- "I'll be back with a new passport. You pack your bags. You're going to South America."
- ―Jessica Jones to Karl Malus[src]
South America is one of the seven continents. It is south of North America and is bordered by the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. South America is known for its jungles and tropical climate. Its primary languages are Spanish and Portuguese. Brazil, Peru and Colombia are located here.
History
The Fugitive
During the time he was considered a fugitive from justice, Howard Stark planned to travel to Rio de Janeiro, spending no more than three days in New York City in order to recover one of the inventions stolen from the vault under his mansion.[1]
HYDRA Scientists
- "My country commissioned that weapon decades ago. After the fall of HYDRA, many scientists followed their Nazi friends to hide on this side of the world."
"German engineering."
"The weapon was lost during a clash in the jungle until today." - ―Camilla Reyes and Phil Coulson[src]
A group of former HYDRA scientists, seeking asylum in Peru following their defeat in World War II, developed a weapon for the Peruvian government using the Tesseract fuel cells first designed by Arnim Zola. The weapon was lost during a battle in the jungle, and ended up encrusted inside an Incan temple in the Llactapata region.[2]
Hostage Situation
- "That photo was taken five years after Nick and I met, when I was at State Department in Bogotá."
- ―Alexander Pierce[src]
Alexander Pierce was destined with the State Department in Bogotá, when a group of Colombian National Liberation Army members was able to take the United States embassy. Though security was able to take Pierce out safe and sound, the rebels managed to take hostages, including Pierce's daughter.
Nick Fury, deputy chief for the S.H.I.E.L.D. station in Bogotá, and whom Pierce met five years earlier, elaborated a plan to storm the building through the sewers and presented it to Pierce, who preferred to use the diplomatic path and negotiate the liberation of the hostages.
Fury ignored Pierce's direct order and carried out an unauthorized military operation on foreign soil. When the rebels, who did not intend to negotiate, put a kill order on the hostages and stormed the basement, they found it empty, as Fury had already taken the hostages out, saving the lives of a dozen political officers, including Pierce's daughter.
This particular incident made Pierce promote Fury to Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., but, on the other hand, made him realize that the path of diplomacy was useless, beginning to share HYDRA's goal of establishing a new world order.[3]
Cusco Mission
- "This plane is such a step up from the R.V. we used to work out when you were stationed in Cusco."
- ―Camilla Reyes to Phil Coulson[src]
In 2002, Phil Coulson was assigned a mission in Peru with a hundred men at his disposal. Coulson was stationed at Cusco undercover in an R.V., getting the assistance of Camilla Reyes, a member of the Policia Militar del Perú during his mission.[2]
Hunt of Bruce Banner
General Thaddeus Ross, responsible of the hunt of Bruce Banner, figured that he could be anywhere in the world, after Banner's track was lost following an incident in the jungles of South America. Ross theorized that Banner he even could be in places such as Paris or Venice.
Unbeknownst to him, Banner traveled to Rio de Janeiro, working in a soft drink bottling factory. The Plant Manager pinpointed that he was the first American he recalled looking for a job in Brazil.[4]
S.H.I.E.L.D. maintained a surveillance over Banner during his time in Brazil, with agent Jasper Sitwell in charge of the operation until his reassignment to New Mexico.[5]
Cure for Gamma Poisoning
Bruce Banner settled in Rocinha, the largest Favela in Brazil, juggling his job in the bottling factory with attempts to find a cure for his condition. In order to control his emotions and heart rate and prevent his transformations, Banner also studied martial arts and meditative breathing techniques with a Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructor. This lessons allowed him to control and prevent his transformations for five months.
Banner suffered a cut in the factory, and although he ordered to stop the machines to clean it and avoid any contamination, his blood dripped into a soda bottle sent back to the United Stated. Later that same day, Banner noticed one of his co-workers, Martina, being harassed by a man, and his first impulse was to leave to not lose control of himself. However, his conscience made him approach to peacefully try to drive the molester away. The man confronted Banner, but the Plant Manager appeared and stopped the potential fight between them.
The search for a cure for his condition drove Banner to study a flower described in the book "Inventory of Rare and Endangered Tracheophyta of Amazônia", and he finally received it that day. Banner contacted a man who helped him through his research, code named "Mister Blue", to inform him of the discovery. Blue advised him to try a high dose of the component extracted from the plant, and he was able to produce a serum using homemade laboratory equipment.
Banner tried the serum on a blood drop, and while it seemed to be successful at first, it triggered a reaction that made the cells explode. Informing Mister Blue of the failure, Blue insisted to meet Banner in person, as living with Gamma poisoning could be more dangerous than the eventual risks of their meeting, and convinced him to send a blood sample.
A few days later, Banner received news from Mister Blue, as preliminary blood tests showed significant gamma reduction, but as he asked for more data, Banner realized he should return to Culver University to retrieve it.[6]
Ambush in Rio de Janeiro
- "It's a possible gamma sickness. Milwaukee. A man drank one of those guarana sodas. Guess it had a little more kick than he was looking for."
"Where was it bottled?"
"Porto Verde, Brazil."
"Have our people look for a white man at the bottling plant. Tell them no contact!" - ―Kathleen Sparr and Thaddeus Ross[src]
General Thaddeus Ross managed to locate Bruce Banner after learning that a man in Milwaukee suffered a severe case of Gamma poisoning after drinking from the bottle that got impregnated with Banner's blood. Ross assembled a military unit led by Russian-born British special operations expert Emil Blonsky, to capture Banner.
Ross and his unit located Banner's house and burst in to shoot him with tranquilizer ammo, but Banner fled through the window and momentarily hid in Martina's house to deceive the military. Blonsky and the other soldiers pursued Banner through the streets and rooftops of Rocinha, while Banner tried to slow down his heart rate to prevent his transformation.
While fleeing Banner came across General Ross, realizing he was the man behind the chase. He also ran into the molester from the factory, who pursued Banner with his friends to the bottling factory in order to beat him. Blonsky located Banner in the factory and approached to witness the appearance of Hulk, as the transformation was triggered by the men beating him.
Hulk easily knocked out the men, and a ferocious battle between Hulk and Blonsky's team started. Their tranquilizer ammo proved ineffective against Hulk, who finally managed to escape, and Blonsky was the only soldier to end the encounter unharmed.
Ross and Blonsky returned to Banner's house to search for evidences that would indicate Banner's next step, finding a photograph of Betty Ross and Banner's computer. Blonsky asked for the nature of Hulk, and Ross confessed that Banner was that creature, without further details.[6]
São Paulo Mission
Natasha Romanoff went to the city of São Paulo during a mission, getting involved in an event that tormented her for the years to come.[7]
Peruvian 0-8-4
Discovery
Skye examines the weapon.
- "I don't even know where we are going."
"Peru. That's where the 0-8-4 was reported." - ―Skye and Phil Coulson[src]
In 2013, a group of archaeologists discovered an Incan temple in Llactapata and started studying its artifacts, discovering that one of them appeared to be impossible. The leader of the expedition informed the authorities about the discovery, and they dispatched a squad of soldiers from the Policia Militar del Perú under the command of Camilla Reyes in order to secure it.
S.H.I.E.L.D. also learnt about the discovery and sent one of its teams led by Phil Coulson to examine and retrieve the object. Coulson's team arrived at the area, that had presented a spike of violence due to rebels attacks, so Agents Grant Ward and Melinda May took necessary precautions to assure their safety.
Agents Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons discussed the fauna of the country upon arriving, with Fitz happy about the possibility of seeing one of the 32 species of monkeys in the country, while Simmons was more worried about the 200 species of snakes and other dangers, such as earthquakes, malaria, and dengue fever.
Skye tried to convince Coulson to warn the local communities about the danger the 0-8-4 might pose, as both rebels and guerrillas had been active in the area, but Coulson dismissed the idea citing an example of how keeping contained the information of an Anti-Matter Meteorite that was about to hit Miami helped avoid spreading panic. Her role during the mission was to create a diversion, something that was totally against Skye's philosophy.
Coulson went to interview the lead Archaeologist, who informed him about the discovery, and led them to the location of the 0-8-4 imbedded in a wall of the temple. Coulson asked the Archaeologist to evacuate the site with his team until the risk the object might pose was determined.
Fitz and Simmons started studying the item using their D.W.A.R.F.s, and Skye tried to find information about it on the internet, but there was no data stream about it. Simmons determined that, according to the fossiliferous rock formations of the wall, the item appeared to have been in the rock for 1500 years, while the temple was constructed about 500 years, and theorized its possible alien origins. On the other hand, Fitz discovered that the craftsmanship of the object was similar to German items.[2]
Arrival of the Police Forces
- "Agent Melinda May, Agent Grant Ward, this is Comandante Camilla Reyes. She's with the Policia Militar del Perú."
- ―Phil Coulson[src]
Grant Ward and Melinda May briefly chatted outside the temple, about May's reputation and her nickname, the Cavalry, earned after a mission in Bahrain, but they realized they were being surrounded by Peruvian soldiers. The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents easily defeated the first ones, but they were surrounded by Camilla Reyes' squad.
Phil Coulson exited the temple to explain to the soldiers their purpose there, and recognized Reyes from a mission they performed together ten years earlier near Cusco, before Reyes' promotion to the rank of Comandante. With the situation seemingly solved, both parties lowered their weapons, and Coulson formally introduced Reyes to Ward and May, and ordered them to accompany the rest of the team.
Reyes wanted to speak to Coulson about how to proceed regarding the discovery on Peruvian soil, but Coulson let her know that an 0-8-4 superseded all national claims. Reyes lowered the tone of the conversation, and they started to catch up about what happened since their last encounter.
Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons continued to study the Peruvian 0-8-4, discovering that it had a functioning power source but the readings had no sense. Skye, confused by their terminology, intended to go outside to check on Coulson, but Ward arrived to inform them of the soldiers' arrival. Skye and Ward clashed about their opinion of the motivation that drove local rebels to fight the authorities. Ward tried to rush Fitz and Simmons in their analysis.
Reyes invited Coulson to some of what she defined as the best chocolate in the world, produced from the cocoa that grew in a secret valley in Peru, and asked for a chance to keep the device. As Coulson assured they could find a way to solve this respectfully for her country, they were attack by a group of rebels.[2]
Rebel Attack
- "This area has lots of rebel uprisings."
"Yeah, people are fighting back against the government's mining policies." - ―Grant Ward and Skye[src]
Local rebels attacked the excavation site, destroying vehicles with heavy gunfire and endangering the mission that Phil Coulson and his team were tasked to perform. Coulson aided Camilla Reyes and her squad in fighting back the rebels.
Grant Ward took the 0-8-4 from the wall despite Leo Fitz's warnings of how dangerous it could be if improperly handled, and exited the temple to clear a path for his teammates. Reyes was surprised to see that Coulson's agents were not combat experts as she thought, but Ward used a Thunderstick to clear their escape path.
Melinda May arrived in the S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV, shielding her teammates from gunfire, and both the Peruvian soldiers and the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents managed to escape to the Bus, departing Peru to a S.H.I.E.L.D. containment facility despite Reyes' wish to head to a Policia Militar del Perú airfield in Iquitos.[2]
Off the Grid
- "You'd probably head to South America. You speak Spanish?"
"Vacation Spanish."
"Lima, most likely, what with the growing food scene." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
Lima, the capital of Peru, was the location where Melinda May guessed Phil Coulson would hide if he ever wanted to abandon S.H.I.E.L.D. and disappear; or go "off-grid" like Richard Lumley did.
She chose that location as Coulson would probably go to South America because he spoke Spanish, though Coulson corrected her that he spoke "vacation" Spanish. May even dared to guess that Lima would be his most probable destination given his love for the growing food scene.[8]
Assassination of Alejandro Castillo
John Garrett sent Deathlok to the city of Bogotá with the assignment of killing Alejandro Castillo, Colombia's most notorious drug lord, even despite his known ties to HYDRA, intending to make the assassination publicly known to gather the attention of the United States Armed Forces and propose to them the sale of the Deathlok Soldiers.
Having arrived at Bogotá, Deathlok tracked Castillo and pursued him, letting witnesses even take a picture of him, smashing through several walls until he reached Castillo, killing him with a single punch that smashed his head.[9]
Cybertek Shipments
Cybertek sent many of its shipments related to the Centipede Project and the creation of the Deathlok Soldiers to many countries around the globe, including Brazil, in order to hamper their tracking while they were re-routed to the Barbershop Headquarters in Cuba.
Antoine Triplett managed to identify many of them, learning that their destination point was in Havana, letting Phil Coulson and his team guess where John Garrett established his base once he revealed himself as a HYDRA operative.[9]
Layout
Countries
Trivia
- South America is the fourth largest continent by area.
References
- ↑ Agent Carter: 1.04: The Blitzkrieg Button
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 1.02: 0-8-4
- ↑ Captain America: The Winter Soldier
- ↑ The Incredible Hulk: The Big Picture
- ↑ The Avengers Prelude: Fury's Big Week
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Incredible Hulk
- ↑ The Avengers
- ↑ Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 1.12: Seeds
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 1.21: Ragtag
