As they approached the abandoned Shield base, the forest gave way to a barren clearing, with remnants of a once grand facility lying in ruin. The entrance, an old steel door rusted from years of neglect, stood slightly ajar. The group exchanged glances, each of them on edge.
"This the place?" Logan grunted, sniffing the air. "Smells like it's been dead for a long time."
Jennifer nodded. "It should be. According to what little info we've got, this base was shut down years ago after Hydra infiltrated Shield. No one's been here since. But it should be safe enough."
"'Safe enough' is never really the case," Bruce muttered, stepping forward. His eyes scanned the area with precision, his senses on high alert. "Stay sharp. This tech might be old, but that doesn't mean it's dead."
Storm and Blink remained silent, following behind as Bruce gently pushed the door further open. Inside, the base was cloaked in darkness, the air thick with dust and the smell of rusted metal. The only sound was the soft hum of their footsteps echoing off the walls.
The main corridor stretched deep into the facility, wires hanging from the ceiling like vines, and shattered monitors flickered briefly, then dimmed again as they walked past.
"This place gives me the creeps," Blink muttered, her eyes darting around.
"Let's hope it stays quiet," Jennifer added, her voice low. "We're in no condition to deal with any more surprises."
Bruce's gaze lingered on the old Shield insignia painted on the wall, chipped and faded with age. "Dormant tech doesn't stay dormant forever," he whispered, more to himself than to the others. 'Since this is Shield's base, there should be traps and robots in here. Now, with the sensors gone, who knows when they might attack and how many of them are there? Oh, this is fun!' He carefully looked around.
As they walked deeper, the air seemed to grow colder. Suddenly, a faint whirring sound came from the ceiling, and Logan's claws shot out instinctively. "What was that?"
Before Bruce could answer, a burst of light flickered overhead. A single red laser appeared on the ground, tracing their movements. His eyes narrowed.
"Everyone, stop moving," He ordered, his voice sharp.
The laser beam scanned them for a few moments, then disappeared, but the hum of machinery grew louder. Panels along the walls clicked as long-dormant systems began to power up. In an instant, metallic clanks echoed from above as several automated turrets emerged from the ceiling, rotating to lock onto their positions.
"Great," Logan snarled. "Shield tech's waking up."
Bruce's eyes flickered over the weapons, calculating their range and position. "Old defenses," he muttered. "No doubt designed to recognize Shield personnel, but we're intruders now."
The turrets clicked into place, their barrels starting to glow with the charge of energy weapons.
"Move!" Bruce shouted.
The group dove behind the remnants of old equipment just as the first volley of energy blasts erupted from the turrets, lighting up the dim hallway. Sparks flew, and the air was filled with the sound of metal being shredded. Bobby raised ice shields around the others who didn't have time to hide.
"Too powerful! I can't hold up much longer," Bobby yelled as he was continuously generating ice to fill the gaps where the energy bullets were hitting. His body was frozen in organic ice and cold smoke swept over the place.
"We have to disable them!" Jennifer yelled over the chaos, taking cover behind a console.
Bruce wanted to rush in and destroy the turrets, but Bobby in his weak condition wouldn't survive the onslaught and there were many other mutants behind the ice shield. He jumped before the ice barrier as the energy bolts kept striking him, but did no damage, instead the bolts were deflected upon impact. "Logan! Fuck them up!"
"ARGGGG!" Logan dashed in with his claws extended. Bruce watched as he slashed through one turret after another, dodging and weaving between their barrage of fire. A couple of energy bolts grazed his arms, leaving small scorch marks on his skin, but he ignored the pain and kept fighting as his regeneration kicked in.
In less than 30 seconds, Logan destroyed the nearby turrets.
"Nice work!" Jennifer shouted, standing up from her cover.
Bobby slumped to the floor, leaning back on the wall as the ice on his body began to melt. He panted heavily, his face pale and sweat beading on his forehead. "That was close! Really close..."
Bruce used his X-ray vision to look around, trying to find the control room. Once he manages to enter it, he can hack into the system and disable the rest of the turrets and security bots.
His enhanced hearing picked up the sounds of heavy footsteps coming from behind them.
"More company..." Logan growled as he turned to face the new threats, claws extended and ready. Bruce glanced over his shoulder to see a dozen robotic soldiers marching towards them, guns raised. They have Hydra's signature sign on their chest. But what caught his eye was the human walking behind them.
'Nick fucking Fury!' Bruce couldn't help but smile. He wasn't even surprised to see that Fury managed to survive all these years, and just as always, popping out of nowhere at the most unexpected times.
"Nope. More like an ally," He corrected Logan.
Logan glared at him. "Friend or not, they're Hydra robots. And we need to take them down."
Fury stepped forward, raising his hands.
Bruce raised a hand, signaling for Logan to hold off. "Wait," he said calmly. The others tensed, but they trusted Bruce enough to pause.
Nick Fury stepped out from behind the Hydra robots, his face hardened by years of battle but unmistakably familiar. The signature eyepatch still covered his left eye, and the long coat he wore flapped slightly as the Hydra robots stopped in unison behind him.
"Fury! You are alive!" Jennifer exclaimed in surprise.
The Director of Shield smirked. "Sorry to disappoint, Miss Walters, but yes. I am very much alive. Sorry for that blazing greetings earlier though, I wasn't expecting any guests today."
"Why are those Hydra bots with you?" Logan growled, claws still out.
"Simply because they were rotting away in this base with nothing to do when I found them. So I reprogrammed them to be my guards. They're quite useful actually," Fury replied nonchalantly, shrugging. "Now, why don't we all head to somewhere safe? You all could use some rest."
Jennifer nodded. "Lead the way."
As Fury led them through the ruined corridors of the abandoned Shield base, the tension eased slightly. The Hydra robots, now revealed as reprogrammed guards, marched beside the group, their mechanical limbs clanking on the steel floor.
"Follow me," Fury said, his voice calm but commanding, as always.
Bruce kept his senses sharp, scanning for any unexpected threats. Though Fury had reprogrammed the Hydra bots, Bruce wasn't one to let his guard down. Jennifer and the others walked quietly behind, the occasional glance exchanged between them.
The base descended deeper underground, the once-futuristic facility now worn and barely functional. The flickering lights illuminated their path in bursts, casting eerie shadows along the walls.
"I've been keeping this place running for years now," Fury explained as they walked, his voice steady. "After the Hydra infiltration and Magneto's rampage, I had to go underground, literally. Found some useful tech lying around, patched things up. It's not perfect, but it's safe—safer than most places."
"How'd you manage to survive all this time?" Storm asked, eyeing Fury with a mix of suspicion and respect.
Fury smirked. "What can I say? I'm good at staying hidden when I need to. And I've got some friends down here too."
"Friends?" Jennifer asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You'll see soon enough," Fury replied as they reached a large metal door at the end of the corridor. He pressed a panel on the wall, and the door slowly slid open with a heavy creak.
The group stepped into a vast underground chamber, dimly lit but far more intact than the rest of the base. Makeshift living quarters had been set up along the walls, with a few scattered pieces of Shield tech still operational. A handful of figures moved about the room, their attention drawn to the new arrivals.
"Clint!" Jennifer exclaimed as her eyes landed on the familiar figure of Hawkeye. He was sitting at a table, fletching arrows, but he stood the moment he saw her.
"Jen!" Clint called out, a wide smile breaking across his face. He strode over and pulled her into a quick hug. "Thought I'd never see you again after... I heard about Cap and Matt..." His expression darkened briefly.
Jennifer nodded, smiling sadly. She opened her mouth to speak but decided not to bring back those bad memories. Instead, she gestured to the others. Fury then arranged rooms for them after that, Fury, Jennifer, Clint, and Bruce sat in the meeting room. Logan was lurking around the corner, listening in.
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