"???"
Three question marks seemed to float above Daniel's head.
What the heck?
Nick Fury betrayed S.H.I.E.L.D.?
Daniel suspected he had misheard and couldn't help but press, "What did you just say?"
Coulson's tone was exceptionally serious: "It's true, Director Fury has betrayed S.H.I.E.L.D. I guarantee the information is absolutely accurate."
"The Director actually betrayed S.H.I.E.L.D.? No, what does he even gain from that?"
Daniel felt an extreme sense of absurdity.
This was practically the S.H.I.E.L.D. version of "Why is the Emperor staging a rebellion?"
Could it be that Nick Fury finally discovered that I'm a Hydra double agent, and that's why he betrayed our great S.H.I.E.L.D. (Serpent-Shield) organization?
"I can't explain the details over the phone. I need you to come immediately," Coulson said urgently.
[NPC Coulson has issued you a new mission]
[Mission: The Reason for Nick Fury's Betrayal]
[Objective: Rendezvous with Coulson as soon as possible to understand the reason for Nick Fury's betrayal]
[Reward: Experience +500, S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation +10, Random Item *1]
[Player has triggered a Main Storyline Mission!]
[The next mission will unlock after the prerequisite mission is completed!]
Daniel hadn't expected the first person to assign him a mission upon his return to be Coulson.
And it was a Main Storyline Mission, which he hadn't seen in ages!
The last Main Storyline Mission was when he saved Tony, and none had appeared since then.
Daniel couldn't help but exclaim, "Village Chief, I knew I was right about you. You really have the potential to be a Director!"
Coulson: "?"
Based on the coordinates provided by Coulson, Daniel took a S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet and arrived in American airspace.
Before he even neared his destination, the air ahead suddenly warped, rippling like water, before a massive object slowly materialized.
This was the special S.H.I.E.L.D. division Daniel had heard about, a strategic piece of S.H.I.E.L.D. equipment: a Helicarrier with air, land, and sea capabilities.
The Quinjet slowly landed on the deck. As Daniel walked out of the hatch, he saw Coulson already waiting for him.
Coulson's expression was grave. He hurried over and immediately handed Daniel a file marked "Top Secret."
"The situation is complicated. Read this file first."
Ordinarily, when faced with a situation requiring him to read through extensive background information, Daniel would likely choose to skip the cutscene.
But this time was different.
After all, this was about Nick Fury betraying S.H.I.E.L.D.
Such major drama had genuinely piqued his curiosity.
Daniel took the file and began flipping through it.
It was a detailed dossier on 'Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S.,' the core of which was the study of a mysterious object called the 'Tesseract.' According to the document, the Tesseract was not of Earth origin but came from an alien civilization, and was rumored to possess infinite energy.
The file mentioned that the Tesseract was first discovered and studied by the Hydra organization.
Red Skull, Hydra's former leader, had attempted to use its energy to create a superweapon to dominate the world, but was unfortunately stopped by the evil Steve and plunged with the Tesseract into the Arctic Ocean.
It wasn't until the 20th century, when Tony's father salvaged it, that it was brought back into the world.
"The Director's betrayal has something to do with this Tesseract?" Daniel asked curiously.
Coulson nodded heavily: "Just yesterday, the Joint Dark Energy Mission (J.D.E.M.) Facility, which was researching the Tesseract, was attacked. The attacker was Loki, whom we encountered in New Mexico."
Loki?
Daniel was a little surprised.
Didn't my little brother escape from the Asgardian dungeon a few days ago? Why is he suddenly on Earth?
"You can take a look at this video for specifics."
Saying this, Coulson handed him an electronic tablet, which was playing a video.
In a laboratory, the Tesseract suddenly activated on its own, shooting out a beam of energy that condensed into a spatial portal. A dark figure walked out of it.
"Is that Loki?"
It took Daniel a while to recognize the figure as Loki.
But what's with his skin color? It looks like he got a tan, seeming several shades darker than Nick Fury.
The black-skinned Loki was seen holding a scepter that glowed with blue light. He attacked the personnel in the lab. Hawkeye—Mihawk, no, Clint Barton—the strongest fighter there, immediately moved to stop the black Loki.
But Clint forgot he was an ADC (Attack Damage Carry) and immediately lost to Loki the Assassin in close combat.
After defeating Clint, Loki touched him and Dr. Selvig (whom Daniel had met before) on the chest with the scepter. Both men then stood emotionlessly beside Loki, like controlled puppets.
Daniel was very familiar with this sight; it was identical to the scenes where Kilgrave controlled people with his ability.
Could Loki be a 'Trainer' too?
Afterward, Loki ordered Clint to attack Nick Fury. Clint immediately shot and wounded Fury in the leg, then rushed forward and punched Fury a dozen times. If Loki hadn't intervened in time, Fury would have been beaten to a pulp.
It was hard to tell if this was personal, but perhaps Clint was taking revenge for Nick Fury revoking his vacation and forcing him to come back to work overtime.
Next, Loki used the same method to control Nick Fury. Fury immediately limped along behind him, becoming one of Loki's loyal henchmen.
At this point, Loki's 'Starter Trio' was basically assembled, though the lineup was somewhat less impressive than Kilgrave's.
"So the Director was controlled by Loki, and that's why he betrayed S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
Daniel finally understood why the warning was a Level 8 incident.
The Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. being controlled by an enemy—who knows how much top-secret information could be revealed? The thought was terrifying.
[Mission 'The Reason for Nick Fury's Betrayal' completion settled!]
[Reward received: 500 Experience, 10 S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation, Item 'Speed Mushroom']
[Item: Speed Mushroom (Use on a vehicle to provide a one-time speed boost)]
With the truth revealed, Daniel's mission was complete.
"That seems to be the case."
Coulson nodded, speaking gravely: "They disappeared afterward. We're still investigating, but the Director activated the 'Avengers Initiative' at the very last moment."
"This is a plan the Director personally formulated to assemble an emergency response team made up of individuals with special abilities. The goal is to protect the Earth from global threats that cannot be solved with conventional weapons or that exceed the capacity of conventional military operations."
As he spoke, Coulson handed over another file and led Daniel toward the Helicarrier's command center.
Daniel took the file and saw that the members of the Avengers Initiative were all people he knew, including Tony Stark.
What ability does Tony Stark have? Cash-ability?
However, Daniel noticed that he himself was not on the list for the Avengers Initiative.
He looked at Coulson with an unfriendly expression. "Why am I not on this list? Am I more useless than someone who plays with a bow and arrow?"
Clint: "..."
Coulson hesitated. "Uh, perhaps the Director had his own thoughts and reasons."
In truth, Nick Fury found Daniel harder to control than the Hulk.
If Daniel became an Avenger, he might cause even bigger problems, turning them into the Destroyers instead of the Avengers.
But in Daniel's eyes, he had just been rejected by the Avengers.
Even a guy with a bow could get in, but he couldn't? That was disrespectful!
Clint: "..."
Daniel nodded. "Alright, I fully understand now."
Coulson breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you understand."
Daniel pulled out his two Golden Desert Eagles and said expressionlessly, "So my current mission is to save the Earth by taking down the evil Nick Fury, right?"
Coulson: "..."
Wait, what exactly did you understand?