Chapter 283: Shocking footage -278
Fury stood by in his office as it slowly filled up with the people he could trust. In came Maria Hill, Phil Coulson, Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton. Once they were all inside, he finally spoke up. "Two hours ago, there was an incident over in Tokyo."
"You want us to set out?" Natasha asked, not seeing any other reason for them all to be called together here.
The red nodded along, understanding the possible cause of this meeting. They were all highly enough ranked to know the current situation of Shield within Asia.
After the Mandarin attack, their presence had been greatly diminished, and they more or less had to pull out fully, with only a few agents watching around the place for anything important.
And they weren't really able to deal with the Mandarin due to his control over China, who held one of the security council seats and was able to block any Shield actions within their territory.
Everyone was well aware of this problem and the headache it was causing everyone. The Mandarin was a terrorist wanted by the US, yet he was protected by China, making it a cause of major international tension, something they couldn't afford to worsen by acting behind China's back.
And since they couldn't deal with the cause of their problems in Asia, it was highly risky to move new people back into Japan, leaving it a blind spot and another diplomatic mess.
Yet, Fury just shook his head. "No, the situation has already been resolved." He explained calmly, then everyone only grew more confused about the situation; if the situation had been resolved, then why had they been called here?
"I didn't know we had anyone in Japan." Hill stated. "Unless it's someone I wasn't even aware of."
"No, we don't have anyone in Japan that could have handled this situation, or anyone in SHIELD at all that could have handled this situation." He spoke, sounding both tense and mysterious.
"Sir." Coulson was the first to speak up, unable to resist. "What exactly happened in Tokyo?"
"That is a damn good question; why don't you help me answer that." Fury said dramatically as he pressed a button, bringing up a holographic screen that started to play a video.
As the video played out, it didn't take long before Coulson gasped and took a step closer, wanting a closer look at what was happening. "Is that?"
"Yes, it seems like it." Was all Fury said in response to the shocked man.
Next to speak up was Maria Hill, she too let out a surprised gasp and stepped forward. "Is that who I think it is?"
"It shouldn't be possible, but it sure looks like that anyway." That was all Fury commented.
Everyone watched the video play out, shocked at what they were seeing. Something that very much should have been impossible, yet it was happening right in front of them, or at least on the screen.
If it wasn't because Fury was showing them this, they wouldn't believe what they saw, yet they all knew that Fury wouldn't joke with them like this.
"Hey, that person there, he surely couldn't be him, could he?" Natasha suddenly asked.
"Correct, it seems to be, or at least he matches the description well enough." Fury once again affirmed.
They all continued to watch the situation on the screen with wide eyes, both shocked and horrified at what they saw.
"Damn, now we all know why the military wants him so badly I guess." Clint said as they watched the showdown unfold.
By the end of the video, everyone understood why Fury had said that no one within SHIELD would be able to deal with such a situation.
"Sir, what do you want to do about… about that whole mess?" Hill couldn't help but ask, already dreading to think about the potential political nightmare this was bound to cause.
Fury sighed and turned off the display. "Tell me your honest thoughts, all of you."
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[Earlier that day]
With a new mission in hand, Team America set out. While it wasn't the mission that Steve had hoped for, the briefing had still underscored the importance of this task, and the difficulties it entailed, and highlighted the unique skill set that would allow them to do it easily enough.
Or at least that was apparently the hope from up high.
Personally, Steve wasn't much of a fan of this kind of mission, far too much searching for clues. He had always been a man more of action than that. Yet, thankfully, Peggy was in her element here.
Even Bucky seemed to have picked up some useful skills and knowledge about this kind of thing while forced to work for Hydra, it wasn't something any of them was keen to mention, but it was the truth.
Sitting in the back of one of the Foundation's fast stealth jets, Peggy flipped through notes, ancient myths, and scattered Foundation reports about their targets—SCP-073 (Cain) and SCP-076 (Abel). The mission briefing they'd been handed was sparse on details, leaving most of the grunt work to them. Peggy didn't mind; she thrived in ambiguity.
Across from her, Bucky meticulously cleaned and reassembled his weapons. It was a ritual that kept his hands busy and his mind focused. He glanced up occasionally, watching Peggy scan through page after page with an intensity that reminded him of the old days.
Steve, meanwhile, leaned forward, studying a grainy photograph of a man with dark skin and metallic tattoos running up his arms—Cain. The expression on the man's face was serene, almost peaceful, but the report suggested a power that could turn any encounter deadly in an instant.
"It's almost funny, with all the Foundation's tech, they give me pictures that seem like they are from my time." Steve couldn't help but say.
Bucky smirked slightly at Steve's comment, his hands not pausing in their work. "Some things never change, huh? Even with all their fancy tech, the Foundation's still got that old-school touch." He glanced over at Peggy, who was flipping through more documents, some of which seemed to be handwritten reports and ancient texts rather than the high-tech data displays the Foundation usually preferred.
Peggy looked up, catching the tone of the conversation, and offered a small, knowing smile. "The more things change, the more they stay the same. Besides, I think it's part of the point. These two—Cain and Abel—go way back. Sometimes, you need to look at things the old-fashioned way to understand what we're really dealing with."
Steve nodded, his expression growing more serious as he studied the photograph of SCP-073 again. "The briefing says he's peaceful, but I can't shake the feeling that there's a lot they're not telling us. Just the idea that he's been around for so long... It's hard to imagine what that does to a person."
Peggy shrugged, her eyes scanning another passage. "He's seen civilizations rise and fall, lived through history the way you and I read about it in textbooks. But he's also spent most of that time alone, trying to avoid his brother. If we can reach him, maybe we can use that to our advantage."
Bucky slid the magazine back into his sidearm and tested its weight. "Yeah, if he's willing to help. But it's Abel I'm worried about. From what I've read, he's more like a living weapon than anything else. I've been that before—I know what it's like when all you want to do is fight."
Steve folded the photograph and tucked it back into his pocket. "That's why we're not going to give him a reason to start. Let's hope we can keep things calm. If Cain is willing to talk, maybe he can help us find a way to bring Abel in without it coming to blows."
Peggy closed her notebook, her expression turning thoughtful. "The problem is that they two of them together, they can't be together without going crazy, yet here we are, sent out to find both."
Bucky's expression darkened slightly as he considered Peggy's words. "Yeah, the files are clear about that. They have some kind of... reaction to each other. The Foundation calls it a 'mutual destabilization,' but that sounds like a polite way of saying they want to tear each other apart."
Peggy nodded, setting down her notes. "It's a strange directive, sending us to track down both at the same time. Either there's more going on than they're telling us, or someone in the higher-ups is taking a big risk.
"Anyway, we don't have much to go with right now. I mean, where are we even headed right now?" Steve couldn't help but ask, feeling that he had missed something doing the briefing.
"We are going to Tokyo right now, apparently something is happening over there, lots of people going missing or dying, nothing to indicate its either of who we are looking for, but its not normal, so it's a place to start." Peggy answered.
Bucky nodded slightly, considering Peggy's answer. "Tokyo, huh? That place hasn't exactly been quiet lately. If the Foundation thinks there's something out of place there, it might be worth looking into, even if it's not directly related to Cain or Abel."
Bucky was someone that still had some interests in the underworld he had been part of, and thankfully the Foundation had plenty of information on anything going on out in the world. Letting him know that after kicking Shield and the Hand out of Japan, other groups were struggling for power.
A/N
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