Fury woke with a start. He lurched forward, almost sliding from the plush leather of his chair as he glanced about in a panic, not sure where he was. It took a moment to get his bearings, realizing finally that he was in his office at his desk, the computerized refrain of 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' blaring in the background.
Colonel Nicholas Joseph Fury leaned forward with a frown and slammed his hand down on the gaudy bit of electronics that was his alarm clock decorating a corner of his huge oaken desk. The thing was annoying and looked totally out of place with the rest of the décor of the room. Cast in plastic and metal and painted in red-white-and blue, it had a small replica of the Liberty Bell atop it that clanged on the hour and a small American flag waved along with the tinny music when the alarm went off. It was a novelty piece to say the least, and as much as Fury hated the thing he just did not have the heart to toss it out. It had been a Christmas gift after all- from Steve Rogers no less. Only Captain America could find something like that and not consider it a joke.
Fury stood and stretched, only then thinking to actually check the time. It was still dark out and not yet six in the morning. He had slept, surprisingly, almost four solid hours. Sleep was a rare treat lately, generally coming in bits and pieces, minutes grabbed whenever he could. He stretched again, and then Fury reached across his cluttered desktop and touched the intercom button on his over-sized phone console.
There was a buzz of static and a flash of light, followed by a pleasant female voice-
"Good morning, Colonel. Sleep well?"
"Yeah, Huff. I'm up. Better buzz the others an' make sure they are too. I'll meet 'em in Conference Room F in twenty."
"Very good, Colonel."
Fury closed the connection, stifling a yawn. He never seemed to get enough sleep, no matter how many hours he managed to squeeze in on a given night. He suspected it was old age more than fatigue, but he had been running ragged the last few days so supposed that it was all finally catching up with him. Sleep or no, he had to snap out of it over the next few minutes though. There were too many people counting on the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. to be at his peak.
He strolled across the dark, thick carpet barely making a sound as he snagged his suit jacket from where he had thrown it- across the back of the plush leather sofa- the night before. The entire office smelled of rich leather and polished wood. The high, floor-to-ceiling book shelves were crammed full with novels and reference books, encyclopedias and biographical works that he had never read, nor even considered reading. He had used the massive roll-down wall atlases on occasion, but his computer set-up that contained the same information at the touch of a button was still wrapped up tight, its vinyl dust covers doing their job well. Truly, about the only thing that he really liked in his extravagant UN offices was the huge globe that the Contessa had bought him one birthday. It was over three feet in diameter, done over in rich browns and gold with a massive and intricate gilded oak base. It was several years out of date now, predating the discorporation of the USSR, but Fury rarely checked it for the countries. He pushed a stud on the base and the upper half of the globe swiveled aside to reveal an elaborate wet bar hidden within, stocked with a wide variety of liquors as well as a humidor full of Cuba's best. Contraband of course, but being the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. still had a few perks.
Fury selected a cigar and closed the globe, taking only a moment to breathe the stogie to life before continuing into the wash room off of his main office. He closed the door behind him out of modesty should his secretary Margaret Huff need something from the office, and hung his jacket on the hook on the back of the door. The overhead lights had come on automatically, giving Fury an enlightened view of his upper torso in the bathroom mirror. He stared at the battered face that looked out at him; tired and worn, gaunt. He needed a shave.
He needed a shower as well, but he did not have the time. Fury stripped off his shirt and ran a hot wash cloth over his upper body and through his hair before lathering up his face. His mind wandered over the case at hand as he scraped at his face with a dulling straight razor, trying to fill in the elusive missing pieces of the current puzzle that was making his life so difficult.
It had started with Sebastian Shaw and his mutant Hellfire Club some weeks earlier. Corporations of his holding and his fellow members had been discreetly buying up stock in other, seemingly unrelated companies around the world over the past few months. The UN and the FTC had both thought it important enough for S.H.I.E.L.D. to get involved, and Fury in turn had assigned his administrative and financial bureaus to investigate behind the scenes. That had all become secondary of course when the Wrecking Crew had attacked a meeting of trade at the United Nations.
Agent Thirteen- Sharon Carter and her own crew of ‘heroes’ had been on top of that, stopping the Wrecker and his gang but not before one of the delegates had been injured, and almost killed. That delegate had been a representative of the Black Panther’s home nation of Wakanda, and at a casual glance seemed to have no connection to Shaw’s activities. Fury knew better of course. Luckily, after the deaths of many of the world’s heroes like the Fantastic Four and the Avengers Fury had put several of the lesser heroes left on SHIELD’s payroll. He called in some high-powered help.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had seemingly learned nothing new the night of the attack, so Fury had contacted the Black Panther himself to get his insight on why his man might have been singled out for assault. The Panther of course was as much in the dark as Carter, and Fury himself really, but he did offer his help- eventually and after some tense discussion- in getting to the bottom of the mystery.
Fury sent the Black Panther to look into the past, abandoned Sons of the Serpent bases to see if he might learn anything new while he and the Black Widow traveled to New York's Westchester; there to visit with the X-Men in hopes of getting some insight on their old villain, Sebastian Shaw. Outside of the Xavier Estate however, Fury and the Widow ran into the Sons of the Serpent.
The nearby town of Salem Center it appeared had somehow been mind-controlled into marching on Xavier's mansion. When Fury and the Widow arrived they found several hundred people from the neighboring town converging on the estate, with the X-Men's member's Storm, Nightcrawler and Wolverine opposing them as best they could under the circumstances. The X-Men were, of course, caught up in the mind control as well, and it took all of the skill that they could muster for Fury and especially the Black Widow to turn that tide and stop the mesmerized mob.
Meanwhile, the Black Panther had followed his leads to the Sons of the Serpent's last major base of operations that was still standing. It was a building and properties owned by Kyle Richmond, AKA Nighthawk of the Defenders, and had been shut down twice by the owner; once by Richmond's non-team and more recently by the combined forces of the Avengers and the New Warriors. The Panther had contacted Richmond en route, and together they went to Manhattan's East Side to investigate the abandoned office building where all seemed quiet, at least on the surface at first. Deep in the darkened base however, the Avenger and the Defender faced off against two members of the mercenary Serpent Society, apparently connected with the Sons of the Serpent still, after their last outing under the leadership of King Cobra. The Cobra in fact was one of the two assailants- attacking the Black Panther, while his accomplice- Death Adder tried to slay Nighthawk. The heroes had won out in the end, but not before another Society member- the Sidewinder- appeared and teleported the Cobra away to safety. Fury could not understand why the Cobra, if he was still in charge of the Society and the Sons of the Serpents as well, would risk his own skin in an assault.
Fury winced, sucking in air as blood suddenly welled on his cheek. He was letting his mind wander too much, not paying attention to what he was doing literally with a 'knife' at his throat. But then, the whole deal with the Serpents and Shaw had been like that- mind addling and confusing.
All that he and the Widow had learned in Westchester was that whoever was running the Serpents seemed to be playing off of the Cobra's last scheme, wanting to set the world aflame and using the mind control disks of Basil Sandhurst- the Controller to do it. It turned out that many of the citizens that had attacked the Xavier Estate had been wearing a modified version of Sandhurst's disks. They were using robots too- Life Model Decoys- as Richmond and the Panther found out that that was what the supposedly dead Death Adder truly was.
Fury wondered who had the power and the savvy to convert the Controller's disks and incite a crowd into a riot, sending everyone around the controlled snakes into a rage as they had done even more recently- just the day before in Harlem. It had taken the combined might of Nick Fury and his assembled heroes, along with the additions of Luke Cage Power Man, the high-flying Falcon and the Daughters of the Dragon- Misty Knight and Colleen Wing- to squash the uprising that could have set all of Harlem aflame instead of just their most renowned street. Even so dozens had died in that riot; not only average citizens but police and firemen as well, and the property damage was still climbing into the millions of dollars. It was in the aftermath of that battle in Harlem that they all had learned that Shaw was truly involved, or at least connected. The Hate-Monger-like source of the rage that had swept across 125th Street had been the result of one of Shaw's junior flunkies; a young mutant from his White Queen's defunct Salem Academy by the name of Empath. The boy's mutant power had been the ability to manipulate emotions, and that had been amplified by the converted disks of the Controller to start the Harlem riot. Fury and Luke Cage had put a stop to that plot, taking out the source of the 'wave of anger' and another member of the Serpent Society in the process- Cottonmouth!
What they had not expected was that the boy Empath was dead, and had been for some years. Cage had pulled the decayed body of the boy from the back of a disguised van when Fury had inadvertently set off an explosion within trying to stop Cottonmouth. The boy's body had been hooked up to a complicated array of machinery, apparently tapping into his mutant empathy powers and broadcasting hate through the antenna of the converted news van to the Serpents rolling through Harlem. The anger swelled within the snakes, and was then broadcast to any and all about them through the modified control disks that they had been wearing. Charles Xavier had arrived on the scene sometime after the fighting had ended and confirmed not only that, but that the decrepit body was indeed that of the deceased Hellion, Empath. The body had apparently been exhumed at some point, it's power tapped somehow.
Another mystery to be solved. Another piece of the puzzle that Fury could not seem to solve.
Fury rinsed the excess shaving cream from his face and hurriedly dressed. He was going to be late he realized. Fashionably so, but late never the less. His only saving grace was that he knew Wolverine would probably arrive even later than he would. Logan was not known for his punctuality, at least in cases like this.
Fury slipped on a fresh shirt, then donned his suit jacket. He had changed after returning to his UN offices from Harlem and was wearing a trim cut blue Armani tailored to fit him to a tee. The design at least was Armani, but Fury knew that it had been retailored with the usual S.H.I.E.L.D. specifics. The jacket itself was a special weave of fire resistant, bullet proof material complete with buttons that doubled as incendiaries and short term oxygen tablets. His cuff links were energy absorbers and dischargers individually, and combined into a powerful miniature atomic powered battery. His pocket pen doubled as a radio transmitter and a parabolic receiver. His stylish tie was laced with a micro thin molecular wire that would cut through almost anything this side of adamantium like a cheese cutter, and when applied properly it could act as a garrote. Even his favored Ingrams MAC 10 super-machine pistol was more than it appeared to be. The muzzle of the gun had been modified to adapt a silencer and a grenade clip, and in the direst emergencies, a small-scale rocket launcher. Fully clothed, Fury felt like a walking arsenal, but he suspected that he was no better armed than he had been in World War II; just higher tech.
Fury smoothed down the creases in his suit and ran a hand back through his dark, graying hair. He slipped his eye patch into place last, then plucked his smoldering cigar from the tray he kept on the bathroom window ledge and headed for the office doors, ready to go, wishing he could simply go back to bed.
***
Natalia Alianovna Romanova sat at the conference table drumming her fingers on the polished oak tabletop as she stared out the window looking out over the borough of Queens, New York. The sun was just topping the horizon, the start of another crisp, cool day in the city. The few remaining clouds of yesterday's snow tinted the morning light to soft lavender, the golden rays of the sun beaming strong and clear. To the north she could see the trailing end of the Tri-Borough Bridge- the famous 59th Street Bridge where it descended into Queens. The Roosevelt Island Tram was just starting its first run into Manhattan, bobbing along on its cables suspended dozens of yards above the East River. Farther away to the east, through the misty smoke of the Domino Sugar Factory, Natalia could just make out the silhouette of the huge metallic globe and stone towers that marked the park in Flushing Meadows; past site of the New York World's Fair staged there decades ago, and now the home of the New York Mets and Shea Stadium, and the US Tennis Open championships every Labor Day.
Despite the ugly sprawl that seemed to stretch away beyond the horizon there were times when New York could be beautiful. The sight of planes taking off and landing from La Guardia Airport gave the already surreal scene an almost mystical quality. Like something from some futuristic fairy tale. Of course she knew that all too soon the sun would be up above the horizon in all its glory, and the beauty that was momentarily captured would quickly fade away as the chaos of another work day dawned, and the streets of Manhattan would clog with choking exhaust and blaring horns. She could already see cars backing up on the FDR Drive several stories below, the first of the day's commuters already trapped in traffic.
The Black Widow sighed and leaned back in her chair. She recrossed her legs, wrinkling her nose at the annoying groan that accompanied her slightest movement; the leather weave of her own jumpsuit conflicting with the soft plastic of the conference room chair. She sipped at her morning coffee and saw Wolverine smirking at her over the rim of her steaming mug. He shrugged, motioning towards the closed door of the room's adjoining lavatory, and the Widow blushed at what he was implying, only realizing that he was joking when his smile widened and he chuckled to himself.
Like herself, Wolverine was dressed in his 'work clothes', the modified uniform of yellow and blue that he had adapted when he first joined the X-Men years ago. It was almost the same as what he had worn as Weapon X, when he had worked for the Canadian government's Department H, the then fledgling paranormal unit hastily assembled in answer to the debut of the Fantastic Four. Natalia suspected that most governments had followed suit not long after the fateful rocket launch of Reed Richards. She knew her own Soviet Union had started training those they deemed 'worthy' to serve Mother Russia soon after the incredible Hulk made his first appearance and battled the deformed scientist: the Gargoyle! Before long, perhaps even too soon in some cases, the USSR had a small army of super agents that they hoped would equal the might of the western world's heroes; the Titanium Man, the Crimson Dynamo, and the bestial Abomination among them. Not to mention of course, the beauteous Black Widow.
Natalia smiled recalling those earlier, simpler days. Despite her skills and beauty she knew she had been a fool, squaring off against the invincible Iron Man wearing a cocktail dress and high heels. Even with the aid of Hawkeye the Marksman, her one time lover and partner, she knew now that she had never had a chance. Back then of course she had been dedicated to the Kremlin, and a virtual slave to the KGB, blindly following their most outlandish orders. It had all been a subtle form of brainwashing over the years, and it had taken her love for Clint Barton to finally break the iron grip that the Soviets had her tightly in. And so much had happened since then: the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D., and the Champions-
Natalia jumped, feeling the hand on her shoulder, almost dropping her coffee cup. She glanced up and saw Wolverine suddenly standing beside her, a look of concern on his rugged, scruffy face. His hair was feathered back, still damp from a shower she presumed, and his face was rough with a thick stubble of beard. His cool eyes looked gray as he studied her, worry creasing the skin at the corners as he squinted, trying to see within her. Natalia shivered-
"You okay, Tasha?" he asked, his usually gravelly voice soft. "You were kinda spacin' out there fer a minute."
Natalia forced a smile, touching her friend's hand still lightly resting on her shoulder. "Just thinking, Logan. Being here, fighting alongside you and Nicolas brings back too many old memories."
"Tell me about it!" the X-Man grinned, leaning against the conference table. "You remember that time in Madripor? You and Nick were disguised as a rich yuppie couple out ta experience a little excitement in one 'a the seediest bars on the planet, all the while lookin' fer some nut case tryin' ta sell some high grade plutonium on the black market. Course I was there dressed in my 'Patch' ID. That was a sight in itself: me in my eye patch an' Nicky sportin' a glass eye that was loaded with an advanced S.H.I.E.L.D. laser…"
Natalia smiled and nodded as her friend droned on. Wolverine had more than his fair share of old memories as well, but his reminiscing was distracting her own. She only half-listened as she glanced about the spacious room. Besides the large table itself and a dozen chairs there was little in the way of furniture or décor. The walls were paneled in a dark wood that blended well with a short brown carpeting. There was a roll down wall map showing the United States and North America covering most of one wall, and a monitor array set up on another, ten smaller screens flanking one large, flat monitor in the center. A US flag and a UN flag stood midway between the two doors leading to the hallway, and a coffee cart was situated in one corner near the door that closed off the small rest room.
Seated about the table were several people, all of which Natalia knew in some fashion save one. Most impressive and imposing of course was the King of Wakanda; T'Challa, the Black Panther. He was an old friend, and a teammate from the mighty Avengers. They had known one another for years, and had shared many adventures together. He sat near one of the two other women in the room, watching as she manipulated the keyboard of a small laptop computer, occasionally making comments on what she was doing. She wondered what he was thinking through all of this, and too how he felt being one of the few Avengers left that had not given their lives to stop Onslaught that day. It burned her, and was he any less proud?
The woman looked familiar, but Natalia could not place her. She had been introduced simply as Linden. She was obviously a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, as she was dressed in the standard blue jump suit that Fury had reinstated as official attire when the organization resumed operation with UN backing after the Deltite affair and a short stint as an independent agency. Her uniform denoted her as one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s hierarchy as the agent pecking order went, the brown trim of her belt and gun harness marking her as part of Administration while the gold trimming her arm badge labeled her a Level Two Special Director, second only to the likes of Dum Dum Dugan and Fury himself. She was attractive Natalia had to admit, with a near perfect figure and a full mane of golden blonde hair, but she also appeared intelligent, in contrast to her stereotypical appearance. Her attention was focused on the monitor screen of her personal computer as she listened intently to whatever the Panther was suggesting. Natalia knew computers to a certain extent, but it was easy to see that the Linden woman was a genius at her keyboard. Her long slim fingers flew over the keys, and almost faster than she could follow Natalia saw the screen adjust to whatever changes the agent was making to the spreadsheet program that she had up and running.
As impressive as Linden was however, the other woman in the room was more so Natalia knew from past experience. Dressed in the S.H.I.E.L.D. standard as well, she wore a full Special Director's uniform, one she had earned through countless trials in the many years that she had been a member of the intelligence organization. She was still exotically beautiful, her hair with its shock of white only slightly graying in streaks, her darkish Mediterranean skin just slightly creased about the eyes and lips. She appeared still in fantastic health despite what her age should be, and Natalia had to wonder just what might be her secret.
The Black Widow knew that most of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top operatives had been placed in a form of suspended animation when they had been replaced by Life Model Decoys during the Deltite Affair that had crushed the original S.H.I.E.L.D. Sometime later the likes of James Woo and Jasper Sitwell had received a new lease on life when their bodies had been discovered and revived in their seeming prime.
Only Fury's closest comrades had escaped the Deltite replacement. Dum Dum Dugan had later been captured by the Yellow Claw and was similarly treated to cryogenics, explaining his apparent vigor and retarded aging. Only the semi-retired Gabriel Jones- one of the original WWII Howlers, and the Contessa Valentina Allegro De Fontaine had not been replaced in one form or another. Jones, now almost ninety years old was showing his age, but the Contessa, though older, still did not seem as ancient as she should appear. Natalia wondered if perhaps Nick Fury might have shared the secrets of his own Infinity Formula with the woman he had once loved, now that the strange chemicals that ran through his blood had stabilized.
The Contessa sat at the table going over hard copy folders that Natalia assumed were somehow connected with the current Sons of the Serpent crisis. At her side was another S.H.I.E.L.D. operative that the Black Widow had heard of but never actually met. His code name had been Scorpio, and that was now his true name as well; Mikel Scorpio Fury in fact. He claimed to be Nick Fury's son. Natalia had never heard the full story, though she knew that if she asked Wolverine would probably tell it to her as he had been with Fury through the whole Scorpio Conspiracy. What she did know was that an old flame of Fury's had harbored a grudge with the Executive Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., and apparently for good reason. She had borne Fury's son, but had raised him with a misguided passion to hate Nick Fury with the same obsession that she did. She had lied to the boy, telling him that he was actually the son of Fury's brother Jake, the original Scorpio. She told him too that Nick had killed Jake who the boy had believed to be his true father, as he had no reason to believe otherwise. She had even somehow acquired the fabled Zodiac Key, that otherworldly artifact that Jake Fury had wielded as Scorpio in the name of the mysterious Brotherhood from a parallel dimension that worshipped Chaos. The woman had given the key to her son and set him on a path to kill his uncle Nick- in reality his real father. He had almost succeeded, and would have if not for the luck and skill of Nick Fury and the assistance of the mutant Wolverine. There were other adventures with the boy Natalia recalled; bizarre adventures in South America and a run against Hydra that she had only heard rumors of. Fury kept his son under some wraps, though he allowed Scorpio to actually join S.H.I.E.L.D. and even to legally change his name. He was a handsome youth, headstrong and cocky just like his father, and again like his sire he seemed to hang on the Contessa's every word as she explained something in her files.
The final member of the group that had gathered in the conference room was Kyle Richmond, AKA Nighthawk. He was dressed again in his original uniform, a grayish blue trimmed in black and sporting a brown, feathered wing-like cloak. Like the Black Panther, he had his hood pulled back revealing his true face that was twisted in concern and deep in thought. Natalia could tell that his mind was racing over the events of the past few days.
Perhaps he was thinking of his return to his abandoned offices located on Manhattan's East Side where he and the Panther had encountered members of the Serpent Society while investigating the old base of the Sons of the Serpent that had been housed there. It had to have been a blow to his ego, his very sensibilities when Richmond learned in a battle as a Defender against the Sons that it was his own money that had been funding the hate group. His own financial advisor had been the Serpent Supreme, funneling Richmond's wealth into the Serpent's coffers, trying ultimately to rid the tenements and ghettos of the minorities that lived there, hoping in turn to buy up the abandoned buildings and land to add money again to Richmond's wallet. Financially, it had been a sound plan, but morally and legally it was wrong, and Kyle Richmond had spent the subsequent years trying to make amends for all of the destruction that had been wrought in his name.
Maybe he was thinking on how easily he had succumbed to the 'Wave of Anger' that had swept through the streets of Harlem just the day before. Of all the gathered heroes that had responded to the emergency, he was the only one who had not been strong enough to withstand the emotional manipulations of the Sons of the Serpents and the amplified powers of the mutant Empath that had driven so many people into a frenzy. Perhaps the pent up rage, the guilt over all of his past mistakes had left him an easy mark for the Hellion's powers. Perhaps he was just not as strong-willed as the rest of them. Nighthawk was a Defender, and associated with the likes of Doctor Strange, the Sub-Mariner, and the Hulk, but he did not have the same training as the rest of the impromptu group opposing the Serpents. Natalia, Wolverine and Fury had all had training to withstand various forms of mind control through their intelligence work over the years. Wolverine even more than the others as he had spent the last several years in the company of two of the most powerful mentalists on the planet. The Black Panther of course was a king and one of the strongest willed people on the face of the earth in his own right. He had been trained from birth to rely on the strength of his mind, and it was only right that he would be able to fight off the emotional control that they had all encountered.
Richmond however, despite his past and his abilities was still just a man. His façade of a millionaire playboy was not such a masque as he might hope. Natalia knew that before he was changed by the immortal Grandmaster, Richmond had been brash and shallow, more interested in the thrills that his money might buy than the actual workings of his finances. That was why his advisor had so easily corrupted Richmond's name and status without his knowledge years ago, and why more recently Sebastian Shaw had been able to buy a percentage of Richmond's stocks, thus enabling the Black King of the Hellfire Club to gain access to Richmond Industry files and indirectly access into the more secure data banks of the Defenders.
According to Fury it was all part of some scheme on Shaw's part to help him gain even more financial power than he already had. The industrialist and his followers in the Hellfire Club had been buying into companies for months, gaining interest in various corporations like Brand and Roxxon, Cord and Richmond. Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. and the FTC had yet to find the connecting link, which was why they were all gathered now in a conference room in the UN General building awaiting the Executive Director with his latest findings.
As if on cue one of the doors to the conference room opened and Natalia saw the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. silhouetted in the doorway. He had changed clothes Natalia noticed, and she could see that he had even taken the time to shave, though he had not done too good a job of it as his neck was still shadowed with stubble and he had a moist dab of blood on his chin. He stalked into the conference room trailing a cloud of blue smoke from his corona, his face showing only a little less concern than Richmond's. A moment later and Natalia knew why-
Close on Fury's heels was another man who the Black Widow recognized instantly. He was tall and almost gaunt, with his close-cropped red hair shaved in a military crew cut accentuating the thinness of his face. He was dressed in a drab green three-piece suit and was wearing a pair of tinted horn-rimmed glasses more to hide his eyes than shield them from the glare. He stopped in the doorway, pausing just long enough to scan the room and the people assembled within before another figure appeared behind him. Henry Peter Gyrich, one-time government liaison to the Avengers and member of the National Security Council glanced back over his shoulder with an annoyed frown then stepped fully into the room and took a seat at the large oval table.
The Black Widow knew the other man as well. She had met him, albeit briefly, when Fury had first approached her and briefed her on the mission he had in mind against Sebastian Shaw. The man was in his fifties and dressed not too differently than Gyrich in a generically cut, no name suit of gray wool. His brown hair was thinning on top and graying on the sides but he kept it well trimmed she noted. He wore a pair of wire rimmed spectacles low on his nose which he adjusted as he stepped into the room behind Gyrich and took a seat at the table. His name was Jonathan Farrel and he was a government agent in his own right working for the US Federal Trade Commission.
Both Gyrich and Farrel opened briefcases and began pulling out papers and folders, arranging them for easy access. Fury had a stack of folders as well, which he deposited on the table before his chair and quickly ignored as he pulled out his silver Zippo and started to breathe his cigar back to life. Gyrich glared at Fury, but the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. ignored the government man and actually passed a cigar and the lighter to Wolverine. The X-Man grinned as he puffed his cigar to life, as though daring Gyrich to say something. There was no love lost between the two men to say the least, as Gyrich had been involved with Project Wide Awake, the government's last federally funded mutant witch hunt. It was actually Farrel that finally spoke up-
"I believe this is a non-smoking building Colonel Fury. If you don't mind-" His voice was deep, but somewhat timid as Wolverine turned his gaze on the man.
"I do mind, Farrel." Fury barked, leaning back in his chair. "I don't got many vices, but this one helps me think. An' if I gotta deal with the likes 'a you an' Gyrich, then you're gonna have ta deal with me."
Farrel sighed but did not pursue the matter, instead returning his attention to his files. Natalia heard Wolverine chuckle as Fury got to his feet-
"Awright! Let's get this show on the road. I think you all know Henry Peter Gyrich 'a the NSC. This is Jonathan Farrel of the FTC. He's been coordinatin' with S.H.I.E.L.D. lookin' inta Shaw's current buyin' spree. Gyrich is here cuz the United States is S.H.I.E.L.D.'s biggest backer in the UN an' I guess Uncle Sam wants ta know where his money's goin'." Fury indicated both men and they nodded at the room in general. It seemed that neither was too happy to be there.
"I'll give ya all a brief run down on the clean up in Westchester an' Harlem before ya ask. Charles Xavier managed ta free up all 'a the people from Salem Center that were under the influence 'a the Controller's disks. All in all we made out better there than we should'a, considerin'. There were no casualties, just a lotta bruises an' a few cases a hypothermia. Nothin' that a coupl'a aspirin won't cure. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s spin-doctors are playin' the whole thing off as mass hysteria with Xavier's help since there weren't actually any Serpents ta blame on site. I don't have all the specs, but they're blamin' it on geothermal gases or some such stirred up by the freak weather that Storm caused, though no one knows that tidbit. We didn't find the source a' the 'Anger Wave', even with Xavier's help, but in the end nobody got hurt too bad, an' that's always a plus. We weren't so lucky up in Harlem though…
"Final tallies show twenty seven dead and ninety two injured bad enough ta go ta the hospital after that fiasco. That's not countin' the four dozen Sons 'a the Serpent that we took down. It could'a been a lot worse I guess, but one casualty is one too many. An' there ain't no way we're gonna be able ta cover that up, not that we want to. PR's hittin' the hate angle hard, blamin' the whole thing on the snakes and playin' up the intervention 'a the more colorful heroes that helped out; the Widow, the Panther an' the Falcon 'a the Avengers an' Cage an' Nighthawk 'a the Defenders. Xavier's still up in Harlem with Storm an' Pryde helpin' out too, so barrin' any unseen problems poppin' up we ought'a be able ta ride that out no problem." Fury glanced at Gyrich, but the man said nothing, merely tapping a pen on the tabletop while Farrel made notes in his files.
"As far as that kid's body that Cage pulled outta the van, Xavier confirmed that the corpse was the boy, Empath. I contacted the S.H.I.E.L.D. offices in Spain ta have 'em check on the kid's grave at the de la Rocha estate, but from what Wolverine tells me there wasn't all that much a the Hellions ta bury when they were killed. How the Serpents got a hold a the kid's body, an' how they managed ta tap inta his powers we ain't figured out yet. Everybody figures that Shaw is involved again, or at least one a' his flunkies, but there ain't no hard proof ta go by. An' Cottonmouth, the snake from the Serpent Society ain't gonna be talkin' any time soon either. The explosive charge I fired inta the cab 'a that news van where he was watchin' the kid's body put him inta a coma. His helmet an' armor saved him fer the most part, but he's in the ICU at St. Luke's Hospital- under guard a' course- an' will be for awhile. The only thing we really got outta him is circumstance, backin' up that the Serpent Society is involved, if not at the bottom of everything.
"Which brings us back ta square one. We still don't know what Shaw's up to, or what his overall ties ta the snakes might be. Linden?" Fury turned to the agent sitting at the table waiting as she finished typing at her laptop. Natalia saw her flush slightly, realizing that all eyes were suddenly on her, and she fumbled through her papers until she uncovered a small console remote that she aimed at the monitor array as soon as Fury stepped aside. There was a flicker of light and static as the monitors shifted from the various CNN news channels and displayed a variety of images that apparently were connected to whatever Linden was working with on her personal computer.
There were several different images displayed on the monitor array: Natalia recognized most of them. A CNN link still ran a live feed from the clean up on 125th Street. A generically blonde reporter stood interviewing Misty Knight and the Reverend Al Sharpton over their reactions concerning the Sons of the Serpent's attack on the Harlem neighborhood. The sound was muted, but Natalia could easily make out most of what Sharpton was saying, reading his lips. He was fervently denouncing the Serpents as being nothing but a hate group, comparing them to the Klan and the mutant-hating Friends of Humanity. Misty Knight stood in the background agreeing with what Sharpton was saying. She was obviously on camera for her past connections to the NYPD, and because she was a decorated hero, having saved several civilians years before from an explosion and losing an arm in the process. The Widow saw the interview for what it was in reality, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s attempt to manipulate the media and spin the public relations concerning the incident. She wondered briefly if the reporter might be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent actually working for CNN.
Another screen pictured a slide show with images of the known past and present members of the Serpent Society from its inception when it was originally called the Serpent Squad to its recent activities under the command of the King Cobra. Natalia knew that clicking on any of the images would bring up a broader file displaying both the image of the chosen member as well as a technical read out concerning the snake's criminal record, origins and powers. As she watched the screen flow from one picture to the next she tried to memorize the most current appearance of all the members. She recognized most of the snakes- from Anaconda to Rattler- but she had encountered few during her career. There was Viper of course. She had battled the one-time leader of New York's Hydra arm on more than one occasion. Despite the woman's lack of flashy powers, both Natalia and Fury knew that she was easily the most dangerous of the group. As the Black Widow she had fought against the Cobra as well as the original Eel before he was slain by his replacement. Like the Eel and even Viper, Diamondback was no longer affiliated with the Society, but her image appeared just the same. Natalia considered Diamondback- Rachel Leighton- to be a close friend and was a partner in the hero group known as the Champions. The final member of the Serpent Society that the Widow had actually met was another ousted member: Princess Python. She was something of a joke in the criminal underworld though no one really knew why. She was a simple carnival snake charmer that had joined up with the villainous Ringmaster and his Circus of Crime. They were a rather embarrassing attempt at a super villain group, but somehow over the years they had encountered some of the strongest and most respected heroes in the super hero community. The Ringmaster and the Princess, along with the likes of the Clown of Crime, the original Cannonball, and the acrobatic 'Great' Gambonnos had gone up against heroes like Spider-Man, Daredevil, the incredible Hulk and the mighty Thor. They had even attacked the mighty Avengers in their own mansion, crashing the wedding of Henry Pym and Janet Van Dyne and very nearly killing the bride in the process. Natalia had first encountered Princess Python at that affair, but had learned later from Anthony Stark how the woman had come close to defeating Iron Man once thereafter with only her pet snake- a twenty-five foot rock python. The Princess was apparently expelled from the Society, her current whereabouts unknown, but then so too were most of the others.
One monitor seemed to be focused on an Internet scan seeking information pertaining to the Sons of the Serpent, the Serpent Society and Viper. Occasionally the screen would sputter and a prompt box would appear displaying a match. That was then logged and filed in another pending folder and the search would resume. Another screen showed a similar search of on-line databases containing information on Sebastian Shaw, Shaw industries, and apparently all of the members of his Hellfire Club across the world. There was a scrolling screen similar to the one devoted to the Serpents based on the Hellfire Club's membership and activities, and another hero based screen to search for any of that community currently running into any of those villains under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s scrutiny. There was a monitor following the stock market worldwide: in Manhattan, another in the UK, and another in Japan, though Natalia knew that the Nikkei was closed for the day. All no doubt seeking any word connected to Shaw Industries or whatever key words that the FTC was using to track his financial dealings.
"Thank you, Sir." Linden finally said as she shuffled her papers into some order. She did not stand, and the Widow saw that her right leg was enwrapped within a sole to hip metal brace as she rolled her chair back and employed a small laser pointer as she addressed the various screens that she had set up for her presentation. A pencil thin beam of reddish light focused on the monitor displaying Shaw's financial activities as she fingered the mouse pad of her laptop-
"Several weeks ago I was assigned by Director Fury himself, along with Agent Farrel of the FTC to head up an administrative investigation of the financial activities of one Sebastian Shaw. I won't go into all of the tedious details, as most of you know what's involved; it's long and monotonous work dealing with facts and figures. My staff and I spent countless hours tracking down the seemingly limitless holdings of Sebastian Shaw, Shaw Industries, and Shinobi Shaw as well. Shinobi Shaw is Sebastian Shaw's son, and at one time his apparent heir, though there are legalities involving that as almost everything pertaining to this case. Some months ago as you may or may not know, Sebastian Shaw was allegedly assassinated by his son, Shinobi. The elder Shaw was declared legally dead- prematurely it seems- but deceased none the less. During the time of his death, some few months, Shaw Industries and all of its affiliated companies fell into decline as young Shinobi seemingly sought to drive his father's fortune and industry into oblivion-"
"Yeah!" Wolverine interrupted as he settled back on the windowsill. "I remember that. Shaw junior an' a bunch a' other snot-nosed upstarts were havin' some kinda contest ta see who could be the baddest 'bad ass' outta the lot. They were a pain in the butt fer about a heartbeat, then Bishop came around an' the X-Men mopped 'em up about as fast." Linden nodded-
"That's right. However, in the time that Shinobi Shaw was in control of his father's resources, Shaw Industries almost went under financially. Shinobi did not have the financial mastery of business that his father possessed, or possibly he did not care, but countless of Shaw's minor holdings slipped from his overall industry web in that time. At least until Shaw reestablished the fact that he was alive and well and back in command.
"It took some time for Sebastian Shaw to undo the damage that his son had done to his empire. In truth and all told he lost over a dozen of his minor holdings, and also lost controlling stock in companies like Cord and Cross as well as other similar high-end companies that he had bought into when they had fallen on hard times. He was lucky in the fact that his personal lawyer was Harry Leland; not only a friend but also a fellow member of his Hellfire Club. I believe that the only reason that Shaw has a penny to his name today is because Leland was working behind the scenes when Shinobi was in control. Leland kept many of Shaw's holdings active when young Shinobi was liquefying his father's assets, transferring them into shadow accounts and actually transferring title and ownership when he could. Regardless, when Sebastian Shaw 'returned' from the dead he was still a wealthy man. Not quite a billionaire, but far from a mere millionaire.
"Shaw, with the help of Leland and most of the more prominent members of his club, set out to reestablish his financial security and seniority after his resurrection. He focused his attention on acquiring smaller companies, and those larger companies that had fallen on hard times. He bought into the likes of Stane and Brand for the price of a song and bought control into Roxxon and Richmond Industries with only a bit more effort. When my staff and I came into the picture Shaw Industries was up and running again even better than it had before. It was backed by corporations owned by fellow Hellfire Club members as well as outside resources like Yashida Technologies and British Telecom."
"Yashida…" Wolverine leaned forward, suddenly interested for the first time. The Black Widow recalled that her friend Logan had been in love with a woman from Japan named Mariko Yashida for some time. It was a long and complicated affair as she recalled, as the Yashida Clan was not only involved with the Yakuza- the Japanese equivalent of the Maggia- but its clan head was the hero known as Sunfire; Shiro Yoshida, and he was involved with the Empire of the Sun. Linden nodded to Wolverine, and remarkably he remained silent for her to continue.
"Sebastian Shaw spent a good deal of time and money to reestablish his industrial empire. It was a forgone conclusion that he would regain his hold on Pittsburgh's steel industries. That was where Shaw initially made his money, and his grip was too strong to lose hold there despite his son's frivolous spendings. His minor holdings were another matter however, and he did not have the financial credibility to regain his fortunes on his own. He received backing from Leland, as well as Yashida, Blaze Tech, and the South American companies controlled by Emanuel De Costa and other members of his club to a lesser extant.
"We researched Shaw's corporate maneuvers at the request of and in collaboration with the FTC. We were initially looking for any illegal purchases though Shaw and his underlings are generally too cagey to be caught outright like that. It was a long and tedious search, but after some intense deliberation we discovered one common link between all of Shaw's purchases over the last month or so. Roxxon…
"Shaw Industries has made major and minor purchases towards stock in Roxxon Oil and its subsidiaries over the last several weeks. Sometimes they bought just enough stock to gain access to corporate records as is the case with Brand Industries, and at other times buying up enough stock to gain a ruling hand in corporate voting, as in Roxxon itself. Many times the companies that Shaw bought into were so far removed from the parent company that we just did not even see the connection."
"But why?" Natalia finally asked. She was not confused. She understood what Linden was saying, but she could not see just why Shaw had such a fascination with Roxxon Oil. Roxxon had been a thorn in the side of many heroes over the years, the Avengers included. It was Roxxon that had tried to gain control of the world, using the parallel Earth's Squadron Supreme against the Avengers and using the Serpent Crown to…
The Serpent Crown…
"The Serpent Crown…" Natalia voiced the thought echoing through her mind. Linden nodded-
"That's right!" Linden agreed with a self-satisfied smile. "It was the only thing that made sense as we tried to connect everything together. When we saw that Roxxon was at the root of most of Shaw's purchases, it took only a bit of extrapolating to see that the Serpent Crown was the linking factor as far back as the 1960's. As far as our knowledge goes it first appeared worn by a man named Destiny who fought against the Sub-Mariner several times. It resurfaced many times over the years in one form or another; first in the possession of Viper when she confronted Captain America in the early Seventies, and more prominently when it was worn by Hugh Jones- Roxxon's corporate head- some months later when he employed the other-worldly Squadron Supreme against the Avengers. It made its way into the hands of Project Pegasus for a time, and there its mysterious powers were employed to somehow link all of the similar crowns throughout the many parallel universes that we know of, and quite possibly time itself. Through the efforts of the Thing, the Scarlet Witch and Quasar we thought that the crown was destroyed. It resurfaced however in the hands of one of the Deviant race named Ghaur, who used the crown in a bid for world domination. Whether this was the original crown or one of the other-dimensional counterparts we've never been able to discern, but it has not resurfaced again. At least not yet."
"So Shaw's tryin' ta find the Serpent Crown ta take over the world somehow?" Wolverine looked dubious, leaning forward to get a better look at the monitor screens.
"No!" Linden shook her head. "At least we don't think so. We could be wrong of course, but after learning your thoughts on concerning the last few days and after conferring with S.H.I.E.L.D. Tactical and ESP-er units we believe that it is not so much the Serpent Crown itself but actually the information it contains. Apparently anyone who ever wore the Serpent Crown is somehow linked with every other wearer. Their memories are contained in something of a unified mind, accessible by any that want to try to retrieve them. According to the ESP-ers it would take a mind of some potential to sift through all of the random memories to even find, let alone make sense of the foreign thoughts.
"What we believe after debriefing with each of you is that Shaw has allied himself with a former wearer of the crown hoping to gain access of a specific memory from one of the others. What that memory might be we as yet have not deciphered, but we hope to before too long."
"That makes sense." Natalia leaned back in her chair, sipping at a mug of coffee as she tried to sort all of the thoughts in her head into some kind of cohesive order. "According to Captain America's reports in the Avenger's files, Viper wore the crown when he encountered her as Nomad, as did the Atlantean Warlord Krang. The Sub-Mariner's reports stated that along with Destiny, the crown was also worn by his deceased wife, the Lady Dorma, and even Namor himself. If Shaw has allied himself with Viper, then she would have access to the memories of all of those Atlanteans-"
"As well as the Thing, the Scarlet Witch, Quasar, and later Marvel Girl, Susan Richards, Storm… It's a long list." Linden typed a bit on her laptop, adjusting the views of several monitors to show a JPEG of the Serpent Crown and images of all of those known to have worn the crown.
"So what memory was Viper trying to retrieve?" Kyle Richmond stepped forward, staring at the changing monitor screens. "I mean, it all sounds plausible, but there's just too many people pictured here to even begin to tie it all together. The Thing's been around for years and Namor for decades. How can we even begin to figure this out?"
"Vibranium." The Black Panther leaned back in his chair equally intent on the monitor screens but not as livid as Nighthawk.
"What?"
"Vibranium!" he repeated. "It's the missing link in the equation. The thing that ties the initial assault at the UN with Roxxon Oil and inevitably Sebastian Shaw. Several years ago Roxxon Oil came across an Island in the South Atlantic that was composed almost entirely of Vibranium. It was a classified case, and I was only called in after the fact for obvious reasons, but the mound found there at the undisclosed location was apparently nearly equal to that found in my native Wakanda. Roxxon apparently tried to harness the metal for its own ends but was unable to contain the vast power they encountered. Rather than let the Vibranium fall into the hands of the government or their own competitors in business, Roxxon destroyed the mound and the island, rendering the Vibranium inert. I verified that fact when I inspected the sight at S.H.I.E.L.D.'s request some weeks later."
"But if it's useless-" The Panther held up his hand to stay Richmond's questions until he finished.
"I cannot go into specifics, but my country's research is investigating a means of re-activating believed useless Vibranium. It is possible that through Viper's shared memories she might have that knowledge as well, or at least a part of it. I believe that that is why my countryman was attacked in Central Park across from the Hellfire Club. With the timely intervention of the Black Widow, whatever Viper was planning through her agents in the Sons of the Serpent was thwarted. I believe however that Colonel Fury has not been totally honest with us, and that those agents perhaps were in possession of one of the Controller's mental control disks meant for M'Bala, my country's United States Ambassador and liaison to the United Nations."
Fury rolled his cigar to the other corner of his mouth, biting down on the bit as he nodded reluctantly. "I was gonna get ta that. We didn't know how that tied in 'til just yesterday. We're thinking now that maybe Viper or Shaw thought that the Panther's man might'a had some extra insight on that process he's developin' in Wakanda. Puttin' him under mind control maybe they might get whatever they wuz missin'." Fury glanced at the Panther and T’Challa nodded in agreement.
"M'Bala is well-versed in the processing of Vibranium in all of its forms."
"Fine!" Wolverine stepped forward, crushing out his cigar in Fury's ashtray. "So Shaw an' Viper get their paws on a few hundred tons a' Vibranium. Viper uses her 'Vulcan Mind Meld' with the rest a' the Serpent saps ta find out where the inert Vibranium is, uses her link with the Atlanteans maybe ta pinpoint the location in the South Atlantic. She knows how ta make it all active again, and talks Shaw inta providin' the money ta get at it; the transport ships an' whatever manpower she's lackin'. They got the Vibranium, then what? Near as I know, Vibranium's just a super strong, unstable metal. What're they gonna do with it?"
"Build some new weapon perhaps?" the Widow offered, but even as she said it she knew it did not seem likely.
Fury shrugged. "In a way, maybe. Viper's always been about nihilism; wipin' out mankind in general just for the sake of it then pickin' up the pieces an' puttin' 'em back together like she wants. She's tried genocide through biochemical means. She's tried ta change people inta snakes. She even tried ta crash the Heli-Carrier inta the White House hopin' ta kill off America's leaders in the process. Hell, the first time she appeared as Madame Hydra she was bent on poisonin' New York's water supply. Whatever she has in mind with the Vibranium, figure it's big, an' somehow Shaw is plannin' ta come out on top after it's all over."
"So what's all that have to do with Richmond Industries?" All eyes turned to Nighthawk as he stepped up by the monitor array. "I mean, I've never been in contact with any Serpent Crown despite all the Hells I've been through. Compared to Shaw Industries, Richmond is bush league. Sure, I unwittingly financed the Sons of the Serpent once, but S.H.I.E.L.D. cleared out their old bases except for a minimal computer network linked to my main offices. What did Cobra want there? What am I to Shaw?"
"It's not you, Richmond-" Gyrich spoke up, shuffling through his stack of papers, "it's your contacts." Kyle Richmond blinked, wondering what Gyrich was driving at, but the government agent spoke on, ignoring him. "The NSC's been following Shaw's acquisitions along with the FTC, but for other reasons. Shaw's been treading very close to breaching national security on several fronts, but as has been pointed out, he's slick. He covers his tracks and surrounds himself with people who seem to know what they're doing. On several occasions we stopped Shaw from accessing classified information, but as of several weeks ago- when he acquired enough shares of your company, Richmond, Shaw gained access to certain government files that were, until then, unattainable. Gathering a certain hold in your company allowed Shaw to get into your databases, Richmond. That granted him access to the files shared between your slip-shod non-team of heroes, the Defenders and those files of the Fantastic Four, and more importantly, the Avengers. Granted, he did just not waltz in and view the files. There were safeguards set up; passwords, security systems, firewalls and the like. However, I can only imagine that with the Viper's help, and the innumerable memories that she could tap into, things like access codes and passwords were so much fluff to him. Why do you people think that I came down so hard on the Avengers a few years ago? It was this very type of scenario that I was trying to head off. A terrorist like Viper using a backdoor through the Defender's computers could potentially gain insight to the very workings of the government's most intricate defenses. Why the Avengers even shared their information with you in the first place is beyond me. Hell, Richmond, you associate with super-villains like the Hulk, Sub-Mariner and Valkyrie; all of whom have attacked the Avengers in the past. So did you for that matter!"
"That was different, Gyrich!" Nighthawk snapped, slamming his fist on the table and pointing at the government man. "I was being manipulated by the Grand Master! And I reformed a long time ago! I've saved the world-"
"So have I!" Gyrich snorted, leaning forward to match Nighthawk's tirade. It was only Fury's hand on Richmond's shoulder that made the Defender stand down before he resorted to violence.
"Get to yer point, Petey."
"Point being, Nicky- and all accusations aside- Shaw and Viper sent Cobra and the Death Adder LMD into Richmond's old complex, the gutted Sons of the Serpent base, to gain access to the Avenger's mainframe and database via Richmond's computer to download some information pivotal to whatever they're planning. Something to do with Vibranium, apparently. And something that the Avengers had knowledge of."
"Well," the Widow asked, "aside from the obvious connection to T'Challa, what other ties do the Avengers have to Vibranium. It would seem that the Fantastic Four would have a broader understanding of the metal."
"But Richard's security to his computers is air tight." Gyrich countered. "He was smart enough not to link up with Richmond and his band of thieves. And they’re dead in case you’ve forgotten. Their headquarters is under government control while it’s being stripped."
"Now hold on-" Nighthawk leaned forward again, and Natalia feared that he might actually strike Gyrich before Wolverine spoke up-
"Antarctica…" he said in a whisper, then "The Savage Land!" All attention focused on him, and Wolverine glanced about the room to each person there, wondering why everyone did not see what was so suddenly clear to his eyes.
"The Savage Land! Don't ya see? It's the thing that hooks it all t'gether. The last time I was there I ran across an oil field camp. It was small, but it was producin' I didn't think nothin' of it at the time, cuz it was flyin' the stars an' stripes so I figured it was official, but it was a Roxxon camp. Roxxon has a holding in Antarctica, an' so does a lot a the companies they bought up to, I bet. If not financially, then probably with UN sanctions The Avengers've been ta the Savage Land before. So've the X-Men, but far as I know the FF haven't, 'cept the Thing I think. There's yer computer link."
"And just what does that mean, X-Man?" Gyrich sneered at the mutant he hated so much, almost daring him to go on.
"Yer slow, Petey." Wolverine smirked, happy that he had been the one to put it all together first. "Panther. What is it in the Savage Land that might reactivate a load a' inert- or dormant Vibranium?" T'Challa's eyes went wide almost immediately as he understood what Wolverine was getting at.
"Antarctic Vibranium…" Wolverine nodded.
"What?" Farrel slid his glasses back up his nose, totally lost as he tried to follow the conversation around the room. "What is Antarctic Vibranium?" All eyes turned to the King of Wakanda as the resident expert of the base metal was sitting in the room.
"Vibranium is a metal of unknown origins and mysterious properties, agent Farrel. The greater portion of the world's Vibranium deposit is located in the hidden regions of my native Wakanda. Smaller loads have been discovered elsewhere about the world over the years and there has usually been some accompanying conflict with each new discovery. One such deposit was discovered by Roxxon Oil some years ago on a small island in the South Atlantic. Roxxon, for reasons of its own destroyed that deposit, or at the very least made it dormant by trying to explode the island. Vibranium's unique properties allow the metal to absorb vibrational frequencies into its own molecular structure, storing the vibratory energies within the bonds of its own molecules. This storing of energy adds to the molecular strength of the metal itself making it stronger and stronger with the more energy it absorbs. A properly prepared amount of Vibranium bombarded with an exact amount of vibrational frequencies potentially has the capability of achieving a mass and density akin to adamantium, or perhaps beyond. That alone, aside from its rarity, makes it a very valuable metal.
"Antarctic Vibranium on the other hand has the potential to do the adverse. It was first discovered by a native of England: Lord Plunder. He was an explorer decades ago and was quite possibly the first outsider to find the fabled Savage Land hidden away in the mist enshrouded valleys of Antarctica. It was there too that Lord Plunder came across a wondrous and mysterious ore that had never been recorded before. This ore emitted a vibratory emanation that had the ability to shatter the molecular structure of all other metals save perhaps adamantium itself; the strongest metal alloy known to man. It was believed, and later proven that Plunder’s mystery ore was in fact a form of Vibranium, and was thus dubbed Antarctic Vibranium after the area that it was found. Where Wakandan Vibranium absorbs vibrations and becomes stronger unto itself, Antarctic Vibranium emits a vibratory frequency that will liquefy metal within seconds, making it the far deadlier and most coveted of the two ores."
"I still don't understand." Farrel removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, squinting as though his head was starting to pound with confusion. "Shaw's a steel magnate. Why would he want a metal that destroys other metals?"
"Think about it, Sir." Linden piped in as she brought up a schematic map of the Savage Land on screen. "Shaw's been buying up companies, putting his shattered empire back together. Suppose some calamity hit America that destroyed her supplies of steel. All except Shaw's. Suppose he had the only supply of steel and iron, any metals needed for construction in the country. He could undercut the Canadians and the Japanese, all the foreign suppliers and still multiply his fortune by astronomical numbers."
"But how would he know?" Scorpio asked, no longer able to keep silent despite the Contessa's hand on his arm.
"Viper!" Linden shoved her chair away from the table and limped over to the monitor array, her metallic leg brace slamming down with every other step as though punctuating her point. "Viper wants the world to erupt in a nihilistic conflagration, so she gathers together the remnants of the Sons of the Serpents left over from their last uprising under the King Cobra's direction. Plenty of manpower there, and the seeds of a plan that never quite grew to fruition. She wrestles control of the Serpent Society away from the Cobra, maybe using the mind control disks of Basil Sandhurst for good measure. She sends her armies out to stir up trouble, creating racial tension in America, but it's too slow for her. Too laid back. Viper likes the huge, grand schemes that will throw the world into turmoil.
"In the back of her mind, however, are all these thoughts flitting about that aren't her own. One that she latches onto one day is Hugh Jones' memory of Roxxon Oil blowing up an island of Vibranium in the South Atlantic. Viper's insane, but she's no fool. She knows from her mental link with the memories of the Scarlet Witch and the Thing the potential of all that Vibranium through their own interactions with the Black Panther and their respective team's archives. True, it's inert, or maybe just rendered dormant, but she also knows through the same means about Antarctic Vibranium, and how it can destroy metals with its own vibrations. What would happen, however- she may have wondered- if she were to gather up all of that Vibranium just lying about at the bottom of the Atlantic, and put it in the proximity of a sizable chunk of Antarctic Vibranium? Would the latter reactivate the prior? Or even better, would the bombardment of vibrational emanations from the Antarctic Vibranium convert the dormant Wakandan-like Vibranium into its more deadly form. I believe that was done once, wasn't it your Majesty?"
T'Challa looked at the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, and then at Fury, his eyes smoldering, narrowing into slits. "You seem to know quite a bit, Agent Linden." Linden smiled at Fury's nod-
"Yessir! It's my job." Linden returned to her chair and altered the views of the monitors again, back to their original displays. "Now Viper has an idea, and an army of mindless zealots to help her carry it out, but what she does not have is the finances and hardware to implement her plan. So again, tapping into Hugh Jones' memories she learns that Roxxon has a base in the Savage Land pumping oil with the UN's blessing to a limited degree. Reasonably, if she could get into Roxxon, she could then get into the Savage Land and thus get to the Vibranium. She apparently has better financial capabilities than we do, or maybe she just got lucky, but somehow she learned that Shaw was rebuilding his empire and figured that he was her ticket in. He, with his companies would be able to gather and transport the dormant Vibranium to the Savage Land and then probably transport all of the converted Vibranium elsewhere from there. I imagine she contacted Shaw with the idea of destroying America's metals somehow, probably not telling him that she planned on taking out a few million people in the process by unleashing the anti-metal in a city like New York or Washington. Or maybe she did.
"Regardless, I'm sure the dollar signs popped up in Shaw's eyes as soon as he got the gist of the idea. He would be viewed as a hero in the end: the man who's untainted steel rebuilt America. And all the while he would be raking in the money as the nation's top supplier."
"And the chaos that would follow the destruction of one or more of America's largest cities would be the perfect stepping stone for Viper's plan of a nihilistic downfall of America. Her Sons of the Serpents would rise to the occasion, being the people's army that would rally the country's survivors. They would no doubt have countless people to blame for America's woes: the Blacks, the Asians, the Mutants…" The Contessa Valentina Allegro De Fontaine sighed, shaking her head. It was a devastatingly brilliant plan if Viper could manage to bring it all about.
"Exactly!" Linden nodded. "Viper wins. Shaw wins, at least until Viper decided that he was no longer needed. And the world goes up in flames!"
Everyone stared at Linden as they mulled over all that she had said. They were speechless at the enormity of her theories as to Viper's plan, but they knew too that she probably had the right of it. Those that had dealt with Viper before, or Shaw for that matter knew that either was more than capable of doing whatever was necessary to achieve their goals. They were like Strucker and the Skull. They were like Doom, thinking their own ends and goals justified any means, no matter the cost. And like those others, like all the others, they too had to be stopped.
Fury leaned forward resting his knuckles on the smooth top of the table. His body seemed to sag as though tired and Natalia thought he looked older then than she had ever seen him. Just for a moment though; a heartbeat. When he looked up again there was a fire crackling in his one good eye that she had seen all too often-
"Good job, Linden. Ya earned yer pay fer the week. I just hope yer around ta spend it." Agent Linden smiled, then frowned as Fury bit down on his cigar butt and stared at each person seated about the conference table in turn-
"Awright, people. Here's what we're gonna do."
To be continued…
Story © Curt F
Next Issue: Fury gathers a team to head to Antarctica and the Savage Land itself. But will they be in time, or will Viper implement her scheme and send the world into turmoil? Be here for…
The Savage Land!