Almost nobody expected that the very first thing S.H.I.E.L.D.'s cybernetically modified agents would do upon arriving at Times Square was turn on one another.
Just as the agents leveled their long gun barrels and cannon muzzles at Quake—with a clash between shockwave powers on one side and heavy artillery on the other on the verge of erupting—Captain America finally caught up.
Leading the way with his shield as always, this time Captain America hurled it not at Batman, who was directing the superheroes, but straight at Quake.
With a heavy clang, the shield struck Quake squarely on the head, jolting her face to the side, before ricocheting off toward the cybernetic S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.
Clattering seven or eight times in rapid succession, the shield finally arced back through the air into Captain America's hand, caught in a firm grip.
"Cease your actions, Agent," Captain America called out. "This is no time for infighting. We need to stand together..."
Quake interrupted him with a faint, mocking smile. "Captain, you should address me as 'Sir.'"
Captain America frowned. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small metal flask, unstoppered it, and poured the liquid inside over his round shield.
The jet-black paint on the shield rapidly faded away, revealing its true appearance: the iconic red, white, and blue star-spangled shield.
The superheroes' attention had already been drawn over by Quake's arrival and the sudden internal conflict; seeing Captain America strip away the camouflage on his shield sent a wave of commotion through nearly everyone.
"Is that... Captain America?"
"He's still alive?"
Hushed, uncontrollable whispers rippled among the superheroes—even as they actively battled the supervillains from Latveria, and even as Hydra's enhanced soldiers blanketed the area in heavy artillery fire.
"I am Captain America, Steve Rogers," Cap declared. "Everyone, we need to fight side by side."
"It really is Captain America!"
Any lingering doubts vanished. As Captain America revealed his true identity, the cybernetically modified S.H.I.E.L.D. agents responded almost without a moment's hesitation.
The team Captain America had temporarily assembled began drawing closer to him in tacit understanding. Even the Avengers, Wolverine, and the others instinctively rallied to his call.
Growing up in America, these superheroes had spent their childhoods hearing endless tales of Captain America fighting Nazis. Facing a living legend standing right before their eyes, none of them could resist his presence.
Wolverine, Logan, was an exception. Having survived WWII himself, he had not grown up under Cap's shadow.
...However, he had once been a member of the Howling Commandos, a comrade-in-arms who had fought alongside Captain America seventy years ago.
Blade, Black Panther (T'Challa), and Morbius, the Living Vampire turned inquiring glances toward Batman.
Blade operated primarily in Japan, while Professor Morbius was of Greek heritage; both knew of Captain America, but neither was awe-struck to the point of weakness at the mere mention of his name.
Black Panther, T'Challa, hailed from distant Wakanda in Africa; he knew who Captain America was, but he certainly wouldn't blindly follow orders.
"I may not know all of your individual capabilities, but with a formidable enemy before us, I need each of you to give it everything you've got..."
After revealing his identity, Captain America swiftly took over the command that Batman had held moments prior.
Batman merely gave a slight frown, saying nothing.
Instead, Captain America's eyes swept over the heroes, noticing Batman standing beside the knocked-out Shocker.
"Batman, I need..." Captain America instinctively started to issue instructions.
Having operated in New York for some time, Cap was clearly aware of Batman's existence.
Yet before he could finish his sentence, Batman raised his hand, shot out a web-line, and swung away into the distance.
Captain America's awakening is connected to Nathan Garrett and Nick Fury. Garrett has been confirmed as Hydra, while Nick Fury's whereabouts remain unknown.
Within a few breaths, Batman vanished from everyone's line of sight, taking up a vantage point atop the tallest building adjoining Times Square and looking down below.
Is there a possibility that Captain America himself is Hydra? Batman mused, gazing at the figure below that had shrunk into a tiny black speck.
A few seconds later, however, Batman set aside his suspicions regarding Cap's identity for the moment, overlooking the full panorama of Times Square from high above.
The more he observed, the deeper his brow furrowed.
The superheroes in Times Square hadn't fallen into chaos due to Batman's departure, for they had welcomed Captain America as their true pillar.
When Doctor Octopus arrived in haste, his eyes swept around the battlefield, pausing on Captain America for a split second before he immediately connected to an encrypted channel:
"Batman, I have arrived at the battlefield."
"Coordinate with Captain America's command. Make it quick," Batman instructed.
"Where are you?" Doctor Octopus pressed.
"I am observing the battlefield nearby," Batman replied.
"Have you spotted a problem?" Dr. Otto's sharp mind caught on instantly as he asked.
"I'm not sure," Batman admitted, uncertain for once.
"What about Robin, Hulk, and the Lizard...?" Dr. Otto asked.
"I have made other arrangements."
Dr. Otto pressed no further. Despite his glaring lack of combat experience, he fought with extraordinary ferocity—his four mechanical tentacles grabbing, hooking, lashing, and smashing in a fluid, seamless motion, as if he had unlocked a new level of mastery overnight.
Batman noticed this shift as well, but rather than questioning Dr. Otto about the change, he rapidly imprinted the positions of every Hydra soldier and Latverian villain into his mind.
The battlefield was utterly chaotic. Batman was not paying attention to what each individual was doing, but rather analyzing the movement trajectories of the supervillains.
Or perhaps "trajectories" was the wrong term—he was calculating the exact locations where they had initially arrived at Times Square.
Having already fought with the villains for five or six minutes—and having exchanged heavy fire with Hydra's enhanced soldiers before that—none of them were anywhere near their starting positions.
In fact, Batman hadn't even been present during the initial exchange of artillery, and the street surveillance cameras in the area had long since been demolished into wreckage.
Batman could only rely on his own mind and the current positions of everyone present to reverse-engineer their prior coordinates.
He did this for one reason alone: ever since arriving at Times Square, his Spider-Sense had been buzzing with a vague, persistent warning. Unlike before, however, even his Spider-Sense could not pinpoint the precise source of the danger.
The only thing Batman could verify was that this faint, tangible sense of danger seemed inexplicably linked to every single Hydra soldier and every single villain from Latveria.
—Not just the Hydra forces currently gathered at Times Square, but all across Manhattan: those emotionless, hollow-eyed Hydra soldiers who seemed entirely ignorant of fear.
Except, compared to the rest, the crowd assembled in Times Square gave Batman a far more intense sensation.
And that sensation reached its absolute peak the moment Madame Hydra arrived at Times Square leading her Serpent Squad.
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