92

Chapter 92: Loki's Conspiracy

"Bang!" Loki, furious, struck Stark with his staff, demonstrating the adage that "talking too much brings about its own downfall."

Loki raised his staff high and shouted at Stark, "Mortal, dare to insult the gods, and you shall pay the price..."

Before he could finish, a bolt of lightning struck his celestial aura, and at the same time, he was hit hard on the back of the head, causing him to crash to the ground.

He looked up angrily to see a valiant female warrior in black armor holding a hammer, and he was momentarily stunned.

"Wow!" Seeing a truly beautiful warrior for the first time, Tony whistled excitedly and nudged Steve beside him. "Old Popsicle, I'm starting to believe the story of Mulan is true!"

Steve, looking serious, replied, "Tony, don't use casual nicknames. This is Miss Jane from Trudheim Manor. You should address her as Auntie."

"Damn it, I shouldn't be talking to you!" Stark scowled and took a few steps back.

Meanwhile, Loki looked at the hammer in Miss Jane's hand. Even though he had heard about it, he was still shocked to see it: "My brother actually gave Mjölnir to you? Unbelievable."

He was in disbelief, "It's a precious hammer, and you're using it for this..."

"Oh, this is big news!" Tony suddenly felt how wise it was to join this operation...

Miss Jane didn't react much to the allusion but had a slight smile at the corners of her mouth.

In the communicator, Thor's voice came through: "Beat him hard, just keep breathing!"

"Got it!" Jane responded briskly, swinging the hammer.

"Foolish mortals, do you think you can challenge the gods with Mjölnir?" Loki sneered, raising his scepter and charging...

A few minutes later—

"Impossible!" Loki lay on the ground, immobilized by the hammer on his back, and he could do nothing but accept defeat.

Loki was captured and temporarily imprisoned in a special cell on the space carrier.

It seemed the biggest problem had been resolved, but everyone's attention shifted to another matter—why did the Tesseract attract the attention of alien planets?

Whether it was Tony Stark or Steve Rogers, they all had doubts about S.H.I.E.L.D. As Nick Fury attempted to explain, Captain America slammed a new weapon on the table.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. is making weapons from the Tesseract, just like HYDRA did seventy years ago."

Nick Fury began to explain, but Stark cut him off.

"Come on, there's no need to deny it. I've already analyzed it."

"No wonder it attracted the attention of alien planets."

"It's said that HYDRA's actions woke the attention of an evil alien named Supergiant. Fortunately, Thor stopped her."

"Unexpectedly, S.H.I.E.L.D. today is doing the same thing. The world hasn't changed at all."

Captain America was also filled with righteous indignation.

Natalia suddenly realized, "No wonder Thor anticipated this incident but didn't warn us. It's because S.H.I.E.L.D. is up to something shady. Even if he had warned us, it would have been useless. Why are you doing this, Director?"

Jane Foster nodded in agreement with her statement.

Nick Fury responded with a blank expression, "It's because Thor's appearance made many people realize the existence of other civilizations. Humanity needs strong enough weapons to protect itself."

"But we all know Thor and Asgard mean us no harm," Natalia argued.

"Yes, he doesn't. But what about other planets? If there's an Asgard, there are likely other planets, and those planets may not be friendly."

Jane Foster interjected, "Thor said that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s development of weapons attracted Loki. The Tesseract's energy fluctuations signal to other planets that Earth is preparing for a high-level war. It was the same seventy years ago and the same seventeen years ago."

"To face foreign threats, we must have the power to make the enemy fear us."

"Like nuclear deterrence? That's truly effective," Stark said with sarcasm. "Who would have thought we'd return to the era of carrying nuclear buttons? Quite interesting."

"A man who made his fortune selling arms actually has the position to make such statements?"

The debate grew more intense, shifting from the initial topic to personal attacks.

The unique sensitivity of women made Natalia and Jane Foster realize something was wrong. The team seemed to be disintegrating even before it fully formed.

No one noticed the scepter containing the Mind Gem emitting a faint blue light.

No one noticed a group of people with strange lights in their eyes infiltrating the Helicarrier, led by Hawkeye.

"Boom—" A massive explosion shook the ground, interrupting the crowd preparing to act.

"Not good!" Natalia was the first to notice the problem. She shouted, "Calm down, we're being affected by the scepter!"

"Engine No. 3 malfunctioning! It's not critical for now, but we can't fix it!" Hill's voice came through the communicator.

"I'll fix it!" Stark quickly moved toward the direction of the malfunction.

"Boom—" Another series of explosions rang out, and a large number of enemies rushed into the space carrier.

Everyone in the room snapped awake. Just as they were about to react, another violent explosion caused the floor to crack, and Natalia and Bruce Banner, who were far from the door, fell through the gap.

A heavy steel pipe crashed onto their legs.

Despite the severe pain, Natalia had no time to address it. She urgently shouted to Banner, "Hold on! Don't let it out!"

Unfortunately, without transforming into the Hulk, Banner was just a frail scientist lacking the endurance of an agent. The intense pain caused him to scream, and his heartbeat rapidly approached 200...

Natalia, enduring the pain, finally managed to free her leg from under the steel pipe. Before she could assess her injuries, a huge roar echoed, and her heart sank.

Seeing the Hulk approaching with a ferocious expression, Natalia didn't hesitate any longer. She turned and fled.