"Rorschach, what's going on outside?"
"Why is there such intense gunfire?"
After answering Rorschach's question, Raven could not wait to ask about the matter she had never quite understood.
"Raven, that's exactly what I wanted to tell you."
Rorschach stopped walking then, and Raven stopped in front of him as well.
The two of them stood at the small door without immediately going out.
"I may have accidentally gotten caught up in some trouble." Rorschach spread his hands at Raven.
Raven immediately tensed slightly. "What trouble? Rorschach, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, don't worry. Perhaps I used the wrong word. This doesn't really count as trouble."
"Simply put, while you were inside looking for Caliban, a group of agents outside happened to be carrying out some mission."
Raven could not help feeling speechless.
So that was where the gunfire had come from.
What a mess. It had turned out to be nothing but a coincidence!
"But what does that have to do with you?"
However, Raven knew things were probably not that simple, so she asked again.
"Even more coincidentally, Howard Stark got caught up in the firefight too..."
"Howard Stark? That Howard Stark?" Raven was utterly surprised. Would a man of that stature come to such a small place?
"Yes, that Howard Stark. After recognizing him, I saved him while I was at it."
"What I didn't expect was that Howard Stark was actually the leader of those agents..."
As he spoke, Rorschach casually took out the business card Howard Stark had given him and handed it to Raven.
Raven felt as though her brain was not quite enough to process this.
That nationally famous billionaire had suddenly become a high-ranking official in some intelligence organization with an absurdly long name that somehow sounded impressive?
"So, you know, I need to make a statement or give testimony or something." Rorschach took back the business card he had handed Raven.
Raven naturally understood those procedures and did not say much.
"Okay, then you head back first. I'll go back after I'm done here."
Rorschach called out to Raven, and the two went their separate ways.
Raven returned to Xavier's Manor first, while Rorschach followed Howard Stark and the others to the S.H.I.E.L.D. base.
The current S.H.I.E.L.D.—no, it should have been called the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division—did not yet have a dedicated base of its own.
It was still using the camp of the Army's 78th Artillery Regiment at Camp Lehigh.
Though this place was not particularly famous, it held great significance throughout the Marvel universe.
Because this was where Captain America had been born.
It was also the first base of S.H.I.E.L.D., the future world's largest global intelligence agency.
Howard's car slowly drove into the base compound. Looking out through the window, Rorschach felt that everything seemed strangely familiar.
It was almost identical to the scene in "Avengers: Endgame," when Captain America and Iron Man traveled back to retrieve the Cube.
"Curious about this place? Are you also wondering whether this is where Rogers was born?"
Seeing Rorschach constantly looking around, Howard beside him could not help teasing him. "If you're also a die-hard Captain America fan, then my answer may disappoint you."
"This isn't where Rogers was born. Think about it, how could anyone be born in a place like this?"
"The truth is, this is where the title 'Captain America' was born."
"Back then, we were discussing what nickname to give Rogers: 'Super Captain,' 'Amazing Soldier,' 'Superman'... In the end, Rogers chose Captain America."
"But I never expected the rumor to spread and somehow turn into Rogers being born here."
Rorschach had not expected there to be such a story behind Captain America's nickname.
By then, the convoy had already stopped, and everyone got out of their vehicles.
Rorschach looked around and noticed that Anton Vanko had not come with them.
He could not help asking curiously, "Your friend didn't come with us?"
"First, he isn't my friend. Second, this isn't a place just anyone can come to." Howard Stark patted Rorschach on the shoulder.
Anton Vanko was not publicly cooperating with S.H.I.E.L.D., and Howard Stark had made other arrangements for him.
"All right, let's go!"
Howard Stark called to Rorschach and began walking toward the office building.
Boom!
But they had only made it halfway when an explosion suddenly rang out.
A powerful shockwave rippled outward, making the ground beneath everyone's feet seem to tremble.
Logically, such a violent explosion should have thrown the scene into chaos. Yet, to Rorschach's great surprise, everyone in the camp merely looked toward the source of the blast and shook their heads helplessly. That was all.
Some people did not even change their expressions from beginning to end, not even blinking.
They were as calm as old dogs.
Clang!
An iron door at the source of the shockwave opened.
A very short man wearing glasses rushed out.
He covered his nose and mouth while coughing loudly without stopping.
He was covered in grime and dust, looking utterly disheveled.
"It's him!"
Rorschach only needed one glance at the short man before a look of surprise appeared on his face.
At the same time, he understood what had caused the explosion just now.
Arnim Zola!
The man who had rushed out was none other than Arnim Zola, Red Skull's former chief scientist!
After Red Skull's downfall, Arnim Zola had been captured by the Strategic Scientific Reserve, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s predecessor, and successfully turned by Agent Carter.
He had thus reinvented himself and become an influential scientist within S.H.I.E.L.D.
Of course, all of that was merely a disguise.
No one knew that Arnim Zola had been a fanatical Hydra loyalist from beginning to end. Even after dying, he still worked for Hydra. There was nothing else to say about that.
But setting his allegiance aside, Arnim Zola was also a scientist at the very peak of the pyramid.
Otherwise, why would Hydra go to such lengths to preserve this guy's brain after his death?
Leaving everything else aside, just the weapons developed based on the Cube were already incredibly remarkable in this era.
And clearly—
That explosion just now had definitely been caused by Arnim Zola messing up some scientific experiment again.
Moreover, it was definitely not the first time something like this had happened, which was why everyone at the base was so calm.
"Arnim, is everything all right?"
Seeing Arnim Zola emerge covered in grime, Howard shouted at him.
"It's fine, just a minor accident. Everything is under control!"
Arnim Zola waved at Howard.
Then he plunged straight back through the iron door, into the billowing smoke.
Before you continue