Although the damage caused by the dragon-shaped aircraft to the energy shield looked frightening, with the cooperation of the warriors from the various tribes, it was dangerous but without major incident.
However, after the Chitauri soldiers failed to force their way through and switched to using their energy weapons, the energy supply surged as if it had hit a high-voltage line.
"Okoye, get the guard to form ranks. We need to open a gap to stabilize the energy shield!"
The old king gave the order.
Five minutes later, a gap about two meters wide opened in the energy shield. Immediately, the Chitauri soldiers, like sharks smelling blood, swarmed toward the opening.
The king's guard, already prepared, blocked the gap. Their spears transformed into high-density energy weapons, unleashing volley after volley into the breach.
Blue energy beams densely shot toward the gap, and the approaching Chitauri soldiers fell in waves.
From the air, the scene was both awe-inspiring and oddly satisfying, like watching a tower defense game.
It was through this gap that, a few minutes later, Dr. Banner discovered the whereabouts of the Tesseract.
Hawkeye shook his head, which was throbbing with pain. Fragmented memories of being controlled surged through his mind, but he couldn't piece together a complete recollection.
His head hurt more and more. Hawkeye instinctively wanted to clutch his head, only to realize his hands were tightly bound to his body, rendering him immobile!
"Ahhh!!!"
Hawkeye let out a painful scream, veins bulging, and finally opened his eyes.
Two Black women dressed in strange red outfits stood beside him, holding spears, watching him from either side.
Hawkeye himself was tied up, lying on the grass.
The old king sat in a folding chair brought by Okoye, with Okoye and Black Panther standing behind him, curiously watching the now-awake Hawkeye.
"Awake? Now that you're up, explain what's going on with these aliens," the old king asked calmly.
Even though his memories of being controlled were fragmented, Hawkeye could still piece together what had happened.
"I didn't expect there would really be an army. It's an alien civilization—the Chitauri. They've come to Earth because…"
At this point, there was no reason to hide anything, so Hawkeye told the old king everything about S.H.I.E.L.D., the Tesseract, and Loki.
"I need to make a call. There's no way to close that portal by conventional means, and who knows what else might come through. I have to make a call!"
Hawkeye struggled to sit up as he spoke.
"Make a call? To bring more of your alien friends to Earth?"
Okoye said coldly.
She and Black Panther had led a team to try and shut down the Tesseract earlier, but failed. Two of her people died during the mission, so she had no patience left for Hawkeye.
The old king said nothing and looked toward Black Panther.
"The energy levels outside the so-called Tesseract are off the charts. We currently have no way to close the wormhole in the sky. Even if we figure out a solution later, who knows how many lives will be lost in the meantime? We've already lost several warriors today!"
"I think we should consider trusting him," Black Panther said.
"I agree. While I'm not sure about his relationship with the aliens, he hasn't lied about everything—for instance, his identity as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent!"
The one speaking was Black Panther's younger sister, Shuri, who was only about thirteen or fourteen at the time. Despite her young age, she already possessed an unparalleled scientific genius.
Within Wakanda, they believed Shuri was the world's most brilliant scientist, not the much-rumored Tony Stark from the outside world.
"Shuri, when did you get here?" the old king asked in surprise, though there was no hint of reprimand. His daughter had always been very independent.
"Just when he was telling those stories," Shuri said, holding a tablet that displayed Hawkeye's personal file from S.H.I.E.L.D.
"I just took a little tour of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s database," Shuri added, showing the tablet to her father, while noticing Hawkeye's astonished expression.
She smiled at Hawkeye and said, "Actually, your firewalls are pretty good—just not good enough to stop me!"
Shuri had pulled up not only Hawkeye's file, but also information on the Tesseract and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s project concerning it. Cross-referencing this with what Hawkeye had said, they were able to confirm that his story was mostly true.
"You can make your call, but for safety's sake, please cooperate for now and stay within our sight. Also, your equipment won't be returned to you just yet," Black Panther said as he squatted in front of Hawkeye, holding a phone.
He casually untied the ropes binding Hawkeye.
"Thank you! But I probably don't need to make that call anymore… because they're already here," Hawkeye said softly, looking into the distance.
"S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Black Panther asked, standing up.
"No, the Avengers," Hawkeye replied, his gaze fixed on two small black dots in the sky.
The two tiny dots, just barely visible to Black Panther, began approaching rapidly. In no time, a red figure and a black figure streaked across the sky, passing through the shielded area, flying toward Black Panther, Hawkeye, and the others.
*Boom!*
Blake and Tony Stark hurtled down from the sky, landing heavily on the grass, their feet driving into the ground with the force of their descent.
*Swish!*
The king's guard immediately raised their weapons toward the two newcomers.
The old king waved his hand, signaling the guards to lower their weapons.
"Blake, Tony Stark, I didn't expect that in one day, Wakanda would face an alien invasion and also be visited by two superheroes!" the king said.
"Hello! You must be the honorable King of Wakanda," Tony said. "First of all, we don't really consider ourselves superheroes. And secondly, we're not the only ones who've come!"
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