Fighting Chance Book 5: The Beaten Path

After a run in with the Americop that left a gang of gunrunners dead, Steve Rogers finds himself arrested by local police. They find it hard to believe that he is really Captain America. Seeing that the interrogation is going nowhere, he demands his one phone call in the hopes it will straighten everything out.

Nearly 60 miles away, a group of local thugs are hassling a gay couple as they come out of the video store. This is interrupted by the Americop who breaks it up. After the youth’s would-be victims flee the scene, the vigilante decides that the best punishment for these young hoods is to shoot out their kneecaps.

While in New Orleans, Captain America’s girlfriend Diamondback and his pilot Moonhunter have come to investigate if Snapdragon is truly dead or not.[1] Their inquiries got them captured by a woman named Angelica Gold who has them locked in a cage in a nearby mansion. There they are confronted by a man named Kono. As he cuts down Rachel’s hair with a sword he demands to know how she knows his sister and why she is out looking for her. Rachel explains that they were once friend that came up together at the Taskmaster’s school and that she came looking for Sheoke because she heard that she had died.[2] Before Kono can get any straight answers out of them, Angelica tells her that their boss “Mister D” wants to talk to him. She then takes over the interrogation, revealing that she knows that Rachel and Moonhunter gave her false named when they first met and once more demands they give her straight answers.

By this time, the sheriff who arrested Cap finally agrees to let him make his phone call. He uses the phone to call Peggy Carter and have her make arrangements for his release. Minutes later, the sheriff’s office gets a call from Washington, DC confirming Captain America’s identity and ordering his immediate release. The police let him go without further incident. Once outside the station house, Cap calls Peggy on his Avengers ID card and asks if there is any new from Rachel. When there is nothing to report, Steve becomes worried but debates if he should go looking for her or keep tracking down Americop. As Cap does his search, his arms begin to grow numb while controlling his sky-cycle, another sign that his Super-Soldier Serum is wearing out.[3]

Meanwhile, Americop is speeding down the highway resulting in a police chase with local law enforcement. Seeking to evade arrest, the vigilante puts the pedal to the medal and deploys a oil slick to crash the pursuing police cruiser.

Back in New Orleans, Diamondback and Moonhunter are left unattended long enough for Rachel to recover one of her acid tipped diamonds. As she begins working on her handcuffs, Angelica comes back with a rag soaked in chloroform. When she orders Diamondback to breath into it, Rachel gets loose from her cuffs and knocks Golden out. She then fishes out the keys to unlock Moonhunter’s cuffs and the pair begin looking for a phone to call Cap for help. Peggy receives the message and relays this to Cap, who breaks off his search for Americop to help rescue Rachel and Moonhunter.

At that same time, Rachel and Moonhunter are sneaking around the mansion avoiding detection. Ducking into one of the bedrooms they are greeted by Damon Dran, the man who is in charge of this criminal enterprise. As Rachel explains that they are looking for information about Snapdragon, Kono enters the room. Diamondback quickly takes Dran as a hostage just as he reveals that Kono is Snapdragon’s brother. Dran — who is impervious to harm — is unafraid and when Kono begins charging at her, Rachel realizes that she can’t afford to wait and see if he’s bluffing. Suspecting that Rachel had something to do with his sister’s death, Kono gives her chase. Moonhunter also tries to flee out the bedroom door but finds three of Dran’s goons waiting outside.

Downstairs, Captain America arrives on the scene just as Angelica is waking up. She calls out for help and Cap, unaware that she is responsible for Rachel’s capture, frees her. She then gets close enough to knee Cap in the stomach, winding him long enough for another one of Dran’s men to grab him in an armlock. While upstairs, Kono chases Rachel in the bathroom where he tries to drown her in the whirlpool bathtub. Thankfully, Moonhunter comes up from behind and knocks him out with a statue. For a brief moment, Rachel contemplates drowning Kono, but decides against it after remembering how traumatizing killing his sister was. However, before they can get away, more of Dran’s men show up in the bedroom to deal with them.

Below them, Captain America is really struggling with his opponents due to his diminishing strength. Suddenly, Americop’s SUV comes crashing in through the front door. The vigilante has been investigating missing children tied to a human trafficking operation and his leads have brought him to Dran’s estate. Although he disagrees with Americop’s violent methods, Captain America realizes that his cause is just, moreover he needs help. Cap reluctantly agrees work with him. That’s when Dran and his men appear at the top of the stairs with Rachel and Moonhunter as their prisoners. When Damon demands they surrender, Cap thinks they should do as he says, but Americop refuses to surrender.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Americop, Diamondback, Moonhunter, Damon Dran, Gold Digger, Kono, Peggy Carter

Continuity Notes

1. Diamondback seemingly drowned Snapdragon back in Captain America #413 and has been haunted by the incident ever since. She got a lead that brought her to New Orleans last issue. Snapdragon didn’t actually die as she will turn up again in Moon Knight (vol. 6) #2. Her profile in Captain America: America’s Avenger #1 states that she faked her death.

2. Diamondback and Snapdragon did indeed go through the Taskmaster’s school, as seen in Captain America #403. However, by the time they met in the present day (circa Captain America #388) they were sworn enemies. That encounter led to Rachel almost getting drown, setting in motion Sheoke’s own apparent demise. How this falling out happened has yet to be explained as of this writing in July, 2022.

3. Captain America learned in issue #425 that his Super-Soldier Serum was wearing out. As a result, continue extraneous activities could leave him completely disabled. He will be cured of this condition in issue #445.

Topical References

• The sheriff that arrests Steve Rogers quips that Steve’s costume doesn’t make him anymore Captain America than the sheriff’s mustache makes him actor Burt Reynolds. Reynolds was distinguished in his later career by his epic mustache. This reference however should be considered a topical reference, particularly since Reynolds died of a heart attack in 2018.

• The gay couple that are attacked in this story are depicted coming out of a video store that rents VHS tapes. This should be considered a topical reference as VHS is an obsolete format.

• The movie the couple rent is the Crying Game a 1992 film starring Stephen Raye and Jaye Davidson. The story is set in Northern Ireland and explores themes of sex, race, and nationality. It’s main protagonist is a man who enters into a romantic relationship with a transgendered woman. It was groundbreaking for its time. This isn’t necessarily a topical reference as this was used as a device to frame the fact that these two characters are gay during a time when the Comics Code Authority was reluctant to allow for openly gay characters or LGTBQ2S+ themes. The film is also a cult classic in that community due to its pioneering story.