Marvel: The Enlightened One-Chapter 76: [] - Nick Fury’s Dangerous Game and a Weakened Hawk
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Nick Fury didn’t believe he had done anything wrong.
If he hadn’t stopped that jet from taking off, if he hadn’t warned Tony Stark, a nuclear bomb would have detonated over New York City.
What would have become of the city then?
A wasteland?
A ghost town??
The Council didn’t care about any of that.
For them, it was black and white: I gave an order, and you didn’t just disobey it—you led a full-scale mutiny. The fact that everything worked out didn’t matter.
As far as the Council was concerned, merely suspending his operational authority instead of kicking him to the curb was an act of extraordinary mercy.
But Nick Fury didn’t see it that way. He had been looking for a way to get his authority back ever since.
And now, he saw his chance.
The Hulk was a member of the Avengers Initiative. Hawk brazenly killing him was a slap in the face to S.H.I.E.L.D, and by extension, a slap in the face to the Council.
The Council might not care about it now.
But that was only because the situation hadn’t escalated. If it did, who would they back? The pragmatic Commander Hill, who advocated for peaceful contact, or him, the man who insisted on strict control?
The answer was obvious.
As for who could escalate the situation for him, Fury already had the perfect candidate in mind, now that he knew Hawk was likely the same man who had caused the lockdown at Quantico.
Thaddeus Ross.
He was a dangerous man with powerful connections. Any other general would have been sidelined for good after the fiasco in New York with the Hulk and the Abomination.
But General Ross? He’d not only been unaffected, he’d arguably come out of it with a promotion.
It was basic political reality. The military-industrial complex had its champions, and Ross was one of their top generals. He was a complete hawk in the Republican party—a man who believed every problem could be solved by throwing enough firepower at it.
There was a quote from an old war anime that fit him perfectly:
Gentlemen, I love war!!
That line could have been tailor-made for General Ross. Others might be afraid to escalate a situation, but General Ross would relish the opportunity.
...
Soon, the call connected.
"Fury, I’m in the middle of—"
"The man who attacked your military base. Interested in making a deal?"
"..."
General Ross, who had been standing guard at home to prevent his daughter from sneaking out, froze. His expression turned grim. "YOU FOUND HIM?"
"We did. Interested?"
"...Your terms."
Ross was no fool. He wasn’t about to agree to anything blindly.
Nick Fury leaned back in his office chair, his one good eye glinting with a deceptively simple cunning. "My operational authority has been suspended."
General Ross laughed. Of course he knew—it didn’t surprise him one bit. If this had been one of his soldiers, any subordinate who not only ignored orders but actively fought against them would’ve been dragged out and executed.
"Sorry, Fury—"
"He also killed the Hulk. Just this morning."
"...Wait."
General Ross, who had been about to mock Fury for his weak bargaining chip, froze.
The smile vanished from his face. "WHAT?"
"You heard me. The Hulk is dead. He killed the Hulk."
"..."
Fury could hear the change in Ross’s breathing over the line. The General was hooked. "Help me get my authority reinstated, and I’ll give you the killer’s identity. We’ll run a joint operation. When we catch him, he’ll be under our combined supervision, just like the Abomination. How does that sound?"
General Ross alone wasn’t enough to get his authority back. But the people backing Ross were. For them, it was a simple matter of making a phone call.
And it was a good deal for him, too.
Joint supervision. After the capture, Ross could run his studies, and S.H.I.E.L.D. could run theirs.
General Ross’s mind was racing as he processed the terms.
Absorbs gamma radiation.
Kills the Hulk.
If this information was true, it meant only one thing.
The attacker from Quantico was stronger than the Hulk, and far more in control of his power. He wasn’t some mindless beast like Bruce Banner became.
And if they could capture him, study him...
Then...
The more Ross thought about it, the more excited he became. But with that excitement came a cold, calculated caution.
"His name."
"No, no, no." Nick Fury laughed. "That’s not how a deal works. Reinstate my authority, and then we can have our joint operation."
General Ross snorted.
"Does Maria Hill know about this?"
"She does."
"Then why don’t I just work with her?"
"Because you won’t."
Nick Fury wasn’t worried in the slightest. "You and Maria Hill don’t see eye to eye."
Ross was silent. He knew Fury was right.
After a long moment, he said, "I need to think about it."
"Be my guest. But I’d make it quick. We don’t have much time before Maria Hill decides to make contact."
"Give me thirty minutes."
With that, General Ross hung up. He closed his eyes, his mind working at lightning speed.
Nick Fury listened to the dial tone, then hung up with a smile.
Ross would agree. He had no doubt.
But—
Never put all your hopes on one horse...
Nick Fury’s eye once again gleamed with that strange, cunning light. His mind raced, and then an idea struck him. He opened his computer and pulled up Gwen Stacy’s file.
He stared at the photograph of Gwen on the screen, and the glint in his eye became darker... and far more reckless.
...
Meanwhile, Gwen had just helped Hawk back to his apartment in Queensbridge Park.
Thump.
After settling the weakened Hawk onto the sofa, Gwen straightened up, grimacing as she pressed her fist against her lower back.
Leaning back on the sofa, Hawk saw this and couldn’t help but chuckle.
Gwen, who had been stretching, her back still to him, froze.
"..." The laugh had been a little too strong, a little too full of energy...
She slowly turned around, her back still to him, and her suspicious gaze fell on Hawk—who, despite his supposedly weakened state, now had a healthy color back in his cheeks.
Gwen’s expression became strange, and a little dangerous. "Hawk?"
Hawk cleared his throat, his voice suddenly becoming weak again. "Cough... cough, cough, what’s wrong?"
Gwen’s eyebrow shot up. Her voice rose several octaves. "HAWK!"
It was the tone she used when she was serious. The one that meant she was about to call him out on his bullshit.
"You’re fine now, aren’t you? You’re just pretending!"
"No, it wasn’t me, I didn’t do it, don’t talk nonsense."
Hawk’s denials were immediate and reflexive.
Gwen smiled.
The next second, she spun around and marched toward the door. Without a moment’s hesitation.
Shit. I overplayed it.
Leaning on the sofa, Hawk cursed internally. His figure blurred, vanishing from the sofa and reappearing in front of the apartment door, blocking her path.
Gwen stopped, stunned, then looked up at him. "Move."
"No."
He might not be a master of emotional intelligence, but he knew when to stand his ground. If he let her walk out that door now, he’d be in the doghouse for weeks.
Gwen’s face tightened with cold fury. "Do you think it’s funny to lie to me, Hawk?"
"No, it’s not. I’m sorry. I was wrong."
Hawk admitted his mistake without hesitation, then added, "But I wasn’t really lying. I really was weak when we were driving back."
It was the truth. When he’d first gotten out of the lake, another Chitauri soldier probably could have been enough to knock him into his rebirth cycle.
Hawk looked at Gwen. "But I fell asleep in the car and recovered a bit. I was going to tell you, but... seeing you so worried about me, helping me upstairs... I was happy. So..."
Listening to his explanation, the frost on Gwen’s face slowly began to thaw. She glanced at him. "So what??"
"I didn’t want you to let go of me," Hawk said it with a dead-serious expression.
Hearing his reason, the last of the anger on Gwen’s face melted away, replaced by a faint blush.
Then, as if remembering something, she rolled her eyes at him.
"Idiot..."
"I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lied to you."
"So, are you still weak now?"
"Not wea—"
"Hm?"
"Weak? Yes, weak!"
Hawk watched her expression, found the correct answer, and nodded emphatically, his voice becoming frail once more.
Gwen had to fight back a smile. She kept her face straight, rolled her eyes again at the "weakened" man before her, and stepped forward, taking his arm as if he were about to collapse.
"If you’re so weak, you should be in bed. Come on, I’ll help you."
"Okay."
"Careful. Take your shoes off."
"Gwen."
"Yeah?"
"Can you lie down with me for a bit?"
"What?"
"Just for a bit. You know... I’m really weak right now."
"Just for a bit?"
"Yeah."
"...Alright."
"Wait, what are you do—"
"Aah!"
"..."
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