"Who am I?"
The white-haired man stopped walking and looked over the group with his single uncovered eye.
The gaze made Phil Coulson feel an odd sense of familiarity.
"Put the gun down, Coulson."
The old man's tone was calm, as if he were discussing the weather.
"The safety on that pistol of yours is loose. I told you to fix it after Peru. Looks like you still haven't."
"…You're—"
Coulson gasped.
His eyes widened as he stared at the completely unfamiliar white face in front of him.
That tone.
That posture when walking.
And that tiny detail about the gun safety—something only a few people in the world would know.
"…Director Fury?" Coulson asked in disbelief. "But… your skin…"
"M.J. didn't change this drastically either, right?"
The man shrugged casually.
"It's called tactical disguise, Coulson."
"Because of some well-known circumstances, that black face of mine triggers red alerts at every airport on the planet right now."
"So I had to make… a few minor adjustments."
He walked past Coulson toward the restrained "Nick Fury."
The bound "Fury" looked up at the white-haired man, cracked his neck, and then—
His skin began to ripple.
Seconds later—
The face of the "Director" melted away, revealing another green-skinned alien.
It was Talos.
The sight made everyone stare in stunned silence.
The real Fury turned back around.
His gaze settled on the restrained Grant Ward.
"Confusing, isn't it, Agent Ward?"
"The coordinates you received were correct."
"I really am here."
"But unfortunately…"
"There's no alien weapon waiting for you."
"Just a snake cage designed specifically for Hydra."
Ward clenched his teeth, eyes dark.
"…Garrett."
"What happened to him?"
"He's doing great."
Fury replied flatly.
"You'll see him in hell soon enough."
Fury didn't bother looking at him again.
Instead he turned back to the team.
"Originally this was just a screening operation."
"I needed to see who on that plane was trustworthy."
"Besides that little snake."
His gaze moved slowly across the room.
Coulson.
May.
Fitz.
Simmons.
And finally—
Skye.
"Congratulations."
"You all passed."
"Passed?"
Coulson finally snapped out of his shock.
Anger rose in his chest as he stepped forward and stared directly into the unfamiliar face of his former director.
"You call this a test, sir?"
"What if Ward had chosen a bullet instead of a punch just now?"
"You gambled with our lives!"
"This is war, Coulson!"
Fury's voice suddenly rose, the pressure in it forcing Coulson to take half a step back.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. has collapsed!"
"Hydra is everywhere in our organization—like cancer cells!"
"I can't trust anyone anymore!"
"I have to know that when I turn my back…"
"…no one here will stab me in it!"
The hall fell silent.
"Take him away."
Fury waved his hand.
Two Skrull agents grabbed Ward and dragged him toward the detention wing of the base.
Ward didn't resist.
He didn't beg.
As he passed by Skye, he looked deeply at her.
His lips moved as if he wanted to say something.
But in the end—
He only left behind a complicated look before disappearing into the darkness.
…
"Alright."
"Reunion time's over."
Fury straightened his collar and walked toward the command console.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. may have fallen, but we're not dead yet."
"As long as we're breathing…"
"…the war isn't over."
"Wait."
Coulson stopped him.
"Sir… I understand the Ward situation."
"And the fake death… the new face… even though it's insane, I can accept it."
"But…"
He pointed at Talos and the surrounding agents who were now shifting back into their human disguises.
"…we need to talk about this."
"How many of these… things are on Earth?"
Coulson's tone turned deadly serious.
"They can impersonate anyone."
"If they wanted to…"
"They could replace the President."
"Replace senators."
"Replace… us."
"As a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, my job is to protect Earth from threats."
"And right now…"
"…you seem to be cooperating with one."
The tension in the room tightened again.
Talos stopped rubbing his jaw and turned to look at Coulson.
His expression was unreadable.
But he didn't speak.
Fury stood with his back to the team.
"How many?"
"That's not important, Phil."
His voice was low.
"What matters is that right now…"
"…they're our only allies."
"Allies?" Jemma Simmons murmured nervously.
"In every sci-fi novel I've read… alien civilizations usually only have two outcomes."
"Conquer or be conquered."
"They're different."
Fury walked over and placed a hand on Talos's shoulder.
"Talos and his people are refugees."
"They lost their homeworld."
"They're hunted by the Kree."
"All they want is a place to survive."
"I promised them I'd help them find a new home."
"In return…"
"They lend me their power and their intelligence network."
"That's called a deal."
"A fair one."
"And how do you know they won't betray you?" Melinda May asked coldly.
Her hand still rested near her holster.
"What if one day they decide Earth looks pretty nice?"
"And they'd rather replace us than hide among us?"
"They won't dare."
Fury answered without hesitation.
"I have a trump card."
"A card that ensures they'll never cross the line."
"Everything is under my control."
"You don't need to doubt that."
After years of trusting their former director, Coulson and May exchanged a look.
Neither spoke again.
"So what's next?" Coulson asked.
"My next move is already planned."
"And what I need you to do is—"
"I don't believe you."
A clear voice cut him off.
Skye stepped forward from the back of the group.
Young—
But completely fearless.
"I don't believe in your 'trump card.'"
"And I don't believe you're 'in control.'"
She stared straight into Fury's eye.
Her voice filled with suspicion.
"What you just said sounds like textbook political lies."
"'Everything is under control?'"
She scoffed.
"You said that plenty of times before you got kicked out of S.H.I.E.L.D., didn't you?"
"And what happened?"
"Hydra hid right under your nose for decades!"
"And this so-called control of yours…"
She paused.
"Is it like how you 'controlled' those superpowered kids?"
The air temperature seemed to drop instantly.
Fitz and Simmons shrank back slightly.
They knew exactly what she was referring to.
The recent scandal that had shaken the world—
The Secret Warriors program.
Skye had just confronted Fury head-on.
Publicly.
"And now you've brought back a group of shapeshifting aliens."
She pointed at Fitz.
Then at May.
"How do I know Fitz will still be Fitz tomorrow?"
"How do I know May will still be May?"
"What if this war ends with these green-skinned aliens replacing every single one of us…"
"…and taking Earth for themselves?"
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