"Declare war?"
Eddie was startled, but quickly showed excitement.
He had just learned about the Hydra from Anton, and also about the kind of underground empire that Hydra had built in the underworld over the years due to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mistakes.
Hydra and Kingpin's underworld empires were completely different, two separate concepts.
Although Kingpin's forces were vast, he was just a local tyrant compared to Hydra.
Hydra, on the other hand, was a naked regent of an empire.
The two were of vastly different scales.
"Anton, you need to think this through."
Eddie calmed his excitement, speaking seriously. "If what you said is true, that Hydra has such a massive influence, even establishing bases abroad, then the pressure we face won't just come from a chaotic S.H.I.E.L.D."
He wasn't afraid of Hydra.
Back when he was just a regular reporter, he dared to take on the Life Foundation. His courage was second to none.
He was reminding Anton purely out of consideration for all factors.
"I don't care."
Anton's gaze was sharp, and Eddie fully understood his resolve.
He slowly said, "If we're going to fight, we need to make them hurt! Otherwise, they'll always think we're just small fry they can trample on... Eddie, the Justice League has been around for so long and never acted together. This time, let's announce to the world that a new era has arrived."
"Alright, I'll cooperate!"
Eddie nodded, gritting his teeth. "Just like you said, let's stir up the waters! I'll write the article right away, and expose Hydra first!"
"Be quick."
Anton said, "Tomorrow, I want the name Hydra to be known throughout the entire world."
"No problem."
Eddie nodded seriously, patting his chest. "Exposing evil forces, that's my specialty!"
It had been several months since Batman's last appearance.
All the citizens of New York were excited.
Especially after hearing that the Justice League members had defeated the dark forces, everyone cheered for Batman and the others online.
At the same time, someone posted photos of Wonder Woman online, triggering a new wave of discussion.
In front of Wayne Enterprises, Wonder Woman was brutally beating Electro.
At New York Airport, Wonder Woman stood beside Batman, shining like a bright star in the night sky.
Countless people wished they could lick their screens.
If they knew that all the superheroes who appeared tonight, regardless of gender, were actually one person…
That scene would definitely be interesting.
It's worth mentioning that the news of Batman reappearing in New York and uniting the Justice League's three major heroes to defeat the dark forces didn't cool down as the night deepened. Instead, countless people stayed up late, refreshing the related news, hoping to see an official response.
Numerous media outlets racked their brains to capitalize on this hot topic, but it was still obvious that all the information was fabricated.
Most people kept their webpages fixed on one interface.
The Daily Bugle's official website.
As Batman's dedicated platform, everyone only trusted the Daily Bugle's news.
Of course, Eddie didn't disappoint anyone.
He quickly released a statement.
It stated that he had contacted Batman and was currently compiling the information. The full details of the event would be announced first thing tomorrow morning.
People were itching to know the truth, but they also understood that this was going to be an explosive piece of news.
At the same time, another piece of news caught the attention of many.
[Anton's impressive performance: A 3-minute video shows you why he became Batman's spokesperson]
[This is the Anton Jameson you never imagined]
[Columbia University banquet attack: Anton steps in, saving over a hundred people at the banquet]
Several absolutely authentic reports, along with a 3-minute short video recorded inside the banquet hall, instantly went viral online.
At the Columbia University banquet hall, several thugs suddenly opened fire, and the banquet hall was in chaos. Anton quickly took action, moving swiftly. Although he had no weapons to fight back with, he used the most common tools to kill the thugs who opened fire in less than two minutes.
This video should have been blocked by the police and not made public, but the all-powerful media still managed to get their hands on it. Furthermore, the media interviewed survivors who witnessed the scene, and they heard the gratitude and admiration these people had for Anton.
The buzz was rapidly escalating, not even slightly less intense than news about Batman.
Or rather, this news was also somewhat related to Batman. After all, in most people's minds, Anton was Batman's spokesperson; the two were in cahoots.
Before, many people simply couldn't understand why Batman would choose Anton as his spokesperson.
They had completely reversed the order of events.
In their view, it was less that Anton had filmed Batman, and more that Batman, still unknown to the public, had found Anton and let him film Batman.
Therefore, Anton, a New York playboy, was able to change his life and become a truly successful person in the eyes of countless people today.
With the appearance of this video, these people saw the shining points on Anton.
The ins and outs of Batman's intervention with the Justice League to stop the terrorist organization hadn't been made public yet, but Anton had already become the focus of everyone's attention.
Everyone summed up everything that had happened tonight and suddenly realized that Anton's actions this time were definitely out of the ordinary.
Perhaps, he was acting on Batman's orders.
In other words, the attack at Columbia University was likely related to the terrorist organization that Batman was trying to deal with.
People didn't know they had guessed part of the truth.
Of course, lacking key information, they could only guess at these superficial details at best.
The most crucial thing was that these random-guessing netizens didn't know that tomorrow, the truth published by the Daily Bugle would be so explosive that it was almost beyond description. This was earth-shattering news.
This truth would shake the world.
Especially in the United States, it would set off a wave of terror.
...
Washington D.C.
News of what happened in New York had already reached S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters at once.
Pierce's expression was extremely grim.
In just a few hours, the situation had reversed so dramatically, something Pierce had never imagined.
The Cobra Organization had failed.
The plan to take over New York had barely begun before it was buried in Hydra's archives.
He knew exactly what they would be facing next.
Batman will have his revenge.
But how will Batman take his revenge?
Pierce couldn't imagine.
He had a terrible headache.
At the same time, he was very clear that there was absolutely no possibility of negotiation in this matter.
Based on Batman's demonstrated personality, even if the Hydra softened, he would not accept a reconciliation.
"Cobra... What a bunch of losers!"
Pierce's face was ugly.
Ring ring ring!
He received a call request.
Crossbones, Rumlow.
Pierce answered the call, suppressing his annoyance, and asked in a low voice, "Rumlow, how's the situation on your end?"
"Mission accomplished. Rex has been arrested by us."
Rumlow said.
"Good job, bring him back."
Pierce said, "But, don't let him talk nonsense, do you understand?"
"Understood."
Rumlow replied, then hung up the call, looking at the Rex kneeling on the ground in front of him, wearing a metal mask, his gaze cold.
At this moment.
They were beside a beach, surrounded by overturned vehicles, shell casings scattered everywhere, and scorch marks left by explosions.
Corpses clad in fine combat suits lay on the beach, occasionally swept away by the rolling waves.
These were Rex's subordinates, the remaining soldiers of the Cobra Organization.
However, all of these soldiers had become corpses.
In other words, the Cobra Organization was left with only Rex, the commander, and was on the verge of destruction.
"Rumlow, what are you doing?"
Rex slightly raised his head, kneeling on the ground under someone's hold. His face under the mask was extremely pale, and his eyes revealed fear.
He anticipated that Hydra would discard him after they were done, but he didn't expect it to happen so quickly.
Half an hour ago.
After receiving the news that the combat team he had dispatched had gone missing, Rex had a bad feeling and immediately fled the headquarters.
However, the Hydra people acted faster.
He hadn't even run two hundred kilometers before he was caught by these people. The subordinates who had been with him were now corpses, and only he was still alive.
And being alive... made Rex even more terrified.
He knew very well the identities of the people in front of him.
Nominally belonging to S.H.I.E.L.D., but in reality, they were indeed Hydra members.
Because the Cobra Organization was formed with the support of these people.
"Rex, you've disappointed us."
Rumlow opened the small box handed to him by his subordinate and took out a syringe.
"But don't worry, we won't kill you... This is the latest type of drug, it's addictive and can cause strong hallucinations. After injecting it, you'll forget many things... Although you've disappointed us, you can at least still be useful..."
He spoke slowly, injecting the needle into Rex's neck.
"No!"
Rex struggled desperately, his face filled with despair: "Cobra still has use, I am the commander of Cobra, you can't do this to me!"
"Heh heh heh heh..."
After a few blinks, Rex started rolling his eyes. His mind drifted, as if he were in paradise. He clutched at his throat, his face turning purple from lack of oxygen, yet he seemed oblivious to the pain.
"Take him back to headquarters and keep an eye on him. Don't let him OD himself!"
Rumlow saw Rex fall to the ground, convulsing, his face displaying an expression of happiness and joy. He sneered and beckoned to the subordinates beside him.
"Understood!"
The subordinate nodded and handcuffed Rex, leading him to the car.
About two hours later, the convoy entered the Washington D.C. area, arriving at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.
It was already early morning.
S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters was still brightly lit.
Rumlow took the elevator and went outside S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Secretary's office. He knocked on the door and went in to see Pierce.
"All taken care of?"
Pierce's expression was calm.
"Yes." Rumlow nodded.
"Lock Rex in the highest level of the prison. The meeting will start soon, and we'll need him shortly."
Pierce stood up and walked towards the conference room.
This meeting was convened by Nick Fury, the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The reason for this meeting, of course, was the news from New York.
Batman, leading the Justice League's three major superheroes, had thwarted a terrorist organization's plot.
S.H.I.E.L.D. was unaware of the internal conflicts involved.
But Nick Fury had investigated the surface situation through informants within the police department and inside sources at the Continental Hotel, which was located in the underworld.
At the meeting.
"Cobra Organization!"
Nick Fury said, "The Cobra Organization, a terrorist group, was the culprit. They wanted to destroy New York with a Nanite Warhead, causing the city's collapse. Since the target was New York, the unavoidable opponent was naturally Batman... Fortunately, Batman resolved the matter."
"However, S.H.I.E.L.D. cannot let down its guard."
He looked grim. "With something this dangerous, S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't have any intel beforehand. MARS's plane was carrying a Nanite Warhead, flying around in the sky above us, and we were completely unprepared! This is a failure on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s part!"
"Nick, there's something I need to bring up."
Pierce interjected suddenly, "Regarding the Cobra Organization, S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't completely unaware."
"Pierce, you know what I mean. That's not what I'm talking about."
Nick Fury said, "Cobra is indeed a terrorist organization that S.H.I.E.L.D. has been monitoring for a long time. But what I'm saying is, we were kept in the dark from start to finish about their actions targeting New York. This shouldn't have happened."
"That's reasonable."
Pierce nodded. "I agree with you."
"Therefore, we need to change."
Nick Fury said in a low voice, "S.H.I.E.D. needs new strength now to help us better deal with these crises."
Silence fell over the room.
Although S.H.I.E.L.D. was headed by the Director, as a multinational organization, it was under the command of the World Security Council and had different voices within.
However, these voices were generally not as loud as the Director's.
"What do you have in mind?"
Pierce broke the silence with a smile.
"Establish a special operations team, like the Justice League that Batman established. We need to find people with extraordinary abilities, whether they are scientists or metahumans. We need their strength to help us eliminate evil and... deal with the kind of extraterrestrial crisis that New York experienced not long ago."
Nick Fury officially presented the Avengers as a proposal to everyone.
He said, "I'm going to call it... the Avengers."
This sentence didn't really surprise anyone present.
Information about the Avengers had already appeared in the files on their desks, but Nick hadn't officially filed it or submitted it for review.
This time, it was Nick officially proposing the concept of forming a superhero team and preparing to get the approval of his colleagues before submitting it to the World Security Council for deliberation.
Pierce flipped through the files in front of him and asked, "Iron Man, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Doctor Octopus, Captain America... these are the candidates you're looking at?"
Nick nodded. "That's right."
Pierce closed the folder in his hand and smiled. "Besides them, I have a recommendation as well."
"Who?"
Nick frowned.
Pierce said, "Brock Rumlow, the captain of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Rapid Response Special Forces. His abilities are no less impressive than Hawkeye's. I believe he is also qualified to join the Avengers and become a member of the superhero team."
"If he's willing, I have no objections."
Nick thought for a moment and replied.
He certainly knew Brock Rumlow. In fact, he had seriously considered Rumlow when forming the team, but ultimately excluded him for certain reasons, choosing the more trusted Black Widow and Hawkeye.
Now that Pierce had brought it up, he didn't mind giving Pierce some face.
After all, Pierce, as the former director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and now the Secretary-General of S.H.I.E.L.D., had deeper interactions with the World Security Council.
With Pierce's involvement, the formation of the Avengers would receive more support.
"That's good, I'll discuss it with him."
As expected, Pierce nodded in satisfaction.
The next moment, the two of them looked at each other, a tacit understanding only old friends could share.
The end of the meeting.
"Does anyone else have any questions?"
Nick Fury surveyed the room.
Pierce raised his hand to signal, "There's something I need to bring up."
Nick said, "Please, speak."
"Regarding the Cobra Organization, we actually received some intel before today."
Pierce said, "After the news from New York came back, I had Rumlow lead a team to take immediate action. Things went unexpectedly smoothly, and we arrested the Cobra Organization's commander, Rex."
"What? You caught Rex?"
Nick Fury was taken aback.
"Indeed."
Pierce smiled slightly: "Rumlow has brought him back to S.H.I.E.L.D., and I think you'll want to see him."
Everyone in the meeting looked at each other.
Very quickly.
Nick and Pierce saw Rex, who was locked up in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s internal prison, looking dazed, their faces grim.
"We've already interrogated him."
Rumlow stood beside Nick and Pierce, his voice low: "But as far as we can tell, Rex has lost most of his memory and knows nothing."
Nick's face darkened, feeling that things were getting more and more tricky.
"In that case, I will find a way to contact Batman and figure out the whole story." He sighed. "Pierce, Rumlow, thanks to you this time, S.H.I.E.L.D. has managed to save face."
"You're welcome."
"Rumlow, don't let me and Pierce down."
Nick looked deeply at Brock Rumlow, then turned and left.
Seeing this, Pierce patted Rumlow on the shoulder, his words hinting at something: "Don't disappoint me."
"I'll do my best."
Rumlow saluted.
After parting with Pierce, Nick returned to his office.
There, he met Coulson.
"Director, we have indeed received relevant intelligence on the Cobra Organization recently, but we've been busy establishing contact with Asgard these past few days, and neglected this matter."
Coulson looked quite apologetic: "This was our mistake. We didn't expect this matter to blow up so much."
"It's all in the past, let's not dwell on it."
Nick Fury waved his hand: "What did Anton say?"
"Anton isn't answering the phone."
Coulson said: "It seems he refuses to communicate with S.H.I.E.L.D."
"In other words, Batman refuses to communicate with S.H.I.E.L.D..."
Nick Fury's expression was grim, almost certain: "As expected, it's HYDRA people playing tricks!"
He wasn't an idiot.
From the very beginning, Nick Fury knew that this matter was far more complex than just the Cobra Organization.
Cobra wouldn't suddenly decide to destroy New York with a Nanite Warhead for no reason.
Someone was definitely pulling the strings behind the scenes.
And the purpose of the mastermind's actions was most likely related to Batman.
Nick Fury pondered for a long time.
Thinking about everyone's expressions and responses at the meeting, and also thinking about Pierce, his brow furrowed slightly.
He couldn't tell who was the problem, for now.
But, consider it from another angle.
In this meeting, the person who seemed the most confident and the least likely to be a bad guy, besides himself, was actually the most likely to be a bad guy.
"Pierce..."
Nick murmured, a complex expression in his eyes: "Could it be you?"
Back then.
Pierce was his superior.
In fact, his successful rise to become the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. was related to Pierce's strong support.
If Pierce was a HYDRA member lurking within S.H.I.E.L.D...
Then, Nick would not only regret losing a close friend but also feel despair for S.H.I.E.L.D. from the bottom of his heart.
This is truly rotten to the core.
"Director, what should we do now?"
Coulson asked.
He saw that the current situation was extremely complex.
Batman was resistant to S.H.I.E.L.D., and based on Anton's actions, it meant that Batman had begun to refuse any communication with S.H.I.E.L.D. In other words, did this mean that in Batman's view, S.H.I.E.L.D. was beyond saving?
"Don't move for now, see what Batman does."
Nick Fury pondered for a moment, then said in a low voice, "If this matter is really being pushed by HYDRA behind the scenes, with Batman's personality, he won't let it go. When Batman and HYDRA fight, HYDRA will definitely reveal its flaws. Then, we can naturally find an opportunity to figure out exactly who within S.H.I.E.L.D. are HYDRA's scumbags."
"But will S.H.I.E.L.D. be implicated?"
Coulson hesitated: "Batman won't fail to realize that we're intentionally letting things slide, and doing so could very well offend Batman."
"Don't worry."
Nick Fury said, "Batman was never on the same side as us. To catch those bastards hiding in the shadows, even if it means offending Batman, it's worth it."
Coulson was silent.
As Nick Fury's right-hand man, he understood Nick's meaning very well.
In any case, Batman was a superhero. Therefore, even if Batman was hostile towards S.H.I.E.L.D., it would at most mean he wouldn't cooperate with them anymore, but wouldn't actively go to war with S.H.I.E.L.D.
After all, S.H.I.E.L.D. represented a just law enforcement agency.
Both sides aimed to make the world a better place.
However, all of Nick Fury and Coulson's judgments were based on Batman's behavior as a superhero.
Actually, based on the Batman movie Anton filmed, their assessment of Batman was indeed very accurate.
However, they were missing a key piece of information.
And that was that this world's Batman wasn't called Bruce Wayne at all, but Anton Jameson.
-----------------------
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