Suddenly, Colonel Zemo's voice rang out from the surroundings.
"If this is any consolation, they died in their sleep!"
The three of them were stunned to discover that the Winter Soldiers they feared the most—the ones they desperately wanted to stop from being resurrected—had been killed outright. Not a single one remained.
The situation was nothing like they had imagined.Colonel Zemo hadn't awakened the Winter Soldiers; he had even killed them all.
Or perhaps they had been wrong from the start—Zemo never intended to awaken them, nor to use them to exact revenge on the Avengers.
In fact, he didn't need that kind of revenge. He had his own goals.
And all of this was incomprehensible not just to the Winter Soldiers and Black Panther T'Challa on-screen, but also to everyone off-screen. They were completely dumbfounded, unable to grasp the situation.
It was nothing like the psychological profile they had initially assigned to Zemo.
In their assumptions, he should have been an arrogant, megalomaniacal villain, someone seeking to dominate the world using a handful of Winter Soldiers.
But reality was entirely different. He had eliminated those Winter Soldiers—potential allies—without hesitation.
"Do you think I want more people like you?"
Faced with their confusion, Colonel Zemo spoke coldly.
"What…?" Bucky gasped, utterly shocked. He never expected that all these Winter Soldiers had been killed—and while still in their sleep, no less.
These Winter Soldiers were terrifyingly powerful. Whoever controlled them would wield formidable strength.
That was why he had been so desperate to bring Captain Rogers here—to stop Zemo from unleashing them and causing mass destruction.
"But I am grateful to them, grateful that they led you here!"
Zemo's cold voice echoed through the chamber.
Then, a light flicked on, revealing Zemo's silhouette behind a window.
Captain Rogers tried to smash the glass with his vibranium shield—but to no avail. The glass, made of some unknown material, couldn't be broken.
"Come on, Captain. The Soviets designed this room to withstand UR100 missiles!" Zemo said, watching Rogers struggle in vain, a smug grin on his face.
"I bet I've got firepower stronger than yours!" Tony Stark refused to be intimidated.
Though the glass seemed impenetrable, he had equipment that could match the challenge.
"I believe you, Mr. Stark, given time!" Zemo replied, unbothered by Stark's presence. "But if that happens, you'll have no clue why you came here in the first place!"
In other words, this had been a trap from the beginning. Even the death of the psychologist Stark discovered had been deliberately orchestrated—Zemo had notified the hotel staff, ensured someone would find the body, and manipulated Stark into discovering the truth.
He had worked tirelessly to craft such a flawless plan—and now, with Stark's arrival, it was perfect.
If Stark hadn't come, how would he have instigated internal conflict?
Simply using outside forces—like sending five Winter Soldiers against the Avengers—would only have united them further. That would have been meaningless.
Captain Rogers stepped forward, his voice firm: "You slaughtered innocents in Vienna just to lure us here?"
Black Panther, hearing this from the rear, seemed to ponder deeply. He finally understood: the Winter Soldier Bucky was not the one who killed his father.
They had all been deceived. The real perpetrator was this man.
Zemo had killed his father, creating a worldwide uproar—but only to draw Captain Rogers and Tony Stark into his trap.
In other words, his father was just unlucky to be chosen as the pawn. Any other world leader would have suffered the same fate; if the target wasn't a state leader, it would never have had the same impact, let alone provoke internal strife among the Avengers.
Zemo heard the question, but merely gave a cold laugh, ignoring it. Instead, he said:
"For over a year, I've been obsessed with you, studying you, tracking you. And now that you're standing here, I notice—your blue eyes have a hint of green. How wonderful to spot the flaw!"
"You're from Sokovia?" Captain Rogers asked firmly. "Is that all this is about?"
Regarding Sokovia, Tony Stark felt guilt—Ultron had caused so much devastation, and he, as the creator, bore responsibility.
Though his intent had been to better protect humanity, the consequences were real. Responsibility was unavoidable.
For Captain Rogers, however, it had nothing to do with him. He had been dragged into the events passively and had done everything he could to save the people of Sokovia.
He could face Secretary Ross and refuse the Sokovia Accords with a clear conscience—after all, it wasn't his fault.
But Stark couldn't.
With Stark Industries' power, even the fourth-ranking official in the U.S. government wasn't untouchable.
And as a soldier, Rogers' sense of right and wrong differed from Stark's: sometimes saving the majority required sacrificing a few.
Yet, what no one anticipated, Zemo said: "Before you bombed Sokovia, it was already beyond saving."
"No, I came here because of a promise," Stark replied.
Hearing this, Rogers reflected: "You lost someone, didn't you?"
Zemo paused, then said: "I lost everyone. You will too."
Meanwhile, everyone off-screen was in utter shock.
Blown up Sokovia????Their minds went blank. How could this happen? How could Sokovia be destroyed?
They barely remembered that a major battle had occurred there—the events leading to Quicksilver's death—but something had seemed off even then.
Now, reminded of it, they all drew a sharp breath, as if understanding something.
There was no time to dwell further—the next revelation was even more shocking.
Zemo pressed a button, and a video began playing in the chamber, with a single line of text appearing:
December 16, 1992
Captain Rogers glanced at Zemo, then turned his attention to the video.
Outside the chamber, Zemo spoke coldly: "An empire overthrown by enemies can rise again. But an empire collapsed from within is lost forever!"
At first, no one fully understood what was happening. Stark moved closer to the screen and was shocked by what he saw.
It was the street where his parents had died—a street he had walked countless times.
Whenever he thought of his parents, he came here to mourn them. He knew it intimately.
"I know this street… what is this?" Stark asked.
Zemo said nothing in reply.
The scene shifted—now showing 1991, inside a Hydra base.
The base hadn't been decommissioned yet, and the Soviet Empire still stood strong.
It dawned on everyone: Hydra hadn't only infiltrated Americans—they had also embedded themselves within the Soviets, absorbing their scientists and talents.
After World War II, the two superpowers thought they had emerged victorious, but Hydra had quietly gained control.
The gate opened with a password, and Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier, was released from cryostasis.
Rogers winced as he saw Bucky subjected to intense electric shocks, surrounded by soldiers wielding submachine guns.
No matter how Bucky screamed, they remained unmoved.
An officer behind him began chanting in Russian, attempting to awaken Bucky:
"Desire!""Rust!""Seventeen!""Dawn!""Furnace!""Nine!""Kindness!""Return to the homeland!""One!""Train, train carriage!"
As the final activation key was recited, Bucky was fully awakened.
"Good morning, soldier," the Hydra officer said, setting down his notebook.
"I am willing to obey," Bucky replied.
The officer continued: "I have a mission for you. Punish and retrieve—leave no one alive!"
Everyone watched for the first time how Hydra brainwashed people and activated a controlled soldier.
Especially Tony Stark—his gaze softened as he looked at Bucky on screen, the initial desire to kill tempered.
Though his anger had boiled over before, seeing Bucky thawed and manipulated diminished his fury.
-----------------------
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