Marvel: I Trade Devil Fruits for Power

"Do you think Dr. Banner and his team are just disposable pawns to the Devil Envoy?" Nick Fury suddenly posed the question.

"Disposable pawns? You mean the Envoy is cherry-picking his recruits, taking only what he needs despite having plenty of potential candidates for Devil Fruits?" Agent Hill immediately grasped the implication.

"Exactly. Look at the three who have been consistently at his side: Frank, the former Marine; Logan, the veteran of countless conflicts; and Blonsky, a soldier decorated for his service on the front lines. He seems to prioritize combat experience. Banner and Betty, despite their immense power, were handed over to S.H.I.E.L.D. without a second thought. Combining that with what Coulson said earlier, I've developed this suspicion."

"We can test that theory easily enough. It will also serve to verify Coulson's report—will the Envoy intervene if one Devil Fruit user attacks another?" Hill suggested.

"Agreed. Arrange an accident, find a way to get two fruit users involved," Fury replied.

They prepared for the test, but as fate would have it, a more urgent crisis superseded their plans. A massive anomaly occurred at the research base where S.H.I.E.L.D. was studying the Tesseract. Since recruiting Dr. Erik Selvig after the New Mexico incident, research into the cube had accelerated. With Asgardian and Hell-born entities appearing on Earth, Fury felt an desperate need to harness the Tesseract's power as a deterrent.

Now, only months later, the project was spiraling out of control.

"How bad is it?" Fury demanded, having arrived by jet.

"The problem is, sir, we don't know!" Dr. Selvig looked helpless. "Four hours ago, I detected a massive energy spike."

"S.H.I.E.L.D. Space Command didn't authorize a test!" Fury snapped.

"That's just it—I didn't run one! My team wasn't even here! The energy... it started itself!"

"It activated spontaneously?" Agent Hill stared, dumbfounded.

"Yes! We pulled the power, but it's its own energy source. It just restarts," Selvig explained. "We don't even have the simulations completed to understand how to control it. It's leaking low-level gamma radiation."

Gamma radiation? Fury's mind immediately flashed to Dr. Banner. The health hazards were immense.

"Doctor, the energy is spiking again!" the assistant shouted.

Selvig checked the data. "It's climbing exponentially. We can't suppress it—we have to evacuate. This facility is gone."

"Agent Hill, speed up the evacuation!" Fury commanded.

"Evacuation might not matter," Hill replied grimly.

"It's better than doing nothing. Get all Tier-2 equipment out; no research data can be left behind."

Fury turned to Clint Barton, who was responsible for security. "Hawkeye, you were stationed here. Did you see who started it?"

"Nobody entered or left, Doctor Selvig was clear, and no outside signals were transmitted," Barton said firmly. "If someone did this, it didn't come from our side."

"What do you mean?"

"The Tesseract is a door," Barton said, his voice dropping. "And doors... can be opened from both sides."

As if on cue, the Tesseract's energy surged, manifesting as a brilliant beam of light that tore open a portal. A figure stepped through, cloaked in arrogance, wielding a scepter embedded with a glowing blue stone.

"Sir, please put down the spear," Fury said, his voice cold.

Barton and his cursed intuition, Fury thought. The intruder looked formidable.

Loki glanced at his scepter and let out a chilling, wicked laugh. "Biubiu~" A concentrated blast of energy erupted from the scepter, slamming toward Fury.

Seeing the attack, every S.H.I.E.L.D. agent opened fire. Rat-tat-tat-tat! The bullets struck the intruder, but they were no more effective than gnats hitting a windshield. Asgardian divine power rendered Loki immune to the petty kinetic weaponry of Earth. Within seconds, the agents were felled. Hawkeye, who had dived to protect Fury, struggled to stand, but before he could raise his weapon, Loki was upon him.

Hummmm.

Loki pressed the scepter to Barton's chest. Even the highly trained Hawkeye stood no chance against the Mind Stone; his eyes flickered, then went pitch black. Barton had been compromised. Loki used the same method to turn the remaining survivors into his puppets.

Fury grabbed the case containing the Tesseract, intent on escaping, but Loki blocked his path. "Please put that down. I am Loki of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose."

"Loki? Thor's brother?" Dr. Selvig realized. He remembered the giant destroyer armor in the New Mexico town and how the Thunder God and the Devil Envoy had shattered it together. He still had nightmares about the Envoy's dark, towering form.

"Surprised to see me, Doctor? Oh, I remember you. You were there, too," Loki sneered.

"Have you forgotten something?" Selvig challenged, his voice shaking. "Demons exist in this world. Won't your presence attract their attention?"

Selvig, having witnessed the previous battle, had misidentified the threat levels; he viewed the otherworldly beings as powerful aliens rather than true cosmic deities. His words, however, sparked a plan in Fury's mind. If Loki fights the fruit users, the Devils and the Asgardians will be forced into conflict, leaving humanity the space to survive.

"The attention of the Devil Envoy?" Loki smirked. "In fact, I look forward to meeting him. This world should be divided between us—or perhaps, he should kneel."

Loki touched the scepter to Selvig's chest, instantly turning him into a thrall.

"I never realized the gods would stoop to allying with demons," Fury goaded, hoping to incite a rivalry. "Seems your 'divinity' isn't worth much."

Loki's expression darkened. "Alliances are our concern, not yours. Now, hand over the box."

"Why? We never provoked Asgard," Fury asked.

"Ants never provoke a boot," Loki replied.

"You mean to crush us?"

"I mean to liberate you! To free you from the shackles of freedom, for which you will never find peace!" Loki's mask of composure slipped, revealing pure, unadulterated madness.

BOOM!

Hawkeye raised his gun and shot Fury, knocking him to the floor. "Get out of here—the base is collapsing! If we don't go, we'll be buried under sixty meters of rock!"

The group, now under Loki's control, snatched the Tesseract and fled. By the time Fury pulled himself from the debris, the base was a graveyard of concrete and steel.

Fury looked at the ruin, his face ashen and resolute. "Track the location of that box! This is a Code 7 event! The war has officially begun!"