Can the Avengers take on the responsibility of defending Earth?

For now, Nick Fury is pessimistic.

He stood on the bridge of the command ship, staring deeply and solemnly at the big screen, watching the Eagle falcon fighter plane fly towards the city of Manhattan with these superheroes who had just met for less than five minutes.

Even though there is Captain America, a noble and heroic leader, Hulk, Iron Man, and Thor, these disobedient "thorns" will not be at ease and command like an arm.

But right now, there are no more options.

As the warplanes approached the Empire State Building, the electromagnetic communications became unstable, and the real-time images transmitted to the Helicarrier with the help of the video transmission devices in the Avengers uniforms also became blurry and the frame drops were out of order.

If the hypothesis of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s logistics department is deducted from the equipment, then the failure of the image transmission system must be related to the plague itself.

Nick Fury set his sights on Leon as a consultant in microbiology.

The latter was analyzing the mechanism of the strains in the plague samples with the expert group, and found that Director Fury swept his gaze and said nonchalantly: "The network structure inside the plague strain can act as neurons and transmit bioelectrical signals.

The strain tree at the top of the Empire State Building is so large that it is estimated to have its own intelligence and can emit wide-area electromagnetic interference. ”

Director Fury's face was gloomy for a few minutes, and he said in a deep voice, "You mean that the tree knows that we might survey it?" ”

"Maybe."

Li Ang said casually: "We really have too little information about the other party, and in the face of such a powerful existence that suddenly popped up, any conjecture may be true. ”

“...”

The black one-eyed dragon was not used to this feeling of powerlessness trapped in a black hole of intelligence, he took a deep breath, leaned closer to the microphone, and pressed the button, "Steve, report the situation." ”

Captain America's line of sight reappeared through the radio, and although it was not clear, he could finally see a rough idea, "... We've reached the bottom of the Empire State Building, and we're getting closer. ”

This veteran from World War II not only wears a new armor, but also wears a full-coverage isolation mask that prevents spores escaping from the air from being sucked into his body.

In addition to this, Captain America carries a huge suitcase containing a series of scientific research instruments provided by S.H.I.E.L.D.

Nick Fury stared at the picture and commanded, "Good, stay vigilant, don't disturb the fungus blanket itself." ”

"Understood."

Captain America walks into the main entrance of the Empire State Building with a group of Avengers members dressed in fancy costumes, and the inside can be seen through the broadcast footage.

Named one of the Seven Engineering Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 1955, this extravagant building is now completely overrun by a fungus carpet.

The fungus blanket covered every column, floor, and corridor, and even the landscape plants in the potted plants were not spared, all wrapped in a layer of green.

The whole hall was empty and oppressive, like an empty coffin, waiting for the deceased to lie down in it.

As an advisor, Li Ang pulled the microphone and asked softly, "Steven, can you check the fungus blanket on the ground?" Just cut a small pinch with scissors and put it in the detector."

"Yes."

Captain America did as he was told, and moments later, data from the portable detector was projected onto a large screen on the bridge of the S.H.I.E.L.D. command ship.

"Tut-tut, that's really weird."

Leon just glanced at the extremely complex data on the screen, and he had a general understanding of the pathogenic mechanism of the strain.

He shook his head and said with heartfelt emotion: "Generally speaking, in biomedical engineering, pathogens will be classified by Biosafety Level, that is, BSL.

Dozens of pathogens, such as smallpox-like virus, Crimean haemorrhagic fever virus, Marburg virus and Ebola virus, are BSL4 and must be studied in laboratories with the highest level of security.

The blanket itself is not toxic, it is more like a special petri dish in a BSL4 laboratory, storing hundreds of samples of viruses, bacteria, fungi, and microparasites.

Once the fungus carpet begins to expand, and the pathogens stored on it spread, it is likely that the entire human race will be wiped out by an overwhelming army of pathogens before they can react. ”

Nick Fury's hand twitched imperceptibly, he turned his head and asked in a deep voice, "Mr. Leon, how can we suppress or even eliminate the fungus blanket?" ”

Leon smiled: "Hehe, the fungus blanket itself is still just a eukaryotic organism similar to a fungus, and it is not tough. It can be destroyed along with pathogens, either with napalm incendiary bombs or flamethrowers.

However, it is easy to clean up, and it is not so simple to remove it completely. ”

Nick Fury frowned deeply and asked, "What do you mean?" ”

"I've looked at the data from the Bureau of Disease Control and Prevention, and a large part of the people who are blocked on the bridge have inhaled a certain amount of spores.

A fungal layer has grown into the inner layer of the skin, and in some cases, the lungs have been completely hollowed out by the bacterial blanket, showing fibrosis.

In other words, the people of Manhattan and the whole of New York are becoming part of the fungus blanket. ”

Leon didn't turn off the communication as he spoke, so the Avengers members located inside the Empire State Building could hear it clearly.

Captain America stumbled and almost didn't fall, he looked at the empty hall and asked with difficulty, "Mr. Leon, can they still be saved?" ”

"Yes or may not."

Leon spread his hands and said, "Fungi hollow out the internal tissues of living organisms and replace them, and the whole corrosion process takes a very short time, which is the origin of those mutants you see.

For now, however, the fungus blanket itself is in a state of slumber, and the rate of fungal corrosion in the bodies of ordinary people has been greatly reduced - which is why I believe that the fungus blanket has some kind of telepathic ability.

In short, the CDC is working hard to develop an antidote that can suppress or even eliminate unknown fungi, and all you have to do is to get to the bottom of the inside of the Empire State Building as soon as possible and help us save the 8 million residents of New York City. ”

After that, Li Ang pulled the microphone and said in a deep voice: "Their life and death depend on you." ”

The atmosphere of the entire Helicarrier was solemn, and all eyes were on the Avengers on the big screen.

At this moment, these "transcendents", who were considered freaks by mortals, realized for the first time the heavy responsibility on their shoulders.

Leon's words were so good that Nick Fury couldn't interject at all, and could only add in the dead silence of the bridge: ".... Steven, keep going up the stairs and don't alarm the mutants on the outside of the building. ”

"Understood."

Captain America, who realized the serious situation, became even more determined, and even the members of the Avengers who were originally disobedient to discipline put away their thoughts and climbed up in silence.

And Director Nick Fury resisted the desire to stroke his big bald head, looked at Li Ang, who was standing on the side, faintly supported by the awe and respect of others, and said secretly in his heart: "Uh.... What's the matter, isn't it me who is in command here? When did it become him? ”