HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!

Sorry it's been so long since I updated. I've been very busy with work but I'm trying to get back into writing.

Phase 4 has concluded. WandaVision was my favourite show with Ms Marvel following closely. Dr Strange and Spider-Man were my favourite movies though Shang-Chi followed. I was annoyed at how they made Wanda the villain of the movie but loved Elizabeth Olsen's performance. I hear she's in talks to do a Scarlet Witch solo movie now. On a side note, I hated Thor Love and Thunder.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything

The scene opened up where it had left off with Fury driving after the train while notifying his coworkers of the events and location.

"Smart decision," Clint said.

"I hope you did not approach them," Thor cautioned. "They are much stronger than an average mortal, not to mention their weapons would be lethal against you."

"Don't worry I kept my distance," Fury answered. 'Mostly.'

Vers punched through the window to let herself in. Fury and Coulson continued their pursuit where they drove in the wrong lane to keep up, disrupting traffic and causing an accident in the process.

"Huh," Tony muttered. "Normally, it would be one of us causing damage in a chase. It's weird to see you do it, albeit on a smaller scale."

"SHIELD Agent remember?" Fury reminded everyone. "And a young one at that. I encountered dangerous unknown individuals and kept necessary tabs on them using the technology of that time. I was a bit reckless back in the day. Though that's the same for everyone starting off."

There were a couple of murmurs of agreement, except for Natasha. The Red Room had been very thorough in getting the "recklessness" out of her. It's what made her an efficient spy.

Vers slammed the door open, her hair in a mess, surprising the other passengers who were confused by her entrance and choice of clothing.

"In that get-up, I bet they thought she was some sort of stuntwoman or cosplayer," Scott quipped.

"Coming through the backdoor of the train probably didn't help either," Wanda added.

Making her way through the crowd she stared at each passenger to gouge out who the Skrull might be. However, the way she was looking at them (understandably) caused them to feel creeped out.

"Can't say I wouldn't feel the same way," Sam said.

"Same," Peter agreed.

Monica felt a little bit perturbed by the scene. In all the time she had spent with her aunt, she couldn't remember her ever being so serious, even about her job. This must have been her normal demeanour as a Kree soldier. It was still a little unsettling though.

Vers came to a man who held a book up high and brought it down to reveal the old man. The two exchanged a friendly smile, implying they'd met before.

"They know each other?" T'Challa asked.

"It would appear so," Vision supported. "How is the main question."

Fury and Monica both raised an eyebrow. They knew Carol must have encountered a lot of interesting figures across the universe, but this guy was from the earth, wasn't he?

"BE WARY OF HIM VERS!" Thor shouted. "LEST THAT MONSTER SHAVES YOUR HEAD!"

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The screen paused and everyone (even those who'd seen the worst of the worst) turned to stare at him with bewildered expressions. Hell, even the cat appeared confused…somehow.

"I'm sorry, what?" Clint somehow managed to ask.

Thor's eyes widened. He was so overcome with anger that he forgot he was in the room with people.

"Hahaha!" he laughed awkwardly. "Never mind me, friends. I had a bit to drink before coming here. Just a bit excited that's all."

No one believed him.

"You seem pretty sober for someone allegedly drunk," Rhodey accused.

"And?" Thor countered.

"Why did you think he would? Wait!" Steve realized. "Thor, that man, is he the reason your hair is?"

"Absolutely not!" `Thor vehemently denied. "I went to one of the finest barbers in the Nine Realms to get it cut."

"Why would you even want to get it cut?" Tony questioned.

"I wanted to, what mortals refer to as, try out a new look," Thor defended. "Is that so wrong?"

They still didn't believe him. They continued to stare at him weirdly.

Thor laughed awkwardly. "All-knowing being who brought us here. Should we not get back to the movie?"

Before anyone could even attempt to protest.

Mr Odinson is correct. If you would like to have a debate about this, you may do so after the movie, but for now, please just watch.

Some wanted to argue while others just wanted to get on with it. Ultimately, they all silently agreed to put the topic to rest for the moment.

Not seeing anything wrong with the current car, Vers moved through to the next one. She repeated the same process, only to elicit the same sort of reaction from the passengers.

"Not very subtle, is she?" Clint commented.

"Probably standard Kree procedure," Monica defended though she wasn't a hundred per cent sure herself.

Then she came across an old woman wearing glasses, whom she had previously walked past when leaving the train. She had found the Skrull.

"Busted," Scott joked.

The Skrull smiled as friendly as possible despite Vers's glares. In response, Vers right hooked them in the face, much to the other passenger's horror.

The Avenger's mouths dropped wide open. Even if that was a Skrull, it was in the form of an elderly person. Straight-up punching them in the face in front of a crowd was not going to look good no matter what way you spun it.

Dropping the act (but not the disguise), the Skrull glared back. Then it leapt up using the supports and double-kicked Vers away. In retaliation, Vers tried to strike the Skrull only for it to cartwheel out of the way.

"Are these people for real?" Peter exclaimed. "I'd be shocked as well, but do none of them actually notice that an old lady is fighting back strongly and performing acrobatic feats when she should be past that point?"

"Your guess is as good as mine kid?" Natasha muttered equally stunned.

People couldn't have been that stupid back then, could they?

"Perhaps they are in a state of disbelief?" Vision suggested.

Thor didn't see what the problem was. There were many elders from Asgard who could hold their own. Then again, Asgardians weren't the same as Mortals.

Vers quickly grabbed its head and slammed it into the support bar. Disturbed by the acts, one passenger tried to hold Vers back giving the Skrull a chance to make a break for it. Vers quickly pursued but Skrull countered by using the supports to spin and hit Vers with a side-kick.

The Skrull charged at Vers who flipped it onto the ground and punched it hard on the head. She readied another only to be halted by the passengers who held her back.

"Okay, I'm with the kid on this one," Tony stated. "I get trying to hold her back and stop the fighting, but not to notice the rest of it is just ridiculous."

There was a chorus of agreement from everyone.

Fury who hadn't been inside for the event was shocked at the level of obliviousness the civilians had displayed. Nowadays they would have pounced for an explanation. But for them to ignore something that obvious?

The Skrull took this chance to flee, however, Vers noticed it had dropped and purple stone and collected it before continuing her pursuit.

Back with Fury and Coulson, they continued their own chase on the roads.

As curious as they were about the stone, they were glad to see Fury and Coulson keeping up. Then again, they probably shouldn't have been surprised.

On the train, the Skrull changed its appearance into a nearby passenger (who was unnerved by the sight) before jumping to the roof of the train.

"Many of my people felt the same way when the Skrulls attacked us," Thor sympathised with the man.

Vers ran after him but was sent flying back by a kick. With Fury and Coulson below the Skrull ran ahead, only to be sent back when shocked by the cables allowing Vers to finally catch up. With nothing standing between them this time the two engaged in an all-out brawl on top of the train. During the struggle, the Skrull kicked Vers off the side of the train, leaving her holding on at the side while debris falls on Fury's car.

"Well, this brings back memories," Steve mused bitterly. "Didn't phase you for a second, did it?"

"I've seen worse things falling," he pointed out. "Remember when I died."

Steve, Sam and Natasha all paled at that. that went beyond worse.

Coulson noted they were moving towards the tunnel, prompting Fury to change their course to the station.

Meanwhile, Vers climbed back onto the roof and unleashed a double energy beam, only to miss and hit the roof of the tunnel instead. Knowing she would collide and fall off, Vers punched the train roof with energy and dropped through.

"Smart thinking," Wanda said.

"They're risking civilians where they're fighting though," Rhodey pointed out.

"True, but they are maintaining the fight between them instead of involving others. They are also keeping damage to a minimum better than some of our battles," Vision explained.

In the car, Fury received a message from Coulson saying he was still at Blockbuster and asking where everyone was.

There was collective silence between the group as they glanced at Fury.

"Fuck!" was all Clint could mutter.

"Exactly what I was thinking," Fury sighed.

Realizing its cover was blown, the Skrull attempted to kill Fury who tried to resist only to be overpowered. Spinning on the wheel, Fury caused the Skrull to lose its balance and grip and crashed into a bus, both ruining his car and killing the Skrull.

"Shit, that was close," Sam said.

"Indeed," Thor agreed as he grinned at Fury. "I am impressed you managed to kill a Skrull all by yourself."

"I didn't mean to," Fury explained. "It was the impact from the bus that killed it."

Later after getting to know Talos and his family, he felt guilty about the whole thing since he had already lost so many allies.

"Still, I'm impressed," Thor said.

Vers arrived at the station and searched through the crowd. She came across one suspect, but quickly let him go when she noticed he was different from the previous disguise.

Accepting she had lost the Skrull, Vers left the station.

"Is it over then?" Peter asked.

"For now, maybe," T'Challa said softly. "But they'll be back."

In the aftermath of the car crash, Fury was bleeding from the forehead. When he turned to the impostor he was shocked at its true form.

He ran out of the car (still shocked) and covered the body not wanting anyone else to see. He even brought out his SHIELD badge to keep others from approaching.

The incident made him realize one thing. Vers was telling the truth.

"Covered it up quickly before anyone could see," Natasha muttered. "Typical SHIELD agent, and a smart one too."

"Thank you," Fury said.

"Was this your first encounter with aliens?" Steve asked. "Every time something else has happened you've been relatively calm, even after being shot."

"Youth," Fury suggested though no one bought it. "I saw a lot of unpleasant things when I started off, but an alien corpse, the concept of aliens existing in general, those were something else altogether. Even a battle-hardened war veteran can be shocked if done properly Rogers." He paused. "But to answer your question yes, this was my first encounter. There's a lot more you need to see through. A lot more."

Fury was one of the few people who make a sentence so simple and yet so ominous at the same time.

Still, it made them anxious about what was to come.

Hi there! Well, what did you think of that?

I initially wanted to post this chapter yesterday but had no time. So here it is the first chapter I've published as part of 2023.

The next chapter will follow Carol and Fury speaking as they head towards PEGASUS.

Hope you all enjoyed reading it! Please review!