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A robot.
That was Pierce's first impression as the scattered blueprints clicked into place. At first glance, the individual components seemed ordinary: wheels, joints, circuits, nothing out of the ordinary. But when overlaid together, the designs revealed something far more extraordinary.
It was not just a robot.
It's a suit. A full-body suit of mechanical armor.
Pierce's pulse quickened. In the modern world, robotics is no novelty. Research labs, private firms, and even governments had shown off their prototypes for years. Some looked sleek, others clunky, but in the end, they were all the same: proof-of-concept toys. Expensive demonstrations with little practical application.
It was no different from Stark Industries' Arc Reactor showcase: dazzling to the eye, but useless on the battlefield.
And yet, as Pierce studied the lines and angles of these designs, he knew better. Marco would never have brought him something trivial. Not unless it carried real weight. Real value.
That realization made Pierce's eyes glint with excitement.
"Marco," Pierce said, his voice steady but edged with anticipation. "What exactly am I looking at here?" His gaze flicked sharply to his subordinate, hungry for confirmation.
Marco leaned forward, his tone measured but brimming with significance. "As I mentioned earlier, Raza and his men didn't carry out Obadiah Stane's orders. Instead of killing Tony Stark, they imprisoned him. Their plan was to force him into building Jericho missiles for their cause."
He tapped a finger against the blueprints spread across Pierce's desk. "Stark pretended to comply… but in reality, he was designing his own escape. And this"—his hand pressed firmly against the papers—"is what he built."
Pierce's eyes narrowed, his mind racing as the implications sank in.
"I've already had specialists look it over," Marco continued confidently. "Engineers, physicists, weapons experts. Their verdict was unanimous: these designs are viable. With the resources at our disposal, Hydra could begin testing immediately."
Pierce leaned back slowly, a dangerous smile curving across his face as his eyes gleamed brighter than ever. This wasn't just useful, it was a miracle.
If these armored suits could truly be produced, Hydra wouldn't just grow stronger; it would soar. Not merely sprouting a pair of wings, but strapping on the wings of a dragon, ready to dominate the skies and rain fire on anyone foolish enough to stand in their way.
A weapon Stark had forged in desperation… was about to become Hydra's greatest asset.
Pierce's mind turned quickly, already calculating the possibilities, the reach, the power. Then another thought struck him like a cold blade. His eyes narrowed, his voice dropping into something quieter, sharper.
"Does Nick Fury know about this?"
It was the only question that mattered. The rescue had been handled under Fury's direct authority. Coulson had been on-site, Fury's most loyal right hand. Black Widow and Hawkeye had spearheaded the assault. And the other agents? Hard to say. Maybe Fury's, maybe not. Even if Fury suspected Hydra's infiltration within S.H.I.E.L.D., there was no way he could cut out every root. Hydra's influence ran too deep, too far.
Marco's reply was firm, almost reassuring. "As of now, we're the only ones aware. When our operatives found the blueprints, they didn't file a report. They smuggled them out and handed everything to Rumlow. From there, it came directly to me. No one else has seen them."
Pierce let out a slow breath, his shoulders easing slightly as relief washed through him. So far, Fury was blind. That meant this dangerous secret remained theirs alone.
"Excellent." He gave a decisive nod, the glint of command in his eyes. Then, with a voice that carried the weight of an order carved in stone, he said, "Assemble a research division immediately. Scientists, engineers, the best minds we can control. I want a functioning prototype as soon as humanly possible."
Marco didn't hesitate. "Understood, sir." There was a flicker of eagerness in his tone; he, too, was hungry to see this dream made flesh.
But Marco wasn't finished. He reached back into his case and placed another folder on the desk, sliding it toward Pierce with deliberate weight. "There's something else, sir. Intel gathered about the Devil Fruit users during the Stark rescue mission."
Pierce's curiosity sharpened. He opened the file and began scanning, his brow furrowing the deeper he read. Line by line, his expression hardened.
"A full-scale paramilitary fortress, taken down in thirty minutes," Pierce muttered aloud. "No wasted movements. No hesitation. They swept the field clean, killed every hostile, and secured every objective. Not one casualty on their side."
"Incredible…" His voice was quiet, but tinged with awe. "Absolutely incredible."
Even Hydra, with all its operatives, firepower, and hidden resources, would have suffered significant losses storming Raza's fortified stronghold. Yet these mysterious Devil Fruit users had carved through it as though it were nothing.
"Wilson Fisk," Pierce read aloud, his tone deliberate. "Steel-Steel Fruit user. His entire body can become living steel. It makes blades snap, bullets bounce, and overall, nothing pierces him. Reports say he once crushed a tank's barrel with his bare hands."
"Wade Wilson. Smooth-Smooth Fruit user. Can reduce his skin's friction to zero. Even at point-blank range, bullets simply slide off him, leaving him unharmed."
"Hope van Dyne. Liquid-Liquid Fruit. Reports suggest she can turn anything she touches into liquid. Stark vanishing from a heavily guarded cave? Most likely her doing."
"Hawkeye. Can transform into a falcon, gaining aerial dominance and raining down precise, devastating attacks with his bow."
The list went on.
The deeper Pierce read, the tighter he gripped the file. These weren't just skilled operatives. They weren't even merely enhanced. They were something beyond forces of nature, anomalies that bent the very rules of combat. Supernatural.
If Hydra could bend such power to its will, global domination wouldn't be a dream. It would be inevitable.
Pierce would be lying if he said he wasn't tempted. The problem was, they still didn't know how the Devil Fruit store operated. Money wasn't the key; you couldn't just buy one, no matter how much you had.
His voice dropped low, weighted with command. "Marco, we cannot waste time. I want answers. Fast. Find out how their invitation system works. I don't care what it takes; we will secure Devil Fruits."
He let the words hang in the air, then added with a chilling calm, "And put every confirmed Devil Fruit user under surveillance. If even one of them shows weakness and can be tempted or broken, Hydra will make them ours."
"Sir…" Marco hesitated momentarily before asking the critical question, "What if....and I mean if, we never manage to buy from the shop? From what I've gathered, it doesn't seem like they have an 'exclusive membership' policy. Those users… they simply walked in and bought their Fruits."
The temperature in the room seemed to plummet. Pierce's gaze locked on Marco, his expression glacial. When he finally spoke, his words carried lethal certainty.
"Marco…" His voice was a knife's edge. "…no one stands in Hydra's way."
His lips curved, the faintest trace of a smile that resembled more of a predator than a man.
"No one."
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Next Chapter: That's Just Insane
Next Next Chapter: Tony Stark Visits
Next Next Next Chapter: The Devil Fruit Most Suited for Tony Stark
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