POV Rio
When I got back from my trip abroad, I started looking for ways to sell the items I obtained. I wasn't in a massive rush, per se, as I still had time, but I wasn't even really sure where to start. I had several million dollars' worth of antiques and historic artifacts. I couldn't just sell them to anyone.
'I mean, Lara Croft might buy them.'
Since that would take a while to get done, I decided to focus on creating a place to store all the Black Acid I had acquired. I also took the samples of the Cradle of Life to the lab to see what they were. It was during these tests that I finished assimilating Harry Potter. Which gave me my next Template.
[Harry Potter: 100%]
[Getting New Template]
[New Template Found ---> Bryan Mills]
[Bryan Mills: 76%]
My initial thoughts were. Who? But then, when the memories were added, I quickly understood who it was. The Father from the movie Taken. My next thought was funny, but meh. He was really cool, don't get me wrong, but most of his abilities I already had. I mean, sure, it did just add more physical strength, but those gains are very small when the characters all have similar or even less strength than each other. And the gear he came with was mediocre. I got some guns, some fake passports, and identities, and some outfits. That was it. It was... Fine, I guess.
On the bright side, the Harry Potter template before Bryan Mills was really good, as it wasn't child Harry Potter but a fully grown adult Harry. The man had learned a lot of spells and had extensive alchemical knowledge, as well as how to fight other magic users with special focus on evil wizards and dark magic. I wasn't really sure how well that knowledge would translate to Marvel, but it's nice to have. And the second nice thing about Bryan Mills is that he was really quick to assimilate. So much so that it only took two days to finish the assimilation.
[Bryan Mills: 100%]
[Getting New Template]
[New Template Found ---> Saul Goodman]
[Saul Goodman: 47%]
Twitch
My eyebrow twitched when I got Saul Goodman of all people.
'HOW THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSED TO HELP ME!'
After calming down a bit, I started to rethink my way of looking at this. Sure, Saul wasn't useful in combat, but the guy was knowledgeable about crime. Both how it is done, how to defend it legally, and thus how to prosecute it. Sure, it was niche, but the man was still quite knowledgeable when it came to the law. In fact, he knew something I actually cared about right now. Antiquities dealing. How to buy and sell the stuff legally. And I had to admit Saul was good at weaseling his way out of trouble without betraying anyone and avoiding suspicion.
As for the gear. I had to admit it was pretty good. It was all the documents needed to be registered as a bar-certified lawyer. I didn't even have to modify any records. The only caveat was that it was for Saul Goodman. And the records of the law school he went to were officially lost in a fire. But as long as he took a quick exam to requalify, he could be registered immediately. Not sure why I would ever want that, but hey, I could. But I also got a large amount of suits and even some cool-looking law books. But that was about it.
It didn't take long to complete the assimilation of Saul, with me completing it on October 1st. And thank the lord I got an actually good Template this time. Steve Dayton. The man who invented Promethium. Promethium came in two forms. Depleted Promethium, which was basically the Adamantium of Marvel. It was basically indestructible, so much so that even Superman couldn't break the stuff. The second kind is Volatile Promethium, which is capable of channeling, amplifying, and perpetuating near-limitless amounts of energy. But at the cost that it mutates those around it in often harmful ways. Not the X-Gene kind of mutation, either the kind that kills you more often than not.
As for gear, I got the Mento Helmet, which I was not going to use. It's really strong. It can grant Limited Mind Control, Telekinesis, and Telepathy. But it also drives you insane with severe paranoia and dementia. I also got his super suit, which was made of some high-quality materials. But other than that, I got some items used to produce Promethium.
So, it's a bit of a mixed bag, but I would accept what I got in terms of knowledge and abilities. For instance, I gained psychic potential. I could now nurture that gift into fully usable psionics. On top of that, I gained a great talent in business management and instinct when it comes to making money. It should also be noted that Dayton was a brilliant scientist, and now I have gained all that knowledge and potential. Or rather, I will once I finish the assimilation.
I continued the research on the Cradle of Life, but I eventually did all I could. It was more of a curiosity for now. I felt I should take a trip back to New York. I hadn't actually just wandered the city yet. And I figured it wouldn't hurt. I was safe enough that I could sense any troubles coming before they arrived. And I would be driving around first just to get a feel. I could walk if I feel like it is safe.
And I had to admit I wanted to try driving the Aston Martin DB5. I mean, who wouldn't want to? The car was just so cool. I had tested it out a bit before, but not that much.
I got in the car and drove to NYC. The ride was pleasant, and the traffic was light. Likely because it was still midday and most people were at work. As I was driving through the city, I thought about this absolutely crazy city that so many call home.
'Hmm, I wonder when Spider-Man will show up.'
I was confident that he didn't exist yet, as J Jonah would have plastered his face on every front page. I had done some research on that kind of stuff already. Dr Connors was an amputee working for Oscorp. Dr Otto Octavius was still working as a researcher at Columbia University. Most of the others were not noteworthy enough to even be found at this point. Norman Osborn was running Oscorp, but info on his son and, by extension, Peter Parker isn't so easy to find. Kingpin was around, and from the info collected from Viggo, he was making lots of moves and controlled a decent portion of New York. But it should be noted that he still hasn't become THE Kingpin of NYC. But he is on the path to do so.
POV Shift Nick Fury
Knock Knock Knock
"Enter," I call out.
In comes Agent Coulson.
"I have finished the investigation of the 28 people in Viggo's gang," Coulson reports.
"Good, but before you report that, what about Mr. Pines?" I ask.
"Nothing unusual to report. Rio Pines spent a month on Santorini Island in Greece. He spent most of his time diving off the coast and exploring the reefs and beautiful culture of the island. Then, after his time there, he traveled to Tanzania to visit the wildlife there. He was there for just about two weeks. Then he returned to New York just recently. We looked into the waters around Santorini Island and found nothing beyond some old pieces of marble and lots of coral reefs. It's very beautiful, sir," Coulson reports.
"Good, and what about the psyche profile?" I ask.
"He seems like a decent kid. He didn't drink despite it being legal in Greece, nor did he solicit sexual relations with strangers. And while spending money given his recent increase in money, it seems like what any kid with a recent inheritance would do. His interactions with the locals and strangers alike were always polite and respectful. He asked a lot of questions, but that's to be expected given he is only 17 years old. He was also quite generous, but still frugal; even during his trip, he didn't spend much. Everything seems to suggest he's an upstanding citizen who wanted to go on vacation," Coulson reports.
"Very well, don't waste our resources observing him. At most, just keep a record of when he leaves the country and where. We have bigger fish to fry at the moment," I reply.
"Yes, speaking of that, we've investigated Viggo's men and found nothing," Coulson reports.
"Nothing?" I say with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes, as it stands, we believe it could be an attack from a monster of Monstropolis. Nothing else could possibly fit, given we found no signs of struggle, no bodies have turned up, and even Continental has found nothing. There was no discernible movement from the Mutants either," Coulson reports.
"Sigh. The sooner those religious fanatics wipe out the supernatural threat, the better," I respond.
"Yes, related to that. The conflict in Europe has gone smoothly so far. However, we have obtained far fewer assets than we originally anticipated," Coulson reports.
"How much less? And what's interfering?" I ask.
"So far, we've barely managed to collect 2% of the expected wealth the vampires had before their elimination. The main issue is that most of their assets are being inherited by Lorenz Macaro, long suspected of being Alexander Corvinus. However, we can't prove anything, and the London Government has made its stance clear. Lord Macaro is their citizen, and any action against them will see our agency banned from operating within their sphere of influence. It also doesn't help that Macaro has an elite army with him that would make an arrest very difficult," Coulson reports.
'Damn politicians.'
"Fine, keep working on seizing what we can. Every bit that we take is one less bit for our unconventional allies to take," I order.
"Yes, sir," Coulson reports.
"Anything else?" I ask.
"No, sir," Coulson responds.
I dismiss him and read over the papers he left me. Once I was done reading over them, I placed them to the side to be filed away later.