With an expression which looked somewhat like a frown, Tony looked at Maria.
"What do you mean Fury's missing?"
His voice had lost its usual easy confidence. He leaned back in his chair, studying Maria Hill as though waiting for the punchline.
But none came.
"It's exactly what it sounds like," Maria said.
She stood perfectly still, shoulders squared, and her expression giving nothing away as Tony rubbed his chin.
"So... missing missing?"
"Yes."
The single word hung in the air as Maria let out a quiet breath.
"I haven't been able to contact him." That was enough.
Nick Fury disappearing wasn't unusual.
Nick Fury disappearing without anyone in S.H.I.E.L.D. knowing where he'd gone...
That was something else entirely.
Tony looked across the room and Billy was still standing near the doorway, quietly watching the exchange.
Tony jerked a thumb toward the exit.
"Why don't you go find something more fun to do?"
Billy got the message immediately.
"Works for me." He slipped out without complaint.
Behind him, the conversation resumed.
"I haven't been able to reach him for days," Tony said. "Figured he was buried in S.H.I.E.L.D. paperwork."
There was a pause between the two.
"Meanwhile somebody out there could be starting the next apocalypse."
The automatic door slid shut as the voices vanished behind it.
Billy continued down the hallway.
'Fury…' He frowned.
'S.H.I.E.L.D…'
He didn't know much about the organization beyond what he'd overheard from the Avengers.
Only one thing seemed obvious.
If Nick Fury had gone missing...
And people were worried.
Then, that alone said plenty.
Billy shoved his hands into his pockets.
'Not really my problem.'
At least...
Not yet.
- - -
Bruce's laboratory wasn't far.
Billy had almost reached the door when it slid open.
Bruce Banner stepped out, adjusting his glasses before noticing him.
"Oh."
He smiled.
"Billy."
"I was actually looking for you."
Bruce glanced back into the lab.
"So I noticed."
Billy looked past him.
"Busy?"
Bruce's smile faded a little.
"I was."
He stepped into the hallway.
"But that can wait."
"The team's been called into an emergency briefing."
Something in Bruce's tone made Billy straighten.
"Everything okay?"
"I honestly don't know."
Bruce started walking.
After a few steps he stopped and looked back over his shoulder.
"If it's something you need to know..."
He offered a reassuring smile.
"...you'll hear about it."
Billy nodded.
"Got it."
Bruce headed toward the briefing room, disappearing around the corner.
Billy watched him leave before quietly exhaling.
He didn't need anyone to explain what the meeting was about.
Not after what he'd overheard.
Fury.
Whatever had happened...
It was serious.
- - -
[Billy Batson's POV]
For the first time since arriving at the Tower...
Billy felt alone.
Not lonely.
Just...
Unsupervised.
The communication earpiece was gone.
Tony had finally taken it back after deciding Billy wasn't going to wander into another classified facility, or get into some kind of shenanigans.
Billy still wasn't sure whether to feel trusted or simply less monitored.
Probably both.
His thoughts drifted elsewhere.
The Rock of Eternity.
He could go there.
Right now.
Nobody would stop him.
Nobody would even know.
His thumb traced the edge of the watch around his wrist.
Tony's replacement for a phone.
It was also, almost certainly, a tracker.
Billy smiled to himself.
'Probably.'
Even that wasn't enough to stop him if he really wanted to leave.
That wasn't the problem.
The problem...was the Rock itself.
He hadn't admitted it to anyone, not even to himself.
He wasn't avoiding the Rock because he was afraid his disappearance might not go unnoticed.
He was avoiding it because he was afraid of what he'd feel the moment he stepped inside.
That place had once been somewhat of a home.
Now...
It was a monument.
A reminder of a world that no longer existed. His family, his friends, the Wizard.
Everything was still waiting for him there.
Frozen in memory.
Billy closed his eyes as the emotions he's been keeping buried began to resurface.
The guilt came first, it always did.
Then came the anger, then the grief.
He'd gotten good at pushing those feelings down.
Too good.
Whenever he transformed into Shazam, everything became quieter.
Clearer even.
The wisdom of Solomon steadied his thoughts.
The courage of Achilles silenced his fear.
For a while...he could breathe again. But the transformation wasn't healing him, it was only delaying the inevitable.
Sooner or later...
He'd have to face it all.
Billy rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling.
'Enough brooding.'
If he wasn't going to disappear into the Rock of Eternity, he could at least figure out how to use the ridiculously overengineered watch Tony had dumped on him.
He raised his wrist.
"...Let's see what you can do."
Remembering Tony's instructions, he pressed a nearly invisible point along the bracelet.
The watch answered with a soft hum.
A blue glow spread across the device before unfolding into a compact holographic display above his wrist. Icons slid smoothly into place, floating in neat rows.
This caused Billy to blink in surprise.
"...Okay."
That was actually pretty cool.
"Good afternoon."
A calm voice sounded through the earpiece.
"How may I assist you today?"
The interface rippled.
Moments later, a translucent blue face emerged from the display. It blinked once before tilting its head toward Billy with almost unsettling realism.
Billy stared at it.
"...Huh."
"I wasn't expecting that."
Neither was the AI.
"I apologize if my appearance is unsettling."
Billy laughed.
"No, no. You're fine."
Having understood what this was, he propped himself onto one elbow.
"I've got one request."
"I'm listening."
Billy pointed at the tiny holographic face.
"I want you to act like my butler."
There wasn't even a second's delay.
"Certainly, sir."
The projection dissolved into countless fragments of light before reforming.
This time it appeared as a miniature gentleman dressed in a perfectly tailored black tailcoat, white gloves, polished shoes, and a neatly tied bow tie.
He stood no taller than Billy's hand.
Hands folded behind his back, and maintained perfect posture.
Billy couldn't help it but grin at the sight of this.
"...Tony really went all out."
The tiny butler inclined his head.
"How may I address you, sir?"
"Billy's fine."
"Very good, Master Billy."
Billy paused as he stared blankly for a couple seconds.
"...Actually..."
He smiled.
"I kinda like that."
The little butler bowed politely.
"I'm pleased to hear it."
Billy studied him for another moment.
"You've got a name?"
"I do."
"What is it?"
The hologram answered without hesitation.
"Captain Sparkles."
There was an immediate silence following its reply as Billy stared.
The holographic butler also stared back.
"...Seriously?"
"That is my designated name."
Billy pinched the bridge of his nose.
"...Tony." Of course it was Tony.
He sighed dramatically.
"We're changing that." The butler waited patiently as Billy leaned back again, thinking.
A dozen names crossed his mind.
None of them felt right.
Then another surfaced, one he hadn't expected.
Freddy.
His smile faded.
For a moment, he simply looked at the tiny hologram without really seeing it.
Freddy Freeman.
His best friend.
His brother.
Someone who should've been here making fun of this ridiculous AI right alongside him.
Billy swallowed.
"...From now on..."
His voice was quieter than before.
"...your name is Fred."
The hologram placed a hand over its chest.
"As you wish, Master Billy."
Billy smiled.
"Thanks."
He wasn't entirely sure why.
Maybe because saying Freddy's name out loud hurt a little less than pretending not to think about him.
Fred straightened.
"How may I assist you today?"
Billy looked at him thoughtfully.
"Tell me about the Avengers."
"I am limited to publicly available information." Fred replied.
"That's fine."
"I'll begin immediately." Fred dissolved into streams of blue light, causing the room to darken slightly as holographic screens unfolded around Billy.
News broadcasts.
Photographs.
Mission footage.
Interviews.
Articles.
Dozens of windows floated through the air, surrounding him in a sphere of information.
All this caused Billy's eyes to widen.
"...Okay."
"That's awesome."
Fred's calm narration began.
"The Avengers Initiative was established following—"
Billy settled comfortably onto the bed.
Hours seemed to disappear as Billy learned about Iron Man, Captain America, Thor.
There wasn't much on Black Widow.
Neither was there any relevant info on Hawkeye as the two happen to have a very limited and reserved public image, unlike the others.
And then, Bruce Banner.
That last one caught his attention as the holographic display shifted.
News footage filled the room.
A gigantic green figure roared as military vehicles and firearms bounced harmlessly off his body.
Buildings shook beneath every step.
Cars flew through the air like toys.
Billy sat upright.
"...Whoa."
He watched silently as the Hulk tore through an entire city block.
It wasn't just strength.
It was rage. Pure and uncontrolled.
The portrayed scenes caused Billy to frown a bit.
"Fred."
"Yes, Master Billy?"
"Is that... Bruce?"
"It is."
Billy kept watching.
The footage didn't feel strange because of the destruction, but because of the difference of personalities.
Bruce Banner spoke softly, moved carefully, thought before he acted.
The creature on the screen...
Didn't resemble him at all.
"...It's like they're different people."
Fred paused for a bit.
"There has been considerable public speculation regarding Doctor Banner's psychological condition."
Billy nodded slowly. "I can see why."
He looked down at his own hands.
When he became Shazam...
He was still Billy.
His thoughts stayed his own, his personality didn't disappear.
The transformation changed his body, strengthened his mind. But it never replaced him.
Bruce's transformation looked...
Different.
Almost like sharing a body with someone else.
Billy frowned.
"...That can't be easy."
He suddenly understood why Bruce worked so hard to stay calm.
It wasn't just emotional control.
Maybe he just doesn't want to hurt anyone.
The presentation continued as Billy listened carefully.
One hero after another.
One mission after another.
Eventually...
Something stood out.
Or rather...
Didn't.
"There aren't any records of the Wizard?"
Fred answered immediately.
"No publicly available records match that description."
Billy wasn't surprised.
He nodded to himself.
"Figured."
The Wizard had never cared about publicity.
He wasn't the type to announce himself, and seemed to appear when the situation demanded it.
Then vanished again.
Another thought crossed his mind as the picture of the Wizard who had given him his powers came to mind. Wondering if a version of the Wizard existed in this universe.
- - -
[Meanwhile]
The conference room was quieter than usual.
No one joked as they usually did, neither did anyone reach for the coffee.
Maria Hill stood at the head of the table, hands clasped behind her back, waiting until every pair of eyes settled on her.
Something about her expression told them this wasn't routine, her being there was in no way routine.
Steve was the first to speak.
"What happened?"
Maria didn't waste time. "Nick Fury is missing."
Her words caused silence to settle over the room.
Clint frowned. "...Come again?"
"You heard me."
Clint leaned back in his chair, studying her carefully.
"Missing..."
He rubbed his chin.
"Or Fury missing?"
Maria met his gaze.
"Missing."
That answer seemed to hit harder than anyone expected.
Nick Fury disappearing wasn't unusual.
Nick Fury disappearing without S.H.I.E.L.D. knowing where he'd gone...
That was another matter entirely.
Steve frowned a bit.
"That doesn't make sense."
"Exactly."
Natasha folded her arms.
"No." She shook her head once. "If Fury wanted to disappear, nobody would find him."
Her expression hardened. "My first guess is that he's undercover."
Her response caused Maria to let out a sigh.
"I hoped that too."
She activated the display behind her as satellite imagery filled the screen.
Maps.
Coordinates.
Photographs.
"We've searched every location tied to his last known movements."
Another image appeared.
Nothing.
"No signals."
Another.
"No communications."
Another.
"No financial activity."
She looked around the room.
"He simply..."
A pause.
"...stopped existing."
The room grew noticeably quieter as Clint leaned forward.
"When was he last seen?"
Maria changed the display again.
"A week after the invasion."
A photograph appeared which showed Fury leaving headquarters.
"He departed alone."
Another image.
"Routine schedule."
Another.
"He never checked back in."
As these displays were propped up, Bruce studied the timeline. "So you launched a search."
"Immediately." Maria nodded.
She changed slides again.
This time, the room fell silent.
A black SUV sat abandoned on a narrow forest road.
"It was found here."
Tony narrowed his eyes.
"Out of fuel?"
"Yes."
"Seems unlike him."
"It does."
Maria advanced the presentation once more.
Another photograph appeared.
This one wasn't of the vehicle.
It showed a small clearing deeper in the woods.
"Approximately one mile away..."
She looked around the table.
"...we found this."
No one spoke as the photograph was somewhat unsettling for no one knew what to think of it.
It was an image of neatly folded clothes, with an eyepatch resting on top.
A handgun.
A wallet, and Identification.
Everything was deliberately arranged.
Steve's expression once again morphed into a subtle frown as he asked, "...Those are his."
Maria nodded.
"Every personal item he carried."
Tony stared for several seconds.
Then...
"So..."
He pointed at the image.
"Correct me if I'm wrong."
Maria looked at him.
"The current working theory is that Nick Fury voluntarily stripped naked in the middle of the woods..."
He gestured helplessly.
"...folded his clothes..."
Another gesture.
"...and wandered off?"
Nobody said a word or gave an answer as Tony blinked as though he couldn't picture such a thing.
"...Seriously?"
Maria didn't smile. "The evidence supports it."
Tony leaned back slowly.
"...Nope."
He raised both hands.
"I'm choosing not to imagine that."
Too late.
The image of a butt naked Fury had already formed, causing Tony to shudder.
Steve pinched the bridge of his nose.
Clint quietly looked away.
Natasha closed her eyes for exactly one second.
Bruce blinked for a second.
"...Well." Tony sighed dramatically.
"That mental image is never leaving."
Even Maria looked like she regretted saying it aloud.
Tony straightened.
"Please continue before my imagination gets any worse."
Maria obliged.
"We've had no confirmed contact with Director Fury since."
She shut off the display.
"Which brings us to why I'm here."
Bruce leaned forward.
"Why us?"
Maria answered without hesitation.
"We don't know if this was a disappearance..."
"...or an abduction."
That immediately changed the mood.
"And if someone took him..."
She let the implication settle.
"...we don't know who."
Steve looked up.
"You think this could be internal."
"I have to consider the possibility." She replied as silence returned over the space.
No one liked that answer.
Because if Maria Hill was entertaining the idea of a leak inside S.H.I.E.L.D....
Then the situation was already worse than they'd imagined.
Steve finally broke the silence.
"So you came to us," Steve said, "hoping we could help find him." It wasn't a question so much as a confirmation, spoken with the clarity of someone piecing together the situation.
Maria inclined her head once. "Yes."
Tony leaned forward then, his demeanor hardening as he clasped his hands together, elbows resting lightly against the table. He brought his chin down onto his interlocked fingers, his gaze fixed on Maria with a focus that hadn't been there before. "Alright," he said slowly, "then how about you do us a favor too."
Maria's eyes narrowed just slightly, not in hostility, but in caution. She had worked with Tony Stark long enough to know that his requests rarely came without layers. "And what might that be?" she asked, her tone was controlled as she cast her attention at him.
Tony didn't answer immediately. He held her gaze for a moment longer, letting the tension stretch just enough to matter before speaking.
"What do you know about the experiment S.H.I.E.L.D. ran a couple weeks ago," he began, "the one that ended with several scientists and personnel dead… courtesy of the same interdimensional monsters that rampage on this city's streets?"
For the briefest moment, Maria didn't react but she couldn't hide the subtle and fleeting expression that surfaced. A flicker behind her eyes which had a mix of both calculation and surprise. A response that came from hearing something that wasn't supposed to be known outside a very tight circle.
She held his gaze as if reassessing exactly how much Tony knew… and how he'd come to know it.
"That," Tony added, leaning back just slightly as his expression hardened, "was the last conversation I had with Fury."
Maria held the room's attention as she continued, her posture still rigid, though her eyes swept across the assembled team as if weighing how much could safely be said aloud. "Not much," she began at last, her voice carrying a thin edge of frustration.
"Fury did mention an experiment that had gone wrong, something that went haywire." She paused briefly, as though retracing the memory.
"After his disappearance, I tried to follow up on it. It was the last known issue he was actively involved in before he went missing." Her expression tightened slightly at that point, brows drawing together as irritation flickered across her face. It lasted only a moment, however, before she reasserted control, the professional mask sliding firmly back into place as if it had never shifted at all.
Around the table, the Avengers exchanged brief, uncertain glances—silent communication passing between them before their attention returned to her.
"It involved an experiment conducted by another government division," Maria continued, "with S.H.I.E.L.D. providing logistical support. Access was granted to certain advanced technologies."
Steve leaned forward slightly, his expression firming as concern whetted into focus. "What division?"
Maria didn't hesitate, though there was a faint tension in her jaw. "I don't know," she admitted plainly. "It's classified. Even to me." The finality of her answer lingered in the room, leaving a gap that no one immediately filled. The implication settled heavily among them, the sense that something larger and more concealed was operating just beneath the surface of everything they thought they understood.
The team fell into a brief silence, each of them processing the same unsettling possibility from different angles. If Fury had been involved in something like this before disappearing, then his absence might not have been random at all.
Natasha was the first to break the quiet. "Fury is a spy," she said, her gaze steady as it shifted across the table.
"We can't ignore the possibility that this is intentional. He could be undercover. Espionage isn't exactly out of character for him."
Tony remained silent for a moment, but his attention was on point, processing the inconsistencies. The details didn't align neatly, and that alone was enough to keep suspicion alive.
Clint leaned back slightly in his chair, one arm resting loosely along its edge as he spoke up, his expression appearing thoughtful but firm. "You said his clothes and gear were left behind," he began, eyes narrowing slightly as he worked through the logic aloud. "If S.H.I.E.L.D. can't track him, then either he doesn't want to be found… or he's changed his identity entirely. New appearance, new contacts—maybe someone helping him stay off the grid."
His words trailed slightly as the implication settled between them. If Clint was right, then Fury hadn't just disappeared, it might be a choice he made and not abduction.
Steve leaned back slightly in his chair, as he tried to reconcile the information they'd been given with the man he knew. "He's the director," he said at last with a calm tone, but edged with doubt.
"This theory makes him sound less like a missing person… and more like a rogue agent on the run."
Across the table, Natasha shifted her posture subtly, her eyes never leaving Maria as she spoke. "Has a search and investigation been officially issued for him?" she asked with a direct tone.
Maria met her gaze briefly before shaking her head once. "No," she replied simply.
That answer alone added another layer of unease to the room.
Tony leaned forward slightly, his fingers loosely interlaced as he studied Maria with narrowed eyes, the earlier humor completely gone from his expression now. "You still haven't told us why you're really here."
"If Fury's missing—or if he's decided to go full rogue agent, whatever version turns out to be true—you're more than capable of handling internal S.H.I.E.L.D. matters on your own." His gaze hardened as he held hers. "So why come to us? Why ask for our help?"
For a moment, Maria didn't respond. The silence stretched just long enough to feel as if she herself was still weighing the answer she was about to give. Her eyes lowered slightly in a measured pause that came from considering something she had already asked herself more than once.
"He trusted the Avengers," she said finally, lifting her gaze again. "To a degree." Her tone remained controlled and without emotion, but there was something more restrained underneath it, less professional, more personal. "As things stand, there are very few people I can trust with this without it leaking or being compromised. Fewer still who could help me get to the bottom of this."
Tony's expression didn't soften, but it focused on thought, as if he was already weighing the implications of being "trusted" in a situation like this.
"And if he is undercover," he pressed, tilting his head slightly, "or if this is some kind of deep operation…what happens when we stick our noses in something we're not supposed to? What if we end up making things harder for him on the other end?"
The question hung in the air, adding another layer of uncertainty to an already unstable situation. No one rushed to answer it. In fact, no one seemed eager to.
With the room now full of conflicting theories and no clear direction forward, Maria exhaled quietly, the tension in her shoulders easing just slightly as she came to a decision. There was only so much she could say, and only so much time she could spend repeating what she didn't know.
"I've done my part," she said at last, her voice came out firm once more as she straightened. "I've shared everything I'm able to." Her gaze moved across the room briefly, taking in each of them before settling back into her usual professional composure. "What you choose to do with it is your decision."
Then her eyes lingered on Tony for a fraction longer than anyone else, unreadable but with a deliberate stare, before she finally turned away.
"I'll be leaving now."
And just like that, she exited the room, leaving the Avengers behind with more questions than answers—and a silence heavy enough to suggest that whatever had happened to Fury, it was only the beginning of something far more complicated.