Meanwhile-
Steve Rogers, after leaving the hospital, was contemplating how he might acquire another dose of the enhancement serum.
Though he had already been injected with the Super Soldier Serum and later with an enhancement serum, neither was obtained through his own means.
The first came from his military selection process, and the latter was administered by Nick Fury to help wake him from his suspended animation.
Currently, the enhancement serum cost an astronomical 3 billion dollars per dose, and even at that price, it was not something easily purchased.
Even if Steve's frozen 70 years of back pay as a U.S. Army Captain were recalculated, bumped up to Colonel or even Brigadier General, it wouldn't cover a fraction of the cost.
As for 084 artifacts, Steve didn't have any on hand. His only valuable possession was his shield, which, so far, had remained indestructible. Be it guns, grenades, Tony's lasers, or even Thor's hammer—nothing had managed to break it.
Of course, if he could find a substitute, that would be ideal.
SHIELD had an abundance of 084 artifacts. Perhaps, if Steve could leverage his missions or merits, he could exchange them for a dose.
It seemed like a reasonable request, especially since Peggy Carter, as one of SHIELD's founders, ought to have some level of access to such resources.
If SHIELD couldn't provide it, Steve wondered if his shield might be an acceptable trade.
However, before making any decisions, Steve needed to confirm one crucial thing: Can the enhancement serum be used on someone over 90 years old?
So far, there were no recorded cases of elderly individuals receiving the serum. Steve figured this question would require consulting someone knowledgeable, like Charles Doyle.
After all, the best enhancement serums currently on the market were produced by the Hidden Leaf Village.
Lost in thought, Steve eventually found himself in front of the Veterans Affairs Office.
Looking up at the building's sign, Steve paused. Since he was already here, he decided to take a look. After all, he'd promised a fellow veteran that he would visit.
Entering the building, Steve noticed people engaged in discussions and saw Sam Wilson giving a talk.
In just a few minutes, the session ended, and Sam, along with other veterans, walked out of the room.
Seeing Sam, Steve greeted him with a smile, "Well, if it isn't the running guy?"
"I caught the last few minutes—good stuff."
Sam, packing up his things, replied with a grin, "Yeah, we all wrestle with the same issues—guilt, regret."
Steve asked, "Did you lose someone close to you?"
Sam took a deep breath before saying, "My wingman, Riley. Night flight mission."
"It was a standard air-drop rescue. We'd practiced it a thousand times, but a rocket took Riley out."
"There was nothing I could do—just watched it happen."
Steve, visibly moved, said softly, "I'm sorry."
Sam continued, "After that, I struggled for a long time, looking for a reason to stay in the fight."
Steve glanced at Sam's notes and asked, "Happy to be back to normal life?"
Sam looked around and said, "Most of the officers who used to give me orders are gone now."
Then, with a faint smile, he added, "Yeah, I guess. What about you—thinking of quitting?"
Steve shook his head, "I'm not sure."
"To be honest, until today, I didn't even know what I'd do if I quit."
"But now, I have a purpose. I know what I need to do."
At that moment, the image of Peggy Carter flashed through Steve's mind.
…
Meanwhile-
Nick Fury left the Triskelion Headquarters, driving toward the SHIELD center.
The car's AI assistant announced:
"Initiating communication encryption protocol."
Nick Fury commanded, "Connect to secure line 0405."
"Confirmed."
The call connected, and Maria Hill's face and voice recognition popped up on the car window's top-left corner.
Maria Hill spoke, "This is Hill."
Nick Fury said firmly, "I need you in Washington. It's serious."
Hill replied, "I need four hours."
"You've got three. Out."
The communication cut off. Just then, Fury's car stopped at a red light.
A police car pulled up beside him. At first, Fury paid it no mind, but then he noticed the two white officers in the car staring at him.
Fury muttered sarcastically, "What? You want to check my ID?"
Rolling his eyes, he turned his head forward, unbothered. Discrimination was everywhere, but luckily, his car bore a SHIELD emblem.
The officers glanced at him, switched on their sirens, and drove off.
When the light turned green, Fury gently accelerated. But in the next instant, a police car suddenly rammed into him from the intersection.
"Boom!"
The violent collision jolted Fury's car, triggering all the airbags to deploy.
The police car in front of him quickly reversed, smashing into his car's front, while another police car hit him from the rear. At the same time, a third car struck him from the right.
Within seconds, Fury was pinned in place by four police vehicles, clearly leaving him no way to escape.
The car AI's voice broke through, "Fractures detected."
The brutal impact left Fury injured—his head hit the airbag, causing a bloody nose, and his right wrist was fractured.
"Recommend administering anesthetic."
Fury quickly grabbed the anesthetic injector and prepared to use it.
At that moment, the police car to his left pulled back, replaced by an armored vehicle. He watched as SWAT officers poured out, fully armed.
The AI warned, "Congressional police units are not deployed in this area."
Fury injected the anesthetic into his arm while surveying his surroundings. All nearby police had exited their vehicles and were aiming their guns at him. SWAT teams, holding assault rifles, zeroed in on his car.
More police cars swarmed in, and alongside the SWAT armored vehicle, there were now six cars' worth of personnel.
Fury barked at the AI, "Get me out of here!"
"Ratatatatat!"
The officers opened fire, raining bullets on Fury's car from all sides.
Thankfully, the car's high-grade armor and bulletproof glass held up, though cracks began to appear under the sustained barrage.
"Power system failure."
Fury growled, "Then reboot the damn thing!"
Amid the relentless gunfire, the screen flashed warnings:
"Armor integrity: 83%, 81%, 80%."
Fury scanned his surroundings again. On the armored truck, four SWAT officers set up a battering ram device outside his passenger-side window.
The AI warned, "Vehicle window integrity compromised."
Fury quipped sarcastically, "Oh, thanks for the heads-up!"
He quickly shifted from the driver's seat to the passenger seat and asked, "How long for the restart?"
"Calculating..."
The SWAT team anchored the battering ram's supports into the ground.
"Boom!"
The battering ram smashed into the window, rocking the car violently.
"Window integrity: 31%."
"Prepare countermeasures," the AI suggested.
Fury snapped, "Hold on!"
"Boom!"
Another impact.
"Window integrity: 19%. Recommend activating countermeasures."
"Not yet!" Fury growled.
"Boom!"
The third hit left the window at 1% integrity, while SWAT officers, guns ready, moved closer, waiting for the glass to shatter so they could finish him off.
As the AI announced the integrity drop, Fury shouted, "Now!"
A compartment between the driver and passenger seats popped open, revealing a quad-barreled machine gun. Fury grabbed the controls and opened fire.
"Ratatatatat!"
The window shattered as bullets sprayed out, taking down the SWAT officers by surprise. Fury turned the machine gun, firing in all directions. He launched a grenade into the armored vehicle, causing a contained explosion.
Another shot hit a police car blocking his way, sending it flipping into the air before exploding nearby.
The officers scattered, ducking behind cover.
The AI reported, "Power system restored."
Fury shouted while firing, "Full speed ahead!"
The car roared back to life. Fury smashed through the cars in front and behind, creating a path forward.
The pursuing officers fired frantically, but the car's armor absorbed the hits, allowing Fury to speed away.
As Fury glanced at his rearview mirror, he yelled at the AI, "Activate the flight function!"
The AI replied, "Flight system damaged."
"Fine! Open the navigation cameras!"
Fury scrambled back into the driver's seat and muttered, "I'll drive."
Meanwhile, the pursuing officers jumped back into their cars, continuing the chase. They couldn't let Fury escape alive.
Fury swerved through the streets, dodging gunfire while searching for a way out.
"Call Agent Hill."
"Communication systems offline."
Hearing that, Fury snapped, "Is there anything on this car that still works?"
The AI answered, "Air conditioning is fully operational."
Fury groaned in frustration but kept driving, trying to evade his pursuers.
The AI suddenly announced, "Traffic congestion ahead."
"Then find me another route!" Fury barked.
"Roosevelt Bridge is gridlocked. Seventeenth Street remains open—three blocks ahead."
With no choice, Fury sped ahead, smashing through cars that blocked his way.
Some officers abandoned their vehicles, firing on foot, but their angle made their shots ineffective.