Bruce froze, processing Fury's words. His gaze flickered from Fury's trembling form to Morgan's fragile silhouette inside the glass. The tubes and wires looked more like shackles than support, and for a moment, Bruce's own guilt flared. Could it be true that he'd left her with something so dangerous?
But then he caught Morgan's eyes—a glint of defiance still lingering beneath the exhaustion and pain. That look alone told him everything. She was trying to communicate something that struck him to the core. Fury's explanation had cracks, and Bruce knew he was being manipulated deep down.
"You said she died in a mutant attack," Jennifer suddenly said. "I saw the records and the attack... The footage... I saw her die. All this time, you've been lying to us."
Clint without any words shot two arrows, targeting Fury's arms as he noticed him reaching out for something in his pocket. "Bad move, Fury. But I wonder, who the fuck are you? Are you really Fury? Or just an imposter?"
"Let's not make any rash decisions, Agent Barton," Fury said, his voice strained. His arms and legs were bleeding. "I did what I should do. I made hard decisions to protect our world at any cost."
"You bastard!" Sue yelled in anger. "She was barely fourteen and you... It's just a waste of time just kill him and be done with it. It's clear he's lying."
"You are right, Sue," Jennifer said. "But... I get it that Fury's a fucking bastard, but you..." She looked toward Pepper. "How could you do this to your own daughter?"
Pepper felt a stab of guilt and pain. She tried to say something, but couldn't. What would she say? The truth? And what truth would that be? That they are siphoning the Infinity energy from Morgan's body? To do what? To build a weapon? No! This was her daughter's life they were talking about! But there was no escaping it this time.
While everyone was blaming and spitting on Fury and Pepper, Bruce blinked before Fury. He activated the nanites in his bloodstream, using them to suppress his emotions. At the same time, Elena sent him the updated news and information on what happened in the last ten years, including the Shield's records. The nanites uploaded the information to his brain. Then he received a familiar voice record that Elena played. More forgotten memories flashed before his eyes. The events at Vormir...
'I remember now...' He was relieved to know that the sender of that message was alright.
After that, he took a deep breath. Everyone went silent. They knew it was just a matter of time before he killed that inhumane bastard.
Bruce used his X-ray vision to check Fury's body for any tracking devices or transmitters. He found a little remote in Fury's pocket. He took it out and examined it carefully. On the remote was an insignia of the Hydra.
"Hydra Supreme Nick Fury," Bruce growled, clenching his fists tightly, crushing the remote to dust.
He remembers those faint pages of comics. In some stories, there are alternate realities where Nick Fury becomes a Hydra agent or outright leader, embodying a much darker, authoritarian vision. This version usually lacks the moral restraint of the classic Fury and embraces Hydra's ruthless ideology.
"You killed Red Skull and took his place, didn't you? That would explain those Hydra robots back at the base. Hahaha... You crafty fucker," Bruce grabbed Fury's cheeks with both hands. "You are siphoning the Infinity energy from my daughter's body too, aren't you? Those missing heroes, you are behind that, aren't you? Tell me the truth. You know there's no escape. So, please... The truth." He asked, looking into Fury's eyes.
"It's a pity," Fury said, chuckling, ignoring the pain in his arms and legs. "You want to know the truth... Fine, let me tell you this truth you are dying to know. I wanted to create a perfect world. With you killing Magneto, I thought I had a chance. The strongest heroes, dead or missing or trapped in another dimension, I could have a world in my hands. And now, you ruined everything. Do you have any idea, how hard it was to come this far and create her?"
He glanced at Pepper.
"A puppet whose every single thought, movement, emotion can be controlled, whose every move is calculated to achieve one goal... She succeeded in that. She killed Tony Stark, all thanks to Dr. Strange's prophecy. It saved me the time to implant a false memory. All I had to do was manipulate her emotions and there she was, making the hard decision. But her having a child, which wasn't in my plan. But still, with her job done, I let her go. It would be such a waste to let a puppet die. Besides, she was the new owner of Stark Industries, so everything was going perfectly. But who would have thought that the kid would absorb the Infinity energy from the suit? It was such a surprise, such a miracle!"
Fury laughed out loud.
"You can imagine how thrilled I was when I found out about the potential of that power. She was using the Infinity energy without the Stones. So much potential... So, I had to extract that power. It would be such a waste to let such power in a kid's hands. But you just had to interrupt, didn't you? Coming back from the dead... Hahahaha... Damn you, Tony Stark!"
Before Fury could speak anymore, Bruce used his super strength to press Fury's cheeks.
"Argg..." Fury cried out in pain as his cheekbones began to break. "You can't kill me! If you do, you will never see your daughter again. This place will explode the moment I die."
"No, it won't," A new voice came from behind. A woman in a suit appeared as the invisibility mode deactivated. The nanites moved from her face, revealing her identity. It was Natasha Romanoff. "I've disabled all the protocols connected to the self-destruct system. It took years just to find this place and disable those alien techs." He looked at Bruce with a sad expression. "Sorry. I couldn't save her."
"Not your fault. You did your best," Bruce replied.
"You bitch! How the fuck are you still alive? You were supposed to be dead at Vormir!" Fury said, coughing out blood. "Soul for Soul, there's no fucking way you are alive."
"You want to know the truth? Well, since you told me the truth, let me tell you a little secret... To obtain the Soul Stone, yes, it requires a sacrifice of something you love. Soul for Soul, that's what the navigator said. Well, that was all a made-up lie. That navigator bastard was corrupted by the Soul Stone. It just wants to eat souls and that stupid rule was just another of its ways to manipulate others and get more souls, nothing else. Now you get it? Once you see through its guise, it's easy to get the Stone," Bruce said, increasing the pressure, slowly and painfully crushing Fury's face.
With a loud crunch, Fury's skull exploded like a watermelon. All the heroes who were watching this, they felt a sense of satisfaction to see a monster die. This man deserved death. And he got what he deserved. But some thought he got an easy death. He should suffer more, after all the horrible things he did.
After that, Bruce stood up, jerking his bloody hands.
He then glanced at Pepper. She deserves death, but at the same time, she is just a puppet of Hydra. Leaving her alive might bring harm to him and everyone in case the other Hydra members manage to manipulate her again.
Bruce walked toward her and cupped her cheeks with his bloody hands.
"Do it," Pepper said as tears kept gushing down her cheeks. "You heard him. I'm just a puppet. Even I don't know if these emotions I'm feeling are real or not. Free me..." She took a last look at her daughter. "Tell her I'm sorry." She closed her eyes, waiting for death. She did all that because she was manipulated, but it doesn't change the fact that she still killed her husband and trapped her daughter inside a glass tube to extract her power. Her heart was full of guilt and remorse. She wanted to end it all today. She wanted peace, but she knew that hell was all waiting for her for everything she did.
In the glass tube, Morgan's eyes widened as she heard the truth.
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