Captain America Comics #33
Mother Wong
In China, Steve Rogers and James Barnes are deployed along with other American troops to help the Chinese defend their country from invasion from Japan. As their convoy passes through a mountain range they are attacked by Japanese agents that are led by the mysterious Mother Wong. Narrowly escaping the surprise attack, Steve and James learn that Mother Wong is supposedly 120 years old and betrayed her fellow Chinese to join the Imperial Japanese army and that her forces are hidden deep in the jungles of Burma.
Steve and James decide to hunt for the hidden base as Captain America and Bucky. Searching the jungles they find a hut owned by a native and convince him to lead them to Mother Wong's camp. However, Mother Wong and her minions learn of Captain America's approach and she sets a trap for them. With their guide shot down by snipers, the two heroes dive into a nearby river for cover. With some quick thinking, Bucky and Cap manage to sneak through the jungle around their attackers and wipe them out before continuing on their quest.
When they attempt to cross a rope bridge, Mother Wong's forces cut the bridge loose but the two heroes pass through a waterfall and land on a hidden ledge that leads into an underground cavern. They follow the cavern and it leads them to Mother Wong's camp. There Cap and Bucky begin fighting their way through the Japanese forces until Bucky is grabbed by one of Mother Wong's men who threatens to cut the boys throat if Captain America does not surrender.
The two heroes are brought before Mother Wong who tells them that they are going to be put to death. She brings them before the Japanese soldiers that are in command of the unit she is assisting and they demand that the two heroes are killed immediately. Mother Wong refuses to do so, telling them that she will kill them in a way that she sees fit. She takes them into a lower chamber where Cap and Bucky break loose and attempt to fight their way to freedom. They are stopped by Mother Wong herself who reveals that she is really a spy for the Chinese.
When one of the Japanese soldiers hears this he leads his minions to attack Mother Wong and the two Americans. They fight through the army and get to cover. There Mother Wong tells them that she has rigged the base with mine and set it to explode in minutes. She hands them a map showing the Japanese offensive in the region and tells the two heroes to go. The pair fight their way through, leading Mother Wong and her loyal followers through the Japanese forces to safety when the bomb goes off killing all the Japanese in the area. Mother Wong, her cover maintained, then bids the two heroes farewell as she goes to return to the Japanese and continue her spying.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Bucky, Imperial Japan
The Human Torch Meets the Japanese Beetle
The Human Torch and Toro are on their way to their new office when Toro is bitten by a Japanese Beetle. Ignoring it, they continue on their way when Toro suddenly feels faint and falls over. A couple witnessing this believe that the Torch is bullying Toro and hassle him when suddenly the husband of the pair also collapses from a bug bite. Toro recovers from the bite, and they have the man sent off to a hospital.
Arriving at their office, the Torch has their secretary Janice Perry pull out an almanac, proving the Torch's suspicion that Japanese Beetles are out of season. They decide to venture south to warmer climates where the bugs have migrated and spot a man trying to catch them in a bug catcher net. Stopping him, they learn his name is Magu, who tells them that due to his misshapen body he got work as an assistant to a Japanese scientist named the Beetle who began experimenting with the Japanese Beetle to find a way to make their bites poisonous.
As the Torch and Toro accompany Magu to the Beetle's castle, Janice rushes to the heroes aid hoping to help them before its too late. As the trio fall through a trap door and try to find their way to the Beetle, Janice is captured by their foe and suspended over a pit of the lethal bugs. The Torch and Toro rescue her while Magu struggles with the Beetle, tossing him into his own pit of poisoned bugs. With the Beetle dead, Magu thanks the Torch and his friends for their help and they all part ways.
Recurring Characters
Human Torch, Toro
The Master of the Killer Mongoose
Steve Rogers and James Barnes have been sent to North Africa, where they witness agents of the Nazi known as the Mongoose attempt to steal secret plans from members of the Women's Auxiliary Corps. They come to the aid of the women and fight off their attackers. To their surprise, one of the women is their old friend Betty Ross. The trio are happily reunited and when Betty is ordered to return to the hotel they are staying at she tells the boys to meet up with her when she is off duty.
Meanwhile, at the taxidermist where the Mongoose hides out, he learns about his minions failure and sets his pet mongoose to attack and kill one of his men. He then begins plotting anew to capture the secret plans.
At the hotel where the WAC's are stationed, the commanding officer rips apart the plans and has each of the women memorize a bit when the Mongoose and his men attack. As the women are knocked out by the gas, the Mongoose and his men start taking them away to pry the secrets out of them. Before she passes out, Betty manages to scrawl a secret message in lipstick.
Finding the secret message, Steve and James go after Betty as Captain America and Bucky. Tracking the Mongoose to his hideout, they arrive just as the Mongoose has heard about their approach and is attempting to smuggle the captured WAC's in the skins of animals. When Captain America and Bucky attack, they are dropped into a trap door with one of the animal skins. Cutting it open they find the commanding officer trapped inside and learn what the Mongoose had done.
Captain America and Bucky track down the truck shipping the women and free them. Learning that the Mongoose and his men are attempting to blow up abridge as a convoy of soldiers cross it, the angry WAC's take a bunch of baseball bats and beat them senseless. Seeing that the situation is under control, Captain America and Bucky leave the scene as Betty captures the Mongoose. Later, back in their civilian guises, Steve and James great Betty while she is on duty and she scolds them for not referring to her by her rank as she is their superior officer.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Bucky, Betsy Ross, Nazis
The Symbol of Doom
Riding on a train to the west coast, Steve Rogers and James Barnes read a newspaper story about the so called "Symbol of Doom" whose appearance has led to disaster in many places across the country. Their train suddenly stops and they are surprised to see that Symbol has appeared on the rail bridge they are on. Steve and James jump out of the train into the water below just before the Symbol explodes, destroying the bridge and sending the train crashing down to the water below, killing the other soldiers on board.
Changing into Captain America and Bucky, the pair decide to investigate the scene. When they do they are attacked by a sniper leading them to find Japanese soldiers hiding in the rocks. Easily defeating them, they let the soldiers escape so that they can follow them back to their hideout, which turns out to be an abandoned copper mine. They attack a group of soldiers in a nearby hut and force them to talk, they tell Cap and Bucky that the rest of their operation is stationed inside the mine and prepare to lead them. Cap and Bucky are unaware that a trap has been prepared for their arrival. However, suspecting this, Cap sends the captives into the mine first while they sneak around and find a back way in. This works according to the Japanese plan and they are captured.
They are brought before the so called Symbol of Doom, and they are shocked to find that he is not just one man -- but many men. All identical looking individuals with bombs strapped to their chest that are willing to sacrifice their lives in order to frighten Americans. They then gloat as they prepare to fly operatives to all points of the country to commit suicide bombings in various locations. They are taken aboard the plane where they are to be forced to watch the various agents parachute to their locations. Captain America and Bucky then break free of their bonds and fight off their captors. They trigger one of the Symbols bombs and parachute out of the plane just as it explodes, killing all the agents aboard.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Bucky, Imperial Japan
