Tony Stark. Anyone who's ever seen a Marvel movie or read a comic knows that name. He's Iron Man.
Why clarify his identity? Because the comics and the movies don't line up. In the films, Tony publicly revealed he was Iron Man. But in the original comics, he kept his superhero identity secret, claiming Iron Man was just his bodyguard.
But this Tony Stark wasn't some random guy with the same name. Rook Tanner, possessing all of Superman's powers—super hearing, super vision, and more—could tell for sure.
And with the level of power he now held, Rook's super hearing could stretch across the entire universe. If he wanted, he could listen in on every single voice in existence.
His vision could pierce any corner of space.
He had already spotted Tony, standing somewhere in the desert. It looked like a desert, at least.
From what Rook could see, Tony was still just a weapons dealer, out marketing his company's arms.
Rook recognized the scene. Wasn't this from the beginning of the first Iron Man movie?
If that were the case, then something bad was about to happen.
Rook knew what was coming. After thinking for a moment, he gently lifted off from the surface of the Sun.
He had to be careful. Even a fraction of his power might obliterate the star entirely.
So he moved as lightly as possible.
Once he had cleared the Sun's atmosphere, he picked up speed and headed for Earth.
The distance between the Earth and Sun is about eight minutes at the speed of light.
Light speed, of course, is a velocity, but a "light-year" is a unit of distance. So an "eight-minute light-speed distance" can also be treated as a measurement.
That meant it would take light eight full minutes to reach Earth.
But to Rook, it felt like the blink of an eye.
He now hovered outside Earth's atmosphere.
A journey that should have taken eight minutes at light speed had taken him less than a true instant.
That kind of speed couldn't be measured.
Unless he tried flying to the edge of the universe, nothing nearby could properly gauge it.
Rook had already surpassed the power of even the legendary fifth-dimensional Golden Superman. He could manipulate time, space, souls, and physical matter—an entity that bordered on omniscience and omnipotence. There was no longer any upper limit to his speed. He could appear anywhere, anytime.
And the future held only more powers for him to unlock.
Even Silver Age Superman had so many abilities that he often found them overwhelming. Every day brought something new to master.
Suddenly, a deafening boom broke Rook's concentration.
Down below, the desert had erupted into chaos.
Tony, being escorted by a military convoy, had walked right into an ambush. The vehicles were under attack.
Seeing this unfold, Rook didn't hesitate. He shot downward, slicing through the atmosphere in an instant and slamming into the ground.
The impact unleashed a thunderous shockwave.
His towering golden body landed directly in front of the armored vehicle carrying Tony. Bigger than the transport itself, Rook's form stood like an indestructible wall.
Inside the vehicle, Tony and his security team were frozen in disbelief, staring blankly at the giant who had just appeared.
But the attackers weren't done. Dozens of armed men suddenly emerged from the surrounding cliffs and ravines, unleashing a barrage of bullets at the convoy.
Rook narrowed his glowing eyes. Two golden beams burst out from them—heat vision. In a flash, he locked onto every hostile signature around him.
Spinning on the spot, his heat rays swept in a perfect circle, wiping out every enemy in a blinding instant.
A distant mountain was caught in the blast and sliced clean through, collapsing in a thunderous landslide.
Silence followed.
Rook retracted his heat vision and casually clapped his hands, as if brushing off dust.
Not that there was any dust to begin with. His pure golden form seemed wrapped in some invisible forcefield that kept even the smallest particle from touching him.
Turning toward the armored vehicle, he loomed over it, five meters tall, more like a living statue than a man.
He reached for the door handle.
And yanked.
Crunch.
The entire door tore off in his hand.
Rook scratched his head with his other hand. Still hadn't gotten used to controlling his strength.
Inside the vehicle, Tony and the three soldiers stared blankly, unable to process what they were seeing. When Rook scratched his head, sparks flew between his fingers and scalp like tiny fireworks.
To them, he was terrifying.
"A devil... he's a devil!" one of the soldiers finally snapped, screaming as he jumped out of the vehicle and bolted blindly.
He forgot this was a minefield.
A leading car had already been blown up earlier by a buried mine. Now, running wildly without thinking, he stepped right onto one.
Boom.
Another massive explosion ripped through the air.
But the soldier didn't die.
Rook had moved in a blur. Just as the mine went off, he grabbed the soldier and hurled him back into the car.
"Don't run around like an idiot," Rook snapped. "This whole area's rigged with mines. You trying to get yourself killed? And I'm not some devil. My name is Rook Tanner. I'm just... an alien."
He had wanted to say he was from Earth.
But looking like this? That would've been a hard sell.
Besides, after crossing into the DC Universe and becoming a Kryptonian, it wasn't exactly wrong to call himself an alien.
"Alien?" the men in the vehicle echoed, exchanging looks.
Tony's eyes suddenly lit up with interest. He studied Rook with growing curiosity.
"Aliens really do exist?" Even Tony, one of the smartest people on Earth, was seeing undeniable proof for the first time.
Rook rolled his eyes and huffed. "The universe is massive. You Earthlings haven't even left your own galaxy. You haven't explored your moon properly. You really think Earth is the only planet with life?"
Fair point.
Earth's technology still had a long way to go. Manned exploration hadn't gone beyond the moon, and our understanding of the universe was still painfully limited.
So until proven otherwise, anything was possible.
"If you're an alien, then what's your goal on Earth? You saved us, sure, but I'm guessing you didn't do it for nothing, right?" Tony's sharp mind cut straight to the heart of the matter. He had a reputation for being quick-witted, and it wasn't undeserved.
Rook nodded. "If you want to put it that way, then... yeah, I do have a goal. Let's just say my homeworld is gone. My entire civilization wiped out. You could say I'm a refugee."
He paused, then added with a smirk, "I've heard your name before, Tony Stark. Quite the famous guy. So how about this—I saved your life. How about you return the favor and help me settle in?"
"Wow. Your English is amazing."
Was this really the time for compliments?
Rook shrugged. "I may look like a monster, but I'm smart. I have a super learning ability. Any language—I only need to hear it once."
Tony exhaled slowly. "Alright. Deal. But you have to get me home safely."
"No problem."
And that was how Rook Tanner arrived on Marvel Earth...
And crossed paths with Tony Stark.