"But you said you were here to find them." Nick looked at Thor, who was bewildered. He observed that the other party did not seem to be lying, but really did not know where the wizards' gathering place was.
"Yeah, but I just got here and I was thrown next to Coulson." Thor also looked helpless. He was thrown from Asgard to Midgard by his father Odin, and then directly thrown next to Coulson by the Supreme Sorcerer. He couldn't even resist and was clearly arranged by those two.
"I don't know how he showed up. I just went out for dinner and ordered a burger," Coulson explained, noticing his commander's gaze. He actually hoped he'd run into Thor during his combat mission; that would make the whole fight much easier. Thor probably wouldn't mind helping him out in a fight after meeting a friend.
"Okay, where do you want to go? Or do you have any requirements? Do you need money? Do you need a place to stay? Do you need a vehicle to travel? Oh, that's not possible. You don't have a driver's license. You can't drive." Nick shook his head.
"I'm not going anywhere, I'm right here. The wizard said I just need to wait to see my brother. I don't need your slow tools, I can use my hammer wherever I want to go." Thor weighed Mjolnir, the hammer in his hand.
"Please try not to do that! Wherever you want to go, tell Coulson and let him take you." Nick rejected Thor's idea of going it alone without a second thought. He couldn't afford to have the news of someone flying with a hammer spread around the world. He felt he had to have someone close to Thor, someone who could monitor him constantly and tell him what he could and couldn't do.
As for the candidate, Nick looked at Agent Phil Coulson, who was acquainted with Thor.
"I want to see Jane." Thor stated his request.
"You'll see him soon," Nick replied cheerfully. He didn't mind satisfying Thor on such trivial matters, as long as Thor stayed quiet and didn't cause him any trouble.
"You are very good, although still very weak." Thor nodded with satisfaction.
Nick rolled his eyes internally at Thor's repeated mocking of his weakness. He could hear the sincerity in Thor's words; he wasn't being sarcastic, he just felt that way, so he said it.
Nick's eyes deepened as he watched Thor and Agent Coulson depart. Though his interaction with the alien prince had been brief, he already had a rough mental picture of him. Just as Agent Phil had described him, he possessed immense power and a deep sense of justice, though he was a bit reckless.
Nick didn't dislike Thor; he actually liked him. He possessed both strength and persistence, and his quick wit was a strength for Nick, making him relatively easy to exploit. Of course, given his status, Nick wouldn't really scheme against him unless absolutely necessary.
Besides, Nick didn't have the energy to care about the prince's affairs now. He had a lot of things waiting for him to deal with. The first thing to do was to find those wizards first.
He could have been at peace with himself before he didn't know about it, but ever since he learned about the existence of the wizards from Luke, the extremely suspicious Nick felt that if he didn't find them as soon as possible, he wouldn't be able to sleep well.
So, under the order of their superiors, the agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ran around New York City in groups of three or five, each carrying a detection device produced by Hebron.
Originally, Nick thought that this was a long-term job that required a protracted battle, but who would have thought that after just a few days, a team would bring back a message.
Somewhere underground in Manhattan, there is an energy reaction so strong that it can cause detection equipment to vibrate.
"Underground? Did the mages say it was rats?" Nick was stunned upon hearing this news. However, after receiving further information, his expression became serious.
…
A section of road in Manhattan was cordoned off by a row of roadblocks and seals, and there was even a sign saying that the road ahead was under repair.
Nick quickly stepped out of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s newest Quinjet and asked Agent May, who was in charge of the matter on the scene, "What's the situation?"
"We're still digging." Agent Mei led the way while reporting to his superiors, "We haven't found the mage yet. So far, we've only found two skeletal fragments of an unknown creature."
"I've seen the intelligence. Where are those two bone fragments? Take me there," Nick ordered decisively. He believed these objects might be connected to the mages. Of course, this speculation was merely an association, without any basis in fact. Now, whenever Nick encountered anything magical or concerning, he would involuntarily associate it with the mages, linking them to them.
May led her superior into the excavated cave. SHIELD had set up a simple camp there, and much of the necessary equipment had been transported immediately. Nick soon saw the two bone fragments. They were placed in a lead-wrapped metal box, surrounded by a tempered glass partition, shielding the two metal boxes like a protective layer.
"Is there a strong energy reaction inside them?" Nick looked at the two bone fragments, one was only the size of an adult's palm, and the other was as slender as a human finger.
"Yes, we initially thought there was something wrong with the equipment. Even after we swapped out equipment with other teams, the energy response remained strong," Agent Mei said seriously. "We don't know what species the skeleton belongs to yet, but we imagine it must have been very powerful in life. After all, it's been dead for so long, and the energy within its bones is still interfering with many instruments."
"Are there only these two pieces?" Nick stared at the two bone fragments inside the tempered glass with his only eye.
"There are even stronger energy reactions underground. We believe that there are still many, or a large piece of bone fragments that have not been mined. But we have to be careful. Judging from the existing information, if the underground energy source is accidentally released for some reason, it is very likely to cause an earthquake of unknown intensity." Mei replied.
"You did a good job." Nick nodded in acknowledgement of Agent May's caution. After a moment's thought, he ordered, "Bring me a piece of the fragment. We need more help."