Marvel: Umbrella Corporation

Just as Lorna was about to collapse, a sudden flash of lightning struck outside the window, directly hitting Cassandra.

*Boom!*

The thunder rolled in, a moment late, but the damage was already done. Cassandra's body jerked violently, momentarily paralyzed.

From the staircase, a figure slowly descended—Ororo. Her expression was cold and unfeeling, and her eyes glowed a pure white, void of any pupils.

Seeing her, Lorna let out a breath of relief.

"Die!"

In an instant, every piece of metal in the room hurtled toward Cassandra with deadly force.

*Crash!*

The assault was so powerful that the floor shattered, leaving a gaping hole into the level below.

But just as Lorna prepared to confirm Cassandra's defeat, a figure emerged from the floor behind her. It was Cassandra, who reached out and placed her hand on Lorna's head.

"Did you really think you could kill me with something like that?"

Lorna tried to summon her powers again, but a sharp, unbearable pain stopped her in her tracks.

"Ahhh!"

Cassandra smirked, a glint of malice in her eyes, "Stubborn, aren't you? Let's see how long you can last."

She pulled off Lorna's helmet and unleashed her mental control.

Lorna struggled desperately, but under Cassandra's overwhelming psychic pressure, she eventually lowered her head.

"Master," Lorna muttered, her voice hollow.

Seeing this, Cassandra burst into laughter.

"Ha ha ha ha..."

...........

New York City ~

The next morning, as the sun began to rise, the battle had finally ended.

Tony Stark removed his helmet and stared at the ruins of his second mansion, his face filled with frustration. He turned to glare at Nick Fury and Maria Hill.

Ever since he had met them, he hadn't had a moment's peace. From the fight against Apocalypse to now, his life had been one disaster after another.

And now, his house was gone.

Feeling the weight of Tony's stare, Nick coughed awkwardly.

"Let's focus on digging Pepper out first," he said, trying to change the subject.

Tony glanced at Maria, who was busy tending to Natasha and Clint's injuries, and could only sigh in resignation.

Maria, though the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., was more of a strategist and administrator. Her combat abilities were subpar, and during last night's battle, she had been injured and forced to hide until the fighting ended. Only then did she reemerge to provide first aid.

As Nick and Tony cleared debris from the mansion's wreckage, a hand suddenly reached up from the edge of the cliff.

"Did none of you think to come save me?"

It was Bruce Banner, having climbed back up after being thrown into the ocean during the fight.

Natasha quickly ran over to help him up.

"Bruce, are you okay? Why didn't you transform into the Hulk to get back sooner?"

Bruce coughed out a few mouthfuls of seawater before shaking his head, "I don't know... it's like the Hulk enjoyed the water too much to come back up."

A short while later, the group managed to rescue Pepper from the basement. But as they surveyed the wreckage, they realized they had a bigger problem—they had nowhere to go.

If their enemies had found this location, they could easily track them down again.

"What do we do now?" Natasha asked.

Nick furrowed his brow. "We can't keep running. We need to strike back."

"But how? We don't even know who our enemy is," Clint replied.

"I have a lead," Nick said, his tone grave.

"Who?"

"Alexander Pierce."

"Pierce? Him?"

"Yes. If anyone could infiltrate S.H.I.E.L.D. so thoroughly, it would be him."

"But what's his endgame?"

"I don't know yet, but we can start by questioning him."

At that moment, J.A.R.V.I.S.'s voice interrupted.

"Mr. Stark, you might want to see this."

A holographic screen appeared before them, displaying a news broadcast.

On the screen stood a bald woman, her posture proud and commanding, her eyes filled with disdain for the world.

"My name is Cassandra," she declared. "I am the new leader of the mutant forces in Baghdad. Today, I announce the formation of the Middle East Alliance.

As the first ruler of this alliance, I decree that all nations within this region will now answer to me!"

The broadcast shifted to show the leaders of various Middle Eastern nations, all standing silently behind Cassandra. Their vacant expressions and robotic movements betrayed the fact that they were under her psychic control.

As the video ended, the room fell into a heavy silence.

"This woman is trouble," Maria finally said. "We need to resolve the S.H.I.E.L.D. crisis as quickly as possible."

Nick stood up, nodding firmly. "Agreed. We'll find Pierce and get to the bottom of this."

Then, Tony spoke up. "Let's go to Adam."

The room turned to him in surprise.

Nick immediately shook his head. "No. What if Adam is the mastermind behind all of this? Walking into his headquarters could be a trap."

Pepper, however, interjected. "I don't think so. I've worked with Adam before. He struck me as nothing more than a businessman. A pragmatic one, sure, but not someone with malicious intent."

Tony nodded in agreement. "Exactly. Adam's actions so far have shown he's willing to help anyone—for the right price. He helped me during the Obadiah incident and again during Ivan's uprising."

Nick hesitated. Was he letting his suspicions cloud his judgment?

Before he could argue further, Maria nodded. "Alright. Let's approach Adam."

Natasha, Clint, and Bruce all agreed.

"If he is the mastermind, then it'll make things easier—we'll take him down," Clint said matter-of-factly.

With no other option, Nick reluctantly agreed.

An hour later, the group arrived at the headquarters of Umbrella Corporation, Adam's company.

However, as they approached the entrance, they were stopped by security personnel.

Nick pulled out his phone and called Sharon, one of their inside contacts working within the company.

Moments later, Sharon appeared, dressed in a sharp business suit. She pulled Nick aside into a quiet corner.

"What do you need? I'm swamped with paperwork. Don't call me unless it's urgent."

_____________________

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