"I get to keep two bodies... I get to keep two bodies..."
General Ross repeated the words through gritted teeth, breathing heavily.
He was so furious he almost laughed.
Has Nick Fury completely lost his mind?
Does he even realize who has the leverage here?
"You’ve got to be kidding me!" Ross exploded. "Do you have any idea that if I say no, you won’t get a single additional body from me?"
Unlike Ross’s rage, Fury remained perfectly calm.
"Really?"
His voice was almost conversational.
"I can tell you exactly which base they’re being held at. Which building. Which room. How many guards are stationed there, and how they’re deployed."
Ross’s expression stiffened.
Was Fury bluffing?
Or did S.H.I.E.L.D. really know that much?
"...What’s your point?"
Fury chuckled softly.
"To be honest, General, you and I are more alike than you’d care to admit."
"When something is beyond our reach..."
"We usually settle on the same solution."
Ross knew exactly what Fury meant.
If I can’t have it... no one can.
It wasn’t merely Ross.
That mindset had shaped more than one American black project.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Could you actually do it?"
"S.H.I.E.L.D. is everywhere."
Fury left the rest unsaid.
Ross understood perfectly.
His face darkened.
"Nick Fury... are you threatening a general of the United States Army?"
"So?"
Fury didn’t even hesitate.
"Go ahead and file a complaint with the Defense Department or the World Security Council."
"You know exactly how that ends."
Ross did.
The moment the dispute reached higher authorities, every old grievance between S.H.I.E.L.D. and the military would be dragged back into the spotlight.
The argument would drag on for weeks.
Months, if necessary.
If S.H.I.E.L.D. truly had operatives inside the facility...
There wouldn’t be much left of the mutant corpses by the time the lawyers finished talking.
Even worse, stripped of politics, the law was actually on S.H.I.E.L.D.’s side.
Ross nearly coughed blood from frustration.
His own delaying tactics had just been turned against him.
He might be an outstanding battlefield commander.
Matching wits with the world’s best intelligence chief was an entirely different war.
"So?" Fury prompted. "Have you made your decision?"
Ross remained silent.
Fury continued.
"If you voluntarily transfer the specimens to S.H.I.E.L.D., I’ll acknowledge the Army’s role in eliminating them."
"You may retain two bodies."
The charitable tone was the final straw.
"Over my dead body!"
Ross roared into the phone.
"You want the corpses?"
"Fine!"
"If one of your sewer rats sets foot on that base, I’ll happily return their bodies to you!"
He slammed the phone shut.
Then immediately dialed another number.
"This is General Ross."
"Authorization code EN6099."
"Triple the security around every specimen immediately."
"Live ammunition only."
"If anyone attempts to interfere, treat them as enemies of the United States."
"Use lethal force."
"Understood?"
The officer on the other end hesitated.
"...Completely understood, sir."
"Drive straight to the base."
Ross barked the order at his driver.
He had originally planned to visit his daughter first.
That could wait.
Still seething, he snapped the phone in half with one hand and tossed the broken pieces out the window.
Inside S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, the man who had just received Ross’s call calmly lowered his headset.
He looked toward Fury.
"Director."
"We’ve obtained the authorization code."
Phil Coulson allowed himself a small smile.
Ross’s sedan screeched to a halt outside the military installation.
He was out of the vehicle before it had fully stopped.
General Talbot hurried over to greet him.
Ross didn’t waste a second.
"Where are the bodies?"
"Are the additional guards in position?"
Talbot blinked.
"...General?"
"The bodies were transferred to S.H.I.E.L.D."
Ross froze.
"...What?"
His voice thundered across the compound.
"Who authorized that?"
Talbot looked even more confused.
"You did, sir."
For the first time all day, Talbot genuinely questioned his own memory.
Ross had originally ordered him to hold the corpses at all costs.
If S.H.I.E.L.D. applied too much pressure, he was to surrender only the two most heavily damaged specimens and keep the rest until Ross personally arrived.
A few hours later...
Another order had arrived.
Transfer every body to S.H.I.E.L.D.
Shortly afterward, Agent Maria Hill had returned aboard a Quinjet and efficiently collected every specimen.
Talbot had assumed Ross had finally decided to compromise.
So why was he furious now?
The brigadier general thought rapidly.
There were only two possibilities.
Either General Ross had suddenly suffered a complete mental breakdown...
Or...
His eyes widened.
"...Someone forged your orders."
Ross immediately realized the same thing.
"Who relayed my instructions?"
One of Talbot’s aides stepped forward, pale-faced.
"...I did, sir."
He swallowed nervously.
"But it really was your voice."
"The authorization code was valid."
"The recording is still stored in the terminal."
"Take him to the brig."
Ross’s voice was ice cold.
"He’ll await disciplinary action."
The aide tried to protest, but military police had already seized him.
Ross knew the man probably wasn’t a S.H.I.E.L.D. mole.
He had simply followed what appeared to be a perfectly authenticated order.
That didn’t matter.
Someone had to answer for the failure.
The truth was far simpler.
The moment Fury called Ross, he had silently issued two separate orders.
Maria Hill had been dispatched immediately in a Quinjet to recover the specimens the instant an opportunity appeared.
Meanwhile, Coulson traced Ross’s phone signal.
Once the connection was established, S.H.I.E.L.D. quietly intercepted every outgoing call.
Ross’s authorization code was captured.
His voice was perfectly replicated.
The forged order was transmitted before anyone realized what had happened.
Nick Fury had never enjoyed sharing.
If there was a pie on the table, he’d much rather take the whole thing.
After the aide was dragged away, Ross finally lost what little composure he had left.
He threw his head back and roared.
"Nick Fury!"
"This isn’t over!"
His secretary hurried over, phone in hand.
"General, we’ve received a report."
Ross was still fuming.
"What?"
"We’ve detected a unique gamma radiation signature."
She hesitated.
"It could be... him."
Everything else instantly became irrelevant.
"Hulk."
Ross spun toward Talbot.
"Don’t trust S.H.I.E.L.D."
With that final warning, he climbed back into the waiting sedan.
The missing corpses no longer mattered.
Not compared to Bruce Banner.
At a research building in New York, a receptionist sat quietly organizing paperwork behind the front desk.
She sensed someone approaching and looked up with a practiced smile.
The moment she recognized her visitor, her expression became noticeably more respectful.
"Mr. Wesker."
She stood immediately.
"Please come with me."
"Mr. Howard is already waiting for you."
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