Chapter 240: The Battle for the Triskelion
"This base is no longer necessary!"
Having obtained the Cosmic Cube, dealt with Dr. Zola, and acquired all the data stored by Dr. Zola, this mission had already exceeded its objectives.
Now, it was time to wrap things up.
"Thunder Explosion!"
Floating in the air above the base, George waved his wand, casting one explosion spell after another.
A normal adult wizard's explosion spell could destroy several buildings, and a high-level wizard like Peter Pettigrew could collapse an entire street.
George's explosion spells, thanks to frequent practice, had surpassed the average adult wizard, though still slightly below top-tier wizards like Pettigrew.
However, due to his wand's over twentyfold amplification, the power had reached a top-tier level, with astonishing effect.
With just a few explosion spells, the entire HYDRA base was reduced to ruins.
As he left the island, he also caught up with the large ship HYDRA had just used to transport energy weapons, seized all the energy weapons, and fed the ship along with the HYDRA soldiers aboard to the fish.
"Let's head to Washington."
Originally, George believed that with Captain America, Wolverine, Hulk, and the Winter Soldier, along with Coulson and the others cooperating, dealing with Pierce should have been no problem.
After all, in the movie, Captain America, Falcon, and Black Widow had resolved the situation.
But from Zola's intel, not only was a large number of HYDRA robots dispatched to help, but Pierce might also have superpowered individuals with absorption abilities.
So, he thought it would be safer to go take a look himself.
The Insight Plan was doomed to fail. The moment those three helicarriers took off and attempted global cleansing, they would be shot down.
Earth was full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, concealing many powerful beings.
Since their destruction was inevitable, it was better for them to be taken down by the Superpower Academy. At least this would give the Academy some exposure before the world's top officials.
HYDRA's Insight Plan didn't target just the U.S., but all countries worldwide.
By helping to resolve this crisis, the Superpower Academy would win the favor of various world leaders and also demonstrate its strength.
This would reduce a lot of unnecessary trouble later once the Academy opened up.
Of course, these were just bonuses. If the opportunity arose, he'd seize it, but there was no need to waste too much time trying to please world leaders.
The main focus should always remain on improving one's own strength.
He firmly believed that as long as he was strong enough, everything else would be a non-issue.
If he could destroy a planet with one blow, the top leaders of every country would be too afraid to even breathe in front of him—let alone those chaotic governmental agencies below them.
But his ambitions extended far beyond that. He had grander dreams.
Earth was just one planet. Beyond Earth were countless other planets, civilizations, and even other universes.
Outside of the many universes that made up the Marvel world, there were also unknown numbers of other worlds.
So his goal wasn't just the stars and the sea, but all realms across the multiverse. Only by securing a place among them could he truly be confident.
Using Apparition, he teleported to the nearest location to Washington and began accelerating toward S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.
On the other side, the X-Jet had also arrived near the Triskelion after half an hour of rapid flight.
"What are those? Robots?"
Seeing the airtight defense around the Triskelion by over a hundred armored robots bearing HYDRA insignias, Coulson and the others were stunned.
They had no idea HYDRA had created so many robots.
The key issue was that the weapons these robots were using weren't conventional—they were energy weapons.
"The original plan is scrapped. Looks like we'll need to come up with a new strategy!"
Captain Steve Rogers frowned.
Originally, the plan was to storm the building at top speed, capture all HYDRA soldiers and their leader Pierce, and prevent the three helicarriers from launching.
With the Winter Soldier and Pierce's elite troops already taken care of by George at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy, the Triskelion's defenses had been significantly weakened.
Led by Hulk charging forward, they could have advanced easily.
But now, it was clear that Pierce had a backup plan. Besides the robot soldiers, there might be other defensive measures. They needed to come up with a more cautious plan.
"Logan, you have a good relationship with Stark. Contact him and see if he can spare some time to help.
He's got more experience dealing with these robots.
Coulson, try contacting the government again and see if we can get the nearest military support.
Then we'll split into two teams."
Steve's plan wasn't hard to understand or complicated, but at this moment, it was the most practical.
In a moment, he, Logan, and Banner would launch a frontal assault on the Triskelion.
He had his shield, Logan had his healing factor, and Banner as Hulk could withstand the energy blasts. The three would draw all of HYDRA's firepower.
Meanwhile, Coulson, Bucky, and others familiar with S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA would use the X-Jet's cloaking to approach the building from a completely different angle and infiltrate quietly.
They would aim to find the control room responsible for launching the helicarriers and disable the launch sequence.
If Tony could arrive in time and the nearby military provided support, all the better.
Pierce would surely anticipate their move and eventually discover Coulson's infiltration. At that point, it would depend on how Pierce chose to respond.
If he focused all his forces on stopping the trio, then Coulson's team would have a better chance to complete the mission.
If Pierce diverted some robots to deal with Coulson's group, then the pressure on Steve's team would ease, giving them a chance to break into the building.
They didn't necessarily need to find the control room. They could go straight to the three massive helicarriers—too big to hide—and destroy the core structures.
Hulk was great at tearing things apart, and Wolverine's adamantium claws could easily rip through the helicarriers.
As for Steve, his newly reforged shield made from Uru metal by the Dwarf King not only could be thrown and recalled but was also much sharper than before—a deadly slicing weapon.
"Since no one has any objections, let's move out!"
With no objections to Steve's battle plan, the battle for the Triskelion began in earnest.
(End of Chapter)