"Hello, are you still there?"
"Very polite. Cough, cough, cough."
Adrian held the phone tightly and was about to say something when he suddenly broke into a violent cough.
"Ahem. Hah!"
He coughed painfully, the strange rust smell lingering in his mouth, each cough accompanied by a strong feeling of discomfort. As he coughed harder, several mouthfuls of dark red, bloody phlegm erupted from his mouth.
"I'm tired of the bureaucracy. Long story short, I believe you now know what's happening in Times Square. I have all the information you need to send a Quinjet to pick me up and take me to the airport. Air and space carrier."
Silence lingered on the other end of the phone, seemingly surprising Adrian with his frankness and making him consider the conditions he proposed.
He slowly wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and glanced at Quicksilver, who was waiting for an answer from the other end of the line. This time, he was still coughing up blood. Unlike the original world, after the system's upgrades, his body didn't feel tired at all.
After a moment, a voice finally broke the silence. "So, what's Pietro's condition? Is it fatal?"
Adrian sighed and kicked the silver-haired man, who had fallen to the ground. "I'm afraid these injuries are not fatal. He should be able to survive on the space aircraft carrier."
The other end of the line fell silent again, but this time it was shorter. A few seconds later, the voice returned. "Maybe you can catch him?"
"No, that wasn't part of my plan."
Adrian interrupted, knowing what Fury was planning. It would be better to eliminate Quicksilver here than to keep a ticking time bomb alive. However, he still had some plans and needed to rely on Quicksilver's cooperation, so he couldn't be allowed to die just yet.
"Convince Pietro not to object to my decision on the way, and I will take him to the spaceship."
"Okay, give him the phone."
Adrian was surprised by Fury's willingness to accept this. He picked Quicksilver up off the ground and held the microphone to his ear. "This is for you."
Quicksilver's hands were tied, making it difficult for him to answer the phone comfortably. He could only raise his shoulders and grip the receiver tightly to keep it steady, his face filled with dejection.
"Fury? Is that you? Did you send this bastard? Tell him to give me something right now!"
Quicksilver's shock deepened as he listened to the news on the other end of the line. His eyes widened, and his pupils constricted slightly. An icy chill rose from the pit of his stomach—were Colonel America, Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel, Luke Cage, and the others dead?!
No, that couldn't be true. Just like Adrian said, they had turned into zombies but still maintained a level of intelligence. They were currently scattered around Times Square, preying on citizens.
The explosion that had occurred was from the junior hero Jack of Hearts, who had blown himself up while trying to take down an unknown creature before he died. But judging by what happened next, he hadn't even harmed the creature.
Fear slowly crept onto Pietro's face. His eyebrows furrowed slightly, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead as he began to realize that the situation was more dangerous and complicated than he had thought.
If all the most powerful superheroes on the planet vanished in a matter of minutes, who could resolve this crisis?
No. This was just another Skrull invasion or Chitauri invasion. Soon, SHIELD would be able to mount a counterattack. And it was worth noting that not all members of the Fantastic Four and X-Men had suffered the same fate.
He consoled himself with this thought, but then Fury poured cold water on him.
"After the preliminary assessment, we've decided to evacuate New York City and begin gathering survivors. I need you to cooperate as much as possible with whoever is around you and..."
The voice on the other end dropped to a whisper, almost indistinctly saying, "Keep an eye on him."
Quicksilver took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He knew that in order to save the world, he had to set aside his personal fears and interests to make the right decision.
Under Adrian's watchful gaze, he silently nodded, accepting the request on the other end of the phone. Though still anxious, he decided to trust that this decision was correct.
After all, he was a superhero. He would move forward with determination to save more lives for the greater good.
"Click."
Adrian raised his hand and hung up the phone, a half-smile on his face as he looked at Quicksilver.
"Looks like we've come to an agreement. You're not going to hold a grudge against me for shooting you, are you?"
"This isn't over yet. Take me away. Almost every Quinjet from SHIELD has been dispatched to stop them."
After Pietro said this, he paused, a strange expression crossing his face. "Zombie heroes just sent one to pick us up. The boarding location is a little far from here. It's only a twenty-minute walk."
Suddenly, a large group of people rushed in from the corner of the street.
These individuals wore frightened expressions, as if they were being chased by something terrifying. They ran quickly, paying no attention to the crowd behind them, their only goal to escape.
Adrian stood in surprise, watching the crowd rush by.
"Run! What are you doing standing still?"
Some kind individuals urged Adrian to move, but he was soon engulfed by the crowd and disappeared.
As the panicked throng fled, they passed by Adrian and Quicksilver. Men and women, old and young, hurriedly pushed and shoved one another, desperate to escape.
The disheveled clothes of some and the dust covering others indicated they had fled the dangerous area as fast as possible.
Yet, even as they ran frantically, they subconsciously avoided Adrian and Quicksilver, carefully circling around them to keep as far away as possible from these two figures.
In the distance, thick black smoke billowed straight into the sky, painting the horizon red.
The dense black smoke spread rapidly, merging with the gray clouds above. It seemed to have an inexhaustible power, forming a demonic mark in the air that enveloped the entire area.
The smoke was accompanied by faint screams that sounded like the roars of demons in a nightmare.
These screams, filled with pain, fear, and helplessness, spread rapidly, stabbing into everyone's hearts like a sharp knife.
"Where did you just say the place Fury mentioned was located?"
"In the direction these people came from."
Adrian took a deep breath and picked up the Mercury lying on the ground.
"Time waits for no one. Let's go.
🛡️Ronin 🛡️
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