Compared to the ornate architecture of the Sisterhood, the special operations barracks seemed extremely austere.
After Alexander Pierce's downfall, Gideon Malick reached out to several HYDRA Special Forces unit leaders, successfully persuading them to align with his daughter.
However, their position was awkward at best.
Even though Solomon could issue orders to them through Stephanie, in reality, they remained part of the Malick family's private military force.
Solomon refused to allow them entry into the Immortal City, instead stationing them at an abandoned S.H.I.E.L.D. base.
That said, he wasn't treating them unfairly.
As a reward for Stephanie's efforts in sowing chaos within Congress and the White House—while securing political benefits for Solomon—he agreed to equip these forces with modern logistics, upgraded gear, and even a fleet of Quinjet transports, armored personnel carriers, and a few tanks to support their operations.
These troops, at present, were the most professionally trained conventional forces at Solomon's disposal.
For now, they would serve as an emergency force.
Once Solomon completed his screening, those who proved useful would be sent to the Immortal City's bio-labs for preliminary augmentations.
With neural-linked power armor, they would become the elite among mortal soldiers.
---
Under Solomon's permission, Agent Natasha Romanoff had already spoken with several of the Sisterhood's recruits.
Every single one of them believed that the "Master" of the Sisterhood had saved them from their tragic fates.
Though they knew nothing of his name, they were deeply grateful to him and willing to fight for him.
Natasha shot Solomon a knowing, teasing glance.
She recognized his game—he was deliberately cultivating an air of mystery.
And it was working.
She could see the fanatical devotion in the eyes of those girls.
But she didn't call him out on it.
After all, this was Solomon's domain, and she had no intention of undermining his authority here.
She was genuinely intrigued by how the Sisterhood recruited and trained its members, and as such, she agreed to return every few days.
"As long as there's a stable route and I have the time," she said with a smile.
"Honestly, I'm not even sure I'm still on Earth."
---
That relieved Solomon.
The bio-mechanical androids that made up a large portion of the Sisterhood's forces were not true humans.
They lacked female biology entirely, so Natasha's role was to teach the girls about human physiology, along with special operations tactics.
The androids, for all their combat effectiveness, lacked flexibility and adaptive reasoning.
With Wakanda's advanced holographic training systems, these girls could refine their skills beyond what androids were capable of.
---
The price for hiring this world-class spy?
Accelerating the research into full-body organ regeneration.
---
Solomon favored a hybrid approach, combining magic and science to regrow lost body parts.
And Natasha had no objections to this method.
---
Though Nick Fury was officially dead, Captain America and Natasha continued their hunt for HYDRA remnants.
Even with her commitment to the Immortal City, Natasha needed time.
So far, only she and Nick Fury knew that Solomon had taken over HYDRA's remnants.
The Avengers remained completely in the dark.
Even Tony Stark, who had cooperated with Solomon, had no clue about what he had been up to outside of his studies.
But that would soon change.
---
Maria Hill, now acting as the World Security Council's official S.H.I.E.L.D. investigator, was in the process of clearing her name.
With her history of criticizing Fury, she was the least suspicious among former S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives.
She would soon join Stark Industries, secretly leading the remaining S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives from the shadows.
---
To secure Stark's collaboration, she would have to reveal some details about the HYDRA uprising.
And with Solomon's power armor prototypes built using Stark's blueprints, Tony would recognize his own work.
That alone would expose Solomon's involvement.
---
Natasha's agreement to help felt like a compromise.
Perhaps Nick Fury simply wanted to ensure that Solomon's organization wouldn't repeat S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mistakes.
The three Helicarriers were one thing.
But a rogue Solomon?
That was beyond Fury's control.
So far, he had no countermeasures against Solomon's growing arsenal of weapons capable of planetary destruction.
And no one else did either.
---
But deep down, Solomon already knew the real reason.
This was just Fury being Fury.
Trying to gather intel, trying to map out Solomon's expanding organization.
This was standard tradecraft.
Solomon didn't even need to think about it to reach that conclusion.
Fury was trying to save humanity from a world overrun by gods and monsters.
That was the only reason Solomon respected him.
---
"You know how to get here now," Solomon said nonchalantly, gesturing toward the portal chamber.
He wasn't remotely concerned that Natasha would bring Nick Fury along.
If this were a permanent, finely-calibrated teleportation array, perhaps he'd worry a little.
But this was just a receiver station—a one-way endpoint.
The only outbound sender was a supply closet in a London café.
If someone tried to force the portal open, they'd end up somewhere completely random.
Maybe a desert.
Maybe the ocean.
Maybe outer space.
It all depended on their luck.
Teleportation magic was dangerous, and when things went wrong, they went very wrong.
---
"This is the Shield Brotherhood," Solomon declared.
"I originally wanted to give this place to Nick Fury.
"But as you can see, he couldn't run it properly.
"I won't tolerate wasted resources.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. wasted far too much already."
"The world has now seen that S.H.I.E.L.D. was weak, politically compromised, and ultimately useless.
"I am clearly the better choice to manage this place."
---
"I never said you weren't," Natasha smirked, patting his arm.
"I think you're doing great."
---
"I don't expect people to understand, Natasha," Solomon sighed.
"I know my limits are far lower than most.
"I've accepted that I will be hated."
---
"Don't be so dramatic. I understand your methods," Natasha admitted.
"You don't crave power."
After a pause, she asked, "What happens to the girls who fail to meet your final selection criteria?"
She had noticed that some of the severely disabled recruits were assigned to textile work.
It was a good program.
But she wanted to know more.
---
"They go into secondary branches, trained for other roles," Solomon explained.
"Some enter the administrative division as clerks.
"Others join a separate group dedicated to hunting down black magic creatures.
"They choose their own paths.
"Clerks require academic excellence. Hunters need strong tactical scores.
"Both undergo specialized training.
"Any girl who doesn't make it into the Sisterhood has at least one failing grade—so they pick based on their strengths."
---
"I've noticed something, Solomon."
Natasha's lips curled into a smirk.
"Your entire organization is made up of women."
---
"That's because I haven't found a stable male recruitment source yet," Solomon sighed.
"Human augmentation is easier on men.
"But there are almost no willing volunteers.
"And the few who do apply… aren't physically suitable."
"But prophecy has assured me… my recruits are waiting in the future.
"So I'm patient.
"Of course, prophecy is only a guideline.
"After all, the word 'prophecy' originates from Prometheus—whose name literally means 'For Reference Only.'"
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