There’s an old saying:
Earth is the cradle of humanity. But no one remains in the cradle forever.
From the first moment our ancestors looked up at the stars, they must have wondered what lay beyond them.
As civilization advanced, that dream slowly became reality.
Crewed spaceflight.
Walking on the Moon.
Probes sent to Mars.
Radio signals cast into the endless dark.
Every achievement carried the same hope.
One day, humanity would sail among the stars.
But longing for that future...
And being prepared to face it...
Were two very different things.
The thunder that fell over New Mexico hadn’t welcomed humanity into the space age.
It had dragged them into it.
Violently.
Without warning.
An extraterrestrial civilization had been watching Earth for untold centuries.
At some point in history, they’d apparently decided that this planet belonged within their sphere of influence.
They possessed technology beyond human understanding.
They had visited Earth in antiquity.
They had left behind legends that survived as myths.
For anyone with even a hint of strategic awareness, the realization was deeply unsettling.
If another civilization had quietly observed humanity’s development from beyond the stars...
Then had humanity truly grown freely?
Or had they spent their entire history as birds inside someone else’s cage?
The philosophical implications could wait.
The practical ones couldn’t.
The five most influential military powers on Earth received the complete battle report from the World Security Council regarding the U.S. military’s engagement with the Destroyer.
Satellite imagery.
Ground surveillance footage.
Damage assessments.
Combat analysis.
Joint Chiefs evaluations.
Every measurable detail of the battle.
Well...
Almost every detail.
Nick Fury had personally ensured that Evenson’s involvement was removed before distribution.
Even without that missing piece, the report painted an unmistakable picture.
Surprisingly...
The response came almost immediately.
Within a single day, those same nations reached agreements on several diplomatic disputes that had remained unresolved for years.
None of them touched core national interests, but compromises that once seemed impossible were suddenly accepted or indefinitely postponed.
No one had suddenly become friends.
True unity remained a distant dream.
Still...
It was an encouraging beginning.
Because every government had arrived at the same conclusion.
As far as alien civilizations were concerned...
There weren’t hundreds of countries on Earth.
There weren’t competing ideologies.
There weren’t countless religions.
There was only one species.
Humanity.
If Odin decided tomorrow that he disliked the Vatican and wanted the Pope removed...
Would anyone seriously argue that only Vatican City should respond while the rest of humanity stayed out of it?
Or imagine Russia announcing that it intended to assassinate the Governor of California while assuring the President of the United States that the matter didn’t concern Washington.
No sovereign nation would ever accept that reasoning.
The same principle applied on a planetary scale.
Granted, Asgard was now unlikely to wage war against Earth.
Thor’s actions had significantly improved relations.
Peaceful contact seemed far more probable than open conflict.
But prudent civilizations didn’t stake their survival on another nation’s goodwill.
Even diplomacy required strength.
Otherwise...
Negotiation became little more than surrender with better manners.
Unfortunately, the report highlighted another uncomfortable truth.
Humanity simply wasn’t ready.
People loved mocking the U.S. military online.
Reality was another matter.
Anyone capable of objective analysis recognized it as one of the strongest armed forces on Earth.
Yet against the Destroyer...
It had been effectively helpless.
Cruise missiles hadn’t been deployed during the battle, but the Joint Chiefs’ own assessment concluded that doing so would likely have changed very little.
That meant humanity’s conventional arsenal was already approaching its limits.
Nuclear weapons still existed, of course.
But using them on Earth’s own soil was a victory no one wanted.
They remained a last resort.
Humanity needed technological breakthroughs.
Desperately.
The problem was that scientific progress couldn’t simply be rushed.
No amount of urgency transformed fighter jets into interstellar battleships overnight.
Which made the Destroyer unique.
Its shattered remains represented humanity’s greatest opportunity for a genuine leap forward.
"You’ve got to tell me the truth."
Nick Fury leaned back in his chair, smiling knowingly.
"You planned to destroy the Destroyer from the beginning, didn’t you?"
Evenson simply smiled.
He neither confirmed nor denied it.
"The Research Division is going to be busy for a long time."
Fury looked genuinely pleased.
An intact Destroyer would have been impossible to restrain.
Studying it safely would’ve been out of the question.
Evenson probably had magical methods that could immobilize it...
But those same methods would’ve prevented anyone from examining it directly.
A broken Destroyer was different.
Now it was merely wreckage.
Wreckage could be dismantled.
Tested.
Reverse-engineered.
More importantly...
As one of Asgard’s greatest weapons, a fully functional Destroyer would’ve been recalled immediately.
A destroyed one?
That was another story.
Even if Asgard eventually requested the remains, there were plenty of diplomatic answers available.
"You want the wreckage?"
"Unfortunately, we found it already destroyed."
"Since it couldn’t be repaired, we recycled the materials for scientific research."
"We sincerely apologize."
"It won’t happen again."
Fury almost laughed at the thought.
"So S.H.I.E.L.D. gets exclusive research rights?"
Evenson asked.
"With every major power watching those ruins, I’m surprised you managed that."
Fury nodded.
"Where else could they put it?"
The logic was obvious.
If the United States kept it, Russia would object.
If Russia got it, the United States would object.
If anyone else claimed exclusive control...
The arguments would never end.
S.H.I.E.L.D., at least publicly, remained neutral enough for everyone to tolerate.
Evenson chuckled.
Imagine giving it to South Korea.
Within a year someone would probably publish a paper claiming Asgard had actually been founded on the Korean Peninsula and the Destroyer had originally been excavated from Hallasan.
Fury glanced back at the report.
His expression suddenly shifted.
"Hm."
"The old bastard certainly has a good nose."
"I can’t believe he still hasn’t learned his lesson after last time."
Evenson looked up.
"Who?"
"Ross."
Fury didn’t bother hiding the name.
Evenson frowned.
"The same Ross who still owes me a car?"
His previous vehicle had been totaled during the Abomination incident.
Ross had promised compensation.
Months later...
Nothing.
Not a dollar.
"The very same."
Fury sounded thoroughly unimpressed.
"Right after this incident ended, Ross contacted several old friends in the military."
"I don’t know exactly what they discussed."
"But it definitely wasn’t a reunion."
He flipped another page.
"Looks like he’s registering a company."
"And planning to enter politics."
After a moment’s thought, Fury tossed the report aside.
"Forget him."
"After the Abomination disaster, every major backer abandoned him."
"If he’s found new sponsors, good for him."
"His reputation is damaged beyond repair."
"I doubt he’ll cause much trouble."
He leaned forward.
"Let’s discuss something more important."
"The distinguished guest you brought back."
Compared to a disgraced general trying to rebuild his career...
Lady Sif was infinitely more interesting.
...
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