Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1361 Base Coordinates (First Update)

The Life-Model Decoy AI, named Aida, launched an attack on Epsilon-Rodney-Ray 223 without hesitation. To ordinary humans like Leopold Fitz, Aida's speed was already too fast to react to, yet Epsilon-Rodney-Ray 223 still managed to hit the android with a device equipped with a massive capacitor. A huge electrical burn appeared on Aida's chest and abdomen, which were covered by a gray women's suit, revealing numerous precision components and cables through the charred steel. Constantine saw Epsilon-Rodney-Ray 223 adjust its discharge level to the minimum, but the notoriously resilient Life-Model Decoy AI still temporarily short-circuited. As for Leopold Fitz, he coincidentally fell unconscious due to the excessive light and the collapse caused by the dense fire from the other mechanical soldiers.

Outside Dr. Radcliffe's residence, the pilot of the Wind One was frantically restarting the engine. In the rear cargo hold, the armed personnel attacking the attackers, seeing the two heavy trucks approaching without any sign of slowing down, quickly pressed the ramp's raising and lowering switch. Only after the ramp, covered in thick armor plating, gradually rose and closed tightly did the armed personnel have time to think about how to rescue Leopold Fitz and Dr. Horton Radcliffe, who might have already been captured.

"I need to connect to Agent Coulson's satellite phone." David, the highest-ranking veteran S.H.I.E.L.D. agent currently on Wind One, exudes the old-school combat style of a military academy. Although he is usually very approachable, he is extremely serious and strict when carrying out missions, which is why Agent Coulson made him one of the few remaining commanders among the S.H.I.E.L.D. armed personnel.

Before his subordinates could bring him a satellite phone, the aircraft's damage alarm blared, accompanied by a blinding red light flashing incessantly. The tightly closed ramp panel appeared as if it had been hit by a sudden downpour; numerous dense, red-hot spots appeared on the armor. Then, two electrically charged mechanical claws pierced through the armor plates and locked them firmly. The ramp panel was forcibly removed, revealing a towering steel behemoth and a dense array of black firearms before David.

"Don't try to resist." The leading soldier, dressed in thick protective clothing, warned the armed personnel inside the Wind One through a neck microphone, "Your weapons cannot harm us."

When Leopold Fitz awoke, he was lying on the grass with the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, all their arms handcuffed behind their backs, sprawled on the ground like maggots. He could still feel the damage to his shoulder from the rough handling; thankfully, no one was seriously injured. However, Leopold Fitz immediately remembered the purpose of his trip.

"Aida!" He struggled to sit up, his mouth full of grass that tasted of ashes. "Their target is Aida!"

"They're fixing Aida." Gemma Simmons' voice calmed Leopold Fitz somewhat, though the physicist didn't detect the sullen undertone in her tone. "I saw a cyborg using tools to maintain her. Don't worry, it's fine. Our priority now is to notify Agent Coulson."

"It's her, Gemma."

“No matter what, we still don’t understand why they want to find Aida or Dr. Radcliffe.” Gemma Simmons didn’t want to dwell on the issue. She had tried several times to correct her boyfriend’s views but had always failed, and this time was no exception. Compared to her, Leopold Fitz seemed more concerned about the artificial intelligence of the Life-Model Decoy project, even seeing Aida as a living person rather than an android made of algorithms and machines, which infuriated Gemma Simmons. However, she didn’t dwell on such trivial matters in this situation, because the most important thing now was to inform Agent Coulson and Agent May, and tell the agents remaining at the Beacon base that the Emperor seemed to really want to wipe out S.H.I.E.L.D. this time. “Perhaps they will ask us questions. Fitz, you must get some answers.”

"I...I will." Leopold Fitz finally calmed down a bit. He blinked hard, as if trying to expel the dryness in his eyes caused by the intense electric flashes. "Have you thought of any ideas?"

“There’s definitely electromagnetic interference nearby,” Gemma Simmons whispered. She showed her boyfriend the miniature transmitter in her hand. “I’ve already sent out the alarm, but there’s been no response. The Wind One seems to have been damaged as well, and they certainly wouldn’t have abandoned that heavy robot, so they must have an evacuation aircraft. We have some time before their aircraft arrives. They’ll definitely come to interrogate you, Fitz. You have to hold on. Agent Coulson might have already noticed the anomaly and is sending people to rescue us.”

No sooner had the words been spoken than the previously silent Wind One suddenly started up.

It was as if a dying patient had regained their vitality in their final moments. The engine noise shifted from gentle to a piercing shriek. Rows of fully armed soldiers stepped onto the briefly repaired ramps of the Zephyr One. The thrust-vectoring engines on both wings propelled the massive, heavy aircraft slowly into the air, scorching the grass below and sending ash billowing through the air. The activation of the Zephyr One shattered the last hopes of the SHIELD agents present, especially Gemma Simmons. She and Leopold Fitz had built the Zephyr One's alarm system to replace the control tower for conventional aircraft, locking onto their last known location and maintaining contact with the base after a plane lost contact. The remaining soldiers crammed the SHIELD agents into the vehicle, intending to take everyone away from this place, including the giant combat robot. By the time Agent Coulson realized something was wrong and sent people to search, all they found was ashes and Dr. Radcliffe's residence, riddled with bullets.

"I've seen you before." Before being shoved into the heavy truck, Leopold Fitz glanced at the Imperial Guard standing to the side. "What do you want?" Constantine looked at him, and then soldiers from the First Classified Regiment, who were escorting S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, pushed him and Gemma Simmons inside. Armed soldiers lined both sides, forcing them to crouch on the ground. "We might be done for this time." Seemingly regaining his composure after not seeing Aida, Leopold Fitz whispered to his girlfriend, "What they want is related to magic. Remember when we got the Berserker's Staff?"

“I remember.” Gemma Simmons’s eyes swept quickly across the armed personnel in the carriage. Although she couldn’t see their faces, she was certain that the soldiers in black armor were human, while those covered in metal were likely some kind of technological creation, since their legs were clearly not made of flesh and blood. The former sat on the bench, extremely vigilant, while the latter remained standing, without swaying even as the vehicle started moving, as if they were firmly locked to the floor. “What do you remember about the magic spectrum?”

"Not many," Fizz said. "It's unlikely that any Asgardians will come to our rescue this time."

Gemma Simmons was somewhat pessimistic. Since the Lorelei incident, S.H.I.E.L.D. hadn't heard from Sif, and didn't know if she was dead. Back then, Grant Ward hadn't yet revealed his Hydra identity, and their team still had S.H.I.E.L.D. resources and information database support. Now they had nothing, and faced with the overwhelming Emperor, they were powerless to mount any effective resistance. She didn't even know how these people obtained information about S.H.I.E.L.D., and she was even more worried that the Wind One's database might expose the location of the secret base, guiding this armed team to attack Agent Coulson and their colleagues.

"Then we have to save ourselves." She took a deep breath; the air was thick with the pungent smell of engine oil and phosphorus. "We'll begin after the countdown ends."

Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)