"The Life Foundation?"
Saturday searched for a long time. Most of these people were mercenaries, with only one high-level employee from the Life Foundation. Seeing this name, Artoria pondered. The owner of this foundation seemed to have attended Tony's wedding and had sent an invitation, wanting Artoria to join, but Artoria had no interest in it. Or rather, Artoria wasn't fond of organizations that researched human immortality and the direction of human evolution. In other worlds, such organizations would just be a joke, but in the Marvel Universe, the chance of such an organization causing trouble was about eighty percent. She really didn't like being associated with such Death-seeking organizations, so Artoria ignored the matter.
"I didn't expect something to actually go wrong."
Thinking of this, Artoria's face soured. It seemed her initial decision was correct. Since this organization must be connected to the Symbiote, Artoria breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she hadn't joined; otherwise, if they used her as a backing, Artoria wouldn't be able to handle the subsequent developments. After all, Artoria didn't have "locked door" clairvoyance and couldn't see fragments of the future, so she took every step carefully, relying on meticulous calculation.
"Humanity's desire to court Death will never cease."
Mumbling this internally, Artoria, as a human, understood human nature best. Only a few could maintain their moral bottom line; most people, as long as the benefits were sufficient, could shatter their moral code and do unacceptable things. Artoria was now facing this group. Linking human evolution to longevity had led them down a crooked path. They hadn't even finished exploring Earth yet, but they wanted to use unknown extraterrestrial life forms to complete the path of evolution, unaware that humans were merely food and housing to them, replaceable at any time.
"Just like Pandora opening the box of evil, they are now paving the road to doom."
After making this comment, Artoria got up and left the computer. She didn't need to investigate further. The owner of the Life Foundation was Carlton Drake, ostensibly the owner of a pharmaceutical company. But why hadn't anyone investigated his large-scale human experiments? Clearly, a huge hand above was controlling the owner of the Life Foundation. They wanted to gain sufficient profit from this owner, and they simply didn't care about the Deaths or disappearances of the lowest-level personnel. These were just statistics. The real goal was immortality and securing huge sums of money.
"Take this mechanical arm. Yours is too old, and some of the internal parts are cracked."
Nick calmly signaled the assistant beside him. Seeing the boss's signal, the assistant immediately placed a dark mechanical arm in front of Bucky. Bucky's original mechanical arm had been removed, and the positioning system inside had been directly destroyed by Nick. Referencing the technology of the prosthetic limb, S.H.I.E.L.D. researchers created a similar one. Of course, Nick wasn't that kind; this arm was also equipped with tracking and eavesdropping systems. As an Special Agent, how could Nick allow Bucky, a guy who could be hypnotized at any time, to be free? To satisfy Captain America, he could only resort to these underhanded tricks.
"Thank you."
Looking at the highly futuristic mechanical arm in front of him, just based on its appearance, it certainly looked much better than the one he used before. Bucky politely thanked Nick. That calm expression made Bucky seem less like the cold robot he was before; he now had a bit more humanity. This "thank you" made Nick feel very complicated. On one hand, he sympathized with Bucky's plight. This was worse than Captain America's; although Captain America was frozen for a long time, he didn't lose his memory or was forced to serve the enemy—in this regard, Captain America couldn't compare to Bucky. Especially since Bucky now not only lacked an arm but also his memory. He could be considered one of the most tragic people of this century.
"In that case, Captain, you two should live together! Take good care of his daily life. If you have any problems or difficulties, just call me. My phone is always reachable."
Bucky installed the mechanical arm in front of Nick. Seeing how obedient Bucky was, Nick instructed the Captain beside him. If it were Natasha or Barton, he wouldn't need to say anything; they would understand his meaning. But facing the Captain, some things he couldn't say directly. If he did, an argument would likely ensue, as the Captain's ideology was too rigid. It was clearly impossible to ask the Captain to monitor Bucky's every move. He could only ask Steve to take good care of Bucky, where "taking care" meant ensuring Bucky didn't leave the Captain's sight. This way, it could serve as surveillance. Nick expressed his intention using a different meaning, which Steve clearly found practical and not offensive at all, instead thinking Nick was becoming more humane. Nick was getting better at mastering how to utilize the Captain.
"Don't worry! I will take good care of Bucky."
Steve patted his chest and promised Nick. Nick's face showed a **smile, and he took two steps back. The relationship between these two guys was definitely not normal. Oh my god! Ms. Carter, far away in heaven! Your man seems to have gone gay. What should I do? He might be giving you a big green hat! Looking at the extremely excited Captain America in front of him, Nick's mind was in turmoil, and he started thinking wildly.
"Agent Coulson, what do you think about Captain America being gay?"
Feeling that Ms. Carter, far away in heaven, would surely die with regret, Nick had countless complaints he wanted to vent. He could only confide in his capable subordinate, otherwise, he felt unbearable distress. Facing Nick's question, Special Agent Phil's eyes widened in surprise. He looked at his Director, then at his idol, unable to believe his idol actually liked men. But since his Director dared to say this, he must have some evidence. This matter might be true. Thinking of this, Phil's mind also became confused. Finally, he seemed to make a difficult decision.
"Even if the Captain is gay, I am willing to offer ** myself, sir."
"Pfft~!"
This answer made Nick spray out the coffee he had just drunk. This response was too unexpected and utterly shocked Nick. Can't you fanatical guys be a little more rational? To think he would even offer himself! My God! What is wrong with this world? Nick felt his worldview of many years had been destroyed. Even the most basic Special Agent quality—calmness—could not be maintained. The world was changing too fast; he, an old man, couldn't handle this kind of excitement.
"Agent Coulson, I don't want to discuss your sexual orientation, but you need to hurry up and execute your mission, or your bonus for this year will be gone. Believe me."
Taking out the handkerchief in his pocket, Nick wiped the coffee from his mouth and clothes. As he tidied himself, he hurried away from this subordinate. He was too terrifying. He never thought Coulson was like this! Unbelievable! He never thought that after all this time without a girlfriend and such strong admiration for Captain America, he was also a ***. Thinking that such a person existed nearby, Nick now felt completely insecure. Nick directly mentioned the unfinished mission that Phil had, sending the guy away. He didn't want to see this guy again for a while.
"Special Agent Hill, I have a task for you. I Hope you can complete it well."
After Coulson left, Nick collected his thoughts, recovering from his shattered worldview and injured feelings. He called in his beautiful deputy. He had now shifted his training focus from Coulson to Hill and Stacy. Both girls were highly regarded by him, and he hoped they would allow him to confidently hand over the position of S.H.I.E.L.D. Director. He felt he would be promoted soon. If he didn't entrust his responsibilities to someone reliable soon, he would be very uneasy.
"Yes, Director."
Facing the Director's delegated task, she accepted it without hesitation. She then glanced at the nature of the mission: an investigation task, which was very easy. The target was the 'Life Foundation'. Perhaps even Artoria had forgotten that S.H.I.E.L.D., though infiltrated by Hydra and suffering heavy losses in the great war, still retained some strength. They certainly had the ability to investigate Carlton Drake. After reviewing the mission, Hill left, leaving only Nick, whose worldview was completely shattered, to contemplate life.
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