Chapter 840

By the time the smoke cleared, every Centipede soldier lay motionless in a pool of blood.

The only one still standing was Bangalore.

His alloy armor was spotless compared to the carnage around him. He slowly retracted the bloodstained wrist blades.

"Hm. Targets eliminated."

The battle was over, but Melinda May remained deeply wary.

Bangalore’s brutally efficient method of dealing with the enemy had left quite an impression on her. More importantly, she still wanted to know how exactly Skye had ended up working with a Black Chapter operative.

"How did you meet this... friend of yours?"

"Technically, he found me."

Skye tilted her head.

After tracing Coulson’s location, she’d immediately jumped into the car and driven toward the desert without stopping to think about anything except getting there as quickly as possible.

She hadn’t even realized she’d picked up an unusual passenger.

They hadn’t been out of the city for long when Bangalore, who had been sitting invisibly in the back seat for quite some time, suddenly revealed himself.

Skye had screamed so loudly that she nearly drove the car into a ditch.

Fortunately, Bangalore immediately explained who he was and what he wanted before she could make the situation worse.

That was particularly important considering Skye had already drawn her gun.

"That’s more or less what happened."

Bangalore’s voice came through his helmet as a rough, genderless rasp.

"And if I hadn’t helped this little idiot, she’d be dead."

He turned toward May.

"I won’t comment too heavily on S.H.I.E.L.D.’s training program for new recruits, but at minimum, you people should teach her how to disengage the safety on a handgun."

Ward closed his eyes and sighed.

Of course.

Skye had done it again.

He’d noticed the problem when he’d first taught her how to shoot. She seemed to have some kind of strange passive ability that turned every attempt to disengage a firearm’s safety into an attempt to remove the magazine.

She’d worked hard to overcome it, and she’d gotten much better.

But whenever she became nervous, the old habit returned.

Ward could only imagine how embarrassing that moment in the car had been.

Skye’s shoulders slumped.

"So that’s where we are, huh? I’m weak, helpless, and completely useless, so I have no choice but to accept someone else’s help."

She already hadn’t been particularly fond of firearms.

Her opinion of them had now fallen straight through the floor.

If she had any choice in the matter, she’d eventually develop a fighting style that didn’t require a gun at all.

Unfortunately, Skye wasn’t wrong about needing help.

She’d reported the information she’d obtained, but until her teammates arrived, she was completely on her own.

She didn’t even know whether Agent Hand, whose reputation for being rigid and overbearing had already preceded her, would believe Skye’s intelligence enough to send May’s team after her.

And Skye herself?

She was barely an agent.

She hadn’t even completed all of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s basic training.

Coming here alone had practically been suicide.

So when Bangalore appeared—equipped like a walking military weapons platform and pursuing essentially the same objective—cooperating with him had been the only sensible choice.

As for whether working with an outside organization violated S.H.I.E.L.D. regulations?

Coulson was in danger.

Skye wasn’t about to worry about paperwork.

"I was ordered to eliminate this terrorist group and ensure they can no longer threaten national or public security."

Bangalore spoke calmly.

"However, I was aware that S.H.I.E.L.D. was also involved in this incident, and that a hostage had been taken."

He looked toward May.

"Cooperating with you was therefore the most reasonable way to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings."

It was, in fact, a purely strategic decision.

It had absolutely nothing to do with the recent rise in fuel prices, the Eredar Twins deciding that sending a transport vessel all the way out here for one operative was inefficient, or the fact that Bangalore hadn’t been issued an official vehicle.

None of those things had anything to do with it.

"Now I understand."

May looked at Skye.

"You made the right choice."

The praise surprised Skye.

May was usually one of the hardest people on her.

But May was looking at the situation from a completely different angle.

The bodies scattered around them made Black Chapter’s operating style very clear.

Bangalore didn’t issue warnings.

He simply killed.

And strangely enough, May didn’t hate the approach.

Coulson’s team had recently adopted a strict policy of avoiding lethal force whenever possible. Even their standard weapons had been replaced with nonlethal tranquilizer rifles.

But that was the policy of Coulson’s team.

May herself had joined S.H.I.E.L.D. during the Cold War, back when the organization was still primarily an American intelligence and combat operation rather than the global institution it had eventually become.

She’d spent years in combat.

Killing hostile agents was nothing new to her.

As long as the target wasn’t an innocent civilian—or someone so harmless and pitiful that killing them felt obscene—she could live with it.

In fact, if Bangalore hadn’t dealt with these enemies so efficiently, May would probably have had a much bigger headache.

There was a practical reason for that.

Ward, Fitz, and the others were all here.

That meant May couldn’t use the more unusual abilities she’d agreed with Evenson to keep hidden.

And the Centipede soldiers had apparently been modified again.

Their enhanced bodies were now resistant to the tranquilizer weapons the team normally used.

Fitz and Simmons had quickly come up with a workaround.

Their brilliant solution was to attach a specialized bracelet containing a particular chemical compound to each enhanced soldier.

The bracelet would shut the target down.

Ward had immediately pointed out that putting one of those things onto an enraged super-soldier was about as difficult as trying to stay on the back of a charging bull for eight seconds.

May thought that was wildly optimistic.

It was more like the bull had already knocked you flat, was lifting one hoof to stomp your skull, and you were somehow expected to reach up and hit a pressure point on its leg.

The entire plan was absurd.

If you were already strong enough to knock an enhanced soldier to the ground, why would you need to put a bracelet on him afterward?

And if you weren’t strong enough to knock him down, good luck putting the bracelet on him.

So Bangalore’s arrival had solved a rather unpleasant problem for May.

But that raised another question.

What would have happened if Skye had refused to cooperate with him?

If Bangalore had come here alone?

There was little doubt about what he meant when he said he’d been ordered to deal with the terrorists.

He meant exactly what he said.

Everyone here would have died.

At most, he might have kept the commanding officer alive long enough to extract information.

The Centipede soldiers certainly wouldn’t have surrendered willingly.

They would have fought.

And if they were desperate enough, they would inevitably have used Coulson as a hostage.

Would Bangalore really have cared?

Given his ruthlessness, it was entirely possible that he’d simply killed Coulson first.

After all, an operative who couldn’t be threatened couldn’t be used as leverage.

Killing the hostage and the terrorists together wasn’t exactly unheard of.

Afterward, Bangalore could write a report explaining that Coulson had been accidentally killed.

Or perhaps that Coulson had already been dead when he arrived.

And if Bangalore wanted to be charitable, he could claim that Coulson had heroically sacrificed himself to stop terrorism, even going so far as to put a gun to his own head.

There would be no witnesses left to contradict him.

So Skye agreeing to cooperate had done more than give Bangalore another pair of eyes.

It had placed a S.H.I.E.L.D. representative directly beside him.

With May’s team present, Bangalore couldn’t act with quite the same freedom.

At the very least, he’d have to make an effort to keep Coulson alive.

Once May considered everything from that perspective, she finally smiled.

"Well done, Skye."

She placed a hand on the younger woman’s shoulder.

"You’re finally learning to think like an agent instead of looking at only one part of the problem."

"Uh... thanks."

Skye nodded blankly.

What did I do?

She’d just thought that having another person around was better than going in alone.

"I’m pretty smart already."

She smiled awkwardly.

"But thanks for all the encouragement."

"We should finish the mission."

Bangalore had no interest in listening to them congratulate each other.

He walked toward one of the nearby buildings.

Through the thermal imaging system built into his helmet, the entire town appeared empty.

Except for one structure.

"There are three people inside."

He paused.

"One is unconscious."

His gaze remained fixed on the building.

"That should be your hostage."

May and Ward exchanged a glance.

They immediately moved into position on either side of the door.

May pressed herself against the wall and leaned closer, listening.

A moment later, she heard a voice from inside.

"I am officially placing you under arrest and informing you of your rights. You have the right to remain silent, but I assure you, I will make you talk. Anything you say can and will be used as evidence in court, although considering the nature of this operation, you’ll probably be facing a secret tribunal—"

A scream followed.

"MY EYES!"

May exhaled in relief.

It sounded like they’d succeeded.

Then—

BOOM!

A blinding flash erupted through the window.

Another scream followed.

May slowly turned.

Bangalore stood nearby, his grenade launcher still smoking.

"What are you doing?"

Bangalore sounded genuinely confused.

"What? Using a flashbang before entering a hostile building is standard tactical procedure."

He gestured toward her.

"You nodded. I assumed that meant you were ready."

May stared at him.

Their plan had been simple.

May and Ward would make the frontal assault.

Evenson would circle around and attack from behind.

Under normal circumstances, those roles probably should have been reversed.

Unfortunately, there was one problem.

Evenson had a habit of making Centipede soldiers explode.

And if Coulson had been modified in the same way, what happened if Evenson accidentally blew him up?

Even if Coulson himself hadn’t been altered, what if another exploding Centipede soldier took him out?

Nobody wanted to find out.

Besides, Evenson had specifically requested the arrangement.

On the way here, he’d spoken privately with May.

"Coulson’s situation is complicated. You may have trouble dealing with what’s inside that building."

He’d paused.

"I need to handle that personally."

"And before I do, I can’t make too much noise. If whoever’s responsible realizes we’re coming, they might run."

So far, the plan had worked perfectly.

Right up until the flashbang.

May sighed and opened the door.

Inside, she found exactly what she’d expected.

Coulson lay unconscious on the machine.

Raina was slumped in a chair.

And Evenson was rolling around on the floor clutching his eyes.

"I can’t see!"

"I’ve been blinded!"

"I demand workers’ compensation!"

May’s heart immediately lurched.

"Coulson!"

She rushed past Evenson and dropped beside him.

"Coulson, what happened? Wake up!"

From the floor came an outraged shout.

"Who threw that flashbang?!"

Bangalore looked down at him.

"Friend."

Behind the mask, no one could see his expression.

Fortunately, there was no need.

Inside, he was thoroughly amused.

That’s what you get for filing complaints after every inspection and getting our bonuses cut.

Skye was the only one kind enough to help.

She grabbed Evenson and guided him toward a chair.

"Are your eyes okay?"

"How should I know?"

Evenson groaned.

"You’re the smart one. Calculate how much workers’ compensation this team owes me."

"Oh, stop."

May was too worried about Coulson to entertain him.

"The effects of a flashbang are temporary. You’re not getting compensation."

"What a fascinating scene."

Raina sat with her eyes closed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

She couldn’t see anything either.

But unlike humans, snakes didn’t rely entirely on vision to perceive their surroundings.

May looked toward her.

Raina opened her eyes—or at least tried to—and smiled in May’s direction.

Now May understood exactly what Evenson had meant when he’d said the situation was complicated.

The strange fire burning within May’s body had already warned her.

There was a demon inside Raina.

Nahash.

"Fine."

Evenson opened his eyes.

His vision was already returning.

He stood, grabbed Raina by the arm, and pulled her toward the door.

"You take care of Coulson."

"I’ll take her back."

Once they were outside and safely away from the others, Evenson released Raina.

"You saw it."

"Yes."

"Long?"

Raina nodded.

"Yes."

"Thick?"

"Yes."

"Is it wrapped around you?"

Raina spun around and glared at him.

"That’s none of your business!"

The tone was unmistakably Nahash speaking through her.

Evenson’s smile disappeared.

"Nahash."

He gave a cold laugh.

"It’s been a while."

"You caused me a lot of trouble last time."

"I didn’t actually do anything."

Raina’s smile returned.

"You simply failed to notice me."

"I put a lot of effort into maintaining the spell Mephisto left inside Coulson’s mind."

Nahash’s tone carried the unmistakable irritation of someone who’d been doing unpaid maintenance work for far too long.

"Mephisto probably told you the spell was extremely fragile."

"Every time Coulson tried to remember those memories, it was like scraping away another layer of the barrier."

"Who do you think kept rebuilding it?"

Evenson blinked.

That explained a lot.

Nahash continued.

"And every time someone asked him a very specific question about those memories—like asking what Tahiti was—that was like stabbing straight through the barrier."

"And I’ve noticed the idiots around him seem particularly fond of asking that question."

"Everyone asks it!"

"I patch the hole."

"Then someone pokes it again."

"So I patch it again."

"Do you know how much work that is?"

"I could charge eighty dollars every time I had to repair it. You people owe me a fortune!"

He sounded genuinely offended.

"I came all the way from Hell to Earth."

"I did not come here to become a glorified maintenance technician!"

"So that’s why."

Evenson nodded.

"I always thought Mephisto’s spell looked incredibly fragile, yet somehow it kept holding."

He sighed.

"You had an after-sales service department inside his head."

"Every time it broke, you repaired it."

"Honestly, I almost want to leave you a five-star review."

"But..."

Evenson’s expression suddenly turned cold.

"You still deceived me."

"And you used Coulson’s identity to do quite a few things."

"You’re not planning to simply disappear now that you’ve left his body, are you?"

"Perhaps I could offer compensation."

Raina’s lips curled into a seductive smile.

She winked.

Then she slowly ran her tongue across her lips.

Evenson shuddered.

"I’m not exactly innocent when it comes to strange tastes..."

He paused.

"But snakes are where I draw the line."

"You wish."

Nahash laughed.

"How about information?"

"There’s someone S.H.I.E.L.D. is currently investigating."

"The Clairvoyant."

"I assume you’re interested."

"Clairvoyant..."

Evenson’s eyebrow rose.

"What exactly is he?"

"A fraud."

Nahash answered immediately.

"With my experience, I can tell you with absolute certainty that he’s a false prophet."

"He isn’t omniscient."

"He simply knows more than most people."

"I see..."

Evenson considered that.

More than most people.

That could mean almost anything.

Still, he’d rather investigate the Clairvoyant himself.

"Interesting information."

"But S.H.I.E.L.D. might find it useful."

"As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t do much for me."

"You’re picky."

Nahash used Raina’s hand to idly brush back her hair.

"Then I’ll give you another piece for free."

"This one came from Coulson’s memories."

"I wasn’t deliberately spying on him. Information naturally leaked through while I was repairing the spell."

He paused.

"You should visit the Grand Canyon."

Evenson’s expression changed.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. conducted a large-scale search there in the late eighties and early nineties."

"The operation lasted five years."

"They never found what they were looking for."

"Maybe you’ll have better luck."

Nahash’s smile became mysterious.

"One more thing."

"By your terminology, it was a classified investigation into extraterrestrial life."

"So?"

"How does that sound?"

...