"What deal?" William immediately covered his butt and asked.
"As long as you're loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D., I guarantee we won't bother you again."
Nick Fury said, "We won't ask about your background anymore, or question you about the future or your abilities."
So that was it. William understood what Nick Fury meant. His words sounded sincere, but they were full of traps.
It seemed S.H.I.E.L.D. already knew he'd summoned a Dragon Spirit with Hanzo. Maybe Coulson had seen it, or some other agent had.
Soldier: 76's futuristic soldier form could still be explained with advanced technology. Hanzo's almost magical abilities, on the other hand, were harder to explain. How was William supposed to account for them? That members of the Shimada Clan were born with the ability to summon Dragon Spirits?
So S.H.I.E.L.D. was conflicted—or, more accurately, Nick Fury was. Honestly, William was an unknown and potentially dangerous factor to S.H.I.E.L.D. They didn't know what his abilities were or who he really was.
S.H.I.E.L.D. usually dealt with dangerous people in one of two ways: capture and imprison them, or eliminate them outright.
But they couldn't do that to William, because he was going out of his way to help them. They didn't know what his motives were, but he really was helping S.H.I.E.L.D.
From approaching Tony Stark to warn him, to protecting Pepper Potts and helping Iron Man defeat Iron Monger, Nick Fury had seen all of it.
Nick Fury was always suspicious of everything around him. He could count the people he truly trusted at S.H.I.E.L.D. on one hand. He couldn't see through the mystery surrounding William. Sometimes he really wanted to sit down and ask:
William, what exactly are you after? Why are you helping us?
But he knew he couldn't ask. As long as certain things remained unspoken, they could still be resolved. Once the truth was out, there'd be no turning back!
At first, Nick Fury had assumed William was just an enhanced individual with special high-tech equipment. But Hanzo's appearance—or rather, the Dragon Spirit's—had left him completely baffled.
Magic? Technology? Just who was William?
There was no other way. After discussing it with Coulson all night, they'd decided to bring William fully into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fold.
Not as a consultant anymore, but as an agent. They'd give him a rank, put him under Coulson's supervision, and have Coulson keep a close eye on him. Only then could Nick Fury set his mind at ease.
"You want me to actually join you?" William asked.
"That's right. I'll give you a new position, and you'll start as an agent." Coulson, who'd been sitting silently on the sofa, spoke with a serious expression.
"We won't give you any more special privileges. You'll be under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s strict supervision. But we won't bother you again or ask you any more questions. That's our good faith."
"Good faith?" At those words, William couldn't help rolling his eyes. He walked over and picked up a poster. "Don't think I don't know you installed a camera in my home. Is that what you call good faith?"
It was a Captain America poster. Nick Fury's expression changed at once, while Coulson covered his face and said nothing.
Just a few days earlier, William had accidentally found the pinhole camera on the Captain America poster.
He'd planned to confront Coulson about it, but figured they were probably just worried about his abilities, so he'd let it go. But now that S.H.I.E.L.D. was acting like he was on trial, he felt like making trouble.
This lousy organization was going to fall apart before long. What were they acting so high and mighty for?
"Do you people even understand what an invasion of privacy is?" William tossed the Captain America poster down in front of Coulson. "You didn't install these cameras in my toilet and bathroom too, did you?"
"Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Lister. It was just a precautionary measure by S.H.I.E.L.D.," Nick Fury explained.
William replied irritably, "A precaution? I help you because I choose to. If I don't, you can't threaten me. You don't want to make me angry. Do you really want to become my enemy?"
The tension in the air grew. Nick Fury's gaze sharpened, and he instinctively reached for the pistol at his waist.
Seeing this, Coulson quickly raised his hands. "Mr. Lister, there have been a lot of misunderstandings between us. We guarantee this won't happen again. We can negotiate the terms. Is there anything else you want?"
"It's not impossible for me to make a deal with you," William said coldly. "But I have conditions!"
"First, don't interfere with my privacy. Don't spy on me again!"
"Second, besides the two of you, no one else can know that I'm a time traveler!"
At William's words, Nick Fury's brow furrowed.
"Third, I don't want to be an agent for S.H.I.E.L.D. I still want to help you as a consultant!"
William had never been the type to follow orders, and he certainly didn't want to live under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s thumb. It was inevitable that he'd have to deal with S.H.I.E.L.D. in the Marvel Universe, but become one of their underlings? Sorry, that wasn't happening.
"These things can all be negotiated," Coulson said with an awkward smile. "But what do we get out of it?"
Deals were usually beneficial to both sides, unless one party had the upper hand. William knew he couldn't make unreasonable demands, so he said:
"I'll keep helping you like I have before, but you can't force me to take on missions. I don't want to become your enemy, so don't push me."
William didn't want to fall out with S.H.I.E.L.D. either. After all, until Hydra emerged from the shadows, S.H.I.E.L.D. would remain a powerful force. But if their cooperation really fell through, he'd also considered whether to approach Hydra instead.
Nick Fury's expression darkened as he seemed to weigh his options. "If you keep helping us without causing trouble, I can agree to those terms."
"People like you may be dangerous, but you have incredible abilities. I actually need a lot more people like you to protect this world!"
"Oh?" Hearing Director Fury say that, William couldn't help thinking of something.
"I've already discussed this with Tony Stark," Nick Fury said seriously. "If you're willing to join this initiative too, I can consider your terms."
"What initiative?" William asked.
"The Avengers."
No wonder Nick Fury had come all the way from Washington to New York. He must have already visited Tony's luxurious mansion, since Tony had publicly revealed that he was Iron Man, drawing Director Fury's attention.
But whether he'd managed to reach an agreement with Tony was another matter.
"Is that odd name the name of some gaming guild?" William asked, pretending he knew nothing.
"No, it's a special organization," Nick Fury replied seriously. "Its members will be unusual people or superheroes like you, and you'll face threats beyond the ordinary!"
William pursed his lips. "You're planning to gather a bunch of oddballs together? Before I decide whether to join, I want to know: does this organization already have any other members?"
"Two of my most elite agents meet the requirements. I've spoken to Tony, but he doesn't seem interested," Nick Fury said helplessly. "Then there's you. Honestly, that makes four of us in total."
All right. So they really hadn't reached an agreement yet.
"If the threats are really that extraordinary, four people won't be enough," William said meaningfully. "If you really want to put together a team like this, you'll need more people. You'll need more heroes!"
Nick Fury thought, You think superheroes are as easy to find as homeless people? Still, William had a point. When a real disaster struck, a four-person team wouldn't be enough. They needed greater strength.
"How about this? Until your Avengers Initiative is actually established, I'll keep helping S.H.I.E.L.D. as a consultant," William said solemnly.
"When the day war breaks out, just come find me. You know where I live. I'll help you defeat the enemy—as an Avenger!"
Thanks, everyone, for your support. Here's an extra chapter~
Before you continue