"Though the city suffered devastating damage in what has now been confirmed as an alien invasion, the heroic deeds of the team known as the Avengers offered many people not just comfort, but cause for celebration."
"It's wonderful knowing they exist. Someone's looking out for us."
"I love you, Thor!" "Captain America is my favorite!"
"Barbara, you're my goddess!" "Dvalin, I want to lay dragon eggs for you!"
"..."
"Sorry, it looks like someone strange slipped into the crowd."
"People remain curious about the Avengers, but they vanished just as suddenly as they appeared."
As the news anchor delivered the report on television, Nick Fury was facing questions from the World Security Council.
"Where have the Avengers gone?"
The holographic image of a white-haired councilman confronted the man opposite him. Nick Fury folded his arms across his chest and looked up at the councilman, replying unhurriedly, "Well, I haven't been tracking their whereabouts."
"As far as I'm concerned, they've earned this vacation."
Another council member, a woman, had no interest in that question. She asked, "What about the Tesseract?"
"The Tesseract has returned where it belongs, far away from us."
Nick Fury answered.
Something that dangerous was better kept off Earth. When Thor proposed taking the Tesseract, Fury offered no objection and readily agreed.
Apparently, the Bifrost had been broken during Thor and Loki's previous fight, and Odin had gone to considerable trouble to send Thor to Earth this time. Thor would need the Tesseract's power to take Loki back to Asgard for punishment.
After weighing everything, Nick Fury had allowed Thor to take it without obtaining the Council's approval.
Clearly, however, that decision had angered the Council. This postwar meeting was really a session devoted to condemning him.
But after experiencing their attempts to strip him of his authority,