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[Frog] Chapter 211: Captain Marvel - Carol Danvers
🕑 Added 2024-12-12 17:04:30 +0000 UTCNew York City.
With the end of the war, the entirety of Manhattan was restored to its original state under Odin’s magic.
However, the aftermath of the war was far from over.
Countless media outlets swarmed the streets, interviewing every resident in the Manhattan district.
The first alien invasion in human history—this was undeniably the headline of the century.
Every news agency rushed to publish reports, fearing that being scooped would cost them their audience.
Some smarter outlets took a different approach, interviewing those who had died and come back to life.
They asked questions like:
"What does death feel like?"
"And how does it feel to be alive again?"
For a time, the streets and alleys of Manhattan were filled with the voices of reporters from various newspapers and TV stations.
The entire United States, and even the world, was riveted by these stories.
Inside Stark Tower.
Pepper Potts held a medical kit, gently dabbing at the wounds on Tony Stark's face.
With the war over, Stark Tower had also been restored to its original state.
The advanced medical facilities here were enough to help the likes of Captain America and others recover from their injuries.
On the top floor,
Steve Rogers, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Bruce Banner were sprawled motionless on the couches, utterly exhausted.
Odin’s magic had seemingly ignored everyone on the rooftop, leaving them to deal with the aftermath themselves.
Tony’s medical team had prepared various treatments for them.
"Doc, why is it that you don’t have a single scratch on you?"
Hawkeye, hooked up to an IV drip, looked at Banner with suspicion.
Of all the people present, Banner was the only one without a single wound. Not only that, but he had changed into a neatly pressed suit.
He looked less like someone who had just been through a war and more like a playboy returning from a night of revelry.
Banner shrugged and explained, "I’ve studied this before."
"Ever since I was exposed to gamma radiation and the Hulk emerged within me, I’ve also developed an extraordinary healing factor."
"How extraordinary?"
Black Widow, intrigued, pressed for more details.
Everyone else, equally curious, turned to Banner. Despite being superheroes, they seemed almost mortal compared to the Hulk.
"Fine, I’ll satisfy your curiosity," Banner said.
He casually picked up a fruit knife from the table and, to everyone’s shock, slashed his own palm deeply.
Blood instantly flowed.
Just watching made Tony wince. "Dr. Banner, I might need to reconsider working with you. That’s intense."
The others also began to look at Banner with a mix of awe and unease.
Banner said innocently, "I just wanted to demonstrate my healing ability. Look..."
Sure enough, before their eyes, the gaping wound on Banner’s palm began to close.
In just a moment, the wound had completely disappeared, leaving only faint traces of blood as proof it had ever existed.
Tony looked astonished. He had never seen anything like it.
Then, with a mischievous glint, he asked, "So, Doc, if we were to cut you in half..."
"Would that create two Hulks?"
"Oh, no!"
Everyone else recoiled at Tony’s twisted sense of humor, glaring at him in unison.
"Okay, okay," Tony said defensively. "I was just being scientifically curious. What do you think, Doc?"
Banner rolled his eyes. "I don’t think that’s a great experiment, and I certainly don’t want to try it."
Tony gestured for Pepper to help him stand, then turned back to Banner. "Do you remember what I told you at S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
"Of course."
When they had been tracking the energy of the Tesseract, Tony had extended an invitation to Banner to join him at Stark Tower.
At the time, Banner had declined.
But now, here he was.
"Well, since you’re already here, it’d be a shame not to take a look around."
"I think you’ll enjoy the research facilities I’ve got."
"Jarvis, prepare to give Dr. Banner a tour of Stark Tower. And don’t forget to cue up your presentation."
"...?"
Tony froze.
Jarvis didn’t respond; instead, there was an eerie silence.
Even Banner noticed something was off. "Jarvis... crashed?"
Tony quickly realized what was happening. "Not quite. I think we’ve got an uninvited guest."
This situation reminded Tony of the time he first declared himself Iron Man, only to find Nick Fury waiting in his home.
Sure enough, the next moment, a chime came from the direction of the elevator.
Ding!
As the elevator doors opened, Nick Fury and Maria Hill stepped out and walked toward the group.
Tony, without hesitation, said bluntly, "If you hack into my Jarvis again, I might just make a habit of dropping by S.H.I.E.L.D.'s network for some light entertainment."
Nick Fury replied just as directly, "Don’t forget—you’ve already done that before."
Not long ago, Tony had indeed hacked into S.H.I.E.L.D.’s internal files. At this, Tony merely shrugged, neither admitting nor denying it.
Fury pressed a remote in his hand, and Jarvis’s voice returned.
"Sir, it appears another vulnerability of mine has been discovered."
"Nothing in this world is perfect," Fury commented. "Even humans have flaws, so why should an AI be any different?"
He continued, "I just wanted to check in on all of you. But I was afraid I’d be left outside if I didn’t let myself in."
With that, Fury glanced at Tony, then at the injured heroes resting on the couches. "And I have some good news to share."
Though the group seemed indifferent to the mention of good news, Fury took the tablet Maria Hill handed him and smiled. "After emergency treatment, Coulson is out of critical condition. The first thing he wanted to do upon waking up was to video call all of you."
Tony immediately stepped over to Fury and took the tablet from his hands.
On the screen appeared a somewhat pale but familiar face.
With a flick of his hand, Tony cast Coulson’s video onto the larger display via Jarvis.
Seeing that Coulson was alive and well, everyone let out a sigh of relief. After all, they had no idea if Odin’s resurrection spell had revived everyone Loki killed or only those who died during the battle in New York.
After some brief conversation, a doctor appeared beside Coulson in the video, reminding him it was time for his checkup, and the call ended.
"This small matter doesn’t seem like something that would require you to come here personally," Banner remarked.
Among the group, Banner had the least connection with Coulson and quickly pointed out the unusual circumstances.
Fury didn’t deny it and said directly, "Of course not. As I said from the start, I’m here to talk about the Avengers Initiative."
"After this battle, I believe you’ve realized that the threats facing Earth are far greater than conflicts between humans."
As Fury spoke, he casually seated himself.
Tony, quick to catch the subtext, interjected, "Wait... Are you saying the Avengers Initiative was created from the beginning to deal with aliens?"
"How did you even know aliens existed?"
Until Thor’s appearance, the world’s knowledge of aliens had been limited to UFO sightings. Most people even doubted the existence of extraterrestrial life, believing humanity might be the universe’s only intelligent species.
Steve Rogers and the others also turned to Fury, seeking an explanation.
"Because I’ve already experienced an alien invasion once before," Fury replied.
"And back then, it was even more dangerous than now."
Hearing this, everyone looked at Fury in disbelief.
The Earth had been invaded before?
This revelation was shocking, as the matter had been classified as top-secret by S.H.I.E.L.D. and the U.S. government. The records were stored in secure physical files, completely inaccessible via hacking.
Under their astonished gazes, Fury began recounting the events of that time.
"Back then, I was still a federal agent. One day, I encountered a woman who fell from the sky. Her name was Carol Danvers."
"But I prefer to call her Captain Marvel..."
Fury recounted the events in detail, though he carefully omitted and altered certain facts.
Unaware of the truth, the group didn’t probe further. Even if they did, Fury was prepared with ready answers.
"In the end, to protect both the Kree and humanity, Captain Marvel sacrificed herself. Before she died, I promised her I would form the Avengers to defend Earth."
"I also developed weapons using the Tesseract as a contingency plan."
Fury’s gaze swept over the group. "Because sometimes, superheroes don’t always follow orders."
His meaning was unmistakable.
"I’ve said what I came to say. The war may be over, but I have plenty of work to do."
With that, Fury took a few files from Hill. "If you’re interested in joining the Avengers, take a look at these."
After Fury left, the room fell into a deep silence...
—(To be continued)—
