| For other uses, see Rat (disambiguation) |
- "Where's that photo from?"
"An old S.H.I.E.L.D. prison called the Rat." - âLance Hunter and Melinda May[src]
The Rat was a secret Strategic Scientific Reserve facility and prison active during World War II.
History[]
Interrogation of Werner Reinhardt[]
Werner Reinhardt questioned by Peggy Carter
In 1945, Peggy Carter questioned an imprisoned Werner Reinhardt in one of the interrogation rooms of The Rat. Interrogators had left a pen on the desk to test Reinhardt on how he was willing to use it, and he confessed to Carter that he knew the trick, as it could have had many uses, such as escape, confession, homicide or suicide. Carter, who wanted to know what kind of man Reinhardt was, managed to find it out due to the fact that he did not use the pen at all.
Reinhardt commented on the possibility of signing a deal, as he wanted to be recruited by the United States Government just like many other German scientists, as the things they would manage to accomplish were parlor tricks compared to what he could do. Reinhardt even stated that he could save all of humanity if given a second chance, but Carter had already witnessed the experiments that Reinhardt recorded, the many people that died and how a girl was locked in a cage. For all that, Carter refused to give Reinhardt a second chance.
Reinhardt taunted Carter saying she was surely eager to understand the items the Strategic Scientific Reserve took into custody, and Carter supposed he would not tell her about their origin. Reinhardt told her there was a myth about a star that fell from the heavens and blue angels who bear a gift for mankind to save the world, though the myth was wrong and he was sure that the visitors came to conquer the world.
Peggy Carter sentencing Werner Reinhardt
Carter returned to the interrogation room after having decided what she would do with Reinhardt. She confessed that she considered making a deal with Reinhardt, as his work could prove valuable if the skies opened one day, but then, if that happened, she would not want to have him at her side.
Reinhardt, surprised with his decision, tried to make her reconsider, stating that they would learn much being together, but Carter assured him that they would forget him and his work, and he would not talk to anyone else after she left, and nobody would hear his stories or study his artifacts. Reinhardt doubted as nothing stayed buried forever, but Carter told him that he would be buried as long as she had a say. Carter left, and Reinhardt was sentenced to life imprisonment inside the Rat, spending his life in solitary confinement.[1]
Imprisonment of Werner Reinhardt[]
Werner Reinhardt beginning his long sentence
- "I grew old living no life."
- âWerner Reinhardt[src]
Under Peggy Carter's direct orders, Werner Reinhardt was then imprisoned inside the Rat for a life sentence under the charges of conspiracy to wage aggressive war and crimes against humanity. Reinhardt had then spent the next forty four years alone in his cell, spending his time reading books and playing chess.[1]
The Malicks' Visit[]
Werner Reinhardt is visited by the Malicks
- "It's time you choose a path forward in HYDRA. And with your father gone, I believe you should choose mine."
"And why would we do that, old man?" - âWerner Reinhardt and Gideon Malick[src]
In 1970, Gideon and Nathaniel Malick came to the Rat to meet with Werner Reinhardt. From his cell, Reinhardt told the brothers to reject the beliefs their father had taught them about HYDRA's origins and instead follow the path of science. The Malicks responded by calling Reinhardt a fool but Reinhardt responded by informing the brothers that their father had avoided becoming a Traveler for years by doing a parlor trick. When the brothers called him a liar, Reinhardt informed them that the truth was in a copy of Paradise Lost, in their father's office.[2]
Liberation of Werner Reinhardt[]
Hauer and Rivera releasing Werner Reinhardt
In 1989, Alexander Pierce, granted a medical parole to some prisoners, including Werner Reinhardt, who was now an old man.[1] Hauer and Rivera were tasked with taking Reinhardt out of the prison, and Rivera explained that Pierce was releasing Reinhardt because he was only a German researcher, and it was not his fault what side he chose in World War II. Hauer guessed that Pierce was trying to build himself a reputation, and Rivera said it was probably due to budget cuts, leaving them alone to pull the truck and transport Reinhardt.
Once left alone, Hauer secretly saluted Reinhardt identifying himself as a member of HYDRA. Reinhardt wondered why he was liberated after all those years, and Hauer explained that they had found the woman that Reinhardt wanted to experiment on during the last days of World War II, telling Reinhardt he should see for himself, and took him to his old headquarters in Austria.[1]
