SPOILER WARNING: This article contains spoilers for "Captain America: Sam Wilson" #14, on sale now.
Once inside, Flag-Smasher regales the Captains America with his master plan; he's chosen Herald as his target because he's "just another lying, pandering politician making himself powerful by fostering intolerance." Flag-Smasher's goal is to hack into a number of government agencies and flood the internet with their secrets. As a symbolic gesture, each of the seven hacks are connected to a very real bomb -- with the last one being on Herald himself.
With his plan underway, Sam and Steve fight their way through the Smasher's goons, dodging bombs along the way, while their hacker friend Rick Jones tries to shut down the cyber attack. Just before the final bomb blows Herald away, Jones stops its corresponding hack, stopping the countdown. But that doesn't stop Flag-Smasher from pulling out a more "old-fashioned" weapon -- a gun. Captain America tries to stop him with his shield...
...and misses. But, as mentioned earlier in this article, this was all part of Steve Rogers' master plan. Back at his secret HYDRA base with his partner in crime Erik Selvig, Rogers runs through what he accomplished that night. In addition to using an LMD copy of Flag-Smasher to tie up a loose end (Herald), he used the following brawl to subtly push Sam into a corner of the room from where any successful shield throw would be mathematically impossible.
Now tied to the death of U.S. senator, the controversial Sam Wilson will face an even greater challenge with the American public -- just as Steve Rogers wants. Captain America's greatest enemy is shaping up to be Captain America.
"Captain America: Sam Wilson" #15 arrives in stores on November 16.