Chương 53: Settled

"Alright, that settles it then," Liam said, standing up. "Before I forget, could you do me one more favor?"

Fury's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Liam. "What is it?"

"When you go to Stark in the future, leave my document out of the documents you show him," Liam replied casually.

Fury's expression barely changed. "We can do that," he said, deciding not to waste time questioning the reason. His mind was preoccupied with the document Liam had handed him earlier.

'If what's written here is true, then those fuckers have been in SHIELD all along. There's no guarantee he's right, but it's worth investigating. So far, everything he's said has been accurate—and he knows about the pager. No one knows about that. There's no documentation, no trace. How the hell does he know about it?'

Fury glanced at Liam, his thoughts continued to race. 'The assessment mentioned indestructible armor, a sharp spear, and a whip. He seems capable of summoning them out of thin air. There's far too little intel on him. Could this be an inside job? If those Hydra scum are in SHIELD, it would explain how he got some of this information and how he accessed Coulson's locker undetected. But why reveal himself now if he's working for them?'

Fury's mind continued working over the possibilities before he finally spoke again. "There's one condition you haven't fulfilled."

"And that is?" Liam asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Your abilities," Fury replied.

Liam tilted his head, a puzzled look on his face. "Why would I tell you about my abilities?" 'He's smart enough to know I wouldn't share everything, and even if I did, he'd never know it.'

Fury leaned forward slightly. "Understanding your abilities helps us for your future contributions. It helps us anticipate risks and plan for effective teamwork in future operations."

Liam considered this textbook answer for a moment and gave a small nod. 'That's fair enough. I should give him a little bit; otherwise, this entire conversation would've been pointless.'

Without hesitation, Liam summoned Incursio around him. "This is my armor, Incursio. It's incredibly durable and has no openings anywhere on my body," he said, gesturing to the suit. "But I'm sure you already knew that."

Without waiting, Liam then summoned Neontote, his spear. "This is Neontote. Like my armor, it's made from the same material but sharpened to an extreme degree."

Finally, he reached behind him and quickly formed a glowing whip using Eldritch Constructs. "And this is my whip. It's flexible, incredibly durable, and almost as tough as my armor, though it's made from a different material."

Fury's eyes narrowed as he observed the weapons. "How durable are your weapons and armor? How sharp is your spear?"

Liam smirked slightly. "Durability-wise, there's barely anything in the world that could break these beauties. As for sharpness, I can cut through steel without any trouble. Does that answer your question?"

"It does," Fury replied, though he was aware Liam was still withholding a great deal. For now, however, Fury had no other options but to accept it.

With a casual flick of his wrist, Liam unsummoned the armor, spear, and whip. "Well, that should be all," he said, moving to leave.

"Wait," came a voice from the right side of the table.

Liam paused and turned to see Ava Starr standing.

Liam raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Your whip," Ava began, stepping forward. "How did it stop me from phasing? It shouldn't be possible unless it's made from quantum energy."

"It's not," Liam replied flatly. "I don't know how it happened. All I know is that it's just… a special material."

"Is there any way for me to obtain this material?" Ava pressed. Fury observed Liam, paying close attention to her question.

"No," Liam answered. "This is the only bit of material there is I think."

"Where did you get it?" Fury interjected, trying to get more information from Liam. "And how did you make it into armor? Last I checked, an 18-year-old kid doesn't exactly have the resources to forge something like this."

Liam had long expected this question and had already prepared an answer before he came here. He changed to a serious tone. "On a rainy night, a meteor fell from the sky and landed in my backyard. I went out to check, and before I knew it, this armor had formed around me, and I could summon the spear from… god knows where."

His delivery was so straight-faced that, for a moment, no one responded. It was obvious neither Fury nor Ava believed him, but they had no other choice but to accept it.

"Before I forget," Liam added, reaching into his pocket. "Here's my number. Call me if there's a crisis—lots of lives at stake, the world ending, that sort of thing." He tossed a small piece of paper to Fury, who caught it without breaking eye contact.

Fury nodded. "Coulson, show our guest out."

Coulson stood up and gestured to Liam. "Right this way."

Liam followed him out of the room, and they stepped into the elevator. As they descended, Coulson broke the silence.

"See? Like I said, I trust my judgment in you. I look forward to working with you in the future."

Liam gave him a smile. "I look forward to it too, Coulson. Something tells me we'll be working together a lot."

Coulson couldn't shake away a feeling in the back of his mind. His thoughts went back to their earlier conversation in the car but denied the thought as unrealistic.

Once they reached the ground level, Coulson escorted Liam outside to where a car was parked near the Triskelion entrance. "Do you want a ride back?" Coulson offered.

Liam shook his head. "No need. Now that I'm here, I might as well take some time to explore Washington, D.C.''

''Do you want a ride to the city then?'' Coulson offered.

''No thanks, I enjoy walking so I would rather do that." Liam answered.

"Alright. Good day, then," Coulson said, smiling.

"Until next time, Coulson," Liam replied before turning to walk toward the main gate.

As Liam walked to the gate, he noted the presence of multiple people still tailing him. 'Six… hostile intent. Must be Hydra operatives sent by Alexander.'

He maintained his usual composure, greeting the gate guard casually. "Hi, I—"

Before he could finish, the gate opened for him. 'Coulson must've given the heads-up.'

Liam exited and began walking across the bridge towards the city. Though his "tails" had temporarily fallen back, he suspected they were keeping their distance.

Before he could continue, a familiar voice called out from behind him.

"Wait!"

Liam turned to see Ava Starr jogging towards him. He paused, letting her catch up. "What's up?" he asked.

"Please," Ava began, her voice urgent. "Tell me how you stopped me from phasing. I need to know—it's important."

Liam sighed. "Didn't I already tell you I don't know how it happened?"

"You're lying," Ava said, desperation evident in her voice. "I know you are. My instincts tell me you know exactly how you did it."

Liam studied her for a moment, feeling a pang of pity. 'This girl has been a pawn her whole life—trapped by a disease given to her in the same lab accident her parents died in and afterwards used by SHIELD. They throw some false hope of a cure to make sure she does what they want her to do. It's tragic.'

After a moment of silence, Liam finally said, "You are correct. I do know. But tell me, why should I share my secrets with you?"

"You don't understand," Ava pleaded. "I've been living with this pain my entire life. Every second is hellish pain for me, and because of my condition I'm slowly fading out of existence.''