Evenson and his entourage had been in England for two weeks.
Aside from avoiding the London Sanctum whenever possible, the trip had been thoroughly enjoyable.
At least, Evenson thought so.
They hiked into remote mountain caves searching for hidden Cybertronians that might transform into three-headed fire-breathing dragons.
They toured Stonehenge while enthusiastically debating with bewildered locals whether King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table had once gathered there to swear brotherhood.
They even spent a night exploring an abandoned castle rumored to be haunted.
Their final conclusion?
The ghosts were a marketing gimmick invented by the nearby innkeeper.
No ancient demons lurked within its walls.
Their last stop was London.
The moment they stepped out of the train station, Tripsy nearly got himself arrested.
On Evenson’s orders, the imp had enthusiastically attempted to demolish the support column between Platforms Nine and Ten.
Fortunately, in his current gnome disguise, the police assumed he was simply an unusually troublesome child. After a lengthy lecture, they let him go.
That wasn’t even the strangest incident.
While wandering through the city, Evenson suddenly spotted a shabby, nearly hidden pub.
Without explanation, he charged inside.
Before anyone could ask why, he ordered Tyler to smash through the back wall of the courtyard.
Everyone eagerly waited to discover the magical secret hidden beyond.
Instead...
They found a public restroom.
"I can’t do this anymore."
Back at the hotel, Sarah collapsed dramatically across the sofa.
"Boss, could you please act like a normal tourist for once?"
"We’ve spent two weeks following you around while everyone stares at us like we’re insane."
Evenson barely looked up from the map spread across the table.
"I’m having fun."
He casually marked another destination.
"Why should I care what strangers think?"
Sarah rolled her eyes.
"I feel like you’re the only one having fun."
"I’m having fun."
He repeated himself without lifting his head.
"Why should I care what strangers think?"
Sarah stared at him.
One day, history is going to remember me as the first succubus who died from sheer exasperation.
"Aha!"
Evenson tapped another location on the map.
"King’s Cross."
"Definitely worth another visit."
He sighed.
"Too bad I didn’t bring my car."
"It would’ve been perfect to push it into a certain brick wall..."
Just as he was amusing himself with the idea, his phone rang.
Nick Fury.
Evenson looked at the screen for a moment before answering.
His vacation was officially over.
"You can come back now," Fury said immediately.
"Your holiday is finished."
Evenson silently motioned for his demons to start packing.
Then he replied lazily, "I’m not done sightseeing ye..."
His expression changed.
"What?"
"The Tesseract?"
"You told me there wouldn’t be any experiments until I got back!"
"We didn’t conduct any experiments."
Fury’s voice was unusually loud.
Even through the phone, Evenson could hear alarms, shouting, and chaos in the background.
"How bad is it?" Fury asked someone nearby.
"I don’t know, sir."
Phil Coulson’s voice answered.
"Four hours ago, Dr. Selvig detected an energy surge from the Tesseract."
Fury interrupted him.
"We never authorized any testing."
"He wasn’t testing it," Coulson replied. "He wasn’t even in the room."
"The Tesseract activated on its own."
"Evenson?"
Fury came back on the line.
"You still there?"
"No."
The answer came instantly.
"..."
"..."
"This is an emergency," Fury finally said through clenched teeth.
"So that’s your excuse for calling me and then putting me on hold?"
Evenson shot back.
Then his tone became serious.
"Fine."
"Tell me exactly what’s happening."
"Its energy output has reached maximum levels."
"It’s emitting radiation and interference..."
"If you keep talking like a scientist," Evenson interrupted, "I’m hanging up."
"I’m a warlock, not a physicist."
"Use English."
A brief silence followed.
Then Fury tried again.
"It became active by itself."
"No external stimulation."
"It simply... turned on."
"Hm..."
Evenson leaned back.
"From that description..."
"...someone is using it correctly."
"What?"
Fury frowned.
Correctly?
SHIELD had spent years trying to figure out how the thing worked.
How could someone immediately get it right?
"It’s not someone on your side."
Evenson crossed one leg over the other.
"The Tesseract is a door."
"A door can be opened from either side."
The instant he finished speaking, a burst of violent static erupted through the phone.
The connection crackled.
Then came gunfire.
Explosions.
People shouting.
When the signal finally stabilized, Evenson asked quietly,
"The door opened?"
"...Did something come through?"
"Loki."
Fury sounded winded.
"He came through the portal."
"He took the Tesseract."
His breathing was uneven, as though he’d just survived something violent.
"Get back here."
"I think it’s time to activate the Initiative."
"I understand."
Evenson ended the call.
He looked toward his demons.
"Ready?"
Everyone immediately stood.
"Our vacation is over."
"We’re leaving."
"And we’d better disappear before SHIELD finds us first."
Nick Fury had no time to breathe.
The Tesseract had been stolen.
The underground research facility was destroyed.
One of his own agents had shot him.
He’d escaped a collapsing helicopter by the narrowest of margins.
Before he could even change clothes, he was dragged into another confrontation with the World Security Council.
Only after enduring that ordeal did he head straight for a boxing gym.
Steve Rogers was exactly where Fury expected him to be.
Convincing Captain America proved difficult.
Steve made no effort to hide how unhappy he was that SHIELD had been experimenting with the Tesseract in the first place.
Eventually, after considerable persuasion, Steve reluctantly agreed to consider joining Fury’s proposed team.
They had just finished talking.
Both men were preparing to leave.
Then Fury’s phone rang.
"What?"
His expression changed instantly.
"Are you certain?"
He slowly lowered the phone.
"Captain."
Steve turned back.
"I’m afraid you’ll have to come with us right now."
"I thought we were done here."
"We’ve lost someone."
Fury grimaced.
Choosing his next words carefully.
"A very important person has... disappeared."
Steve frowned.
"And you need me?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Fury met his eyes.
"Because he didn’t disappear alone."
"He took someone with him."
A long pause.
"The person he took..."
"...is someone who’s very important to you."
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