Bruce stepped out, already clad in his battle suit.
"I'm going to take care of this," he said, striding to the side and lifting the cover of the newly completed Batwing.
It was the same familiar design, the same familiar configuration.
However, this time, the Batwing was no longer powered by the previous compressed energy source.
This was thanks to Nick Fury.
Among the materials Fury had given Bruce, there was a small but powerful tool.
A super manufacturing machine powered by Stark's Arc Reactor.
But to Bruce, the only thing about the machine that caught his interest was the Arc Reactor itself.
As for how Nick Fury got his hands on it, Bruce didn't bother to find out.
That was their business.
It had to be said—Stark was incredibly confident in his Arc Reactor, to the point that he didn't even install any security measures to prevent theft.
Then again, very few people could come into direct contact with Stark's Arc Reactor.
And even if they did, reverse-engineering it would be nearly impossible.
But for Bruce now, reverse-engineering it wasn't much of a challenge.
He had successfully created an almost identical replica of the Arc Reactor.
And with it, the already elusive Batwing had now truly become a ghost in the sky.
As the Batwing disappeared into the Batcave, Jessica sat at the control console, monitoring the nuclear missile heading toward New York.
But the Batcave wasn't the only place keeping an eye on that missile.
Carol was waiting at Tri-Wing, hoping for everything to be resolved.
Meanwhile, the Ultimate Squad was still carrying out its operation in Dallas, the capital of the New Texas Republic.
Two hours before the mission began, Captain America had confidently assured S.H.I.E.L.D.'s current leader, Carol, that they would need only fourteen minutes to handle the situation.
Yet the missile's estimated time of arrival in New York was just fifteen minutes.
Now, there were only eleven minutes and seventeen seconds left.
"Captain, have you found the leader of Texas? A nuclear missile has already been launched and is heading for the East Coast. I repeat, the missile is in the air."
Beside Carol, the current President of the United States was closely observing the situation.
"They'll succeed, right?" President Howard asked Carol with a hint of worry.
"To be honest, you didn't have to come here," Carol replied. She understood why President Howard had come, but this was the last place he should be.
Tri-Wing was within the potential nuclear strike zone.
If the Ultimate Squad failed, they could very well be reduced to ashes in the blast.
"Where else could I go?"
President Howard's expression was calm as he spoke to Carol.
He knew full well that America could not afford any kind of blow right now.
If New York were destroyed, the country would never recover.
It would once again become the Wild West.
At that point, guns would be the only language people spoke.
"They will succeed," Carol said firmly, knowing she couldn't persuade him otherwise. She could only keep her gaze locked on the screen.
"Loud and clear, Carol."
Captain America, using his shield to deflect enemy fire, forced his way through to their target.
A massive energy cannon.
"Monica, now!" But he wasn't the main assault force.
The one responsible for taking down the weapon, named Dirty Harry, was Black Widow—Monica.
She had no intention of showing mercy to the Texas rebel soldiers. Without hesitation, she launched an attack on the guards protecting Dirty Harry.
The soldiers barely had time to react before Monica took them down.
Only now was it clear—the armbands of these rebels bore the emblem of S.H.I.E.L.D.
They were once S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives.
But now, they had defected.
"Spineless cowards!" Monica spat. "You sold out S.H.I.E.L.D. and America to the highest bidder, didn't you? Nick Fury is going to string you up in Times Square and let your kids come take a tour."
As she spoke, she had already taken control of Dirty Harry.
"Watch out, Iron Man! I've secured Dirty Harry! Now!"
Monica sat in the cannon's firing position, aiming at the War Machine squad pursuing Iron Man.
"Fire!"
A beam blasted out from the cannon, instantly destroying one of the War Machines.
"Black Widow, I owe you a fancy Italian sports car," Iron Man quipped over comms, watching Monica cover his flank.
Captain America, ever the seasoned soldier, was already issuing orders to another key ally in the battle for air superiority.
"Thor, move forward! Smash anything that isn't red and gold into dust! We need to lock down the target location and secure open airspace."
"Understood, Cap."
Even before Captain America finished speaking, Thor was already in action.
Even without his godly powers, he was still tearing through War Machine units with his sheer combat skills and advanced gear.
Though, of course, this only attracted more War Machines his way.
But for Thor, it was nothing more than a scratch.
"Hawkeye, I need his location—right now!" Captain America was well aware that time was running out.
He was growing increasingly anxious.
But Hawkeye was even more anxious than the Captain.
As the one responsible for locating those guys, failing to find them meant that if anything went wrong with the mission, he'd be the one taking the fall.
"I'm searching as fast as I can, Captain. I'm monitoring communications and attempting to triangulate his position using satellites."
Right now, Hawkeye truly wished he could wipe out all those so-called high-ranking officials in Dallas.
Those people were nothing but lunatics who only cared about their own lives!
But no matter how much he wanted to tear them apart, his first priority was to find them.
"It's like looking for a needle in a haystack."
Meanwhile, in Washington, Mr. Morez walked into Senator Underwood's office as if nothing was happening, sat across from the senator, and confidently explained the purpose of his visit.
But to Senator Underwood, his words sounded like nothing more than an outrageous joke.
"Did I hear you correctly, Mr. Morez? You're here representing an armed rebellion planning to seize power in Wyoming, and you expect me to use the Senate Emergency Committee's authority to ensure that the U.S. military won't interfere?"
Senator Underwood thought either he had lost his mind or the man sitting in front of him had.
Did this guy have any idea what the Senate Emergency Committee represented?
Or was he simply unaware of his own position?
"You do realize, Mr. Morez, that I could have you arrested just by calling security?"
Hearing this, Morez confidently replied, "Of course, Senator Underwood. But all we want is a couple of weeks of freedom, after which we can begin discussing a peace treaty."
"Besides, I wouldn't call us an armed rebellion—we're simply looking for a little space to survive."
"Why should I help another state break away from the United States?" Senator Underwood was clearly more composed than those unfortunate Texans. As someone in a highly influential position, he wasn't about to reveal his stance so easily.
Even if the man sitting in front of him had the potential to overthrow the country.
He still remained calm as he spoke to him.
"We've already reached an agreement with the West Coast nation to supply them with coal resources. They have a massive network of computers to maintain, along with a significant budget for it. If you could give this fledgling state a chance to take off, we'd be deeply grateful." Morez spoke with conviction.
"The nation is in crisis, Mr. Morez. What you're doing is treason. I'm going to call—" Senator Underwood had now fully confirmed that the man in front of him was indeed insane.
He wanted to tear the United States apart.
"Idaho. Guilford." Morez said the name with a smile.
Senator Underwood's hand, which had been reaching for the security button, slowly withdrew.
Seeing that the senator had given up on calling security, Morez grinned. "A pesticide plant had a gas leak. Over fifty people died, and more than five thousand were poisoned."
"And yet, the pesticide company was never prosecuted. Meanwhile, you received a large sum of money for your re-election campaign."
"Of course, with all the chaos going on now, who would care about your secret dealings?"
Senator Underwood fell silent.
After a long pause, he finally asked Morez, "What about the President?"
"This should help your committee deal with him." Morez confidently handed over a file.
Senator Underwood examined the contents carefully.
The information inside would indeed be a devastating blow to the current President.
It could even threaten his position.
Underwood said nothing.
But his silence alone was proof that he was already tempted.
All he needed was a push—someone to nudge him forward.
And that was exactly Morez's role at this moment.
"Do we have a deal?" Morez asked with a smile.
At that moment, there were five minutes and two seconds left until the nuclear missile reached New York.
"Jessica, I've got eyes on it. Start flying now—I'll see if I can take care of it." Bruce had spotted the nuclear missile.
After running the calculations, Bruce came up with a solution that no one else would have thought of.
"Copy that." Jessica didn't doubt Bruce for a second. She quickly pulled out the control stick from beneath the console to take over flying the Batwing.
She took control of the aircraft.
Bruce, meanwhile, waited patiently for the right moment.
As soon as the opportunity came, he ejected himself into the air, and Jessica swiftly maneuvered the Batwing away.
Bruce was now clinging tightly to the missile's outer shell.
"You're no better than those lunatics in Texas," Jessica muttered as she watched Bruce's reckless stunt, unable to hold back her comment.
Today's internet connection was down, so the second chapter might be a little late.
(End of chapter)
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