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That's right.
The caller wasn't just anyone—it was Anna.
HYDRA's Anna.
After exchanging pleasantries, Anna's voice came through the line, tinged with genuine apology. "I'm sorry. I only just got the news. Hawk, please believe me—we had no intention of becoming your enemy. You know that."
Hawk let out a soft laugh. He was about to respond when he noticed Victoria Hand and the female SHIELD agent nearby, both clearly eavesdropping. Instead of answering immediately, he looked at Commander Hand.
"Since you're all set here, I'm heading out."
"Don't mention it."
Before Victoria Hand could respond, Hawk turned and vanished from the underground detention block of the New York SHIELD Operations Center.
When he reappeared, he was already airborne.
Hawk drifted lazily toward New Amsterdam Hospital, continuing his conversation with Anna.
"John Garrett wasn't one of yours."
"No."
"Then whose was he?"
"Arnim Zola."
Anna didn't hesitate for a second before naming Dr. Zola. Then, over the sound of frantic shouting in Japanese on her end, she added, "New York is close to New Jersey, so that whole area has always been Zola's territory."
Figures.
Just then—
Several gunshots crackled through Anna's line.
Hawk raised an eyebrow.
"Where are you right now?"
"Japan."
As Anna spoke, more panicked Japanese screaming erupted in the background, followed by a few more crisp gunshots. "I got transferred here. Remember?"
Hawk's mind immediately conjured an image.
Anna—who usually greeted him with a warm smile—now stood like a cold, merciless queen dressed in black leather, positioned by a floor-to-ceiling window somewhere in Japan. Behind her, a line of Japanese SHIELD agents who refused to surrender were being executed one by one.
Anna seemed to remember something else. "Oh, by the way, Hawk, I was in New York a few days ago, but you weren't around. Couldn't get through to you either. I was planning to wait in New York until you got back, but, well—you know how it is. I had to come back here."
Hawk suddenly remembered the half-month arrangement he'd made with Anna.
He instinctively slapped his forehead.
"Sorry. Had to take care of something out of town."
"It's fine. Once I'm done cleaning up Japan, I'll swing by New York again."
"Sounds good."
Hawk smiled. "Actually, you don't have to wait until you're done. If things go south, just head straight to New York and find me."
He never chose friends based on what side they were on.
Sharon was his friend.
Anna was his friend too. And compared to Sharon, Anna felt more like an old friend who actually understood him.
If Sharon died, her soul would go to his Underworld. If Anna died, same thing. But just like he could protect Sharon, he could protect Anna too.
Anna picked up on the subtext in Hawk's words.
Though she seemed to misunderstand it.
"Hawk, this whole thing had absolutely nothing to do with us. The moment Mr. Pierce found out, he tore into Dr. Zola."
"Oh yeah? And then?"
"Dr. Zola said he'd handle it himself."
"Heh."
Hawk actually laughed at that.
Dr. Zola had "handled it himself" by throwing John Garrett under the bus and hoping that would be enough to smooth things over.
He thought about it for a moment, then spoke into the phone. "John Garrett was just a small-time player. I was actually wondering if Alexander Pierce might be the one pulling the strings behind this."
Anna's voice turned urgent.
"Absolutely not. When Mr. Pierce found out Garrett had sold out to Dr. Zola, he kicked him out of the Triskelion immediately."
"I know. Commander Victoria Hand from New York SHIELD just told me the same thing."
Hawk said, then shifted gears. "But regardless of who was backing John Garrett, he was still HYDRA. So I was thinking—why not just take the whole organization down? You know, if no one steps up to take responsibility for this."
There was an old saying, after all.
To straighten something crooked, you have to overcorrect.
Better to kill a thousand innocents than let one guilty party slip through.
So yeah, he'd genuinely been considering it. HYDRA had chosen to test him, so they needed to pay the price.
Some nobody named John Garrett—someone Hawk had never even heard of before—wasn't going to be enough to quench his anger.
What kind of joke was that?
"But now, Anna—you're my friend."
"I can do you a favor and not let my anger spill over onto the rest of HYDRA."
"Just—"
"Are you really planning to use the favor I owe you to get me to back off?"
Hawk's tone turned serious as he asked.
Anna's answer came without hesitation.
"Yes."
"Done."
Hawk chuckled, not bothering to drag it out. He gave a straightforward answer. "I'll agree to that. I won't let my anger touch your branch or Alexander Pierce's people."
Anna let out a relieved breath on the other end.
"Thank you."
"I already agreed, so you've got to give me something in return, Anna. I came here pissed off. You understand how it feels to finally come home, only to find three brain-dead HYDRA agents trying to break into my house, right?"
"I understand."
"Good. Then figure out a way to redirect my anger onto that Yasukuni outhouse over in Japan."
Hawk smiled as he laid out his demand. "I need to see footage of that place burning to the ground within two hours. Once I see it, I'll stay out of this—just like before. I won't care whether you or SHIELD comes out on top in the end. Deal?"
Anger didn't disappear. It just got redirected.
After all, Zola was just data. Even if Hawk killed him, there wouldn't be any satisfaction in it.
But killing him was still on the agenda.
He just needed to transfer that anger onto something tangible first.
And Anna just happened to be in Japan.
Perfect. The Yasukuni Shrine it was.
Anna paused for a second, processing his request. Then, without any hesitation, she nodded in agreement. "No problem. I'll have people on it right now. Within two hours, you'll see it going up in flames. I promise."
Hawk hummed in acknowledgment.
"One more thing. I was planning to ask you for help when you came to New York next, but since we're on the phone anyway, I might as well bring it up now."
"...Go ahead."
"The Mind Stone Scepter."
After wiping out Wakanda in Africa, Hawk had originally planned to bring this up when Anna returned to New York half a month later.
But then, he'd gone to Skull Island. And while it felt like only two days to him, thanks to the time dilation, seventeen full days had passed in the outside world.
And the moment he got back, HYDRA's second uprising was already underway.
So when Anna said she'd waited for him in New York but eventually had to return to Japan to oversee HYDRA operations there, Hawk didn't doubt her for a second.
First, Anna was HYDRA.
Second, she was his friend.
HYDRA was work.
Friendship was personal.
Hawk wasn't the type to get upset just because Anna hadn't waited around in New York for him.
He'd originally planned to call her in the next day or two anyway.
But since Anna had called him now, he figured he might as well mention it. Better than forgetting later.
On the other end of the line, Anna's voice paused briefly when Hawk mentioned the Mind Stone Scepter.
But she recovered quickly.
"The Mind Stone Scepter?"
"Yeah."
Hawk didn't bother playing coy. He got straight to the point. "I know you've got it. I need to use it for something. Don't worry—I'm not asking you to give it to me for free. I just want to borrow it. And if you're worried, I can come to wherever it is and use it on-site. I'll leave as soon as I'm done."
This time, Anna didn't immediately agree. She thought about it for a moment, and her tone was less certain. "I don't want to lie to you, Hawk. This isn't something I can approve on my own. But I'll escalate it."
Hawk wasn't surprised.
"Fair enough. That's all I've got. Nothing else."
"Alright. I'll handle it."
"Okay. Talk later."
After hearing Anna's assurance, Hawk didn't waste time. He said goodbye and hung up immediately.
Everyone was busy, after all.
He was busy getting Gwen home safely, then heading to New Jersey to find Zola and pull the plug on that digital bastard.
Anna was probably even busier.
Not only did she have to deal with the Japanese SHIELD agents, she also had to figure out how to torch that shrine.
So they could catch up properly another time.
Hawk thought to himself as he looked down and spotted New Amsterdam Hospital below. With a thought, he vanished from the sky.
...
At the same time.
Far away in a standalone villa on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., Alexander Pierce grabbed another phone and dialed a number. The call went to Japan, to a woman known within the organization as Madame Hydra—Ophelia Sarkissian.
The call connected quickly.
A sultry, dangerously languid female voice came through the line.
"Good morning, Pierce."
"Ophelia, I need a favor."
Alexander Pierce took a deep breath, then spoke in a low, urgent tone. "Within two hours, burn down the Yasukuni Shrine."
At that moment, Madame Hydra—lounging lazily on her bed in a seductive pose—blinked and sat up.
"Why?"
"Goddamn Zola."
Alexander Pierce cursed under his breath, then explained how some glitch in Zola's programming had made him think it was a good idea to test Hawk, only for Hawk to catch them red-handed.
Ophelia immediately laughed.
"Pierce, I've been saying this for years. 'Artificial intelligence,' my ass. It's just a broken computer program that can't even move because it's hardwired to a pile of outdated hardware. And you people still treat his word like gospel."
"Skip the commentary. I need time. All I have to do is stall until the Insight Helicarriers launch. So—two hours. Burn the Yasukuni Shrine. Can you do it or not?"
"Fine."
Ophelia chuckled and nodded. "No problem. I'll have people on it right now. But, Pierce—remember. You owe me a favor."
Pierce let out a relieved breath.
"I'll remember."
"Hanging up now."
"Alright."
"..."
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