Thick smoke billowed over the highway, where charred wreckage and burning debris were scattered across the asphalt.
The transport truck carrying the Tesseract had finally been forced to a stop on a nearly collapsed overpass.
Ahead of the truck, Bucky Barnes, under the codename "White Wolf," approached with measured steps.
In his right hand, he held the latest multi-functional automatic rifle developed by Rhodes Island Industries.
His left, now transformed into a bladed shield, glinted under the flickering fires.
From the side, a young woman with radiant, wing-like energy soared up from below the bridge, landing lightly beside the transport.
She sheathed her still-crackling vibranium longsword, clapped the dust off her hands, and straightened up with an air of satisfaction.
At the rear, a crimson Akira-style motorcycle skidded smoothly to a stop near the wreckage of a destroyed Jeep.
A red-haired beauty dismounted gracefully, dual-wielding next-gen automatic pistols, also from Rhodes Island Industries, as she strode forward with confident, sultry steps.
Faced with this situation, even the most thick-headed transport crew members knew that resistance was futile.
If they didn't surrender now, they might not live to regret it.
The energy cannon operator, who had been so smug just moments ago, was the first to give up.
He raised his hands obediently, abandoning his station before jumping down from the cargo hold, trembling as he lay flat beside the truck.
Under the watchful eyes of Kagura Hitomi and her team, the driver and the remaining personnel disarmed and exited the vehicle in an orderly manner.
The battle was over.
Griffin Security had successfully intercepted the convoy transporting the Tesseract.
"Hmmm! Now this is what a proper superhero team should look like!" Kagura placed her hands on her hips, nodding in satisfaction.
"Only problem is, we're seriously understaffed."
Griffin Security's core team currently consisted of just the three of them.
Thor and Iron Man were external allies—powerful, yes, but unavailable on demand.
Various circumstances could prevent them from providing backup when needed.
Even though Bucky and Natasha's upgraded gear had boosted their combat capabilities to near-Iron Man levels—slightly surpassing even Captain America—quality alone couldn't completely make up for their lack of numbers.
Recruiting more heroes for Griffin Security was one of Kagura's top priorities.
She already had a few candidates in mind.
For example, Bruce Banner—the man who sought solitude and peace but harbored the heart of a true hero.
Or Frank Castle, the Punisher—a physically formidable soldier with immense potential, who, in parallel universe comics, had even taken on the entire Marvel Universe single-handedly.
Then there was a certain twin-bladed, red-clad mercenary with an irrepressible mouth and an insane healing factor—someone who had, in more than one alternate reality, managed to destroy the entire Marvel Universe...
Looking further into the future, other rising superheroes would eventually be part of her recruitment plan as well.
Like that certain ultra-powerful, tall, curvy individual who could take on a five-stone-wielding Thanos with one hand and crush a stone-less Thanos with the other...
But that was all for later.
Things had to be taken one step at a time.
Kagura had no intention of igniting a civil war within Griffin Security.
That would just be embarrassing.
Contemplating both past and future, Kagura stepped onto the transport truck carrying the Tesseract.
Using her "Cyber Infiltration" skill, she cracked the security system and opened the vault inside the cargo hold.
Before her eyes, the ethereal blue cube radiated a mesmerizing glow, its light flowing like cosmic stardust.
"Gorgeous. As expected from one of the Infinity Stones."
She admired the Tesseract for a moment before focusing her vision on its holographic UI scanner.
[Unknown energy aggregate.]
[Energy levels approach infinity.]
[Threat level: Unquantifiable.]
[Gamma radiation detected—similar to core energy signature.]
[Intensity: Weak, non-harmful.]
"Hmmm, seems legit."
A sly grin spread across her face.
Jackpot!
Kagura had no interest in deals where she'd lose out, nor was she in the business of charity.
The knowledge and secrets hidden within the Tesseract were exactly what she sought.
Let's be honest—who wouldn't want something like this?
If trying to harness the Tesseract's power for technological advancement was a risky and unsafe venture, then the information it contained was a priceless treasure—safe, secure, and invaluable.
This was one of her main goals for the mission.
[Basic Cyber Infiltration: Activated.]
[Core Energy Transmission: Activated.]
Using her energy transmission skill, Kagura activated the containment device linked to the Tesseract.
The device essentially functioned as an external interface, allowing data from the Tesseract to be transferred to an external computer for analysis.
But instead of a computer, Kagura used her Cyber Infiltration ability to hijack the containment device, funneling the Tesseract's data directly into her mind.
Of course, the data was compressed for storage.
She didn't have time to process it all just yet. Once the mission was over, she would extract and decrypt the information using Rhodes Island's supercomputers.
Perfect!
Knowledge expansion for a genius young woman—success!
With the "spoils of war" secured, Kagura lifted her head and signaled to Natasha and Bucky.
Natasha immediately contacted Rhodes Island's transport team to clean up the scene, recover the Tesseract, and return to base.
"Oh, right, Cortana, don't forget to take that thing too."
She pointed to the abandoned energy cannon. "Looks pretty interesting. Might be worth modifying into something... extraordinary."
"Command acknowledged, Master."
"Oh, and one more thing."
Kagura glanced around at the nearly obliterated overpass, rubbing her chin in thought.
'Uh... how much would it cost to buy this entire bridge?'
............…..
Above the North Atlantic Ocean – S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier
Compared to Griffin Security's smooth success, things weren't going as well for the Avengers.
In the command center, Kagura's puppet self sat slouched in a corner, casually playing a game on her phone.
No matter the situation, gaming was always a solid way to escape reality.
In this world, Rhodes Island Industries hadn't overlooked the gaming industry—the ultimate cash cow.
Back in 2009, Kagura had established "Blizzard Glass," a subsidiary of Rhodes Island Industries focused on mobile gaming.
With Aperture Tech's smartphones taking the world by storm, their dominance over the mobile game market was practically inevitable.
What's that? Why didn't they develop high-end PC games instead?
Come on now. Don't you guys have phones?
She finished a match, set down her phone, and surveyed the bridge.
Even though there wasn't an urgent mission at hand, keeping an eye on the crew, monitoring real-time data, and gathering intelligence were still necessary tasks.
The atmosphere was thick with tension, like a forced group blind date in a crowded hotel banquet room—awkward and suffocating.
It wasn't that anything major had gone wrong.
Loki was securely locked up, and his scepter—capable of corrupting minds—was already sealed in an electromagnetic isolation case.
No, the issue was simple: a group of headstrong heroes had been shoved into one room, and they just couldn't stand each other.
"I think they need a little push," Agent Coulson murmured to Nick Fury.
"Each of them is incredible in their own right. If they can truly unite as a team, they might just fulfill the Avengers Initiative."
"I agree." Fury nodded.
"Once we locate the Tesseract, we'll have them work together in a real mission."
"Uh… Director Fury?" Kagura's puppet self interjected. "About that…"
"The Tesseract has already been recovered."
"…WHAT?! By whom?"
"Uh… Penguin Logistics."
"…???"