The SHIELD Helicarrier was a marvel of engineering, but at this moment, it was several hundred kilometers away from the heart of the crisis. It was a lumbering giant, too slow to catch the lightning.
Tony Stark and Leo didn't have that problem. Cutting through the clouds like twin streaks of fire and gold, they breached the airspace of Manhattan Island within minutes. The city below was bustling, oblivious to the fact that the sky was about to tear open and spit out an extinction-level event.
From his vantage point high in the stratosphere, Leo looked down. His eyes weren't focused on the glitz of Times Square or the towering ambition of the newly finished Stark Tower. Instead, his gaze drifted toward Queens. He could see Forest Road—the quiet, leafy neighborhood he hadn't stepped foot in for months.
A sudden pang of anxiety tightened his chest. "I'm breaking off, Tony. I need to make sure Aunt May and the kid are safe. I'll meet you at the Tower in five."
Tony didn't even slow down. He just gave a quick burst of his stabilizers. "Go. If the sky opens up, I'd rather have you focused than worrying about your laundry. I'll handle the welcome party."
Leo didn't wait for a second confirmation. He tucked his arms to his sides and plummeted, his figure a golden blur that disappeared into the urban sprawl.
Meanwhile, atop Stark Tower, the atmosphere was thick with ozone and the hum of impossible physics.
Dr. Erik Selvig stood by the machine, his eyes a clouded, unnatural blue. He looked like a man who had seen the face of God and found it terrifyingly beautiful. The Tesseract was locked into a sophisticated launcher, spinning faster and faster, generating a sphere of cerulean energy that defied the laws of gravity.
"Sir, the Arc Reactor has been fully disconnected," Jarvis's voice echoed in Tony's helmet. "However, the Tesseract is no longer drawing from the building. It has become a self-sustaining power source."
Tony slowed his approach, hovering just outside the balcony's perimeter. He looked at the doctor, who was adjusting a dial with the reverence of a priest.
"Selvig! Turn that thing off before I have to come down there and do it for you," Tony shouted over the roar of the machine.
Selvig didn't even look up. "It's beyond that now, Stark. You're thinking in three dimensions. The Cube is opening a window to a universe that makes this one look like a puddle. You can't stop the inevitable."
Tony didn't waste another breath. He raised his gauntlets, and the repulsor emitters whined as they charged. Thump-thump! Two high-output pulses slammed into the blue energy shield surrounding the Tesseract.
The result was violent. The shield didn't just absorb the hits; it seemed to get angry. The blue light flared white, doubling the kinetic energy and spitting it back out in a localized shockwave.
The blast sent Selvig tumbling backward, his head hitting the floor as he slipped into unconsciousness. The Mark VI armor took the brunt of it, the HUD flashing red as the suit was knocked back several meters.
"Sir, the energy field is impenetrable," Jarvis reported, his voice calm despite the sirens. "It's a pure energy barrier. Physical or energy-based attacks will only serve to fuel it."
"Yeah, I gathered that," Tony grumbled, his stabilizers fighting to keep him upright. He looked down through the glass floor of the penthouse. Loki was standing there, leaning on a railing, looking up with a smirk that screamed superiority. "Jarvis, Plan B."
"The Mark VII is ready, sir, but it hasn't exactly cleared its flight tests. We haven't even finished the calibration on the deployment pods."
"We're on the clock, Jarvis. If it stays in the box, we won't need it anyway. Let's go."
Tony landed on the specialized dismantling platform. As he walked forward, the robotic arms began a high-speed dance, stripping the scorched plates of the Mark VI from his body. Inside, Loki watched the process with a wanton, predatory laugh, already moving toward the interior of the penthouse.
Back in Queens, Leo was having a minor heart attack.
His glasses were flashing a red 'No Connection' icon for his home landline. He switched to Aunt May's cell. Ring... ring...
"Aunt May? May, where are you? Please tell me you're not at the house," Leo said, his voice cracking with a tension he rarely showed.
"Leo? Oh, heavens, look at you! Where have you been? You haven't called in months! Sister Jennie was asking about you just yesterday—"
"May! Focus! Where are you? Is Peter with you?"
"We're just down the street at Ned's. His mother invited us over for lunch. Peter, stop pulling at my sleeve, it's Leo! He's finally calling!"
Leo's HUD immediately locked onto the signal. He was already over Queens. He didn't even bother with the front door. He dropped out of the sky and landed on the sidewalk of Ned's house, a modest two-story place with a very sturdy-looking basement.
He shed his flight gear in a blur of motion, throwing on a hoodie he'd snagged from a clothesline on the way. He burst through the front door without knocking.
Ned's mom froze, a plate of dumplings in her hand. "Leo? Is that you? Did we leave the door unlocked?"
Peter didn't care about the door. He scrambled off his chair and tackled Leo's waist. "Brother Leo! You're back! Aunt May said you were studying in Europe and you forgot how to use a phone!"
Leo ruffled the kid's hair, but his eyes were darting toward the window. The sky over Manhattan was turning a bruised, sickly purple.
"Listen to me," Leo said, looking at Ned's parents and Aunt May. "I need everyone in the basement. Right now. No questions, no 'why,' just move. There's something bad coming to the city, and this house needs to be locked down."
The adults hesitated. Ned's dad, a sturdy man with a pragmatic streak, looked at Leo's intense expression. He'd known Leo for years; he'd never seen the boy look like he was preparing for a war.
"Leo, what's going on? Is it a gas leak?"
Leo looked at Ned and Peter. "Hey, guys. You want to play a game? It's called 'Fortress.' You two have to get the grown-ups into the basement and make sure nobody leaves until I come back to get you. It's a secret mission. Can you do that?"
The two boys' eyes lit up. To them, this was the ultimate adventure. They immediately grabbed the adults' hands, pulling them toward the basement door with more strength than they realized they had.
Once the door clicked shut, Leo didn't leave. He placed his hand against the basement wall. His power surged, reaching into the very molecular structure of the building. He reinforced the steel beams, wove extra carbon into the concrete, and literally fused the metal door to its frame. It was now a bunker that could survive a direct hit from a cruise missile.
He did the same for the rest of the house, snapping the locks shut and reinforcing the glass with invisible layers of high-density alloys.
Stay safe, he thought. Then, he turned and ignited his flight path, a golden arrow aimed straight at the heart of the storm.
Inside the Stark Tower penthouse, the silence was heavy. Tony, now in his civilian clothes, was casually walking toward the bar. He looked like a man about to enjoy a quiet evening, despite the god of mischief standing ten feet away.