Snowfall Fury!

Captain America is struggling to climb the icy side of a mountain trying to reach a place called Dovecote. After he nearly falls, he is attacked by a small team of mercenaries that are riding on the backs of massive hawks. When the powerful winds sends one of the hawk riders crashing into the side of the mountain and falling to his death, the leader of the squad orders his men to pull back, deciding to deal with Captain America when he reaches the top.

As Captain America collects himself he thinks back to the events that brought him here in the first place….

… Steve Rogers was summoned to SHIELD headquarters by Nick Fury. There, the spy agency director shows a number of reports of SHIELD agents that have suffered sudden brain hemorrhages due to some kind of telepathic attack. One of the victims was Mentallo, a former agent who previously attempted to destroy SHIELD himself.[1] When Cap asks what SHIELD’s Esper unit has to say, he learns that the unit was scrapped to fund the failed Super-Agents team.[2] The only clue to the source of the attacks are the fact that each of the victims were carrying blank metal discs. As Fury continues his explanation, Captain America suddenly receives a telepathic message from a beautiful woman calling herself Snowfall. She explains that she is a telepath who is being held against he will at Dovecote and pleads with the hero to save her. When the vision ends, Cap tells Nick about what he just witnessed and learns that Dovecote is a safehouse that provides shelter for anyone — from gangsters, to spies, to scientists — that can afford the price.

… By the time Steve is finished his recollection he has made it to the top of the cliff and finds armed men waiting for him. He gets away using a SHIELD designed short-range jet-pack to help him fight through the army. Stealing one of their snow mobiles he heads toward the Dovecote facility where he is once again attacked by the hawk riders. Although he manages to drive them off it his snowmobile is trashed and he loses his shield in the snow.

Cap is then attacked by a group of men who ride another breed of large bird called diatrymas. Outmatched by the powerful prehistoric birds, Captain America races to a nearby minefield and ducks, causing the massive birds and their riders to slam into the mines, destroying them. Reaching the Dovecote facility, he is confronted by a fighter called Widowmaker. Boasting that he is a better trained fighter, the brute begins subduing Captain America. As Widowmaker and Cap duke it out, the man in charge of the facility watches from his control room. He muses that Captain America’s nightmares are just about to begin.[3]

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Mind-Master, SHIELD (Nick Fury), Widowmaker

Continuity Notes

1. Mentallo’s attack on SHIELD was chronicled back in Strange Tales #142-143.

2. The SHIELD Super-Agents were formed back in Captain America #216, it was deemed a failure by issue #230 when it was discovered that two of its members were spies for the Corporation.

3. This mystery man is revealed to be the Mind-Master next issue.