Chapter 22: Nick Fury's Dilemma

If Nick Fury had known in advance that the man and woman possessed superpowers, he would never have let Tony recklessly charge into the Umbrella Corporation's headquarters.

In fact, he likely would have tried to recruit this superpowered couple instead.

After all, Fury's Avengers Initiative, something he'd been carefully planning for over a decade, required precisely these kinds of extraordinary talents.

Unfortunately, after Tony's fiery battle with them, any recruitment efforts seemed unlikely to succeed now.

The bigger issue was that Tony lost the fight, which put Fury in a very difficult position.

Even so, Fury remained hopeful. He thought this was just a minor misunderstanding, and as long as he could "convince" the superpowered couple to "mend their ways," S.H.I.E.L.D. would still welcome them.

Sure, the couple might have some shady history—selling illegal weapons and using nuclear technology without authorization—but to S.H.I.E.L.D., these were minor offenses.

After all, Black Widow's past wasn’t spotless either. She came from the Red Room and had carried out who knows how many assassinations, yet she was still welcomed into S.H.I.E.L.D.

Fury tapped his desk, looking at Hawkeye and Black Widow seated before him, and said,
"Let's put the couple aside for now. What do you think about the Umbrella Corporation's nuclear weapons? Where do you think they came from?

"I’ve already had the supply chains of the world’s uranium mines investigated. It’s confirmed that Umbrella hasn’t secretly purchased uranium ore.

"As for highly enriched uranium, there’s no record of any being leaked from the major nations either."

Hawkeye and Black Widow both frowned and fell silent at the question.

After a long pause, Black Widow finally broke the silence. "I suspect that Umbrella’s advanced weapons and nuclear arms might be the result of some kind of superpower."

Hearing this shocking hypothesis, Fury furrowed his brow deeply.

"Natasha, do you have any basis for this? What kind of superpower could manufacture nuclear weapons?"

Black Widow took a moment to recall and then explained, "A few months ago, when I infiltrated Umbrella Corporation, I found that their surface-level munitions factories could at most produce light weapons.

"No matter how hard I searched, I couldn’t find any clues about the origins of their heavy weapons. So I’m boldly guessing that Umbrella’s boss has some sort of superpower that allows him to create weapons."

One had to admit that Black Widow, as a top-tier spy, could deduce so much from just a few clues about Umbrella’s weapons.

After hearing her explanation, Fury’s interest in Carl grew even stronger.

That woman code-named "Scarlet Witch" might have mysterious powers, making her nearly unstoppable for now, but compared to Captain Marvel back in the day, she was nothing.

After all, Danvers could traverse the void of space with her bare body, punch through spaceships, and single-handedly fend off an alien fleet.

So no matter how strong the Scarlet Witch was, Fury wasn’t worried—if worse came to worst, he could always call Danvers back.

But if the man named Carl truly had the ability to manufacture advanced weaponry, even nuclear arms, then his power was far more terrifying in some ways.

After all, nuclear weapons already posed a massive headache for S.H.I.E.L.D. What if Carl could create planet-destroying cannons or interstellar weapons?

Fury gently rubbed an old pager, his ultimate trump card—a communicator for calling Captain Marvel, Danvers.

Clearly, the thought of Carl’s weapon-creating abilities left Fury deeply unsettled.

After pondering for a few seconds, Fury reassured himself that he could still control the situation. At least Carl and the Scarlet Witch didn’t seem entirely unwilling to communicate.

A trump card, after all, is meant to be played only at the most critical moment.

Fury slipped the pager back into his coat pocket and changed the subject.

"Let’s set Carl and the Scarlet Witch aside for now. What’s your take on the bald woman in the monk’s robe who appeared in the video?"

He paused, then added, "Oh, by the way, we ran her face through every global database, and there’s no trace of her anywhere."

Hawkeye, recalling the video of the mysterious sorcerer stepping out of a golden portal, felt his worldview crumbling. He chuckled bitterly and said,
"So, there are actual sorcerers in this world. A magician as mysterious as her—it’s no surprise we can’t track her down."

Black Widow raised an eyebrow and added, "If such a secretive sorcerer could be easily found by S.H.I.E.L.D., we wouldn’t have only discovered their existence now."

Fury stayed silent for a moment. Hawkeye and Black Widow’s points were valid.

But the real issue was that S.H.I.E.L.D. lacked the power to contend with these superpowered individuals or mysterious sorcerers.

"For now, all we can do is monitor the Umbrella Corporation. Clint, your primary task is to keep watch on their headquarters around the clock."

"As for Natasha, I want you to have a talk with the big green guy." Fury issued his orders to his trusted agents.

Hawkeye nodded in understanding.

But Black Widow looked puzzled. "The big green guy?"

December.

The Arctic.

The warm sunlight bathed the endless snowfields, but the area remained shrouded in piercing cold.

The Arctic, Earth’s northernmost region, spans an area of approximately 14.245 million square kilometers, almost entirely covered in glaciers.

The climate here is brutally frigid, with extreme low temperatures reaching -89.2°C and wind speeds of up to 17–18 meters per second. It is one of the coldest, stormiest, and most treacherous uninhabited regions on the planet.

Aside from scientists and thrill-seeking explorers, nearly no one dares to venture into this deadly land.

Yet half a year ago, Quicksilver Pietro had been tricked by Carl into coming to the Arctic.

Every day, he trudged through the vast, white, icy wilderness, often walking dozens of kilometers without encountering another soul.

Desolation, solitude, and freezing temperatures weren’t even the worst parts.

"The worst part is that I’ve been stuck in this godforsaken place for eight whole months!" Pietro grumbled bitterly.

Despite being wrapped in layers of heavy polar gear, he couldn’t feel the slightest warmth.

The biting wind always found its way through the gaps in his clothing.

"Damn you, Carl! I knew you couldn’t be trusted. All that talk about finding some relic from the last century in the Arctic—what a load of crap!

"You said we’d uncover the secrets of the world’s first superhero and crack the key to the super-soldier serum.

"It’s all lies! Absolute bullshit!"

Pietro’s resentment was reaching its peak. If it weren’t for the twenty elite soldiers accompanying him, he wouldn’t have lasted this long.

After all, aside from ice and snow, the Arctic had little else—just the occasional penguin or other cold-climate creatures.