Shadow of the Beautiful World

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At 5 o'clock in the morning, Merlin's figure appeared outside the intensive care ward of the S.H.I.E.L.D. Hospital.

The expression on his face was indifferent, and there was a trace of undisguised tension and worry in his eyes.

He walked quickly to the side of the ward and looked at Fury, who was being rescued by doctors on the other side of the glass.

That braised egg head was extremely miserable, with terrible wounds on his abdomen, burn marks, and terrifying paw prints on his back.

Those doctors had to put him on a special hospital bed so as not to compress Fury's damaged spine.

Even through a wall, Merlin could feel Fury's weak breath, like a ghost about to pass away.

What exactly is going on?

He turned to look at Hill next to him.

Hill shook his head, his beautiful face was full of worry and pain that couldn't be concealed.

He was being taken back to the hospital in a cloak when we received the news.

The cloak tells us that all traces of the battlefield on the highway were burned, and Fury's car was burned. No one knows what happened.

Hill crossed her arms. She had never seen Fury so weak.

And an attack on Fury also made Hill couldn't help but think of more...

Before that, even the most rampant thugs had never targeted Fury.

Now that Fury is injured like this, does it mean that a terrifying storm targeting S.H.I.E.L.D. is about to start?

The attack came so suddenly that everyone was caught off guard.

Although S.H.I.E.L.D. is a complete and rigorous organization, it has its own internal system to maintain its operation.

But when the always reliable leader suddenly fell, even a senior agent like Hill would feel a little panic.

it does not matter.

Merlin felt the change in Hill's mood, he put his arm around Hill's shoulder, and said softly:

And I'm here...it doesn't matter.

He's going to survive, he's strong, he always has been.

Merlin looked at Fury, who was being rescued, and said:

It's not yet time for him to exit, Nick Fury, a person like him, won't die in such a useless posture...

So, what shall we do now?

Hill looked up at Merlin, she said softly:

Fury's current situation has complied with emergency procedures. According to the personnel rules of S.H.I.E.L.D., it is now up to you to act as the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. until the World Security Council responds to this.

Now?

Merlin narrowed his eyes and said:

Block the news! Announce to the S.H.I.E.L.D. command that Fury will take a 15-day vacation, and then everything will continue to operate as usual. According to the normal personnel process, Fury's daily work will be transferred to me.

Looking down at Hill, he said:

As Fury's assistant, you should know some dark lines under Fury, right?

Hill hesitated for a moment, she glanced at the director in the ward, she said softly:

The director does have some contacts who are not in the S.H.I.E.L.D. system, and has his own intelligence system...

very good.

Merlin patted Hill on the shoulder, and he said:

Now you are responsible for contacting them as Fury, and stabilizing the forces outside the system until Fury wakes up.

Also, help me contact Pierce, I need to meet him as soon as possible.

———————————

boom

In Pierce's office, Pierce, who was awakened urgently, heard the worst and worst bad news.

The news shocked him from his drunken state. He sat behind the desk, looked at the projection on the desk in front of him, and said with a gloomy expression:

You really can't do anything well, can you?

In front of his eyes, Lady Hydra also had an ugly expression, she explained:

Nick Fury is dead! I'm sure of this! He's just an ordinary person, and it's impossible for him to survive being pierced by the Winter Soldier!

Then tell me, what's going on?

Pierce picked up the phone, pointing to the message sent by Agent Hill on the phone, as well as Merlin's appointment.

At this moment, even Pierce, who was scheming and scheming and had experienced countless storms, was disturbed by this message.

But things weren't as bad as they could be.

Fury is still being rescued, which means that the identity of the Winter Soldier has not been revealed.

Even if the identity of the Winter Soldier is exposed, there is actually no big problem, at least in terms of Merlin, the original plan can still be carried out.

But the problem is, if Fury doesn't die...

Then the insight plan cannot be passed, and without the cooperation of S.H.I.E.L.D., this plan will never be implemented.

This is something Pierce can't stand!

You boast so much, you promise me that everything will be fine, but you let me down again...

Pierce sighed. He leaned back on the office chair and reached out to grab the tie hanging around his neck irritably.

But under the old man's angry appearance, there was a strange, unsettled joy in his heart...

Probably in Pierce's heart, he also felt joy for Fury's miraculous survival.

Although, he shouldn't be happy.

There must be something at play that we don't know about.

Lady Hydra says:

I can guarantee that Nick Fury is indeed dead...

Maybe, maybe the person lying on the hospital bed and being rescued is not Nick Fury at all, maybe it's just a counterfeit created by Merlin to calm people's hearts!

You also know how difficult Merlin is. In this case, it's normal for him to make a fake Fury to fool people!

And with his means, it is not impossible to deliberately create a fake to attract the murderer to come again!

Don't mess yourself up!

Pierce was silent.

In his old body, the still wise head was thinking quickly.

Lady Hydra's statement is also reasonable. If Merlin rushed back to deal with this matter, then with his wisdom, it is not surprising that he made such an arrangement in a short period of time.

But is that Fury really...

Pierce narrowed his eyes, this had to be confirmed.

If that Fury is fake, then it is impossible for him to hide forever.

If the fake Fury was arranged by Merlin, then in the next conversation between him and Merlin, Merlin would definitely tell him the truth.

Don't panic at this time...

The person being rescued...

Pierce said:

I will confirm his identity. The appearance can be disguised, but the identity information cannot be disguised. As for you, madam...

I'm going to make the Winter Soldier ready for assassination again.

Lady Hydra gritted her teeth and said:

This time, I will never miss again! I promise!

ensure?

Pierce snorted and said:

Your promise is no longer binding. If it weren't for me, no one would be available... Alas, let him be prepared, the possibility of assassination under Merlin's nose is too small...

Pierce folded his hands, and a dark gleam danced in his eyes.

After a while, he made up his mind and said to Lady Hydra:

Be prepared to make him sacrifice, maybe you can use this to divert your attention again.

Also, now is not the time to talk about losses, the umbrella is ready to be transferred immediately! All unnecessary things will be destroyed on the spot! Including your underground hive laboratory...

When necessary, destroy it!

All right.

A painful expression flashed across Madam Hydra's face.

The Winter Soldier is not a low-level product that was made to be used as cannon fodder. In order to complete the transformation of the Winter Soldier, the umbrella paid a considerable price.

And the new type of Veronica virus is currently only a qualified candidate for the Winter Soldier.

She also plans to use the Winter Soldier as a model to continue to advance this research.

There is also the Umbrella base in Raccoon City. She has been operating here all these years, and she knows how many resources will be lost once she evacuates.

Although the money is not hers.

But as long as you think about it, you will feel that your heart is bleeding.

Greedy people are like that, they will sacrifice nothing unless they are cornered...

But right now, Madame Hydra is very clear about how much trouble this failed assassination has caused her organization.

She dared not argue with Pierce any more.

Although she controls the base of Raccoon City, there will always be only one leader recognized by the Hydra loyalists there. If she dares to turn against Pierce at this time, she may not even be able to see the sunrise tomorrow.

The old man in front of him may not have the power to restrain a chicken, but the power he has is definitely not that kind.

Lady Hydra silently turned off the magic projection, Pierce stood up, glanced at the messy office, and shook his head.

Sonic, are you still there?

Pierce asked.

A moment later, there was a sharp hiss from the telephone on his desk, and then, the dark voice of the Decepticon warrior sounded in the room:

What's the matter with Sir Pierce calling me? I'm very busy now...

I helped you find the place you were looking for. Although I don't know what is hidden in that valley, I can tell from your joyful voice at that time that it must be a place that is very important to you.

Pierce took out a suit of clothes from the office closet, unbuttoned them slowly like an old man, and said:

I've helped you so much, now I need your help.

What do you want me to do for you?

Soundwave's voice deepened, and it said:

Also, were you threatening me just now?

No, just a reminder.

Pierce put on a new shirt, looked at the image reflected in the glass in front of him, and said:

Once we fail, your secret will not be kept.

So we're grasshoppers on a rope right now, and I just hope we can work together and get through this.

What exactly do you want me to do?

Soundwave got a little impatient.

It has worked with Pierce before, and it knows how difficult this human being is.

In terms of playing with the mind's eye, its mechanical head is no match for Pierce.

You have an army of mechanical assassins, right?

Pierce adjusted his tie and said:

Let them get ready... and wait for my news, maybe you will need your cooperation in the future.

Sonic didn't respond anymore, but Pierce's cell phone on the table suddenly lit up, and a weird app was automatically downloading.

Apparently, this is the sound wave's response.

A few minutes later, Pierce finished his tie. He reached out and brushed his white hair, then leaned on his cane, picked up his mobile phone, and glanced at the app that had been downloaded.

He nodded with satisfaction.

If things were really bad to the worst, in order to divert Merlin's attention, he had to find an opponent for Merlin who could give him his all.

Pierce made a mistake during the last tyrant's out-of-control incident, almost self-defeating by directing everything to Abstergo.

So this time, Pierce decided to be more cautious.

Well...if a broken biotech company can't lure Merlin...

Then a group of Cybertronians who are still exiled on the earth and looking for some kind of secret should be enough to satisfy Merlin's big appetite.

Of course, it would be very risky to sell Soundwave and its Cybertronians.

After all, Sonic also knows some secrets about Pierce.

Therefore, this trick of killing one thousand enemies and harming oneself by eight hundred can only be used at the most critical time.

Hope I don't have to use it...

Pierce put his phone in the pocket of his suit coat, patted it, and walked out of the office leaning on a cane.

Outside the office, Level 7 House Agent Hitwell was already waiting for him.

And when Pierce's car drove away from Washington, behind and in front of the car, there were even more heavily armed special operations teams protecting it.

These agents will be responsible for safely sending Pierce to the Trident Building. After Fury's assassination, the security work of the entire S.H.I.E.L.D. has been upgraded several levels.

If Fury is targeted, Pierce, who has a close relationship with S.H.I.E.L.D., may also be targeted.

And once Pierce, who is the chairman of the World Security Council, is attacked, the problem will be quite serious.

At dawn, the door of Merlin's office was pushed open, and a menacing Pierce walked into the office with a cane.

He stared at Merlin without saying a word, his eyes were full of dissatisfaction and inquiry, his cane was moving on the ground, which represented the old man's bad mood at the moment.

Tell me, Merlin, is such a huge S.H.I.E.L.D. Bureau that it can't even protect its own director?

We have spent so much resources and so much time to form the most powerful superhero organization in the world, but you people who can destroy the world are united, but can't even protect an ordinary blind man?

Pierce asked aloud:

Merlin Riley, you have never let me down, but now, I almost lost my best friend in my life!

This time, you, and even the entire S.H.I.E.L.D., let me down...

Facing Pierce's anger, Merlin stood silently at the desk.

He couldn't refute, and he didn't want to refute.

He knew about the relationship between Pierce and Fury. It was a fatal friendship. It would not be an exaggeration to say that they were brothers of different surnames. He had every reason to be angry and reprimanded.

After all, when Fury sent out a message for help, Merlin did not get to the scene immediately.

He is responsible.

Seeing the gloomy expression on the silent Merlin's face, Pierce nodded his cane fiercely, and he took a deep breath, as if returning to his senses.

He fell down on the sofa like a weak old man, and asked hoarsely:

Speak, Merlin.

Tell me, this, all this...what the hell is going on?