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Chapter 143: SSR New York Branch
🕑 Added 2025-01-08 14:29:26 +0000 UTC"Clang... hiss..." The ambushers hiding around the apartment building noticed the caution of Carter and Bucky in the car. Immediately, several smoke bombs were thrown from different corners on both sides of the street, landing near the vehicle.
Thick smoke quickly engulfed the car, and eight attackers wearing gas masks emerged from their hiding places, armed with baton-like weapons, and approached the vehicle.
Their goal was to capture Bucky Barnes alive, so lethal weapons were not an option.
From their coordinated movements, it was clear that these individuals were mostly ex-military.
However, they underestimated Bucky and Carter, seasoned agents who had survived countless battles.
As the eight attackers surrounded the car, they realized it was empty.
As they stood stunned, Bucky and Carter, now wearing gas masks as well, had silently moved through the smoke to the back of four of the attackers.
Bucky grabbed two of them by the head and slammed them onto the roof of the car with a loud thud. The impact disoriented them before he swung his custom-made prosthetic arm, courtesy of Howard Stark, to strike both men in the shoulders, knocking them unconscious.
Meanwhile, Carter, facing two attackers on her side, wasted no time. She delivered a sharp kick to one man's groin, a faint cracking sound accompanying his scream.
As his companion turned in shock, Carter swung her heavy-duty agent's briefcase at his face, then kicked his knee, forcing him to his knees.
Without missing a beat, she grabbed the first man by the hair and slammed his head into the car door, knocking him unconscious.
Turning, she finished off the kneeling man with another swing of her briefcase, sending him to the ground.
In a matter of seconds, Carter had taken down two attackers, almost as fast as Bucky, earning an approving thumbs-up from him.
On the other side of the car, the remaining four attackers were both angry and terrified.
Even Vito, watching from a corner on the second floor of the apartment, couldn't help but cover his face. He wondered if he should admire Bucky and Carter's skill or scoff at the incompetence of the Council's agents.
"Boss was right," Vito muttered to himself. "These Council idiots are useless."
Without hesitation, Vito quietly removed his coat, pulled out a syringe, and injected himself in the neck.
Down below, Bucky and Carter quickly subdued the remaining four attackers.
Grabbing the collar of a conscious attacker, Bucky slammed him against the car. "Who are you? Why did you attack us?" he demanded.
"I... I... monster..." the attacker stammered, his eyes wide with fear as he stared behind Bucky.
Assuming it was an insult directed at him, Bucky was about to retort when Carter, pale and trembling, tugged at his arm.
"Carter, what's wrong? What's got you so—holy sh—?" Bucky's words turned into a curse as he spun around.
Behind him stood a towering, six-foot creature with a massive build that resembled a giant lizard. His cold, emotionless, vertical pupils were intently focused on him.
It was none other than Vito, now fully transformed.
Realizing the situation had taken a turn for the worse, Bucky instinctively reached for his gun. But Vito was faster-his clawed hand swung in a flash, sending Bucky flying seven or eight meters before he crashed hard to the ground, unable to move for a while.
Carter, already armed, unloaded her M1911 at Vito. However, the bullets barely penetrated the thick keratin of his claws, stopping at the muscle underneath and causing no real damage.
When her magazine was empty, Vito nonchalantly flicked his hand, causing the bullets to fall to the ground. Carter froze in disbelief.
Without hesitation, Vito's tail lashed out, striking Carter in the abdomen and sending her flying.
Vito was confident in his control of his power—this attack would knock Carter out, but it wouldn't do any lasting damage. After all, Josh's instructions were clear; no killing or maiming. A few bruises were acceptable, especially after Carter's bullets had slightly stung him.
"Wake them up, you useless bunch!" Vito shouted at the conscious Council agent, his monstrous voice unrecognizable after the transformation.
With that, he turned his attention to Bucky, who, despite his injuries, was trying to get to his feet while clutching a grenade.
Bucky had seen Carter's bullets fail and decided to try his luck with an explosive. But Vito wouldn't give him the chance. Just as Bucky pulled the pin, Vito leapt forward, swung his tail like a baseball bat, and sent the grenade soaring into the air where it exploded harmlessly.
With a mocking glint in his eye, Vito grabbed Bucky by the throat with one claw and ripped off his prosthetic arm with the other, tossing it aside.
A quick spin and a powerful throw sent Bucky crashing onto the hood of the car. The force of the impact knocked him unconscious.
"Clean up and get out of here with the target!" Vito ordered the Council agents as they rushed to awake their unconscious comrades.
Even the dimmest of the agents realized that this monstrous creature was on their side. They wasted no time in tying Bucky up and loading him into their vehicle before making a quick escape.
Vito, however, turned his attention to Carter, who was struggling to sit up on the floor.
“What are you?” Carter asked, her face defiant even as her body failed her.
Vito didn't answer. Instead, his claw rose high and struck down.
Carter flinched, bracing for the end—but instead of pain, she felt a sharp blow to her neck, and darkness consumed her.
When Carter regained consciousness, she found herself in a hospital room. Alarmed, she tried to sit up, but was immediately met with pain and the realization that she was securely restrained.
"Don't move—you're badly injured," came a deep, familiar voice from beside her.
Turning her head slightly, she was surprised to see Josh, someone she hadn't seen in a long time.
"Mr. Kahn? Where am I?" Carter asked, still dazed.
"You're in a ward at the city hospital," Josh replied. “Call me Josh—we’re friends, aren’t we?”
"All right, Josh... Did you bring me here?" she asked.
"I was in New York on business," Josh explained. "I planned to visit you after dinner, but when I got to your apartment building, I found you unconscious outside. So I brought you here. What happened? The scene looked like something out of a war zone. You also broke three ribs—luckily no internal bleeding."
Carter winced as Josh continued, "Somebody attacked us. It was a huge lizard-like creature, almost two stories tall. Bucky... Bucky was taken. Josh, you have to contact my colleagues and tell them what happened!" Carter shouted, her voice growing frantic.
"Calm down, Carter. Your priority is to get better," Josh reassured her. "I've already informed your colleagues. But by the way, aren't you with the Strategic Scientific Reserve? Why does your badge say you work for the Bell Telephone Company?"
Carter hesitated, but decided to trust Josh, especially after he had saved her life. "You're right—I am still with the SSR. Bell Telephone is just a front."
"I see..." Josh nodded, pretending to be puzzled, though he already knew the truth. "Well..."
Before Josh could finish, the door slammed open with a loud bang.
A group of sharply dressed men burst in, each carrying a briefcase identical to Carter's. Outside, the two guards posted at the door were overpowered at gunpoint by similarly dressed individuals.
The room froze as Josh, despite being pinned to the wall, spoke with sharp authority.
"Who are you people?" he demanded, his tone firm and commanding.
Ignoring his question, one of the intruders grabbed Josh's arm, twisted it behind his back, and pushed him against the wall with unnecessary force before beginning a pat-down.
"Do you even know who I am?" Josh growled, his voice filled with obvious anger. His behavior was convincing, but no one in the room noticed the calm calculation in his eyes.
This was no act of helplessness. Josh, along with his two seemingly subdued bodyguards at the door, were playing a carefully orchestrated role.
The intruders were none other than agents of the New York branch of the Strategic Scientific Reserve.
Although Josh appeared to be a young businessman, he was far from defenseless. Years of training with his personal guards, including Vito, had honed his fighting skills. His imposing frame and physical conditioning made him no pushover. While he wasn't on the same level as seasoned SSR operatives in actual combat, subduing him without a fight was by no means an easy task.
But Josh deliberately allowed himself to be overpowered. He needed to reduce any suspicion that might arise from his presence on the scene. The timing of his arrival at Carter's location might seem too coincidental to be innocent. Appearing weak served the dual purpose of lowering the agents' guard and painting himself as a victim.
This would later allow Josh to use his connections and possibly accuse the SSR of excessive force. It also served another purpose—to cement Peggy Carter's trust. Josh wanted her to feel guilty for involving him in the whole ordeal, increasing her trust in him and opening the door for future influence peddling within S.H.I.E.L.D.
"Director, please don't treat him like this! Josh Kahn is my friend!" Carter, lying in bed, tried to struggle to her feet and said to the man leading the team; Roger Dooley, the director in charge of the SSR agents.
"Agent Carter, I understand your concern, but that doesn't clear him of suspicion. Once Agent Kuzminski completes his search and verifies his identity, we'll let him go," Dooley replied, calm but unyielding.
"Director, you don't understand! Josh Kahn is no ordinary man—he is the guest of the President and General Eisenhower!" Carter exclaimed, growing increasingly desperate.
Dooley and his team, mostly veterans of the Pacific Theater, exchanged doubtful glances. Though they were experienced agents, their familiarity with Josh's reputation was limited by his low profile and the slower communications of the era. To them, the idea that a young man—seemingly no older than seventeen or eighteen—would be so highly connected was absurd.
"Well, well, it seems Agent Carter has met some extraordinary gentlemen during the war," Kuzminski quipped sarcastically, shoving Josh once more for good measure.
Josh, maintaining his composure, barely suppressed a smile. Their disbelief worked to his advantage.
The tension reached peak when Carter's voice was suddenly interrupted by the sound of heavy boots.
A large number of police officers stormed into the room, guns drawn, pointing at the SSR agents.
Roger Dooley was stunned. What in the world was happening?
His confusion grew as he watched the police captain approach, barking orders. The captain and his officers detained Kuzminski and his team, even roughing up Kuzminski before politely helping Josh to a chair.
"Mr. Kahn, are you all right?" the captain asked respectfully.
Josh adjusted his cuffs, his expression one of calm authority, and nodded. "I'm fine, Captain. Thanks for your help."
It hit Dooley that the Captain's men were treating Josh like royalty. Carter's earlier claims didn't seem so far-fetched anymore.
Josh had played his hand perfectly. The SSR agents were outsmarted, Carter's trust deepened, and his influence strengthened.
