… And Other Strangers

In the middle of the night, Captain America arrives at garage where a bunch of rough looking bikers are hard at work. As it turns out, these are not criminals, but fans of Captain America who store and maintain his motorcycle. With the recent repairs done, Cap thanks the guys for their help and rides away.

On the road, the Avenger thinks about his recent final battle with the Red Skull, how his youth was recently restored, and his love for Bernie Rosenthal.[1] He also wonders where his partner, Nomad, has been keeping himself as Steve hasn’t seen him for a few days.

Unaware that he is being spied upon, Cap is forced to bail out on his motorcycle after a projectile punctures the front tire. The attacker is a mercenary who calls himself Machete, as this is his trademark weapon. He explains that he has been hired to attack Captain America, and how he intends to use the money from this job to help the people of his home country rebel against their oppressive government. Machete proves to be highly skilled with the weapons he is named after and manages to slice through the straps on Captain America’s shield. Although this limits how Cap can wield his trademark weapon, he still manages to use it to successfully ward off Machete. Realizing that he’s fighting a losing battle, Machete downs some powerlines to put some distance between himself and Captain America so he can make a quick escape.

Steve Rogers returns to his ap artment to make repairs to his shield and refresh its paint job. That’s when his fiancée, Bernie Rosenthal, comes to visit him. She tells him that Dave Cox has come out of his coma and is expected to be released from the hospital and Arnie is slowly making a recovery from shock.[2] That’s when Jack Monroe returns home and tells Steve that he was out thinking. Telling Jack about his encounter with Machete they change into Captain America and Nomad to go out looking for him. Although Bernie wishes them luck, she secretly prays that Steve will make it home alive.

Meanwhile, Machete returns to his hideout where he reports back to his employer. The man who hired him is disappointed that Machete failed and sends him back out to finish the job with another assassin named Zaran. Tracking down Captain America and Nomad, Zaran tells Machete to stand back so he can show him how it is done.[3] Although Zaran is a master of many weapons, and succeeds in separating Cap from his shield, Zaran is ill equipped to deal with the teamwork of Captain America and Nomad. With the battle going south very quickly, Machete steps in and grabs Nomad from behind. Threatening to slit Nomad’s throat, Machete orders Captain America to surrender. However, before revealing what they have come for, Zaran tells Machete to be quiet. After releasing Nomad, they make a hasty retreat.

It’s only after they are gone that Captain America realizes that the two mercenaries stole his shield. Jack blames himself, but Steve assures him that none of this is his fault. Meanwhile, Zaran and Machete hand over Captain America’s shield to their leader, Batroc, who is delighted as the legendary weapon will make them all very rich.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Batroc’s Brigade (Batroc, Zaran, Machete), Nomad, Bernie Rosenthal

Continuity Notes

1. Captain America’s “final battle” with the Red Skull was chronicled in Captain America #293-300 and ended with the Red Skull’s apparent death. While the Red Skull’s physical body died, his mind has actually lived on as Arnim Zola transferred it to the clone of Steve’s body, as revealed in Captain America #350. During the Skull’s “final revenge” Steve was drugged with a poison that caused him to rapidly age. He was cured last issue.

2. Dave Cox, a devoted pacifist, was brainwashed by the Red Skull and forced to attack Captain America and Nomad. Unable to bring himself to kill, Dave fought the mental conditioning but the neurological strain put him in a coma. See Captain America #293-294. He came out of his coma in issue #300. Arnie on the other hand was kidnapped by the Red Skull and psychologically tortured from issue #295 until he was rescued in issue #300, leaving him in a catatonic state.

3. Zaran recounts a previous clash he had with Shang-Chi. This was in Master of Kung Fu #109.