Time passed quickly.
Before he realized it, more than half a month had slipped by.
Richard spent those days in Ta Lo in absolute comfort. The scenery was serene, the air saturated with spiritual energy, and Ying Li—now fully compliant under the subtle constraints woven into her subconscious—provided service worthy of royalty. Yet no matter how idyllic the dimension was, Richard had no intention of staying indefinitely.
Ta Lo was perfect as a private retreat. A sanctuary. A hidden paradise one could visit for indulgence and leisure.
But it was not suited for long-term dominion.
Isolation bred stagnation. And Richard did not stagnate.
When he finally left, he took almost nothing with him. He did not bring Ying Li. He did not take the dragon. He left behind Dijiang, the qilin, the phoenixes, and every mystical creature that roamed freely through the valleys and forests.
He only brought a portion of unprocessed dragon scales.
New York.
Silver Manor.
After a sequence of precise teleportations, Richard returned home. His first stop was the White Queen. He listened to her summary of the past two weeks with mild interest, absorbing updates about finances, Hellfire operations, and minor disturbances in the underground sphere.
Then he lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bedroom.
Reunions, after all, required proper celebration.
At noon the following day, after lunch with Emma and Clarice, Richard teleported to Stark Tower.
He materialized directly inside the top-floor living area.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Wesley," JARVIS greeted smoothly. "Mr. Stark is currently refining the design of the anti-Richard armor. Please wait a moment."
Richard smiled faintly. "Of course."
Instead of sitting, he stepped onto the balcony to look out over Manhattan. The skyline shimmered beneath the afternoon sun.
Not long after, Tony's voice carried from behind him.
"Should I mark this on the calendar? You showing up voluntarily feels historic."
Richard turned slightly. "I wanted to see how your anti-Richard armor is progressing. Also, I brought something."
Tony raised an eyebrow.
Richard opened his system space and withdrew several dark red dragon scales.
They hovered briefly in his palm before settling into his hand.
Tony stepped closer immediately. "What is that?"
"Dragon scales," Richard replied calmly.
Tony stared at him. "Western dragon? Or Eastern?"
"Eastern."
Tony took one scale and examined it with intense focus. He tapped it, rotated it under the light, and ran his fingers across its surface.
"It's lightweight. Lighter than steel of equivalent mass. Structural density is impressive. Hardness likely exceeds most conventional alloys."
He flicked it gently.
Faint crimson veins illuminated across the surface.
"Residual energy signature," Tony continued. "Stable. Interesting."
He glanced up. "Where did you get this?"
"Classified."
Tony exhaled through his nose. "Fine. It'll work. I can integrate this into the anti-Richard system. Might give me a few extra seconds before you dismantle it."
"Add it," Richard said simply.
Tony nodded, setting the scale aside.
As Richard prepared to leave, Tony hesitated.
"There's something," Tony said slowly. "A group reached out to me. Very secretive. They want me to join."
Richard stopped.
"What kind of group?"
"I can't give details yet. Just… secret. Powerful. Not widely known."
The description aligned instantly in Richard's mind.
Illuminati.
He suppressed the thought outwardly.
"If you're asking for advice," Richard said calmly, "decide based on your own judgment. If you believe they're worth your time, join. If not, decline."
Tony studied him for a moment. "Fair enough."
Richard nodded once and teleported away.
He did not return to Silver Manor.
Instead, he appeared inside the New York Hellfire base.
"Black Rook" Bud Blom arrived quickly after being summoned.
"I need two people located," Richard said.
"First: Skye. Hacker. Member of Rising Tide."
Bud nodded.
"Second: Phastos. Black male. Homosexual. May use aliases. Start in Chicago. He has a husband named Phil and a son named Jack."
Bud's expression did not shift.
"Understood."
"Once you confirm their location, notify me immediately. Do nothing else."
"Yes, sir."
Richard teleported back to the manor afterward.
Since eliminating Shang-Chi, he had been considering his next move. The Eternals had not directly offended him.
But Phastos had.
The disgust he felt toward Shang-Chi had been irritation.
What he felt toward Phastos was something else entirely.
Rage.
Hiroshima.
That moment replayed in his memory. Phastos grieving over human conflict while ignoring his own silent role in accelerating humanity's capacity for destruction.
If Shang-Chi's offense rated a ten in his mind, Phastos' was a thousand.
A week passed.
Inside his study at Silver Manor, Richard reviewed the email Bud had sent.
Skye was still active with Rising Tide, attempting to expose governmental secrets by hacking into federal databases.
Phastos had not remained in Chicago. After significant effort, Bud's people had located him in Detroit, over 450 kilometers away. As in other timelines, Phastos had a husband and an adopted son.
Richard closed the email.
He teleported directly to the White Queen.
"I'm stepping out for personal business," he said.
She did not ask what kind.
"How long?"
"A few hours."
She nodded softly.
He vanished.
New York to Detroit required two jumps.
Moments later, he stood in downtown Detroit.
He had never visited the city before. The address in Bud's report required orientation. He focused briefly, recalculating based on the layout.
Then he teleported again.
He reappeared in a quiet suburban neighborhood.
A modest house stood before him.
Inside, Phastos was unaware that death had arrived at his doorstep.
.....
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