allonlinenovel Chapter 404 The Observer's Observational Objectives
Chapter 404 The Observer's Observational Objectives
Chapter 404 The Observer's Observational Objectives
While Reed was jubilant about coming up with an incredibly sinister solution, hundreds of meters underground on the other side of New York, his brother-in-law, Johnny Stone, was writhing like a maggot on an operating table: "Whoever you've got, you've got the wrong person! Do you know who my buddy is? Do you know who my sister and brother-in-law are? Do you know who I am?! Release me while you still have the chance!"
Anyone who wakes up to find themselves bound hand and foot on an operating table, surrounded by a circle of doctors in white coats, ready to be dissected and studied, would have to go through this struggle.
The attending physician, seemingly unable to tolerate Johnny's outburst, nodded to his assistant and said, "A tranquilizer."
It's just a clone of Captain America or a possible illegitimate child. Hydra has even collected blood samples from the real Captain America. What are they afraid of?
The assistant lifted the syringe, dusted it off, and bent down to inject it, hoping to quiet the little brat down. But as soon as the needle pierced the skin, the metal material that should have broken through the skin was instantly melted into molten iron.
Due to the urgency of the situation, Thunderfire had no choice but to ignite its flame form, and the high temperature of thousands of degrees instantly burned away the strong restraints binding it.
If Johnny wanted, he could even unleash the raging flames on the entire underground research facility in an instant, burning everyone to ashes.
Especially those two annoying people in white coats in front of me!
Ultimately, while he was a bastard, he wasn't a bloodthirsty arsonist. So, facing these two villains who had just tried to use him as a scapegoat, Thunderbolt could only unleash his "Flame Rising Dragon Fist!"
After delivering two impressive "→↓+punch" moves, Thunderbolt, having vented his anger, heard the urgent alarm sounding inside the base and had no choice but to quickly crawl into the pipes and escape at a speed of one kilometer per second.
What a joke! He wasn't going to waste his time arguing with these guys who clearly weren't good people. Once he got back and summoned the Stone Golem, Ben Wallace, and his brother-in-law Reed, they'd have a lot of trouble.
"He suddenly turned into a ball of fire, and then—flew up and escaped!"
The on-site supervisor, reporting to an unknown superior, knew this was absurd, but it was indeed the truth: "I'm not lying to you, boss, that's exactly what happened!"
Alexander Pierce on the other end of the communicator sighed and had no choice but to give up: "Stay calm, stay put, I'll send reinforcements over."
The man behind S.H.I.E.L.D. still holds the reins of the agency as a member of the World Security Council. After receiving this call, he immediately sent out another communication: "Agent Sitwell, send out the cleanup team."
Now that the base has been exposed, there is no need for it to continue existing.
"By the way," Alexander Pierce called out to his absolutely reliable subordinate, Agent Sitwell.
Just as Nick Fury never knew which corner he'd be shot in, S.H.I.E.L.D. was so vast that even Alexander Pierce had forgotten what that base was used for: "What project was that base in charge of again?"
"It's... something like a super serum." Sitwell on the other end of the phone rubbed his bald head, trying to remember: "It seems to be... a nearly completely failed project that was moved from Southeast Asia, what was it called—"
"Project Sentinel."
"Even better." Upon hearing it was a largely unproductive, abandoned project, Alexander showed no remorse whatsoever: "Have your men act swiftly and make sure they leave no trace!"
"Understood! Long live Hydra!"
"Yes, long live Hydra." After giving a formulaic reply to his fanatical Hydra colleague, Alexander Pierce hung up the phone and fell into deep thought.
Unlike those fools who only repeat slogans and treat Hydra as some kind of unwavering faith, Alexander, although a member of Hydra, was much more pragmatic.
"It's true that Hydra was able to take root and grow within S.H.I.E.L.D. after World War II, but its ability to thrive was entirely due to the strong support of people like Alexander."
The old adage is that Hydra is not an organization, but an ideology.
Alexander Pierce transformed this kind of thinking into the best explanation for its ability to attract members.
The members of S.H.I.E.L.D. are the strongest shield between supernatural forces and human society, but despite their sacrifices, they never receive the wealth and power they deserve.
Even Alexander Pierce, who had risen to the position of President of the World Security Council, still did not receive the rights he deserved.
There aren't that many saints in this world—if you don't even own the whole world, where do you get the motivation to protect it?
Inside and outside S.H.I.E.L.D., many people share the same thoughts. Almost all of these potential members of Hydra are like this, consumed by ambition and desire, seeking the power that rightfully belongs to them in the "mortal world".
All Alexander did was gather people with these ideas together and put them under a suitable creed, HailHydra.
But Hydra's situation is not good right now.
Alexander had previously used his influence to entice General Ross to cause trouble for Tony Stark, but it failed.
His most effective gun, the Winter Soldier, and a large number of Hydra agents mixed with a small number of S.H.I.E.L.D. members were detained by Stark's people, and the situation was not optimistic.
After much deliberation, Pierce decided that he couldn't afford to scatter his efforts; he needed to focus on protecting that crucial project first.
Prism Project — cough cough
.
An ultimate project that can monitor everyone in the world through satellites, cameras, IoT devices, and all other internet-connected devices.
Using S.H.I.E.L.D.'s proprietary super algorithm, once Project Insight is launched, the execution machine, consisting of three constantly airborne helicarriers, will continuously drop precision firepower downwards, accurately eliminating criminal suspects before any crime has occurred.
If a lawyer were present, he might have explained to Pierce in detail why a suspect is called a "suspect," and that a crime that has not yet occurred is not a crime.
Unfortunately, S.H.I.E.L.D. has never been a place where the law prevails, and Hydra within it is even less so.
Killing criminals with criminal tendencies who haven't yet committed crimes is just a superficial function; the true goal of Hydra lies hidden deep within the algorithm.
Under the control of the algorithm, the firepower network of the space carrier after it goes online will also cover those who pose a threat to Hydra now, in the past, or in the future.
In just one second, Hydra's opponents will decrease by at least 99.99%, and they will have a world completely subservient to Hydra's rule.
Just wait, everything will be alright once the Insight Project goes live.
Therefore, Pierce had to place all his hopes on this insight project. He needed some special means to first eliminate the most pressing obstacle—Captain America.
Unaware of this, Captain America is driving to one of the locations Fury had given him, but for him, Hydra focusing their attention on him is exactly what they want.
The more energy he draws into dealing with these Nazis, the easier it will be for Superman, Batman, or Stark to discover something amiss.
Soon, Captain America found a long-sealed military base by following the coordinates.
Upon arriving at the location, Captain America looked around and exclaimed with emotion, "It's a place I've been before."
This was the training location where he joined the army during World War II. At that time, he had not yet received the serum injection and was so thin that he could be blown away by a gust of wind. He had nothing but a heart that wanted to serve his country.
After using the vibranium shield to pry open the base's gate, Captain America quickly followed the route he remembered into an underground bunker, where he connected Nick Fury's USB drive to the complex electromechanical system in front of him.
This is how this old computer, mostly made up of magnetic tapes and vacuum tubes, was started up.
A face that Captain America found strangely familiar was projected onto the monochrome CRT monitor in the center of the base.
"Steve Rogers, Captain America."
Before Captain America could even speak, the face on the screen announced his name: "It's a good thing you're still alive!"
"Arnim Zola, Red Skull's lackey?" Hearing the familiar voice, Captain America felt as if he had been transported to another world.
He never imagined that one day he would meet an old friend in this way, someone he would never see again.
"What's going on?"
Dr. Zola was a close associate of Red Skull, a genius of that era. He was responsible for developing most of the Cosmic Cube-related weapons deployed by Hydra.
According to the timeline, Dr. Zola should have died of old age long ago.
"Don't rush, Captain." Zola slowed his tone, answering his captain's questions readily: "You have questions, and I have answers. I can tell you everything you want to know about Project Insight—why I'm talking to you through a computer, and everything else about Project Insight."
As Dr. Zola approached his death, he created a backup of his personality and stored it in physical media, making him perhaps the first and only super AI on Earth.
And Project Insight—Zola, as the writer of the deep algorithm, has an even better understanding of the whole picture than someone like Alexander Pierce.
Hydra's influence extends far beyond the small organization of S.H.I.E.L.D.; it also infiltrates various political and business circles outside of S.H.I.E.L.D.
After the three space carriers completed their first wave of attacks, all of Hydra's enemies were wiped out, and that day marked the day Hydra took over the world.
After hearing the explanation, Captain America felt a chill run down his spine. If Project Insight was really as Zola said, then once those three space carriers went online, they would cause the deaths of at least hundreds of thousands of innocent people in the first firing cycle!
Upon learning the full details of Project Insight, Captain America turned and ran, attempting to leave the underground base and relay the message, but the heavy bunker door behind him began to close with a loud crash.
Captain America swung his shield, trying to stop the drive shaft at the last second before the door closed, but he was too late. The door closed, and he was trapped inside.
Dr. Zola's voice boomed menacingly from the speakers all around: "Remember what I said before? It's a good thing you're not dead. Because—I can kill you with my own hands!"
The moment Captain America turned on his computer, he was already connected to the external network. Several high-yield bunker-buster bombs had already taken off and, judging by the time, should be arriving soon, blasting the area within a mile radius to smithereens.
All of Captain America's conversations were just him stalling for time. Did he really think he was some villain from a children's comic book who would answer every question when confronting the heroes?
Captain America's heightened senses, enhanced by the Super Soldier Serum, could hear the sharp sound of the missile piercing the air, even through the thick layer of soil.
Goodbye, Captain.
Dr. Zola on the screen was still laughing maniacally. He was a super AI, and the concept of life and death did not apply to him. Captain America, on the other hand, was different.
Super soldiers are just people whose physical abilities are several times stronger than ordinary people. They can't even withstand bullets, let alone super bombs specifically designed to destroy underground bunkers.
"Hail Hydra!"
Cold sweat immediately streamed down his forehead—Zora hadn't lied to himself about this.
When the entire bunker collapses under the missile explosion, even if he is not taken away by the explosion immediately, the tens of thousands of tons of soil and rocks falling on his head will be enough to suffocate him to death!
Just as Captain America was looking around the corners of the base, trying to find a suitable place to hold his position, a red cape arrived before the bunker buster missile.
With a deafening roar, the sound of an aerial bomb exploding reached Captain America's ears, and the next second he felt the sound of the explosion gradually lengthen and move further and further away from him.
When Captain America came to his senses, he found Superman already standing in front of him, one hand on his shoulder, and the other hand helping Captain America pick up the vibranium shield he had just thrown.
Joey handed the vibranium shield to Captain America: "I thought someone had found out I was pushing the asteroid into the solar system, but I didn't expect these missiles were for you!"
Fortunately, he had also been keeping an eye on any unusual missile launches on Earth, otherwise Captain America would have almost been hit by a 500-kilogram bomb.
"You've come at the right time, I've found out—"
Joey interrupted Captain America: "Project Insight? Or Hydra? Never mind that, we have more important things to worry about now."
O
After flying back to Earth, Joey and the others came up with a vague solution to the Soul Stone issue, but he still felt uneasy.
After much deliberation, Joey, feeling uneasy, decided to risk lowering his sanity by activating his super vision and violently scanning the globe in an attempt to find a little bit of security.
Unfortunately, I didn't find any sense of security; all I saw was Captain America almost getting hit by a missile.
Seeing this, Joey rushed from New York and rescued Captain America from the base at the last moment before the bombs arrived. Suddenly, he realized something. With his super senses activated, he would only appear where a major dangerous event was about to occur.
The same applies to observers whose horizons are far broader than those of a Kryptonian.
Earth was his target for observation this time.