Belarus – Zhodino -
Ward was driving a modified van, with the entire team seated inside. Simmons, excited, said, "This is so thrilling! Back in school, I dreamed of coming to Zhodino."
Fitz glanced at her and asked, "Zhodino, Belarus? Your dream come true, really?"
Simmons quickly replied, "It's the birthplace of Nobel Physics Prize winner Zhores Alferov! Technically, he was born in Vitebsk, but it's less than an hour's drive from here."
"How could you not know that? I'm a little disappointed."
Fitz immediately retorted, "Of course I know who he is. The father of heterostructure semiconductors, thank you for the reminder. We all know, I'm just a bit preoccupied. Last time we went on a field mission, it wasn't exactly a walk in the park."
Sensing Fitz's unease, Coulson turned his head and said, "You two are just here to locate Amador electronically. You don't even have to leave the vehicle."
Fitz and Simmons exchanged glances, smiling with relief, clearly feeling safer knowing they wouldn't have to go outside.
Meanwhile, Skye was scrolling through information on her phone, amazed.
"You guys aren't even a little curious about the Continental Hotel?"
"I did some digging online, and there's nothing about it on the regular web. But on the dark web, the info about this place is insane."
"Wow, it's called a sanctuary. Anyone who stays there is granted protection, and they have the right not to be harmed."
"But what's this about coins? Are they made of actual gold?"
Killer Bee shook his head. "There's no such organization in the ninja world. I don't know about this one."
"But if they're bold enough to claim they're a sanctuary, they must be quite powerful."
Fitz and Simmons also shook their heads, indicating they knew nothing about the Continental Hotel.
Ward, focused on driving, spoke up, "It's an organization with a global presence. The Continental Hotel is a part of it, essentially a service provider for assassins."
"One of their key rules is that no killing is allowed on hotel premises. Anyone who breaks that rule is hunted by the entire organization."
Skye, wide-eyed with surprise, asked, "Shouldn't underground organizations like that be shut down? I mean, a hitman group operating hotels in the middle of cities—ridiculous!"
Ward was about to respond when May's voice came through the comms: "Bus to Little Bus."
"Little Bus, copy," Ward replied.
Coulson, hearing the codename, immediately remarked, "Next time, I'm picking the codenames, okay?"
Ward glanced at Coulson, surprised, while May's voice came through again: "HQ wants us to report in."
Coulson asked, "What did you tell them?"
May, watching the location tracker of their vehicle, said, "I told them we were tracking a potential suspect. Nothing more."
Coulson, relieved, said, "I owe you one."
May retorted, "Three favors, actually."
Coulson turned to Skye and replied to her previous words, "Just like the Rising Tide organization, which still hasn't been completely wiped out."
"We'll talk about the specifics later."
"For now, let's focus on the mission. After all, there isn't a Continental Hotel in this small town of Zhodino."
Skye nodded, realizing that now wasn't the time to dig deeper into the Continental Hotel's secrets, which she would have to explore later.
Internally, she couldn't help but make a note: The Rising Tide organization isn't some murderous criminal group—it's completely different.
At that moment, Ward parked the van. Coulson unbuckled his seatbelt and said, "If Amador is here, she'll definitely try to contact her buyer."
"Scan for mobile transmission signals, encrypted emails, and anonymous broadcasts."
"Once you find her trace, call us."
Ward added, "Keep radio silence unless absolutely necessary."
"Killer Bee, let's go."
Coulson, Ward, and Killer Bee got out of the vehicle. As they did, Fitz called out to Ward, "What exactly do you mean by 'absolutely necessary'?"
The only response he received was the sound of the door closing.
As the three left, Skye turned to Fitz and Simmons. "Aren't you curious about why the Continental Hotel still exists?"
Fitz and Simmons both shook their heads. "Not really."
Skye was baffled. "But it's an assassin organization!"
"Aren't we supposed to be the good guys?"
Fitz and Simmons nodded in agreement. "Yes, we are the good guys, but darkness can never be completely eradicated."
"A controlled level of darkness can actually contribute to regional peace."
"That's something we've heard in a few political courses."
Skye was left speechless, unsure how to respond.
...
Meanwhile-
The trio walked down the street. Ward looked at Coulson and said, "I think I understand now why you were able to move on so quickly and trust your subordinates again."
"So, the betrayal by Kabuto wasn't the first time you experienced something like this."
Coulson responded, "We still don't know the full story."
Killer Bee, sucking on a lollipop, removed it from his mouth and asked, "Isn't Kabuto a ninja?"
Ward, silent for a moment, replied, "He once joined S.H.I.E.L.D. Coulson and I were both his handlers—his mentors, you could say."
"I taught him S.H.I.E.L.D. protocols, while Coulson taught him about life."
"But during the Battle of New York, he betrayed S.H.I.E.L.D."
Killer Bee nodded thoughtfully, suspecting that Lord Charles had sent Kabuto as an infiltrator.
Coulson added, "Kabuto has left Konoha. If you get the chance, you should meet him."
"I even mentioned you to him recently."
That left Ward stunned, stopping in his tracks. He quickly caught up to Coulson and Killer Bee, asking in confusion, "You met him recently? When?"
Coulson casually replied, "During Killer Bee's concert."
"What?"
"Why didn't you bring me along?"
"I was worried your personalities would clash, and we wouldn't be able to walk away unscathed."
"But it seems things worked out for the best."
Ward, a bit resigned, said, "That's probably true. But with Amador, I have to plan for the worst…"
"She betrayed two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents during the mission. Kabuto, at least, didn't spill S.H.I.E.L.D. blood."
"I wonder what she got in return."
Coulson was silent for three seconds before saying, "I don't know, but until we figure it out, I won't make any assumptions."
"Killer Bee, when we locate the target, our mission is to capture her alive. Don't use lethal force."
Killer Bee nodded. "No problem. I'll spare her life."
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