The River of Death!

Kidnapped and brought to the South American dictatorship of Rio de Muerte, Captain America has vowed to liberate its people from the tyranny of Hector Santiago, aka the Swine. As he walks through the jungle, the Avenger is suddenly ambushed by a hideous creature that the locals call the Man-Fish. Although he fights off his attacker, Cap is soon ambushed by Santiago’s soldiers, who order Captain America to surrender.

Meanwhile, stateside, SHIELD has been putting every resource at its disposal to try and find the missing Captain America, with little success. This upsets the regional director as Nick Fury is demanding answers.[1] Another issue has come up involving another SHIELD investigation into the appearance of monstrous freaks all over the globe. File 116, as it has become to be called, is growing thick and the director needs answers on this as well. The meeting is interrupted by Leila Taylor who is upset that her boyfriend Sam Wilson, aka the Falcon, has gone off on his own search for Captain America and she fears that he will go missing as well. At that same moment, Falcon has been scanning South America from the sky for any trace of his partner, Captain America. Flying through a mountain range he is shocked to discover a massive bird nest that has been constructed using entire logs.

Back in the jugles of Rio de Muerte, Captain America continues to fight with Hector Santiago’s militia. Unfortunately, he ends up falling into a deep pit that he is unable to escape from. The Swine decides to kill Captain America himself with a flame thrower. However, before he can do so his cousin, Donna Maria, tosses her knife cutting the fuel hose from the weapon.[2] Having had enough of Donna Maria’s constant defiance, Hector tosses her in the pit to share Captain America’s fate. Unfortunately for Hector, before he can kill the pair the Man-Fish returns and slaughters his men. Cowering from the monster, the Swine ends up sharing the same fate as his men.

When Captain America and Donna Maria escape from the pit they are also attacked by the Man-Fish. While Captain America is able to keep the creature at bay by tossing his shield, some strange whistle causes the monster to flee in fear. When they turn to see who their savior is they are shocked by what they see. Their rescuer turns out to be a strange metal box in place of his head with a huge human face projected on his face. This bizarre man is Arnim Zola, a geneticist who created the Man-Fish and other creatures like it. He promises Captain America that everything will be explained once he has gotten to know them better.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Falcon, Arnim Zola, Leila Taylor, The Swine, Man-Fish, Donna Maria Puentes, SHIELD (Kurt Jacobson)

Continuity Notes

1. This regional director goes unnamed here. The SHIELD profile in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #10 identifies him as Kurt Jacobson.

2. Donna Maria’s full name is not given here. Her last name is revealed to be Puentes in Captain America #350.

Topical References

• This story depicts File 116 as a literal paper file kept in a desk drawer. Which, by today’s standards, is pretty low-tech for a spy agency like SHIELD.