The chaos within the U.S. military had always remained a mystery.
S.H.I.E.L.D.
Director Nick Fury straightened up, his eyes sharp.
"So… it's finally coming?"
He had been waiting for this day for a long time.
More than anything, he wanted to know—
How did Captain America reappear seventy years later?
In other words,where exactly had Captain America been all those seventy years?
If the video could reveal that—
It would greatly help them locate Captain America.
Stark Tower
Tony narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression serious.
"Captain America…"
"You and your best friend, Bucky, both reappeared seventy years later—right now."
"So…"
"Does that mean as long as I know where you show up in the video—"
"I'll know where Bucky is now?"
Tony spoke quickly, then summoned JARVIS.
"JARVIS, record everything in this video carefully."
"When this is over, we'll analyze it frame by frame."
On the Screen
The video continued.
[Inside a hospital room.]
Captain America slowly opened his eyes to the sound of a radio.
He was utterly confused about how he was still alive.
He sat up slowly.
The walls were painted a mix of dark green and white.
The sheets were spotless.
A ceiling fan spun overhead, creaking softly.
Outside the window, everything was unnervingly quiet.
Inside the room,only the radio played—
Broadcasting a baseball game.
The radio itself looked brand new.
Captain America scanned his surroundings.
Everything looked too perfect.
So perfect that he began to doubt his own existence.
At that moment—
A woman who looked remarkably like Agent Carter entered the room, wearing a white blouse.
Woman:"Good morning. Or… good afternoon."
Captain America:"My God… where am I?"
Woman:"You're in a post-operative recovery room in New York."
Captain America stared at her face—
That familiar resemblance stirred an indescribable sense of resistance in his chest.
The radio continued playing.
Radio:"The Dodgers are leading eight to four! What an incredible game!"
The unease in Captain America's heart grew stronger.
Captain America:"Where is this?"
The woman smiled awkwardly.
Woman:"I'm not sure what you mean."
Captain America:"That game is from May 1941."
"I know—because I was there."
The smile vanished from the woman's face.
She froze.
Captain America stood up.
His muscles radiated a powerful presence.
Captain America:"I'll ask again—where am I?!"
Without a word, the woman discreetly pressed a remote in her hand.
She glanced at him nervously.
Woman:"Captain Rogers…"
Seeing her stall for time, Captain America raised his voice.
Captain America:"Who are you?!"
At that moment—
Two armed guards entered, wearing black uniforms that clearly didn't belong to the 1940s.
Before they could speak—
Bang!
Both were shot dead.
Captain America was stunned.
He realized he had been in something resembling a film set.
There was no time to think.
He ran.
As he fled, he found himself inside a structure far beyond his understanding—or imagination.
The unfamiliar surroundings made him deeply uneasy.
He shoved aside people who tried to stop him and burst out onto the street.
Blinding neon lights.
Deafening horns.
Crowds surging everywhere.
Massive digital screens covered buildings.
Everything screamed one truth—
He was in the future.
At that moment—
Several black sedans pulled up in front of him.
A Black man with an eye patch stepped forward.
Nick Fury:"Easy, soldier."
Director Nick Fury approached and spoke calmly.
Nick Fury:"I apologize for what just happened, but…"
"We thought it best you adjust to this slowly."
Captain America stared at him, confused.
Captain America:"Adjust to what?"
Nick Fury:"Captain… you've been asleep beneath the ice for about seventy years."
Though unbelievable, Captain America looked around at the world clearly far beyond his era—
And reluctantly accepted the truth.
Nick Fury noticed the panic in his eyes.
Nick Fury:"You okay?"
Captain America's expression turned complicated.
Captain America:"I'm fine. It's just…"
"I missed a date."
S.H.I.E.L.D.
Nick Fury suddenly understood.
So that was the truth behind Captain America's unchanged appearance.
He had been frozen beneath the ice for seventy years.
That explained everything.
Black Widow spoke up.
"Director, if Captain America is still frozen beneath the ice, doesn't that mean we can find him quickly—if we focus our efforts there?"
Fury shook his head.
"Captain America is beneath the ice."
"But searching is still extremely difficult."
"Just like before, I had Coulson lead several teams to the area where Captain America disappeared."
"So far, we've received no useful information."
"You know, ice fields, jungles, deserts—"
"They're all the same."
"Too few landmarks. It's incredibly hard to orient yourself."
"So even with a general direction, the odds of finding Captain America are still very slim."
"Decades ago, Howard—his friend—conducted massive search operations."
"All he found was the Tesseract."
"Captain America was never located."
"That alone shows how difficult this is."
He paused, then continued.
"But on the bright side…"
"At least we know the direction."
"And we know Captain America isn't dead."
"As long as we commit enough manpower, I believe we will find him eventually."
Black Widow understood his explanation—
Yet one question remained.
"Why are you so determined to find Captain America?"
Hawkeye rubbed the tip of an arrow beside him and answered calmly.
"Natalia, you were trained in the Red Room from childhood—"
"As a living weapon."
"You lack emotional attachment. It's normal that you don't understand this."
"What I want to say is…"
"A nation's true strength doesn't lie in weapons or population."
"It lies in spirit."
"Captain America is one of the greatest symbols of our national spirit."
"If Captain America is found and revealed to the public again—"
"The morale boost would be immeasurable."
"After all…"
"The return of a hero who exists only in history—"
"Is itself a beautiful story."
"Don't you think so, Natasha?"