Helicarrier, Command Room Three.
Hill stood at the center of the Holographic Tactical Table, both hands braced against its cold metal surface, her eyes sweeping over everyone seated there.
Her face had grown noticeably thinner, a mark of several days of grueling work and the price she paid as acting director.
"Everyone," Hill began, her voice steady, "we're not here today to discuss S.H.I.E.L.D.'s established tactics against Russell.
"Or rather, not entirely."
As she spoke, her gaze settled on the right side of the table.
A massive pane of reinforced glass stood there, with a sealed ecological pod behind it.
Inside the pod, a toad crouched on a wet rock, its hind legs tucked beneath it and its bulging eyes half closed.
Occasionally, he flicked out a slender tongue, caught a mosquito crawling across the glass, and swallowed it.
That toad was Nick Fury, who still had not regained his human form.
Russell's magic had proven one thing before everyone's eyes.
In this new order, the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. had been turned into a mosquito-eating amphibian before he could even make a show of resistance.
"We've received a diplomatic communiqué from Asgard," Hill said, pressing a holographic button on the tactical table.
"Speaking on behalf of the Nine Realms, Odin publicly recognized Russell's 'reconstruction of order' on Earth and expressed his willingness to cooperate fully with Earth-or, more precisely, with Russell-on matters of multiverse security."
"Wakanda," Hill continued, her voice flat. "T'Challa has publicly expressed his support for Russell. Wakanda will open all its vibranium reserves to him for use in 'defending against multiverse threats.'"
Another document appeared on the Holographic Screen, Wakanda's emblem glowing a faint purple in the darkness.
"And Atlantis." At last, a barely perceptible trace of exhaustion crept into Hill's voice.
"Namor personally issued a statement