There are no absolute secrets among the top brass. Especially with S.H.I.E.L.D. currently at the center of controversy and under the spotlight, everything Nick and his S.H.I.E.L.D. attempt will be analyzed. The only one who can compete with S.H.I.E.L.D. for attention during this time is Luke's Hebron.
But compared to Hebron, who used to vie for headlines with Stark, he had unexpectedly gone quiet. Even Ina Sandra, who used to appear in all the major media, was now finding it difficult to find her on the pages of any media outlet.
That's what Norman Osborn is.
Nick and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s recent actions against mutants had touched a nerve. Although the official explanation was that they were helping mutants regain a new life and had achieved corresponding results, he felt that there was something more hidden, something not as grand as the official claims.
As a veteran tycoon, he might not be as good as Stark and Heberon in terms of technology, but he was no slouch in networking. Even though there were many new faces in the upper echelons, it didn't faze him.
The closed nature of S.H.I.E.L.D. meant that Norman had fewer channels to get information, and it also caused him a lot of trouble. But after wasting a lot of time and favors, he still got some information that was hard to tell whether it was true or not.
First up is Doctor Octopus Otto.
When Norman saw the name, he was momentarily dazed. After all, Osborn had been one of Dr. Otto's financial backers in the past. The only unfortunate thing was that a major incident occurred during the experimental verification of the other party's technology. Then, those two shrewd women manipulated the media and spread the news to everyone.
In particular, Dr. Otto's overly stubborn character also made Norman and others have a bad impression of him.
Occasionally, Norman could see some information about the other party in some newspapers in the big city. Most of them were about which bank branch the other party had robbed, or a battle with a city guardian spider, how many public facilities were damaged in the process, how many people were injured, and so on.
He originally thought that that was all about Dr. Otto, but he didn't expect that he would reappear under his nose in another form, making him remember him again.
Especially this time, the other party has reunited with the mutants.
Norman discovered the key point. That is the mutant!
Whether it was S.H.I.E.L.D., Stark, or Dr. Otto, the ones who connected them were all mutants! This inevitably aroused Norman's interest.
The Mutant Plague, with hundreds of thousands of people in the metropolis infected with a mechanical virus, had already spread across the globe. Even if the authorities had desperately suppressed the news, the metropolis wasn't some small village; how could they have suppressed it? As far as Norman knew, when the Mutants first appeared, many major corporations had conducted some form of research on them, both legally and illegally.
So, has SHIELD suddenly increased their attention on mutants? Is it because they discovered something? Or is there something unknown about mutants?
Should Osborn Industries respond to the captain's call earlier and give those poor mutants a job to survive? At least some of them were elites before they were infected.
Norman decided to take the gamble.
Even though everything was still unclear, Norman was not a man who lacked decisiveness. He knew very well that people of their class could earn a lot of money and possess a lot of resources. Was it because they were so smart that no one could compare?
Not really. Many of those in charge are at best average. But they have access to more information than the average person! All of a person's decisions and judgments are largely based on the information at hand.
Soon, Osborn sent invitations to some mutants, and without anyone's expectation, they joined the battle for talent. Osborn's joining also attracted more attention.
…
The basement of a villa.
In the dim and empty space, there was only a long table and nine chairs, on which sat several men and women.
"Why are we calling a meeting? Has something major happened recently that requires cooperation? Or has Malik, you old man, heard another so-called message from God?"
The first person to speak was a charming, beautiful, and tall woman with big green wavy hair that fell to her waist. Her slender fingers were bent and tapping lightly on the long table beside her.
"I heard that you haven't been doing well in recent years, Ms. Sargsyan?" The old man called Malik at the head of the table smiled gently and replied softly.
Ophelia Sarkissian, the serpentine Lady of the underworld, darkened her beautiful face upon hearing this. She was not without cunning, but there was no doubt that the other party's words had deeply hurt her.
Ever since she failed to succeed in her plan to kill Hebron Luke a few years ago, she seemed to have been unlucky. First, her nest in the big city was almost uprooted, and then she was tracked down and had to use the power of black magic to escape.
She had indeed managed to escape the armed hyenas that Hybern had raised, but in their place, a group of even more formidable mages joined her pursuit. God knows what life must have been like for her during that time! A Hydra leader could only hide her identity, constantly shifting locations around the world.
When she finally finished all the preparations and thought she had fooled the mages with her substitute and was safe, she just showed up and ran into the mage who was blocking her door and waiting for her.
She was completely stunned at the time! Although the two mages didn't show any hostility towards her, the chubby mage in the lead cast a mirror space first, and then the other mage handed a stack of documents to her at the right time. The two of them smiled and asked her to quickly sign the contract.
After the two wizards left, Madame Viper breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't afraid of them, but she was afraid of attracting the entity behind them. Just when she thought everything was settled, and that as long as she didn't randomly unleash her dark magic, she would be safe as before, Heberon's hyenas appeared before her almost seamlessly. It was hard to say whether they were related to the wizards.
During this period of time, the wealth accumulated by Mrs. Viper was almost wiped out by the group of hyenas. Those people were very patient and were just eroding her strength and influence bit by bit. Now Malik was using this matter to mock her, so of course she wanted to explode.
"Don't worry about it. I hope you can live to see your God." Mrs. Viper cursed coldly.
"The longevity potion produced by Hebolun is a good thing. It should allow me to live to see the return of God! Then the whole world will belong to God and us!" Malik spoke calmly like a devout believer, but one could feel his enthusiasm.
"Tsk!" A sneer sounded in the darkness.
"Pierce, do you have any opinion on what I said?" Malik looked in the direction where the voice came from.
"No one has ever seen your God. It's more like a legend." Alexander Pierce, one of the directors of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the leader of Hydra, the group that runs S.H.I.E.L.D., lowered his head, wiped his glasses with the corner of his clothes, and answered slowly.
"How dare you doubt the existence of God? The origin of Hydra comes from the hive! And the reason why you have been able to develop to this day is also due to the unremitting support of our Malik and other families!" Malik's voice and face turned cold.
"We also give you enough rewards! We have helped you solve countless troubles, and every year we will select a group of loyal agents to participate in your so-called dedication ceremony! Because of that ceremony, we have sacrificed hundreds or even thousands of elite talents!" Pierce responded bluntly.
"They didn't sacrifice themselves! They just went to the kingdom of God and merged with God!" Malik corrected.
"Whatever you say, but this year's ceremony hasn't even started yet. Is it moving it up?" Pierce put his cleaned glasses back on his nose, straightened them, and said nonchalantly, "Even if it's a ceremony, there's no need to call us all together, right? I've been busy lately, and time is tight."
"I know! The successor you chose did a good job! He successfully brought S.H.I.E.L.D. to a new height! Even its influence is not limited to this planet. But how long do you think you can control him? Only God! Only the complete coming of God can allow us to truly control this world!" Malik, as always, brought his own God into his words.
"Do we really need a God?" another voice sounded.
"Stark, watch your words! You are being disrespectful!" Malik glared at the person who spoke angrily.
"I agree with Strucker. We don't need a god. We can be gods ourselves!" Another male voice rang out, and Malik's expression darkened even more. It was Whitehall, another Hydra leader. With the exception of Zora, whose consciousness was limited to a data-driven one, all of Hydra's leading figures had already gathered.
"This is blasphemy!" Malik snorted.
"Times have changed. When you were still holding on to the so-called God, gods had already appeared on this planet! Thor, the God of Thunder, Odin, the God King, the Asgard Protoss! The Nine Realms! The God you believe in may just be a powerful alien?" Baron Strucker shrugged his shoulders and exposed it mercilessly.
"You have betrayed the faith of Hydra!" Malik looked around at the snake heads angrily.
"What is Hydra's belief? It is to control the world and make it run according to our ideas! The Malik family is obsessed with welcoming back the so-called God. How long has it been since they opened their eyes to understand this world? Do you think what I said about us being able to become new gods is just a meaningless statement? No, we can really become gods! Just like the Asgardian gods, we can also upgrade Hydra to gods!" Whitehall's eyes were full of fanaticism.
"How are you going to become a god? With those little Inhuman toys of yours?" Malik scoffed. However, his sarcasm only earned him scornful and disdainful looks from Whitehall, Stark, and Pierce.
"It seems that your intelligence information is indeed out of date for a long time. I think it's time to update it instead of always staring at a legend. The data dimension, a dimensional world full of infinite possibilities! Its power radiates to reality! The shackles that limit the growth of our power have been completely broken. Compared to the so-called gods, I think we should seize the data dimension first! Just like we once wanted to conquer the whole world, we must fight for it with all our strength and occupy it! If we can win this time, not only this planet, but the entire Nine Realms may be under our control!" Whitehall said in an excited tone with a fanatical light in his eyes.
"The Data Dimension can help us build a powerful and loyal army of superpowers! All we need to contribute is the technology we possess! Whoever uploads more technology will gain higher permissions, more functions, and greater power within the Data Dimension! In terms of technological accumulation, how many countries can compare with Hydra? We also control a large number of scientific research companies and research talents." Baron Strucker smiled broadly. "I have already achieved some results, and two of them are particularly satisfying to me."
"SHIELD will play an indispensable and important role in this." Pierce glanced at the two of them.
Whitehall and Strack looked at each other and nodded. "Of course, none of us would deny your contribution, Pierce."
"Enough! Stop spouting nonsense." Malik, the convener of the meeting, grew increasingly infuriated by the tacit understanding displayed by the three men. He slammed the table vigorously, gazing coldly at the numerous snakeheads present. "Don't forget, at least one-third of your organization's funding comes from Malik's family and others."
"Malik, let me talk to them." A clear female voice suddenly rang out in the dark room. This unfamiliar voice instantly made everyone present alert.
"Malik, how dare you!" Madame Viper was the first to leap from her chair. Of all the people present, only her faction had suffered a significant blow, making it the weakest. This forced her to be cautious. After all, Hydra wasn't a harmonious, loving, and supportive organization.
"Don't be nervous, my children." A tall woman walked out of the darkness, as if she had been in that darkness all along.
"Who is she?" Pierce and others also frowned and prepared their own self-protection measures.
"She is God's messenger! She is the one who comes to lead Hydra onto the right path!" Malik stood up respectfully and introduced her with an enthusiastic look on his face.
"Are you being controlled, Malik?"
Seeing the fanatical expression on Malik's face and the submissiveness he showed to the strange woman, Pierce and others felt a chill in their hearts.