Volume 6: Secret Invasion Chapter 5: Skrull programmers are really fast at finding bugs and patching them
"bite"
The blood-stained cursed bullet was taken out of Black Widow's wound and thrown back into the devil's box. The cursed gold coins that were once full in the box have now been made by Mason into triangular armor-piercing bullets for the electromagnetic gun.
He also didn't expect that this thing he got so early would accompany him until now.
But the fact is that the longer Mason stays in the Star Society, the more he realizes that these world wonders cannot be judged solely by their grade.
For example, although this cursed gold coin is of low quality, it can still exert great destructive power when combined with his increasingly deadly shooting skills and constantly updated firearms.
The Black Widow, lying on the table that served as a makeshift operating table, was injected with anesthetic, but the alchemical liquid used by Mason was quite "evil". It allowed Agent Natasha to remain awake throughout the whole process but she could not feel the pain of the operation.
To be honest, it was really terrifying to see Mason use surgical forceps to remove the cursed bullet from his wound.
After completing the perfect stitch and gaining some experience, Mason looked up at the Hawkeye agent next to him and said:
"How does your new arm feel? Give me some feedback. You're going to use it hard in a while, and there's still time to fine-tune it for you."
"I'm just afraid that when I start it, it will turn around and strangle me."
The Clint in this world is a cool guy in his thirties who is in his prime. He strokes his newly replaced red robotic arm.
The five fingers moved without any awkwardness, and the basic output and protection were much better than what he had used before. But as he said, this thing was given by Mason, so he was a little worried.
Faced with this kind of deliberately provocative customer mentality, the experienced captain explained seriously:
"No, you don't have to worry about such extreme situations! Only when the 'Traitor Execution' program is activated, this Isu enhanced bionic mechanical arm will break your spine within 0.5 seconds at its maximum output.
But don't worry, Clint, I'm the only one who can activate that program.
Oh, and by the way, if you attempt to remove it without my permission, termination procedures will be initiated, so I suggest you don't tamper with this marvel of precision engineering."
"Thank you for your explanation. I feel much more at ease."
Hawkeye bared his teeth at Mason and helped Agent Natasha, who was gradually regaining consciousness, down.
It was clear that the two men did not trust Mason, but they were convinced by Captain Carter.
Just like Steve Rogers' status in other Marvel universes, in this parallel world, this daring and fighting female captain has a very high reputation. Moreover, she was an agent during World War II. Therefore, compared to the normal version of the captain who seems a little pedantic, Peggy Carter is obviously more decisive and pragmatic.
"What do we do with those two guys?"
Harry chewed gum and pointed at the Crossbones and Leaping Man thrown in the corner. Mason glanced at Carter and waved her hand and said:
“Release them. I personally recruited them into the special operations team. They are all trustworthy people, otherwise they would not have been sent to die by the Skrulls.
When will Zhang Parker be ready?"
“I’m ready.”
Mason looked back out the window, where a black "Spider Fighter" was flying out of the underground parking garage of the Parker Building. Its elegant appearance was somewhat similar to the Bat Fighter, and it was obviously designed for combat in the complex terrain of the city.
"Aunt Mei will wake up in four hours, and I don't want her to worry. In two hours I have a late-night date with the Playboy cover girl of the month. I heard she's a great girl, and I don't want to miss it.
So you better hurry up."
The impatient voice of Slaanesh's commander sounded over the communicator in the room.
A group of people filed out. The Mark series armor they used when they came here was of course no longer usable, but it didn't matter. Mason's friendship provided them with the not-so-smart but equally useful Isu Vanguard Armor.
After the Isu technology blueprints are unlocked to the second stage, Mason can add different technological components to these basic armors to achieve different functions.
Most of them are in the testing phase, and this time the elite agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. are being used as guinea pigs.
"Don't you need it, ma'am?"
Mason was in the Spider fighter, watching Captain Carter climbing up the gangway in his classic uniform. He said in surprise:
"I clearly left you a set of 'Raider' armor that can protect against small-caliber artillery fire. What? Do you think that kind of protection is not enough?"
"That's enough for me."
Ms. Carter patted the buckler behind her.
She did not explain more but went straight to the cockpit. When the Spider fighter started up and headed for the dock in the heavy rain that covered the entire city at night, Agent Natasha explained in a low voice:
"Captain never wears that kind of mechanical armor, because it reminds her of her first love, Mr. Steve Rogers, the first Iron Man. When she was called back to this world by Fury 70 years after being exiled to another dimension, Mr. Steve had already died of old age."
"Yeah, I've heard that story before."
Mason shrugged and said:
"But it's about a man's longing for a woman. So, Agent Natasha, you've been at SHIELD for so long, and you haven't noticed any traces of the Skrulls?
For someone who has been working as an agent since childhood, isn't this a bit too careless? "
"We have been on the field for more than a year, searching for some strange things all over the world."
Crossbones, who was sitting next to him, flipped off his helmet to reveal a handsome face. In this world, he was a soldier who was loyal to his duty. He answered for Black Widow with some indignation:
"Since Nick Fury retired, Tony Stark has taken power. That guy has a strong control desire, and anyone who does not obey his leadership must stand aside.
In addition, after the Stanford explosion, that guy pushed for the Superhero Registration Act, and as a result, not only the heroes, but even S.H.I.E.L.D. was almost torn apart by him.
We, the old guys left behind by Fury, can't even make it into the top ranks, let alone notice the bad things going on with the sleeper cells in the organization.
But if we connect the series of strange things that have happened in the world recently to the Skrulls, there is a reasonable explanation for everything. The policies of various countries have suddenly changed direction in a few months, and they have begun to promote the exploration of outer space and the search for extraterrestrial civilizations..."
The soldier stroked his chin and said:
"Those bastards are building momentum! There must be a lot of alien bastards who have infiltrated the government! Damn it! How can we defend the Earth with these insects?"
"What? You want to kill insects and shoot the sun, too?"
Mason glanced at him, then looked at the silent Hawkeye agent and said:
"What's with your arm? I just saw your mechanical arm. It's for the Winter Soldier. Is there a Winter Soldier in this world? What's his relationship with Ms. Carter?"
"He was a former comrade, rumored boyfriend, and so on. But the Winter Soldier is also gone . He died in a conflict several years ago."
Leaper Bartok was using a hand mirror to fix his mohawk. The former mercenary was very satisfied with his new equipment. He winked at Mason and said:
"As for Clint's shoulder, it was the 'memorial' left by Hulk when he went crazy a year ago. It was also one of the most important reasons why Hulk was exiled to the stars."
"ah!"
Mason slapped his face and said helplessly:
"You really banished Hulk into the sea of stars, didn't you expect that he would come back with the rage to destroy the world?"
"Approaching New York Harbor! Target locked! Everyone, prepare to airdrop."
Zhang Parker's voice rang out in the cabin, interrupting Mason's chat with the heroes of this world.
He looked down at his watch and saw the red dot representing Agent Hill right below him.
Mason winked at Harley, signaling her to stay in the cabin and wait. He then decomposed his water molecules to reappear in the heavy rain on the ground at the dock. After two water molecule reorganizations, he entered the camouflaged container where Agent Hill was imprisoned.
The level nine agent was now tied to a chair, covered in blood. There were several fully armed street heroes patrolling around him. Two biological bait bombs slid out silently and exploded at the same time.
The energy of genetic interference exploded in the sealed container.
But contrary to Mason's expectations, none of the Skrulls that were hit "revealed".
These disguised guys just felt dizzy, but then they fired around and someone activated the energy suppressor, forcing Mason out of the water where he was hiding.
"They have completed the upgrade to counter the gene disruptors? So quickly?"
Mason's heart trembled. He quickly adopted a strategy amid the hail of bullets and decisively activated the key in the face of the attack from the Skrulls disguised as powerful men.
With a clang, a heavy and tall vibranium power armor appeared out of thin air and blocked Mason in front of him. The brute force of the monkey version of Wonder Man hit the power armor to no avail and instead bounced himself away.
Report!
The enemy's attack failed to scratch our armor!
Mason jumped into the cockpit amidst the hail of bullets and felt good. The moment the female Ultron's playful and sarcastic prompt sounded, four bat-shaped floating cannons were activated.
The three Skrull heroes who rushed over were pierced through the body by high-energy particle beams in an instant.
He controlled the floating cannon and long-range weapons in the cockpit, and left the close combat to Ultron. With the combined efforts of the two, the Skrulls in the container were killed cleanly in less than twenty seconds.
Their bodies were thrown on the ground in a pool of blood, and their green forms soon emerged.
This fully proves that Mason's concerns are correct.
The Skrulls have upgraded their technology, and the genetic interference of the biological bait bomb is no longer effective against them! This is really bad news. Although I have always known that this method will not be useful in the long run, it is really puzzling that it has failed so quickly.
"Lost and found again? Tsk, you're lucky."
Mason jumped out of the cockpit. He found the secret chip he had returned to Agent Hill on the body of the Skrull whose neck was twisted in front of him. He then inserted it into the slot of the power armor and said to the female Ultron:
"Execute the cracking program to see what S.H.I.E.L.D. is up to in this world that has been infiltrated by the Skrulls. By the way, help me contact the Afterlife Bar and transfer me to John Wick."
"Please wait, Driver No. 1."
The voice of Female Ultron sounded in the empty container, and the assault in the rain outside also began. Under the cover of heavy rain, Mason could clearly sense that Captain Carter and her team were dealing with the attack of a dozen Imposters.
But he had no intention of going out to help, he believed they could handle it.
A moment later, when Mason was completing first aid for the unconscious Agent Hill, the communication was connected, and Wick's deep voice sounded from the power armor:
"Hello, Mason."
"Notify the others, Wick, that the biological bait bomb has lost its effect on the Skrulls. Be careful in future operations."
Mason reminded:
"Now report on your progress."
"Through the tracking of the Skrull codenamed 'Black Canary', a network of sleeper cells operating in the open has been roughly mapped out."
Wick replied concisely:
“Currently under Phase II, 24/7 surveillance by Batman.
As for the old man, their operations in the gray area are also going smoothly. More than twenty-three targets suspected to be Skrull replacements have been locked down around the world and can be executed at any time.
The only thing that didn't go well was the magic circle.
The last time Miss Zatanna of the Dark Justice League contacted us was two days ago. She told us that spellcasters are always nomadic and it is difficult to accurately identify their true identities.
But she said that the whereabouts of those escaped wizards have been confirmed by Shazam, and they are hiding in the mysterious country of Kandak in the Middle East.
Therefore, Xiaoza made a judgment that she suspected that Black Adam, the monarch of Kandak, might be a disguised Skrull. In addition, she also found some disturbing news.
A powerful life form called "Swamp Monster" is gathering followers in the magic circle to establish a "Green of All Things" church, and publicly declared the confusing statement that "the final answer is among the stars".
If the so-called 'Stars' are the Star Society, then it is basically certain that the swamp monster has been turned against us."
"The spokesperson for the Green of All Things became the first group to surrender... This truth is really horrifying."
Mason complained.
He felt the battle outside the container subside and said:
"Continue to monitor. I will upgrade our anti-Skrull tactics as soon as possible. Once there is any news, I will pass it on to you immediately. Communication ends."
The cross-world communication module was interrupted, and the cracking program run by Ultron was also completed on time.
After the decrypted data card popped out, Mason recovered his perfect vibranium power armor, inserted the data card into his watch and browsed S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secret files by optical projection.
A document marked as top secret, containing only a plan outline with its contents completely blacked out, quickly attracted Mason's attention.
This plan has a very exaggerated name called "The Ultimate Plan for Planetary Self-Saving", and in its outline description, SHIELD, headed by Tony Stark, has mobilized a lot of manpower and material resources in the past two years to promote a plan related to "artificial life".
According to their expectations in the document, when the world encounters a "world-destroying crisis", this artificial life will shoulder the responsibility of saving the world.
This description reminded Mason of the original purpose of the Weapon X project on his home world that now rests among the stars, and it also made him feel a little uneasy.
A few seconds later, Captain Carter broke the lock of the container with her shield still dripping with blood. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Agent Hill, who was bandaged.
But before she could speak, Mason pushed up the frame of his glasses on his nose, looked at her, and whispered:
"What is the content of SHIELD's 'Ultimate Plan for Planetary Self-Saving'? What are you going to build with the power of the world?"
Captain Carter's expression changed, and he answered instinctively:
"This is top secret!"
"Your top secret has been targeted by the Skrulls! Agent Hill was implicated because of this."
Mason flicked the data card in his hand and said:
"Of course you don't have to tell me, Captain. I will regard that as a hidden danger , so my little cutie and I will have to say goodbye to you.
You guys can handle the rest on your own.”
"You don't even try to hide that you're an outsider, Mason."
Captain Carter scolded:
"You are not from this world, there is no trust between us! And you asked about our top-secret plan right away. Do you think this is appropriate?"
"Well, let me try to convince you with one sentence."
Mason stared at the face in front of him that was very different from the Steve Rogers he remembered. Amid the sound of the intensifying rain, he said:
"This world has been infiltrated by the Skrulls, so no matter your top-secret plan to protect Earth or destroy it, it will eventually fall into the hands of those alien bastards.
Do you think that artificial life is powerful?
If you are really powerful, you should tell me now so that I can be prepared for the final boss. At least when it comes to the Skrulls, we are on the same side!
Wake up and recognize who your friends are, okay? "
Captain Carter looked at Mason, and after a few seconds of silence, she put the shield back behind her. She picked up Agent Hill and whispered:
"It is a robot created by the Infinity Stones. Tony calls it 'Perfect Ultron'. He is convinced that the perfect machine can protect us."
"Snap"
Mason covered his eyes.
Obviously this answer made him very uncomfortable.
"I knew that putting Tony Stark, who wanted to arm the world with armor, in power would never be a good thing."
He murmured:
"I also confirm that your world is beyond salvation.
The secret invasion of the Skrulls, the civil war caused by the Superhero Registration Act, the exiled Hulk who always comes back, and the upcoming Ultron...
So many major events mixed together are enough to crush you into dust overnight.
Harley and I have to get out of here on the next starship, as soon as possible!
Could you please tell me how to get to the MIB headquarters?
I’m leaving now.”
