Chapter Summaries

Nick Fury learned that the president was prepared to sell He-El a Helicarrier and realized the sale could delay Project Insight. He-El warned that S.H.I.E.L.D. could collapse from within and sent Fury information that left him stunned.

• The president told Nick Fury to sell the Helicarrier to He-El if repairing it proved too costly.
• Nick Fury realized He-El's purchase could cut off resources for Project Insight and asked how much He-El knew about S.H.I.E.L.D.
• He-El warned Nick Fury that S.H.I.E.L.D. could fall apart after one wrong move.
• Nick Fury demanded the information He-El had found about the threat inside S.H.I.E.L.D.
• He-El sent the information to Nick Fury's contact lenses, and Fury froze in shock as he read it.

Alexander Pierce learned that the president planned to sell S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Helicarriers and delay Project Insight, and flew into a rage. Believing the president had caused the threat to his project, Pierce ordered someone to kill him.

• Alexander Pierce listened to Nick Fury's encrypted call with the president, who ordered S.H.I.E.L.D. to dispose of its malfunctioning Helicarriers and raise money for replacements.
• Pierce realized the president intended to sell the Helicarriers to He-El and smashed his coffee cup in fury.
• The president called Pierce and told him to inform the World Security Council that Project Insight would be delayed while a Helicarrier was dismantled.
• Pierce destroyed items on his desk and blamed the president for threatening Project Insight and his Helicarriers.
• Pierce pulled out his phone and ordered someone to kill the president.

Nick Fury reviewed He-El’s evidence that Hydra had infiltrated and effectively taken over S.H.I.E.L.D., including proof that the Winter Soldier had killed Howard and Maria Stark. Horrified, Fury asked He-El for help destroying Hydra, and He-El said he had always been helping him.

• Nick Fury read He-El’s detailed list of Hydra members and suspects in S.H.I.E.L.D. and discovered that Alexander Pierce and much of the agency’s leadership were compromised.
• He-El told Nick Fury that evidence proving the listed agents were Hydra was available in surveillance recordings, audio, documents, and other files.
• Nick Fury reviewed evidence of Hydra orders and decisions and realized that S.H.I.E.L.D. had become a breeding ground for evil.
• Nick Fury watched a recording of the Winter Soldier killing Tony Stark’s parents and concluded that Hydra had to be wiped out completely.
• Nick Fury asked He-El for help, and He-El replied that he had always been helping him.

He-El told Nick Fury he needed a Helicarrier to turn into an interstellar spacecraft and offered him five Sensor Suits to help fight Hydra. Nick planned to use He-El's stay at S.H.I.E.L.D. to eliminate the Hydra-run Rapid Response Special Forces, but Alexander Pierce arrived before he could send the order.

• He-El explained that he had delayed Project Insight by requesting a Helicarrier and that he intended to fight alien threats in space.
• Nick Fury asked He-El to help purge Hydra from S.H.I.E.L.D., and He-El offered five Sensor Suits while directing Nick to seek Tony's help.
• Nick Fury proposed having the Rapid Response Special Forces guard He-El so he could kill the Hydra agents, and He-El agreed to stay at S.H.I.E.L.D. while studying the Helicarrier.
• He-El had Vivian bring Nick the five Sensor Suits, and Nick prepared to order Brock Rumlow to arrange the detail.
• Alexander Pierce entered Nick Fury's office and told He-El that his wish had come true.

Alexander Pierce, Nick Fury, and He-El each pursued their own plans for the Helicarrier as they agreed to make He-El a S.H.I.E.L.D. technical consultant. They left the meeting smiling, with Pierce planning to advance Project Insight, Fury hoping to eliminate Hydra, and He-El preparing to build an interstellar spacecraft and seek the Cosmic Cube.

• Alexander Pierce discussed delaying Project Insight and raised the problem of maintaining He-El's Helicarrier.
• Nick Fury urged He-El by telepathy to let Hydra personnel service the Helicarrier so S.H.I.E.L.D. could wipe them out.
• He-El pretended to worry about repairs and safety, while Alexander Pierce proposed making him a S.H.I.E.L.D. technical consultant.
• He-El accepted the position and insisted that the Helicarrier's weapons and Quinjets remain aboard to protect him.
• Nick Fury agreed to send elite armed forces to guard He-El, and the three men toasted while privately anticipating their separate goals.

He-El and Tony Stark coordinated plans to destroy Hydra as S.H.I.E.L.D. forces escorted He-El toward a destination. Natasha and Hawkeye prepared to ambush the convoy, while Hawkeye reassured Natasha that they were working with Fury to set things right.

• Tony Stark thanked He-El for revealing that Hydra had murdered his parents and agreed to work with Nick Fury to eliminate Hydra.
• He-El learned that Brock Rumlow's Rapid Response Special Forces had guarded him for a week, unaware that all thirty-six soldiers in the convoy were Hydra members.
• Natasha and Hawkeye waited in ambush along Highway 6, equipped to stop the convoy and fight the Rapid Response Special Forces.
• Hawkeye complained that Natasha had worn a combat uniform over her revealing Sensor Suit while he had worn his suit alone.
• Natasha questioned whether she had done evil for Hydra, and Hawkeye reassured her that Fury was on their side as the convoy arrived and they prepared for battle.

Hawkeye and Natasha ambushed He-El’s convoy on Highway 6, destroying the overturned lead SUV and disabling the mounted guns on the five remaining SUVs. As the soldiers opened fire, Natasha charged toward them while Hawkeye covered her advance.

• The lead SUV hit a concealed tire-spike chain, overturned, and forced Brock Rumlow to order the convoy to form a defensive line and request air support.
• The convoy’s communications were cut, and Hawkeye and Natasha emerged on off-road motorcycles to attack.
• Hawkeye fired an explosive arrow through the overturned SUV’s fractured window, destroying the vehicle and killing the Hydra soldiers inside.
• Brock Rumlow recognized Hawkeye and Natasha and ordered his soldiers to open fire.
• Hawkeye fired five explosive arrows that destroyed the M134 Miniguns mounted on the five SUVs.
• Natasha accelerated and weaved toward the convoy as Hawkeye stayed behind to cover her.

Natasha and Hawkeye used their Sensor Suits and weapons to defeat Brock Rumlow’s Rapid Response Special Forces and stop his SUV. Brock took He-El hostage at gunpoint as the two agents approached.

• Natasha evaded a barrage of AT-4 rockets on her motorcycle, then abandoned it after shrapnel struck its fuel tank and attacked the Hydra soldiers with two MAC-10s.
• Natasha and Hawkeye overwhelmed the Rapid Response Special Forces, with Hawkeye destroying the rocket launchers and Natasha killing the soldiers at close range.
• Brock Rumlow ordered the surviving soldiers to flee in the SUV and asked He-El why Hawkeye and Natasha were pursuing him.
• Hawkeye shot out the SUV’s rear tire and disabled the vehicle with an electric arrow.
• Brock Rumlow pressed his M9 to He-El’s temple and ordered him out, and He-El stepped from the SUV as Hawkeye and Natasha approached.

Natasha and Hawkeye met He-El after battling Brock Rumlow’s forces on Highway 6, and He-El invited Natasha and Hawkeye to work for his company. After Hawkeye killed Rumlow, He-El asked about the Helicarrier’s operation against Hydra.

• Natasha and Hawkeye arrived among burning SUVs and corpses while Brock Rumlow held He-El hostage.
• He-El offered Natasha her old assistant job and invited Hawkeye to become a security guard, prompting them to joke about poaching S.H.I.E.L.D.’s best agents.
• Rumlow demanded that Hawkeye remove his suit and threatened to kill He-El unless he was allowed to escape.
• Hawkeye shot Rumlow after He-El moved aside, and the arrow killed him.
• He-El asked whether Nick had launched the Helicarrier and begun attacking Hydra’s base, and Hawkeye said the plan was likely underway.

At S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, Nick Fury and Alexander Pierce prepared He-El’s Helicarrier for launch while Hydra secretly worked to take control of it. Tony Stark arrived to watch the launch, struggled to contain his hatred of Pierce, and the plaza began opening beneath them.

• Alexander Pierce reassured Nick Fury that Hydra members were installing Project Insight equipment aboard He-El’s Helicarrier as quickly as possible.
• Nick Fury reflected on how deeply Hydra had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. and said Hydra had to be destroyed in one stroke.
• Tony Stark arrived in his Iron Man armor and told Nick Fury he had come to represent He-El at the launch ceremony.
• Tony Stark refused to shake Alexander Pierce’s hand and distracted himself with complaints as he fought the urge to kill the man he believed responsible for his parents’ deaths.
• Alexander Pierce concealed his amusement at Tony Stark’s anger, and a seam began splitting open across the plaza.

S.H.I.E.L.D. launched the Helicarrier and tested its flight and optical camouflage while Nick Fury, Tony Stark, and Alexander Pierce watched. After Fury led Pierce and Stark into a locked meeting room, his cheerful demeanor vanished and he faced Pierce with a cold expression.

• Nick Fury, Alexander Pierce, and Tony Stark watched the Helicarrier emerge from beneath the plaza and boarded it.
• Agent Hill reported the Helicarrier ready, and Nick Fury ordered it to take off.
• The Helicarrier rose to six thousand meters, and Nick Fury ordered its reflective panels activated, making it vanish from sight.
• Fury ordered the ship placed in automatic stabilization mode and arranged a meal for the agents aboard.
• Nick Fury led Tony Stark and Alexander Pierce into a locked meeting room, then sat down and stared coldly at Pierce as he opened a bottle of champagne.

Nick Fury and Tony Stark exposed Alexander Pierce’s Hydra conspiracy and incapacitated the Hydra agents aboard the Helicarrier. Tony beat Pierce over his parents’ deaths, but Agent Hill reported that the president had been assassinated.

• Alexander Pierce offered champagne to Nick Fury and Tony Stark while Nick watched the Helicarrier’s cafeteria surveillance feed.
• Tony Stark knocked Pierce’s champagne glass away, and Pierce realized that Nick and Tony had exposed him and cut off his communications.
• Nick Fury explained that He-El’s Helicarrier was being used to eliminate Hydra’s high-ranking members, and Agent Hill reported that the sedative had knocked the Hydra agents unconscious.
• Tony Stark put on Tiger Claws and repeatedly punched Pierce, accusing him of killing his parents.
• Agent Hill urgently reported that the president had been assassinated.

At the president’s funeral, He-El met with Nick Fury, who explained that Hydra’s exposure and the president’s assassination had pushed S.H.I.E.L.D. to the brink of dissolution. As the agency’s future remained uncertain, Nick Fury asked He-El to call Thor while he still controlled S.H.I.E.L.D.

• He-El attended the president’s funeral at the Capitol and placed flowers beneath the coffin.
• He-El joined Nick Fury in a black sedan after leaving the Capitol.
• Nick Fury told He-El that Hydra had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. and that the Winter Soldier had assassinated the president on Alexander Pierce’s orders.
• Nick Fury explained that Hydra’s decades-long assassination records had triggered investigations and left S.H.I.E.L.D.’s survival in dispute.
• He-El reflected that his influence had sent events far from their expected course, and Nick Fury asked him to call Thor while he still controlled S.H.I.E.L.D.

Nick Fury brought Thor and He-El to NASA West District to hand over the Cosmic Cube and secure a lasting friendship between Earth and Asgard. Thor swore an oath to protect that friendship, but the Cube blasted him away when he touched it.

• Nick Fury arrived at NASA West District with He-El and met Phil Coulson.
• Thor flew in, thanked He-El for helping Asgard, and injured Nick Fury with an overenthusiastic hug.
• Nick Fury explained that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s instability made it necessary to give the Cosmic Cube to Thor and build ties with Asgard.
• Thor swore that humanity would forever be Asgard's friend before they went to the underground laboratory.
• Thor reached for the Cosmic Cube, which erupted with energy and blasted him away.

Thor’s touch awakened the Cosmic Cube, and an outside force began using it to open a wormhole. As the conduit grew, Nick Fury ordered an evacuation while Thor’s attempt to destroy the Cube failed.

• Thor touched the Cosmic Cube, which unleashed a shockwave that He-El stopped from throwing Thor farther.
• Dr. Erik Selvig detected radiation from the Cube, and He-El explained that it could form a wormhole linking distant parts of the universe.
• The Cube’s energy began rising as a force from the other end influenced it, prompting He-El to order Vivian to dispatch Atomic Armor Mark II.
• Nick Fury ordered the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to evacuate, while Thor tried to smash the Cube with Mjolnir.
• The Cube’s energy shield rebounded Thor into a wall as a spacetime conduit expanded above it and a pair of eyes looked down.

Thanos learned that the Cosmic Cube had awakened on Earth, but suspected Odin was guarding it and might be laying a trap. He used the Mind Stone to empower the captured Loki and ordered him to take the Cube with the Chitauri.

• Thanos considered invading Earth for the Cosmic Cube, but decided Odin’s presence made a direct attack too dangerous.
• Thanos reflected on his past failed attack on Asgard and on how he had learned the true history of the Infinity Stones.
• Thanos ordered his servant to bring Loki before him.
• Thanos used the Mind Scepter to infuse Loki with the Mind Stone’s power.
• Thanos gave Loki the Mind Scepter and ordered him to cooperate with the Chitauri army to retrieve the Cosmic Cube.

He-El arrived in Atomic Armor Mark II as a powerful presence watched from the expanding wormhole above the Cosmic Cube. When he tried to seal the wormhole, Loki emerged and destroyed the barrier.

• S.H.I.E.L.D. evacuated NASA West District as He-El's Atomic Armor Mark II descended from a satellite and assembled around him underground.
• Nick Fury asked Thor to identify the presence beyond the wormhole, but Thor admitted he did not know who it was.
• Dr. Erik Selvig warned that disrupting the Cosmic Cube's energy balance could cause a black hole or a Big Bang, while Thor said the Cube's barrier could not be broken safely.
• He-El planted ten cylinders around the Cosmic Cube to create a barrier, but Loki fired his Mind Scepter at the connecting screens and stepped out of the wormhole.

Loki emerged from a wormhole wielding the Mind Scepter, shocking Thor and alarming He-El. Loki attacked the group with Mind Energy, incapacitating Thor, Nick Fury, and Dr. Erik Selvig, but He-El remained standing.

• Loki appeared through a wormhole with the Mind Scepter, and Thor was shocked to see his brother alive.
• Loki used the scepter to destroy He-El’s cylinders and claimed he had obtained a weapon more powerful than Mjolnir.
• He-El asked Vivian to scan the Mind Scepter and recognized the threat posed by the Mind Stone.
• Thor charged Loki as Nick Fury drew his gun, while Erik Selvig hid behind the testing equipment.
• Loki unleashed a Mind Storm that knocked Thor, Nick Fury, and Erik Selvig down in agony.
• Loki saw that He-El remained standing, and the red glow from Atomic Armor Mark II’s eyes made him uneasy.

He-El resisted Loki’s Mind Scepter attack and countered with missiles as the underground research facility began to collapse. He escaped to the surface with the Cosmic Cube and the rescued Thor, Nick Fury, and Dr. Erik Selvig while flames erupted behind them.

• Loki’s psychic storm left He-El unharmed, and He-El taunted him as Thor, Nick Fury, and Dr. Erik Selvig writhed in pain.
• Loki raised the Mind Scepter, but He-El launched four micro-missiles that struck Loki’s psychic barrier and exploded in the underground chamber.
• He-El ordered Vivian to carry Thor, Nick Fury, and Dr. Erik Selvig toward the surface in miniature armor.
• He-El caught the falling Cosmic Cube, dodged Loki’s energy beam, and fired a more powerful missile into the smoke around Loki.
• The missile ignited the underground facility, and He-El flew up the elevator shaft with the Cosmic Cube before landing beside the others as flames erupted behind them.

He-El and Thor prepared to face Loki after he survived He-El’s underground missile attack and emerged protected by the Mind Scepter’s psychic energy. He-El struck Loki with a powerful particle beam, blasting him into the sky.

• He-El tossed the Cosmic Cube to the ground and ordered Vivian to analyze it and build an energy transmission channel.
• Phil Coulson evacuated Nick Fury, Dr. Erik Selvig, and the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, while Thor refused to leave He-El behind.
• He-El learned that using the Cosmic Cube as a power source could destroy the Americas, so he activated Atomic Armor Mark II’s weapons instead.
• Loki burst out of the ground wrapped in psychic energy, unharmed by He-El’s missiles.
• He-El fired a concentrated blue particle beam that struck Loki and sent him soaring into the sky.