"Boom!"
The deafening roar of an explosion shook the entire SHIELD helicarrier. The sound reverberated through the walls, a shockwave humming in everyone's ears. Several people exchanged tense glances, clearly confused.
Nick Fury immediately called up the exterior surveillance feed. Since they were inside SHIELD headquarters, the only possible source of such a blast had to be outside.
Within seconds, the live feed appeared on the massive monitor. Everyone's expressions shifted as the source of the explosion came into view—a section of the massive carrier had erupted into flames.
But there was no visible culprit.
That didn't mean the attacker had left. They could still be somewhere on the deck, hidden in the chaos. Or worse—their strength might be so overwhelming that SHIELD's detection systems couldn't even register their presence, as if they had dissolved into the very air.
"Switch to infrared detection, now," Fury ordered, his voice tight.
The system engaged instantly, scanning every corner of the exterior…
Still nothing.
"How is this possible?" Fury muttered, his brow furrowed. "Something's not right."
Arakawa Zenkichi rolled his eyes at the display of overreliance on tech. "Why make this complicated? Just go out and see for yourself."
Without waiting for a response, he strode toward the exit, heading for the top deck.
Do we really need to sit here and watch through a screen?
Several others followed after him, finding his logic hard to argue with.
Fury stood there for a moment, then sighed. "Alright… maybe that does make sense."
He scratched the back of his head, then followed the group outside.
The cold air hit them the instant they stepped onto the deck.
"Destroy! Wreak havoc on everything you can see!"
The command was loud, clear—and disturbingly familiar to Zenkichi. His gaze shifted toward the voice, and his lips pressed into a thin line.
Of course.
Loki.
The Asgardian trickster stood not far from the smoking wreckage, but he wasn't alone. At his side were several beings—though calling them "people" would be generous. Their forms were twisted and unnatural, like something that shouldn't exist in this world, yet each moved with its own will.
Among them, a figure commanded attention—a towering presence clad in frost-blue armor, radiating a bone-deep chill.
The Ice King, Laufey.
The frost giant's power surged outward in waves, freezing everything in his path. Machinery, plating, even sections of the deck were turning to solid ice before their eyes.
That explained the explosion.
When the ship's electrical circuits froze solid, the stored energy in its power grid had nowhere to go. The overload built up until it detonated—creating the massive blast that shook the entire helicarrier.
Zenkichi's expression didn't change as he stepped forward. His voice was calm, but every word carried steel.
"I told you, the next time you show yourself in front of me…" His gaze locked on Loki. "…will be the last."
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