"He just activated on his own?" Agent Hill asked curiously.
"Yes, it suddenly activated by itself!" Coulson nodded.
"What's the energy level now?" Nick Fury pressed.
"It's still rising. Once I confirmed the doctor couldn't shut it down, I gave the order to evacuate!" Coulson explained.
"How long for a full evacuation?" Fury asked again.
"About thirty minutes!" Coulson replied.
"Hurry it up," Fury ordered with a grim tone.
Coulson nodded and rushed off to handle the evacuation. Hill, however, stayed at Fury's side.
"Sir, evacuation may not be useful," she reminded.
"What do you expect us to do, go home and sleep?" Fury shot back.
"No, I mean if we can't control the Tesseract's energy, no matter where we go, it won't matter."
"Then make sure the prototype from Phase Two is transferred safely," Fury said, ignoring her concern.
"Sir, should that really be our priority right now?" Hill frowned.
Fury stopped and looked at her seriously.
"Unless the world is ending, we still need to carry on as usual. Count the equipment and get it all moved out!"
"Yes, sir!" Hill stiffened at his serious tone.
"Doctor, what's going on? Tell me exactly." Fury entered the lab and questioned a middle-aged man.
"The cube is being… temperamental!" Dr. Selvig hurried over.
"Is this the time for jokes?" Fury's face darkened.
"This isn't a joke. The Tesseract isn't just active, it's… acting on its own!"
"Did you try unplugging it?" Fury asked.
"It is an energy source itself. Even if we cut the power, it restarts on its own. Once it reaches its peak…"
"It will start drawing energy from the universe. Isn't that what we wanted?"
"But we aren't ready yet! I still need time for calculations!" Selvig argued.
"Fine," Fury muttered with a heavy expression.
"Where's Agent Barton?"
"Hawkeye? Still perched in his nest," Selvig pointed upstairs.
At that moment, Hawkeye leapt down, landing in front of Fury.
"Barton, I told you to keep an eye on Selvig," Fury said.
"The higher the perch, the better the view," Hawkeye smirked.
"Did you see what activated the Tesseract?" Fury asked.
"No one entered, no contact, no signals. The doctor is clean," Hawkeye replied. "If something went wrong, it didn't come from our side."
"Our side?" Fury narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah. The Tesseract is a door to the other side of the universe, right? If we didn't open it here, then someone opened it from the other side."
As he finished, a surge of energy burst out from the Tesseract. A loud hum filled the air as a pillar of energy shot upward, forming a massive portal.
The portal flickered, then quickly collapsed. But a wave of energy blasted outward, nearly knocking everyone off their feet.
When the energy faded, a man holding a scepter appeared.
It was Loki.
"Sir, put down the scepter or things will get messy," Fury warned.
Loki froze briefly, then raised the scepter and fired a beam of energy directly at Fury.
At the last second, Hawkeye shoved Fury aside, saving him from certain death.
But Loki appeared in front of Hawkeye instantly and yanked him close. "You are different," he said darkly, pressing the scepter against Hawkeye's chest.
Hawkeye's eyes changed color, his anger gone. He lowered his weapon, clearly under Loki's control.
Seeing this, Fury grabbed the Tesseract and locked it inside a suitcase, preparing to escape.
"Put the case down. I need it," Loki said coldly, pointing the scepter at him.
"No need to make this so tense," Fury replied calmly.
"Oh, it's necessary. I came a long way for this. I am Loki of Asgard, carrying a mission greater than you can imagine."
"Loki? You're Thor's brother?" Selvig exclaimed in shock.
"We have no quarrel with you," Fury said sternly.
"Ants have no quarrel with your shoes either," Loki sneered.
"So you're planning to crush us?" Fury's face darkened.
"On the contrary, I bring good news. I can give you a world free of burden."
"Burden?" Selvig frowned.
"Freedom. Freedom is life's greatest lie. Accept it, and you'll find true peace." Loki pressed the scepter against Selvig, enslaving him as well.
Fury glanced at the unstable portal overhead. "Speaking of peace, I can only think of its opposite…"
"Boss, he's stalling. The energy core is about to blow. We'll be buried under hundreds of meters of rubble!" Hawkeye warned.
"Like an Egyptian pyramid," Fury muttered grimly.
"Two minutes until collapse!" Selvig shouted in panic.
"Then let's begin," Loki ordered calmly.
Hawkeye immediately fired a shot at Fury, hitting him before he could react. Fury collapsed to the ground.
Loki grabbed the case and left with Hawkeye and Selvig.
Soon after, Hill crossed paths with them. She didn't recognize Loki, but seeing Barton and Selvig with him, she didn't stop them.
"Who's that?" she asked.
"Sorry, the Director didn't want me to tell you," Hawkeye said flatly.
Before Hill could make sense of it, her comm crackled.
"Hill, did you hear me? Barton has betrayed us!"
Startled, Hill dove behind cover just as Hawkeye opened fire on her. Gunfire erupted violently.
Unable to stop him alone, Hill watched as Hawkeye drove off with Loki and Selvig. She quickly gave chase in another vehicle.
Back in the wrecked lab, Fury groaned and dragged himself up. His body armor had saved his life. Without it, Barton's bullet would have killed him.
But the Tesseract's unstable energy was peaking, about to explode. Fury bolted for the helipad and boarded a chopper.
Moments later, the base erupted in a massive explosion.
"Damn it, follow them!" Fury barked as he spotted Loki's vehicle.
Before his pilot could react, a beam from Loki's scepter blasted their chopper. It spun out of control.
"Stupid humans. Do you really think you can stop me?" Loki mocked as he sped away.
"Damn it!" Fury cursed, leaping out before the chopper crashed. He survived by rolling across the ground, but his pilot was killed instantly, consumed in fire.
Fury's expression darkened as he saw his comrade's body. Then Coulson's voice came through his comm.
"Sir, are you alright?"
"I'm alive, but the Tesseract has been stolen. We have casualties. Hill, report!"
"Many are trapped under the rubble. We need reinforcements!" Hill replied, grief heavy in her voice.
"Damn it. Gather everyone for rescue. Coulson, get back to HQ. Issue a global manhunt. A new war has begun," Fury growled.
"Understood!" Coulson said firmly.
While SHIELD scrambled for survivors, two small figures descended from the sky.
It was Laffey and Nimf.
"Gulp… we're late?" Laffey sipped her wine, looking at the destroyed base.
"Looks like it," Nimf nodded.
"Ladies, you're just in time! Many are buried under the rubble. Please, help us!" Hill's face lit up with hope.
She knew the power of the Life Church and had seen the strength of these two girls before.
"If you hadn't asked, we'd still help. Our Lord is merciful," Laffey nodded.
"Effie sent us here to investigate. Since it's urgent, we'll act," Nimf agreed.
Hill's heart filled with gratitude. She had once been wary of the Life Church, but time and again, they had fought at the front lines to protect humanity. Slowly, her distrust had turned to respect.
"Thank you!" Hill said sincerely.
"Step back. I'll lift the rubble," Laffey said.
"You'll… lift it?" Hill was stunned.
But Laffey raised her hands and shouted, "Deadly Thorns, rise!"
Vines erupted from the ground, massive roots lifting the collapsed base as if it weighed nothing. Smaller vines extended, gently pulling survivors free.
What would have taken hours of manpower was solved in minutes.
Hill stood dumbfounded, once again realizing the true power of the Roland family.
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