Inside the sleek black S.H.I.E.L.D. vehicle speeding along the highway, tension buzzed in the air like static electricity.
"Director… you want to study Mutants?" Natasha Romanoff's voice came hesitantly through the comm.
It wasn't shock in her tone—no, Natasha had seen too much to be easily surprised. But there was something else beneath her words: discomfort, perhaps even disgust.
Her mind raced back to the disturbing files she had once reviewed in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s black archives. Anti-human experiments. Dissections. Weaponization. Things that stripped away every shred of morality in the name of power.
"The military has been experimenting on Mutants in secret for years," she continued, "but even they don't make it public. Are we really going that route now?"
Nick Fury's deep voice came through her earpiece, slower now, more measured.
"It's a precaution, Romanoff. Just a precaution."
He knew what kind of training she'd gone through in the Red Room. He knew how fiercely she hated the idea of using people like lab rats. This conversation had to be navigated carefully.
After a short pause, Fury continued with a shift in tone.
"Listen. There's something you need to know. I'm aware of the identities of those four Mutants from the expo."
That got her attention.
"You know who they are?"
"Yes," Fury confirmed. "They're part of a team known as the X-Men—formed by a top-tier Mutant who's been trying to bridge the gap between Mutants and humanity. Their whole mission is stopping rogue Mutants and protecting innocent lives."
Natasha was silent for a moment, processing that. The name X-Men meant little to her. In fact, it was the first time she'd heard it.
But that was the point.
Despite having allegedly saved the world multiple times, no one outside the deepest layers of clearance knew they even existed. That wasn't just humility—it was a deliberate blackout. A secret not just kept, but erased.
"Even someone like me... a Level Nine S.H.I.E.L.D. agent... knew nothing about them," Natasha muttered. "So that's how hard they've been buried."
Fury grunted.
"They've flown under the radar for years. But tonight's event changed all that. Because of the live broadcast, the X-Men were exposed to the world in the blink of an eye—and now we can't put that genie back in the bottle."
He took a breath.
"The man you're transporting—code name Wolverine—is one of the most dangerous of them. He was part of the military's Weapon X Program. His powers? Regenerative healing and Adamantium claws. Even if you shot him in the head, he'd get back up and walk it off."
Natasha raised an eyebrow, glancing at Logan's unmoving body in the back seat.
"Doesn't look that immortal right now."
Fury didn't laugh. He only grew more serious.
"Exactly. Which is why something doesn't add up. Under normal circumstances, a direct hit from a howitzer wouldn't leave a scratch on him—maybe throw him into a wall, but not this."
"So you think something else is going on?"
"I know it is. And if we can hold onto his body—whether he survives or not—it gives us a bargaining chip. It may even let us contact their leader."
His voice dropped lower, more thoughtful.
"And I've got a bad feeling, Natasha. The X-Men aren't usually this... theatrical. Tonight wasn't just luck. Someone orchestrated this."
"You think they staged the whole thing?"
"I think we're looking at a long game, carefully played."
Fury paused, then said one last thing, slowly and deliberately.
"I need the truth, Natasha. Do you understand me?"
There was a long silence on the line.
Then her voice returned.
"Boss…" she said slowly, "did you just say this guy can regenerate—even from death?"
Fury blinked. "That's what the intel says. Why?"
"Then I think we missed something important."
There was a low sigh on her end.
"The three other Mutants just handed him over to me without a second thought. No one stayed behind to monitor him. That's not normal. If he was genuinely close to death, wouldn't they have kept someone with him?"
Fury's expression darkened. "What are you implying?"
"I'm saying…" Natasha said, "he might not be injured at all. This whole thing could be an act."
That hit Fury like a punch.
He straightened in his chair. "What? How can you be sure?"
There was a pause on Natasha's end.
Then came her voice—low and grim.
"Because he's gone."
A chill ran down Fury's spine.
"What do you mean—gone?"
"Gone." She repeated. "I don't know when it happened, or how, but when I turned to check... Logan was no longer in the car."
Natasha pulled over, checking the backseat again just to be sure.
Nothing. Not a single trace. Not even a bloodstain.
"I've been played."
Fury's mouth fell open slightly—but no words came out.
For a brief moment, his vast intelligence network, his counter-surveillance skills, and his contingency plans all seemed useless.
Not because of a superpower.
But because someone had out-thought him.
"Gone... just like that…" he muttered.
But the implications were far worse than a simple escape.
If Logan wasn't injured—if the entire event had been a performance—then the X-Men had just manipulated the most powerful intelligence agency on Earth.
And they'd done it live, in front of the whole world.
"Goddamn it." Fury's voice dropped to a whisper. "They sold it. They really sold it."
Mutants weren't supposed to do this. Not the smart ones, anyway.
They were supposed to lash out emotionally. Wreak havoc. Or, like Professor X, keep to themselves and hope for peace. Either path was predictable—and therefore manageable.
But this?
A calculated, public performance to gain the world's sympathy.
It was terrifying.
"We always feared Mutants with power," Fury whispered to himself, "but the ones we should be worried about... are the ones with brains."
For years, the world's governments had prepared contingency plans. The military had its Weapon X program. S.H.I.E.L.D. had the Tesseract, Captain Marvel, and the soon-to-be-born Avengers Initiative.
They had always believed they held the upper hand.
Because when it came to brute force, humanity had answers. Technology, tactics, overwhelming numbers.
But strategy?
That was something else entirely.
"Looks like it's time I had a little talk with Professor X," Fury said softly, already considering the next move.
He hated unknowns.
And right now, the Mutant world was nothing but unknowns.
___________________________________
Get membership in patreon to read more chapters
Extra chapters available in patreon
patreon.com/Dragonscribe31