Wait… Crossbones?
How did he get back with Pierce?
As the plane took off, Pierce sighed, complaining to Crossbones and Sitwell,
"John Garrett was careless. Why bring so many of our people on that mission, especially with the target able to control others?"
He slammed the seat.
"And he didn't kill Steve Rogers, that bastard who should've died long ago!"
Pierce's veins bulged. Decades of hiding, ruined in one night!
But his anger quickly faded. He rubbed his temples, resigned.
"At least we killed the President and Vice Presidents. With the Secretary of Defense as interim President, our operations will be easier.
We'll head to London, meet Madame Hydra, then wipe out S.H.I.E.L.D. in Europe and West Asia before Cap and his team can intervene.
Fortunately, Nick Fury was foolish. He died in S.H.I.E.L.D. without issuing orders to unify its branches.
That idiot did one good thing; otherwise, our mission wouldn't be so smooth!"
As Pierce spoke, Rumlow coughed.
Pierce turned to him. Crossbones, frowning, finally asked,
"Boss, you and Nick Fury were friends and comrades for over thirty years. Are you sad about his death? He never knew it was you, his mentor, who betrayed him."
"Hahaha!!!"
As Rumlow finished, Pierce burst into laughter.
"My heart is for my cause. Friendship means nothing. His death is good, very good!"
Pfft!!!
Before Pierce's laughter faded, Rumlow stabbed his heart.
Rumlow smiled at him, saying,
"Yes, for our causes, our separate causes. Goodbye, Boss!"
Injustice/Chapter Thirty-Four: A Bountiful Harvest
"Fuck fuck fuck!!!"
Sitwell was nearly scared to death by Rumlow.
He jumped up from his seat, retreating while cursing Rumlow.
"Damn it, why did you do this? That was Pierce!"
"Yeah, he was Pierce, the only Snake Head who failed in this operation!"
Rumlow calmly turned, facing Pierce's inner circle with his chest toward their guns.
He spoke coolly,
"Our exposure was sudden, but globally, whether in Europe or Africa, Hydra overwhelmingly defeated S.H.I.E.L.D.
Only we, the American branch, were kicked out by S.H.I.E.L.D.'s remnants. Isn't that Pierce's failure?"
"It's because of Captain America! If other branches faced him, they'd lose worse than us!" Sitwell argued bitterly.
"So what?!!!"
Rumlow countered directly.
"Why didn't we kill Captain America when he first awakened? Knowing he ended Hydra before, yet letting him become the new Hydra's downfall—is this Pierce's destiny?"
"Bullshit!"
Sitwell disagreed, glaring at Rumlow.
"No matter your explanation, we won't be accepted by other branches without Pierce!
Pierce lost, we lost, but he's the leader alongside the other Snake Heads!"
"Hmph, is a dead leader still a leader?"
Rumlow sneered, pulling out his pistol.
"Hey, put down the gun!"
"Don't move, buddy!"
As others panicked, Sitwell sternly shouted at Rumlow.
"What are you doing? Killing me? So you can replace Pierce? Huh huh huh…?!"
Rumlow shoved the gun barrel into Sitwell's mouth.
Sitwell, the bald man, truly panicked.
The cold, bitter taste of the Magnum's barrel left him tongue-tied.
Rumlow's finger twitched on the trigger…
"Wuwuwuwu!!!"
Sitwell clenched his legs. Honestly, he'd even sacrifice his virginity to survive.
Meanwhile, Rumlow continued,
"Hydra once thrived under the Red Skull, but after his disappearance, we lost our former glory, despite prosperity."
He pulled the gun from Sitwell's mouth and hit his head with the butt.
"Both the Red Skull and Pierce proved wisdom isn't enough. We need a powerful leader!"
Sitwell's fear turned to cooperation.
He asked cautiously,
"So, we should trust action elites like you. Only those who handle enemies can handle surprises, right?"
"Right my ass…"
Rumlow shook his head. Sitwell was too stubborn.
Pierce was indeed useless, placing such a man in a high position!
Rumlow then told the elites,
"I can't lead, but I know someone who can. Trust me, with him as our boss, we'll never fail!"
He pulled out his phone and called Heisenberg.
"Ring ring…"
The call went unanswered, embarrassing Rumlow.
The others felt awkward. The plot shouldn't unfold like this!
Shouldn't the call connect, revealing a powerful figure? Then they'd pledge allegiance and rise again?
Why no answer?
"Uh… the boss is probably resting. Even our failure is trivial to him!"
Rumlow forced a save, calling Heisenberg again.
This time, Heisenberg answered.
"Rumlow, give me a reason to be disturbed."
Heisenberg was annoyed—he'd been sleeping.
Rumlow, unfazed, reported,
"Boss, I'm on a plane near New York. Alexander Pierce is dead. Twenty Hydra elites need your guidance!"
"Oh?"
Heisenberg, satisfied, flipped on his chair.
"Find my fight with the Hulk last night. The rest is up to you."
He hung up.
Rumlow smiled, pocketing the phone.
"We have many skilled hackers. Find the Hulk fight video. Your answer is there!"
The hackers quickly found scattered videos, mostly low-quality citizen uploads.
They searched satellite footage and edited the material.
Finally, they reconstructed Heisenberg's fight with the Hulk, shocking the world.
In the video, Heisenberg's powerful punches amazed the agents.
When the Hulk was sent out of New York with the second punch, the agents cheered!
But when the Hulk broke through the atmosphere, hit the Moon, and was sent back to Earth…
The plane fell silent.
At the end, the Hulk turned into Banner, and Heisenberg flipped off the satellite.
"This is our new boss!"
Rumlow declared excitedly.
"He's a true god, beyond words. He'll lead Hydra to new heights!"
Rumlow's face flushed with excitement.
No one minded his rudeness—most were convinced.
The few unconvinced seemed even more excited.
They had to play along!
Rumlow continued,
"Heisenberg, though an alien, shares our traits. His power makes him a god, but he's one of us.
Of course, he's above us, like a deity. Who better to lead Hydra?"
He patted Sitwell's head.
"The Hulk couldn't handle three punches and a kick. Do you think Captain America will trouble our new boss?"
Heisenberg was already their "new boss," accepted by all!
Seeing their silent yet expressive faces, Rumlow knew his short-term goal was achieved.
He took the intercom, ordering,
"We're not going to Europe or Asia. Return to New York, where it all ended, and start anew!"
"Yes, sir!"
The pilot excitedly complied, landing at a port airport once owned by the Kingpin.
Rumlow and the elites merged with the Nuclear Bomb Gang…
...
After being woken by Rumlow, Heisenberg napped again, waking at 11:20 AM.
He got up, glancing at the still-unconscious Banner.
Ugh… what a sleep.
He wrinkled his nose, grabbing a blanket to cover Banner's naked body.
Last night was foolish. Why leave a naked man on his roof?
What if his men saw? They'd misunderstand his preferences!
Heisenberg sighed, grabbing clothes for Banner.
This way, Banner would find them when he woke, avoiding misunderstandings.
With Banner handled, Heisenberg went downstairs, sat on his sofa, and enjoyed lunch.
As he ate, he checked his gains.
And was shocked!
"Host gained 625,477.262 origin units yesterday. Keep it up!"
"What the fuck?!!!"
Heisenberg cursed. What had he done to cause such impact?
625,000 origin units meant he'd altered the fate of at least 600 million people!
Not a joke—600 million!
But then…
The Purple Man exposed Hydra, starting the S.H.I.E.L.D.-Hydra war two years early.
This altered the fates of hundreds of thousands of agents.
Their families and friends—millions affected!
Hydra won in most countries except the US and China.
This victory changed the fate of most citizens in those nations.
The US won, but barely.
The President died—the country was in chaos.
As for China…
Sorry, China's a no-go zone, unmentionable.
In short…
Heisenberg laughed. Earth's population was 10 billion.
He'd harvested 1/15 of the origin units in one go!
The Purple Man was truly virtuous!!!