Wanda crossed her arms and pouted slightly. "Actually, my magic could open a portal straight through that door much faster," she said, clearly a little annoyed that Tony had stolen all the attention with his dramatic entrance.
Ethan chuckled and shook his head. "I know that," he replied casually. "But you've got to let Uncle Tony show off sometimes. The guy lives for that kind of moment." He clapped his hands once and nodded toward the glowing hole Tony had carved through the steel. "Alright, let's head inside."
Tony stepped forward first in the Mark VII armor, his metal boots echoing faintly as he entered the base.
In reality, the precaution was unnecessary. Long before they crossed the threshold, Ethan had already erected a powerful telekinetic barrier around the entire group. The invisible shield wrapped around them like a dome, silently blocking any incoming attack.
As they walked deeper into the dimly lit corridors, Tony suddenly spoke over the comms. "Hey guys, how about a new single from Bruno Mars? Seems like the perfect soundtrack for a stealth infiltration."
A second later, upbeat music suddenly filled the hallway.
Steve Rogers frowned immediately. "Tony, we're here on a mission," he said sternly. "People are dying every minute out there. Could you try being a little more serious?"
Tony sighed dramatically and shut the music off. "Alright, alright. Tough crowd," he muttered. "You guys really know how to ruin a good playlist."
Just as the group continued forward, Ethan suddenly stopped walking.
"Someone's coming," he said calmly.
Everyone instantly tensed. Natasha's hand moved to her pistol, Barton raised his bow slightly, and Steve lifted his shield.
Several seconds passed.
Then another ten.
Nothing happened.
Tony glanced around the empty hallway and frowned. "Uh… where exactly is this 'someone' you're talking about?"
Ethan shrugged casually. "Already dealt with."
The room fell silent.
"I told you guys earlier that you should've stayed behind with Fury playing cards," Ethan continued with a bored expression. "There really wasn't any need for you to come along."
Of course, Ethan wasn't about to tell them the real reason.
Every HYDRA agent inside this base represented valuable summoning energy in his eyes. Even the weakest operative was still worth something. After all, a mosquito might be small, but enough mosquitoes could still fill a jar.
The moment they entered the base, Ethan had quietly dispatched a shadow clone ahead of them. While the others were slowly walking through the corridors, the clone had already cleared the entire upper security perimeter.
No one else had noticed a thing.
Natasha raised an eyebrow and smirked. "So this is going to be more like a sightseeing tour of a HYDRA base?"
"That's one way to look at it," Ethan said with a grin.
Clint Barton relaxed and slung his bow over his shoulder. "Honestly, I like missions like this," he admitted. "Nice and easy."
Tony tilted his helmet slightly. "So… should we turn the music back on then?"
Steve sighed and rubbed his temple.
"…How about Marvin Gaye instead?" he said reluctantly.
Meanwhile, deep within the base's central command chamber, the atmosphere was far less relaxed.
Four people stood inside the reinforced room, their expressions grim.
John Garrett.
Baron Wolfgang von Strucker.
Daniel Whitehall.
And the silent Winter Soldier standing behind Garrett.
Strucker's face looked especially ugly as he stared at the surveillance monitors.
"Didn't that man leave Earth?" he growled. "How did he come back in only two days? And how the hell did he find this base?!"
His cold gaze swept across the other three people in the room.
"Which one of you is the traitor?"
The accusation fell like a knife.
Strucker had personally overseen the construction of this facility. Every subordinate stationed here had been indoctrinated and brainwashed since childhood. There was no possibility of outside spies.
So if the base's location had been exposed, there were only three possible culprits.
Viper.
Daniel Whitehall.
Or John Garrett.
Strucker knew Viper and Whitehall well. Both of them were deeply entrenched HYDRA extremists with long histories of violent conflict with S.H.I.E.L.D. Cooperation with the enemy was virtually impossible.
That left only one suspect.
Garrett.
When Garrett noticed Strucker's eyes turning toward him, a cold chill ran down his spine. He knew exactly how ruthless the man in front of him was.
"Baron Strucker, think about it carefully," Garrett said quickly. "The decapitation strike was my idea. The deaths of all those leaders are on my head now. Even if I defected, do you really think the Americans would spare me?"
He paused, then added nervously, "Besides… that guy has extremely strange abilities. Who knows what kind of method he used to locate us?"
Daniel Whitehall finally spoke, his tone calm but heavy. "Strucker, internal conflict isn't going to help us. What we should be discussing is how to deal with them."
Viper snorted softly and stood up.
"You three can figure that out yourselves," she said coldly. "I'm leaving."
Ever since the Battle of New York, Ethan Blake's terrifying power had been burned into her memory.
Viper was a very intelligent woman.
And intelligent people knew when they were facing a hopeless fight.
She had no intention of smashing an egg against a stone.
Just as she turned toward the exit—
A calm voice suddenly echoed through the room.
"Leaving already?"
Viper froze.
Her eyes snapped toward the doorway.
The moment she saw the figures standing there, her pupils shrank violently.
Impossible.
They had only just broken into the base. How could they have found the command center this quickly?
What Viper didn't know was that Ethan's senses were far beyond ordinary human perception. In his awareness, the life signatures of Strucker, Whitehall, Garrett, and the Winter Soldier shone like beacons in the darkness.
With Wanda's assistance opening a shortcut through the base using magic, Ethan's group had arrived directly at the command chamber.
The first person to react was Baron Strucker.
Without hesitation, he lunged forward.
His mechanical right hand flashed with cold metallic light as he reached for Ethan's face.
As the former right-hand man of the Red Skull, Strucker had survived countless battles over the decades.
His body had been infected with an extremely rare biological weapon known as the Death Spore Virus. The virus granted him extraordinary physical durability and near-indestructible tissue regeneration. Ordinary injuries healed almost instantly, and his immune system had become completely resistant to every known disease or virus on Earth.
His weapon was equally terrifying.
The mechanical right arm attached to his body—the Claw of Satan—had been forged from pure adamantium.
On Earth, Baron Strucker could easily rank among the most dangerous superhumans alive.
But in front of Ethan…
He was nothing more than an insect.
Telekinetic force locked Strucker in place instantly, freezing his body mid-attack.
The next second, a violent surge of lightning erupted.
The electrical blast burned through Strucker's body, reducing him to charred black remains in an instant.
Ethan calmly dusted off his hands and glanced at Tony and the others. "Just so there's no misunderstanding," he explained casually, "that guy carried the Death Spore Virus in his body. If he died normally, the virus would automatically disperse into the air and spread globally."
Everyone present felt a cold shiver run through their bodies.
If Ethan hadn't been there…
Even if they had managed to kill Strucker, the result might have triggered a global catastrophe.
Steve suddenly frowned. "I think I've seen him before."
"You definitely have," Ethan replied. "He was the Red Skull's right-hand man back in the war. The virus is the only reason he managed to live this long."
Seeing Strucker die so horribly, Viper immediately dropped to her knees.
"Great one," she said desperately. "I swear my loyalty to you."
Resist?
The thought never even crossed her mind.
She had just watched Strucker—one of HYDRA's most powerful leaders—die like a burned insect.
But Ethan didn't even glance at her.
His telekinesis tightened instantly.
A sickening crack echoed as Viper's throat was crushed.
At the same time, Daniel Whitehall attempted to flee toward a side exit.
A bolt of lightning shot forward.
Seconds later, his body collapsed to the ground as another piece of charred black coal.
Only one person remained alive.
John Garrett.
When Garrett saw Ethan slowly turn his attention toward him, his legs gave out and he collapsed to his knees, trembling violently.
Then suddenly, a desperate idea flashed through his mind.
Hope flickered in his eyes.
He looked toward Tony Stark.
"I know who killed your parents," Garrett blurted out. "Tony Stark, spare my life and I'll tell you."
....
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