◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews.
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones. or 500 Collections
◇ You can read 50 chapter ahead on P@treon of which 10 Chapters are free. if you're interested: patreon.com/Heroicverse
------------------------------------------------
"Ah ah ah ah----!!!"
Fury let out a wild roar.
He staggered to his feet and walked to the liquor cabinet.
The bottle of Macallan M Whiskey, which he had intended to save until his retirement day, now stood quietly on the top shelf of the cabinet.
Fury grabbed the bottle, not even bothering to find a glass, and bit open the cork with his teeth.
"Gulp... gulp..."
The spicy, mellow liquid poured down his throat, but it couldn't extinguish the Fire in his heart.
He chugged more than half the bottle in one go.
Then he stumbled back to the sofa and collapsed onto it.
The alcohol quickly took effect.
The World before his eyes began to spin, his eyelids grew heavy, and his consciousness gradually blurred.
Let it be.
Sleep it off.
Perhaps when he woke up, this would just be a nightmare... He didn't know how much time had passed.
The light in the safe house grew dimmer. The flames in the fireplace flickered, casting eerie Shadows.
Fury was startled awake by a strange sensation.
It felt as if something was staring at him.
The Agent's instinct instantly sobered him.
He immediately rolled to the nearest cover, his hand instinctively reaching for his waist, where a perpetually loaded Smith & Wesson M&P semi-automatic pistol lay.
However.
The moment his fingers touched the grip.
"Whoosh—"
An invisible force swept past.
Fury felt a lightness in his wrist.
The gun, as if alive, jumped out of its holster and flew into the shadows of the room.
"Do you need this, Nick?"
A voice came from the Shadow beside the fireplace.
The voice was strange; sometimes it was one person, and sometimes it seemed to overlap with the tones of countless individuals, switching back and forth between the two.
Fury's muscles instantly tensed. He sprang from the sofa, adopting a fighting stance, staring intently in that direction.
A slender hand emerged from the Shadow.
It was toying with the semi-automatic pistol.
"Good stuff. Humans always like to make these little toys that send themselves to me."
The person slowly walked out.
By the light of the fireplace, Fury saw his appearance clearly.
He was a very charming man.
He wore a deep crimson velvet suit, well-tailored, exuding a retro sense of luxury.
Long black hair fell loosely, and he had a meticulously trimmed beard.
His every gesture was like that of a medieval nobleman.
"Who are you?!" Fury demanded sharply, his mind racing to find something he could use as a weapon.
"Relax, Nick. Relax."
The man smiled, revealing a set of White teeth.
"I mean no harm, at least not now."
Saying that, he walked to the sofa opposite Fury and sat down elegantly.
"As for who I am..."
"I've had many names."
"Some were cruel, and hurt me greatly."
"But I like you, Nick."
The man's facial contours seemed to twist slightly, and his voice became layered.
"You can call me—Mephisto."
"Mephisto?"
Fury frowned. Over the years, he had encountered aliens, Asgardian gods, and various supernatural phenomena, so this legendary name was not unfamiliar to him.
"Lord of Hell?" Fury sneered. "What? Is Hell downsizing? Are you looking for a part-time job on Earth?"
"Ha! Humor."
Mephisto waved his hand, and the nearly empty bottle of Macallan M floated into his grasp.
"Tsk tsk tsk, what a waste. This stuff is rare where I come from now."
He picked up the bottle and gently shook it. The almost empty liquor miraculously refilled itself.
Then a wine glass appeared out of thin air in his hand, and he poured himself a drink.
"Sit down, Nick. Don't be so tense. I'm not here to eat you."
Fury didn't sit. He still watched the man who called himself the devil with caution.
"What do you want?" Fury asked coldly. "If you're here to mock me, you're too late. I've already mocked myself enough."
"Mockery? Oh, no no no."
Mephisto waved his hand.
"Why would I mock you?"
"I've been watching you, Nick."
Mephisto's voice became deep and seductive.
"Because I admire you."
"I admire those... outstanding people."
"Those who are extraordinary, yet hopelessly stubborn."
"You believe yourself to be righteous, that you are doing the 'necessary evil.'"
"You monitor the World, you manufacture weapons, you want to eliminate threats before disaster strikes."
"You think you're not wrong."
"Yet you always taste bitter fruit."
Mephisto sighed, a strange compassion in his eyes.
"Your secrecy ruined you. Your desire for control bred HYDRA. You wanted to protect the World, but the World wants to cut you out like a tumor."
"Look at you now, Nick."
"Hiding in this dark underground, drinking in silence, watching that caped Joker negate everything you've done."
"Your S.H.I.E.L.D., your Avengers, your reputation, your dignity..."
"All gone."
Fury gritted his teeth, his fists clenching audibly.
"If you're here to give me psychological counseling, then you should charge a fee."
"No, I'm here to give you an... opportunity."
Mephisto snapped his fingers.
A piece of parchment appeared out of thin air on the coffee table. Beside it was a quill pen.
"I know you hate."
Mephisto stood up and walked behind Fury, whispering in his ear.
"You hate Pierce's betrayal, you hate the misunderstanding of the World."
"You also hate that man, don't you?"
"That hypocritical, arrogant man who treats protecting the World as an entertainment show."
"You're very smart, Nick. I don't believe you can't see that everything you're suffering now has a lot to do with that man."
"He turned your efforts into a joke."
"You shouldn't have fallen so low, yet here you are."
Fury was silent; he wanted to refute, but couldn't speak.
"Do you want to turn the tables, Nick?"
Mephisto's voice was like an omnipresent wind, blowing into Fury's heart.
"Do you want to reclaim S.H.I.E.L.D.? Do you want to prove you're right? Do you want the World to kneel before you again, begging for your protection?"
"I can give you power." Mephisto opened his hand, and a ball of black flame ignited in his palm.
"Give you what your heart desires most..."
Fury looked at the black flame, a flicker of struggle in his eyes.
"What's the price, Mephisto?" Fury asked coldly.
"The price? Oh ho ho ho... just something you won't miss at all." Mephisto laughed heartily.
"Think about it, Nick."
"Using the devil's power to defeat the devil."
"Isn't that what you're best at? Fighting fire with fire, for justice."
Silence fell... Nick Fury finally reached for the quill pen and slowly wrote his name.
"My whole life has been about making deals," he murmured to himself.
"Trading freedom for safety, lies for truth, the lives of a few for the lives of many."
"If I can send those HYDRA scum to Hell... I'm willing to lead the way myself."