"Heh."
"Go home??"
"I just ran from New York to New Mexico to level the Ross family cemetery, and then ran all the way back here from New Mexico."
"What do you think I came here for?"
"Do I look like I have nothing better to do?"
"They started this war, not me!"
"They may have decided when it started, but they don't get to decide when it ends. I do."
Hawk's laugh died in his throat. His ice-cold gaze swept over the crowd of uniformed, well-dressed men huddled in the doorway—the so-called 'great men' of the nation.
Normally, these men would have exuded an aura of power and authority.
But now, They were terrified. Anxious. Pathetic.
Heh.
You only learn when it's too late. You only change course after you've already crashed. You only feel regret when death is staring you in the face.
But you don't feel regret... You just feel fear!!
Hawk took in the pathetic sight, then turned his gaze back to Maria Hill. "There are only two ways this ends."
"...May I hear them?"
"Of course."
A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched Hawk's lips. Compared to the sniveling cowards in the doorway, his opinion of the woman who had stood firm in the face of the Abomination was relatively high.
Hawk looked at her, his voice quiet and hollow, completely devoid of emotion.
"Since I'm already here, what's the difference between killing one or killing two? Five hundred, five thousand, fifty thousand—they're all just numbers to me."
"..."
Hearing his words, a chill went down Maria Hill's spine.
Hawk continued. "After I kill everyone here, I'll go to the Pentagon. After I'm done with the Pentagon, I'll go to the White House. In short, they started this war, and a war can only have one victor. Either they kill me, or I kill them."
"Ms. Hill."
Hawk paused, a small smile returning to his face. "What do you think of that ending?"
His gaze once again swept over the men huddled in the doorway, trapped between coming and going.
Hawk hadn't spoken loudly, but it was more than loud enough for them to hear every single word.
And so—
They broke.
They collapsed.
They begged.
In the face of death, all men are equal. The powerful men, now slumped on the floor, saw Hawk's gaze fall upon them and began to plead for their lives.
Their message was simple: The attack was Ross's idea. It had nothing to do with them. They begged Hawk to let them go, swearing he would never see them again.
Hawk said nothing. He just watched their pathetic, tear-streaked performance with cold amusement. He had no doubt that right now, these men would pimp out their trophy wives if it meant saving their own skins.
Beneath the polished veneer, a cesspool of corruption and depravity.
As Hawk was enjoying the show, Maria Hill, having recovered from her shock, finally spoke. "And the second ending?"
"What second ending?"
Hawk turned back to her, a look of mock surprise on his face. "You know, I'm not sure I like the second ending anymore. I think the first one is pretty good."
Maria Hill met his teasing gaze. "May I hear it anyway?"
"...Fine."
Hawk thought for a moment, then shrugged. "After a war, the victor is entitled to demand reparations from the loser."
The moment he finished, before Maria Hill could even respond, the eyes of the VIPs lit up.
"WE'LL PAY!"
"WE'LL PAY!"
"WE'LL GIVE YOU ANYTHING!"
"Shut up." Hawk's ice-cold gaze once again swept over the noisy, pathetic men.
They immediately fell silent, trembling like quail.
Hawk sneered, then turned back to Maria Hill. "I don't think I want that ending anymore."
Maria Hill frowned slightly.
"Why not?"
"I don't feel like it."
Hawk shrugged. "After what happened today, I won't be staying in the country much longer anyway. And if I'm leaving, why let them live? Better to end it once and for all—wipe them out, then clean out the Pentagon. I don't like the guy in the White House right now, either. Might as well take him out too."
He said it so casually.
But Maria Hill's blood ran cold.
Because she didn't hear a trace of humor in his voice, and she didn't see a hint of a joke on his face.
He was serious.
He would really do it!!
Hawk saw the look of horror on Maria Hill's face and smiled to himself. He turned and started walking toward the group of VIPs.
Just then, Maria Hill, seeing him move, drew in a sharp breath. She snapped out of her shock and ran, placing herself directly in his path.
"WAIT, HAWK!"
"..."
Hawk raised an eyebrow, looking at her as she stood before the VIPs, protecting them like a mother hen protecting her chicks.
Maria Hill's voice was urgent. "This incident will not be made public."
"Is that so?"
"Yes!"
Maria Hill nodded emphatically.
And she was right.
Quantico might have been turned into a raging battlefield, but very few people knew what had actually happened.
S.H.I.E.L.D had intervened from the very beginning, cutting off all communications and signals from the base.
So, Aside from the people in Quantico, the Pentagon, the White House, and S.H.I.E.L.D, no one else knew.
The people of Washington D.C. still thought this was just another quiet holiday.
Hawk listened to her words, a thoughtful expression on his face.
But—
He finished his consideration and shook his head. "Not enough."
"Reparations..." Maria Hill said quickly. "You said it yourself. This was a war. Since they lost, they have to pay reparations."
Hawk's gaze drifted past her shoulder, to the men behind her who were now as silent as the grave, wanting to speak but not daring to.
The moment his eyes met theirs, they all flinched and looked away. They were scared shitless.
Hawk considered it, then turned back to Maria Hill with a small smile. "I want a trillion dollars. You think they can pay that?"
Maria Hill's eye twitched.
Hawk shook his head, his tone calm. "One million."
"?"
"Each."
"..." Maria Hill instinctively turned and looked at the thirty-plus powerful men trembling like quail behind her.
....
Ten minutes later, Hawk looked at the tablet Maria Hill had handed him, saw the new balance in his Stark Bank account, and then looked up.
He met the pleading, desperate eyes of the men who had just transferred their fortunes to him.
"Get out."
"Yes, sir!"
"We're going, we're going now!"
"Let's go!"
"Thank you."
"..."
In the blink of an eye, the thirty-three powerful men scrambled over each other, cheering and thanking him as they disappeared from sight.
Soon, the massive military base was empty, save for two people.
Hawk handed the tablet back to Maria Hill.
As she took it, she looked at him.
"You never intended to kill them, did you?"
"..."
Hawk, stuffing his right hand back into his pocket, just glanced at her and chuckled, not answering the question. "You should go."
"And you?"
"I'll be here for one hour—" Hawk's voice was calm. His gaze went past her, to the security camera over the command center's main entrance.
"—For the next hour, you can use any weapon in your arsenal to try to take me down. But remember... every action comes with a price... If, after one hour, you've accomplished nothing, don't say I didn't warn you. From this day forward, stay out of my way. If there's a next time, I'll level Washington, D.C!!"
With that, he glanced at Maria Hill. "You can go too, Ms. Hill. Or maybe S.H.I.E.L.D wants to take a shot in the next hour. Since you're already here."
Maria Hill immediately replied, "This is a domestic federal matter. S.H.I.E.L.D. is only responsible for global peace."
Hawk just laughed and said nothing, closing his eyes.
Seeing this, Maria Hill didn't say another word. She turned and ran toward the S.H.I.E.L.D. jet parked a short distance away.
As she boarded, she was already on the phone with the Pentagon.
As the S.H.I.E.L.D jet lifted off, the massive Quantico base was well and truly deserted.
The sun set, the fires burned, and the ruins of the base were spread out under the dying light.
Hawk stood in a clearing of twisted metal and debris, hands in his pockets, eyes closed in peaceful rest. The only sound across the entire base was the crackling of dying fires. Beyond the perimeter, the surviving soldiers held their breath, all eyes fixed on the destruction.
...
Time ticked by.
Soon, an hour, which can feel like an eternity or a fleeting moment, passed in the blink of an eye.
Ring-ring-ring!
A phone, lying on the ground in front of Hawk, began to ring.
Hawk opened his eyes, looked at the ringing phone, bent down, and picked it up. "Hello."
"Hawk." Gwen's voice came from the other end. "Are you done?"
"...Almost."
"Then come home soon. Don't forget, we have our driving lesson tomorrow."
"Okay."
"Alright. I'm in New York, waiting for you to come home."
"...Okay."
"..."
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