Chapter 138
I settled down in Fury's chair with a loud sigh, and I was tempted to throw my leg over his table, but I could tell from screening his mind on the surface level that his kiddie-friendly view of me was gone.
My new appearance unnerved him, especially the purple eyes.
He was reviewing the fight he recorded of Isha and me in his head again and again, concerned about the fallout of my exposure to the world.
"Funny thing happened when I turned on the news today," I said to Fury. "The government released an official statement, outing the Inferno Knight as a contractor called in to deal with the Demon threat. Apparently, I was instrumental in stopping the attack on New York, but the pressure of the day finally got to me at Culver's college, and my 'decisions,' led to three bombs going off."
"It is what happened," Fury said, deadpan. "The world was eager to know, and we couldn't stay silent forever."
"I'm not sure what's more surprising," I said, "the fact that you admitted Demons are real or that you admitted that I was only a 'contractor.'"
Fury poured himself a glass of Whiskey and took a sip. "If I recalled, it was you who wanted that deal. If you'd been an official member of SHIELD…"
"You would've still left me out to dry," I said offhandedly. "You needed a scapegoat and I had made those calls in the heat of the moment."
"SHIELD leaves no man behind," Fury corrected with a stern look, and I could tell that on the surface, he believed that, but deep down, he knew that wasn't always true.
"That video didn't help either," he said, and I huffed. "The public was desperate, we needed to tell them something."
"You could've remained quiet about my involvement, you know? Retain plausible deniability. Blame the actual bombing on Domina."
"And risk provoking a trigger-happy enemy? We also couldn't very well let the public in on the inner-workings of SHIELD. You were the only player left on the board."
He said Player, but I knew he meant pawn.
"Still, I can't help but feel like I'm walking away with the short end of the deal," I said. "My identity is shot. I've not even debuted as a hero and any idiot with a laptop can piece together my secret identity. You fucked me over, and I'm guessing you called me in here not to apologize. You have another mission for me, don't you?"
Fury sighed and took a long swig. "I'll admit, we could've handled things better, but the world council had their minds set, and after a lengthy discussion, they've agreed to revamp your contract. Tripple your fees on every mission you currently deal with, increased security access, and priority on all gear and equipment you might need for missions."
I shook my head. "I'll take the money, but it doesn't fix my problem. I need to be able to live my life without people hounding me every waking moment. I want a new identity, and I've picked out the perfect name. I'll send you the details when the time is right," I said, crossing my legs and leaning into my chair. "So, I'm guessing you called me here to do something about Banner?"
Fury nodded. "In Jean's report, she said he underwent a dramatic transformation, but she's still confident that his mind is still intact and that he will regain control with enough time."
"It's not going to be easy subduing him," I said. "As dangerous as you think I am, he's a hundred times worse."
Fury's eyes widened slightly at that, and I could hear his mind work. He wondered why I'd willingly give up information about the Hulk after I worked this hard to ensure his creation in the first place. He was always of the opinion that I wanted to control him. He considered that maybe he'd underestimated me and my plans ran deeper and longer then he'd predicted.
"Another vision?" Fury asked.
"You could say that."
"Regardless, we need all the help we can get and Betty Ross is ready to raise Hell if we don't get her boyfriend back."
"I'll get on it, but the operation won't be simple. I'll more than likely have to take him down. Some reconnaissance beforehand would be very nice."
"I'll send some agents down there with a prototype jet we've been working on. If Banner is still there, we will find him." Fury said, taking another swig of his glass.
"Just keep your distance," I warned. "He's a lot more dangerous than you think he looks."
I watched Fury debate offering me a glass before broaching the next topic.
"Domina," he simply said.
"What about Domina?" I asked, folding my arms.
"What are your plans for her?"
"I can't take her in a straight fight if that's what you're asking, but I'm working on a few leads that could be effective, but they're not cheap."
"Don't keep me in suspense," he said. "Spit them out."
"We blow her up," I said flatly, causing Fury to blink at the ridiculous simplicity.
"I've seen you walk out of explosions without a scratch," he said. "Won't she just do the same thing?"
"That's always a possibility," I admitted, "but my demonic explosives are highly effective against my own kind. Get me a Hydrogen bomb, a few weeks of prep and an abandoned Island on the pacific, and I'll put her in the ground."
"Huh," Fury said. "That will take some time setting up, a shit-ton of paperwork, but it's doable," he said, "but tell me you have a back-up plan. The last time went up against her half-cocked, she almost won."
"She won't this time." I said. The destructive sphere my Nephilim Bomb created was still vivid in my mind. "Even if she somehow survives, she won't be in any condition to fight. We will put an end to this war before it can even begin."
---
I left Fury's office with Jean shortly after, and we were portalled over to McTaggert's residence, where the bulk of the former students of Xavier's institute waited outside for us. They had mountains of luggage arranged beside them, and the core members eagerly watched on as we approached.
Kitty Pryde rushed over with a beaming smile and wrapped herself around Jean. "Oh my god, it's been so long. I can't still believe it's already moving day."
"I missed you too," Jean squeezed back. "You have no idea how long I've been looking forward to this."
I huffed. "She burned through our savings setting up the mansion, and the construction couldn't have ended at a better time. New York is hell on earth right now. The police are about to have a rough six months."
"And that is why I think some of us should still stay," Scott voiced his concern.
"Bad idea. You won't last a second if the demons attack again," I said. "Believe it or not, I don't want you dead."
Scott twisted his lips. "If we can help, we should. We can't hide away in Alaska while the world needs us."
His words got nods of agreement from Bobby and the other X-Men.
"New York doesn't need our protection anymore," Jean said, "SHIELD has a mutant team now. They can handle the fallout from the fight. What we need now, Scott, is for everyone to be safe. We can't let the demons get their hand on another member of the team. Please, let this go. For me."
Scott face cycled through a myriad of emotion, the most prominent being hope. He thought there might still be something there between Jean and He.
I damn near chuckled. What a simp.
Jean shot me a side eye. Don't say that.
I shrugged. It was the truth.
"Alright, Jean," Scott finally said. "We'll follow your lead."
Logan muscled his way to the front of the line. "I'd have led the kids on without ya if you insisted on staying," he said. "Your first job as leader is to get the kids out of harms way. Fighting comes secondary."
"He's not wrong," I said, deliberately piling on Scott. "Besides, Jean and I are still around for backup. And if the situation gets really desperate, the brotherhood can step in."
"The Brotherhood!" Scott said with some disgust. "You worked with them?"
A cursory scan around the room told me that Scott was not the only one who disapproved of the union.
Well, tough shit.
"Gladly," I said. "You need to get with the program, Scott. They're on our side now, remember?"
Scott turned to Professor Hank, who adjusted his glasses before he spoke.
"We agreed on peace and cooperation. His actions are in line with that."
Scott lips wrinkled at the claim, clearly hesitant to let go of old grievances, but I was done with his drama.
"So, who's ready to see the mansion," I said, rubbing my hands together excitedly. The kids thrilled.
Beast and Logan were the first ones through the portal that Jean generated, and the kids filed in one after the other.
They ooohed and Aahed at the lavish open space. The floors were hardwood and the main floor of the mansion connected to the three stories above and the two gigantic subsections below. One was for a little project I wanted to propose to Professor Hank, and the other was a private storage room only Jean and I could access. The house was far less extravagant out front. We had a huge outdoor gym and sparring area and a short perimeter fence that would be built up when I eventually had the time to focus on security.
The house was far from complete, but the sorcerers had dropped by the previous week and installed a permanent cloaking rune that prevented ordinary people from finding our home with and without advanced equipment.
We couldn't completely hide it from the demons. As for defenses, we had nothing solid set up yet, but I had plans to buy a few automated machine guns, steal a few missile launchers, and work on alternative exit strategies that did not involve magic or teleportation.
Logan whistled when he walked through the portal, drinking it all in.
"This must've cost a fortune," he said. "Who's footing the bill."
"I just saved New York from Interdimensional Aliens, who do you think?" I lied. I didn't want to tell them that the money came from our plunder. I wasn't necessarily ashamed, just adverse to starting up more shit. I had enough to deal with as is.
"Remarkable," Professor Hank said. "It's amazing you were able to put this together so fast."
I grabbed and lightly squeezed Jean's shoulder and smiled. "You have Jean to thank for that. It was her little side project. You'll be glad to know she based the design of the old mansion."
My remark earned strange looks from everybody, but I pushed through the awkwardness.
"That means you can recreate Cerebro, your lab, and the danger room, and anything else you need. We're in it for the long haul, and I'm prepared to spare no expense insuring our future."
"Thank you…" Professor Hank said.
"Okay," I clapped. "Bed rooms are on the first and second floor, but the fourth floor is off limit."
"What's up there?" Kitty asked.
"Wouldn't you like to know," I said with a meaningful smirk.
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