Hill returned home around seven-thirty.
Natasha had already showered and was waiting at the dinner table.
The three of them enjoyed a meal of five dishes and one soup.
Afterward, Rowan didn't rush to the rooftop to meet Fury. Instead, he pulled out a suitcase given to him by Helen Zhao.
"Rowan, what's that?" Hill asked as he set the case on the table.
Rowan smiled and flipped it open.
Inside were an armguard and a wristband.
"An armguard… and a wristband?"
Natasha's eyes lit up the moment she saw them.
The material looked almost identical to the armguard Rowan had been wearing recently.
And his armguard, she knew, was part of a nano-vibranium suit.
"Rowan, are these pieces of a nano-vibranium suit?" Natasha asked excitedly, already reaching for the armguard.
The moment she picked it up, she felt its heavy weight easily twenty to thirty kilograms.
Still, with her enhanced physique, it wasn't much trouble.
"This bracelet too?" Hill asked curiously, lifting the wristband.
"Yeah, both of them," Rowan nodded. "I had Helen make these for the two of you."
"They're really for us?" Natasha's eyes glowed with delight. As a field agent, she couldn't resist gear like this.
"Of course. Vibranium is the last thing I'm short on," Rowan said with a grin.
"Short on vibranium?" Hill stared at him, astonished.
"That's right. I now own a vibranium mine."
The corners of Rowan's lips curled upward.
He hadn't yet told them about Wakanda.
"A vibranium… mine?"
Even Natasha was stunned speechless.
Rowan explained the situation in simple terms.
Both women drew in sharp breaths.
"So… we'll never have to worry about money again?" Hill asked, her mind reeling.
"Exactly. Honestly, I think you could resign now," Rowan replied lightly.
Natasha's lips twitched. She wanted to say something sarcastic but didn't even know where to begin.
Wakanda. A nation sitting on a mountain of vibranium, with technology decades ahead of the rest of the world… yet masquerading as one of the poorest countries in Africa.
"Rowan, you can't tell Fury about this," Natasha said quickly once the shock wore off. "If he finds out, he'll lose his mind."
Rowan nodded. "When you wear the vibranium suits, just say they're made of kro-alloy. Easier that way."
Both women agreed. That would save a lot of headaches.
"So how do we put them on?"
Natasha strapped the armguard onto her left forearm and looked at Rowan expectantly. She had examined it earlier and hadn't found a single switch or mechanism.
Rowan smiled. "The suits are already linked to your biometrics. Just focus and think the command: equip."
"Equip?"
Natasha repeated the word in her head.
Instantly, the armguard dissolved like liquid mercury and flowed across her limbs and torso.
Within seconds, a sleek black suit had formed around her.
The battle suit traced every line of her enhanced figure, emphasizing her perfect proportions.
"Incredible!"
Natasha stood and moved around, testing it. The suit clung to her like a second skin, more comfortable than any tactical gear she had ever worn. It felt less like clothing and more like part of her body.
Hill, unable to resist, strapped the wristband onto her arm. Closing her eyes, she whispered the command.
Blue particles shimmered outward, sweeping across her form until she was clad in a tight suit of interwoven black and deep azure.
Slightly taller and leaner than Natasha, Hill cut an even sharper silhouette.
Wide-eyed, she turned her arms this way and that, fascinated.
"Natasha, Hill, try attacking each other," Rowan suggested.
"Alright."
The two exchanged a glance and nodded.
"Bang! Bang!"
Their fists collided, both women recoiling in surprise.
A faint violet glow shimmered across their suits.
They could feel the energy gathering at the point of impact.
"The vibranium suits can absorb and store kinetic energy," Rowan explained.
Both women nodded. They had felt the power lingering in their fists.
"And," Rowan added, "they can release it… as a shockwave."
"What?"
Both gasped, eyes wide.
Natasha was the first to react. She extended her palm toward the empty space beside them, silently thinking release.
A low hum filled the air, and a blast of force erupted outward, sending the living room curtains whipping violently.
"Incredible!"
Natasha's eyes sparkled with delight, like a child with a brand-new toy.
She could hardly imagine how much her combat strength would skyrocket with this suit.
In theory, its defense was already absolute.
Soon, both she and Hill were sparring playfully in their new gear, laughing as they tested their limits.
Rowan, left with nothing else to do, made his way up to the S.H.I.E.L.D. rooftop.
…
"You sure took your time," Fury muttered, glaring at him beneath the brim of his coat. He had been standing in the wind for over an hour.
"I was eating. Problem with that?" Rowan shoved his hands in his pockets, speaking lazily.
"…Forget it." Fury sighed, exasperated.
"So? What did you drag me up here for?"
Rowan walked past him and hopped onto the ledge, legs dangling over the edge.
Fury crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, and after a long pause asked, "Rowan, do you believe in aliens?"
His voice was low and heavy, almost brooding.
Rowan groaned inwardly. He already knew where this was going.
No wonder Fury had treated him so differently after discovering his powers. The man had clearly been eyeing him for recruitment all along.
"Can I say no?" Rowan sighed, spreading his hands.
Fury ignored him. "Coulson encountered the Norse god Thor in New Mexico. Asgard is real, Rowan. The threats facing Earth are far greater than you realize…"
"Stop, stop."
Rowan cut him off before he could start his speech in earnest.
He could already tell Fury was winding up to guilt-trip him with talk of humanity's survival. He wasn't in the mood.
"Skip the drama. Just tell me what you want."
Fury's face twitched. He had been preparing for this pitch all week. Now Rowan had stripped the setup right out from under him.
He swallowed his irritation and forced it out. "To prepare for the dangers ahead, I'm assembling a team. I'm calling it the Avengers Initiative."
"And?" Rowan raised an eyebrow. What, an invitation to join as one of Fury's puppets? Not interested.
"I want you to be the leader of the Avengers," Fury said slowly, firmly.
"…Leader?" Rowan was caught off guard.
He hadn't expected Fury to put him at the very top.
But after a heartbeat, he shook his head. "No."
Fury froze. He hadn't expected such a blunt rejection.
"Why not?" Fury pressed, refusing to give up.
"Why should I? What do I gain from being your so-called leader?" Rowan shot back.
"Uh…" Fury faltered, then tried again with a smile. "You'd have authority second only to mine. You'd become a world-renowned hero. And I could even petition the Council to—"
"Stop." Rowan cut him off once more. "I don't need any of that."
"You don't?" Fury frowned.
He couldn't believe it. Most young men craved power, recognition, influence. But Rowan was like a stone wall, unmoved by anything.
"What do you want, then?" Fury asked at last, exasperated.
"I…" Rowan began to say nothing, but then paused.
Something came to mind.
Because there was one thing S.H.I.E.L.D. possessed that he did want.
The Tesseract.
It was locked away right beneath this very building, most likely being studied by Selvig even now.
Fury noticed the hesitation and brightened. As long as Rowan desired something, he could work with that.
What he dreaded most was someone with no desires at all.
Rowan, however, knew better than to bring it up here and now.
Asking for the Tesseract outright? There was no way Fury would agree.
Rowan had no intention of claiming the Tesseract just yet. After all, Loki's little trickster self hadn't brought the Mind Stone to Earth.
If he seized the Tesseract now and something went wrong causing Loki to withhold the Mind Stone from ever reaching Earth then Rowan would have lost out on a huge prize.
He remembered the Thor post-credits scene well enough to know that Loki had already projected a duplicate of himself onto Earth.
It was precisely because of that projection that Loki could reverse-activate the Tesseract's portal, allowing his true body to descend onto Earth.
If Rowan took the Tesseract prematurely, chances were high that Loki would be unable to open the reverse gate.
And then the butterfly effect would spiral out of control.
Perhaps Loki would never receive Thanos's scepter with the Mind Stone embedded in it. Perhaps, instead, he would rally the entire Chitauri army and launch a full-scale invasion from deep space.
That would be far messier than anyone could afford.
So Rowan decided to let events play out as planned. Loki would come to Earth first. Once the Mind Stone was here, things would be stable.
On Earth, aside from the Ancient One, there was hardly anyone he truly needed to fear.
Who could possibly snatch anything from his hands?
"I want something you can't give," Rowan said at last, shaking his head at Fury. "So I won't be your captain."
"…"
Fury's face darkened. He had thought there was a chance, but Rowan still refused.
"But…" Rowan added suddenly.
Fury's single eye lit up, sharp with hope, like a fish about to take the bait.
"But what?"
"But, I don't mind becoming a special-contract hero for the Avengers." Rowan smiled.
"Special-contract hero?" Fury frowned, not following. "What does that mean?"
"It means if the Avengers ever run into a problem you can't solve, you can call me. I'll help." Rowan's tone brimmed with confidence.
"But," he added evenly, "you'll have to pay the right price before I step in."
This was his plan: wait until the Chitauri descended, when all hope seemed lost, then swoop in as the savior.
At that moment, he could demand both the Tesseract and Loki's scepter as his rightful spoils.
After all, when Earth was on the verge of annihilation even a nuclear strike had failed in the films his victory over Loki and the alien army would make such a claim perfectly natural.
Fury rolled his eye, torn between frustration and reluctant acceptance. At least Rowan was halfway on board.
"And what makes you so sure you can handle threats we can't?" Fury challenged, his pride prickling.
Yes, he had seen glimpses of Rowan's power. He knew Rowan was stronger than Cap and Stark. But could he really deal with a monster like Banner? Fury doubted it.
"Why?"
Rowan laughed softly at the question.
"Because of this."
He didn't bother with further words. Instead, he looked up at the towering spherical broadcast tower on the rooftop.
The structure stood over ten meters tall, solid and imposing.
Rowan raised a hand and clenched it in the air.
An overwhelming tide of psychic force burst forth.
At this stage, his mental strength had already reached the peak of a mid-rank war general.
The massive steel sphere shuddered violently, metal groaning as if caught in an invisible giant's fist.
"Crrrk—skreeeeech!"
The shrill shriek of metal under impossible pressure made teeth ache.
"BOOOOM!"
In mere moments, the ten-meter-wide sphere folded in on itself, warping and crumpling, until it was crushed into a two-meter-wide lump of solid scrap.
The tower's steel supports twisted like wax, bending and snapping under the unseen grip.
"…"
Fury stared, utterly dumbfounded.
Rowan's telekinetic power was monstrous. Against this, even an entire armored division would have no chance.
"Beep! Beep! Beep!"
The S.H.I.E.L.D. building's alarms blared at once, jolting Fury from his stupor.
"Motherf— Do you have any idea how much that tower cost? Couldn't you have picked a different way to show off?!" Fury exploded, nearly hopping mad.
That signal tower had taken a huge budget to install, and Rowan had just reduced it to junk in seconds.
"BANG!"
The rooftop door burst open and several agents rushed out with rifles raised. Spotting Fury, one of them called out, wide-eyed, "Director! What happened?"
"Stand down!" Fury barked, his face twisted with pain at the loss. "Cancel the alarm. There's no threat here."
The agents exchanged confused looks, glancing at the mangled wreckage of the tower, but followed orders and withdrew.
The building quieted again, the alarms fading.
"Well?" Rowan crossed his arms, grinning. "Do I still need to prove myself?"
"…No." Fury pinched the bridge of his nose, exasperated. "Fine. Your proposal is accepted."
It was a double-length episode, but he didn't even bother splitting it anymore.
—————————————————————————————————————————————————
Already hooked? Tell me what reeled you in leave a review, spark the fire with a comment, and if we hit every 250 Power Stones, a bonus chapter drops!
The evolution's just begun. Dive deeper into Unbound Evolution and stay leagues ahead!
[email protected]/_tey
Change @ to a.