"Hey, don't touch that!" Daniel's voice rang out sharply just as Rumlow reached for the scepter lying on the ground.
Rumlow froze, frowning slightly. Was Daniel planning to keep the scepter for himself?
"Mr. Daniel van der Berg, we're the S.H.I.E.L.D. authority—" he started, but Daniel cut him off before he could finish.
"What are you thinking?" Daniel snapped. "I'm stopping you from getting affected like your colleague did earlier. This scepter manipulates people. It amplifies the darkest desires buried inside, and then… well, let's just say you stop being in control. I just saved you."
His tone was sharp, but not entirely without warning. Daniel's gaze was deliberate as he added, "Think for a second—what would happen if you lost control?"
Rumlow's body tensed, his face going pale. It was a chilling thought. If the scepter triggered something inside him, he might expose far more than a violent impulse.
As a high-ranking Hydra operative embedded within S.H.I.E.L.D., Rumlow's deepest desire was to purge the organization of its loyal agents and ensure Hydra's dominance from the shadows. A loss of control wouldn't just lead to an outburst—it could cause him to reveal his true allegiance. Even a stray comment could trigger suspicion.
And the last people he wanted to get suspicious were standing just a few feet away.
Tony Stark knew Hydra well—it was the enemy his father had fought during World War II. Steve Rogers, Captain America, had fought them on the front lines countless times. To Rogers, Hydra wasn't some long-forgotten threat—it was yesterday's war, still fresh in his memory after waking from decades on ice.
If Rumlow even uttered the word "Hydra," Rogers would be on him in an instant. Not just Rogers—Nick Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D. itself… and even Hydra might decide he'd become a liability.
Daniel van der Berg wasn't part of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s intelligence network, so Rumlow didn't know his real identity. As far as he was concerned, Daniel was a military-backed superhuman—someone powerful enough to take on the Chitauri in space and return alive.
Actually, only four people had done that. All of them had come back alive. That kind of feat demanded respect… and caution.
Rumlow, now more cautious, glanced at the scepter again—only to realize it was encased in a thick block of ice.
Daniel hadn't touched it directly. He wasn't taking chances with the mind-controlling artifact, not even with his powers. Who knew if it carried Thanos' consciousness, or worse—the Mind Stone hidden deep within it?
Better to let S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra poke around with it first.
The scepter, now sealed inside a makeshift ice container with a handle, was handed to Rumlow by Daniel without hesitation.
"Here," Daniel said calmly. "Just be careful."
Rumlow, caught off guard, accepted the icy container instinctively. He hadn't expected Daniel to hand over something so powerful so easily. He thought there'd be a lengthy standoff or negotiation.
But just as he took hold of the handle, he let out a sharp yelp—"Ah!"—and dropped it. The frozen box hit the floor with a dull thud.
Daniel grabbed it before it could slide away, blinking at Rumlow with a puzzled expression. Around them, several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents had already reached for their sidearms.
"What happened?" Daniel asked, feigning innocence.
"It's freezing!" Rumlow shook out his hand, waving for his men to stand down. Then he turned to Daniel with an annoyed glare. "Why is it so damn cold?"
"Cold?" Daniel raised his eyebrows, then gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry. I'm kind of used to those temperatures. Forgot you ordinary people weren't. Yeah, maybe get a proper container next time."
Despite the apology, Rumlow couldn't help feeling mocked. "You ordinary people"—was Daniel implying he was somehow superior?
Rumlow gritted his teeth. If it came down to it, one bullet was all it took to end anyone—superpowers or not. He'd taken out more than a few enhanced individuals over the years.
Still, watching Daniel wield such power so casually unsettled him. If it came to a fight, Daniel wouldn't be easy to beat—not directly, anyway.
But Rumlow was Hydra. And Hydra didn't fight fair. One knife in the dark. That was the way.
Rumlow's eyes narrowed for just a second, but he quickly cast his gaze downward, keeping any hostility hidden. Daniel couldn't suspect a thing.
No one really knew Hydra had been reborn. Not even S.H.I.E.L.D. realized that Hydra now controlled over a third of its infrastructure. When the time was right, they would turn the entire organization inside out.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had three major factions: Hydra operatives, Nick Fury loyalists like Phil Coulson, and third-party agents placed there by world governments to keep S.H.I.E.L.D. in check. Maria Hill led many of those. But their loyalties were weak and divided—they served interests, not ideals.
Nick Fury and Hydra both manipulated that third group, pulling strings from the shadows. Most agents didn't even realize who they were truly working for. The moment they discovered it was Hydra? They'd flip sides instantly.
Because at the end of the day, Hydra's greatest enemy wasn't Fury or the Avengers—it was the U.S. government. And no one wanted to go toe-to-toe with that superpower. Not openly.
If Hydra was to survive, it would have to plunge the world into chaos first. Only then could it rebuild—stronger, in the shadows. That was what the Insight Project was really about. And even that was just the beginning.
Rumlow, as a core operative, knew all of this. Which is why, when Daniel looked at him with narrowed eyes—eyes that seemed to pierce right through him—he panicked.
Had he given something away?
He needed to get out. Fast.
Just then, he noticed his team bringing out Natasha in handcuffs. Without missing a beat, he chained the frozen scepter to the cuffs, using the metal loop to anchor it.
"This should work for now," Rumlow said smoothly.
He nodded to Daniel and said, "Mr. van der Berg, we'll take our leave."
He turned to Rogers, offered a polite nod, and entered the elevator with his men.
As the doors slowly closed, Rumlow finally relaxed… only to hear a voice call out:
"Hold up!"
A hand slid between the doors. The elevator stopped and reopened. Standing there were Captain America, Tony Stark, and Daniel.
They had made a decision.
"Something else, Captain?" Rumlow asked, keeping his expression neutral despite the string of curses echoing in his mind.
Rogers pointed at the scepter. "Hand it to him. Daniel will take it down."
Then his voice sharpened. "Rumlow, alert your team downstairs. Full combat readiness. Be prepared."
"Combat? What are we—" Rumlow started to protest, but Daniel stepped forward and grabbed the scepter box before he could finish.