"So a living person is inside these computers?" Curtis slapped the computers hard.
On the old CRT monitors, Dr. Zola was a bit dazed.
He didn't know why a team of Super Soldiers had suddenly blown open his bunker and were now slapping things around as if they were visiting a zoo.
Logically, he shouldn't be dazed, but the problem was that Curtis had destroyed half of his "body" when blasting the place, which greatly affected his thinking capacity.
He really wanted to say that this was a scientific miracle in human history, and could they show some respect!
"HYDRA—interesting." Curtis laughed as he slapped the equipment, making Zola's skin crawl.
He didn't know what this man was laughing about; logically, shouldn't the outside World be under HYDRA's reign of terror by now?
"What would happen if I dismantled part of the computer?" Curtis kicked and shattered a section of the storage units with a loud bang.
"Stop! What exactly are you here for? S.H.I.E.L.D.? CIA? KGB? Can you just—"
"If I turn off these fans, will you feel hot?" Curtis completely ignored Zola, smashing several cooling fans with another punch.
Now Zola was truly terrified.
Being stored in a database meant he couldn't feel physical pain.
But the destruction of these radiators and storage units was equivalent to eroding his consciousness, which would gradually turn him into a dementia patient—just like having Alzheimer's!
He had always taken pride in his intellect, so he hated that feeling—he even feared it!
Curtis wasn't just playing around; this was an interrogation technique, only the subject was Zola—a man whose consciousness was packed into a tin can.
Zola said angrily, "What do you want? I am a top scientist recruited by S.H.I.E.L.D. through Operation Paperclip! You can't do this to me—"
Bang!
Curtis smashed another section of storage with a punch. Now Zola could feel his processing power failing, which was more agonizing than death:
The intelligence he took pride in was being stripped away bit by bit. Yet, limited by his form of existence, he would retain the logic and consciousness to perceive it all until his total destruction.
Zola wasn't actually a tough guy, but living inside a computer for years had made him forget the mortal fear of aging, sickness, and death. That's why, in the movies, he could boast and die heroically to delay Captain America.
But now he remembered: there are many things in the World more terrifying than death.
"Stop! What do you want to know? I'll tell you everything! Stop what you're doing!"
As he struck the equipment, Curtis also felt it was a bit peculiar: was he actually torturing a "cyber-human"?
However, since this cyber-human was HYDRA, he didn't feel conflicted at all.
Besides, breaking down the psyche of a HYDRA member felt quite satisfying.
"Nothing much, just purely torturing you. I heard you used to do the same during World War II." Curtis stopped his actions.
"Torturing me? Do you know your actions could leave me with irreversible trauma? I am the first human in the World to complete a consciousness transfer! You're doing this for such a reason? Your boss will surely—"
"What a coincidence, this is exactly what my boss told me to do."
Osborn has artificial life now; why would he care about a "canned man" like you?
After speaking, Curtis threw a holographic projection device in front of the camera. It displayed scanning images from an Osborn satellite, showing two Helicarriers moving over the United States.
These things were planning to move to firing positions to launch a devastating strike on the ground.
The firing points for two of them were within the United States, while the other was over a different continent.
"My boss sent me here to let you see just how fragile your weapons are."
Not only that, Zemo had the locations of seven HYDRA Bases, all of which had been overrun by Titan's overwhelming firepower. These HYDRA members could see it all.
Once the incident was over, this scene would likely be viewed repeatedly online.
The Insight Project had reached a point of no return. Even if the plan didn't achieve its ideal results, the strike would plunge the globe into even greater chaos.
The defeat on the Russia battlefield and Osborn's sudden attack on HYDRA Bases didn't affect Pierce's mood in the slightest.
Without Captain America's interference or Fury's influence, he had easily sent these carriers into the sky. Now, he just needed to reach the positions and fire the cannons for the Insight Project to succeed.
Those Avengers hadn't even come to their senses yet; it was already too late.
Pierce took an elegant sip of red wine, as if he were already the winner.
The carriers crossed the U.S. border. The next moment, blinding red lasers shot down from even higher up, striking the Helicarriers like divine punishment.
The ultra-high temperature of the lasers pierced through the decks in just tens of seconds, drilling toward the deeper cores—
Boom!
"We're under attack! From above! Power failure! Command, the Helicarrier is out of control—"
The wine glass in Pierce's hand fell to the floor. What was that thing!
Before he could think further, his door was violently knocked upon. This was the United Nations Building; who would come knocking on his door for no reason?
"Hammer! Breach the door!!"
Before he could react, his office door was kicked flying—literally kicked flying—and it slammed into the glass with a bang.
These fully armed Agents had a red Hammer painted on their armbands.
After kicking open the door, the Agents quickly surrounded Pierce and then made way for the person behind them.
It was Norman.
"Long time no see, Mr. Pierce. I don't think I need to explain why I'm here, do I?" He had long been eager to lead a team to arrest this pretentious fellow.
"Osborn, you think you've won? Cut off—"
"Yes, yes, cut off one head, two more shall take its place. Then we'll just keep cutting until you don't dare grow any more." Norman picked his ear; he could make up dozens of variations of that line on the spot.
Spouting such hollow threats while at a complete disadvantage showed that Pierce was truly out of options.
"By my name, you are under arrest. You'll spend the rest of your life in a very, very secure prison, watching your so-called HYDRA become my dessert."
These words didn't sound very righteous. He finally realized: Osborn had no intention of being a champion of justice; he was a politician, and everything he did was for approval ratings.
This feeling made Pierce feel as if HYDRA were lambs to the slaughter—he felt like he had lost to a peer.
Norman was nothing like a champion of justice. Taking down HYDRA would simply make his power more secure, and that was it.
So he could only hang his head as he was arrested by the Agents, unable to say a word.
After everyone had left, a man wearing an Osborn uniform and a baseball cap walked into the building, into Nick Fury's former office.
Aiden was carrying out the task Harry had given him—recovering S.H.I.E.L.D.'s black box.
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