Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1734 (Chapter 1730) A Friend from Ancient Greece

Four hours had passed since Natasha entered the base, and she felt that the time had been fairly pleasant.

The long table was laden with refreshments, and they discussed the time-travel mission over coffee and tea. The refreshments were prepared by Gemma Simmons; they were just inexpensive snacks, but they looked quite presentable.

S.H.I.E.L.D. is taking these two uninvited guests seriously. Although S.H.I.E.L.D. has reached a cooperation agreement with the US government, there are no shops on secret military bases, and all these non-essential items need to be purchased outside.

The fate of Coulson's team seventy years later is sympathetic. Natasha, as a listener, carefully gathers information while sipping hot coffee and biscuits. She is also curious about the Kree; the few aliens she has encountered have been either bio-engineered, hastily produced soldiers or single-minded alien princes.

Although Coulson's team only spent a few months on the space station, their understanding of the lifestyle of the Kree nobility was quite interesting. Lifestyle habits are, to a large extent, a reflection of social culture; for example, the water pie during the Great Depression in the United States. A small detail might reveal the current state of Kree society.

She has retired from the profession of intelligence agent; gathering information is purely a personal habit.

If she could, Natasha would prefer to call this stop-and-go journey from Houston to Zurich "The X-Files" or "American Horror Story," though she'd like to change it to a more accurate name once they leave the United States. It seems their plan to leave the US by plane will likely be delayed again.

When her travel companion and bed partner bluntly pointed out that S.H.I.E.L.D. had gotten into big trouble, she knew this trip was destined to be anything but smooth, and that she might have to take a detour and board a private plane to the Great Lakes region soon.

"You mean, it's haunted?"

"This is not quite the same as the Hannah case."

Coulson wasn't worried about leaks, after all, the mission concerning Hannah took place before S.H.I.E.L.D.'s destruction. That mission was only successfully completed with the help of a young Salomon at the time, and Natasha could easily access the files if she wanted to know.

"To be precise, the things in the lighthouse base are not ghosts, but psychological reflections."

Coulson glanced at Salomon sitting beside him, his hands on the table, intently fiddling with a mug printed with a silly Siamese cat image, as if it were the most important thing in the world. This mug had survived the explosion in the lower levels of the lighthouse base and had been brought to Los Angeles as a lucky charm.

"That's right, we've caused trouble and can't resolve it," the no-longer-young agent said apologetically. "You know, we didn't intend to cause trouble; it was an accident."

Enoch stiffened his neck and shifted his gaze to the only human present who possessed professional knowledge and experience.

The one who detonated the lower levels of the Lighthouse base was also an Immortal. In principle, it's difficult to say whether Enoch was involved. As the only surviving Immortal, Enoch bears responsibility. "I apologize for this; it was a serious accident," the Immortal said. "But my companion didn't leave behind a complete storage core, so I can't determine his motives. I am the observer, they are the executors; they don't take my orders. My authority is on the same level as theirs."

"I know you, Prophet. There's no need for apologies; I've never doubted you," Salomon softly comforted the naive immortal. Natasha watched this scene with delight—she realized that since arriving in Houston, Salomon had become increasingly empathetic, as if the Salomon from before his time travel was gradually returning to this world.

"Your compassion for the human race is a precious quality. Moreover, you are my friend, who guided me out of my predicament; I owe you a favor."

"You know what happens when boulders are mixed together?" Enoch nodded, expressing his gratitude.

"I know," Salomon said in ancient Greek. "You made the beacon using samples of the three megaliths; otherwise, I would not have been able to leave the Underworld."

"Although I don't know what you're talking about, I need to briefly explain the situation at the Lighthouse Base..."

Coulson rubbed his hands together.

He disliked the scene where Enoch and Salomon spoke in Ancient Greek, but he wouldn't, like Nick Fury, have an Ancient Greek expert translate the recording afterward. That would be both impolite and disrespectful. His determination to change the way S.H.I.E.L.D. operated wasn't just talk; it was based on conscience and morality, upholding simple notions of justice and equality, much like the golden spirit embodied by Captain America.

"Simply put, someone detonated a boulder, creating a spacetime rift deep within the lighthouse base. We don't know where that rift leads, but drones that passed through it captured some... terrifying things, and each time it was different."

“Like a Boggart, the Boggart from Harry Potter,” Daisy Jensen interjected inappropriately, drawing a disapproving look from Melinda May. “I think he’ll want to know these things, May, and my description is quite accurate. Those fissures always produce things we fear, and more importantly, those things will come out and attack us.”

"My ex-husband, Andrew, is also inside." Melinda May crossed her arms. Natasha Romanoff knew that Melinda May had been married and knew who Andrew was, but she didn't know why Melinda was bringing it up. Even ordinary people who emerged from spacetime rifts wouldn't pose a threat to the Lighthouse base.

"That Andrew in his Inhuman form, the Inhuman Hunter Whiplash," Gemma Simmons added. "It took us a great deal of effort to get rid of him."

"That rift is widening, Salomon. Please help me. For the sake of our past work together, you're the only person I know who understands this kind of thing." Coulson looked at Natasha Romanoff. "If you refuse, I'll have to ask the Vatican priests to help the exorcists, although I don't think they're capable of solving the problem."

Colson did not choose to utilize Melinda May and Gemma Simmons' new findings.

Coulson believes that in Salomon and Natasha Romanoff's relationship, Salomon is probably the dominant one, and Black Widow Natasha would never offer any help. Persuading Natasha Romanoff will not change Salomon's mind.

Moreover, the relationship between S.H.I.E.L.D. and Black Widow was not as harmonious as it used to be. Nick Fury never disappoints when it comes to being disappointing. Even before the destruction of S.H.I.E.L.D., the King of Agents still kept the secret from the core agents.

Coulson simply hoped that Salomon would help S.H.I.E.L.D. solve this bizarre incident out of consideration for their past relationship and the responsibilities they had undertaken at Kamar-Taj, just as they had done in the Ghost Rider Johnny Blaze incident, fighting against a demon that came to Earth from another dimension.

S.H.I.E.L.D. can handle invading alien squads and terrorist organizations, but they are absolutely powerless against fragments of demonic and divine power from another dimension. Only those with magic can defeat the invincible—a lesson S.H.I.E.L.D. has learned from several trials.

"Would you like to visit the lighthouse base?" Salomon asked his female companion.

"If I could, I'd much rather be sunbathing on Cape Verde right now than on the chilly northern border. Canada is so boring; the only good thing about it is how easy it is to escape the U.S. military." Natasha Romanoff laughed as brightly as the sun. "I hope your maid crew has your private resort hotel ready."

"Dinah has already loaded the weapons and equipment onto the plane to make sure no one disturbs us from enjoying the sun and the cool sunscreen."

Natasha has already chosen a private beach and sea-view villa, including the beach and the 3-kilometer stretch of sea extending outwards from it, all of which belong to her and will not be allowed to set foot on. She can lie naked on a beach chair, covered in slippery sunscreen, without worrying about other people's gazes. She also looks forward to sunbathing with Dinah and getting closer to the android girl favored by the Creator.

After all, they are about to become a family in the truest sense.

She knew Salomon couldn't stay with her for long, and relying solely on Wanda, also a Slav, wouldn't be enough to wrest more time from the two Western European witches and have exclusive access to Salomon. Winning over Dinah was the best option; she knew Dinah was loyal only to her master, not the two witches. Natasha had already decided to conceive on this journey; nothing was more important than making up for her regrets now, and no one could stop her.

"Tell me, darling, is this serious?" Natasha raised an eyebrow, exuding charm. "I don't mind waiting a bit, and I certainly don't mind shooting ghosts, so I can still call myself an exorcist. I might need to start making business cards; Black Widow is clearly not a word that can be printed on business cards."

"Enoch once conducted an experiment, mixing three samples of boulders at a specific time to create an extremely bright psionic beacon in outer dimensions. That beacon could guide humans trapped in outer dimensions, as well as... the predators that were already there." Salomon shook his head. "Even without using Earth's planetary defense system, I can sense that rift, let alone what's on the other side. It's too late to do anything now. If the Lighthouse Base hadn't been buried deep underground, it would have caused very serious outer-dimensional pollution."

"That sounds terrible." Natasha frowned, taking this matter seriously for the first time. She had no concept of outer-dimensional pollution because Salomon had deliberately erased parts of her memories—memories of contact with the Outer Gods were too terrifying; recalling them would completely destroy her human mind. Ignorance is the best protection for humanity; that statement is true.

"Will this take a lot of time?"

"No, I'm not going to waste my time on this." Salomon clapped his hands and looked across the long table. "Unfortunately, Coulson, it seems we don't have any plans to travel to the Great Lakes region."

Coulson sighed deeply.

He looked down and saw the silly-looking Siamese cat with underbite on the mug staring at him, its unfocused eyes indicating its helplessness. "Fitz proposed using a gravitational ontium to alter the gravity in a small area, closing that spacetime rift," Coulson said, frowning, making one last attempt. "But that rift will always exist. If we can't keep the power on, the gravitational ontium will fail, and whatever's inside will definitely escape."

"This method is indeed effective. In another hundred years, the rift will disappear. The only drawback is that it's a bit wasteful of materials and energy." Salomon looked at Leopold Fitz with admiration. He had always known that this young man (although Fitz was much older than him before the time travel) was very talented, but he hadn't expected him to be so creative—the method of distorting spacetime by electrifying a material like gravitonium to cancel out the spacetime rift was indeed feasible, but it would require a lot of electricity—as for where the electricity would come from, Salomon didn't think he needed to worry about it.

"Even if you convince me, it won't help; I have more important things to do."

"You're on vacation now, Salomon." Coulson felt all the day's fatigue wash over him. Because of the information asymmetry, he could never seize the initiative, which explained why Nick Fury was so eager to recruit Salomon and extract as much information as possible. Now that he was the one dealing with Salomon, Coulson finally understood the pain of having a superior.

"I haven't seen you attack NATO member states or fight any great demon."

"Summer is almost over, and we plan to make the most of every second to enjoy the good times, because we won't have as much time to rest in the future." Salomon gently held Natasha's hand beside him. "For me right now, keeping her in a good mood is the most important thing."

Coulson grasped the key phrase: "The future? What will happen in the future?"

"This has nothing to do with you; this is not a crisis you can handle."

The latest novel is first published here!

"I hope you can share some information. S.H.I.E.L.D. is currently cooperating with the US government, and I can always be of help."

"Does S.H.I.E.L.D. have a spaceship capable of traversing several star systems? If so, I wouldn't mind accepting their help." Agent Coulson fell silent, once again feeling the pain of information asymmetry. "Also, someone wants Chattaport's ledgers, the liaison between the military and S.H.I.E.L.D. As far as I know, Congress approved a large sum of funding from the military to S.H.I.E.L.D...."

Agent Coulson instantly understood the subtext.

S.H.I.E.L.D. has not received any funding from the Pentagon.

Now someone wants to investigate the Pentagon's books, but because the Pentagon has so many old and never-ending books to fill, the auditors sent by politicians can only start by checking the least relevant and most recent ones. Otherwise, helicopter crashes and suicides with eight gunshot wounds to the back would be foreseeable.

For politicians who initiate audits, the real purpose isn't to purge corruption at the Pentagon, but to attack political enemies; therefore, they'll only target the simplest projects. Otherwise, if it leads to issues like Iran-Contra, involving the illicit sale of weapons, some long-retired members of Congress will inevitably be implicated.

The Pentagon happens to have an expenditure that does not involve foreign military aid, and since S.H.I.E.L.D. has not yet been cleared of suspicion, it is the perfect target to use against them.

"Thank you for reminding me."

As dusk fell, Dinah drove away from the S.H.I.E.L.D. military base. Natasha Romanoff pressed a button to pull back the rear window curtain, watching the almost mesmerizing deep amber sunlight gradually sink into the dark, fragmented sea. She didn't say a word, just watched quietly. In the past, she had only come to Los Angeles for missions; her actual vacation time was very limited. She would sleep in the apartment assigned to her by S.H.I.E.L.D. for a few days before returning to fieldwork.

"How are Rogers and the others doing?" she finally asked after a long pause. "I mean, in terms of their mental state."

"He's doing very well and is now working with Wakanda to combat the black market in Europe. Human trafficking, drug trade, and arms dealing outside the Yugoslav borders have shrunk considerably. In addition, Steve, Sam, and James Buchanan, who is living in seclusion in Wakanda, are doing a great job in fighting Red Sea pirates. I couldn't ask for more."

Are those positions still open?

"I don't think you'd be interested in this kind of thing. S.H.I.E.L.D. rarely carries out missions like this. When have you ever been keen on fighting black market crime?"

“It’s not for me, Salomon,” Natasha said. “I have a sister. To be precise, many sisters.”

"The Red House?"

"I hope they can have a complete life." Natasha squeezed the warm hand beside her. "I'm lucky, so I want them to be as lucky as I am."

"I will not cast spells for every Black Widow, Natasha."

"I remember the restoration surgery in the Immortal City could make them fertile. You showed me the targeted organ transplant technology back then. Miracles come at a price. Perhaps working for you can replace some of the pay, which is much better than having them work for oil oligarchs... At least working for you will give them the opportunity to undergo the surgery."

"So you're planning to have all the Black Widows work for me?"

“Not all of them. I can’t make decisions for all of them, so I plan to persuade them. I’ll start with the Black Widow I know best, and I’ll contact her when I get to Zurich. I assure you, Yelena’s expertise can be of assistance.” Natasha’s expression brightened. “That’s too far off. What I wanted to talk about was earlier, Mr. Odysseus. I’m very interested in your story with that immortal. I also heard you mention Helios’s daughter.”

"You understand Ancient Greek?" Salomon asked curiously. "Does a secret agent need to learn so many skills they don't actually use?"

Natasha reached out and poked Salomon's chest hard with her finger.

"Answer my question quickly. Don't expect a woman driven by jealousy to be rational." Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Legend has it that Circe, the daughter of Helios, bore Odysseus three sons... Although I know the myth isn't true, I've heard you mention that your former lover now lives in America. As Mrs. Natalie Savage (this pseudonym uses Savage, not Pendragon), I have the right to know who my adversary is."

"The Greek gods are different from the Asgardian gods, Natasha. They are primordial spirits, without form, until they found partners." There was still a relatively long distance to the villa, and to pass the time, Salomon didn't mind revealing some ancient secrets. Hearing this, Natasha immediately leaned closer curiously—Dina wasn't interested in the topic, not only because she was focused on her driving duties, but also because she was a witness to that long period of time. Information that seemed unbelievably ancient to mortals was no secret to her.

"The Eternals are artificial deities created by physical deities of the physical universe. They never age, never die, and possess extraordinary power. They are responsible for overseeing the evolutionary experiments of intelligent life on Earth. However, some Eternals, in order to escape the fate set for them by the deities, became the possessions of primordial spirits. Circe was one of them."

"So, do all the gods in mythology really exist?" Natasha raised an eyebrow. "But I'm more interested in another piece of information: can bullets kill elves?"

Salomon sighed and couldn't help rubbing his forehead.

He didn't know why all his lovers were so keen on solving problems with bullets—except for Wanda. She was too gentle, too sweet, not at all like a Slavic woman—Beyond and Joan of Arc were heavy weapons enthusiasts. Now Natasha had also revealed her true nature, and he wondered if it was a mistake for him to store so many weapons in the basement of his Houston mansion.

"Unfortunately, even though I have shut down the Eternal Rebirth Chamber, killing an Eternal is not so easy."

"So, I guess I'll have to beat her some other way. I've decided, I want one more than her." Natasha tilted her head thoughtfully, then flipped over and mounted her. The spacious back seat of the executive Bentley gave her plenty of room to maneuver, which she was quite pleased with. Natasha leaned down, straddling Salomon. "We need to hurry, darling, and try to have one before we see my sister. That will drive Yelena insane with jealousy!"