Chapter 45: The Tension of Solutions

Max sat at the head of the conference room table aboard the Storm Chaser, his posture relaxed but his gaze sharp. Across from him sat Nick Fury, flanked by Maria Hill and Bobbi Morse. There was tension in the room, like the calm before a storm, and everyone could feel it. Wanda sat next to Max, her hand lightly resting on his arm, a silent support as the meeting continued.

Max's tone was firm as he looked directly at Fury. "Nick, if you don't find a solution for Hydra's infiltration of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the next few months, I will."

Fury's single eye narrowed, but he didn't interrupt. He knew Max wasn't bluffing.

"I'll do the same thing I did with the Hydra agents from Sokovia. I'll teleport every single S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who's even remotely suspicious into the brig here. From there, they'll be subjected to magical contracts to determine their loyalty. The magic will sort out who's truly loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D. and who's a Hydra spy."

The silence that followed was palpable. Fury's jaw tightened. He wasn't happy about it, but even he couldn't deny the efficiency of Max's plan. As much as he hated to admit it, magic, in this case, was faster and more reliable than the bureaucratic investigations he'd been running for years. Still, it grated on him that someone else would be handling his agency's internal affairs.

"You don't trust me to handle it?" Fury finally said, his voice tight but controlled.

Max shook his head. "It's not about trust, Fury. You've had your chance, and Hydra is still there. Your internal networks are riddled with double agents. You need to clean house. But if you can't, I will."

Fury's thoughts swirled with frustration. He hated the idea of losing control, hated that Max could step in with such power and disrupt everything he had built. But there was something undeniable about the effectiveness of Max's proposal. Fury wasn't happy, but in the back of his mind, he conceded that Max's method might be the only way.

"If you start Project Insight before purging Hydra, those Helicarriers will never get the chance to fire," Max continued. "The second they become operational, they'll be taken out from orbit."

Maria Hill raised an eyebrow, and Fury turned slightly toward her before focusing back on Max. "How do you even know about Project Insight?" Fury's voice was low, menacing, though he already knew the answer.

Max smiled faintly, leaning back in his chair. "I know a lot of things. Like how Zola was the architect of Insight. He designed it to eliminate potential threats to Hydra—anyone powerful enough to stop them. Politicians, superheroes, civilians—anyone who could stand in their way."

Fury's face remained unreadable, but inside, he was stunned. Zola had been an ongoing concern, but the thought that he had orchestrated something on the scale of Insight was worse than Fury had anticipated.

"And before you ask," Max added, "Zola's gone. Camp Lehigh was vaporized from orbit. I made sure of it."

Fury's eye widened ever so slightly. The destruction of Camp Lehigh hadn't gone unnoticed, but they had no idea who was behind it—until now. The thought that Max had obliterated an entire base with a single strike was both alarming and awe-inspiring. It made Fury acutely aware of just how much power Max wielded.

Max continued, his voice calm but heavy with meaning. "Zola built Insight to ensure that Hydra could quietly control the world from the shadows. They'd use the Helicarriers to eliminate threats before anyone even knew what was happening."

Nick Fury leaned back in his chair, absorbing the information. He'd always suspected that Hydra's grip on S.H.I.E.L.D. was deeper than it seemed, but Max's revelation made it clear that it was worse than he'd imagined. Much worse.

"I've got the situation under control," Fury said, his tone defensive.

"Really?" Max raised an eyebrow. "Because from where I'm sitting, it doesn't look like it."

Fury's hands curled into fists under the table, but he kept his composure. "I've spent months building up a faction of loyal agents. I've isolated the Hydra cells. We're ready to move, but people like Alexander Pierce aren't going down without a fight."

Max nodded. "I understand that. But time's running out. If you don't take action soon, I will. And I'll be sorting through your entire agency, one agent at a time."

Fury's mind raced. He was caught between a rock and a hard place. He knew Max was serious, and the thought of losing control of S.H.I.E.L.D. to anyone, even someone like Max, was unacceptable. Yet, Max's ability to act decisively—his willingness to do what needed to be done—was undeniable. Fury might not like it, but he had no choice but to play along, for now.

The meeting ended soon after, and Fury, Hill, and Bobbi followed Mason down to the brig to personally interrogate some of the Hydra agents. As they left, Natasha turned to Yelena, who had remained quietly observant.

"I thought I destroyed the Red Room," Natasha said, her voice tinged with surprise and curiosity.

Yelena shook her head, her expression hardening. "You destroyed one building, Natasha. The program never stopped. They kept recruiting, kept training girls."

Natasha's face paled. "I had no idea..."

"Max found us," Yelena said, her voice softening slightly. "He teleported us out of there, gave us a chance at a new life."

Natasha's eyes filled with emotion, her mind struggling to process the weight of what Yelena had just revealed. For so long, she had thought the Red Room was gone, that the horrors of her past were buried. But now she realized that it had continued, in the shadows, unnoticed.

Yelena's gaze softened as she saw the look on Natasha's face. "With Max's medical tech, they can even... restore what was taken from us."

Natasha blinked, a lump forming in her throat. "You mean..."

Yelena nodded. "They can regenerate your womb. You can heal."

The emotion overwhelmed Natasha, and for a moment, she didn't know how to respond. She had long accepted that certain things were lost to her forever. But now, hearing Yelena's words, it felt like a door had been opened—one she hadn't even dared hope for.

Without another word, Yelena gently took Natasha's arm and led her toward the medbay.

As they left, Max turned to Pietro, who had been silently observing the conversation. "You can go with them if you want," Max offered. Pietro hesitated for a moment, glancing at Yelena and Natasha before nodding. He gave Wanda a brief wave before following them out.

Pietro felt a strange pull toward Yelena. He couldn't explain it, but from the moment he saw her, he had felt something. He didn't know if it would last, or even if it was real, but he was willing to try. He had seen how Wanda had found someone in Max, and a small part of him hoped he could do the same with Yelena.

Back in the conference room, only Max, Wanda, Tony Stark, and Steve Rogers remained. Tony leaned back in his chair, his usual cocky smile playing at the corners of his lips. "So, how exactly did you and Wanda meet?" he asked Max.

Max sighed, but a small smile tugged at his lips. "The X-Men were searching for her. They had this insane plan involving Wanda and the Darkhold."

Wanda winced at the mention of the Darkhold. "That thing's bad news."

Steve, who had been quietly listening, furrowed his brow. "What's so bad about it?"

Max shifted in his seat, preparing to explain. "The Darkhold is... dangerous, to put it lightly. It corrupts anyone who uses it, twists their mind, their soul. Entire realities have been destroyed because someone got too close to it."

Steve frowned deeply. "And the X-Men wanted Wanda to use this?"

Max nodded. "Yeah, they thought it could save their world. But it would have destroyed her in the process. That's why I won't let them go through with it."

Wanda smiled softly at Max, grateful for his unwavering protection. She had been through so much already, and the idea of being used again—of being manipulated for someone else's agenda—was unbearable. But Max was different. He wouldn't let that happen.

Steve nodded in agreement. "I see. We can't let something like that fall into the wrong hands."

Max leaned back, the intensity of the moment fading slightly. "Exactly."

Tony shifted gears, sensing the heavy mood in the room. "So, about Thor and Loki. I'm planning on sending them back to Asgard tomorrow. You still want to talk to them before they go?"

Max grinned. "Definitely. I've got some things to say to Thor. And I've got a few books I want to give Loki."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "Books, huh? That should be interesting."

Max shrugged with a smirk. "It'll keep him occupied. Maybe I'll even give a few to their mom, Frigga."

Tony chuckled, imagining the look on Loki's face when Max handed him a stack of reading material.

But before the conversation could continue, Tony shifted in his seat, his tone becoming more serious. "So, Max... why didn't you tell me about the invasion? Why the cryptic talk about flying whales? You could've given me a heads-up."

Max exhaled slowly, his gaze drifting for a moment as he considered how to answer. "It's complicated, Tony. The things I know, they're... uncertain. I don't exist in other versions of this universe, of which i know, so I'm working off incomplete knowledge. I wasn't sure how everything would play out."

Tony tilted his head, curious. "And where exactly does this knowledge come from?"

Max hesitated. "It's just... there. I don't know the full answer. I have explanations for part of my knowledge, but not the rest. So there's a lot I don't understand about it."

Tony saw the cloud of confusion and sadness pass over Max's face. He didn't like seeing the normally confident young man so uncertain. So, Tony did what he did best—he cracked a joke.

"Well, whatever the reason, you've got one hell of a gift. And speaking of gifts..." He glanced at Wanda with a smirk. "You two make quite the pair. I've always had a thing for redheads myself. Guess it runs in the family, huh?"

Wanda's smile brightened, and Max chuckled, feeling a bit of the weight lift from his shoulders.