Antony spread his hands dismissively.
"HYDRA? They're nothing but leftover Nazi trash hiding in sewers, playing assassination and infiltration games."
"What can they really do?"
"Blow up a few buildings? Kill a few senators?"
"Or create a couple of super soldiers like the Winter Soldier?"
"To me, that's the equivalent of cockroaches in the kitchen."
"I can step on them anytime I want."
Then Antony's eyes sharpened.
"But you, Fury…"
"You keep talking about protecting Earth."
"But take a look at the apocalyptic crises Earth has faced in the past few years."
"How many of them had nothing to do with your damned S.H.I.E.L.D. or your Avengers Initiative?"
"If you hadn't been messing around with that Tesseract, the Battle of New York would never have happened."
"…You even gathered a group of gifted children and turned them into HYDRA's experimental subjects."
Antony slammed his hand on the desk.
"In this world, the biggest threat isn't HYDRA."
"It's not aliens either."
"It's you, Nick Fury."
Fury's expression changed.
His fists clenched tightly.
He wanted to argue.
But he couldn't find the words.
Because if judged purely by results—
Everything Antony said was true.
"That was preparation for higher-level warfare!" Fury argued through gritted teeth.
"We must have weapons capable of fighting advanced civilizations! In that process, sacrifices and risks are unavoidable!"
"Risks?"
Antony let out a cold laugh.
"I heard you recently imported another batch of 'risks.'"
He picked up a document from the desk and flipped through it casually.
"A group of alien refugees capable of shape-shifting and infiltration."
"You brought them to Earth."
"What exactly are you planning, Fury?"
"Are you planning to give Earth to them as their new home?"
"They're Skrulls," Fury replied in a deep voice.
"They're my allies. Without my orders, they wouldn't dare act recklessly."
"Everything is under my control."
"Control?"
"HAHAHAHA—!"
Antony burst into laughter.
The sound echoed through the empty office, dripping with mockery.
"Come on, Fury."
"You didn't even know how many of your own agents were secretly HYDRA."
"And you're talking to me about control?"
"You don't even have the ability to identify them!"
"If I told you right now that the person sitting across from you isn't me…"
"But a Skrull disguised as me…"
"Could you tell the difference?"
Fury fell silent.
He couldn't.
And that fact had always haunted him.
"I have a trump card," Fury insisted stubbornly.
That was the last shred of dignity he had left.
"I have something that guarantees they'll never betray me."
"If things really spiral out of control, I have a way to deal with it."
"I know," Antony interrupted calmly.
"Carol Danvers. Captain Marvel."
The moment that name was spoken—
Fury shot to his feet.
The chair screeched across the floor.
"How do you know her name?! That's classified under—"
"Under what?"
"Level Ten clearance? Your greatest secret?"
Antony walked around the desk and stopped in front of Fury, patting his stiff shoulder.
"Fury."
"Don't measure me with the narrow worldview of a frog at the bottom of a well."
"I know far more than you can imagine."
"Don't mistake your paranoia for wisdom."
"I'll return that phrase to you."
"This world is far more complicated—and far more dangerous—than you realize."
"Your so-called trump card…"
"In the face of real crises…"
"…is nothing."
Fury's breathing became heavier.
"Carol can handle everything!" he insisted stubbornly.
"She's the strongest warrior in the universe! As long as she comes back—"
"Before that happens, you'll screw everything up!"
Antony cut him off again.
Then he slammed a thick stack of documents onto the desk.
SLAP!
The files slid toward Fury and scattered open.
The pages were filled with photographs, names, and official positions.
"Do you know how many humans those aliens have already replaced?" Antony asked coldly.
Fury glanced down at the files and instinctively objected.
"They wouldn't dare act without my orders. And there are only a little over a hundred Skrulls on Earth."
"That's what Talos personally guaranteed me."
"Only a hundred?"
Antony smiled.
A smile cold enough to freeze blood.
"Did you ever actually investigate that number?"
"Or were you too addicted to the feeling of giving orders to remember the most basic rule of being a spy?"
"Take a look."
Fury's hands trembled as he picked up the documents.
Page One: Vice Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff
Page Two: Director of MI6
Page Three: Senior CIA operative
Page Four: European government officials
…
The list kept going.
And going.
It was so long it felt hopeless.
"T-this… this can't be…"
Fury flipped through the pages.
Cold sweat rolled down his forehead.
There were thousands of names.
Political leaders.
Military officers.
Economic elites.
Every field imaginable.
"Talos promised me… they wouldn't…"
"Impossible?"
Antony raised an eyebrow and tapped the list.
"The real number is probably even higher."
"I refuse to believe someone with your intelligence couldn't foresee this outcome."
"They can shapeshift."
"They possess technology far beyond Earth's."
"They can infiltrate any organization for you."
"Gather any intelligence."
"Capture any enemy."
"Complete missions that would otherwise be impossible."
"And thanks to them…"
"You climbed from a simple Level Three agent…"
"All the way to the so-called King of Spies."
"To the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.."
"You enjoyed the feeling of controlling everything."
"So you chose to ignore the risks."
"But understand this, Fury."
Antony placed a hand on Fury's shoulder.
His fingers tightened slightly—almost crushing the bone beneath.
"When your ability no longer matches your power…"
"Power will devour you."
"Your current situation…"
"…is the perfect proof."
"S.H.I.E.L.D. collapsed."
"HYDRA struck back."
"And your alien 'allies'…"
"…are quietly taking over this world right under your nose."
Fury's face turned pale.
The pale color of a man whose entire belief system was collapsing.
He had always believed he was using the Skrulls.
But now he realized—
He had merely been a stepping stone.
"How dare they…" Fury muttered hollowly.
"Don't they fear—"
"Fear what?" Antony interrupted.
"Fear Carol?"
Fury didn't answer.
But the faint hope in his eyes betrayed him.
"Fury."
"You've spent your entire life placing your hopes in others."
Antony shook his head.
His voice carried faint pity.
"Especially in aliens."
"No! Carol isn't an alien!" Fury argued.
"She's human! She's our—"
"She's a cosmic being now."
Antony shattered the illusion mercilessly.
"Wake up, Fury."
"You think that pager is your personal hotline?"
"She's handed out hundreds of those pagers across the galaxy."
"To every civilization she thinks might need 'protection.'"
"The Kree."
"The Skrulls."
"The people of Xandar."
"And countless primitive planets in forgotten corners of space."
"Whenever she passes by, she leaves one behind."
"You think you're a VIP?"
"In reality…"
"You're just one name among thousands in her contact list."
Antony turned away.
And delivered the final cruel truth.
"I guarantee that even if you press that pager…"
"If she answers within five years, you should thank your ancestors for their blessings."
"In her eyes…"
"Earth is no different from the countless other civilizations in the universe waiting to be saved."
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