The Helicarrier.
The bridge.
Nick Fury felt like his single eye had been stuffed with a scorching charcoal ball, burning and aching.
He hadn't slept for forty-eight hours straight.
On the giant tactical screen in front of him, it was divided into dozens of small windows.
Each window displayed a hellish scene.
On the main screen showing Manhattan:
The green giant and the blond Thor were ganging up on a Leviathan, a creature the size of a blue whale.
Iron Man's figure, like a red and gold lightning bolt, weaved back and forth through the Chitauri's flight formations.
Leaving a trail of exploding sparks behind him.
Captain America, on the ground, led the Police and the National Guard, struggling to organize a defensive line and evacuate civilians.
On the rooftop of a tall building on the other side, Hawkeye, like a falcon, surveyed the battlefield; his arrows flew with precise trajectories, each one hitting the cockpit of a Chitauri flyer, erupting in flames.
And in the chaotic street fighting, Black Widow's figure was as agile as a phantom, weaving through swarms of Chitauri soldiers.
Every close-quarters combat was clean and decisive.
Her pistol and fighting skills worked seamlessly together, constantly dismantling the enemy's attacks.
The battle was stalemated.
The other small windows, however, made him even more distraught.
One window showed:
A secret Base in New Jersey had just lost contact.
The last frame of the surveillance footage showed a faint HYDRA skull insignia.
In another window:
Politicians in Washington were roaring wildly in a conference call, demanding to know why the aliens had landed precisely in New York.
And if S.H.I.E.L.D. was conducting some unspeakable experiment again.
There was also a window displaying General Ross's face, clearly saying, "I'm going to kill you."
This stubborn General was demanding that Fury immediately hand over control of Bruce Banner, under the guise of "National Security."
HYDRA was taking advantage of the chaos.
Politicians were frantically shifting blame.
The Military was stabbing him in the back.
And he, Nick Fury, the supreme Commander of S.H.I.E.L.D., was like the worst circus acrobat, forced to juggle a dozen burning fireballs simultaneously; one slip, and he would be shattered to pieces.
"Director." Maria Hill walked quickly to him, handing him a tablet, her face grave. "The battle in Hell's Kitchen is over."
"What's the situation?"
Fury didn't even lift his head, his eye still fixed on the battle in Manhattan.
"It's... strange."
Hill chose her words carefully.
"By the time our people arrived, the battle was already over. Defenders suffered only minor injuries, but their target... the combined forces of HYDRA and The Hand, were almost completely wiped out."
"Hmm?"
Fury finally reacted slightly; he turned his head and took the tablet from Hill's hand.
On the tablet were aerial photos taken by a drone.
A ravaged street, cars smashed into scrap metal, and... that extremely conspicuous, huge cracked crater in the middle of the street.
Fury's pupils suddenly constricted.
He zoomed in on the photo, carefully examining the details of the crater's edge.
It wasn't caused by an explosion, but by some kind of... pure, violent impact crater formed by a single point shattering the ground.
"Who did this?" His voice deepened.
"Unclear." Hill shook her head. "Wearing a black trench coat, his strength... unfathomable."
"Unfathomable?" Fury's single eye narrowed.
"Yes, sir." Hill pulled up another data report. "We detected ultra-high intensity electromagnetic pulse residue at the scene, as well as... trace gamma radiation reactions."
Gamma radiation.
That word, like a needle, sharply pricked Fury's already taut nerves.
A name flashed through his mind instantly.
William Rodriguez.
The insurance salesman who always wore an innocent smile, yet was shrewder than anyone else.
The bastard who held a "nuclear weapon" like Abomination in his hands, yet spent all his time thinking about how to get rich selling insurance.
Besides him, Fury couldn't think of a second person who could be simultaneously linked to gamma radiation and Defenders.
He suddenly felt that his list of worries had gained another name that needed close attention.
This William was like a massive iceberg lurking beneath the Water's surface.
You never knew how much larger and more dangerous the main body hidden beneath the visible tip was.
Now, this iceberg seemed to be actively surfacing.
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