Traveling to the moon posed little challenge for him.
Although the Anywhere Door had limitations it required a certain familiarity with the destination this world offered many alternative ways to reach the lunar surface.
Moreover, the technology in his system capable of reaching the moon was far from rare.
For ordinary humans, leaving Earth remained a monumental task, but for him, it was trivial.
After some thought, he decided against it.
There was no point.
He wasn't a murderer. With the Black Bat King gone, the Inhumans and Earth were in a semi-war state. Even without his interference, the Inhumans would soon realize just how wide the gap between them and humanity was.
In short, this so-called war was a ridiculous joke.
One could even say it was the result of a deranged woman's whims.
He didn't have to think hard to know that with the deaths of the Black Bat King, Gore, Karnak, and Maximus, the real power among the Inhumans now rested solely with Medusa and her sister Crystal.
The others no longer held sway.
In this situation, whether Medusa's actions were driven by a desire for revenge for the Black Bat King or a calculated move to consolidate power over the Inhumans, her decision to launch this so-called war was not surprising.
But more than that, he was curious about the Insight Initiative.
If it had been perfected, once the three spaceborne carriers successfully launched, it could pose a serious problem for him.
After all, Hydra's members were unpredictable, and no one knew what they might do.
However, since he had already intervened in Hydra's objectives, their plans were no longer going to succeed. The difference lay only in how he chose to intervene.
After reviewing the documents Susan had brought, Nolan was slightly surprised.
He had expected Hydra to have some hidden agenda, but what he found was a straightforward temporary integration between the Insight Initiative and the Titan Project. At least from what he could see, there were no traps.
With nothing else pressing, Nolan decided to personally oversee the project.
A few days later, he arrived at the spaceborne carrier base.
Nick Fury's expression shifted subtly when he saw Nolan.
Though inwardly displeased, he forced a flawless smile across his face. Unfortunately, with his coal-dark complexion, Nolan couldn't discern the nuance.
"Mr. Locke, it's been a while," Nick Fury said, taking the initiative.
Nolan returned the smile warmly.
"Director Fury, I didn't expect we'd have the chance to collaborate. But I have a question."
"Go ahead."
Fury maintained his smile, confident in his mastery of expression.
Nolan's tone was serious.
"Considering the spaceborne carriers and the collaboration proposed by S.H.I.E.L.D., I have some concerns. Your Insight Initiative calculates threats to global security and neutralizes them via satellite strikes. But what happens if the real threat is… S.H.I.E.L.D. itself?"
Fury's expression froze, his face darkening.
"How did you know about the Insight Initiative?"
The plan was highly classified, and even its name had never been revealed to LockTech during coordination.
Nolan offered a sheepish smile.
"Sorry, the S.H.I.E.L.D. firewall… is rather weak. Red Queen managed to bypass it with minimal effort. Honestly, I recommend updating your AI. If S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't want to replace it, LockTech's system or even Stark Industries' AI would be excellent alternatives. At the very least, LockTech's firewall would be a reliable choice. As it stands… to a real hacker, these defenses are meaningless."
"Damn it!" Fury cursed silently.
He didn't voice it, but in front of Nolan, he forced a polite smile.
"That's not your concern. What I want to know is why you infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D.'s system."
His gaze turned icy, clearly ready to challenge Nolan.
"As I said, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s system is poor, so sometimes Red Queen inadvertently opens its defenses. But more importantly, I think you might be interested in this topic: did you know there's a secret faction inside S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
Fury's eyes narrowed sharply.
"What do you mean?"
Nolan didn't answer immediately. He turned his attention to the three massive spaceborne carriers.
"A masterpiece," Nolan complimented sincerely.
In his eyes, the technology was mediocre, but it was entirely developed by S.H.I.E.L.D. Without support from someone like Nolan, creating such massive carriers was still impressive.
Yet Fury wasn't in the mood for praise. His mind was focused entirely on Nolan's last words.
A secret faction inside S.H.I.E.L.D.?
Impossible. Nolan must be trying to manipulate him.
"Mr. Locke, clarify your statement," Fury demanded.
Though skeptical, he wanted to hear more.
Nolan smirked, glanced at Fury, and said:
"Alright, I admit it. There's another reason I hacked into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s system. You've heard of Hydra, haven't you?"
Fury's face instantly darkened.
"When I founded LockTech, irregularities arose: strange investments and unreasonable shareholder behavior. You can guess what I discovered when I investigated…"
Fury interrupted, recognizing where Nolan was heading.
"You're implying S.H.I.E.L.D. is involved?"
"Exactly," Nolan nodded.
"The person behind it was S.H.I.E.L.D., which is why I didn't continue investigating there was no way to oppose such a powerful organization."
Nolan shrugged.
"Once LockTech was stable, I had Red Queen dig further and found something interesting. Inside S.H.I.E.L.D., some hidden files bore a strange symbol and a repeated slogan: 'Long live Hydra!'"
"Impossible! Hydra couldn't exist inside S.H.I.E.L.D.! I don't know where you got this name, but Hydra was eradicated in World War II!" Fury shouted, his anger echoing across the massive base.
Nolan said nothing further. He knew Hydra hadn't truly vanished, but revealing too much would raise suspicion.
Fury, though frustrating, was sharp enough to understand. The information Nolan shared was sufficient to earn some measure of trust.
In his own universe, they were enemies. Here, that line hadn't been crossed.
Considering the potential arrival of planet-consuming threats, Nolan decided it was necessary to recruit a powerful ally someone like Captain Marvel.
Fury, unsettled by Nolan's words, turned and left. Though distrustful, the man couldn't ignore the implications.
Watching Fury depart, Nolan smiled. The S.H.I.E.L.D. leadership would have their hands full.
Inside S.H.I.E.L.D., Crossbones Brock Rumlow noticed Fury's sudden return and grew curious.
"Director?"
Rumlow had assumed Fury was inspecting the Insight Initiative. Fury returning so quickly puzzled him.
"Rumlow, investigate…" Fury began, then paused, recalling Nolan's words.
Though he doubted someone like Rumlow, a Level 8 agent, could be Hydra, he intended to check for himself.
Rumlow furrowed his brow. Fury's behavior was unusual, but he dismissed it.
Rumlow's eyes gleamed with excitement. Fury had entrusted him with the coordination between the Insight Initiative and the Titan Project, revealing the truth: the carrier launch was only the first step. The real key was LockTech.
Due to time and resources, they had temporarily lost the ability to launch the Insight Initiative independently, but LockTech offered a new opportunity.
Titan bases were springing up everywhere, each staffed with powerful AI-driven weapons. Even Titans could respond autonomously without a pilot.
In short, the Titan Project could supplement the Insight Initiative.
If it succeeded, any potential interference from technological geniuses would vanish, and Hydra would truly dominate the world.
To achieve this, Rumlow needed Nolan Locke's trust to implant the virus and Dr. Zola into the Titan system.
"Long live Hydra!" Rumlow whispered triumphantly before leaving S.H.I.E.L.D.
Gaining Nolan's trust wouldn't be easy. That afternoon, he arrived at LockTech with several agents to discuss project cooperation.
Though he lacked technical expertise, his role was purely observational reporting back to Hydra.
Unknown to Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D. had long been overrun. Every visitor that day was a Hydra agent.
When Nolan approached, Rumlow forced a stiff smile. His scarred face and dead-eyed grin sent a chill through Nolan.
"Mr. Locke, shall we begin?" Rumlow asked.
Nolan nodded and glanced at Susan. Understanding immediately, she stood.
"We've already discussed most projects, but regarding funding, we propose some adjustments," she said.
"Hm?" Rumlow frowned, as did his team.
Susan continued, "This plan encompasses 73 subprojects. Due to various factors, we request an additional $39.2 billion as compensation."
$39.2 billion? Even without technical knowledge, Rumlow knew this was no trivial sum.
As expected, the team reacted with shock. A scientist exclaimed, "Ms. Stone, are you joking? Coordinating such a massive amount is impossible!"
Susan remained composed, pushing a detailed report forward.
"Here are the specifics."
The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents examined it carefully.
"Absurd!" one muttered angrily. Others frowned.
Even Susan cast a quick glance at Nolan, concerned.
He remained calm. He wasn't planning to settle anything today. Raising the stakes only set the table for negotiation.
Over the next three days, several meetings followed. Rumlow grew frustrated at the slow progress. Hydra's plans required time; once finalized, even Dr. Zola could no longer intervene.
On the fourth day, without Nolan present, Rumlow quietly asked, "What's our minimum?"
The scientists hesitated.
"$3 billion. Any more, and it would impact carrier performance."
"Is the gap large?" Rumlow asked impatiently.
"Not much," they replied.
After some deliberation, Rumlow made his decision.
During the fourth meeting, Nolan still smiled serenely. His goal was $10 billion; a few extra days were tolerable. He also wanted to see what Hydra's true intentions were.
"$39.2 billion, not a penny less!" Susan declared as usual.
The scientists conferred briefly before one reluctantly said, "Fine, we agree."
Susan froze.
Nolan stared at them, astonished.
Could they really agree to this?
Was it S.H.I.E.L.D. that had gone mad, or Hydra?