Putting down the phone, Peter was still in a state of shock. At that moment, Natasha walked in, tossed a set of keys on the table and said, "Peter Parker, the car to pick you up is outside. To avoid conflict of interest, I can't go with you. Take your yellow rodent friend and get to your new post."
"Wait, this is too sudden... why would I... I can't... How could I possibly become the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.? Are you guys playing some kind of joke?!" Peter took a few steps back, "This is ridiculous, how could they let me be the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.?!"
Natasha crossed her arms, smiled and said, "Could it be possible that you're the only one left?"
"The only one left? You mean, everyone else is gone?"
"No, think about it carefully, is anyone else really more suitable than you?"
As Peter pondered this, the reality that mirrored the scenes in his mind happened just two days ago.
Nick Fury was dead, at least after multiple confirmations, it wasn't a fake death. The DNA testing from multiple samples matched perfectly, the autopsy confirmed that he was indeed Nick Fury, and he was indeed dead.
Yet, his death did not mean the end of the turmoil; instead, it meant a greater storm was approaching.
First of all, who killed him?
Everyone thought it was the military, even the military themselves. They all believed the Tartu faction was responsible, and everyone in the Tartu faction believed it was one of their colleagues.
While complaining that the hothead acted recklessly, they also thanked him for his rashness. With S.H.I.E.L.D. gone, the balancing power against the military was further diminished.
Congress knew this too, they couldn't let this situation continue. The Tartu faction was known to be radical; they strongly disagreed with the separation of powers system and were always ready to wage war to elevate their status. Congress wouldn't allow that.
Once war broke out, the entire political system was bound to reshuffle, and no one wanted to be swept out. Thus, Congress's goal was to maintain stability.
Therefore, the position of the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. became critical.
Congress hoped to have Nick Fury's direct descendants inherit the position to continue balancing the military. They did have the capacity to support such a person to the position, but the only problem was that Nick Fury's direct descendants were unable to take the position.
Coulson was sacrificed, Hill disappeared with intelligence, and Natasha, she's Natasha, who would dare let her be the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.?
The later emerging Ward and Mark, one was a cold-blooded killer, a typical sniper with little to no leadership abilities. His position in S.H.I.E.L.D. was not very high, and his sudden promotion would seem too abrupt.
Mark was not bad, an old agent, adept, experienced, and with a good record. The only problem was he was a former CIA agent. Allowing the CIA to take over S.H.I.E.L.D. would have the same consequences as the military taking over S.H.I.E.L.D.
There were also a few mutants, but the problem lied with mutants themselves. Congress would never immediately promote a mutant to the position after such an incident. This wasn't extinguishing fire, but fanning the flames.
In their search, Congress eventually set their sights on the members of The Avengers.
In their eyes, these superheroes wouldn't actually lead S.H.I.E.L.D., just having the title was enough, as long as they could maintain temporary stability, they would have enough time to select a suitable successor.
However, not everyone in The Avengers was suitable. First was Captain America, Steve was quite suitable. People in Congress knew him; although he wouldn't side with Congress, at least he wouldn't side with the military, and could remain impartial, relatively unbiased.
At the same time, he was quite capable, especially in terms of publicity, which was perfect for the current state of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The only problem was, he was extremely reluctant.
Steve announced that as long as the truth about Nick Fury's death wasn't discovered, he would never take over S.H.I.E.L.D., moreover, he said that if he did take over S.H.I.E.L.D., he would definitely find out the truth.
Nick Fury's left-hand man for so many years, not everyone was blind to the situation. Even if they didn't know the situation was this severe, they could still hear something.
If Captain America took over, being fair and having credibility, many people having grown up listening to his tales, could not guarantee that they wouldn't be influenced by him, making intelligence work impossible.
As for Stark, he was already in charge of the Stark Group and Solar System Development Plan. If he took over S.H.I.E.L.D. as well, then he would definitely have too much power, going against the idea of balance of Congress.
Blade Runner Eric was a vampire, Matt was blind, the remaining members were either mutants or associated with the gooey Symbiont, basically no use at all.
At this time, someone appeared in their scope, and that was Spider Man.
If the congress wanted to investigate, they couldn't hide the fact that Spider Man was Peter Parker. Once they investigated, they found this kid had a good background and abilities.
Orphaned at a young age, raised by his aunt and uncle, an average American wage-earning family, he even was a local New Yorker. His grades were good in high school, and he even got into New York University.
He had no bad records in school. Though he didn't actively participate in club activities, he made quite impressive achievements in scientific research, proving to be a valuable intellectual talent.
Meanwhile, Spider Man is also a relatively positive heroic figure, well-liked by teenagers. He doesn't wield as much political influence as Captain America, nor does he have the ability to control public opinion.
On the whole, Spider Man is well-received but he's not universally acclaimed. He is competent, but he's not omnipotent. Despite his humble background, it proves to be his greatest advantage. Given these conditions, he seems to be the right choice.
Indeed, in the eyes of Congress, this rookie cannot comprehend the complicated relationships and extensive intelligence work in S.H.I.E.L.D. However, that is exactly what they want. Spider Man is merely a transition, a means to prevent the military from taking control. As long as he can hold his ground for a while, someone else can take over in due course.
Most importantly, assigning Spider Man as the director won't provoke strong opposition from the military.
Because the military also knows that a youth with no significant record or experience in intelligence work could never unify S.H.I.E.L.D. In essence, it would be like leaving the treasure piled up, temporarily guarded by someone else. When he can no longer hold on, it will be every man for himself.
Peter, being used as a temporary solution, is completely bewildered and doesn't understand how he became the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., especially when he hasn't even graduated from university.
Pikachu, held in his arms, wriggled its nose and said, "I smell a conspiracy. Do you think you might face a hundred and eighty black gun barrels, or all kinds of traps?"
Peter absentmindedly stroked Pikachu's ears, saying "I'm not afraid of guns or traps. I have spider-sense to avoid them. What I'm afraid of is…"
Peter took a deep breath and said, "I refused to join any group in college, because I'm not good at reading between the lines. I don't understand their hinting and I don't want to try…"
"If even college groups are like that, then what about S.H.I.E.L.D., the world's largest intelligence agency... My God, I think I'm about to enter another universe, where the way of thinking and speaking is completely different from mine…"
With such apprehension, Peter still went to the S.H.I.E.L.D. base.
He thought he would face a multitude of stern faces and endless problems, but to his surprise, as soon as he left the elevator, lines of neatly arranged special agents greeted him. The receptionist said with a beaming smile, "Director, please follow me."
Peter widened his eyes and hesitated before taking his first step, making sure his spider-sense wasn't tingling.
The receptionist, a female agent, led Peter to an office. Standing at the door, she smiled and said, "This is your office. You can wait here, and then the work report for this week will be delivered…"
Peter nodded in a state of confusion, entered the room, and took a seat. He paused, then said, "Alright, since things have come to this, let's just do our best…"
Then, he grimaced and said, "I hope these documents won't be more difficult to understand than my thesis research…"
He picked up a stack of documents from his left, opened it to look at the long list of names and various strange places. Peter immediately covered his forehead and said, "What am I supposed to do? Match them? But how do I know who should go where?"
"Here is the work report for this week," another agent entered the room, handing Peter a stack of thin documents. Peter opened it to see just a few lines:
"All work for this week has been completed smoothly, all personnel are in place, all projects are progressing well, with no anomalies occurring."
Peter raised an eyebrow and said, "Is this a work report? It's too simple, isn't it?"
"Yes, Director, it's not supposed to be difficult. You'll get the hang of it soon," the agent gave a small smile before adding, "What you have to do next is wait here and sign each document."
"But how do I determine whether the document should be signed?" Peter asked.
"That's the job of the deputy director. The documents sent to you must be signed," the agent replied sternly.
"What about the enemies lurking here? I mean, Hydra and the like, should we capture them? And, didn't Hill and the others get chased before…"
At the mentioning of Hydra, the agent's smile twitched slightly, but he quickly replied:
"If you want to arrest Hydra, we will launch a special operation. All you need to do is sign on the document…"
Peter looked troubled, but he didn't know what else he could do instead. After all, even though he's intelligent, the intricate intelligence work cannot be managed in a short span of time.
So, for the next two weeks, Peter's job was to sign his name on every document and receive a brief, problem-free weekly report.
Spider Man was at the center of the whirlpool, observing the hustle and bustle of hard-working people around him. He seemed to have joined them, but also felt isolated.
Peter sat in the cockpit, repeatedly pressing a button which set the large machine in motion. He had no idea whether the machine was operating smoothly, or if its smooth operation had anything to do with him.
Meanwhile, in the halls of Congress and the military meeting room, two voices echoed simultaneously, filled with confusion and shock:
"S.H.I.E.L.D! How did they suddenly become so efficient?!!"
"What the hell is going on??? The informant I have planted in the solar system development program told me that those agents are working like madmen! Dear God! Have you ever seen them work for more than four days a week?!"
In a conference room, a young legislator banged his hand on the table and said, "Don't tell me they have been inspired by Nick Fury from heaven. Is he still not giving us a break after he's dead?!"
"Calm down, Fredy." An older politician leaned back in his chair and said, "They wouldn't be inspired by Nick Fury. When Fury was around, those people only did two things a day: drink coffee and check their insurance coverage. Their sudden diligence certainly has nothing to do with Fury."
Another female legislator crossed her arms and said, "The problem is, if they keep working this hard, the human race will be heading out of the solar system, and I mean the kind of heading out that has nothing to do with us..."
She picked up a file by her hand, rolled it up and pounded the table, saying, "Originally, these agents were responsible for all the trivial matters in the solar system development program, such as running errands, logistics support, personnel liaison, intelligence transfer, etc. All the labs counted on them to compile all research results."
"Although Stark's AI can handle most of the data exchange, many projects still need human supervision. For example, the layout and markings of the latest equipment sent to Mercury were pasted by the agents."
"Do you remember? Just for this job of sticking labels on the equipment, they took a full two months! After it was sent to Mercury, it was found that at least a third of the labels were pasted wrong."
The woman stood up with her hand on her hip, "Just yesterday, fewer than twenty agents managed to compile all the new reports from all the laboratories in New York. They did not even make one mistake of sending two people to the same place. How powerful could this organizational ability be?"
"This should be a basic attribute of a secret agent organization." The older politician shook his head, "But the problem is, it shouldn't appear in S.H.I.E.L.D."
"We all know what Nick Fury did exactly, how could those people suddenly become so efficient?"
"The problem is, Nick Fury is dead, S.H.I.E.L.D. should be in chaos. We all know that many people have planted bombs there. When the Director died, they should've exploded. So why, when this man named Peter Parker took office, did he manage to unify them???"
"That's impossible!" The female legislator raised her voice, "CIA, KGB, Hydra, the military, Congress, Europe, Asia, Oceania, with so many forces mixed together, what kind of ability does he have to unite these people to work?"
"What I find even stranger is..." Young legislator Fredy started, "Recently, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s decision-making abilities have greatly improved, and every choice they make is almost always correct. How is this possible?"
"America has the strongest think tanks in the world, but we can only ensure that some decisions have the upper hand, and the rest just strive to maintain stability. Where does S.H.I.E.L.D. get such decision-making power???"
The old politician frowned, "I don't understand Stark's artificial intelligence very well, but could it be..."
The young legislator shook his head, "I've dealt with Stark Group too, and as far as I know, that artificial intelligence named Jarvis is mostly used for calculating. Moreover, a person like Stark won't let an AI make decisions."
"And, you have to consider that now, Stark and his people are all dragged to Washington to investigate the cause of Nick Fury's death. That involves a more intense game of chess. He probably won't have the time to take care of this side."
The female legislator touched her chin, "Could it be that this kid, Peter Parker, possesses abilities far beyond normal people? I mean, other than swinging around in the New York sky?"
"Penny, you should know that making decisions is not just about intelligence, you need to have rich experience and a long-term vision. There's no way a teenager can have these things. So what could he rely on? Instinct?"
"You're saying... let me decide based on instinct?" In S.H.I.E.L.D.'s office, Peter looked at the document in front of him with difficulty. There was no content on this document, just two words, one was "yes", and one was "no".
"What's the point of this? I'm not an AI, I don't need to learn how to choose this way..." Peter continued.
The agent, with a grin on his face, said, "No, this is not learning. All you need to do is choose 'yes' or 'no' based on your intuition."
"Is this part of the job too?" Peter asked again.
The agent nodded and said, "Don't worry, Director, this is not a very important issue. Director Fury used to make decisions like this all the time. All you need to do is focus and follow your intuition..."
"Focus... focus..." Peter wrinkled his brow, trying to concentrate, and then he said, "I think it's 'no'... yes, it's 'no'. There's no reason, it just doesn't feel right..."
The agent immediately took the paper back and said, "Thank you. You can wait here for a while, and there will be new work coming over."
After finishing speaking, the agent took the paper and left the room.
After he stepped out, the smile disappeared from his face. He immediately took out the communicator from his waist and said, "Ward, call them back quickly. The New Mexico operation can't be done. Out of the sixteen Spider-Men, eleven chose 'no'. It must be a trap."
"Okay, I got it. I'll contact Hawkeye right away and get him to withdraw the team. Next, I need to arrange the personnel who will go to Mercury with the equipment tomorrow. Do you think the Director needs to choose? Okay, I understand."
After cutting off communication, the agent went to an office and said, "Please print a paper for me with 15 numbers arranged in sequence from 1, with no difference in font and size... okay, thank you."
Taking the paper with printed numbers, the agent went back to the office where Peter was. Peter was idling, playing a video game. The agent smiled again and said, "Director, could you please choose 8 numbers out of these 15. Just select based on intuition."
"Uh, what's this new ritual? Never mind, I'm in a hurry to clear this level, so let's go with 1, 2, 4, 6, 7..."
Peter randomly picked a few numbers, and the agent with the paper walked out the door, called about a dozen other agents on his communicator, showed them the paper and said, "Print 15 numbers exactly like this and distribute them among all the labs. Have all the Spider Men choose once..."
Following the chorus of their affirmative responses, the agents dispersed in the manner of schooling fish, hurrying towards the various labs. In the midst of this, a piece of paper in one agent's hand fluttered like a falling leaf. When it landed onto a table, Spider Gwen's voice chimed in:
"So we're choosing numbers now? Your universe is peculiar; holding tests every day. What are you hoping to find out? Our horoscope luck? ...Well, whatever. Stop watching me so intently. Let me see... I'll go with these."
"Choosing numbers? A daily IQ test game? I am grateful to my parents for giving me a brain that can clearly recognize numbers..." The Amazing Spiderman picked up the pen and started circling numbers, saying, "I'll go with these ones."
"You aren't studying artificial intelligence, are you?" Spider Man 2099 asked as he casually circled numbers on the paper. "The direction of scientific development in your universe is bizarre. Doctor Connors told me that one of his projects is the relationship between biotechnology and magical portals. It's quite strange..."
One by one, lights flickered on in labs. Data coursed through channels like light streams. Deep within the long-dimmed Stark Building Lab, Jarvis emitted a "beep beep" noise, and the pleasant electronic sound followed:
"Accessing historical records... Analyzing influencing factors... Data name - Amazing Spider Man, selection accuracy rate 69.28%, influence factor 16.1, data recording in progress..."
"Probability calculation in progress, number '1' success probability 99.6%... number 3 success probability 62.7%... Calculation complete, results have been sent..."
With the light whir of machinery, a sheet of paper slid out of the printer. A hand picked up the sheet. Ward placed the sheet before him, swept a glance over the dozens of agents in front of him and said,
"Those of you whose numbers I call will go with the equipment to Mercury tomorrow for maintenance. Don't forget our duty. Numbers 1, 2, 6..."
All those who were called silently stepped forward. No one questioned, no one asked about safety issues, no one inquired about their return time. All remained silent until Ward saluted them.
"Hail Hydra."
"Hail Hydra!"
"Damn it, why have their people withdrawn?" In the military office, General Ross was staring hard at a document. He said, "Why hasn't our staged incident in New Mexico caught their attention?"
"General, they were originally hooked. Hawkeye led a team to investigate New Mexico, but for some unknown reason, they retreated as soon as they arrived," said a young officer with a furrowed brow. "It was the same with the incident in Ohio a week ago..."
"This is abnormal..." General Ross said in a heavy voice. "S.H.I.E.L.D. cannot possibly have this level of capability... Even the think tanks mobilized in the most top-secret of situations wouldn't be able to flawlessly evade every trap..."
Ross straightened up, heaved a sigh and said, "What about the Hulk's situation, have we set things into motion?"
"Well... we have confirmed the Hulk's true identity, but for some reason, we can't catch him," the young officer said, looking somewhat distressed.
"What do you mean you can't catch him?" Ross frowned, his voice filled with dissatisfaction. "Bruce Banner is nothing but an ordinary man. You sneak up on him without being noticed, are you saying you can't even sedate him?"
"We could've, but... But Spider Man is protecting him. It's as if Spider Man has eyes on the back of his head. Our people can't get close..."
"Spider Man?? Isn't he in S.H.I.E.L.D. functioning as director? Can he also personally protect Bruce Banner?" Ross was clearly unhappy. "Don't make me believe that you're spinning tales just to avoid responsibility!"
"You better act fast. Right now, Stark and his team are tied up in Washington. If they return here, things will get troublesome."
"Yes, sir! I'll send people to try again..."
Before a dimly lit experimental table, a shadowy figure was fiddling with a colorful cube. Suddenly, Shadow Spider Man paused in his manipulation of the cube. With unhurried movements, he put the cube away and drew a pistol from his waist.
He crossed the prep room to enter another lab. In a deep, gravelly voice, he told the engrossed Banner, "Doctor, prepare to evacuate. They're closing in on us again."
"Hold them off a little while. This result is important. Give me another three minutes, and I'll have it finished, then we can evacuate together with the result..."
Shadow Spider Man didn't say anything else. He spun the pistol in his hand and left.
Hard at work watching the screen, Banner soon heard the loud reports of gunshots. After a while, a blood-spattered Shadow Spider Man returned and said, "Doctor, you don't have to evacuate anymore."
Having finally seen the experimental results, Banner straightened up. He walked to the door, cracked it open, and, in the light streaming from the door, saw bodies strewn across the floor.