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*****
Before making this call, Feny had considered several opening lines.
He thought about making small talk first, acting nonchalant before gradually steering the conversation toward Asgard. Or perhaps starting with Captain America as a lead-in to eventually reach the topic of the Tesseract.
But after much deliberation, he felt none of those approaches fit the impression Nick Fury had of him. So, he settled on the simplest, most direct method.
"You're in big trouble, Director Fury!"
Nick Fury was already surprised to receive a call from Feny, but hearing those words made his heart tighten. He frowned, his voice dropping an octave. "I don't follow you."
"Then I'll leave you to think about it for a bit."
Feny hung up immediately, playing hard to get. He figured Fury would call back within seconds, and he debated whether he should decline the call a few times before finally picking up.
To Feny's surprise, five minutes passed and the phone remained silent. This left him utterly baffled—this wasn't how the script was supposed to go!
Ten minutes... half an hour...
Feny started to get anxious. This was completely unexpected. He had considered that Fury might not believe him, or might refuse to ask for help, but he never imagined the man would simply ignore him.
Just as Feny was weighing his options and wondering if he should call back, the phone finally rang.
"I'm right outside your house!"
Fury's voice sounded rushed. Feny had no idea where he had rushed from, but hearing those words, he finally understood why Fury hadn't called back.
He was stunned that Fury would take this so seriously as to come see him in person, but it also brought a sense of relief. At least his words hadn't been ignored.
Outside, Nick Fury was sitting in a black SUV. Seeing Feny come out, he said, "Mind going for a drive?"
Feny scanned the surroundings, glanced at Fury, and then climbed into the passenger seat.
Feny didn't speak during the drive, and Fury seemed focused on the road. The interior of the car was eerily quiet until they reached a secluded spot in the suburbs and parked. Only then did Fury ask:
"What did you mean by 'big trouble'?"
Feny didn't realize that the most lasting impression he had made on Nick Fury wasn't his effortless portals, the mysterious "Incursio," or even the devastating "Explosion Magic." It was that one offhand remark he'd made once: "So, you found Captain America?"
The unknown breeds fear.
If Fury knew Feny had a powerful intelligence organization or a mole within S.H.I.E.L.D., he wouldn't be nearly as concerned. It was because he knew for a fact that Feny had none of those things that he found Feny's knowledge terrifying. That was why a single phone call had brought him all this way.
Feny didn't know the exact reason, but he could tell from Fury's attitude that he was being taken very seriously. He immediately put on a solemn expression and said:
"You've had contact with the Kree Empire, and you've harbored the Skrulls. I don't need to tell you how vast and dangerous the universe is, do I?"
Fury's expression shifted violently. He had many secrets, but this was undoubtedly one of the most guarded.
Though Feny had mentioned "that woman" (Captain Marvel) long ago, that was an event from the past. Even if he had destroyed all records, a trail could still be found. But the Skrulls? He was certain no one on Earth was supposed to know about that.
"Feny Halsiz... where on earth are you getting this information?"
Fury looked grim. Even if Feny told him nothing else today, his mood wouldn't be recovering anytime soon.
"Don't worry about where I got it. Just understand that I know more than you think," Feny replied coolly. The more Fury feared him, the easier it would be for him to believe what came next—and the easier it would be to get to the Tesseract.
"Of course, you could try to lock me up and interrogate me, but you should think long and hard about the consequences."
Feny added this suddenly, closely watching Fury's face to see if such a thought had crossed his mind. But Fury hadn't been a master spy for decades for nothing. While Feny's words had rattled him, he wasn't about to let his intentions show on his face.
"I'm not an unreasonable man," Fury said, giving Feny a deep look. "However, I hope you're the only one who knows about this."
"Don't worry, my lips are sealed!" Feny conveniently forgot about Tony and Skye. Besides, he didn't really have a reason to go around blabbing about it; he didn't actually know Fury's long-term goal for keeping the Skrulls around.
"Let's get back to this 'big trouble' of yours," Fury said. He didn't believe Feny's promise of secrecy, but he had no way to enforce it. Just as Feny didn't want a fallout with S.H.I.E.L.D., Fury feared the consequences of making Feny an enemy.
"Remember the recent Asgardian incident?"
"The hammer in New Mexico?" Fury wouldn't forget.
"As far as I know, Asgard's Bifrost has been destroyed. You don't have to worry about them beaming an army down anytime soon."
Feny intentionally blurred the timeline of the Bifrost's destruction, making it sound like it had happened just recently.
Hearing this, Fury didn't look happy. Instead, he narrowed his eye. "I recall you saying they were supposed to be allies."
"They are," Feny nodded. "But you've still been wary of them, preparing for a potential conflict, haven't you?"
"I have to prepare for every eventuality," Fury didn't deny it.
"Which is why I've always felt you're far more dangerous than the Hulk or me." Feny shrugged, his tone mockingly light. "But did you know? The Tesseract was originally left on Earth by the Asgardians."
After everything Feny had revealed today, Fury found his threshold for shock had risen significantly. He didn't even seem surprised that Feny knew this.
"You mean they want it back now?"
Feny didn't respond. That was Fury's own deduction—he had never actually said that was the trouble.
Fury frowned. If this was true, it was indeed a massive problem. Even if the object originally belonged to Asgard, it had been on Earth long enough to be considered Earth's property.
"What if I refuse?" Fury asked, looking at Feny. His gut told him that Feny notifying him of this must have some underlying purpose.
"Then you'd better make sure they know you have the right to refuse."
Feny narrowed his eyes. In reality, Asgard probably didn't care much about the Space Stone; it wasn't particularly useful to them. The requirements to use an Infinity Stone were too high—likely only Odin could wield it, and in his current state, doing so would probably just hasten his death. Plus, Asgardian transport technology was already advanced enough to rival the Stone's portals.
The only reason Feny was saying all this was to spook Nick Fury into letting him get close to the Tesseract.
(End of Chapter)