Chapter Summaries

Hawk confronted Ophelia in her office and learned that Alexander Pierce had arranged the Yasukuni Shrine fire while the real Anna had been missing since at least July last year. After warning Ophelia to tell the truth about their friendship, Hawk headed for Washington to question Pierce and find Anna.

• Hawk found Ophelia in her office and questioned her about her relationship with Anna.
• Ophelia denied impersonating Anna and revealed that Alexander Pierce had asked her to help burn Yasukuni Shrine.
• Ophelia told Hawk that she had not contacted Anna since mid-July the previous year and had been told Anna was on a mission.
• Hawk concluded that Anna was likely missing or imprisoned and decided to confront Alexander Pierce.
• Hawk warned Ophelia that she would suffer if Anna’s account contradicted hers, then flew toward Washington, D.C.

Ophelia recovered from Hawk’s pressure and turned away from Alexander Pierce, while Captain America’s warning sparked open fighting between S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra. As Pierce pushed ahead with Project Insight and the Helicarriers, he called Gwen Stacy to ask about Hawk, but she refused to help him.

• Ophelia absorbed a Hydra agent who tried to take advantage of her, then recovered and told her assistant to choose a new bodyguard.
• Ophelia hung up on Alexander Pierce and rested after deciding not to waste time on him.
• Captain America warned S.H.I.E.L.D. that Hydra had infiltrated its ranks, and gunfire erupted as Hydra agents reacted.
• Pierce received footage of a crimson light appearing before several Hydra bases went offline, then ordered the Helicarriers brought online within five minutes.
• Pierce called Hawk’s phone, and Gwen answered; she told him Hawk had gone to the Island Nation to find Anna and refused to help Hydra.

Gwen took shelter as Alexander Pierce ordered her capture, but Natasha stopped the attempt and confronted him as the three Helicarriers launched. Thor and Tony Stark attacked the carriers while Hawk destroyed Hydra bases and arrived at the scene as Natasha declared Pierce defeated.

• Gwen hurried into her basement safe room after Alexander Pierce ended their call, while Pierce ordered Hydra Agents to capture her.
• Natasha revealed her disguise, killed the Hydra Agents preparing to seize Gwen, and confronted Pierce as the Eastern Council held him at gunpoint.
• The three Insight Helicarriers rose, and Pierce revealed that their Vibranium shields could withstand Thor’s attack.
• Thor struck one carrier while Tony Stark landed on another and began working to override its control program.
• Commander Hand learned that Hawk had freed S.H.I.E.L.D. bases across the region, and agents reported that Phoenix was approaching.
• Hawk arrived in a streak of rainbow light as Natasha told Pierce that he had lost.

Hawk stopped the Helicarrier crisis, captured Alexander Pierce, and learned Gwen was safe. He then used his powers to gather the Hydra Agents and burn them to ashes, leaving S.H.I.E.L.D. to regain control.

• Hawk destroyed the first Helicarrier, caught Bucky, and spared him after Steve asked him to.
• Hawk moved on as Thor damaged the second Helicarrier and Tony took control of the third.
• Hawk stopped Alexander Pierce from taking poison and learned Natasha had thwarted his plan to threaten Gwen.
• Gwen told Hawk she was safe and asked him to be a hero, so he agreed to help S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Hawk located the Hydra Agents throughout the Triskelion and used his powers to bring them into the open, where his Fire Phoenix burned them to ash.

After helping S.H.I.E.L.D. defeat Hydra, Hawk took Alexander Pierce to a secluded villa and demanded to know why he had betrayed him and what had happened to Anna. Pierce refused to reveal Hydra’s remaining plans and declared his loyalty, so Hawk prepared to make him suffer.

• Hawk burned the Hydra Agents, returned to S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, and took Alexander Pierce away after asking Natasha if she could handle the cleanup.
• Sharon and Tony reported that S.H.I.E.L.D. had secured the Insight Command Center and Helicarriers Two and Three, while Helicarrier One had crashed into the Potomac River.
• Maria Hill arrived at the Triskelion with emergency approval to become S.H.I.E.L.D. Director, and Tony and Thor asked where Hawk had gone.
• Hawk brought Pierce to a secluded villa in Rock Creek Park and insisted that Anna was alive, questioning why Pierce was hiding her from him.
• Pierce refused to explain, proclaimed “Hail Hydra,” and Hawk turned his eyes crimson as he promised to grant Pierce’s wish to die.

Hawk killed Alexander Pierce, then tried to claim his soul for the Underworld’s Eight Nether Prisons, forcing a confrontation with Mephisto over who controlled it. Mephisto resisted Hawk’s threat to invade Hell, and Hawk ended by demanding ten souls in exchange for not coveting Earth’s authority over life and death.

• Hawk vaporized Alexander Pierce, but Pierce’s soul remained and began moving toward the Gate of Hell.
• Hawk summoned the Underworld to pull Pierce’s soul away from Hell, and Mephisto appeared to reclaim it.
• Hawk threatened to invade and wreck Mephisto’s Hell Dimension unless Mephisto surrendered Pierce’s soul.
• Mephisto accused Hawk of breaking his oath, but Hawk argued that he could risk another divine war while Mephisto could not afford to lose Hell.
• Mephisto loosened his hold on Pierce’s soul and asked Hawk to guarantee he wanted only that one soul.
• Hawk instead demanded ten souls for his Nether Prisons, leaving Mephisto furious as he offered to swear not to covet Earth’s authority over life and death.

After Mephisto surrendered his claim to Alexander Pierce’s soul, Hawk sent Pierce to the Underworld’s Grindstone Hell Prison and left him to suffer eternally. Hawk then headed for Sokovia to find Baron Strucker and the Mind Stone, while Tony Stark tracked Hawk’s destination and prepared to investigate a hidden Hydra cell.

• Mephisto abandoned his claim to Pierce’s soul and left after vowing silently to seek revenge on Hawk.
• Hawk sent Pierce to Grindstone Hell Prison, where Hill Giant Pillars repeatedly crushed him as he revived.
• Hawk decided to pursue other Hydra leaders, including Baron Strucker, and flew toward Sokovia to find him and the Mind Stone.
• Jarvis traced Hawk’s flight path to Sokovia, while Tony learned of a suspected Hydra signal near Palm Street.
• Tony left S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters to deal with the hidden Hydra cell and privately admitted he had been developing an Anti-Hawk Armor.

Hawk went to Sokovia to find the Mind Stone, discovered Hydra had moved it, and rejected Wolfgang von Strucker’s attempt to negotiate. After destroying Hydra Castle, he returned to New York, where Gwen asked whether losing his left arm for a month would cause any problems.

• Hawk found that the Mind Stone was gone from Hydra Castle and realized Alexander Pierce had tipped Hydra off after Hawk asked to borrow the Mind Scepter.
• Hawk sent Pierce from the Third Hellstone Grinding Hell to the Frozen Underworld, then entered a sealed room where Strucker appeared as a projection.
• Strucker admitted Pierce had informed him and proposed a deal, but Hawk refused, destroyed the projection device, and warned Strucker to keep hiding.
• Hawk collapsed Hydra Castle and returned to New York, where Gwen embraced him and Commander Victoria Hand thanked him for stopping Hydra’s Helicarriers.
• After Commander Hand left, Gwen asked Hawk whether losing his left arm over the next month would affect anything.

Hawk and Gwen hid their visit to New Amsterdam Hospital by having S.H.I.E.L.D. fake a fracture in Hawk’s left arm, convincing Gwen’s parents and giving Hawk a month of rest. The couple discussed S.H.I.E.L.D.’s effort to keep Hawk’s identity secret and wondered how Sharon and Commander Hand would fare after Hydra’s failed coup.

• Gwen told Helen and George that Hawk had fractured his arm while changing curtains, and they accepted the explanation.
• Hawk agreed to wear a fake cast and sling after Gwen warned that George might investigate and promised Hawk a month without work or sex.
• Helen sent Hawk and Gwen home after dinner and reminded Gwen to be gentle with him; Gwen kept her promise that night.
• The next day, Gwen insisted that only she should know Hawk’s secret, while Hawk agreed to let her decide whether he stayed hidden.
• Gwen asked whether Hydra’s second struggle was truly over, and Hawk explained that it had remained secret and that the authorities had blamed the Helicarrier crash on a joint exercise.
• Hawk told Gwen that Sharon and Commander Hand probably would not be directly disbanded by the Five Benevolent Ones.

After becoming S.H.I.E.L.D. Director, Maria Hill won unanimous Security Council approval for sweeping reforms to dismantle the agency’s bloated structure and purge any remaining Hydra influence. She and Victoria Hand then discussed Hawk’s injury and prepared for someone arriving to find Nick Fury.

• The Security Council appointed Maria Hill as S.H.I.E.L.D. Director and asked her to name a new commander.
• Hill chose Victoria Hand and announced plans to abolish S.H.I.E.L.D.’s branches outside headquarters, reduce the agency, and investigate for remaining Hydra agents.
• The Security Council unanimously approved Hill’s reform proposal and accepted her view that Sharon Carter’s presence in New York was enough to maintain contact with Hawk.
• Hill told Hand she planned to complete the reforms by year’s end and move S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.
• Hand told Hill that Hawk had fractured his left arm and was recovering at home, then suggested asking Sharon and Gwen to persuade him to rest longer.
• Hill changed the subject, saying someone was about to arrive to find Nick Fury.

After Hydra’s defeat, the Security Council made Maria Hill S.H.I.E.L.D.’s new director and treated Nick Fury as a private citizen rather than reinstating him. Sharon told Hawk about the changes and asked him to keep her informed, while Gwen encouraged him to rest through the semester as he recovered.

• Nick Fury contacted Maria Hill after Hydra fell, but the Security Council appointed Hill as S.H.I.E.L.D.’s director and did not discuss his return.
• Hill and Commander Hand watched a military vehicle take Nick Fury away from the Triskelion and confirmed that he no longer represented S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Sharon told Hawk and Gwen that Nick Fury had faked his death and explained that S.H.I.E.L.D. was being reorganized under Hill.
• Hawk defended Nick Fury as not being part of Hydra and approved of Hill’s decision to downsize S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Sharon revealed that she had been promoted to S.H.I.E.L.D.’s top agent in New York and asked Hawk to keep her informed about his plans.
• Gwen encouraged Sharon and reminded Hawk that his injury required more recovery time, so Hawk declared he would rest for the entire semester.

Peter returned after months away and recounted how he and Felicia had gotten together, while Gwen told him that Mary had moved to Los Angeles. Felicia arrived to take Peter home, and the chapter ended with a call summoning Hawk to Rhyolite Ghost Town after energy fluctuations were detected in his Cloth.

• Sharon thanked Gwen for helping keep Hawk under recovery orders, and Gwen asked her to take her shopping.
• Peter returned and told Gwen and Hawk about his experiences on Skull Island and how he and Felicia had become a couple.
• Gwen told Peter that Mary had broken up with Thompson and moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dream.
• Felicia arrived, reunited with Peter, and took him home after reminding him to call when he was delayed.
• Gwen received a call telling Hawk to go to Rhyolite Ghost Town, Alaska, because his Cloth's energy had fluctuated.

Hawk found his shattered Phoenix Cloth reassembled at a Hydra base beneath Rhyolite, where Tony Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D. were investigating stolen artifacts. Hawk and Tony wagered a hundred million dollars against one favor over whether Tony could build armor as powerful as Hawk’s Black Phoenix Underworld Armor, and Tony claimed Hawk had already lost.

• Tony contacted Gwen to ask Hawk to come to the Hydra site, but Hawk appeared behind him and went underground to investigate.
• Hawk found his shattered Phoenix Cloth reassembled in a room filled with corpses and learned that Tony and S.H.I.E.L.D. had tracked the stolen fragments there during Maria Hill’s purge.
• Tony explained that Hydra’s systems had been destroyed after the Agents realized they were exposed, while Jarvis searched for recoverable data.
• Hawk offered to grant Tony one unconditional request if Tony built armor no weaker than the Black Phoenix Underworld Armor, and Tony agreed to pay Hawk one hundred million if he failed.
• Tony and Hawk shook hands on the wager, and Tony told Hawk he had already lost before inviting him to come along.

Hawk examined Hydra’s attempt to combine fragments of his Cloth with Tony Stark’s Iron Suit and judged the Vibranium-powered armor too dangerous for anyone to wear. Back with Gwen, he dismissed her concern about the Andromeda Cloth, then learned that her grandfather wanted to see him during winter break.

• Tony showed Hawk surveillance footage of a bearded man being killed when Hydra’s silver armor activated its Vibranium energy source.
• Hawk explained that the armor’s power could reach about sixty percent of his first Cloth’s strength, but warned that only someone enhanced like Steve might survive wearing it.
• Hawk dismissed the armor as scrap metal, left Tony, and returned to Gwen on Palm Street.
• Gwen asked Hawk about Hydra’s attempt to replicate his Cloth, then brought out her Andromeda Cloth necklace.
• Hawk told Gwen that her Andromeda Cloth could defeat anyone who managed to wear Hydra’s armor, and Gwen said her grandfather wanted to see him during winter break.

Hawk and Gwen planned to visit Gwen’s grandfather in Waterfall Town, then went to S.H.I.E.L.D. to learn what Hydra had been doing. While Hawk explored the depths of his Cosmo in Sage State, Sharon revealed that Hydra had secretly been cloning him.

• Gwen told Hawk that her grandfather wanted to meet him, and they agreed to visit him in Waterfall Town during Christmas break.
• The next morning, Hawk remained exhausted after Gwen made him follow her no-superpowers rule at home, and Tony called to summon them to S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Gwen drove Hawk to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Hub Headquarters, where Tony showed them recovered data and surveillance from Hydra’s base in Rhyolite Ghost Town.
• Hawk entered Sage State and focused on illuminating the realm of the Seventh Sense while Gwen and Sharon discussed his exhausted condition.
• Sharon reminded Gwen that Hydra had launched its operation after she discovered Dr. Merrick had been replaced, then confirmed that Hydra had secretly been cloning Hawk.

Gwen, Tony, and Sharon discovered that Hydra had secretly tried to clone Hawk using blood he had sold to Anna. Hawk explained that a clone could copy his appearance but not the Cosmo that powered him, leaving Hydra’s plan exposed and its threat diminished.

• Tony identified Hydra’s project as an attempt to clone Hawk, and Gwen realized Anna had obtained Hawk’s blood sample.
• Hawk reviewed the restored files and concluded Hydra had switched out Dr. Merrick to clone him and use the clone against him.
• Hawk reassured Gwen that he had already suspected Hydra’s plan and was not angry about it.
• Hawk told Tony that a clone could not inherit his power or Cosmo, then revealed the Fire Phoenix and Rootless Universe as the source of his strength.

Hawk reassured Gwen that Hydra could not make a clone strong enough to defeat him, while S.H.I.E.L.D. continued searching for Dr. Merrick and the hidden cloning base. On the hundred and first day, Gwen ended Hawk’s pretend-injury routine, then caught him dressed as a cowboy and decided to show his outfit to her mother.

• Hawk told Gwen his Cosmo had not reached its full potential and swore on Anya’s name that Hydra’s clones could not defeat him.
• Sharon said S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Security Council were searching for Dr. Merrick, but the agency found no cloning clues in the Hydra bases it raided.
• S.H.I.E.L.D. kept updating Gwen weekly while Hawk remained unconcerned and went about his life.
• On the hundred and first day, Gwen took away Hawk’s antifreeze and refused to extend his cast-and-bandage act, reminding him they were visiting her grandfather.
• Hawk changed into a cowboy outfit, and Gwen decided to take him to see her mother so she could praise his appearance.

Hawk and Gwen collected Helen’s gifts for her family in Georgia while Helen stayed in New York, worried about George’s major case. On their drive home, Sharon called with news that Dr. Merrick had been found hiding in Alice Springs, Australia.

• Hawk and Gwen visited Helen and picked up gifts for Helen’s father, sister, and niece to take to Georgia.
• Hawk and Gwen comforted Helen because George was still away working on a case.
• Hawk considered refunding their plane tickets because his trips outside New York had repeatedly ended in trouble, but said he would fly them to Georgia himself.
• Gwen told Hawk that S.H.I.E.L.D. had not found Dr. Merrick and warned him not to sell his blood again.
• Sharon called Gwen and revealed that Dr. Merrick had been found in Alice Springs, Australia.

Hawk joined Natasha’s operation against a Hydra cloning base beneath Alice Springs and discovered that the facility had cloned him. After learning the clones’ consciousnesses had failed and five more were awaiting implantation, Hawk offered Dr. Merrick a chance to live by ordering him to activate them.

• Gwen told Hawk to resolve his business before returning to pick her up at the airport, and Hawk vanished toward Australia.
• Hawk arrived behind Natasha, sensed the underground Hydra base, and found Dr. Merrick and several incubation pods containing copies of himself.
• Hawk teleported more than two hundred Hydra Agents out of the base and destroyed them with a Phoenix Ray.
• Hawk questioned Dr. Merrick, who said five successful clones had been destroyed after their consciousnesses collapsed and five more were waiting for implantation.
• Hawk told Dr. Merrick he would give him a chance to live and ordered him to activate the clones.

Hawk had Dr. Merrick awaken the five remaining clones and discovered that the supposed soul-creation process only implanted copied memories into their brains. After testing the first clone, Hawk destroyed all five and dismissed Merrick’s achievement as copying rather than creation.

• Dr. Merrick activated the Soul Infusion system while Natasha watched over him and Hawk observed the clones.
• Dr. Merrick claimed his device created souls by converting memories into neural signals, but Hawk rejected the claim.
• The first clone awakened and identified himself as Allen, whose memories had been copied from an agent.
• Hawk concluded the clones were running memory programs, and Dr. Merrick admitted his earlier clones had failed because Hawk’s memories could not be copied coherently.
• Hawk vaporized the awakened clone and the other four, then told Natasha that Merrick had only copied and pasted memories.