Shadow of the Beautiful World

S.H.I.E.L.D. has used unimaginable resources to carry the omnic project to the present day.

In just a few years, the concept of omnics has been integrated into the current human society.

Omnic robots, they don't get tired, as long as they have enough energy, they can keep moving.

They are the perfect workers, and with the fine-tuning of their bionic personalities, they can also be the best family members.

In the current smart market, the home-use smart device developed by Onika Group has been upgraded to the third generation.

Although their prices are still expensive, they are much lower than the sky-high prices at the beginning, and the middle class can take an omnic butler home after gritting their teeth.

These gentle robots are equipped with advanced artificial intelligence, set a nearly perfect personality program, and are covered with advanced anthropomorphic skin silicone.

Although it is still limited to a small circle, although it is still resisted by many people, it has indeed begun to be accepted by the society.

With the ambitious escalating projects of the Onika Group, perhaps soon, omnic servants who are cheaper and more acceptable to most people will appear.

Compared with the slow progress in the field of household robots, in the field of industrial manufacturing, the proliferation of Omnica Group's omnic workers is extremely rapid.

If the World Security Council hadn't worried about more social problems and strictly restricted the field of use of machine workers, then in the past few years, human society would usher in the most terrible wave of unemployment in history.

But even so, in the manufacturing and service industries where mechanical workers are allowed, omnic workers have completely defeated humans who need rest, hate overtime, and need wages.

All over the world, fully automatic production workshops composed of omnic workers have appeared. It is no exaggeration to say that their work efficiency is more than ten times that of human workers.

For example, before Merlin's eyes, tens of thousands of omnic workers were busy in this huge workshop below the Numbani Industrial Park.

They are silent without saying a word, just like a colony of hardworking ants.

Under the command of the artificial intelligence builder of the smart tower, these robots are completing their work with super high efficiency.

The black smart transport vehicle runs along the track, stops at each node for 30 seconds, and puts the building materials it carries into the designated location.

The flexible and movable robotic arm lifts the steel and sends it to the welding node.

Dozens of omnic workers used their own welding nozzles to weld the steel along the welding line in unison.

In the high-temperature sparks, every movement of these robots is uniform.

Welding is done quickly, followed by grinding.

Superb construction technology does not require omnic workers to polish it by themselves. There are black, robot-sweeping equipment that walk along the welding line, and quickly polish the welded steel plate to the extreme smoothness.

Then comes the next step.

Step by step, without stopping.

This process is full of the shock of large-scale industry, but also has the unique sense of precision art of robots.

It's like the most perfect ball performance, and people can't help but feel joy in their hearts.

Before Merlin's eyes, the three space carriers under construction were erected on densely packed, mountain-like scaffolding. They had already completed the keel laying, and a large number of internal equipment had also been installed.

Like three giants being repaired, the skeleton, internal organs and flesh and blood are being filled rapidly.

It seems that the next moment, they will stand up from their steel lairs.

Then roar at the world.

According to the current construction progress, it will take at most another week for these three motherships to be initially completed.

Icarus scanned the huge construction workshop in front of her. She zoomed in on some details of the Helicopter Carrier under construction, and said to Merlin:

Look carefully! There are also weapon interfaces reserved on those hulls, which proves that they can carry a huge amount of weapons.

Maybe it will take some time to equip them with weapons and test them after the ships are finished.

But overall, the manufacturing speed of these ships has also broken through the sky.

There was a hint of surprise in the tone of the artificial intelligence lady, she said:

According to the release date of the secret order I intercepted, it took only half a month from the establishment of the project to the present. Of course, this is an industrial miracle achieved with the help of the super building system of the smart tower. .”

But it also means that they can build the same thing in every smart tower around the world if they want to.

Icarus continued to analyze the three insight motherships that had not yet been completed. She said:

Their combat methods are not like Aegis command ships relying on carrier-based aircraft to fight, they are more like a gunship aircraft that has been strengthened to the limit or called

A high-altitude arsenal ship.

Merlin pushed his eyes, and he said in detail:

Hovering in the stratosphere, every three ships form a continental-level surveillance unit. Only three combat units are needed, and nine motherships can completely cover all areas from Canada to Brazil.

Equipped with the most advanced artificial intelligence, all weapons are controlled by the most advanced fire control system, which can lock on millions of targets at a time and attack 60% of them.

The accuracy of ammunition is maintained within an error of 30 centimeters, and the accuracy of ray weapons is almost error-free.

Sharing data analysis with the ground monitoring system currently owned by S.H.I.E.L.D., combined with a special response mode, on this continent, as long as any crime occurs, it can be stopped within 10 seconds.

Yes, Insight Project

Merlin closed his eyes, shook his head, and said:

I read those parameters, and I still remember them so well. I thought it was completely buried.

Obviously, it doesn't.

Icarus' voice also became low, and the artificial intelligence lady also realized that something was wrong, and she whispered:

A vetoed ghost was resurrected, and it was without your knowledge. The most important question now is, Nick Fury, why did he do this without telling you?

I don't know either

Merlin looked at the construction site in front of him, and said softly:

But he's here, so maybe we can ask him face to face.

The next moment, Merlin turned around.

He saw Fury, who was wearing the iconic black leather jacket, turtleneck sweater, military trousers, combat boots, and blindfold, angrily walking towards Merlin under the guard of several agents.

Fury glared at Merlin, and there was a smear of anger that could not be concealed in the remaining eyes.

But a few seconds later, as if discouraged again, he sighed and waved his hand.

The agents and omnics around the two stepped back immediately, leaving space for their chief and deputy chief to talk.

The two bosses obviously had a conflict, and they wanted to talk about something. At this time, of course, the winking subordinate should stay as far away as possible.

You shouldn't be here, Merlin.

Fury whispered:

I was going to tell you when it was all done.

But here I am.

Merlin looked straight into Fury's eyes, and he said expressionlessly:

Maybe I should be glad I'm here, stop it before you cause a catastrophe, Fury!

Cause a catastrophe?

Fury said:

No, the plan has been approved by the World Security Council, it must be done, Merlin, and we need it.

We discussed it before, Fury!

Merlin says:

We all know it's flawed, seriously, horribly flawed, and it only takes one misstep to kill millions!

We improved it!

Fury retorted:

Its artificial intelligence and execution programs have been rewritten. Stark and Dr. Banner are working hard on this, and we are minimizing the risk!

Merlin, I know you're wary of this, it's right, it's risky, yes, but we can't stand still just because of the risk.

With his hands behind his back, the chief said in a low voice:

One hour ago, sl.d. stopped an A-level event in the Gulf of Mexico, and drove a group of aliens who broke space and tried to invade us back to their world.

Our witcher agents and our wizarding allies are doing a great job, I can't help but applaud them.

But, Merlin, we obviously have a better solution than letting the brave face this danger directly.

Pointing to the three motherships under construction in front of him, he said to Merlin:

Imagine that group of invaders from other worlds jumping into our world. A few seconds after they enter this space, the super firepower from the sky will hit them head-on.

The devastating blow will make them frightened, and flee back to their own world with their tails tucked between their legs, and they will no longer dare to pay greedy attention to our world.

Fury stretched out his hand and made a downward slanting gesture. He said aggressively:

We will kill as many as they come!

Director Braised Egghead looked at Merlin, and he said again:

Have you read sl.d.'s casualty reports for the last 3 months?

Merlin nodded.

Very well, then you should know that in the past four months, our brave witcher agents have suffered the largest loss since they were formed.

Not because they are weak, Merlin, but because they are too tired.

They're busy putting out fires all over the world, saving innocent people from supernatural events, and then going after the weird stuff that's getting rampant.

Fury spread his hands, and he said:

You said it yourself, the 'celestial sphere confluence' once every 5,000 years is coming soon. It is a special phenomenon that we have not experienced. Over the past few years, the more and more frequent supernatural events around the world have proved that it is a serious situation. There are challenges ahead.

We must be prepared, Merlin, if we want to protect this world, we must hold weapons and strength in our hands!

I, like you, thought Project Insight was more of a threat than a benefit, but during my time off I thought a lot and I talked a lot with Pierce.

And when I got back to work, I saw a different angle of distress that I hadn't noticed before.

Fury put his hands behind his back, and he chattered:

S.H.I.E.L.D. is strong, but we're not strong enough. sl.d. has done a great job, but it's still unsatisfactory.

There are many problems facing the world, and now, we have to face even more troublesome things.

Looking back at Merlin, he said:

We need a power that protects itself and protects others

Insight Plan, without a doubt, that's what we need.

Merlin didn't answer, he just looked at Fury in front of him with a strange look.

The latter was made very uncomfortable by Merlin's gaze, he frowned and said:

Don't look at me like that, Merlin, if you have any opinion, just say it.

I just think you've changed

Merlin shook his head and said:

Maybe just having a murder has radicalized you a bit.

I admit that what you said is correct. If you only evaluate it from the aspects you said, then even for those agents who may die on the battlefield, I have no reason to prevent the passage of the insight plan.

But here's the thing, Fury

Merlin raised his head, looked at Fury, and said:

In addition to fighting against more and more frequent supernatural threats, the target list of the insight system also shoulders the part of correcting and fighting crimes, and on this part of the task, I still insist on my point of view.

It cannot be executed, it cannot be lifted into the sky!

I would also like to see a world free from crime and conflict, but not through fear and violent oppression!

Merlin said in a low tone, almost word for word:

No matter how you modify its program, no matter how many layers of defense system you set up for it, no matter how carefully you use it.

As long as it still has a user with personal emotions like you and me, it will be a bomb that hovers over the world and cannot be triggered.

There are people like Gideon Malik in the World Security Council. Facts have proved that such a hidden danger will eventually become a tool for ambitious people to destroy order!

Merlin leaned on a cane, and said in a low tone:

Even if you take a step back, from a personal point of view, how can you guarantee it, Fury.

How can you guarantee that on a certain day, when you and I are no longer needed, there won't be a bullet falling from the sky, aiming at you and my head?

Fury wanted to refute, but his mouth moved a few times, but nothing came out.

Because he couldn't refute it.

It is undeniable that Project Insight is flawed, and deeply flawed, and there is no guarantee that Project Insight's overseers will not abuse the system for personal reasons.

even merlin himself

There is no guarantee that you can resist the temptation to solve all problems once and for all with violence.

It is even more terrifying if there is no user and everything is judged by data.

That is to say, SHIELD is using cold data to decide who deserves to live and who deserves to die

This is a paradox.

You shouldn't have agreed to this proposal in the first place, Fury.

Merlin looked at the space carriers under construction, he sighed, and said:

Sending soldiers to the battlefield, there will always be sacrifices, but it's better than personally destroying the world order we've been upholding, these things, they will only ruin everything completely, and even pay for SHIELD together!

It has been executed!

Fury no longer went to see Merlin, he said in a strong tone:

I'm not going to stop it, I'm not going to be naive enough to stop there until I find a way to have the best of both worlds, and I'm not going to let things get worse.

I will carry it out, Merlin. These three insight motherships will use North America as a test site. Facts will prove whether the insight plan is useful.

And in order to fulfill our duty, I am willing to take risks

If you are not willing to take the risk, then you can hide aside and don't get blood on your hands.

Fury turned his back to Merlin, he didn't seem to intend to continue arguing with Merlin, he said softly in a resolute tone:

Go and continue to be your hero, Merlin.

The role of the bad guy

I'll do it!