S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters – Trident Building
After greeting the agents around her, Natasha Romanoff walked straight into the elevator.
"Natasha? Didn't Director Fury say you were on a special mission?"
Inside the elevator, Clint Barton glanced at her, a hint of curiosity in his voice. "Mission completed already? Need any help?"
Natasha opened her mouth to answer but quickly remembered the rules of the [Spoiler System] — she couldn't mention its existence to anyone who hadn't been selected by it.
So, she smiled faintly and said, "Nothing like that. I just need to discuss something with the Director."
Clint nodded, sensing her hesitation. "Alright. If you need any backup, just let me know."
"No problem."
As the elevator descended and only the two of them remained, Natasha suddenly asked, "How are Laura and Lila doing lately?"
At the mention of his wife and daughter, Clint's expression softened. "They're doing great. They really love the farm life."
"That's good to hear."
As they chatted, the elevator doors opened with a soft ding.
"I'll go report to Director Fury first!" Natasha said as she stepped out.
Just then, Phil Coulson entered the elevator.
"Morning, Clint. You're just in time — something strange happened in New Mexico. We need to check it out."
Clint raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me those werewolves in New Mexico are acting up again?"
Coulson sighed. "No, it's not them. A hammer fell from the sky two days ago…"
Inside Nick Fury's Office
When Natasha entered, Nick Fury set down the document he was reading and looked up. "You saw it too?"
Facing Fury's probing tone, Natasha sat across from him. "You mean the Spoiler System?"
Hearing her answer, Fury let out a quiet breath of relief. "Good. So it seems there's no duplicate names. By the way, Tony's on the list too."
"It's confirmed — Tony Stark has also been selected by the Spoiler System," Natasha replied. "According to the video it showed, the reason Tony's been acting strange lately is because of palladium poisoning."
She leaned back in her chair. "After leaving the viewing room, the first thing Tony wanted to do was fire me. But that's fine — I'd already completed my mission and figured out what's happening to him."
"Take a look at this," Fury said, handing her a folder. "After watching the video of that conversation between Judge Linen and Tony Stark, I asked Hill to dig into Linen's background."
"In addition, Hill has already delivered Howard Stark's old research to Tony. Hopefully, just like in the Spoiler System's video, he'll manage to create a new element to cure himself."
Natasha flipped through the file. "Linen. Nineteen years old. Sophomore at the State University of New York. Current president of the university's Paranormal Investigation Club."
"Adopted by a member of the Digital Gang at age five… gang dismantled when he was sixteen…"
Her eyes lingered on a photo — a young man with a bright, sunny smile.
If she hadn't seen the video herself, she never would have believed this cheerful-looking boy was the cold, black-robed "Judge" who had shocked the Avengers.
"Paranormal Investigation Club, huh?" Natasha mused. "Interesting. Maybe that's connected to his powers."
She chuckled softly. "College students these days… but I guess that's better than identifying as an attack helicopter or a shopping bag."
Then she paused. "Wait. If Linen is nineteen now, and in the video Tony said the same thing when trying to convince him to enjoy life… that means the Ivan Vanko incident should be happening this year."
"Exactly," Fury nodded. "I've already ordered a search for Vanko. We might find him soon. But since Tony's part of the Spoiler System, he's probably prepared."
"Our real focus now is on Linen."
He fixed his one good eye on Natasha. "You saw the video — his abilities are extremely powerful, yet he sees them as a curse he can't escape. I want to know what really happened to him."
"According to the investigation, his life up to now seems ordinary — no major trauma, no criminal record. But in the video, Linen said he's lived in a hellish environment since childhood."
Fury's tone turned serious. "Natasha, I need you to make contact with him. He's too young to wield that kind of power without guidance. I don't want to see him go down the wrong path."
He didn't mention one more thought that had been on his mind:
The world would soon need heroes again.
Captain America was about to awaken from the ice.
And perhaps… the "Judge" could become part of the new team he was forming.
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