"Wes… may I call you that?"
Steve spoke up, his eyes filled with sincerity and expectation.
Wes Elwin turned his head toward the man who had carved his name into American history, though inwardly he couldn't help thinking that America didn't actually have much long history to begin with.
And this man—thanks to the U.S. Army's relentless propaganda—was practically treated like a saint.
"You may."
Wes didn't maintain silence this time. His answer was simple and direct.
Steve let out a small breath of relief. Willingness to communicate was, at least, a good sign.
He launched into an inspiring speech, declaring that in times of crisis, everyone needed to unite and face the threat to the world together.
Wes clapped for him, but what he said next caught everyone completely off guard.
"Nicely said. So let's start by having S.H.I.E.L.D. reveal its secrets."
A sharp glint flashed in Wes' eyes.
"???"
Nick Fury never imagined the topic would suddenly be aimed at him.
"That thing you're studying is called the Space Stone," Wes began, educating the room. "One of the most precious artifacts in the universe—and one of the most powerful weapons."
His voice was steady and forceful. Everyone heard him clearly.
"The energy fluctuations produced by your research on the Space Stone—I sensed them all the way from New York." Wes sneered. "And you really thought your secrecy was airtight? As if Earth's technology could ever block the detection methods of advanced alien civilizations? The energy pulse from the Space Stone is exactly what attracted the aliens. To them, it's a signal that Earth is preparing for war."
Wes's words detonated in the conference room like one bomb after another.
"In other words, you are the ones who brought the aliens here. You started this war. You caused the mess, can't clean it up, and now you run to others acting like you're doing it for the sake of all humanity. Don't you feel even a little shame?"
Wes fired off the entire barrage in one breath—harsh, merciless, and leaving no room for defense.
No one expected Wes to be so blunt, let alone drop information this important.
"Is… what you said true??"
Steve realized he might have been played by S.H.I.E.L.D. His eyes were wide with shock and anger.
Tony and Banner didn't look any better, their expressions sinking as they reevaluated S.H.I.E.L.D.'s actions.
"Heh~ heh~ I knew it. Not a single truthful word ever comes from a spy's mouth."
Banner stared at Natasha, disappointment written all over his face.
Tony went further—he directly hacked into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s system and found that everything Wes said was true.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research had indeed attracted the aliens.
Nick Fury felt like he was sitting on needles. The team he had painstakingly assembled hadn't even warmed their seats and was already on the verge of mutiny.
He was starting to regret provoking Wes. This man seemed to know everything, and his plans were rapidly collapsing.
"Whoa, whoa—everyone calm down."
Nick Fury tried to defuse the tension. To be fair, he reacted quickly.
"What he said isn't the whole truth. We didn't know that studying that thing—"
"The Space Stone," Wes corrected.
"Fine. The Space Stone. We didn't know studying it would cause such severe consequences," Fury argued.
"So you admit it then," Tony said coldly. "It was S.H.I.E.L.D. that brought the aliens here."
Nick Fury tried to defend S.H.I.E.L.D.
"We only wanted to use the Space Stone's power to better protect Earth. This isn't the first batch of aliens to visit the planet."
"So what…"
Faced with ironclad facts, Fury's excuses sounded weak and powerless.
Especially under Tony's relentless questioning—armed with both genius-level intellect and rhetoric—Fury nearly exposed even more secrets.
Just as Tony was about to continue pressing him, Maria Hill stepped in to save Fury.
"Director, we've located the alien."
Her voice cut sharply through the tense atmosphere.
"Where?" Fury asked instantly, as though grabbing a lifeline.
"Germany. We need to hurry—he could escape at any moment," Hill replied.
"Everyone, now is not the time to assign blame. If we don't deal with this alien, the crisis on Earth won't end!" Fury declared loudly.
But the conference room remained dead silent. No one answered.
Finally, Steve stood up. He stared at Fury solemnly and said, "You owe me an explanation."
"You'll have it," Fury replied firmly.
"I don't want to stay here another second. You people are polluting the air."
Tony stood and left, his face full of displeasure.
"I don't think you actually need me," Banner added, clearly done with the situation.
"Dr. Banner, we do need you…" Fury tried desperately to calm him.
"Heh."
Wes let out a soft laugh and walked out as well.
There was mockery in that laugh—mocking S.H.I.E.L.D.'s arrogance and blindness.
Soon, only Fury and Hill were left in the room. Their expressions were grim.
The meeting had completely failed to achieve what they intended. Instead, it had made everything more complicated.
They now had to find a way to fix the crisis quickly… or they would lose control of everyone involved.
---
Steve changed into his iconic combat uniform and boarded the jet, standing tall and resolute.
Natasha slid into the pilot's seat with practiced ease, her focus fully on the pre-flight procedures.
Tony, meanwhile, was holding a bag of snacks, looking utterly casual—as if they were going on a relaxing trip rather than facing a deadly confrontation.
Wes sat quietly in his seat, expression calm, unreadable.
The jet roared as it launched skyward, the force pushing everyone slightly back into their seats.
As they climbed higher, the scenery below shrank, the outlines of the city blurring into the distance.
"What has happened to this world?" Steve murmured, a question from deep in his soul. Confusion and bewilderment filled his eyes.
"We defeated Germany. Red Skull wanted to avoid war. So why is America now the one starting wars?"
There was anger and disappointment in Steve's voice.
"Have they learned nothing?"
He wrestled with the question, but no answer came.
"Steve," Wes said suddenly, "you need to understand—
the only lesson humanity learns from history is that humanity never learns from history."
The line hit Steve like a hammer, simple but heavy.
He wanted to argue—wanted to defend humanity's progress, their capacity for change—but the words died in his throat.
He couldn't deny it. As cruel as the statement was, it held truth.
Throughout history, humans repeated the same mistakes—war, conflict, greed, selfishness. Problems that seemed unsolvable, recurring endlessly.
Steve sank deeper into confusion.
He no longer knew whether the ideals and values he held onto still mattered.
°°°
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