Peter had been working the entire afternoon. He was glad he had put bolts in his door because if his aunt could came in and see he wasn't doing his homework... Well, let's say she wouldn't be happy. He had been trying to makea device to defeat his enemies. The documents Gwen had stolen were hung on the wall and the desk was full of metallic pieces and tools. For the moment he had the device he would use against the Vulture. It had one little inconvenient but he could fix it with time. Time he wasn't sure he had. Harry could decide to get his revenge whenever he wanted to. Peter was surprised he hadn't tried it already. He supposed the villain was afraid of the Avengers appearing again to ruin his plans.

Peter didn't know what to think about the Avengers. They were heroes and had saved the world, that was clear. But it hurt that they didn't believe him when he told them he was innocent. He knew he was being ridiculous. If it wasn't for the Avengers, Harry would have killed him at the docks. But after everything he had done as Spider-Man, Peter had expected the benefit of the doubt when he told them the truth. He just couldn't forget it. Not yet, at least. Then his cell phone rang, interrupting his thoughts.

"Yeah?"

"Peter, it's Gwen. Are you at home?" .

"Yes, I am working in the devices I told you about".

"You should turn on the TV".

"Why?"

"Just do it".

Peter went downstairs and did as his girlfriend told him. The blonde presenter appeared on the screen, saying:

"The leak of the private files of SHIELD is the news of the day. It is not known who is the responsible but the discovering of these documents is going to have serious consequences for the organization. The information indicates that SHIELD has violated the security of not just American citizens but also people all over the world. A clear proof of this is the project Insight which was designed to predict and eliminate threats before they can happen by using upgraded Helicarriers linked to the targeting satellites. To do this, SHIELD had developed an algorithm which used the data available about people online to analyze and predict their behavior, violating their privacy and freedom".

Peter was speechless. At that moment, he was very happy he hadn't told SHIELD his identity. Clearly, these people had a big problem with the confidentiality.

"Peter, you're still there?"

Peter flinched. He had been so stunned he had forgotten about Gwen completely.

"Yeah, I'm here. This is... unexpected".

"So much for the secret organization".

"Tell me about it".

"Do you think Harry was involved in this?"

"Harry?" Peter hadn't thought about it. Which proves that my girlfriend is smarter than me. "I don't know. An organization like SHIELD had a lot of enemies".

But none of those enemies can imitate someone's appearance he thought.

"Maybe" he continued with doubt in his voice. "But I really hope it wasn't him. That means he's up to something really awful".

"Don't worry. Like you said, SHIELD has a lot of enemies, it could have been anyone" Gwen assured him.

"Yes, you're right'.

But the feeling of unease he felt was just growing. This doesn't mean anything he thought firmly. Maybe if he repeated it with enough energy, he would end up believing it.

Things were very quiet at the Stark Tower. Everybody was reunited in the living room watching the news in silence because they didn't know what to say, not even Tony Stark. When the news ended, there were more moments of silence until Bruce said:

"How did this happen?"

"No idea" Steve answered. "I've been trying to reach Fury since all of this started but it's impossible".

Then Tony stood up and said:

"Jarvis! Call Fury, hack every security measure if it's necessary but I want talk to that wanna-be pirate right now!"

"Why are you so angry, Tony?" Natasha asked, surprised by his behavior. "Clint and I are the ones who should be worried. We're SHIELD agents, after all".

"And our whole expedient is now available on the Internet. You just have to put Clint Barton on Google, I've already checked it. How am I gonna work as a sniper if everyone recognizes me?"

"I have my reasons to be angry!"

"Great, but until Fury answers the phone, could you stop shouting?!" Clint said.

"You're shouting too!" Tony replied.

"Because I'm stressed and your shouts make me even more stressed!"

"Enough!" Steve said with his I'm-the-leader voice "I know this is a difficult situation, but losing our nerves is not going to help".

"I need a drink" Tony murmured and walked towards the kitchen.

"Bring me one too" Natasha said.

"And I also want one" Clint said.

"I'm not a bartender" Tony complained and then sighed. "OK. Three drinks".

"Mr. Stark, Nick Fury is waiting on the line" Jarvis informed.

"Put him on the screen".

Nick Fury's face appeared on the screen that had been used as a TV a few moments ago. Even though he maintained his stern expression, he looked tired and the dark circles under his eyes were proof of that.

"What do you want, Stark? And make it quick, I'm busy".

"Two months ago, you asked me for help to build some helicarriers".

Fury cut Tony off and said:

"I already know what you're going to ask me. And the answer is yes: those helicarriers were a part of the project Insight".

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because you would have said no".

"Of course I would have said no! That project is a violation of people's freedom".

"Sometimes we have to sacrifice our freedom to ensure our security".

"That's bullshit. You wanted to arrest people who hadn't done anything yet".

"I'm with Tony in this, Fury" Steve said. "I fought in the war so that our freedom was not taken away. This betrays everything I believe in".

"I don't expect neither of you to understand it." Fury replied. "But you're being naive if you think the project Insight wasn't necessary. It doesn't matter anymore. Now that SHIELD files are public, we're not gonna be able to finish the project".

"At least there is a bright side in this situation" Tony muttered and was going to continue but Natasha elbowed him. "What was that for?" Tony asked.

"I have questions too" she said. "Do you know who leaked the files?"

"I have no idea" Fury answered. "The only ones with access to that information were Hill and me. I already talked to her but she said it wasn't her".

"I believe her" Steve said. "Hill has always been loyal to SHIELD, she wouldn't do anything like that".

"But there's no other plausible explanation. There's no way someone could have snuck into he Helicarrier".

"Except there is" Tony said. "Someone snuck into the Helicarrier and stole every single file SHIELD has right in front of your nose".

For this, Steve elbowed him.

"I'm really done with people elbowing me!" the billionaire complained. "And I've only told the truth!"

"Yeah, but you don't have to be so rude".

"I'm not rude, I'm honest, a rare virtue nowadays".

Everyone rolled their eyes with that comment. At least Tony's joke meant he wasn't so angry anymore.

"What's gonna happen with SHIELD now?" Clint asked Fury.

"I have no idea either. The world security council wants to talk to me. I'm sure they are not very happy about all this. The truth is that SHIELD is in a very serious danger".

Fury hung up and the silence settled into the room again. Somehow, all of the Avengers felt this was the beginning of something really, really bad.

"Why have you requested an audience, Mr. Osborn?"

Harry smiled. He was standing in the middle of a room on the 35th floor. The only illumination were the lights on the ceiling since the curtains were drawn. He couldn't let anyone see what was happening inside that room or his whole plan (and HYDRA's) would be ruined.

There were five holographic projections around him which belonged to the members of the world security council.

"I've heard what happened with SHIELD".

A man with Arab features huffed and said:

"Everybody has heard it. The TV has been talking about it the whole day".

"SHIELD has been pretty incompetent" another man (this one was blond) complained. "We can't trust them anymore".

"You're right" Harry agreed. "And that's why I've called you".

"You want to take SHIELD's place, right?" the only woman of the council said, raising an eyebrow.

Harry grinned. He knew the woman would be the hardest one to convince but he was used to overcome obstacles.

"Not exactly, ma'am. I want to make the world safer".

"You tried to destroy the city, not a long time ago".

"I suffered a mental breakdown due to my father's death. It was a hard blow".

"I seriously doubt your father's death caused you to inject yourself with a substance whose effects are unknown".

"You're right. I did that because I was dying. My father's disease was inherited and I didn't have much time left. It was impulsive and I regret it but now that I have controlled the secondary effects I am more powerful than ever. And that could benefit you".

"How?" the Arab man asked.

"I still have more of that serum and my company is one of the most advanced in the scientific field".

"You're suggesting you'd give us that serum in exchange for SHIELD's direction?" the woman laughed. "You're trying to bribe us?"

"I'm suggesting I could improve the serum removing the secondary effects. Think about it. Maybe the WWII would have a very different outcome without Captain America. Imagine what it would be like to have an army like him. I'm sure terrorists groups like HYDRA would think it twice before attacking you".

Harry saw in their eyes that they had taken the bait. Of course he was going to develop that serum but for his own use, not to give it to those idiots.

"One thing is sure: Nick Fury needs to be removed from his position and we need someone to occupy his place" the blond man said. "Someone impartial who doesn't have any connection with SHIELD and Osborn looks like a good candidate".

"Forget SHIELD. After what happened, the public opinion will never accept that organization again" the fourth member, with a strong Russian accent, said.

"That's not a problem" Harry assured the council. "I've always thought the best way to protect ourselves from threats is not a SHIELD, it's a HAMMER".

A/N: Here is the new chapter! About project Insight, it's part of the plot of Captain America: Winter Soldier. I thought it suited here and that's why I decided to use it. Don't worry, there won't be spoilers of the movie since my fic happens before it.

I hope you liked the chapter, and if you did leave a review. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed/favorited/followed. Your support helps me continue the story a lot! Answering to a review from Batman 111893: I didn't have Hill kidnapped because I want to write something a little different. Fury and the Avengers will find out what has happened, but probably in the next chapter.