Game in Marvel 37

"You surprise again and again, Tony Stark," Liam said after examining the new suit Tony had made.

"You saying the last ones were trash?" Tony quipped, raising an eyebrow.

"No, I an the suits are expected of you. But the helt? That was out of my calculations. BT, did you test the strength of the shield helt?"

[Yes, it can stop any kind of firepower made by current humans. Big bombs are not counted here.]

"Boom. Told you." Tony grinned, flashing a victory sign.

Liam and Tony were still discussing when JARVIS chid in.

"Sir, the Director of SHIELD is requesting an audience with you and Mr. Woodsworth."

"Oh, great. Patch is back." Tony groaned, rubbing his temples. "That guy just can't take a hint. I swear, if he starts another speech about 'the bigger picture'—"

Liam wasn't surprised that Fury knew where he was, but it was unexpected that he'd show up now. What did he want?

Liam and Tony waited as Fury walked in like he owned the place.

"Well, look who decided to grace us with his presence. Mi casa es su casa—oh wait, no it isn't," Tony said, arms crossed.

"Relax, Stark. I'm not here for you. I'm here for the kid," Fury replied, his tone flat.

"Liam? What's he got to do with anything? He's underage. He can barely rent a car, let alone be recruited into your super-spy club," Tony shot back.

"That depends on his answers. Ain't that right, Wraithborn?" Fury said, his one eye locked on Liam. Tony's expression hardened, but Liam remained unfazed.

"Sorry, I have no idea what you're talking about," Liam said, his voice calm.

"Look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. The easy way? You confirm what I already know, and we move on to the interesting questions. The hard way? I turn SHIELD inside out, use every resource I have, and prove it myself. That might take a little longer, but make no mistake—I'll get there. And trust , that road's a hell of a lot ssier for you," Fury warned.

"How about neither?" Tony interjected. "How about I call the cops for harassnt, or better yet, put out a public statent that SHIELD has nothing better to do than stalk teenagers?"

"Cut the crap, Stark. You're already in this. You're the one who tipped us off about the pier incident, and there's no way you knew that unless you had a direct line to Wraithborn. Now, if you're worried SHIELD's gonna put a leash on him, relax. I'm not here to recruit, restrict, or arrest. Just talk. He'll get the sa 'special treatnt' you do," Fury said.

Liam was silent for a mont. Fury watched him closely. They had been tracking him for a while, but despite their best efforts, Liam still managed to show up at Central Park without tripping any alarms.

That ant one thing—he knew about the surveillance. And he dodged it.

"My na stays out of your system. No files, no records, no ntions. You agree to that, we talk. Otherwise? No deal," Liam stated.

"Bit dramatic, don't you think?" Fury replied, unimpressed.

"That's the deal. Take it or leave it. You don't speak my na, you don't share my identity. I like my privacy, and I intend to keep it that way—far from SHIELD and far from anyone else," Liam pressed.

Fury stared him down for a long mont before exhaling sharply.

"Fine. As of now, only and Romanoff know who you are. And it'll stay that way. But don't think that gets you off the hook. You might be getting assignnts—"

"I know the drill," Liam cut in. "Tony's kept in the loop. I helped with the Blonsky situation, didn't I? I know what's expected."

"Yeah, about that," Fury narrowed his eye. "How the hell did you know his na was Blonsky before we did?"

"I have my sources. Not your problem," Liam replied. "I'll give you intel when it matters. That's the trade-off for keeping my na off the books."

"You really know how to make my life difficult, kid. Now I gotta lie to the damn World Security Council," Fury muttered.

"Oh no," Liam said, deadpan. "Nick Fury has to lie. What a tragedy."

"Alright, alright, let's cut the soap opera." Tony leaned forward, irritated. "Why are you here, Fury? Spill it."

"Erik Stevens is missing," Fury stated. "The US military's running a secret manhunt, but they've got nothing. No traces. It's like he vanished off the face of the planet." He slid a file across the table for them to see.

Liam didn't bother looking. He already knew the general outline of Erik's life.

"Tell them to stop wasting their ti. They won't find him," Liam said.

"I give it a day, maybe two," Tony countered, cracking his knuckles.

"With your tech? Not a chance." Liam shook his head. "And Fury, tell SHIELD to stay out of this."

Fury's eye narrowed. "You know where he is."

"I have a rough idea. And even if you had and Tony at full power, we still couldn't retrieve him."

"'Retrieve'?" Fury repeated. "You're saying he was taken? Thought the guy was a spy."

"It's complicated," Liam said. "Look, Fury, don't push this. I an it. You do not want to go down this road. I know you think SHIELD is untouchable, but the people involved in this? They'd chew you up and spit you out, and they wouldn't even leave the bones. So do yourself a favor—walk away. Because if you keep digging, I'm out. He's not worth my ti."

"Fine. I will take you up on that." Fury replied but of course he would still secretly try to find about him, albeit not give his full force in this manhunt. It was sothing even Liam wasn't comfortable speaking which ant the other party was dangerous.

The more dangerous the other party was, the more he needed to know, but it was not the correct ti to press Liam on. He had already pressed many buttons today.