In the Hydra factory’s control room, Johann Schmidt methodically flips switches on the control panel, activating the self-destruct systems. Alarms blare as timers begin their countdown.

A terrified Hydra technician bolts from the control room, sprinting onto a bridge overlooking the factory floor. He runs headlong into Steve Rogers, who slams his shield into the technician’s chest. The man tumbles over the railing, plummeting to the floor below. Steve hurries across the bridge, his focus unwavering.

Outside, the 107th prisoners wreak havoc in the factory yard, dodging machine gun fire and explosions. Falsworth, leading the charge, shouts, “Keep movin’! Grab those grenades!” The troopers snatch grenades from a crate, lobbing them at Hydra soldiers, blasts tearing through the compound.

Back in the control room, Schmidt presses a button, and the Tesseract cube, glowing an unearthly blue, rises from its cylindrical chamber. A timer on the panel ticks down: two minutes, forty-two seconds.

Across the room, Dr. Arnim Zola frantically stuffs papers and passports into a valise, tucking it under his arm. He snatches his hat and glances at a map on the wall, pinpointing other Hydra facilities, before darting out. In a hallway, Zola spots Steve at the far end. They lock eyes briefly before Zola bolts in the opposite direction. Steve gives chase but slows, his attention caught by a dimly lit room off the corridor.