Ace and Natasha rode off toward Nick Fury’s location. Natasha sat behind Ace on the Boostriker. She was giving directions on where he should go. Ace just wanted to know the exact location, but Natasha refused. She said it was for confidentiality and to lose any followers. Ace reluctantly agrees since it coincides with Fury’s personality.
“Nice bike,” said Nat
“Thanks, it is one of a kind. You better not have planted any bugs on it.”
Natasha looked away and did not answer.
‘She was planning on putting on one, wasn’t she?’ thought Ace. It must be a habit of hers, Ace thought.
They arrived, and it was in a warehouse in a gloomy part of New York. There weren’t many cameras and people passing by in the area. Perfect for secret meetings, Ace thought. Natasha went ahead, and Ace followed. Natasha put her hands on a loosened wall, revealing a hand scanner. The wall parted, revealing a staircase that went down.
“Is this one of his secret bases or something?” asked Ace
“It is one of his many safehouses.”
“I better take notes when I start building some.”
They both descended the dark stairs and when they arrived, Ace found himself in a room that resembled a crime scene investigation headquarters. A whiteboard displayed pictures and files of various events, while a wall was covered with photos of people interconnected by lines. Notes beside each photo posed questions like "Hydra spy" or "suspect."
Looking at the wall was Nick Fury. He is wearing his usual black coat and body armor for protection. The bald pirate turned to look at who arrived and greeted them.
“You have arrived. It is nice to meet you, Kamen Rider,” said Nick Fury as both shook hands.
“I, as well; I guess you took my warning seriously.” Ace studied the wall, and Fury made progress and found the existence of Hydra, but he still hadn’t found the Hydra leaders.
I considered it to be just you fooling us, but my gut said otherwise. I began investigating and found many discrepancies on many mission reports. Some missions have also been authorized using my name without my knowledge. After some more digging, I found a name, Hydra.”
“Yes, the organization is still alive but in hiding. Hiding in plain sight,” said Ace
“How did you find out about them?” asked Natasha
“A bit after I started, a cop shot at me unexpectedly. I had Ark find evidence to put him in jail, but as he dug deeper. He found out the cop was connected to Hydra. He continued to dig deeper, but unfortunately, Hydra was not that easy. They make sure every connection they make doesn’t directly lead to them, which makes it difficult to find out who and where they are.”
“They have infiltrated deeper than I thought they would. Even with my resources, I could only find a few sleeper agents in SHIELD,” said Fury
“This makes it hard to trust anyone. I guess SHIELD is already full of them,” said Natasha
“It would just be easier to dismantle SHIELD,” said Ace
“I would like for that not to happen,” said Fury sternly
Ace took a step back and raised his hands sarcastically.
“So, why did you want to meet with me, Fury? Do you want my help with Hydra?”
“That is exactly what I called you here for.”
“?... Does the Avengers know about this?”
“No, they don’t. Except for Natasha, nobody else knows.”
Ace needed clarification. He could understand Fury seeking his help since this was Hydra they were facing. But he should be seeking help from his Avengers first instead of him.
“Why are they not informed? Shouldn’t they be your first option to ask for help?”
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“That is what you don’t need to know.”
“Cut the secrecy, Fury. What are you hiding that you are willing to let the Avengers be in the dark against Hydra? As much as I want to take down Hydra. I am not someone you could just order blindly to fight.”
Fury takes a few moments to think about what I just said and sighs
“...Fine, the reason I don’t want to let the Avengers know is because I was working on a project after the attack in New York. It is called Project Insight. It involves three next generations of Helicarriers synched to a network of targeting satellites.”
Fury explained the purpose and workings of Project Insight. Ace remembered it when he watched the movie Winter Soldier. Hearing it from Fury himself baffled Ace.
“So your idea of protecting everyone is holding a gun to their head 24/7, and you did not want the Avengers to find out because you already have sunk too many resources into this project? Is this really the time to think how much you have wasted when I can guarantee Hydra already has other plans for these Helicarriers.”
“I did what I had to do to protect the people, and what do you mean Hydra has other plans,” asked Fury
“Don’t play dumb, Fury. I’m sure you know how dangerous these Helicarriers will be in Hydra's hands. These are weapons of mass destruction that could eliminate all of Hydra’s enemies in one go.”
“Are you saying they have a way to find out all of the people that can threaten them?” asked Fury
“The Helicarriers have their own algorithms to find their targets, right? It is not surprising Hydra could have their own algorithm to predict anyone who could threaten them. I should say we destroy those Helicarriers to nip the problem in the bud.”
“I was hoping that with your help, that wouldn’t happen while salvaging those Helicarriers.
Ace was confused with Fury’s trust in him. He knows Fury has a problem trusting people, so Ace is confused about where his confidence comes from.
“Why are you so confident that you seek me for help?”
“MetsubouJinari.net,” Fury replied
Ace was a bit shaken, but he calmed himself down. Now that he could think about it. Unsurprisingly, Fury links Horobi and Jin to him, considering how they look when transformed.
“I heard about this group operating and investigated it. I was quite surprised. Their armors were very similar to yours, and since their activities are stopping underworld criminals. I thought they might be connected to you.”
Ace only shrugs, “You are correct; MetsubouJinari is a team I created to deal with… the dark side of the world. So, you want MetsubouJinari's help to take down Hydra?”
“Yes, that is exactly what I am requesting of you.”
“...” Fury was really bold, which made Ace speechless for a second.
“Even with MetsubouJinari, it will be difficult to take down Hydra, Fury.”
“I’m not asking you to take down Hydra all by yourselves. I want you to take the Helicarriers from SHIELD or, in this case, Hydra’s control,” replied Fury
“If you want me to take them, sadly, I don’t have enough manpower.”
“You leave that to me. I have been gathering resources and looking for trustworthy people to rebuild SHIELD from the ground up, hopefully.”
“That sounds difficult.”
“It is what I must do. I believe SHIELD is necessary; I will if I have to build from scratch. So, are you in?” asked Fury
Ace thought about it for a few minutes and gave his answer.
“I have conditions.”
“What are they?” Fury tensed up, ready to hear Ace’s conditions.
“One, we only need one Helicarrier. The other two need to be destroyed.”
“Why?” Fury wanted to refute but decided to hear Ace’s reason first.
“I disagree that putting a gun to everyone's head is justified, Fury. Even with good intentions, having three swords of Damocles hanging over everyone's neck carries too much risk. A villain could seize control of one of the Helicarriers and unleash untold destruction, regardless of the security measures in place. One Helicarrier is enough.”
Fury thought for a few moments and reluctantly agreed.
“Two, I want Ark to be the AI controlling the Helicarrier.”
Fury furrowed his eyebrows. “Doesn’t that mean you will have complete control of the Helicarrier?”
“Where is the trust you gave me now? You will also have benefits. You can use Ark for anything you need, and you have already heard of Ark stopping Jarvis. No hacker or AI in the world could hope to breach Ark’s defenses easily. And since you will be rebuilding SHIELD, I wouldn’t mind joining as a partner or consultant.”
Fury began to give more serious consideration to Ace's request. While acknowledging that Ace would have significant influence over the Helicarrier's operations, having him by his side is highly beneficial.
Seeing Fury pondering even more. Ace decided to throw another bone. “If you accept, I will give Black Widow here a driver or Rider System.”
Natasha and Fury were surprised. They had seen how powerful the many armor Aces had. If they could get one, it would be a great opportunity. Ace wouldn’t mind giving Natasha a belt. He found her trustworthy; her determination and resilience would make her a good Rider. He saw her sacrifice herself for the greater good, which made a good impression on Ace.
“Are you sure? I thought those armors were important to you?” asked Natasha
“Of course they are. Me giving my driver to someone else means they also will become a Kamen Rider, but this also comes with responsibilities. They must be heroes of justice! If they use those drivers for evil means. If I find anyone, misuse them. I would hunt them down till the ends of the Earth and kill them myself!”
“And you are willing to give one to me?”
“Of course, I know you have a good heart; I have researched about you, Black Widow.”
“Then you should know I have committed many crimes. Some, I wish I could forget.”
“But despite all that, you repented and want to make the world better, right? That is all that matters to me for you to become a Kamen Rider.”
Natasha was speechless. She never thought he would believe in her so much. His acknowledgment made her happy, and it made her smile a little.
“So, Fury, do you accept?”
“You got yourselves a deal.”
They both shook hands, and their cooperation in taking down Hydra started.