Skye had no words to describe what she was feeling.
Ever since she joined the Rising Tide organization, she had spent years hacking into government databases, chasing the truth about her origins—
And always coming up empty.
Until now.
For the first time, she had touched the truth.
And it was far more shocking than she ever imagined.
Her fingers trembled as she ran a trace on the email's source…
And found nothing.
"…Impossible."
The sender had left zero digital footprints.
Whoever 'Zero' was—
They were a hacker far beyond her level.
That realization sent a chill down her spine.
Even so, Skye refused to take the email at face value.
She had to verify its contents.
She dug through the deep web, hunted for remnants of deleted data, and cross-checked eyewitness accounts.
And despite the best efforts of whoever had wiped the internet clean—
She found traces.
Mexico.
A strange hammer, reported by locals, said to be unmovable.
The battlefield, still bearing the scars of an otherworldly conflict.
Her heart pounded.
The email wasn't just real—
It was a goldmine.
Excited, Skye immediately messaged the two people she trusted most:
Her hacking mentor, and… her ex-boyfriend.
> Skye: Miles, I think I found something. A clue about my past.
Miles: What? How?
Skye: You won't believe this.
She attached the encrypted email, using Rising Tide's advanced algorithms to keep it secure.
> Skye: This is it. The truth we've been searching for—S.H.I.E.L.D. has been hiding too much. We need to expose them.
The Rising Tide wasn't a structured organization—more of a collective of hacktivists.
But their goal was singular:
Total transparency.
They believed that truth was the fundamental right of every citizen.
And Skye had just stumbled upon the biggest truth of them all.
Miles called her instantly.
"Holy shit—Skye!" His voice was breathless. "Where did you find this?! Who the hell is 'Zero'?! And… aliens?!"
"It doesn't matter!" Skye was practically shouting. "I don't care who 'Zero' is—he's right. We have the right to know the truth! And if we make enough noise, they have to tell us everything!"
Miles hesitated. "Look, I get it, but—let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let me run this by the rest of the group first—"
He was trying to calm her down.
But Skye wasn't stopping.
After ending the call, Miles sat at his desk, thinking.
Then he let out a sigh.
"…I'm broke."
And this?
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Instead of sitting on the information, Miles decided to leak just a bit—to the editors of major newspapers and magazines.
Not the full truth.
Just enough to drive public interest… and make himself a fortune in the process.
---
Meanwhile…
Shen He had expected things to escalate—
But not this fast.
At 3:00 AM, he was dragged out of sleep by the blaring of his phone.
Caller ID: NICK FURY.
"…You have got to be kidding me."
Grumbling, Shen He picked up.
"DID YOU DO THIS?!" Fury's voice was thunderous. "You EXPOSED S.H.I.E.L.D. AND the Asgardians to the entire world?! Do you have ANY idea what kind of chaos you've started?!"
Shen He rubbed his face sleepily.
"…Chaos? Please. The only thing I did was save you from being fired."
"Fired?!" Fury sounded ready to explode. "Do you know how close the World Security Council was to kicking me out?! They're calling this the biggest security breach in history!"
Shen He let out a mock gasp.
"Oh no! What a tragedy! Losing S.H.I.E.L.D.… an organization already INFESTED with HYDRA!" He yawned. "Honestly, Fury, wouldn't it be better if they just took it off your hands?"
Fury went silent.
Not because he was speechless—
But because he knew Shen He wasn't wrong.
"…You should've warned me," Fury finally muttered.
"Director Fury," Shen He's tone sharpened, "Have you ever heard of mutual trust? You've never trusted me. So why should I trust you?"
Fury exhaled slowly.
The old man wasn't stupid. He wasn't calling to yell—he was trying to negotiate.
But the problem?
Shen He had all the leverage.
Fury needed him.
Not the other way around.
"…What's your next move?" Fury finally asked, voice lower. "Every major media outlet is covering this. The internet's on fire. Even TV stations are reporting about aliens and S.H.I.E.L.D. Where did you find these hackers?"
Fury's first suspect?
Tony Stark.
After all, if anyone had the skills and resources to pull this off—it was Tony.
But when the Council investigated, they found out the truth:
The leak had come from elite hackers across the world.
It was bigger than just Tony.
Shen He smirked.
"Oh please. I'd never sell out a friend like Tony."
Fury narrowed his eye. "…Then what is your next move?"
Shen He glanced at the alarm clock beside his bed.
"My next move?" He chuckled. "Going back to sleep."
Fury took a deep breath. "Shen He. Tony's building a war machine. If you know something, tell me—who's our real enemy?"
"I only know what I need to know." Shen He stretched. "Now, if you'll excuse me—I'm turning my phone off."
Before Fury could argue, Shen He hung up.
Then, he turned to Jarvis.
"Jarvis? Block all incoming calls."
"Yes, sir."
Satisfied, Shen He buried himself under the blankets and went back to sleep.
---
Morning.
Shen He didn't get to wake up naturally.
Instead, he was pulled from sleep by a soft whisper.
"…Master."
His eyes fluttered open—
And the first thing he saw was Jeanne's smiling face.
For a moment, the world felt perfect.
"…Good morning, Jeanne."
"Good morning, Master." Jeanne giggled. "We have guests waiting. You should get ready."
"…Guests?"
Shen He sat up, yawning.
"Jarvis, who is it?"
"Sir, Agent Coulson has been waiting for 42 minutes."
Shen He smirked.
"…Fury really is smart."
Instead of coming himself, he sent Coulson—the friendliest face in S.H.I.E.L.D.
Unlike Fury, Coulson was genuinely likable.
Shen He turned to Jeanne.
"…Uh, Jeanne?" He whispered.
"Hm?"
"…You might want to step out first."
"…Why?"
Shen He coughed. "Because… uh… morning energy."
Jeanne turned bright red and fled the room.
Shen He grinned.
"…Jarvis? Save that reaction as a picture file."
If he ever got back to his original world—
People would die of jealousy.