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With the military finally taking control of the area, the remaining Shadow Legion operatives stopped what they were doing. Their mission was complete. One by one, they dissolved into the darkness and vanished.
---
Back in Sylas' Room
"Worth every Sin Point," Sylas grinned, testing his Dimensional Traverse ability again.
There was one downside: he couldn't travel anywhere he hadn't physically visited before.
Which meant if he had never been to Stark Tower, he couldn't just teleport inside and steal a suit.
"So I need to expand my world map…"
He leaned back in his chair, red light flickering through his eyes.
"From today onward, you're the World-Conquest Squad."
Nearly a thousand Shadow Legion operatives bowed and then disappeared sent out to explore every corner of New York and beyond. The wider their coverage, the wider Sylas' teleportation reach.
He only kept Little Black, Big Black, and the Talisman Retrieval Unit nearby.
The rest?
Scatter them across the city.
He stretched.
"Maybe I should summon a few tiny Shadow creatures later… keep some as pets."
He glanced toward the desk.
"What's Little Black doing now?"
Big Black lay on the bed like a dead fish. Sylas ignored him.
Little Black, sitting at the computer desk, signed confidently:
Master, I want to go see Tony Stark. Please allow it.
Sylas blinked. "…Tony Stark? Why?"
To study artificial intelligence.
Sylas stared at him.
Of all things, Little Black wanted to study AI?
And from Tony Stark of all people?
"…Do you really think he's going to teach you?"
Little Black signed calmly:
I can try. If not, I'll return immediately. With Dimensional Traverse, I cannot be trapped.
"…Fair enough," Sylas exhaled. "Fine. He's probably in Freedom City just track him down."
He then kicked the bedframe.
"Hey! Big Black! Look at Little Black. Trying to study. Trying to improve. And you—lying here like the world's biggest salted fish."
Big Black slowly looked at Little Black, unimpressed. Then he lifted his head and communicated telepathically:
Master, help me roll over.
Sylas paused. "…Big Black, I can't blame you. Your brain was just… born this way."
Little Black, unable to resist, signed a brutal follow-up:
That's because he was born without one. You should reforge him, Master. Maybe his next body will come with a brain installed.
Big Black stood up immediately and signed back:
At least I learned sign language.
Little Black countered:
If I were teaching the Troll Guard, the slowest unit in the Legion, they'd have learned it yesterday.
The Troll Guard was one of the Shadow Legion's heavier units.
Massive bodies.
Huge fists larger than a human torso.
Insanely strong… but painfully slow.
Big Black fell silent.
Then—
BAM! BAM!
He tackled Little Black.
Both bodies burst into black mist, forced into reformation back in the Shadow Realm.
Sylas blinked.
"Well… that escalated."
Shadow creatures were made of shifting dark essence. When two slammed into each other with full force, they both destabilized and returned for reconstruction.
Sylas smirked quietly.
He already imagined how Little Black planned to punish Big Black once he reformed.
"Alright, I'm going to sleep."
He stretched lazily. A Shadow operative immediately appeared with a warm glass of milk.
Sylas took a sip, placed the cup back on the tray, and lay down.
And while drifting off, one thought stayed clear:
Tony Stark definitely isn't buying his story.
---
Freedom City – Stark Tower
Tony arrived on the rooftop platform of Stark Tower. He stepped off the armor as robotic arms caught it and carried it away for diagnostics.
He placed his palm on the scanner, descended into the main lab, and spoke immediately:
"JARVIS, trust me—Mintar and Tāra are the same guy."
"Statistically, their physical match rate is 99%," JARVIS replied.
"And I have…" Tony tapped his head. "…human intuition."
He paced across the lab.
"Besides, you expect me to believe a massive shadow legion is operating across New York without leaving a single trace? They didn't exist before that thief appeared."
JARVIS pulled up old footage—the earliest sighting of Tāra stealing from criminals weeks ago.
Tony pointed at it.
"There. Day one. Mintar appears only after Tāra. Same build. Same movements. Same everything."
He crossed his arms smugly.
"You can't fool Tony Stark by wearing a different mask."
JARVIS responded dryly: "I only trust data."
Tony gestured at himself dramatically.
"You came from this."
JARVIS began a lecture: "Sir, while artificial intelligence may be compared to a child created by its parents—"
"Nope," Tony interrupted. "Perfect because of me. End of discussion."
"But—"
"Music."
Classical music filled the lab.
Tony sank into his chair.
---
A Week Later
A quiet week passed except for one major incident.
Oscorp's newest product malfunctioned, causing public outrage.
The company scrambled to issue recalls, apologize, and pay massive compensation.
Too late.
Stock prices plummeted.
Billions lost.
During the chaos, Stark Industries surged forward under Pepper's leadership, expanding the company into pharmaceuticals, consumer tech, and other fields. Tony didn't care about the money, but he supported her completely.
"Starks don't lose," Tony muttered proudly.
---
Morning – Queens
"School time! Boys, don't forget the rules!" Uncle Ben shouted.
Time healed the tension between Peter and Ben thanks largely to Sylas' intervention.
Sylas dragged himself out of his room.
"Why can't school add at least three more days off?" he groaned.
Last night, with the Tāra mask, Tony had chased him across skyscrapers.
Sylas, stubborn as always, refused to use Dimensional Traverse.
They raced across rooftops Tony always getting close… but never quite grabbing him.
---
Freedom City – Same Morning
"I really don't understand, sir," JARVIS said. "Last night, you could've easily caught him with one burst of acceleration. Why did you slow down repeatedly?"
Tony yawned.
"Because disappearing guy always poofs out anyway. And…" A grin tugged at his mouth.c"…he's pretty entertaining."
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