Avengers (vol. 3) #65
Red Zone, Part 1
As strange red cloud has appeared atop Mount Rushmore in the early afternoon. It is barely noticed by tourists on site until it makes its way down to the ground where it has increased in size. Those exposed to the cloud start having the flesh eaten off their bones. This causes a panic as people run to their cars to flee the toxic cloud. Unfortunately, the cloud is soon upon them. In one vehicle, a mother tells her young son to cover his nose and mouth and get down on the floor.
Nearby, in the town of Keystone, a Park Ranger named Hawkins hitches a ride with an EMT as it heads into town to help those who managed to get away from the deadly red fog. With only face masks to protect themselves and the cloud slowly moving into town, they hope that some higher authority like SHIELD, FEMA, or the CDC came and quick. Eventually, the cloud is getting too close for comfort that helicopters are deployed to evacuate everyone in time. Just then, a car comes speeding into town and crashes in another parked RV. It’s one of the tourists from Mount Washington and as she crawls out of her vehicle she weakly calls for someone to help her son before she falls to the ground and dies. The little boy then crawls out of the car and pleads with his mother to get up and take him home. Captain America then comes in and picks the boy up and promises that, no matter what, he’ll get the boy back home.
Cap then hands the boy off to the Vision and orders him to take the child to one of the retreating helicopters. Phasing aboard the craft, the Vision insists that they take the child on board. The soldiers, however, tells him that they are beyond the maximum weight capacity and can’t take any more passengers. The Vision then grabs their rifles and throws them out of the chopper, freeing up enough weight for the child.[1]
Back on the ground, Captain America meets with Hawkins and says that he knows about as much as they do about the cloud. As they look for clues they are joined by the rest of the Avengers — the Scarlet Witch, Warbird, She-Hulk, Jack of Hearts, and Ant-Man — arrive just as the winds shift. This will send the cloud into Custer State Park, which hasn’t been evacuated. When Jack wonders why the Avengers weren’t called in to organize the evacuation, a General Fester arrives and says that this is an American operation and that they made a miscalculation. Luckily, the Scarlet Witch is able to use her hex powers to delay the cloud in place so evacuations can take place. That’s when the Vision arrives with bio-hazard suits obtained from the CDC. While everyone suits up, Cap figures that She-Hulk and Jack of Hearts are probably impervious to the cloud. While Jack doesn’t care in the slightest, She-Hulk doesn’t want to take the risk and suits up with the others. Warbird is asked to stay behind as her NASA training could be more useful to the military.
As the Avengers enter the cloud, Ant-Man mentions how this feels like an end-of-the-world type scenario.[2] Captain America retorts by saying that it’s not the end of the world until the Avengers say it is.
Recurring Characters
Avengers (Captain America, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Warbird, She-Hulk, Jack of Hearts, Ant-Man), Red Skull
Continuity Notes
When the Vision uses his phasing powers here, it causes his internal components to become visible. This is a glitch in his powers caused during his fight the the Gremlin in Avengers Icons: The Vision #1-4. This will remain the status quo until Vizh is destroyed in Avengers #500. When he is finally repaired in Avengers (vol. 4) #19, this issue will be corrected.
She-Hulk wonders if it is a good idea for Jack of Hearts and Ant-Man to be on this same mission together. The two have been at odds with one another since Avengers (vol. 3) #57.
Topical References
When the soldiers are theorizing who was responsible for the biological weapon, one names off a bunch of terrorist organizations. Two of the groups named as al-Queda and Hezballah (misspelled Hizballah here). Both organizations have had a history of attacks against the United States and its interests. This story was written in the years after the 9/11 terror attacks and shortly after the invasion of Iraq. Tensions between the Middle East and the West were very high. While both organizations still exist and are considered terrorist organizations by the United States, their reference here is topical given the period and the context of their reference here.
