Chapter 307: The Disappeared Government High-Ranking Officials
"Fitz, have you tracked the location of those seven hammers?"
At the S.H.I.E.L.D. base, the newly appointed Director Coulson asked Leo Fitz, head of the technology department.
After the Insight Plan incident concluded, although S.H.I.E.L.D. ultimately achieved victory with George's help, it was no longer trusted by the world's governments, and its strength was significantly diminished.
However, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. After all, it was once the world's top organization, and even gathering its remaining agents and technologies made it unmatched by ordinary organizations.
So the U.S. government took over, providing funding and turning S.H.I.E.L.D. into a department that now served exclusively for the United States, just like the CIA and the FBI.
Only the distribution of responsibilities differed.
The Central Intelligence Agency's main task was to collect political, cultural, technological, and other intelligence on foreign governments, companies, and individuals, both publicly and secretly, coordinate activities of other domestic intelligence agencies, and share that information with all branches of the U.S. government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation mainly focused on counterterrorism, counterespionage, and criminal investigations, having jurisdiction over more than 200 types of federal crimes.
Now, S.H.I.E.L.D. was responsible for handling all domestic supernatural events and liaising with the Superpower Academy, which the U.S. government currently viewed as a ticking time bomb with no consensus yet on how to manage it.
A week ago, S.W.O.R.D., which was responsible for extraterrestrial security, detected seven distinctively shaped hammers descending from outer space and landing on Earth.
This was clearly not a normal occurrence.
So S.H.I.E.L.D. took over to begin tracking the location of those seven hammers and investigate whether they posed a threat to the nation.
"Based on the energy fluctuations of the seven hammers gathered from the data provided by S.W.O.R.D., I created a corresponding tracker, linked it to the radar, and successfully located all seven hammers.
And I also discovered that, in addition to those seven hammers, there's an eighth hammer exhibiting similar fluctuations—it might have existed on Earth for quite some time."
Fitz brought out his radar and continued:
"The location of the eighth hammer is in Sokovia, and four of the other seven hammers initially landed there too, overlapping with the eighth one's position.
The remaining three hammers—one fell in the small African nation of Wakanda, one in the sea near Spain, and one in Miami, Florida.
But now, those three hammers have all converged in Sokovia."
"Sokovia… Could it be related to Hydra?"
Coulson frowned upon hearing that.
Although Pierce had been eliminated, it didn't mean Hydra was completely wiped out.
According to the confessions extracted from captured Hydra agents, there were still many Hydra bases scattered around the world—Pierce was just one branch.
Currently, they had confirmed that there was a relatively large Hydra base in Sokovia.
Now, one hammer originally existed in Sokovia, and then seven others arrived from space, all gathering there—it was impossible not to suspect a connection with Hydra.
"Looks like we need to head to Sokovia ourselves!"
Coulson immediately decided to lead a team to Sokovia to uncover the truth about those eight hammers.
"Notify May to assemble the strike team. We leave in half an hour."
"Director, emergency situation!"
Just then, a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent burst in, panicked, and reported to Coulson:
"Sokovia— the entire city—has lifted off and is flying toward Washington!"
"What! Fitz, connect to satellite surveillance."
Coulson's expression changed instantly, and he quickly instructed Fitz to activate the satellite feed to view the flying Sokovia.
With Fitz's rapid, complex operations, a projection appeared on the room's screen.
And on the projection was real-time satellite footage showing Sokovia flying through the sky at high speed, and, when zoomed in, at the forefront of Sokovia stood a giant serpent, the eight Heavenly Hammer Lords, and a massive number of Hydra soldiers.
"Oh, shit. Quickly notify the Secretary of Defense to initiate missile interception.
Also, contact George, the principal of the Superpower Academy—we may need his help!"
Elsewhere, the giant serpent, sensing the incoming barrage of missiles, showed a trace of disdain on his face. He didn't even act personally, just signaled to the eight Heavenly Hammer Lords behind him.
"Primitive mortal weapons… not even on par with the extinct Dark Elves.
Killian, handle it."
"My honor, great God Lord!"
The middle-aged man with slicked-back hair and wearing a suit suddenly ignited in roaring flames. With a flick, the red hammer in his hand flew up, transforming into a ring of fire that swirled in the air and instantly obliterated all the incoming missiles.
His name was Aldrich Killian, one of the creators of the Extremis virus. A week ago, a fiery red hammer suddenly fell before him.
When he picked up the hammer, he discovered that his body—already enhanced by the Extremis virus—was further transformed, completely evolving from a mortal to a god.
At the same time, he understood his mission: to forever pursue and assist his master, the God of Fear, Kuur.
The great God Lord—the one and only truth!
"Looks like everyone's in a hurry. Let's move a bit faster."
After intercepting the countless missiles, Kuur clearly felt more fear energy flowing into his body, further restoring his power.
As a result, Sokovia's flight speed increased by another level. Before the second wave of missiles could arrive, Sokovia was already hovering directly above the White House in Washington, D.C.
"Pitiful mortals, feel fear!"
With a light tap of his staff on the ground, the entire city of Sokovia slammed downward.
"Boom!"
A deafening explosion. At that moment, inside the White House, an emergency meeting was underway with the President, Vice President, Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, and other high-ranking officials—all crushed into pulp.
Simultaneously, a massive area of Washington centered around the White House was annihilated by Sokovia's impact.
A tremendous amount of fear energy gathered above the city and was absorbed by Kuur, making him even more powerful.
"My children, go forth and spread fear. Let the mortals of the world tremble—this is just the beginning!"
At Kuur's command, the eight Heavenly Hammer Lords led the Hydra soldiers in a charge against the approaching military forces, unleashing slaughter and devastation in Washington.
And this terrifying scene was broadcast live by major TV reporters—those who, in pursuit of headlines, never understood the meaning of the word "death."
In fact, those reporters were genuinely safe that day, because Kuur had specifically instructed not to attack them—he wanted more humans to witness Washington's tragedy and feed him more fear.
(End of Chapter)