When the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents entered the Parisian laboratory that had lost contact, they were shocked by what they saw.
They expected to find a destroyed lab and the bodies of the researchers, but the scene was entirely different.
There wasn't a single person inside, and most of the equipment was gone. The place looked like it had been robbed, but, judging by the state of things, there were no signs of forced entry or struggle, which puzzled the agents.
Nick Fury and the others on the Helicarrier watched the events unfold through the cameras attached to the agents. The agents began searching the laboratory, but found no one. The equipment had been removed, and the personnel had vanished.
"What happened here? Where did everyone go?" Rogers wondered, looking at the screens. The scene in the laboratory baffled him.
"We don't know yet; we'll have to wait until the search is complete," Fury replied seriously, watching the screen.
"What about the other laboratories?" he asked Agent Hill.
"Agents have already arrived at the locations," she replied and displayed images from the cameras in the other labs on the screen.
The scenes were practically identical—laboratory personnel missing, equipment gone.
"Can we access the security footage?" Fury asked.
"One moment." Hill turned to another agent and, after a short pause, replied, "The cameras inside the laboratory were somehow disabled; it will take time to restore them. As for the external cameras, the agents haven't noticed anything suspicious."
None of the recordings showed any trucks approaching the laboratories, which raised even more questions. How did the personnel and equipment disappear?
Fury suddenly recalled the Tesseract. Perhaps the enemy was using it for spatial displacement, and these laboratories were the target of their plan.
"Coulson, inform Tony and the others that the enemy might be in Paris. Have them try to pinpoint their location," Fury addressed Agent Coulson, who had just escorted Thor and Loki to the break room.
"Understood." Coulson nodded and headed towards the laboratory.
Meanwhile, in the lab, the four-person science team watched the same footage from the agents' cameras. Noah was broadcasting the images directly from the bridge.
"Did everyone turn into ghosts? There's no one there," Tony remarked, surprised.
"They were most likely teleported using the Tesseract. The cube has the power of spatial displacement," Noah explained. It seemed Thanos's subordinates had gone to Paris, seizing several laboratories to create their portal. The missing personnel were likely also taken—the scepter could control minds, and Noah remembered that all too well.
"Whoa! Where did S.H.I.E.L.D. get that thing?" Tony wondered.
"Thor already said it's from Asgard," Banner added, tapping a thin metal rod on the table, causing sparks to fly. He had confiscated it from Tony after Stark tried to use it to "poke the Hulk."
"Why did they abduct the lab personnel and equipment?" Selvig asked, surprised.
"To build a stable portal," Noah replied, running his hand over the screen and displaying a video recorded by his armor. It showed Corvus Glaive and the others emerging through the Tesseract's portal.
"The previous portal they used to arrive on Earth collapsed shortly after. Now they want to create a stable portal to transport their army," Noah explained, pointing to the collapsing portal in the recording. After its collapse, the energy had concentrated on the ceiling, but he managed to dissipate it with his sword, preventing an explosion.
"So what are they missing?" Banner asked, frowning.
"They need iridium to stabilize the portal and a power source capable of activating the Tesseract," Selvig noted, having reviewed his previous research after learning about the Cube's properties.
Energy? Tony suddenly thought of his arc reactor. But if the criminals were in Paris, would they travel to New York to get it?
"We need to hurry," Noah said, pointing to the screen, where the latest news from Paris appeared. A laboratory had been robbed, personnel were missing, and equipment and materials were stolen. The police were called by an employee who arrived late for work and discovered the laboratory empty.
The list of stolen items included iridium, which Selvig had just mentioned. This meant they had almost everything they needed.
"Hey, guys, the Director asked me to inform you... What is this?" The laboratory door opened, and Coulson, entering, noticed the video on the screen. He immediately realized that Noah had hacked their system again.
"Well, it seems I don't need to explain anything; you're already aware of what happened," Coulson shrugged. "The Director hopes you'll find the enemy as soon as possible."
"Well, let's get started," Noah said, checking his mission list. He then turned to the others.
Meanwhile, in the abandoned Parisian subway station, the stolen equipment was already laid out across the floor. The place was filled with researchers in white coats, busy with preparations, but their eyes glowed with an ominous blue light.