Nick Fury sat rubbing the temples on his head, watching the screens that usually displayed the video footage taken from the Academy. But after Spider and his Pack ran through and smashed every camera in the Academy, the only thing the screens showed now was the disorienting image of white and black static buzzing on the monitors.

Nick wasn't even sure how Spider even knew where all the cameras were located. But apparently he did, which left Nick with a big problem.

The Director had all of the villains put securely back in their cells, but the words of Kraven still always found their way back into his thoughts: I'd say you need our help more than ever. Ugh, the Hunter might actually be right. There was no way Nick was going to send his agents in blind, heck even the Avengers had a hard time against the Infected.

Besides, with Ock's help they had actually gotten closer to a cure, which was a big relief to Connors. Electro and Taskmaster had been helpful with keeping the Infected within the Academy (well sort of, Spider DID get out). Even Kraven's extensive knowledge of animals has been beneficial with coming up with possible weaknesses, or even suggestions to how their pack-like relationship works. So far the only ones who weren't doing anything was Shocker, Beetle, Scorpion, and Sandman. Of course Shockers gauntlets could come in handy, as well as Scorpions special poison; Beetle's hacking skills could help with getting back into the Academy, if it was needed, and having a man that could turn into any shape could be REALLY useful.

But Nick wasn't an idiot. That malfunction with the monitors before was no coincidence. Someone had uploaded a virus and it had sabotaged the tricarrier and left Nick's troupes stuck down there with an enemy, and that could not be ignored! So far the only suspects he had were mainly Beetle and Taskmaster, but Taskmaster was down in the Academy, and Beetle hadn't moved once from where he had been sitting (alone in a corner of the room, away from any computer). And Nick just didn't know what to do. He could always add more security and guards to watch the villains, but that was still risky – especially if the culprit decided to do anything else.

Right now though, Nick Fury needed to get eyes back in the Academy. It's no secret that Spider is gaining knowledge, and as he develops, his Pack might as well; and Nick hated to think about what the Infected were doing. He still had some trang gas that could still be flushed into the Academy, but it wasn't that much, and Nick preferred waiting until the moment was just right – not that Spider was going to make it easy anyway.

And if Nick was going to fight against Spider and his Pack, then he wanted to know everything he could about what Spider could be thinking, and possible courses of action he might take. "Take Kraven to interrogation room D3." Nick ordered an agent who had been standing by for orders.

The agent nodded, "Yes Sir," he turned to carry out the order, but Nick added before he left "Has Agent Coulson reported back yet?"

Aunt May has been a wreck these last few weeks. Nick Fury didn't want her up and about the tricarrier, she was taking this hard enough as it was, and he especially didn't want her up here with the villains. Agent Coulson had been keeping her company back in Queens, but the woman was getting anxious. She was a stress baker; Coulson reported that he didn't think he could take eating anymore butterscotch cookies before he had to take time off S.H.I.E.L.D to lose weight.

The agent shook his head, "Agent Coulson is still inactive. I'll notify you as soon as he reports in though."

"Good." Nick Fury approved, and the agent took his leave. The director stayed where he was for a moment; taking a small, hand-sized tablet out of coat pocket, he turned it on. The screen brightened, showing the S.H.I.E.L.D logo floating and twirling slowly in a circle. A small hole on top of the screen glowed, as a white light shone out of it. The light found Nick's eye and scanned it, before beeping green and going to the main page.

Nick tapped an icon on the tablet, which darkened for a fraction of a second, before flicking into the cameras located throughout the tricarrier. The first camera showed the Dorms, where Nova was lying on his bunk, one arm dangling solemnly off the cot and swaying slightly, his helmet was off displaying a mop of unkept black hair that stuck up messily in a few places, and a bandage that was wrapped cleanly around his head; brown eyes looked shaded and downcast, not at all bright or excited like Nova usually was. His other free hand was carefully placed under his concussed head; a blanket was half-way off his lower body. It was surprising to see the kid not flying or hovering with any of his friends, he was usually very social. But there he lay, lonely and dormant in the dorms, by himself.

Frowning slightly, Nick swiped the screen which brought him to the next camera. This one was in the labs, where Doctor Connors was working. The scientist was hunched over a counter, peering inside a microscope, his one good arm adjusting the machine a few times. The scientist didn't look good, appearance wise. His blonde hair looked shaggy and stringy, his lab coat was ruffled and wrinkly, a few tiny smudges dotted his clothes, looking a little like the remains of greasy take-out. The scientist remained immobile for a moment, searching for something - anything - that could benefit his research. But it must've eluded him, as the scientist growled harshly under his breathe and aggressively shoved the microscope away. Connor sighed disheartened, and removed his glasses to rub tiresomely at his baggy eyes. Months of tiring work pressed against the weary doctor, making him look as if he's aged 30 years. His frown deepening, Fury slid to the next screen.

This one was in the training rooms, there was a much bigger crowd here. Captain America was in the corner, punching endlessly at a punching bag, skin still a little pale, but there was a certain fire in his eyes. Cap looked as though he wasn't even aware of Agent Venom and Power, both looking distant and deep in thought, who were watching. Black Widow was sparring in hand-to-hand combat with Hawkeye, though both didn't look like they were really putting forth much effort. The moves seemed slower, and less precise as they traded lazy swings, a thoughtful as trained. Kazar was also in there, he sat alone in the corner of the room, closing his eyes and breathing deeply, and Dagger who was reading a book of White Tiger's on the floor. Kazar would grimace every once in a while, as if trying to sense his brothers presence, and Dagger would stare off into space distractedly from time to time. Cloak was beside Dagger, those two were hardly ever far from each other; he just lay his head on Dagger's shoulder and closed his eyes.

Fury swiped to the next screen, where Amadeus Cho was working in a classroom. Nick knew he was working on a cure as well, and noted to himself to see if the teen found anything. The child genius was muttering darkly under his breath as he looked through a pile of papers that looked soaked and greatly smudged. Cho had another paper next to them, where he'd write something down, look at the other ruined papers, before scribbling something else on his paper. But something must've gone wrong, as the teen angrily grabbed the paper he had been writing on and crunched it up in an angry ball and threw it across the room with a shout of fury. Turning back to the other papers, Cho swiped them all away with a single sweep of his arms, and watched as they scattered and floated onto random places on the floor. The kid sucked in a deep breath as he ran his hands through his hair in frustration, still muttering indistinguishably to himself.

The next camera showed Iron Fist roaming the halls of the tricarrier, looking to be avoiding the prison cells as best as he could, while his fist occasionally sparkled and glowed. It took a lot to rile up a kid like Iron Fist, but something was definitely under the Monks skin.

The next was Tony and Sam Wilson, who were in their own lab, talking about different formulas and methods to use. A moment later, Bruce Banner walked in, which actually surprised Nick. Hulk didn't usually revert back to Bruce, but supposedly someone had convinced the green monster to back down and let the inner scientist shine through. Bruce's intellect could definitely come in handy; Nick wasn't sure why Hulk hadn't changed back before, but now that he was Bruce Banner, Fury wasn't that annoyed. And finally Thor, who was being debriefed, by an agent, about the things that have been happening the last few months.

Thor's emotions were a cocktail of anger, bewilderment, sadness, frustration, and guilt. The Asgardian muttered apologies to Hulk for interrupting his interaction with Spider was he was told more.

They were all a mess. Nick never imagined that something like Spider-Man, White Tiger, Triton, Rhino, and Squirrel Girl mutating could leave their team mates (and Avengers) so distraught. But it was plain to see.

Nick turned off the tablet with a tired breathe and slipped it back into his pocket. He'd worry about the emotional state of the heroes later, right now he had a hunter to interrogate.

LINE BREAK

Kraven was pushed roughly into a metal chair which had been bolted to the floor. A pair of strong, heavy-duty cuffs held his hands securely together, but was chained to a small, crescent metal loop anyway for precautionary reasons. "What am I doing here?" Kraven demanded, but the guards who had brought him in didn't say a word.

The hunter growled in annoyance, but it was obvious that yelling and demanding would get him no answers. There was nothing he could do but sit there and wait until whoever it is he WAS waiting for, would show up. Kraven clasped his hands together, and smoothly leaned the metal table, also bolted down, so he was sitting comfortable.

But the seat was still unpleasant, and the cuffs dug into his hands if ever he tugged on them the wrong way. Thankfully though, he wasn't subjected to this position for long, as the door to the side of the room whooshed open and none other than Director Fury strolled in.

With a few long, strong strides Nick crossed the room and took the seat opposite of Kraven. The Director regarded Kraven with one steady, steely eye, his mouth was pressed into a stoic, thin line. "What do you want Fury?" Kraven asked, though inside, he knew exactly what Nick was doing here.

"Tell me everything you observed and know about Spider and his Pack." Was all Nick stated, his calm expression never wavering.

Kraven, on the other hand, smirked widely and stroked his beard with one of his hands, though it did cut into his wrist slightly. "That is no way to say please." Kraven mirthfully teased. "I would've thought that you acted better Fury."

"Cut the crap Kraven; I don't want any games." The Director had a grim look on his face, one that said he wasn't taking any jokes right now. But Kraven wasn't down. The hunter grinned smugly and leaned back into his chair, "And what do I get out of helping you." He demanded.

Nick Fury easily suppressed the growing urge to throttle Kraven, and instead settled on leaning back in his chair as well. "What you get out of this Kravinoff, is me not adding several more years to your life sentences in S.H.I.E.L.D, what you get is finally doing something good in you're otherwise pathetic life. Besides, do you think it's the smartest move pissing off the guy that can make your time in prison a living hell?"

Kraven ran Fury's threat over in his head. While it would be amusing to annoy the Director, he still made an excellent point. Kraven couldn't care less about doing good in his oh-so 'pathetic life'; but Fury COULD make the remaining time in here horrible, and the hunter wouldn't actually put it past Nick Fury to do so. So the hunter sighed in disappointment, but stopped leaning in his chair. "Fine Fury," Kraven gave up, "I will. But on one condition...I get to help with observing the Infected more."

Nick Fury narrowed his eye at Kraven, clear suspicion in them. "And how do you plan on gaining anything by watching the Infected?" the Director demanded.

"I am a hunter Fury, I pride myself in knowing and observing all creatures of Mother Natures – as far as I'm concerned, your Infected heroes are simply animals that need to be watched and thoroughly examined."

"Watch how you word your sentences," Nick Fury growled, for once showing hostility toward Kraven. "They may have mutated, but they're still my heroes, and I won't have you talking like they're a bunch of wild animals that could serve as potential trophies." Kraven rolled his eyes slightly, "So do we have a deal?" he asked again.

Nick thought for a moment, I better not regret this he thought to himself, before saying to Kraven, "Very well, if your tell me what you know, and it's actually HELPFUL, I'll allow you to observe the Infected once more." Kraven smiled triumphantly, as if he already won something. "But be warned Kraven, I will be watching you 24/7, you step so much as a centimeter out of line, and you're sorry ass is going right back in a S.H.I.E.L.D cell before you can even blink." Nick added threateningly.

Kraven ignored the threat. "Then where shall we start."

"With Spider-Man, I want to know what's going on in his head."

So Kraven started, "The Spider is Alpha of the Pack that much is obvious. Only, he doesn't act like any regular Alpha over a Pack would. Most Alpha's rule over the Pack in a kingly manner, they eat first, they get first choice to everything, they get the females, and they decide how the Pack functions. Spider, on the other hand, allows his Pack to eat first, he allows them to wander around and do what they want, as long as he knows their safe. He also has taken no mate, which is odd – his instincts would shoot him toward reproducing right away and as quickly as possible. But I believe he can sense the other breeds around him, he knows how their different, and that mating could prove risky, especially for the female carrying. Spider bases his Pack on more a of a family, or team. He is leader, they all have their different aspects. Though, like any of Alpha, if his Pack doesn't listen, then they will get punished; Vulture proved that much."

Nick Fury remember how Spider always fought until his opposer subjected to him. He was teaching them a lesson for not listening.

"But it also seems like an initiation test." Kraven continued. "If they subject to him, he will care for them and accept them into his Pack. If they reject Spider and continually fight back..." Kraven trailed off, a tad ominously as he thought deeply to himself. "Well...it wouldn't be good. But so far they have all submitted to him, and unless there are any more infected creatures hiding in your Tricarrier, then I do not think we have a problem." Nick glared at him.

"Spider is evolving, rapidly. According to your data, Spider had been aware of the cameras a while ago, he seemed to sense them and hiss at them. Same when transporting their food, he figured out something was going on, and decided to investigate; he even planned an ambush, which ended up with one of your agents as a hostage. This is because Spider is, somehow, still evolving; not physically, but mentally. He's thinking, learning about his surroundings, and connecting things together. He's memorizing patterns, observing fighting styles, coming up with more devised attacks of his own – and if I'm correct, and he is more connected to his Pack, then he'll probable teach the rest of the Infected as well. An Academy full of smart, powerful, instinct-driven creatures is a VERY bad position to be in."

"Yes, yes." Nick said a tad frustrated. "But there is no way Spider should be able to learn so much in such a small time; he was talking down there, full human sentences. How does he know how to speak if he hasn't had any way of being taught – listening to the Avengers or anyone else talk briefly isn't enough to suddenly develop the power of speech, none the less putting together his own sentences and making sense of it all."

Kraven hummed in agreement, scratching his chin a little. "True. I have a theory about that, but I'll need more time to observe, before anything can be conclusive."

Nick made a noise of frustration, but took a deep breath and replied, "Continue,"

Kraven did. "Spider is Alpha, so he is the ultimate protector of the Pack, but Spider seems even more in-depth with that instinct, more than usual."

"Well, before Spider-Man had gone completely feral, he did promise to protect the others." Nick admitted.

"Interesting," Kraven muttered. "I have a theory for that as well, but I need more time." Nick nodded and motioned for him to go on. "So Spider is dangerously protective of his Pack, that much is very clear, he is bent on making sure they're all safe with the best conditions. Thus allowing Inhuman to continually remain in the showers, and the Squirrel scavenge for things to collect, and even the Rhino when he rubs against the walls. After we attacked him in his territory, it set off alarms bells in him. He was dealing with superior, powerful beings who could hurt them. We've become a known threat, and now top of the list of Spider's enemies. Spider is also aware of the outside word; he's tasted freedom Fury, and that is something not many creatures forget."

The Director took in the information, a million thoughts burning through his head.

Kraven went on without waiting for Nick's reply. "Now that he knows there is a better world for his Pack, I bet he's willing to do everything to get them there. Spider broke those cameras so you couldn't see anything he was planning, because he KNOWS that is how you watch them. But he was also making a statement; he was sending you a message, telling you that he is done with your interfering and that HE is the boss now. Crushing the cameras was a warning to all of his enemies who are watching."

"And what would you suggest for me to do, to prevent Spider from actually leaving the Academy?" Nick asked.

"Strengthen your barriers," Kraven immedianly responded. "Thicken the walls, floor, and ceiling. The Rhino is extremely strong, and it's only a matter of time before Spider figures he can use that muscle to get out."

Nick decided that was all he needed for now. He pushed his chair out and headed for the door, giving the hunter a small thanks. "What about our deal?" Kraven shouted after the Director. "You promised me more time observing that Infected."

Nick's back was turned, but he smirked mirthfully. "The cameras are down Kraven, you have no way ofobserving the Infected, remember?" Nick walked out of the cell shouting over his shoulder, "But I'll be sure to notify you once a few cameras magically start working again."

The yell of rage that followed was enough to lift Fury's spirits slightly.

But he wasn't joking about the cameras. While they may not magically start working again, Nick still needed to get eyes back in the Academy, it was too risky going blind with this threat.

The only way to get visual back in the Academy, is to put some hidden cameras in their manually. And there was only one person who Nick could think of who would be able to successfully sneak inside the Academy and plant hidden cameras without being detected. A skilled tracker, a hunter, and a fighter.

But until they got here, Nick needed to work on strengthening the walls of the Academy. No Rhino was going to bust down his walls if Nick could help it.

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