As Nick Fury boarded the spaceship back to Earth, his emotions were a mix of relief and unease.
He was thrilled because Earth had finally developed a way to detect Skrull shapeshifting.
Even though this technology was controlled by England, from a broader human perspective, Fury believed that having this capability would give him greater leverage when working with the Skrulls against the far more powerful Kree.
No longer would he be in the weak position of being unable to negotiate even for discarded Skrull technology.
However, his unease stemmed from the fear that this was all a trap set by William—baiting him back to Earth only to have him torn apart the moment he showed himself.
Still, having Skrull leader Talos accompany him was reassuring.
If nothing else, the fact that they had a spaceship stationed in space was a deterrent.
Once inside the ship, Fury returned to his private quarters and recorded a video message for Carol Danvers, urging her to meet him on Earth once her current mission was over.
To increase the urgency, he even mentioned that England's wizards had the ability to see through Skrull disguises.
After sending the message, Fury donned his leather coat and made his way to the ship's control center in much better spirits.
As soon as he entered, Talos turned to him.
"We just received a new transmission from Earth. Our captured operative is being transported to Mars—where William Devonshire apparently has a prison."
Talos frowned. "Fury, should we try negotiating with Devonshire first, or do we go straight to Mars to rescue our man?"
Fury rolled his eye and let out an exasperated sigh.
The Skrulls, despite being refugees from a destroyed homeworld, still lacked the political cunning and strategic foresight he expected from an intergalactic species.
"Let me ask you this," Fury said. "If you capture an enemy spy, do you keep them in your headquarters, or do you send them somewhere off-world for security?"
"You're saying… this is a trap?" Talos hesitated. "But what if Devonshire simply doesn't want to cause collateral damage on Earth?"
"No offense," Fury glanced around at the Skrulls in the room before continuing, "but if I were Devonshire, I'd let you storm Mars.
Then I'd record your attack—showing either your forces getting obliterated or leaving behind your dead.
Then I'd send that footage to my superiors and secure ten times the support I have now."
The Skrulls in the control center, many of whom had worked with Fury for years, weren't pleased with his words, but they respected his strategic insight.
Talos' expression darkened. "Then what do you suggest we do?"
Fury pondered for a moment before replying, "How about we pose as diplomatic envoys from the Skrull Empire?
A formal delegation forces Devonshire to at least consider negotiations before taking action."
"It won't work."
Talos manipulated the ship's control panel, and a holographic recording played—a full transcript of William Devonshire's conversation with the captured Skrull.
"Bloody hell," Fury cursed. "How does he know this much?"
Then, realization dawned on him.
"If Devonshire has this much intel on off-world affairs, that means he has contacts with other alien forces—just like I do.
Talos, are you still unable to identify what species his spaceship belongs to?"
Talos shook his head as another hologram displayed the ship's exterior.
"Just from the outer hull? No, we can't tell. If we had access to its power core or propulsion system, we'd know for sure whether it's alien tech.
But from our current analysis, the ship's outer structure isn't particularly advanced.
The materials used can all be found on Earth, which suggests it may actually be human-made."
"Then where is he getting his intel from?!" Fury snapped.
"Damn it, we know nothing about our enemy, while he knows everything about us.
How the hell are we supposed to fight that? Or even negotiate with him?"
Talos hesitated before cautiously suggesting, "Maybe some of the alien species living on Earth told him."
Fury's single eye widened in shock.
"Are you telling me there are other aliens hiding among humans besides the Skrulls?"
Talos shrugged.
"It's not that surprising, Fury. Ever since Earth—what you call Midgard—was declared part of Asgard's domain,
weaker or persecuted alien species have sought refuge there.
Because they fear Asgard's strength, they generally keep a low profile, avoiding major conflicts.
So it makes sense that humans either never realized they existed or mistook them for gods in ancient times."
Fury took a deep breath, struggling to process this new information.
Even if he didn't want to believe it, standing in a room full of aliens made denial impossible.
After a long pause, he exhaled slowly.
"As much as I hate to admit it… you might be right.
If Devonshire has been in contact with aliens since childhood, it would explain why he's so exceptional."
Talos smirked.
"If you had asked me that before, I would've agreed with you.
But after discovering that Earth has wizards, I did some digging into historical records.
It turns out that across the entire galaxy, very few races have mastered magic.
Compared to warriors or scientists, magic represents mystery, power, and fear.
Wizards can silently and effortlessly eliminate their enemies.
And Earth has an entire community of them.
Some of your wizards became so infamous over a thousand years ago that they drove away multiple alien factions and became legends off-world."
Fury's thoughts immediately turned to the files on Kamar-Taj.
He muttered under his breath, "Could that bastard actually be one of them?"
Talos, observing Fury's expression, chuckled.
"Ah, so you do know about some of your own planet's hidden secrets."
Fury merely raised an eyebrow, saying nothing.
Talos continued, "Now do you see why, despite having the capability, neither the Skrulls nor the Kree have ever dared to fully invade Earth?
Even if the Kree had the guts for it, they wouldn't dare risk a full-scale war with Asgard."
Talos sneered at the thought of his mortal enemies before suddenly becoming serious again.
"Because if they really pissed off the Asgardians, those so-called 'gods' wouldn't even need to send an army.
They'd just fire a single shot from the Bifrost, and boom—entire planet, gone."
(End of Chapter)
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