Beside Heisenberg, Rumlow and Erica were equally stunned by the Skrull, Aireda.
But beyond their shock, they quickly regained their composure.
After all, with an alien like Heisenberg already in their midst, what was this ugly, weak Skrull compared to him?
So, they turned their gaze to Heisenberg, awaiting his decision.
And there he was—Heisenberg, lounging in his chair like a dried fish.
"Hmm?"
Rumlow was taken aback. How had their newly acknowledged boss ended up like this?
Could it be that Kryptonians weren't just afraid of Kryptonite, but also of the color green?
If Heisenberg could hear Rumlow's thoughts, he'd surely nod in agreement.
In this day and age, who isn't afraid of a green light appearing above their head, regardless of gender?
"Boss!"
Rumlow whispered to Heisenberg, who finally snapped out of his daze.
Heisenberg looked at the Skrull before him, exasperated, and asked,
"You look like a Skrull. How long have you been on Earth?"
"I've only been here for two days. Nick Fury considers you a threat, so he made a temporary agreement with our Skrull refugee leader, Talos."
"Oh?!"
Heisenberg nodded, then continued,
"If he made an agreement with you, why are you seeking my protection?"
"I must admit, my lord, our ally is Nick Fury, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., but S.H.I.E.L.D. no longer exists!"
As she spoke, Aireda began to describe the current state of S.H.I.E.L.D. to everyone.
...
After her explanation, Heisenberg nodded in understanding.
He turned to Rumlow and asked softly,
"You heard that, right? The situation is pretty much as I suspected. The war between S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra has fully begun."
"Right, Boss. This war will likely last for days. I think I should move quickly to complete our plan!"
With that, Rumlow decisively led Erica away.
After they left, Heisenberg turned to Aireda.
"Establishing relations with you Skrulls isn't impossible, but I've made it clear: I won't interfere in the war between S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra!"
At this, Aireda knelt down in frustration.
She knelt on one knee before Heisenberg, saying nothing.
Looking at Aireda, Heisenberg pondered for a moment.
He didn't know enough about the Marvel universe, and the Skrulls could indeed be useful allies.
The reason he refused to intervene was that he had just told Coulson he wouldn't help S.H.I.E.L.D., and he couldn't go back on his word.
So, he'd send a powerful subordinate to handle it!
"Aireda!"
Heisenberg suddenly spoke.
"I can save your people, but I need concrete proof of Nick Fury's death. Can you do that?"
As soon as he finished, Aireda understood his meaning.
She nodded rapidly and assured him,
"No problem. Nick Fury will die in full view of everyone, and we'll survive!"
"Good, but this is just the beginning. I need the real Nick Fury to appear before me. Understand?"
"Yes. Without S.H.I.E.L.D.'s power, even if Nick Fury has secret bases, he won't be able to cooperate with the Skrull Empire. We'll bring him to you!"
"Excellent!"
Heisenberg was satisfied.
Since the Skrulls were so cooperative, he wouldn't hold back.
"Where are your Skrull refugees staying now?"
"We've temporarily established a small base on the Moon."
"Hmph, that desolate Moon? Forget it.
Tell Talos, if you fulfill your end of the deal, I'll give you a thriving ecological planet of your choice.
Even if you choose Thanos's territory, I'll help you take it and provide you with protection!"
"This…!!!"
Aireda was overjoyed, but before she could smile, Heisenberg stood up from his chair.
An invisible field of bioenergy enveloped him, and Aireda, caught within it, collapsed as if struck by lightning.
She struggled to adjust her position to keep Heisenberg in sight.
Heisenberg, looking like a demon in her eyes, spoke softly.
"Thanos has the power I possess.
Thanos has the qualities I possess.
But we differ in one thing: I won't treat traitors like he does!"
Heisenberg sneered.
"Hmph, randomly wiping out half a race's population—such an act can be reversed in a few generations.
Compared to his meaningless order, I prefer to keep the best and eliminate the rest.
Everything I'm satisfied with stays; everything I'm not satisfied with goes.
Once those races are completely gone, the universe naturally gains more space.
Do you agree?"
"Yes!"
Aireda trembled as she nodded, then, under immense pressure, she crawled forward and prostrated herself before Heisenberg in submission.
Heisenberg retracted his bioenergy field and waved casually at Aireda.
"Go to the nightclub downstairs and find a woman named Jessica. Tell her it's my order, and have her escort your people back safely!"
"Yes, my lord!"
Aireda finally regained a bit of joy, but even so, she dared not face Heisenberg directly again.
She scrambled to her feet and jumped back into the nightclub through the hole she had shot in the wall.
At last, Heisenberg had some peace. He took a sip of his drink and thought about resting on his favorite recliner.
But then he remembered—his beloved recliner was gone!
He sighed dejectedly and lay down on another chair.
What to do when your favorite is gone? Cultivate a new favorite, of course.
Such a professional heartbreaker!
As soon as he lay down, his subordinates rushed in to clean up—first wiping away the blood, then repairing the ceiling.
Watching them work, Heisenberg couldn't stop thinking.
This Hydra was far more decisive than in the movies.
What was Alexander Pierce thinking?
...
As the former director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and now the leader of Hydra's American branch, Alexander Pierce was equally concerned about the Purple Man.
Heisenberg's appearance had not only sounded alarm bells for S.H.I.E.L.D. but also made Hydra deeply wary.
So…
When Pierce heard the agents in the video declare they were Hydra…
His mindset wasn't any better than Nick Fury's.
And then, John Garrett's declaration of war pushed him into a corner!
What should he do?
How should he choose?
Should he immediately rise up and launch a full-scale attack on S.H.I.E.L.D.?
Or should he side with S.H.I.E.L.D. once more, suppress John Garrett first, and then act when the time was right?
No, no, no—those weren't choices; they were outcomes.
He couldn't wait for the right moment anymore!
John Garrett, one of his most trusted subordinates, had worked with him for over thirty years.
When Pierce was still the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., he had already recruited Garrett and entrusted him with most of his elite mobile forces.
He had no way out. If he lost Garrett's forces, he'd never be able to launch a full-scale counterattack against S.H.I.E.L.D.!
Time was of the essence—he had to act!
"Dr. Zola!"
He immediately contacted Zola, now an artificial intelligence.
"Lock down all S.H.I.E.L.D. networks, revoke all their privileges, especially those linked to Nick Fury, and declare to all Hydra members: the war has begun!"
As soon as he finished, Zola hung up the call.
Moments later, Pierce's phone received a text.
It contained just one line:
"Hail Hydra!"
Closing the message, Pierce made another call.
"Sitwell!"
He said into the phone,
"Release the beast. Use any means necessary. We need chaos more than S.H.I.E.L.D. does!"
"Yes, but aside from the beast, what about Tony Stark? He's already in the fight, in Hell's Kitchen!"
"Take them all out—Captain America, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and anyone following Nick Fury's orders!"
Smash!
He slammed the phone down.
...
Sitwell, listening to the dial tone, jumped up from his seat, his face tense.
Over three hundred people in the office jumped up with him!
They had all received the text declaring the start of the war and were acting on it immediately.
"Hail Hydra!!!"
Someone shouted first, and soon the entire room, then the corridor, then the entire Triskelion, echoed with the deafening cry of "Hail Hydra!"
This was why Heisenberg favored organizations like Hydra as his subordinates.
Their unity and fanaticism were exhilarating!
Gunfire intensified, relentless and unending. Countless S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in the Triskelion died in confusion.
Meanwhile, the bald Sitwell led two strike teams toward the beast's resting place.
In less than five minutes, they arrived. Facing what seemed like an ordinary door, Sitwell was so nervous he was sweating.
"Open the door later. Use flashbangs as a feint, then lure him to the command center and out into the streets!
The rest of you, mobilize all available aerial forces and launch an assault on the White House!
The leader wants this country to descend into complete chaos. What could be more chaotic than the complete destruction of the highest administrative building?"
He waved his hand, and the team members sprang into action.
Inside the room, Bruce Banner was still reading. With nothing else to do, quiet reading was his greatest solace.
His room was like a prison cell, with no view of the outside world and no sound from even the doorway.
But he wasn't at risk of psychological issues, as the room was spacious, with a ceiling projecting a starry sky and windows that shifted through seasonal landscapes in sync with his heartbeat.
But in the next moment, the scenery vanished.
He looked around, thinking the room's projection system had malfunctioned.
Then he heard the door open.
As the door opened, he heard gunfire, his heart racing instantly.
Then, over a dozen grenade-like objects landed beside him.
In an instant…
The Hulk was unleashed!