What frustrated Fury the most was that even if he discovered suspicious individuals, it was very difficult to take action.
Because S.H.I.E.L.D.'s chain of command might have already been infiltrated, and once he launched a public investigation, the news would quickly reach the ears of HYDRA.
He could only observe in secret, collect evidence, and wait for the right opportunity.
This kind of work was exhausting.
During this period, Fury rooted out eleven confirmed HYDRA moles, all of whom were mid-to-low-level personnel.
Through carefully designed accidents or reassignments, he removed them from key positions without alerting the rest of the organization.
He knew these people were just branches and leaves; the real roots were still deep underground.
Although they were still far from truly uprooting HYDRA, compared to the Skrulls, from whom he had gained nothing, the progress on the HYDRA front gave Fury some small measure of comfort.
Regarding this group of green-skinned aliens, Fury even suspected they had already left Earth, abandoned their kin who had been captured after their identity was exposed, and returned to the depths of the Universe.
Otherwise, why couldn't he find even the slightest trace?
This stalemate and oppressive state lasted until one day, when it was completely broken by a sudden 'meteor'.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s global monitoring network captured an abnormal energy signal.
The signal source was approaching Earth rapidly from outer space, friction Burning in the atmosphere, forming a dazzling meteor trail.
The duty analyst immediately issued an alert: 'Unidentified object entering the atmosphere, trajectory predicted... Los Angeles! Speed is extremely high, energy signature is abnormal, not known space debris or meteorite.'
Fury was awakened by an emergency call, and when he arrived at the command center, the big screen was playing footage captured by a satellite: a blazing trail of light streaked across the night sky, falling toward a certain town.
'Impact point coordinates locked,' the analyst reported.
Fury immediately ordered: 'Dispatch a rapid response team. I want to arrive at the scene as soon as possible. Seal off a fifty-mile radius. Also, notify NASA and the Air Force; this is S.H.I.E.L.D. jurisdiction, tell them not to interfere.'
Two hours later, Fury personally led a twelve-person task force and arrived at the impact site.
The scene was a video rental store, and the roof had been smashed open by something, creating a large crater.
The object in the crater had clearly already left, and nothing remained at the scene except for a trail of destruction.
The team began collecting useful information on-site, while Fury, relying on his keen intuition, began searching outwards.
Soon, he discovered the target.
In front of a telephone booth, Fury saw a woman.
Blonde hair, wearing a strange outfit similar to a motorcycle suit, she looked somewhat out of place with her surroundings.
'Hello, ma'am. I am Nick Fury, an Agent of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division,' Fury said, keeping his voice steady.
The woman looked at him and then said, 'Carol, member of the Kree Empire Starforce.'
'Kree Empire... Starforce?' Fury chewed over the term.
'Alright then, ma'am, what brings you to Earth?'
'I am tracking Skrulls, and they are also hunting me. They are dangerous; you'd better stay away from me,' Carol said truthfully.
Skrulls!
The word pierced Fury's nerves like an electric current.
Four years, and he had finally heard the word again, from the mouth of a woman claiming to be an alien warrior.
'Skrulls?' Fury tried to keep his expression calm.
'Green-skinned, the Skrulls that are good at shapeshifting?'
This time it was Carol's turn to be surprised.
She narrowed her eyes and examined Fury carefully: 'You know them?'
'I do,' Fury nodded.
'In fact, I have a... green-skinned guest who has been staying for four years. He says he is a Skrull, but he doesn't like to talk much.'
Carol's expression became serious: 'You captured a Skrull? On Earth?'
'To be precise, my former Officer captured him, and now I am responsible for guarding him,' Fury took a step forward.
'Ms. Carol, if you really are here to hunt Skrulls, then we may have a common goal. Why don't we find a place to talk in detail? This isn't the place to talk.'
Carol hesitated.
Just then, a glimmer flashed on the roof of the convenience store in the distance.
Carol's reaction was faster than human limits; she lunged at Fury, pushing him aside, while simultaneously raising her hand to fire an energy beam.
The beam hit the roof, blasting up a spray of debris.
Having failed with the first strike, the attacker quickly turned and began to flee.
Carol saw clearly that it was a Skrull; without any hesitation, Carol took flight and gave chase.
'Wait for me!' Fury shouted, hurriedly following in Carol's footsteps.
...
Tony Stark's workshop was a paradise for tech enthusiasts and a nightmare for those who loved order.
The spacious area was filled with all kinds of mechanical parts, circuit boards, holographic projection equipment, and at least seven computers for different purposes.
On the walls hung anatomical diagrams of classic cars, in the corner sat a half-dismantled engine, and the air was filled with a complex scent of motor oil, welding fumes, and high-end coffee.
At this moment, an orange-red colored motorcycle was parked on the lifting platform in the center of the workshop.
The body lines were smooth and sharp, but the front fork was clearly deformed, there were scrape marks on the right fairing, and the end of the exhaust pipe was covered in dried mud; clearly, this vehicle had undergone some quite intense riding.
Tony was wearing oil-stained overalls and a T-shirt, and was bending over to inspect the motorcycle's front suspension system.
He held a laser alignment tool in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed, as focused as if he were performing heart surgery.
'The internal piston of the shock absorber is deformed,' he said without looking up.
'And the lower triple clamp is slightly bent... Mavuika, where on Earth did you ride this? It looks like it was jumped off a cliff.'
Mavuika leaned against the edge of the workbench nearby, holding a can of iced cola.
He was wearing a simple black leather jacket and jeans today, his golden-red long hair tied loosely behind his head, with a few strands hanging by his cheeks.
Hearing Tony's question, he just shrugged: 'A mountain road, with a few sharp turns; the road conditions were a bit worse than expected.'
'A bit worse?' Tony straightened up and pointed at the front wheel with a wrench.
'The rim is slightly deformed! You're riding a motorcycle, not an off-road tank!'
'That's why I came to you to fix it,' Mavuika said with a smile, taking a sip of the cola.
'Besides, you said the last shock absorber you installed could handle any road condition.'
'Any 'reasonable' road condition!' Tony emphasized: 'That does not include driving directly over rocks!'
Just as Tony was about to continue complaining, the workshop door slid open.
A man with a sturdy build, a bald head, and a carefully trimmed gray-white beard walked in.