“See anything yet?” asked the Abomination.

“Nope,” said the Fixer. The attachment over his left eye had a telescoping feature that allowed him to zoom in and enhance objects far in the distance. “She hasn’t shown up yet. We’ve been here forever now.”

“I’m going to join Arliss in the river, get a better vantage point,” said the Abomination. “Initiate contact immediately should Romulus turn up.”

“You got it, big guy,” said the Fixer. He looked over his shoulder at Mentallo and Lady Mastermind, who had been quite chatty ever since they settled into their vantage points. It was something that made Ebersol a bit twitchy. Wyngarde was still a bit of an unknown quantity and he had known Flumm well enough to know that the telepath couldn’t be trusted. “Hey Gossip Girls, you picking up anything?”

“Not yet, Norbie. But don’t worry, you’ll be the first to know when we do,” said Mentallo. The Fixer huffed in response.

“So you were once with the Brotherhood?” asked Lady Mastermind.

“Nah, they were the Brotherhood before. I joined up with them for a bit when they started calling themselves the Resistants,” said Mentallo. “Wasn’t really my scene, though.”

“You didn’t know my father then, did you?”

“Mastermind? Only by reputation. But what a reputation! Word has it you’re the good daughter, only one who took his last name and followed the family legacy.”

“My cow of a sister ended up ‘seeing the light’ and started working with those X-types,” said Lady Mastermind.

“What a waste,” said Mentallo. “Of course, ol’ Norbie here knows all about seeing the light. Isn’t that right, Fix?”

“Keep pushing, Marv. Watch what happens,” said the Fixer.

Mentallo grinned. “Ooooh, scary.”

Dakini had gone over her weapons more times than she could remember by this point. Still, she found herself checking them again. For what seemed like the thousandth time. She would never admit it, but she was nervous. Her mind kept going back to that night a few years ago. When she found herself in the middle of a three-way battle between herself, Cassandra and the much-vaunted Captain America. The Living Legend had just knocked the wind out of her and that was when Romulus stepped in and gutted her like a fish.

Once Dakini recovered from the attack, she spent every day training. Preparing for a rematch, pushing herself as hard as she could go. Now, Andreas Von Strucker had finally given her that chance and it was one Dakini planned to take full advantage of.

She was about to go over her weapons once more, but then something caught her eye. Someone on the river. She gathered up her weapons, strapping them to her body and began to move from her vantage point.

Cassandra was here. She had to be. The time for waiting was over.

On a rooftop nearby, the Eel crouched near the legs. Through his binoculars, he watched as Dakini checked over her weapons, admiring the curves of her toned body and happy that her uniform didn’t consist of very much clothing.

“This is ridiculous,” said Speed Demon. He sat with his back pressed against the ledge. “We’ve been here for like eighteen hours. How much longer is it gonna take for this bitch to show her face? I’m getting really bored here.”

“On the plus side, we’re gettin’ a nice show,” said the Eel. “I tell ya, that woman is one fine piece of ass.”

“She’s nothing special,” said Speed Demon.

“Yeah right, like you’ve ever tapped anything that didn’t need a bag over its head or require a major credit card,” said the Eel.

“Well, since you enjoy getting your perv on, why don’t you stay on watch while I take a nap?” Speed Demon laid out on the rooftop and stretched a little, trying to get comfortable.

“Your professionalism is an example to us all.”

“Fuck you.”

“Whoa, Jimmy, hold up,” said the Eel.

“I thought I was pretty clear with the whole ‘fuck you’ bit.”

“Dakini’s on the move.”

The Eel felt a sudden gust of wind and suddenly Speed Demon was at his side, holding his binoculars. “Holy shit, you’re right.”

“Check the walkway, I think I see someone by the river.”

Speed Demon lowered his gaze and sure enough, he saw a young woman with long, green hair walking along the river bank. “That’s definitely Hydra-hair. No sane chick would walk around with that color.”

“That’s gotta be Cassandra,” said the Eel.

Both their heads jerked towards the north. About a quarter mile in that direction was a massive explosion.

The Fixer activated his Tech-Pack’s com-link. “Blonsky, did you see that?”

“Yes, some sort of explosion.”

“Right, but what the hell caused it?”

“Hey geniuses,” said Lady Mastermind, pointing down by the river. “While we were all looking at the explosion, guess who decided to play hide and seek?”

“Blonsky, we’ve got a situation,” said the Fixer as his Tech-Pack began to levitate him in the air. “Romulus is on the move! Repeat: Romulus is on the move!

“Shit!” said Speed Demon. He pointed at the Eel. “Try to see if you can pick up Dakini’s trail! I’ll do a bit of super-speed reconnaissance!”

“We better find her, Jimmy. If we don’t, Strucker’s gonna have our heads.”

“Tell me something I don’t already fucking know!”

With that, the Speed Demon broke off, a streak of black and red zooming around the immediate vicinity to try and locate either Cassandra or Dakini. Meanwhile, the Eel used his binoculars to scan high and low around the explosion, see if he could spot them.

“Tiger Shark and I are on the move, Ebersol. You and the others start scanning the area. See if your Tech-Pack or Mentallo’s telepathy can pick up some sign of where they went.”

“Right, we’re on it,” said the Fixer. He turned around to face Lady Mastermind and Mentallo. “See if you can locate Romulus with a scan. We’ve gotta find her before she has a chance to es—”

Lady Mastermind’s body went limp as a figure moving extremely fast attached her from behind, slamming against her head. Cassandra Romulus stood there, her claws bared as the Fixer’s Tech-Pack responded to the threat, his waldos moving to protect him.

Cassandra leapt at him, her speed too quick for the waldos to provide any sort of protection. She knocked the Fixer onto his back and growled into his face. She brought her claws down, tracing the sharp points of her thumbnails around his eyes, prepared to cut them out.