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General Talos was only one step away from his objective. Unfortunately, the crucial memory-extraction device had been destroyed along with the Skrull ship, reduced to cosmic dust.
Although the Skrulls' science officer had also taken refuge on this primitive planet—and rebuilding the device wouldn't be much of a problem—Talos simply couldn't wait that long.
The best solution was to directly win over Vers, who had likewise been deceived by the Kree, and have her willingly reveal the information he wanted.
That was far easier than capturing her and strapping her onto another memory-extraction device. The consequences of the first attempt were still fresh in his mind: despite starting with her hands restrained, she had crushed twenty of his best soldiers and blown up the ship as a bonus.
With manpower and resources already stretched thin, Talos had no courage left to gamble like that again. So he defended himself:
"I have to say this—Kryptonians have an absolutely terrible reputation throughout the universe. Your kind's way of doing things borders on boundless madness. Anyone would be afraid.
"And our goal is simply to secure a slim chance of survival for our people. We don't have the luxury of trial and error. So you must understand—when we saw a Kryptonian, our first instinct was to eliminate you as a variable.
"If you truly arrived on this planet by a rare coincidence and have remained sane, I can order my people to abandon their hostility toward you. You were never our target.
"As for what happened to the girl, I offer my sincerest apologies. And you needn't worry about alien pathogens—we can have our medical officer provide advanced treatment.
"Look—we've shown ourselves in our true forms, and we're unarmed. That's our sincerity. Why don't we sit down and talk?"
Once again, Nick Fury took control of the situation. He lowered his gun first and said,
"What exactly is there to talk about? All I've seen is you people causing trouble and hijacking other people's identities.
"I won't even bother asking whether Agent Keller is still alive. Now that you think you have the numbers and a sure win, you suddenly want to talk—is that it?"
Facing the challenge, Talos nodded slightly. Most of the Skrulls immediately shifted back into human disguises and exited the house, reducing the sense of pressure inside.
One Skrull remained behind—smaller in stature, with distinctly female features. Talos said,
"This is our medical officer. Would you like her to examine the girl's wounds?"
"No!" Maria Rambeau snapped, still completely unwilling to trust the Skrulls as she shielded her daughter.
Talos made the same choice Henry had earlier—he didn't force the issue. He sent the shorter Skrull out as well and stayed behind alone to face Fury and the others.
"Let me clarify one thing first. Unless absolutely necessary, we do not kill those we impersonate. Agent Keller is still alive—he just has a bump on his head. By now, he should already be back with S.H.I.E.L.D.
"And I don't have much to discuss with humans. But with you, Vers—assuming that's what you go by now. Or should I call you Carol Danvers?—there is room for conversation.
"I believe you're also very interested in what really happened in that accident six years ago. And I just happen to have the audio recording from the crash site, taken from what you humans call the 'black box.'"
Maria Rambeau, who had been half-distracted by the Skrulls, blurted out in disbelief,
"That's impossible. They told us nothing survived the crash—including the black box."
Talos smiled faintly, with a hint of pride.
"That's what they told you. But our racial abilities allow us access to places others can't easily reach—and to obtain things others can't."
As he spoke, Talos produced a disc from inside his coat.
"This recording is extremely valuable. Don't you want to hear it? For example, it may reveal that we are all victims of the Kree—not enemies."
Nick Fury didn't make the decision for Vers. He simply looked at the woman who claimed to be a member of the Kree Starforce.
Vers herself was deeply conflicted. She challenged him:
"Why should I believe you?"
"That depends on whether you're curious about the truth," Talos replied calmly. "If you weren't curious at all, why would you chase down the Pegasus Project in the first place? Why not simply report our location and have an army sent to wipe us out?"
"Why are you doing all this?" Vers asked. "What are you looking for?"
Talos answered,
"Dr. Wendy Lawson was actually a defecting Kree scientist—Mar-Vell. She realized she was fighting an unjust war and chose to support the Skrulls instead.
"And the way she chose to help was by developing a faster-than-light engine, hoping to lead the remaining Skrulls out of the Kree Empire's grasp. That's why I say everything I've done is for the survival of my people.
"As for why she chose this backward planet for her research, I don't yet know. But one thing I do know is this—Mar-Vell, or Dr. Lawson, trusted you. So I've chosen to trust you as well. Please don't betray that trust."
One of the main reasons Vers had abandoned her primary mission to pursue the truth was precisely because of Dr. Wendy Lawson.
Her Starforce commander, Yon-Rogg, had once said that when meeting the Supreme Intelligence, everyone saw the person they respected and valued most.
Yet Vers had never known who that silver-haired elderly woman was, or why she mattered so much to her.
Only after the Skrulls' machine began extracting her memories did unfamiliar fragments surface—among them, images of Dr. Lawson.
So rather than defeating the Skrulls outright, Vers wanted to know what truth lay behind the accident six years ago. Once she had the answers, she could always fight them later if necessary.
But before she could respond, an orange cat suddenly slipped between everyone's feet and wandered toward the Skrulls.
The moment it approached, Talos completely lost his composure. He stumbled backward several steps and pressed himself against the wall, shouting in panic,
"Oh no—get that thing away from me! Don't let it come any closer!"
Vers scooped up the orange cat and cradled it against her chest, deliberately stepping closer to Talos as if teasing him.
"You're scared of a cat? The tiger over there is far more terrifying, you know."
"That thing is not a cat!" Talos yelled. "It's a Flerken!"
"A Flerken?" The unfamiliar word immediately drew mocking looks from everyone present, all directed at the Skrull general who had been so arrogant just moments ago—only to crumble in an instant.
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