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Inside the darkness, Sitwell struggled and yelled.
"Let me go! You don't know what you're doing!"
Alex's voice came from behind him, cold and calm.
"Oh, I know exactly what I'm doing."
Alex threw Sitwell out into the open hallway. He slid across the floor, gasping.
The turrets turned toward Sitwell for a moment, confused by the sudden target change — just long enough.
Steve shouted, "Now!"
Tony quickly fired small EMP blasts. Turrets sparked and shut down.
Natasha shot the control panel. The rest of the turrets powered off and locked in place.
Bruce slowed his breathing, trying not to lose control. "Okay… that's better."
Fury walked toward Sitwell slowly. "You just made a very big mistake."
Sitwell laughed nervously. "HYDRA… will win. You can't stop us."
Alex kicked him lightly on the shoulder. "Wrong answer."
Steve knelt down in front of Sitwell. He looked angry — disappointed.
"You were a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. You swore to protect people."
Sitwell smirked. "Protect? We're saving the world. From chaos. From freedom—"
Natasha punched him once. "Save the villain speech."
Fury signaled the guards outside. The locked doors opened as the emergency lockdown disengaged.
Two agents rushed in and grabbed Sitwell.
"Take him to interrogation," Fury ordered. "Maximum watch. No chances."
The guards dragged Sitwell away.
Tony sighed. "Well. That escalated. Again."
Bruce looked at the damaged corridor. "Hydra is moving faster than we thought."
Natasha checked her tablet. "And if Sitwell was accessing those files… they were trying to move something important."
Steve asked Fury, "What files were they going after?"
Fury didn't hide the truth.
"Project Insight."
Tony crossed his arms. "The giant death satellites? The ones that track everyone on Earth?"
Fury looked annoyed. "They're supposed to protect people."
Alex scoffed. "Yeah, and HYDRA wants to use them to control everyone."
Steve shook his head. "We can't let them finish that project."
Natasha added, "We need to find the rest of the HYDRA leaders inside S.H.I.E.L.D. — fast."
Fury nodded. "We take the fight to them."
Alex cracked his knuckles. "Finally. Something I'm good at."
Tony rolled his eyes. "Please try not to destroy the whole building."
Alex grinned. "…No promises."
Steve smiled slightly. "Alright. Let's finish this."
Fury gave the final order:
"We're shutting HYDRA down — everywhere."
Alex raised a hand.
"Before everywhere… maybe let's secure the Helicarrier first. It would be a bad idea to lose this base."
Everyone looked at each other and nodded.
"Yeah, you're right," Steve said. "Step by step. We clear HYDRA from here first."
Alex turned to Tony. "Jam all outgoing communication. No calls, no messages, no alerts leaving this base."
Tony nodded and started typing on his wrist HUD. "On it. HYDRA's not calling for backup today."
Alex continued, "Now Fury… we need to be smart. If people find out there is HYDRA inside S.H.I.E.L.D. right now, they will panic. And panicking agents means more HYDRA soldiers can hide."
Fury understood. His jaw tightened.
"So we keep this contained," Bruce said. "Only the people we trust."
Natasha added, "Which is… a very small list."
Steve looked around. "We stay quiet. We clean HYDRA out from the inside before anyone knows."
Tony finished locking the Helicarrier's communication network. "Done. Every signal is trapped inside this building."
There was silence for a moment.
Then Alex spoke firmly:
"Good. We hunt the traitors first. No escapes."
Steve nodded. "We move floor by floor. Secure command center, armory, and engine rooms. Those are the most dangerous targets."
Fury activated his secure earpiece. "I'll call in the loyal agents. People I trust with my life."
Natasha checked her guns. "And if they're HYDRA pretending?"
Alex smirked. "Then we deal with them."
Bruce sighed but nodded. He knew it was necessary.
Tony tapped the floor map on his screen. "HYDRA pockets detected on three main levels. We can split into two teams."
Steve: "No. We stay together for now. HYDRA knows we're coming — we don't give them free targets."
Fury looked at all of them. "Make no mistake. This is a war inside our own home."
Alex stepped forward, eyes cold.
"And we're ending it right here."
The team moved down the hallway together, staying alert. Lights flickered above them — someone was trying to cut power.
Tony scanned his HUD. "HYDRA is already reacting. They're closing bulkhead doors ahead."
Steve pointed forward. "Then we move fast. Go!"
They ran.
A group of armed agents turned the corner — guns aimed. They looked like normal S.H.I.E.L.D. soldiers.
Fury raised his voice. "Stand down! We are in control here!"
One of the soldiers smiled.
"Cut the act, Director. Hail HYDRA."
They opened fire.
Steve lifted his shield, blocking the bullets. Tony fired repulsors to knock two soldiers down. Natasha and Alex charged forward with quick strikes, disarming the others.
Bruce stayed back, fists shaking — trying not to transform.
Within seconds, the HYDRA squad was defeated.
Steve handled their weapons. "We tie them up. They don't get another chance."
Tony checked his map again. "Hydra squads are moving toward the engine room. They want to take control of the ship."
Fury spoke sharply, "If they get the engines, they can crash this Helicarrier into the ground."
They rushed toward the engine room.
As they approached, a loud metal crash echoed through the walls.
Bruce swallowed. "That… doesn't sound good."
Natasha held up a hand. "Quiet."
They listened.
A familiar, mechanical whirring noise came from behind the sealed engine doors.
Tony frowned. "That's not S.H.I.E.L.D. tech…"
Fury nodded. "Hydra brought their own toys."
The doors suddenly slid open, and a squad of Hydra soldiers stormed out. Their armor was different — darker, metallic… and glowing with green lines. Each soldier carried a long, alien-looking rifle.
Natasha narrowed her eyes. "Those definitely aren't standard guns."
Tony scanned them quickly. "Energy weapons. Looks like stolen Chitauri tech."
Alex stepped forward, cracking his knuckles. "Good. Something I can break."
The Hydra soldiers didn't waste time. They aimed and fired — blasts of green energy shot down the hallway.
Steve raised his shield. "Take cover!"