Secret Empire # 1 2017 NM-

Secret Empire # 1 (2017), a central issue in the controversial crossover event, fast-forwards several months into a grim future where Hydra has successfully taken over the United States, led by a secretly-brainwashed Captain America. The issue focuses on the new status quo of a fascist America, the struggle of the underground resistance, and the first major loss of the event. 

The issue details life under Hydra's regime and the scattered heroic resistance: 

• Hydra's America: The United States has been transformed into a police state. Citizens are taught a revised history and Inhumans must register or face imprisonment in detention facilities. Manhattan is trapped in a "Darkforce" dimension, causing chaos and a lack of supplies, while a section of the West Coast is ceded to mutants as "New Tian".
• The Resistance: The remaining free heroes, including Hawkeye and an AI version of Tony Stark, form an underground resistance movement based in Nevada, working to survive and fight back against the new government.
• Rick Jones' Execution: To make a statement and crush dissent, Captain America, now known as Hydra Supreme, orders the public execution of Rick Jones, who had vital information about the Cosmic Cube fragments that could reverse the situation.
• Las Vegas Attack: The issue ends as Hydra Helicarriers are dispatched to attack the resistance's base of operations in Las Vegas, showing the full force and ruthlessness of the new regime. 

The comic explores the pervasive atmosphere of fear, the death of hope, and the brutal reality of a world where its most trusted hero has become its greatest tyrant. It forces the remaining heroes to confront the impossible choice of standing and fighting against all odds or falling in line with Hydra's "peace through authority".