Nick Fury initially thought the Tesseract was working on its own and thought it was a good thing.
Perhaps this could allow us to fully control the energy in the universe.
But Dr. Selvig's next words sent chills down his spine.
"This isn't the Tesseract's Cube operating on its own; someone opened it from the other end. To be precise, this is probably the true way to use the Tesseract: opening a wormhole over an extremely long distance!"
The opening of a wormhole over an extremely long distance is a novel concept.
Nick Fury used it to create new energy weapons; the Skrulls had previously planned to use it to build a light-speed engine.
How exactly is this thing used, or what will be transmitted from the other end?
Nick Fury has seen aliens, and this place is remote, so he's not afraid of accidentally harming civilians.
So he ordered all combat personnel at the base to be on high alert, and at the same time recalled Hawkeye, who was on a mission outside. (In the original movie, Hawkeye was always at the base keeping an eye on Dr. Selvig's research on Tesseract Rubik's Cube, and preventing him from tampering with it, but here Natasha ran off with Qin Xiao, so Hawkeye's responsibilities naturally became heavier!)
Strangely, after the Tesseract had its energy burst, it quieted down again in no time, as if it had just sneezed casually.
"Sir, the energy fluctuations of the Tesseract have completely decreased to normal levels. Should we order a reduction in the alert level?"
Nearly three hours have passed since the initial abnormal fluctuations began, and the Tesseract remains unresponsive. Agent Hill then offered a suggestion to Nick Fury.
"No, there's always an unusual calm before the storm. Apart from the combat personnel and a few key figures in the Tesseract project, everyone else has left the base. I have a feeling this isn't as simple as it seems!"
Nick Fury's single eye gleamed with a light that seemed to convey worry.
"Sir, in that case, how about we call Agent Romanoff back to help? I mean, Qin Xiao and Stark..."
Nick Fury reached out to stop Agent Hill from speaking.
"They have absolutely no connection to S.H.I.E.L.D.. now. If it's not necessary, let's handle this ourselves!"
An hour and a half later...
Agent Hill watched helplessly as Loki, who had taken control of Hawkeye, Dr. Selvig, and another Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., swaggered away with the Tesseract from the parking lot.
He anxiously asked Nick Fury for his opinion through the headphones.
"Sir, I couldn't stop them. They took the Tesseract. What should we do next?"
"The base is about to explode! Evacuate first, then... notify Natasha and the others!"
New York, New Manhattan.
In what is arguably the world's most expensive commercial area, a brand-new building has recently sprung up.
This large building, which occupies a considerable area, is divided into two parts, upper and lower.
Below are Stark Industries ' various laboratories and offices in New York.
Above that is a huge aerial platform, followed by a total of seven floors of vast private space.
People on Wall Street jokingly say that Tony Stark built a small sky estate on top of his company's building.
Between the two sections, outside the huge terrace, are five enormous lightboxes with the letters STARK, spelling out Tony's surname, Stark!
Tony then connected the cable located on the seabed.
This building became the only building in the world with its own self-sufficient renewable energy.
This also indicates that Stark Industries is at the forefront of the world in the field of renewable energy.
Given Stark's personality, he certainly wouldn't miss this opportunity to show off!
Qin Xiao, Natasha, Captain America, Banner, Rhodey; and of course Pepper Potts, plus the dozens of Widow who stayed behind at the base.
Tony hosted an exclusive party at this penthouse.
As the lettered lightbox outside the terrace lit up, Tony, clad in his armor, roared in and slowly stepped onto the terrace, the circular mechanical arm on the terrace following closely behind Tony steps.
He completely removed his armor the very moment he stepped inside.
"I bet Tony rehearsed that armor removal process countless times in secret!"
Qin Xiao lowered his voice and spoke to everyone.
"What are you all muttering about? Shouldn't you give me a round of applause? From now on, New York's nights will have one more great name illuminating the sky. You should be proud to have a friend like me."
Tony, who had his arms outstretched, did not receive the applause he had imagined, and could only sit down next to Pepper Potts on his own.
He muttered to himself.
You're all just jealous of me!
"Especially you, Qin!"
Tony pointed at Qin Xiao, whose eyes were filled with disdain.
"You're jealous of me, jealous that my name shines in the Manhattan night sky, while yours is just on the Paris police's wanted list!"
Qin Xiao was too lazy to argue with Tony, who was currently being arrogant, so he gave him a hand gesture instead.
Just then, Natasha's phone rang. Qin Xiao made way for Natasha to go outside and answer the call, only to find the Captain sitting alone in a corner, looking dejected, drinking.
"Hey, Captain! You seem preoccupied. It's a party today, you should cheer up! Maybe you can go out and meet some new friends!"
Qin Xiao raised his glass to the Captain and said.
"Those letters!"
The Captain pointed to the huge lightbox that was half-exposed outside the window and said.
"The first time I saw the name Stark was in the newspaper. It was the night before Bucky went to the front lines; he took me to an expo called World of Tomorrow!"
"That's where I first met your father, Howard Stark. He was full of vigor, standing on the stage, telling the world what the future would be like."
"Back then, I was frail and sickly, and no one wanted me to join the army. I never imagined that one day I would fight alongside Howard Stark."
"That same night, I met Dr. Erskine at the expo, the inventor of the Super-Soldier Serum. That night changed my entire life."
The Captain's eyes were filled with memories.
"Looking back now, most of what Howard demonstrated has now come true, exactly as he envisioned. For this world, it represents the rapid advancement of technology after the war."
"For me, I just passed out after the plane crashed, and when I woke up, all these people were gone, and there was only the World of Tomorrow that Howard had described to me, a strange world!"
It seems the letters STARK evoked many memories for the Captain.
He continued speaking dejectedly to the crowd.
" Bucky, my teammates, even the enemies, they're all gone. Howard's gone too, and his son looks like he's my uncle now. I..."
The Captain spread his hands helplessly, then downed the entire glass of whiskey in one gulp.
"I..."
Tony also downed his drink in frustration. If it weren't for Captain's utterly dejected appearance, he would have smashed the glass over Captain America's head.
Two more chapters to go!