"Those aliens used the Tesseract's power to escape." Noah shrugged and returned his sword to his backpack.
Corvus Glaive had activated the power of both the Mind Stone and the Space Stone, utilizing the artifact's teleportation ability to flee the battlefield.
"What?! That's not good news," Nick Fury, rubbing his still-aching head, replied with evident concern.
The Tesseract, such a dangerous artifact, was now in the hands of aliens. This was definitely terrible news. Moreover, they didn't know the true purpose of these beings: was it simply a theft of the Tesseract, or was it part of a larger plan for a full-scale invasion of Earth?
"Coulson, stop standing around. Assess the damage to the base and check for any casualties from the attack. And ask Hill about the progress on the tasks I assigned her." He quickly regained his composure. Now that it had happened, they needed to find a solution.
Furthermore, such a serious situation as the loss of the Tesseract required a report to his superiors.
Touching his chest, he felt the small protrusion of his pager, which gave him a slight sense of reassurance.
"Earth is under attack from space again. Perhaps I should call her?" Fury thought, referring to Carol Danvers, but seeing the massive crack stretching across the base, he dismissed the idea.
Noah's words gave him confidence: the alien enemies couldn't withstand his power and were forced to flee. This meant he had a reliable protector.
Fury deemed this an opportune moment to bring up his long-planned project to his superiors—the Avengers Initiative. After the encounter with Captain Marvel, he had considered creating a team of Earth's mightiest heroes to defend against global threats, especially alien invasions.
The Avengers Initiative had previously been rejected by the UN Security Council, which preferred to focus on developing weapons based on the Tesseract's power. However, this project was still under development and couldn't be deployed immediately. Now was the perfect time to implement the plan to create the Avengers.
But first, he needed to deal with the aftermath of the current chaos. The laboratory was destroyed, equipment wrecked, the Tesseract gone, and a massive crack gaped in the ceiling, through which he could see the sun.
"I'm leaving. I'll try to locate the Tesseract," Noah said, approaching Fury. Then, turning around, he flew up and exited the base through the crack.
"Wait! I still have a lot of questions!" Nick shouted, but Noah was already too far away, his departure marked only by a loud sonic boom.
"Looks like I'll have to ask him another time," Fury sighed, then turned to his agents.
Although most people had recovered after the chime of the bell, many still felt slightly dizzy.
"How are you feeling?" he asked his subordinates.
"Not great. Like the morning after a heavy hangover: dizzy and nauseous," Hawkeye replied.
"Agent Barton, you must always be in peak condition. Hangovers are a luxury you can only afford in retirement," Fury said sternly.
"Okay, it was just a metaphor," Hawkeye shrugged.
"Fine. Find Coulson and visit the infirmary for something to alleviate the dizziness. Get yourselves together and await my instructions. Talos, come with me."
Talos had remained silent since seeing the three figures emerge from the portal. Fury decided to find out if he had any information.
"Talos, do you know them? Who are they?" he asked. Talos was a Skrull, a people long accustomed to space, and might know more than they did.
"The last one is a Kree," Talos replied. The Kree were long-standing enemies of the Skrulls, responsible for much of their suffering. He would recognize them even in dust form.
"Kree!" Nick frowned. He vividly remembered Carol's stories about how the Kree once planned to attack Earth.
"Yes. And those two..." Talos hesitated.
"What is it?" Fury asked, noticing his hesitation.
"Those two... They seem to be servants of the Mad Titan," Talos finally said. Thanos's reputation as the Mad Titan instilled fear throughout the universe. His army invaded planets, decimating half their populations. His name was known to all.
"The Mad Titan? Who is that?" Fury asked. He wasn't well-versed in cosmic affairs, but the nickname sounded ominous.
"Thanos, the Mad Titan," Talos clarified. "The most feared tyrant in space. His deeds are known on countless planets. He invades with his army and kills half the population. No one knows why he does it."
Talos paused for a moment and continued, "Those two who emerged from the portal are his henchmen: Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight. But what are the Kree doing with them? Are they collaborating with Thanos? I always knew the Kree were a despicable race!"
His voice sharpened when he mentioned the Kree, clearly touching a nerve.
"Damn it, are they planning an invasion of Earth?" Fury cursed. Judging by the description, Thanos wasn't an enemy Earth could handle.
"I'm not sure. Perhaps their target is only the Tesseract," Talos replied. He hoped he was wrong, as some of his people also lived on Earth.
A heavy silence fell. Nick Fury was lost in thought.
"Alright, the most important thing now is to find these invaders and retrieve the Tesseract. We need to ascertain their intentions. If Thanos is truly planning to invade Earth, we must be prepared. We can't just sit idly by!" Fury declared. The situation was too serious to waste time; they needed to act immediately.
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