Triskelion Headquarters, Supreme Command Center.
The air here was always at a constant temperature, carrying the dry and cold scent peculiar to precision instruments in operation.
Beyond the massive curved floor-to-ceiling windows lay the nightscape of Washington D.C., with myriad lights twinkling like scattered stars on the ground.
But at this moment, the prosperity outside the window formed a Stark contrast with the deathly silence inside the room.
Nick Fury stood alone before the colossal strategic projection table, his back to the entire room.
The call had ended.
But the insurance agent's cynical voice, and the insane demand he made at the end, still lingered in his mind like a persistent parasite.
Fury's single eye was fixed on the pitch-black projection screen before him, which reflected his grim face, so dark it seemed water could be wrung from it.
What he hated most in his life was losing control.
And in the past ten minutes or so, he had experienced an unprecedented sense of powerlessness, being led by the nose by an outsider.
An insurance agent.
An intelligence peddler he had initially thought he could easily manipulate and discard after use.
He not only knew about "black sky" and "chimera," but also that string of German words that would awaken him in a cold sweat every time he heard them in a nightmare.
He was like a ghost, standing outside S.H.I.E.L.D.'s walls, yet intimately aware of every crack within them.
Fury could even imagine the other party leisurely sipping coffee after hanging up, enjoying his current anger and embarrassment.
He had been checkmated.
By someone whose true identity he couldn't even be 100% sure of, forced into a corner by his own proud intelligence warfare.
Angry?
Of course.
The rage almost burst from his chest, threatening to incinerate this damned command center to ashes.
But what he felt more was a bone-deep chill.
William Rodriguez daring to utter those words in front of him meant he was confident.
His so-called "marked by HYDRA" was probably a trap from the very beginning.
A trap designed to raise his own price, forcing him to be deeply tied to him.
"He knows we've been compromised."
Fury muttered in a low voice.
This was the most fatal part.
This man not only knew of HYDRA's existence but also knew that HYDRA was inside S.H.I.E.L.D.
He lit the fuse.
And then threw the entire burning powder keg directly at his own feet.
"Officer."
Maria Hill's voice came from behind him.
As calm and capable as ever.
But Fury could detect a hint of hidden tension in it.
She rarely saw the Director display such overt, almost out-of-control emotions.
"Investigate."
Fury didn't turn around, "Dig up all of William Rodriguez's information again."
"Not the fake garbage in the archives; I want his true identity, his source of funding, how many slices of bread he ate for breakfast—I want everything."
"Use all clearances, dig him out from underground for me!"
"We already tried, Officer."
Hill's reply made Fury's pupils contract sharply. "The moment he spoke with you, we activated the highest level of tracking protocol. But…"
"But what?"
Fury slowly turned around, the gaze from his single eye making even the battle-hardened Deputy Director feel a pang of dread.
"He's like a ghost."
Hill struggled with her words.
"All signal sources pointed to multiple untraceable virtual nodes, and voiceprint recognition matched over 1.8 billion highly similar interference items in the global network."
"Our cybersecurity department reported that the opponent's anti-tracking technology… surpasses any we currently know."
"They even suspect that we are not facing a person, but rather… a highly intelligent artificial intelligence."
A suffocating silence descended upon the command center.
Fury's fists were clenched tightly at his sides.
His anger, at this moment, was replaced by a deeper emotion.
Not only was he being played by an insurance agent, but he couldn't even figure out who the other party truly was.
This was no longer just a disgrace.
This was arguably the biggest joke since S.H.I.E.L.D.'s inception.
Just then.
"Buzz—"
A piercing alarm blared without warning throughout the command center, and red warning lights replaced the previously soft illumination, casting a doomsday-like glow on everyone's faces.
"Alert! Western Joint Dark Energy Project facility energy readings spiking abnormally! Gamma radiation index exceeding safety threshold!"
"Alert! Spatial distortion detected! Energy source… is the Tesseract!"
All personal emotions vanished from Fury's face instantly, replaced by the absolute calm and authority of the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
He lunged to the main console, placing both hands on the surface.
"Coulson!"
He roared into the communicator.
"Report the situation!"
"Things are bad, Director!"
Phil Coulson's voice came through the communicator, filled with unprecedented urgency and gasping, "He activated the Tesseract! We can't control it!"
"Who is he?!"
On the main screen, the surveillance footage from inside the facility was finally connected.
The image shook violently, filled with static.
But it was still clearly visible: a tall, thin figure in a black trench coat, holding a scepter inlaid with a blue gem, stood at the center of the energy burst.
He wore a sneering, cruel smile, like Loki descended to the World.
Loki, Odin's exiled brother.
"He's controlled Dr. Selvig!"
Coulson's voice held a hint of despair.
"And… Agent Barton! Repeat, Hawkeye has been compromised! He's attacking our people!"
"Boom!"
A loud bang.
The main screen went completely black.
The entire command center fell into a deathly silence.
Hill's face turned pale.
She looked at Fury, her lips moving, but no words came out.
An elite agent, a top scientist, two key figures of S.H.I.E.L.D. deployed in that top-secret facility, both turned traitor within minutes.
Fury closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.
In his chest, the anger sparked by William Rodriguez collided violently with the colossal tidal wave now unleashed by Loki's invasion.
When it rains, it pours.
He had just been troubled by the venomous snake hiding in the shadows, and now, an alien dragon had directly smashed through his roof.
He suddenly found it somewhat ironic.
Just half an hour ago, he thought that insurance agent was an enormous problem.
But now, compared to the impending global catastrophe, an out-of-control super-soldier, a HYDRA hidden in the dark, all seemed to have become… "internal conflicts" that could be temporarily set aside.
He slowly opened his eyes, his single eye devoid of any confusion or anger, leaving only a solidified, icy resolve.
The old rules had been broken.
Whether it was the snakes on the ground or the dragons in the sky, they were all telling him in their own ways that this World had entered an unknown sea where he could no longer navigate with old maps.
"Hill."
He spoke, his voice terrifyingly calm.
"Officer."
"Initiate the 'Avengers' initiative."
Hill sharply looked up, a flicker of shock in her eyes, immediately replaced by determination.
"Yes, Officer."
Fury turned around, once again facing the massive strategic projection table, which had returned to a deep blue.
"Connect me to Stark."
"Also, find a way to locate Agent Romanoff and have her 'invite' our big guy."
He paused, a complex, ineffable light flashing in his single eye.
"But…"
"No buts."
Fury interrupted her, his gaze seemingly piercing through the screen, seeing the man sitting somewhere, awaiting his reply.
"To deal with a madman, you need an even madder madman."
"This World needs a scalpel to excise a tumor, and it also needs a sledgehammer to smash down city walls."
He looked at the "Avengers" candidate list scrolling across the screen, a cold, self-deprecating yet resolute curve forming on his lips.
"The war has begun."
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