บท 153: Mutation
The outer shell of the Cosmic Cube was absorbed to make the Space Stone easier to carry. Blake transformed his own spatial storage device into a bracelet.
As for the two bracelets originally used for battle armor positioning, he stored them in his spatial storage, ready to retrieve them when needed.
He modified the bracelet to create a groove in the center and placed the Space Stone into it.
As soon as the stone was placed, the system's prompt sounded.
[Detected contact between the spatial storage device and the Space Stone. Influenced by the spatial laws of the stone, the storage space has expanded a thousandfold, and the second attribute of the stone has been activated: Energy Shield!]
"Oh? An unexpected bonus! System, you've known I had the Space Stone all along. Why didn't you tell me earlier that I could use it to upgrade my storage device?"
As Blake spoke, he willed the bracelet, and a blue energy shield, about two meters tall and one meter wide, appeared in front of his bracelet-bearing hand.
[This system isn't omniscient. The energy mutation occurred only when you placed the stone. Just think of it as embedding a gem into your equipment!]
"Fine!"
Blake examined the energy shield closely, though he wasn't sure of its defensive capabilities. He figured it wouldn't be too shabby. After retracting the energy shield, he eagerly tested his enhanced flame manipulation abilities.
He conjured a flame in his hand, finding its temperature several times higher than before. Moreover, its energy density was incomparable to what it had been previously. Concentrating, he gathered the flames into his right hand and released them in a slight burst. As expected, a reactive force pushed him backward.
Overjoyed, Blake tried jetting flames from his feet. Leveraging his experience flying with battle armor, he carefully controlled the flame output, and his body slowly began to lift off the ground.
"Hahaha!"
Seeing himself truly flying, Blake burst into laughter and stopped holding back. Flames jetted from both his hands and feet as he flew out of the base.
At that moment, Coulson, who had just landed at the base in a jet plane, exclaimed, "Blake, my God, when did you learn to fly?"
"Haha, Coulson! Want me to take you for a spin in the sky?"
Laughing, Blake flew circles around Coulson's plane.
"No, thanks. I don't want to end up roasted. Come down, Blake. I need to talk to you about something serious. Captain and Hawkeye are missing!"
"What?"
Blake slowly descended to stand beside Coulson.
"Wasn't Captain supposed to be on a cruise around the world with Stark's yacht? How did he end up with Hawkeye?"
"I'll explain inside; it's too windy here!"
The two headed into the base, where Coulson laid out everything he knew.
Blake was stunned. He had arranged for Captain and Peggy to go on a world tour, yet they still encountered the hijacking of a S.H.I.E.L.D. launch vessel.
"It seems like you have some serious internal issues, Coulson!"
As Blake used his phone to notify Natasha to check in with Peggy Carter, he spoke to Coulson in a somber tone.
"Director Fury thinks the same, which is why he sent me to find you!"
This matter is almost certainly connected to Alexander Pierce's Hydra. It's likely that Captain or Hawkeye uncovered something suspicious on that ship, prompting Hydra to ambush them directly.
"You said the Strike Team leader is Brock Rumlow?" Blake asked calmly.
"That's right. You suspect him?" Coulson asked, his face serious. Brock Rumlow was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top operative for field missions. If he were compromised, it could mean the entire operations team was corrupted.
"No, I'm not suspecting him. I'm suspecting that most of S.H.I.E.L.D. has a problem. Asking about him is just a shortcut to figuring out where the Captain is. Where is Brock Rumlow now?"
"Wha... what?" Coulson was stunned, disbelief written all over his face. He was about to press for details when J.A.R.V.I.S.' voice suddenly echoed in the room.
"Mr. Blake, someone has arrived at Stark Tower claiming they need to speak with the Avengers. Miss Potts asked me to contact you."
"Someone's looking for us?" Blake asked, puzzled. "J.A.R.V.I.S., do you know their name or what they want?"
"Apologies, sir. He said he wouldn't disclose the matter until he speaks with the Avengers directly. However, he did give his name—Sam Wilson."
"What?" Blake was taken aback. *The Falcon?* It seems all the key players are showing up now.
Still, that wasn't a bad thing. Sam Wilson might just be Captain's loyal ally, but he was a capable fighter and an asset in this situation.
"Where is he now, J.A.R.V.I.S.?"
"He is waiting in a reception room on the first floor of Stark Tower in New York," J.A.R.V.I.S. replied. As he spoke, the AI helpfully displayed a live feed of the room on Blake's desk.
"Would you like me to connect the feed for you, Mr. Blake?"
Sensing Blake's interest in the visitor, J.A.R.V.I.S. asked considerately.
"No need. I'll speak with him myself. Thank you, J.A.R.V.I.S.!"
"My pleasure, sir!" J.A.R.V.I.S. replied politely.
As the AI's voice faded, Blake clenched his bracelet-bearing left hand into the air. A swirling portal of blue and black energy materialized mid-air, and on the other side was a startled Sam Wilson.
"Is that the power of the Cosmic Cube?" Coulson muttered in awe, momentarily forgetting that Sam Wilson was standing right there.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s veterans knew Blake better than most outsiders. They were well aware that the incident with the senators and the mysterious threats had been connected to Kamar-Taj. But this move—it was clearly reminiscent of the Cosmic Cube's portal-opening abilities.
Ignoring Coulson's question, Blake gestured at Sam Wilson through the portal.
"Sam Wilson! I hear you're looking for us?"
Sam Wilson swore that he had never encountered this much strangeness in his entire life as he had today.
First, he'd stumbled upon Captain America and Hawkeye being captured. Then, when he sought help at Stark Tower, someone opened a portal out of thin air right in front of him.
"This is amazing! Is this the legendary Helicarrier?" Sam Wilson exclaimed as he stepped through the portal. He wandered around for a moment, marveling at his surroundings, before stopping by a window to admire the view.
"Is this magic? Can you really travel anywhere in the world at will?"
"Actually, I can appear anywhere you can imagine, as long as I know the place. So, if you don't start talking business right now, I'll send you straight to the moon," Blake said, shutting the portal behind him.
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