Tony was brought back by helicopter, exhausted and battered. He had been buried under rubble and after struggling to dig his way out, he was completely drained. Fortunately, JARVIS had called for support before his systems failed.
As a successful billionaire, Tony had no dignity left after being suspended from a rescue helicopter like a helpless victim. Fortunately, Ivan had retreated due to insufficient armor energy and overloaded operations, but these events made Pepper unable to tolerate his proud and arrogant attitude any longer.
The two began a cold war that might possibly become long-lasting.
Tony woke up in the hospital surrounded by concerned faces. Happy breathed a heavy sigh of relief, and his good friend Rhodes was also there, arms crossed and wearing an expression that clearly said he wasn't buying Tony's story.
"You said you went to New Jersey to test performance?" Rhodes asked with obvious skepticism.
"Yes, to test the new armor, but there was a small accident," Tony replied, still trying to maintain his reputation through elaborate lies.
"Your 'small' accident refers to being crushed under hundreds of tons of rock and nearly becoming ground meat?" Rhodes just quietly watched Tony attempt to spin the situation. "Tony, with your ammunition load, you couldn't have caused that level of destruction." He patted Tony's shoulder with an understanding expression. "You lost the fight, didn't you?"
"Lost? Ridiculous," Tony stubbornly maintained his dignity. "If he hadn't run away, how would anyone know who would have won?"
Rhodes replied matter-of-factly, "Your computer screen didn't turn off."
As someone with free access to Stark's laboratory, Rhodes had casually observed the entire encounter. Not only him, but Steve, Banner, Natasha, and Barton as well. Almost everyone except Thor knew Tony had gone to fight someone and gotten thoroughly beaten.
Speaking of Thor, after dealing with the Dark Elves, he had arranged for the Aether to be taken somewhere outside Asgard for safekeeping. He had then left Asgard and was currently living in London, enjoying domestic bliss with his girlfriend Jane.
Who knew how long such a peaceful life could last? Jane, being an astrophysicist, might have to travel anywhere for research at any time. But this didn't prevent Thor from currently living a blissfully happy existence.
Tony felt his lifelong reputation was about to be ruined. "I didn't lose; he ran away," he insisted, still trying to save face.
Banner, who was also visiting in the hospital room, patted him sympathetically, indicating that everyone already knew the truth.
Tony swore he would definitely get his revenge. He and Ivan were alike in this regard—getting back at someone meant using his own methods, not gathering allies for a group beatdown. The pride lost while wearing armor would be regained through superior armor.
Tony remained hospitalized for a week. His body was covered in bruises, and his left hand had a slight fracture from being struck by falling rocks. Still, the sense of security from wearing billions of dollars worth of defensive technology had proven worthwhile.
Avengers Tower
A week later, the iconic Avengers logo adorned their newly constructed headquarters. As Steve had diplomatically observed, the design looked somewhat like a toilet. Tony's aesthetic sensibilities were apparently as stubborn as his personality.
After S.H.I.E.L.D.'s disbandment, they had assumed the organization's role as protectors against global threats. Hill had also joined following S.H.I.E.L.D.'s collapse, becoming logistics coordinator for Avengers operations. Whether she intended to monitor these powerful individuals for Nick Fury remained unclear.
After establishing a fake tombstone for himself, Fury had vanished completely. He would probably resurface whenever superheroes found themselves confused, wearing his trademark stern expression while asking, "I'm Nick Fury. What do you want to accomplish? What kind of person do you want to become?"
Basically, no one worried about his wellbeing.
Missing Technology
Problems following the disbandment had emerged quickly. Those weapons and advanced technologies that S.H.I.E.L.D. had accumulated were now scattered. After Avengers investigation, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Chitauri technology had long been transferred by HYDRA operatives. Along with it was the Mind Stone that had been lost once before.
Steve studied maps showing HYDRA activity locations. He needed to formulate a comprehensive plan. This team operated with Steve as captain, exactly as Fury had envisioned. Tony served as a consultant who funded their operations. As long as there were no ideological conflicts, Tony generally avoided arguing with Steve. Their working relationship remained quite harmonious.
"Besides us, there's a third superhero organization—or more accurately, it should be considered the second," Hill explained, bringing up data files. "Its establishment predated Miracle Children."
The Second Alliance. Natasha approached, examining profiles of those who dispensed justice under cover of darkness.
"Before S.H.I.E.L.D. disbanded, agents were sent to establish contact, and the results were predictable," Hill shrugged. "Several agents were knocked unconscious and abandoned roadside, with their wallets stolen by street criminals."
Following that incident, S.H.I.E.L.D. had shifted from recruitment attempts to simple surveillance.
"According to our data, they have substantial financial backing, but judging from their conflict with Kingpin, they're probably not HYDRA affiliates."
S.H.I.E.L.D. agents naturally carried excellent equipment, but after encountering these vigilantes, they had proven completely ineffective.
Tony, fresh from his hospital stay, heard this discussion and immediately took control of the meeting. "They're not a problem, and I even know their boss."
He didn't elaborate on the identity, walking to his seat before continuing, "I think our urgent priority should be recovering the Mind Scepter."
"We've already begun searching for that particular HYDRA cell's whereabouts. Without complications, the mastermind should be Baron Strucker."
Baron Strucker represented another HYDRA leadership figure. Most of the transferred weapons and technology had fallen into his control, including the Mind Scepter.
After deliberation, the Avengers unanimously agreed they should prioritize retrieving the Mind Scepter. As an artifact equivalent to the Tesseract, it might enable someone to replay Red Skull's ambitions for world domination.
After the Meeting
The meeting concluded with Natasha's fingers rapidly tapping her phone screen. Steve noticed but said nothing, while Tony appeared thoughtful.
A pink teddy bear climbed up along the conference table. Barton noticed and teased, "Look who's here! Natasha's little guardian."
The pink bear climbed onto the table, positioned itself carefully, then leaped directly into Natasha's arms, resting its head against her comfortably.
Tony was curious about such phenomena. "Magic?"
"That's probably the magic of friendship," Barton shrugged. "Little Nat takes it everywhere. It's always been like this."
"I remember a toy company manufacturing this type of bear." Tony concealed an electric testing device behind his hand, preparing to analyze the unusual toy.
"Tony." Natasha immediately saw through his intention, protectively holding the bear closer. This represented a symbol of friendship between her and Ariana.
"Sorry." Tony reluctantly abandoned the idea.
He patted the obviously envious Banner. "You can't get smaller. You can only get bigger."
Banner awkwardly realized his feelings had been exposed. "What? I don't... I just..."
His explanation only made the situation more suggestive. Tony heavily patted his shoulder in sympathy.
The pink bear jumped onto the table, placing its paws on its hips and beginning to wiggle provocatively. Barton couldn't make sense of its behavior.
"It sometimes does this," Natasha shrugged. "Maybe it's expressing happiness."
The bear continued jumping and performing what appeared to be a victory dance.
Silver Hand Genius Youth Academy
John brought Martha from the manor to Silver Hand Genius Youth Academy. As a local resident, Martha admitted this was her first time learning such a school existed in London.
She met the three problem children immediately. The arrogant Edward demanded to see supernatural abilities, so Martha demonstrated what could be called blood manipulation—cutting open her palm and causing the falling blood to condense into two crude blood swords.
She expected disgust, but unexpectedly, all three children stared with stars in their eyes. John attributed this reaction to these children possibly having some dramatic tendencies. Blood control sounded exactly like the favorite ability of theatrical personality types.
Gerald also met John for the first time. The twenty-two-year-old seemed very reserved when first encountering someone who casually produced boxes of money.
"This represents the management fees and teachers' salaries that administrator Charlie embezzled from the orphanage over the years," John explained to Gerald. "I'm giving you a task: deliver the owed salaries to those teachers personally."
"I don't care what methods you use, but deliver payment directly into their hands."
This represented John's first test for Gerald. If he proved to be genuinely useful talent, John wouldn't mind having the school gain a new administrator. As for locating those teachers again just to provide compensation, the Wizard King wasn't impoverished enough to withhold a few educators' salaries.
He assigned responsibilities to several individuals. Martha, being the oldest, naturally had to shoulder some leadership duties.
Wizards wearing Silver Hand Fashion Construction logos marched into the facility. Within just a few days, several brand new training grounds emerged from the original foundation.
After this school quietly established itself, an unexpected visitor arrived at their gates.