The young girl under Hive's control had a rather unimpressive mutant ability—so weak, in fact, that he found it nearly useless. Her power allowed her to subtly influence others' emotions through mental interference, making people naturally like her.
However, due to the weakness of her ability, she had to pair it with specific gestures and expressions to enhance its effect—essentially, the so-called "cuteness factor."
Thinking about this, Hive felt a wave of frustration. He had always believed that true strength came from raw power, not playing cute to defeat enemies.
Fortunately, as long as the plan succeeded, he could abandon this body.
"Wait, couldn't I just find another mutant at their school to take over?" Hive suddenly realized he might not need to remain in this host body.
"I wouldn't recommend that, Mr. Hive," Madame Viper cautioned. "Every new student at their school undergoes a mental evaluation upon arrival. Besides, her abilities are more suited to our plan."
She didn't want Hive making unnecessary moves. In this form, no one would suspect him.
"Fine. Then take me to this mutant school you spoke of." Hive—no, the girl's name was Eve—decided she might as well take on a new identity.
Truthfully, he wasn't sure how to express his current emotions. The memories in this girl's mind were utterly chaotic.
"We'll have someone completely unaffiliated with HYDRA escort you," Madame Viper continued. "Otherwise, we risk raising suspicion. Fury is a cunning old fox; he's not easy to fool."
At this point, she knew she had to be extremely careful. The mutant school possessed warships comparable to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s helicarriers. They couldn't afford to draw attention until they had secured power.
Once the dust settled, they would have the upper hand.
The mutants had their champions, but so did they.
The mutants had warships, but HYDRA had helicarriers.
Soon, they wouldn't need to fear anything.
...
Nearly six months had passed, and Garus still hadn't returned. Wanda was beginning to worry. Had something happened to him? Or was the distance simply too vast? Even the Chitauri had needed a wormhole to reach Earth.
"Wanda."
Pietro suddenly appeared in her room, just as she was about to change.
"If you do that again, I'll throw you into Dr. Connors' lab," she warned.
Pietro often used his super-speed to barge into her room unannounced, which was becoming a real problem. She dreaded the day he might see something he shouldn't.
Pietro shuddered at the thought. Dr. Connors, in his eyes, was a truly sinister scientist. Using Garus' necro-alchemy, Connors had created terrifying creatures—such as Patchwerk, the stitched abomination, and Electro, Thaddeus.
"Fury came to see me today," Pietro said. "He's noticed increased HYDRA activity within S.H.I.E.L.D. It looks like they're putting a plan into motion…"
Wanda cut him off. "I don't want to hear about S.H.I.E.L.D. If not for them, Garus wouldn't have disappeared into that wormhole. We don't even know if he can come back. This universe is too vast…"
Pietro hesitated before finally blurting out, "Wanda… do you like Garus?"
The moment the words left his mouth, he vanished in a blur, fearing his sister's wrath.
"You—!"
Pietro was now a member of the Illuminati, a dedicated and passionate worker. According to Fury, he was a true hot-blooded youth. He had even become good friends with Mordo from the Ancient Order, and they often went on missions together.
Knowing that Wanda wouldn't involve the mutant students in handling HYDRA, Pietro turned and saw Logan walking toward him with a young girl in tow.
"Logan, is she a new recruit?" Pietro asked. "She's adorable."
The girl following Logan was none other than Eve—Hive's vessel. Looking at the floating city, she was genuinely amazed. The enemy was far stronger than she had anticipated. Their technology was beyond her imagination.
She would have to study them closely, understand them, and work from within to dismantle them. Brimming with determination, Eve suddenly sprinted toward a group of curious mutant students, eager to play her part.
"Was it just my imagination, or did she have a strange expression just now?" Pietro muttered. Something about Eve didn't seem quite right.
...
Nick Fury's left eyelid had been twitching all day. He had a bad feeling—something was going to happen. According to recent intelligence, HYDRA's plan was about to unfold, and he was their biggest obstacle.
Long ago, Garus had warned him: HYDRA had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D.'s upper ranks, waiting for the right moment to overthrow the world's governments.
As he pondered this, a cybernetic figure suddenly stepped onto the road ahead of his car, refusing to move aside.
BAM!
There was no time to swerve. Fury's armored car crashed into the figure. But instead of being knocked down, the cyborg raised a fist and punched the car's hood.
The reinforced front of the Director's vehicle caved in. The car flipped through the air, slamming into a storefront, sending civilians screaming.
As the vehicle tumbled, Fury swallowed a prepared pill—one that would put him into a state of suspended animation. He had spent too long in the open; it was time to disappear into the shadows.
Bloodied, Fury crawled out of the wreckage. The assassin hadn't left. Ignoring the approaching police officers' warnings, the cyborg strode toward him.
A cold, mechanical hand grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against a wall.
"Director Fury, it's been a while. I wonder if you still remember me."
The voice was unfamiliar, but the tone struck a chord. "You're that hacker?"
There had been a time when an elusive hacker repeatedly infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D.'s systems, stealing classified data and leaving behind taunting voice messages.
Even Skye, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s best hacker, couldn't trace the intruder's IP. In the end, they had to move most sensitive data to an internal network.
From afar, police officers fired at the cyborg's legs, but the bullets merely clinked off harmlessly.
"ZAP!"
The cyborg raised an arm and fired an energy blast, punching a hole straight through a cop's chest.
"That's right. You can call me Dr. Zola," the machine sneered. "And today, I take great pleasure in eliminating Director Nick Fury."
With a sickening snap, Fury's neck was twisted, his body crumpling lifelessly to the ground.
Zola released the corpse and turned toward the panicked crowd. His mechanical body emitted a series of red flashes.
"RUN!" one of the remaining officers shouted, realizing what was about to happen.
Before they could react, Zola's body exploded—sending metal shrapnel flying in every direction. Chaos erupted in the city streets.
Meanwhile, unseen by anyone, Zola's consciousness slipped away into the ether, escaping to strike again another day.
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