The STRIKE agent's face went pale.
Rumlow's face did not show as much, but Adam could see the change in his eyes. The other agents near him also looked shaken for a second. They had thought Adam was already gone because one of their teams had taken him.
Now Adam was standing in front of them.
Steve looked at Adam first, then at the agents.
"What is going on?" he asked. "You said Adam left because of an emergency."
The agent who had spoken earlier opened his mouth, but no words came out.
Rumlow stepped in before the silence could grow too long.
"Sorry, Captain," Rumlow said. "It was a big mission with too many moving parts. Looks like one of my agents misunderstood what happened."
Steve did not look satisfied.
His eyes stayed on Rumlow for a moment longer than before. Adam noticed that. Natasha noticed it too. Steve already knew Adam had been attacked once inside S.H.I.E.L.D. custody. Now, on a mission filled with STRIKE agents, someone had lied about Adam leaving.
That was not a small mistake.
Rumlow could not push the matter either.
Adam could almost see the problem forming behind Rumlow's calm face. Until now, they had believed they understood the main shape of Adam's powers. They knew about his crystal form and ice. They had even brought a counter for Big Chill's phasing. But now Adam had made copies of himself, and one of those copies had fooled their team.
They did not know what he had done.
Steve looked at Adam. "Are you all right?"
Adam nodded. "I'm fine."
That answer was simple, but Steve still looked like he wanted more.
Adam did not explain it there.
The ship was still full of agents and rescued staff, with too many people pretending to be on the same side. If Adam said one wrong thing here, Hydra would react faster than Steve could understand.
So he stayed quiet.
Steve turned back toward the exit path. Natasha moved with him. Rumlow and the other agents started to shift too, trying to make the moment disappear under the rest of the mission cleanup.
Adam walked after Steve, then slowed near Rumlow.
He leaned a little closer, just enough that only Rumlow could hear him.
"You should check," Adam said quietly, "whether the target you caught is really me."
Rumlow's eyes sharpened.
Adam did not wait for an answer.
He straightened and walked away.
Rumlow and his agents kept watching him. Adam could feel their eyes on his back. They knew one thing clearly now. If Adam wanted, he could say enough in front of Steve to make this whole situation ugly for them.
But they also had a bigger mission.
Their real plan, Project Insight, had not started yet, so they could not let one failed capture attempt ruin it.
Adam had barely moved ahead when his Omnitrix gave a sharp beep.
The green light turned red.
His Echo Echo form ended, and his body returned to normal as he kept walking. At the same moment, far away inside the route where the STRIKE team had carried the captured clone, green light flashed over the clone's body.
The clone disappeared.
The agents around it froze.
An agent grabbed his communication device at once.
"Target disappeared," the voice came through Rumlow's earpiece. "Target disappeared in green light. I repeat, target disappeared in green light."
Rumlow's face stayed still, but his jaw tightened.
Adam heard only a broken edge of the message from behind him, but he understood enough.
Then the memories hit him.
For one second, his steps slowed. The captured clone's last moments came back into his head. He remembered the disruptor wave hitting him first. Then the electric rounds dropped him, and the agents grabbed him while saying the subject was secured.
Adam almost clicked his tongue.
'So it works like Naruto shadow clones,' he thought.
He kept walking like nothing had happened.
Later, Adam returned to the S.H.I.E.L.D. base with Steve and Natasha.
By then, the Omnitrix had already returned to green. Adam did not like that he was back inside a place filled with people he could not trust. The base looked clean and bright, but for Adam it felt more dangerous than the ship.
Natasha stopped him before he could follow Steve inside.
"You wait here," she said.
Steve looked at her. "Why?"
Natasha's eyes moved briefly toward Adam, then back to Steve. "You'll understand inside."
Steve did not like that answer, but he went with her.
Adam stayed outside.
He sat for a short while, but he did not relax. Agents moved through the area in every direction. Some avoided looking at him, while others looked once and looked away too quickly.
Adam placed one hand over the Omnitrix.
'If they try something here, what do I use?'
Big Chill was not a good choice now because they already had a counter for phasing. Echo Echo was useful, but this form did not have the raw power he wanted if a full capture team came at him. Diamondhead gave him a stronger body and better defense.
Adam pressed the dial.
Green light covered him, and his body changed again. His height rose a little. His muscles became heavier as the diamond pattern spread faintly across his skin.
He stood up in Diamondhead form.
Almost at the same time, Rumlow and several agents appeared in front of him.
Adam had already expected it.
He turned his body slightly and prepared to fight.
Rumlow raised both hands.
"Relax," Rumlow said. "We are not here to capture you."
Adam did not lower his guard.
Rumlow continued, "Secretary Pierce wants to see you."
Adam paused because he knew that name. From the movie, Pierce was the man sitting above most of this mess. If Pierce was openly calling him, then this was probably not the same kind of capture attempt as before. Adam was still sure it could become a trap, but not a simple hallway capture.
He stayed in Diamondhead form anyway.
"Fine," Adam said. "Let's go."