With the Xenophage finally down, having fallen victim to the collective prowess of the Avengers—including the neighborhood bug hero from Queens who had joined them in jumping the symbiote hunter—Shazam had already continued his pursuit of Venom, leaving the rest of the team to deal with the aftermath.
For a brief moment, the streets erupted in cheers. People shouted the heroes' names, phones were raised into the air, and the fear that had gripped the area only moments earlier gave way to relief and gratitude.
The Avengers had barely gotten the chance to bask in their moment of glory and indulge in a little well-deserved fan service when the atmosphere abruptly switched to something else. The surrounding area was suddenly placed under restriction, with what appeared to be a government agency rolling in rather than ordinary police officers. Several trucks pulled up alongside the street, followed by containment equipment, heavily suited personnel, and hazmat teams that immediately began securing the area.
The Avengers hadn't yet cleared the scene. After all, they were still waiting for Bruce to retrieve and examine the body of the deceased alien creature. Instead, they found themselves facing the very people who had just arrived to take control of the situation.
A man dressed in a suit stepped forward from the government contingent and approached Tony, his expression carrying the same confidence of someone accustomed to dealing with superhuman incidents.
Tony turned toward him as the faceplate of his Iron Man helmet slid open, revealing his face beneath it. One eyebrow rose almost immediately, his expression settling somewhere between mild amusement and impatience, as though he were silently asking the man to explain exactly who he was and why he had suddenly decided that he could order the Avengers around.
The suited man reached into his jacket and pulled out an identification card, holding it up where Tony could clearly see it. "We'll take it from here."
"DODC." Captain America, who had made his way over to Tony at some point during the exchange, read the identification aloud before anyone else could ask. There was a deliberate quality to the way he said it, almost as though he wanted to spare the rest of the team the trouble of wondering who these people were.
Before either side could continue the conversation, a sudden gust of air swept through the area as Shazam dropped down behind them. His cape was wrapped tightly around something he was carrying, his arms held in a way that suggested whatever was inside wasn't something he was willing to let out just yet. He landed beside Iron Man and Captain America and glanced toward the unfamiliar government personnel.
"Who are these guys?" he asked, looking between Tony and Cap.
"Department of Damage Control," Cap answered.
Shazam's eyebrows lifted slightly as he looked back at the agents. He didn't need much more of an explanation. The name itself practically told him what they were there to do. Damage Control existed specifically to handle the aftermath of superhuman and extraterrestrial incidents, securing dangerous materials, cleaning up the destruction left behind, and taking custody of exotic technology or biological specimens that ordinary emergency services couldn't safely handle.
Tony, however, seemed less interested in their job description and more interested in the fact that they had arrived just in time to start giving orders.
"You know, we actually just saved the city," Iron Man pointed out, his tone coming with that familiar mixture of sarcasm and self-assuredness as he gestured vaguely toward the destruction surrounding them.
"And we appreciate that," one of the agents replied, maintaining a professional expression despite Tony's attitude. He then motioned toward the fallen Xenophage. "Now, please step away from the alien corpse."
Tony's raised eyebrow slowly climbed a little higher.
The sound of approaching vehicles soon reached them again, engines rumbling as another convoy made its way toward the scene. Before anyone could even turn to see who was arriving, a familiar voice carried through the commotion.
"We'll take it from here."
Iron Man slowly turned his head, his expression flattening in disbelief. "Didn't those guys just say that?"
Sure enough, more familiar faces were making their way toward them. S.H.I.E.L.D. had arrived, the organization serving as something of Earth's watchdog when it came to threats that ordinary governments and military forces weren't equipped to handle, relying heavily on advanced technology, intelligence gathering, and highly trained field agents to deal with everything from superhuman incidents to global-scale threats.
They didn't exactly arrive with the demeanor of people asking for permission, either.
Agent Maria Hill walked at the front of the group with Agent Coulson beside her, both carrying themselves with an air of authority like people who fully expected to be obeyed. Hill's gaze swept across the assembled Avengers before settling on the fallen Xenophage.
"That corpse, along with the Avengers, is coming with us."
There was a brief pause from everyone.
"And why is that?" Captain America asked. His voice had lost much of its earlier casualness.
Steve locked eyes with Hill, his expression becoming noticeably more serious as an old instinct resurfaced. There was a time when he'd been a soldier who followed orders without question, but years of experience had taught him to be wary of government agencies and the authority they so readily claimed. If something didn't sit right with him, Steve Rogers had never been the kind of man to simply stand aside and let it happen.
The formal and professional manner in which S.H.I.E.L.D. addressed them didn't surprise any of the Avengers. They had dealt with the organization enough times to know how Hill and her agents operated.
Well, almost everyone.
Their newest addition—if he could even be called that—stood among them with an expression that made it clear he's trying to figure out what the hell was happening. Shazam had yet to be officially acknowledged as an Avenger, and his relationship with the team could best be described as complicated.
'Wait, isn't that the lady from the other day?' Shazam thought, glancing toward Hill. 'I thought she was friends with the team. Or is there something I'm missing here?'
He remained where he was, mostly observing the exchange while keeping the mysterious bundle wrapped inside his cape close to himself. He had already learned that asking questions at the wrong moment could sometimes make things more complicated.
Coulson, however, seemed to have noticed the bundle as well.
His eyes had lingered on Shazam for several moments from behind his glasses, his attention shifting between the young hero and whatever was concealed beneath the cape. Eventually, he raised a hand and pointed toward it.
"What's in the—"
He never got to finish.
"We'll take it from here."
Every head turned toward the new voice.
Another group of agents had arrived, stepping into the scene with the same confidence as the two organizations before them. They approached the gathered heroes and immediately produced their identification, displaying their credentials without wasting time on unnecessary introductions.
S.W.O.R.D.
Shazam's eyes widened slightly.
'Wait... an agency called S.W.O.R.D. already exists? Why didn't anyone tell me?'
His mind immediately jumped back to the mysterious organization he'd been calling S.W.O.R.D. for the past several months—the one he suspected had some connection to the strange events that had been occurring around the city and beyond.
Then another memory surfaced.
Tony laughing and agreeing with him.
Not just chuckling, either. Tony had practically lost it when Shazam had explained why he'd decided to give the mysterious organization that particular name.
Shazam's expression closed up as realization slowly dawned on him.
'You…' He mentally cursed Tony.
There was a very real possibility that Tony hadn't been laughing because the name was clever. He might have been laughing because Shazam had unknowingly stumbled onto the actual name of an organization that already existed, but acted as though he were a genius for that.
And, knowing Tony, he had probably found the whole thing hilarious.
Still, Shazam couldn't help but notice something else.
The moment S.W.O.R.D. identified themselves, S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't put up nearly as much resistance as he had expected. Hill remained composed, but Coulson was the one who finally spoke, pointing out that S.H.I.E.L.D. had arrived first and therefore had already established jurisdiction over the scene.
The S.W.O.R.D. agents didn't immediately challenge the claim.
Neither did Damage Control.
That alone told Shazam quite a bit.
Apparently, whatever hierarchy existed between these organizations, S.H.I.E.L.D. seemed to sit considerably higher than the Department of Damage Control when it came to handling incidents like this. And judging by the way even Damage Control had backed off earlier, S.W.O.R.D. apparently carried enough authority that nobody was particularly eager to start arguing with them either.
Shazam slowly looked between the three organizations, then toward the wreckage surrounding them.
'So... who's actually in charge here?'
For the first time since arriving, he began to wonder if defeating the Xenophage had actually been the easy part.
"Gentlemen, we'll take it from here."
Two men wearing blue jackets and excessively dark sunglasses walked through the barricade, making their way toward the increasingly crowded scene where agents from the various organizations stood around waiting for orders. Their arrival only added another layer to the already ridiculous situation, especially considering the area was supposed to be under strict restriction. Somehow, the very people responsible for enforcing that restriction had managed to turn it into the most congested part of the street.
"What did he say?" one of the DODC agents asked, turning toward the approaching men with a mixture of confusion and irritation.
"He's FBI," one of the agents standing farther back answered through his military-style mask.
"We'll be taking it from here," the man in the blue jacket clarified, apparently believing that repeating himself would somehow make the situation less absurd.
"TAKE WHAT?!"
The collective outburst came from practically everyone present.
By this point, the repeated declaration had become so ridiculous that even the Avengers looked thoroughly fed up with it. Tony slowly turned his helmet toward Steve, the absurdity of the situation finally getting to him.
"How many governments does this country have?"
Steve glanced toward the growing crowd of government agents, his expression remaining remarkably composed despite the circumstances.
"Apparently more than we officially know."
While everyone else was distracted by the latest group of self-important officials claiming jurisdiction over the scene, Tony finally took the opportunity to confirm something he'd been trying to figure out about Shazam. His faceplate slid back into place, sealing his face behind the Iron Man armor as he opened a private comm channel.
'Is that what I think it is?'
Shazam heard Tony's voice through the comms but deliberately kept his attention forward. He didn't turn around or give any indication that he'd heard the question. Instead, he simply gave a small, almost imperceptible nod.
Steve heard the exchange through the shared comms as well. His eyes briefly shifted toward Shazam, and the subtle nod he gave was enough to confirm that he understood what was happening and agreed with Tony's assessment.
"Take it back to the Tower," Tony instructed. "I know you're fast enough to get out of here without any of these alien-obsessed jokers noticing."
Shazam glanced toward Captain America, silently seeking confirmation. Steve gave him another subtle nod, effectively giving him the go-ahead.
That was all the confirmation Shazam needed.
Without another word, he moved.
There was no dramatic flash or theatrical declaration. One moment he was standing among the Avengers, and the next, he was simply gone, moving so quickly that the people around him barely had time to register that he'd left.
"There's no arguing this," Coulson continued, apparently unaware of what had just happened. "We are taking the remains of that creature, and you are all coming with us—"
He stopped.
His eyes swept across the Avengers, and his brow furrowed as he finally noticed the conspicuous absence of the team's newest and considerably more muscular member with practically a neon sign on his chest.
"Where's the other guy?"
Tony casually turned his head toward Coulson, almost as though he'd been waiting for that question.
"Take the remains if you want," he said, his voice coming off with an almost effortless confidence. "But unfortunately for you guys, I have somewhere else to be, and I don't have time for any of this nonsense."
The faceplate of his armor dropped shut with a mechanical hiss, the glowing eyes of the Iron Man suit immediately illuminating the lenses.
Before anyone could respond, Tony's repulsors fired.
He shot into the sky without another word, leaving the gathered agents staring after him as the roar of his departure faded into the distance.
For a moment, nobody said anything.
After everything that had happened, the Xenophage, the Avengers, Damage Control, S.H.I.E.L.D., S.W.O.R.D., and now the FBI—Tony Stark had apparently decided that the best solution was simply to leave.
And, judging by the look on Steve's face, he wasn't exactly surprised.
- - -
Doctor Strange had spent the better part of his recent days engrossed in a rigorous search into what exactly a Codex could mean, but so far, his efforts had been largely fruitless—and increasingly frustrating.
Every context in which he managed to find the word led him down the same dead ends, buried beneath references to ancient cultures, obscure myths, religious texts, and forgotten stories that had little to nothing to do with the subject he was actually searching for. None of them offered anything that connected the term to Knull, and at this point, Strange couldn't help but feel that all he had accomplished was accumulating knowledge that, while interesting, was ultimately useless to his investigation.
Magic could have made the search considerably easier, but Strange wasn't dealing with an ordinary being. Knull was ancient, predating civilizations and possibly entire eras of recorded history, which meant whatever information existed about him might not be sitting conveniently inside some magical database waiting to be found. It could have been written down in an ancient scroll, buried inside a forgotten manuscript, or hidden somewhere within the vast archives of Kamar-Taj.
If Strange wanted answers concerning Darkness, Knull, or something called a Codex, he might simply have to dig through centuries of accumulated knowledge until he found the one piece that actually mattered. Wong, who Strange had so generously shared this burden with, had somehow found an excuse to slip away.
The commotion spreading through the city eventually drew his attention away from the archives. Strange reached for his phone and contacted Tony, intending to find out whether the incident had anything to do with the dimensional rifts that had been appearing across the city.
Those rifts had already brought a multitude of monsters into their world on previous occasions, yet somehow, both their points of origin and their appearances had remained frustratingly difficult for the Sanctum—and Strange himself as Sorcerer Supreme—to detect before they manifested.
"Not a good time, Strange. Too busy saving a life," Tony replied.
If that had been anyone else calling, Tony probably would have ended the conversation right there. Either that, or simply ignored the call altogether. Strange, however, had known Tony long enough to know exactly what kind of person he was dealing with.
"I see..." Strange replied, his tone came off with the faintest hint of amusement. "This will only take a second. Got time to answer it?"
Tony's brow furrowed.
There was something strange about Strange's voice. It sounded as though it was coming through the phone and from directly beside his ear at the same time.
Tony slowly turned his head to the side and found a small circular portal hovering beside him. Through it, Doctor Strange stared back at him with an unimpressed expression.
On the other side of the portal, Tony was sitting across from Pepper at a private restaurant, their dinner temporarily interrupted by the appearance of the Sorcerer Supreme.
"Saving a life, I see," Strange remarked dryly, his eyes briefly moving toward Pepper before he gave her a courteous nod.
Pepper returned the gesture, though the amused expression on her face made it clear she had already figured out exactly what Tony had been trying to pull.
Tony, meanwhile, didn't look particularly embarrassed.
"Of course I am," he said, leaning back in his chair with a grin. "I'm saving my love life. I know you're on the monk route and everything, but it's not easy for a hero to sustain one."
Strange's expression barely changed.
He had clearly decided not to dignify that explanation with a response.
Instead, he got straight to the reason he'd contacted Tony in the first place. "The incident downtown earlier. Does it have anything to do with our monster situation?"
"I'm not sure. Possibly."
Tony's uncertain response caused both Strange and Pepper to raise an eyebrow. Tony noticed the looks immediately and gave a dismissive shake of his head before continuing.
"Check with the guys at the Tower," he said. "The kid caught the thing that started that whole messy pursuit through the city."
Strange's eyes narrowed slightly at the mention of the kid, but Tony had already made it clear that he wasn't about to provide a more detailed explanation while sitting in the middle of dinner.
"That's all I've got for you, Strange."
And with that, Tony returned his attention toward his date, leaving Strange with yet another mystery to add to the growing list he was already trying to solve.
Without giving Strange the opportunity to say another word, Tony quickly cut him off with one final remark. "Now, please, some privacy so I can get back to my date. I mean, unless you'd like to stay and enjoy the show." He gave Strange a pointed look, the corner of his mouth curling into that annoyingly smug grin of his.
Strange's right eye twitched.
Just once.
It was the smallest physical indication of just how thoroughly Tony's unhealthy devotion to his own sense of humor was testing the Sorcerer Supreme's patience. He stared at Tony for another moment before the small portal abruptly snapped shut, leaving Strange on the other side of it and Tony finally alone with Pepper.
Tony turned back toward the table, ready to resume their dinner as though nothing unusual had happened. Unfortunately, Pepper had clearly been paying attention to the entire conversation, and the look on her face immediately told Tony that his evening wasn't about to return to normal quite so easily.
"So... who's this kid?" she asked.
Tony froze.
For a brief moment, his mind went completely blank.
"Eh... what kid?"
The denial came instinctively, but Tony immediately realized he'd walked straight into a trap of his own making. How exactly was he supposed to explain Billy to Pepper without somehow making the situation sound ten times worse? Telling her that he was the child's legal guardian was certainly an option, but there was a rather obvious problem with that explanation.
'She'll think he's my kid.'
And considering Tony's reputation from his playboy years, Pepper wouldn't exactly be unreasonable for making that assumption. There was no believable way he could casually explain that a young boy had somehow ended up under his legal guardianship without raising a dozen more questions about how, why, and—most importantly—whether Billy was secretly his child from one of his past relationships.
But denying Billy's existence would only make things worse.
Pepper was far too intelligent for him to simply bluff his way out of the conversation, especially when she had already heard Strange refer to the boy and had clearly picked up on the significance of Tony sending him back to the Tower. If Tony tried to dig himself out by pretending Billy wasn't important, he'd only end up digging the hole deeper.
And that was how Tony Stark—billionaire philanthropist, notorious playboy, genius inventor, Iron Man, and self-proclaimed 'HIM' among the Avengers—found himself in a situation he couldn't solve with money, technology, sarcasm, or a convenient missile.
He was, quite literally, stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Across the table, Pepper simply watched him.
The longer Tony remained silent, the more amused her expression became.
Tony slowly swallowed.
For perhaps the first time that evening, he seriously considered whether facing down another alien monster might have been the easier option.
- - -
Author's Note:
Good news folks,
As form next week, we'll be getting three chapters updated weekly.
Read more chapters on Pat.
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