The crane arrived on Thursday.
Two blocks away, Adrian crouched on a rooftop wall, watching a Department of Damage Control crew wrap steel cables around a piece of Chitauri armor the size of a school bus.
There it is. The exact scene that turns Adrian Toomes into the Vulture, and nobody down there even knows it yet.
He kept his Six Eyes turned off to save himself the brain-melt. He didn't need enhanced perception to see the dynamic below. Federal contractors in clean windbreakers took the high-tier alien scrap, while local demolition guys stood off to the side, watching their livelihoods get stolen out from under them.
Is Toomes in that crowd right now? Adrian couldn't tell. Even if he could, walking up to warn a future supervillain not to start an alien arms trade would just land him in an asylum—or a S.H.I.E.L.D. black site.
Save the world later. Survive today first.
He slipped off the roof and took the back alleys home, avoiding the corner where the gray-suited agent had clocked him three days ago.
Sophia was sitting at the kitchen table, still in her diner uniform, staring into a cold mug of tea.
"You're back early," Adrian said, tossing his jacket over a chair.
"Got cut early. Slow day." Her voice was flat—the kind of flat that made his pulse spike.
"Sophia. What happened?"
She exhaled slowly, meeting his gaze. "A guy came into the diner today. Government suit. Asked a lot of quiet, specific questions about my roommate. How long we've lived together. If you've been acting strange since the invasion. If I've noticed anything weird about your eyes."
Adrian's stomach turned. They weren't just tailing him anymore. They were building a profile through his inner circle.
"What did you tell him?"
"Told him you split rent, ate garbage cereal, and that I had tables to serve." She gave a thin, tired smile. "Then I walked away."
"I'm sorry," Adrian said, sitting across from her. "I brought this to your door."
"I'm not mad at you," she snapped softly, her voice cracking. "I watched you almost die in an alley before whatever this power is kicked in. I'm just terrified because I can't help you carry it."
She reached across the table, squeezing his hand. "I see how you look at the news when the Avengers pop up, Adrian. You're bracing for impact. Just... don't turn into a martyr. I can't lose the only family I have left."
Adrian squeezed back. "Deal. I won't."
Later that night, Adrian opened his interface.
EXP: 84% [Level 2]
Still not enough.
The feds were closing the gap. S.H.I.E.L.D. was building a file, and he was running out of time to get strong enough to fight back if things went south.
He looked out the window. Three blocks over, beneath a rusted manhole cover, a dense, furnace-hot mass of cursed energy throbbed in the dark. Something ancient was waking up down there.
He didn't have time to hide anymore. He needed to level up, and that thing underground was his fast track to Level 3.