The Negotiating Table

The doorbell rang.

Ding-dong.

The sound was not loud, yet it was like an icy awl piercing the taut membrane hanging over the living room.

Carol's body stiffened instantly. Her hand clenched reflexively, and several strands of golden electricity flashed between her fingers.

Maria sucked in a sharp breath. There was an alien standing in the backyard, and now an uninvited guest had arrived at the front door. Their little house seemed to have become the center of a storm.

Chu Hang smiled instead. There was not the slightest tension in that smile; it even carried a hint of amused anticipation.

He gave Maria a look and said casually, "Go answer the door, Maria. They're already here. We can't exactly leave them standing outside."

Maria's lips moved as though she wanted to say something, but seeing Chu Hang's confident expression, she eventually nodded and turned toward the door.

"Are you crazy?" Carol lowered her voice and leaned close to Chu Hang's ear, disbelief filling her tone. "You're going to let S.H.I.E.L.D. meet the Skrull? They'll start fighting!"

"Why not?" Chu Hang shrugged, looking past Carol at the equally vigilant Skrull man in the backyard with interest. "Look, one wants her memories back, one wants to find a new home, and another wants to figure out every uncertain factor. Everyone has clear goals. Sitting down to talk is the most efficient way. It saves me the trouble of explaining things to each of you one by one."

Carol was left speechless by his twisted logic. She realized she simply could not keep up with this man's train of thought. In his eyes, this was not an interstellar conflict on the verge of exploding at all, but a neighborhood mediation meeting he could arrange however he pleased.

The front door opened.

Maria