Chapter Summaries

Evenson intimidated Howitzer into backing down, and Howitzer reviewed Rome’s Tyrant enhancement test results. The two began discussing how Hydra’s squad could withstand a reinforced US Army battalion long enough to find the Obelisk.

• Howitzer’s guards drew their pistols, but Howitzer ordered them to stand down rather than risk losing the Obelisk and provoking Umbrella Corporation.
• Howitzer and Evenson watched Rome’s enhancement test and examined the report, which showed major gains but limited agility.
• Evenson pointed out that Howitzer’s plan to equip the enhanced soldiers with shields and battle axes would not hold off a reinforced US Army battalion.
• Howitzer asked Evenson what equipment or tactics could help the squad survive the attack.

Evenson explained how Hydra should outfit and arm its Tyrant super soldiers, then handed Howitzer the serum in exchange for a Siberia branch mission report dated December 16, 1991. Howitzer accepted the deal, while Evenson warned that Hydra would still owe him if its own mistakes caused the mission to fail.

• Evenson criticized Captain America's combat style, and Howitzer explained that Hydra had treated him as the only available template for super soldiers.
• Evenson recommended fully enclosed armor with tank-grade plates and fire-resistant joints for Rome and the other Tyrants.
• Evenson prescribed dual M60 machine guns, ammunition, grenades, an anti-tank launcher, and an optional aerial bomb for each Tyrant.
• Evenson demanded the Siberia branch mission report dated December 16, 1991, and Howitzer asked for time to obtain it.
• Evenson handed the serum to a researcher and warned Howitzer that Hydra would receive no refund or exemption from payment if improper use caused failure.
• Howitzer asked whether Evenson feared he would default, and Evenson replied that his company's accounting team never let anyone keep a debt unpaid.

After Howitzer met with Evenson, he sent a subordinate to follow him, but the man died suddenly after losing Evenson in an alley. Howitzer suspected a biochemical attack and ordered a hazmat response, while Evenson had actually killed the follower with a Sorcerer curse to warn Howitzer against further surveillance.

• Howitzer convinced himself that Evenson had walked away to keep Umbrella Corporation’s movements secret.
• Howitzer’s subordinate reported that Evenson had vanished in a dead-end alley, apparently disappearing through a sewer entrance.
• The subordinate collapsed and died with his body turned grayish blue and his hair withered yellow.
• Howitzer ordered the body left untouched and summoned the hazmat team, fearing a biochemical virus.
• Evenson revealed that he had used the slow-acting Sorcerer curse Apocalypse Descends to punish the follower and warn Howitzer.

Evenson returned to his shop while Hubbs and Coulson searched the Afghan desert for Tony Stark. Hubbs secretly marked a group of terrorists with magic, and a white-clad man appeared behind them.

• Evenson used a Summoning Stone to return to the shop, changed out of his rented suit, and prepared to begin once Hubbs arrived.
• Coulson patrolled the Afghan desert with Hubbs in a Black Hawk helicopter while the crew searched for Tony Stark.
• Hubbs reacted to the pilot calling him stupid, but Coulson calmed him by giving him dog food.
• Hubbs spat a dark green magical sphere into the desert, where it formed a magic array after the helicopters passed.
• Five armed terrorists emerged from beneath the sand, and a white man appeared behind them, asking them to cooperate.

Coulson was summoned to the command center after a military search team vanished, and he and Colonel Hark investigated a recording that suggested an unknown enemy had attacked them. The base then received a signal from soldiers claiming to be survivors of the attack.

• A messenger woke Coulson and brought him to Colonel Hark in the crowded command center.
• Hark told Coulson that a search team had lost contact after reporting an attack, then played its final transmission.
• Coulson pointed out that the recording contained no reports of explosives or enemy firearms, leading him to suspect the attackers might be Mutants.
• Hark proposed that nuclear radiation had mutated local lizards into monsters.
• A civilian staffer reported receiving a signal from special forces soldiers who claimed to have survived the attack.

Evenson transformed five members of a terrorist search team into demons with Pit Lord blood and enslaved them. He sent them to destroy everything, leaving his next move uncertain.

• Evenson arrived in the Afghan desert and confronted a five-man search team from the terrorist organization holding Tony Stark.
• Evenson used Fear Howl to terrify the team, leaving them paralyzed and incapacitated.
• Evenson summoned Dumen the Voidwalker, who opened the men’s mouths so Evenson could pour in Pit Lord blood.
• The five men transformed into demons, and Evenson used Demon Enslavement to control them.
• Evenson ordered the demons to destroy all living things and everything around them.

Evenson returned from the desert after Dumen cleaned up the Fel Five’s discarded gear and was accidentally left behind, then summoned him back. The Fel Five attacked a US Army search team, shrugging off gunfire as they charged the convoy.

• Evenson ordered Dumen to consume the debris at the Fel Five’s transformation site, and Dumen swallowed everything, including the sand.
• Evenson and Sarah realized Dumen was missing after returning to the shop, so Evenson summoned him back from the desert.
• The Fel Five wandered through the desert for hours before finding a US Army search team of twenty soldiers and five Humvees.
• Captain Kobe warned the convoy as the Fel Five approached, then ordered his soldiers to open fire when they ignored his commands.
• The Fel Five shielded their heads from the bullets and continued charging, their enhanced strength letting them withstand the gunfire.

The Felified Humans overran the US Army convoy, killing soldiers and destroying vehicles as Captain Kobe fled with the lead Humvee. One soldier’s explosive killed a Felified Human, and the chapter ended with another being crushed by a Humvee and finished off with a grenade.

• The Felified Humans charged the convoy after its machine guns ran out of ammunition, and one leaped onto a Humvee and killed its gunner.
• The Felified Humans broke through the soldiers’ formation and killed seven US Army soldiers, prompting Captain Kobe to order a retreat.
• A soldier stuck plastic explosive to a Felified Human and detonated it, killing the creature and setting off a nearby Humvee that knocked the other four down.
• Captain Kobe escaped in the lead Humvee while the Felified Humans attacked the remaining vehicles and killed or trapped their occupants.
• A driver rammed a Felified Human into a boulder, and his passenger shoved a grenade into its mouth, blowing off its head.

Kobe’s surviving search team escaped the Felified Humans but ran out of fuel and had to continue on foot. They found a village, secured supplies and a shortwave radio, and contacted the base to report the attack and request support.

• Kobe told Tracy McGrady, Michael Jordan, LeBron James, and Shaquille O'Neal that their radio antenna was damaged and their Humvee had run out of diesel.
• Kobe ordered the team to remove the M2 machine gun, and Tracy McGrady and Michael Jordan carried it with them as they continued on foot.
• LeBron James spotted a village, and Kobe led the team there after deciding it was likely safe to enter.
• The villagers gave the soldiers water and flatbread after Tracy McGrady and Michael Jordan set up the machine gun.
• Kobe used a shortwave radio to tell the base that he was Sergeant Kobe Bryant, the captain of the Third Search Team, and that only his group had survived the attack.
• A civilian staffer at the base command center reported that they had tracked the signal of the surviving special forces unit.

Kobe reported that five Felified Humans had nearly wiped out his search team, and Phil Coulson questioned him about their abilities. As the survivors came under attack again, Colonel Hark sent a Predator drone, whose footage shocked the command center.

• Colonel Hark contacted Kobe, who reported that only five members of the Third Search Team had survived an attack by five monsters.
• Kobe told Phil Coulson that the Felified Humans had immense strength and durability, but plastic explosives had killed one of them.
• Kobe said the five attackers looked almost identical and had the same abilities, prompting Coulson to question how they had gathered together.
• The Felified Humans caught up with Kobe's squad and attacked them over the radio while Kobe called for support.
• Colonel Hark dispatched a Predator drone, and its footage made everyone in the command center rise in shock.

Kobe and the villagers fought off the remaining Felified Humans until Thunderbolt jets destroyed them. Coulson ordered agents to recover the bodies, while Evenson turned his attention to Howitzer’s upcoming attack.

• Kobe joined Shaquille O'Neal and the villagers, who armed themselves and helped hold back the three remaining Felified Humans.
• A Predator drone passed overhead for reconnaissance, and Hark ordered air support after the command center saw the footage.
• A Felified Human killed a villager by hurling a Humvee door, forcing Kobe to order a retreat toward the village.
• Two Thunderbolt jets attacked with cannons and Maverick missiles, killing the three Felified Humans.
• Coulson ordered agents to collect every part of the bodies, while Evenson noted the Middle East fight had ended quickly and anticipated a larger attack from Howitzer.

Tony Stark escaped his terrorist captors in a crude Iron Man suit, then collapsed in the desert and was rescued by the US Army. After a Husky slapped him awake, he reunited with Rhodey, while Coulson reported to Nick Fury that he had something more important to discuss.

• Tony Stark escaped the terrorists using the first-generation Iron Man suit he had built, but the suit broke apart during his crash landing.
• Tony fled through the desert until exhaustion made him collapse, whereupon a Husky climbed onto his chest and slapped him awake.
• Tony stopped the Husky from hitting him and saw Rhodey's US Army rescue helicopter arrive.
• Rhodey reunited with Tony and teased him about choosing the jeep before embracing him.
• Coulson told Nick Fury that Tony had been found and said he had a more important report.

Coulson reported that a pack of identical, physically enhanced Mutants had attacked a US Army search team, prompting Nick Fury to suspect they were artificially created. Fury ordered Coulson to keep the discovery secret and collect all related evidence while still bringing Tony Stark back.

• Nick Fury confronted Coulson for handing Hubbs to someone else, but Coulson explained that food had made the dog obedient and that Hubbs had located Tony Stark from about thirty kilometers away.
• Coulson told Nick Fury that five Mutants had attacked a twenty-man US Army team, killing all but Captain Kobe's squad before fighter jets destroyed the remaining three.
• Coulson reported that the Mutants shared identical abilities and nearly identical physical traits, leading Nick Fury to suspect they had been artificially created.
• Nick Fury ordered Coulson to keep the matter secret, return with Tony Stark, and bring back all evidence related to the Mutants, including the bodies and records.

Tony Stark left Afghanistan for the United States with Coulson and Hubbs, the dog who had helped find him. Meanwhile, a convoy reached a military base in the United States, where its men killed the sentry and concealed the crime from surveillance.

• Tony Stark boarded his private jet and joked with Coulson about Hubbs finding him by scent.
• Tony offered Hubbs rewards for saving his life, and Coulson explained that the dog belonged to someone else.
• Tony said he wanted to meet Hubbs's owner and thank him, but Coulson refused to disclose the owner's identity without approval.
• Coulson watched a second plane carrying the remains of the five Felified Humans and Kobe Squad, which S.H.I.E.L.D. would take for testing.
• A convoy arrived at a military base's checkpoint, where an officer handed the sentry an envelope of blank papers.
• The officer shot the sentry with a suppressed pistol, while the surveillance feeds falsely showed the sentry still on duty.

Howitzer sent Yinsen Müller and the Tyrant Squad to retrieve the Obelisk from a US Army base. After breaking into the special warehouse and finding themselves under attack, the squad began defending the entrance while the search continued.

• Howitzer enhanced nineteen loyal soldiers and sent them with Rome, Yinsen Müller, and three support personnel to recover the Obelisk.
• Yinsen's team infiltrated the base, but when a sentry demanded confirmation from Brigadier General Talbot, two operatives killed the sentry and the watchtower guards.
• The hacker opened the special warehouse, and the Tyrant Squad moved ammunition inside to build a defensive position.
• A platoon of US Army soldiers arrived, and Tyrants One through Five nearly wiped them out with ten M60 machine guns.
• As alarms sounded across the base, Yinsen warned that the next wave would arrive in ten minutes and entered the warehouse.

Tyrant Squad attacked the base’s special warehouse, prompting Brigadier General Talbot to send troops against them. Colonel Woods warned that the attackers might be foreign special forces or a decoy, so Talbot held back the armored units and ordered defenses at other key locations strengthened.

• Talbot learned that an unidentified squad had attacked the special warehouse and killed a platoon sent to investigate.
• Talbot sent two guard companies and a support company into the fight, but the battle continued as Tyrant Squad resisted with heavy weapons and grenades.
• Talbot ordered armored units to end the battle quickly.
• Colonel Woods argued that the squad’s infiltration and combat skills suggested it could be a foreign special forces team.
• Talbot considered the possibility of a decoy and postponed deploying the armored units while the base strengthened defenses elsewhere.

Yinsen’s squad held off the US Army while Hacker searched the warehouse’s paper records, but Brigadier General Talbot ordered the troops to use stronger ammunition. Depleted uranium rounds began damaging the Felified Humans’ armor, leaving Yinsen’s group under greater threat.

• Howitzer’s armor protected the Felified Humans with tank plates and sealed helmets that used cameras to provide enhanced vision.
• Hacker searched the warehouse’s handwritten ledgers while Yinsen monitored the battle and learned that a mole was delaying the deployment of armored units.
• Yinsen told Tyrant Squad to conserve ammunition and let the US Army believe it was gaining the advantage.
• Talbot grew impatient with the stalled battle and authorized the frontline to use its strongest firepower.
• The US Army fired depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds, and Yinsen recognized that they were damaging the Felified Humans’ armor.

Yinsen watched the US Army’s depleted uranium rounds wound the Felified Humans, who then entered a berserk state and counterattacked. As the US commander called for reinforcements, Hacker reported that he had found the Obelisk.

• Yinsen worried that depleted uranium rounds would kill the Felified Humans and doom the operation, then rejected the idea of surrendering to the US Army.
• The US Army’s depleted uranium rounds wounded the Felified Humans, whose pain awakened their bloodlust and drove them to attack wildly.
• The US commander ordered anti-tank rockets fired at the Felified Humans, but they dodged the rockets with precise timing.
• The US commander called General Talbot for reinforcements and admitted that the enemy had been hiding its strength.
• Hacker told Yinsen that he had found the Obelisk.

Yinsen’s assault team found the Obelisk but was overwhelmed when five Apache helicopters annihilated the Tyrant Squad. Yinsen and the hacker sacrificed themselves to protect Hydra’s secrecy, leaving the mission’s survivors dead and the ledgers destroyed.

• Yinsen realized the team had to evacuate before US Army reinforcements arrived and hurried toward the hacker, but heard Apache helicopters approaching.
• Five Apaches attacked the twenty Felified Humans and killed the entire Tyrant Squad with their chain guns.
• Yinsen accepted that the mission had failed and left the hacker behind to conceal the operation’s purpose and protect Hydra.
• The hacker destroyed the Obelisk’s box and the ledgers, then killed himself with a grenade after saying, “Hail Hydra.”
• Yinsen’s two remaining fighters were killed, and Yinsen took poison from a capsule in his tooth before dying with the same farewell.

Coulson delivered five Felified Humans’ corpses to a S.H.I.E.L.D. research facility and returned to headquarters with Hubbs. Nick Fury summoned Coulson for another matter, but a report that the military had handed over only two corpses interrupted them.

• Nick Fury ordered Coulson sent to his office and told staff to take Hubbs to the cafeteria because he did not want to see the dog.
• Coulson brought five cryogenic chambers containing Felified Humans’ corpses to a secret research facility, where Jemma Simmons and Leo Fitz began disputing what the bodies’ similarities meant.
• Coulson left the researchers to examine the corpses and flew to Tony’s place, where he collected Hubbs before returning to S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.
• Melinda took Hubbs from Coulson, who warned her not to talk to the dog, and Coulson reported to Nick Fury that he had delivered the corpses.
• Nick Fury began explaining why he had summoned Coulson, but an agent interrupted to report that the military had handed S.H.I.E.L.D. only two corpses.