"Fenris, were you telling the truth?"
On the road to the temporary base outside Puente Antiguo, Coulson drove while unable to stop himself from muttering in confusion. "No matter how I look at those scientists, they're just ordinary people. How could they possibly be connected to those matters?"
"Coulson, you'll know soon enough."
Fenris had not expected to gain something unexpected just by taking a casual walk around, so he was in an especially good mood now. "The existence of aliens and gods can't be hidden forever. Forget Jane Foster. Before long, this so-called classified information of yours will be known to the entire world."
"Screech—"
The moment his voice fell, Coulson slammed his foot down on the brake, leaving a long skid mark across the ground.
Coulson looked at Fenris with a grave expression. "Are you serious?"
"Of course."
Fenris gave a soft snort and shrugged noncommittally.
"How is that possible?"
Seeing that Fenris did not seem to be joking, Coulson pressed his lips together. After a long while, he let out a faint sigh. "We're finished…"
Coulson had made it this far for a reason. Naturally, he was no fool. On the contrary, he was a genuinely intelligent man.
Nick Fury's attitude toward this kind of close encounter of the third kind was very clear: bury it completely.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s power was beyond doubt. Then under what circumstances would the existence of gods and aliens become widely known to everyone, to the point that even S.H.I.E.L.D. could no longer conceal it?
The simplest, and most extreme, possibility was only one thing—
War.
A super war with enormous influence, one that might even sweep across the world and draw the attention of billions.
"Fenris, will that day really come?"
Only after a long while did Coulson start the car again. In the silence, he suddenly asked, "If that day really comes, can we actually stand against those people?"
Whether it was powerful gods or aliens capable of crossing the vast sea of stars to appear on Earth, they were clearly not beings current humanity could contend with.
If enemies like that pointed their weapons at the humans of Earth, would they truly have the power to resist?
"Coulson, just focus on driving your car."
Fenris glanced at Wanda, who had been silent beside him the whole time, then turned his gaze back out the window and said with a smile, "Don't worry."
As soon as he finished speaking, the corners of Wanda's lips quietly curved up while she continued looking out the window.
Coulson blinked, and the gloom that had just been weighing on his heart was instantly swept clean.
After a brief pause, he suddenly laughed. "All right, then!"
…
Roughly fifty miles outside Puente Antiguo.
A delicate silver-white hammer had fallen from the sky like a meteor the previous night, smashing into the ground and forcibly creating a massive pit several dozen meters across.
The strange phenomenon had successfully drawn plenty of people over after they heard the news, all wanting to try lifting the hammer.
However, the hammer was exceptionally heavy. No matter how hard these people tried, even after using pickup trucks and cranes, they could not move it in the slightest.
Fortunately, S.H.I.E.L.D. reacted extremely quickly. In less than half a day, they had already sealed off the area, completely cutting it off from outside observation.
"Fenris, that's the situation. This hammer is extremely strange. It's as if it's connected to the earth itself. No matter how you look at it, it doesn't seem like something from Earth."
Before long, Coulson brought Fenris to the place where Mjolnir had fallen.
After passing through layer upon layer of tight security, Fenris soon saw a small hammer with an ancient yet exquisite shape standing in the center of the site.
"Aside from its terrifying weight, there's also a powerful magnetic field distributed around this hammer. It has even reached the point where it can easily interfere with the weather."
Coulson raised a hand and pointed toward the sky outside the structure.
Over the distant town, the sky was clear, but above this place not far away, a thick layer of dark clouds had gathered.
Countless testing devices had been set up around the hammer. Every time the magnetic field fluctuated, lightning would streak through the depths of the clouds overhead. Rolling thunder kept exploding, enough to make anyone feel awe.
"Thor's hammer, Mjolnir."
Looking at the hammer's iconic shape, together with the many strange phenomena surrounding it, Fenris raised an eyebrow slightly and immediately recognized it.
"Fenris, what did you say?"
Coulson, who had been endlessly introducing the hammer, suddenly stopped. He cut himself off and looked up at Fenris in shock. "You're saying this is… the hammer of Thor from mythology? Mjolnir?"
"What else did you think it was?"
Fenris smiled as he asked back, "Who did you think the materials you borrowed today were researching?"
Coulson's throat went dry. "…The Thunder God?"
"Mm-hm."
Fenris nodded. "A divine artifact chooses its master. Isn't it normal that you can't lift it?"
"That explains it…"
Coulson suddenly understood. "It may not be scientific, but it really is reasonable."
No wonder even the top scientists S.H.I.E.L.D. had gathered had made no progress so far. It turned out this was not something that belonged to their system in the first place.
"But if Thor's hammer is here, then where is Thor himself?" Coulson asked in confusion.
"He should be here soon enough."
Fenris smiled cheerfully, then suddenly felt someone tug at the hem of his clothes. "Wanda, what is it?"
Behind Fenris, Wanda was staring fixedly at Mjolnir.
A moment later, she finally slowly restrained the scarlet light in the depths of her eyes. "I can sense its emotions…"
"It's waiting for someone."
"Oh?"
Fenris narrowed his eyes and sent his perception toward Mjolnir without hesitation.
A powerful life magnetic field surged out abruptly. For a time, nearly all the detection equipment inside the base erupted with piercing alarm sounds at once.
"Energy readings are spiking! Everyone, fall back!"
Seeing this, Coulson immediately realized this was Fenris's doing and, without hesitation, ordered his men to pull back to a safe distance.
On the other side, after Mjolnir sensed a power aura completely different from Thor's, the hammer, which had originally remained motionless, suddenly began to tremble at a low frequency.
Visible to the naked eye, a powerful burst of divine power erupted from within it. The clouds in the sky seemed to respond as well, one deafening peal of thunder after another exploding overhead.
Purple lightning twisted across the sky, illuminating the gloomy earth in a wash of brightness.
"Boom!"
Thunder rang out. Without any warning, a thick bolt of lightning suddenly struck down from the sky, heading straight for Fenris.
"Interesting."
Fenris grinned and stepped sharply forward. A thin layer of black energy activated on its own. The ferocious lightning serpent was easily warped and dissolved the instant it drew near him, then vanished silently, as if it had never appeared at all.
"Let me see exactly what you're made of."
Fenris rolled up his sleeves and walked eagerly toward the hammer.
(End of Chapter)
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