At the edge of an unfathomable pit.
Hawk was contemplating the 'Reality Gemstone' that could completely transform his Little Cosmos into reality, while calmly watching the Demon Hulk slowly being submerged at the bottom of the pit as water from the lake poured in.
His Little Cosmos gradually settled down.
Meanwhile.
The Phoenix Holy Armor was radiating a dazzling golden light, disassembling itself and reassembling into the vivid form of a phoenix, merging into the Little Cosmos projected behind him, waiting for Hawk's next summon.
Bare-chested, wearing only a pair of battle-torn casual pants, Hawk reappeared.
The countless wounds on his body were also rapidly healing at a visible speed.
Behind him—
The massive S.H.I.E.L.D. Command Fighter was making a vertical landing on the prairie.
Maria Hill declined the accompaniment of the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, paced over to Hawk's side, and handed over a S.H.I.E.L.D. T-shirt.
"Here."
"...Thank you."
Glancing at the T-shirt Maria Hill handed over, he did not refuse, uttered his thanks, and then slipped it on.
In the next moment.
He looked at the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo printed on the T-shirt he was wearing, chuckled and glanced at Maria Hill, an old acquaintance: "Does this mean Hawk has joined S.H.I.E.L.D. now?"
Maria Hill smiled and said, "If you want to join."
Hawk laughed heartily.
"Forget it, I'm not interested, and I don't have the time either."
"You could be an auxiliary member."
Maria Hill did not give up but did not press either, jokingly said: "For example, when there is a global crisis, you would come and help us, right?"
Hawk, hearing this, glanced at Maria Hill with curiosity.
"I thought the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. was Nick Fury. Why is it both times I have dealings with commanders from S.H.I.E.L.D. and not with the director himself?"
"He's been suspended, don't you want to deal with me?"
"No."
Listening to Maria Hill's reasoning, Hawk seemed to understand, then smiled and said to Maria Hill: "I thought you guys realized my preference and knew I don't like black-skinned people, so you didn't let any appear in front of me."
From the time he awakened his Little Cosmos to the present, a full year had passed; at this moment, Hawk already had the standing to express his opinions from a position of strength.
Yes.
He didn't like hippies.
Don't accept it, bite me, or take this 'Phoenix Wing Flight'!
Hawk thought to himself.
Maria Hill, listening to Hawk express his opinion so bluntly, didn't seem too surprised.
After all, since the Battle of Quantico, Hill spent more of her time researching various information collected from all directions related to Hawk.
And also…
Yes.
Nick Fury was once again suspended.
In a few words.
The reason Nick Fury managed to be reinstated at that time was because, after selling Hawk's information to Thaddeus Ross, as a condition of the transaction, the financial backers behind General Ross exerted their forces to have Nick Fury reinstated.
But…
The much-touted joint operation ended up with General Ross's actions, while Nick Fury decisively played dead after Hawk attacked the Quantico Base.
As a result, General Ross died.
Now, the financial backers were enraged, for General Ross had been their hard-earned chip to penetrate the Federation Military, yet he died like this.
So Nick Fury was once again suspended under the force of the financial backers.
Success and failure due to the financial backers.
Of course.
On the surface, the reason for Nick Fury's repeated suspension was Maria Hill reporting Nick Fury to the Security Council for leaking S.H.I.E.L.D. secrets.
Yes.
Following the Battle of Quantico, Maria Hill secretly collected evidence and finally found proof that Nick Fury provided Hawk's information to General Ross, then directly busted this matter to the Security Council, bypassing Alexander Pierce altogether.
There you have it, first defying orders, now leading in intelligence leaks as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., the Security Council was furious, once again managing to keep Nick Fury employed with just suspension at the behest of Alexander Pierce's earnest plea.
Nick Fury should really bow to Alexander Pierce.
Maria Hill mused over Alexander Pierce who once again defended Nick Fury with a frown.
She couldn't figure out the reason behind Alexander Pierce's relentless defending of Nick Fury.
Is it merely because Nick Fury was his hand-picked successor back then?
There should be other reasons.
Maria Hill pondered over it, though she hadn't figured out the specific reason yet, she was already searching secretly.
After a moment.
Maria Hill collected her thoughts, turned to Hawk, and with a smile said casually considering Hawk's earlier views on skin color: "Is that so, how lucky then, if Nick hadn't been suspended, having him reach out to you might not have ended well."
Hawk chuckled calmly, looking at Maria Hill.
"Just say whatever you wish to say, I'm no Tyrant, I don't trouble those who don't trouble me."
"Alright."
Maria Hill met Hawk's gaze with a smile, peered into the unfathomable pit before her: "What's up with this black Hulk."
Hawk turned to look, then plopped down onto the grass beneath him, and looked up at Maria Hill standing beside him.
Maria Hill smiled gently and sat down next to Hawk.
Hawk leaned back on the grass, feeling the breeze after the battle, as he answered Maria Hill's question.
"You saw it, didn't you? The Demon Hulk, the life-for-a-life outcome of Bruce Banner. Naturally, the Hulk returning from Hell is the Demon Hulk."
"And Mephisto, the one you were just talking to in the air…"
"The Lord of Hell. The Demon Hulk is just a toy he tossed up here to test my strength."
Hawk replied without hiding anything.
He was somewhat relieved.
Because…
He had confirmed the status of his sister Anya in Hell.
And it was personally certified by Mephisto.
Hawk was very sure that as long as he wasn't dead, or hadn't gone to Hell yet, his sister Anya would be doing well, even in Hell.
That was enough.
As for when he ends up in Hell, whether Mephisto might use his sister to threaten him, that's a matter for the future.
He believed in the wisdom of those who came after him; it's the future Hawk's headache.
At least for now, Hawk was quite happy.
The Phoenix Holy Armor was completed.
News of his sister Anya was found.
In this moment, after awakening the Little Cosmos, Hawk, who had been silently walking briskly without stopping, felt the urge to pause his steps for a short rest.
So…
In high spirits, feeling a hint of laziness and the desire to rest, Hawk didn't refuse Maria Hill's questions.
After all, it was just a way to pass the time.
Besides…
Maria Hill knew he had no clothes and specially brought a piece of clothing for him.
Reaching out without hitting a friend.
Most importantly...
If someone respects me an inch, I will respect them a foot.
This was also Hawk's code of conduct.
Soon.
Maria Hill, through her questioning, got to the truth of the matter.
Bruce Banner's life-for-a-life exchange was used by Mephisto, the Lord of Hell, to take the opportunity to remodel the already dead Hulk into the Demon Hulk and throw him back up to verify Hawk's strength.
It's just that…
Maria Hill was a bit shocked.
"Why would Mephisto suddenly want to test you…"
"Because I nagged him over and over again."
Hawk smiled slightly, then added, facing Maria Hill's shocked gaze, "Not just once; I repeatedly told him to take good care of my sister. If my sister loses even a single hair in Hell, when I get there, I'll take his head off and use it as a chamber pot."
Maria Hill was heavily shaken.
The matter of Hell.
She knew about it.
To be precise, the true existence of Hell is recorded in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top-secret database.
S.H.I.E.L.D. agents at the Texas branch have also dealt with demons a few times. Although they eventually solved them, each demon incident resulted in significant losses for the Texas S.H.I.E.L.D.
A standalone demon alone is hard for S.H.I.E.L.D. to handle, let alone the Lord of Hell, the greatest demon, Mephisto.
However…
Listening to Hawk's explanation, Maria Hill, recalling Hawk's protective nature over his sister Anya in the files, smiled and nodded.
"You're a good brother, Hawk."
"Thank you."
Hawk smiled slightly, then got up from the grass and looked at Maria Hill, who also stood up: "So, you don't need to fear me. Like I said, if people don't cross me, I won't cross them. I'm not interested in you, nor in destroying the world. After all, I'm still waiting to go to Hell to bring my sister back."
Hearing this, Maria Hill breathed a sigh of relief.
Even though she had previously assessed through Hawk's actions and the data that Hawk was not the villainous type.
But...
That was just an assessment, not proof. After all, whether it was the Battle of Quantico or the recent battle here, it fully demonstrated one thing.
If Hawk wanted to destroy the world, he had the capability.
So, hearing Hawk personally ensure this now, Maria Hill breathed a full sigh of relief and looked at Hawk.
"Understood, thank you!"
"You're welcome."
Hawk smiled slightly, then after resting, stretched and looked at Maria Hill: "Are there any other questions? If not, I'll be leaving first."
He had been out long enough.
Now that the Holy Armor was forged, the task was complete, it's time to go home.
Hawk thought to himself.
Maria Hill quickly nodded.
"Just one last question."
"Over there…"
"Can you talk about it?"
"…"