Tony Stark POV
Three weeks later
"Stark!"
Fury's voice cut through my lab before the doors even finished sliding open. Of course, he didn't wait for an invitation. He never did.
I sighed, not even looking up from the holographic schematics hovering in front of me. I already knew why he was here.
"Fury," I said dryly, adjusting a rotating model of a suit upgrade, "what a surprise. Breaking and entering is still your favorite hobby, I see."
"It's been three weeks," he snapped, striding further in. "And the attacks on Sentinel Services are escalating. The World Security Council is breathing down my neck because of him. I need you to put a stop to it."
That got my attention.
I turned slowly to face him, raising a brow. "Okay, I know I'm good, great, even, but if you want me to fight him, you're going to need to back up a truck of money. Actually, scratch that. A fleet. Planet-level funding sounds about right."
"This isn't a joke, Stark." Fury's tone sharpened. "We can't have someone targeting government personnel. It's making people nervous. You don't have to fight him, just talk to him. Get him to stop."
I studied him for a second, then leaned back against the workbench. "you want me to stop Omni who is a hero by the way, just like me, to step aside and let Sentinel service, take away innocent mutants to god knows where?" I asked, my voice losing the humor.
Fury exhaled and dropped into one of my chairs, rubbing his temples. "For now, yes. I'm already working on shutting that branch down. I never agreed with it in the first place."
That made me pause.
"Are you okay?" I asked, more seriously now.
I'd seen Fury tired before. Burned out, even. But this? This was different. There was weight behind it, pressure stacking up from directions even he couldn't dodge.
"I'm fine," he said flatly.
Yeah. Sure. And I'm modest.
I pushed off the bench and walked over, taking the seat across from him, lowering my voice just a notch.
"Look, Nick," I said, resting my forearms on my knees. "You and I? We don't exactly agree on… anything. I give you headaches; you try to control everything that breathes. It's our thing."
He didn't interrupt, so I kept going.
"But you should know something, I do consider you a friend."
That actually made him blink.
"Really?" he asked, caught off guard.
"Yeah," I said with a small smirk. "A deeply paranoid, control-freak friend, but still a friend. And I know you. When you're like this, something's off."
I leaned forward slightly, meeting his eye.
"Come on. The Council's always a pain, but this?" I shook my head. "This isn't just politics. What's really going on?"
He paused just for a couple of seconds before answering me.
"They are, but they're only part of the problem," he said.
"What do you mean?"
"I've been hearing whispers. Some people in the government are considering releasing Lex Luthor."
For a second, I just stared at him, trying to process the sheer stupidity of that sentence.
"Lex Luthor? The same guy who nearly started a war just to kill Superman? The one who built a robot army to take on Superman, the Justice League, and the Avengers? That Lex Luthor… and they want to let him walk?"
"Yes," Fury said evenly. "And it's because of Omni."
"What?!"
"This is exactly why I wanted him with the Avengers," Fury continued, his tone tightening just a bit. "So I could keep things under control, keep him under control. But since he's not and going after Sentinel Services. The government's scared. And when they're scared, they start making desperate choices."
I clenched my fists. "So their solution is Lex?"
"Right now, Omni's holding back," Fury said. "Bruises. Broken bones. That's it. But the question they're asking is, what happens when he stops holding back?"
I didn't like where this was going.
"Lex is a sociopath," Fury went on, not even trying to sugarcoat it. "But when it comes to dealing with alien-level threats, he's one of the most capable minds on the planet. To them… that makes him an option."
"An option?" I snapped. "The second he gets any freedom, he's going right back after Superman. And this time? Who knows how many people get caught in the crossfire, how many end up dead because of it?"
Fury didn't argue. He just met my eyes.
"I know," he said quietly. "I don't like it either. But there are limits to what even I can control. If they move forward with this, he won't be free, not really. He'll be on a leash."
I let out a sharp breath, shaking my head.
"Yeah," I muttered. "And I'm sure that's going to work out perfectly."
"Look, Omni isn't that kind of kid. He's doing what's right," I said, pushing back. "If I'm being honest, if the Avengers and I weren't tied up with everything else, we'd be doing the exact same thing. Especially Steve."
"Maybe," Fury replied, unfazed. "But you're not. Which means right now, you're not the one I'm worried about. Omni is. He's walking around with the power of Millions of unknown aliens."
I exhaled, rubbing the back of my neck. "Really wish Natasha never told you that."
Fury's lips twitched just slightly. "Sometimes, I wish that too."
I shook my head. "I'd help you if I could, but there's no way Omni backs down. Not from this. Not when mutants are being treated like this. As long as Sentinel Services are a threat to innocent people, he's going to fight them."
"As far as we know, he's not even a mutant," Fury pointed out.
I met his gaze without hesitation. "You don't have to be a mutant to know what they're doing is wrong."
"You're right about that," Fury admitted. "Can you set up a meeting between him and me? Let me talk to him, explain the situation."
"You want to recruit him for S.H.I.E.L.D.," I said flatly.
"Yes. If I can bring him in, it'll calm a lot of people down," Fury replied.
I let out a quiet breath. "I can set up the meeting. But I'm telling you now, he's not joining you."
Fury studied me. "What makes you so sure?"
I paused, my mind drifting back a few months.
Months ago
"Omni never join S.H.I.E.L.D.," I said.
We were in the middle of tearing through a swarm of robots, metal crashing and explosions lighting up the sky.
"Really? This is the time you bring that up?" he shot back, shifting into his forearm form.
"These things are nothing," I muttered, firing a barrage of rockets that wiped out a cluster in seconds. "Fury just pissed me off a couple of days ago, and I just remembered. Just promise me you won't ever join him."
He grabbed a robot, spun, and hurled it into another group, crushing them all in one hit.
"Fine," he said. "Wasn't planning on joining him, or anyone, anyway."
Present
I came back to the moment and shrugged slightly. "Call it a gut feeling. Just don't get your hopes up."
Fury hummed under his breath, clearly unconvinced, but not surprised either.
Franklin POV
I was at the mall with Andy, Peter, and Ned, just hanging out and catching Andy up on everything he missed the last time we were here.
"So let me get this straight, Flash isn't a bully anymore?" Andy asked, raising an eyebrow.
Peter shrugged. "After Franklin beat the hell out of him for messing with you, he kind of mellowed out. He's still a jerk sometimes, but lately? He's been… better."
Andy let out a low whistle. "Man, you should've done that a long time ago."
"Maybe," I said, leaning back a little. "But I always figured he'd grow out of it eventually. I didn't want it ending with my fists covered in blood."
And that was the truth.
I never wanted it to go that far. I knew Flash had it in him to be a decent guy, I'd seen glimpses of it. I didn't want to be the reason that got buried under anger or humiliation.
But that day, he crossed a line.
I don't tolerate people hurting my friends.
Yeah, I felt bad about how far I took it… But if it came down to it again? I'd do the same thing without hesitation.
Because I know they'd do it for me.
Especially Yolanda.
Honestly, if she'd gotten to Flash first, he would've ended up in a much worse condition than I left him in.
Small miracles, I guess.
"Hey, do you guys want more pizza?" Peter asked.
"Yeah, I'm still hungry," I said.
"Got it." He stood up, stretching.
Ned pushed his tray aside and got up with him. "I need a refill too."
The two of them headed off, leaving Andy and me at the table.
We sat there in a comfortable silence. No pressure to talk, no awkwardness, just… quiet. It was nice. After a minute, though, Andy shifted a bit and finally spoke.
"Hey, Franklin… can I ask you something?"
"Always," I said, glancing over at him. "What's on your mind?"
He hesitated for a second. "What do you think about what Omni's doing to Sentinel Services?"
I raised an eyebrow but didn't dodge it. "I think he's doing the right thing. What Sentinel Services is doing? That's completely wrong."
Andy frowned slightly. "But people are saying they only go after bad mutants."
I shook my head. "Don't just take people's word for it. Look into it yourself. Check different sources, compare what you find. That's the only way you get the full picture."
He nodded, taking that in, so I kept going.
"From everything I've seen, they're not just targeting criminals. They're taking innocent mutants, too, people with no records at all. Families. Kids. Dragging them out of their homes in the middle of the night just because their mutation are showing."
Andy's expression tightened.
"And it doesn't stop there," I added. "Their trials are a joke, completely stacked against them. Long sentences, no real chance to defend themselves. It's not justice… It's control."
I leaned back slightly, meeting his eyes.
"So yeah… if Omni's stepping in to stop innocent people from going through that? Then yeah, I think he's doing the right thing."
"Do you believe what people are saying, that Omni and Magneto are basically the same?" Andy asked.
"Yeah, I've heard that," I said. "And I don't agree with it."
He frowned, clearly not convinced, so I leaned forward a little.
"Magneto is a mutant who's lived through the worst humanity has to offer, persecution, violence, people being taken and never seen again. He's seen it all firsthand. That kind of thing changes you. It hardens you. He doesn't really care what happens to humans as long as mutants are safe. To him, protecting his kind comes first, no matter the cost."
Andy listened closely, so I continued.
"Omni's different. He's not a mutant, he's just a guy with powers. And from what I can tell, he doesn't see two sides. He just sees people. Humans hurting other humans. That's it."
I shrugged slightly.
"Mutants are human, just… different. Omni gets that. If a mutant's hurting innocent people, he'll stop them. If a human's doing it, same thing. There's no bias there. It's simple for him, right is right, wrong is wrong."
Andy studied me for a second. "You talk like you know them."
I let out a small laugh. "I don't. But if you watch enough footage, read enough reports, you start to understand how people think. Still… that's just my take. You're free to come to your own conclusion."
He laughed a little with me, then nodded.
"I'll do that. But I've got one more question… how do you feel about mutants?"
I didn't hesitate. "Like I said, mutants and humans are the same. Just a little different. If you're asking whether I hate them? No. Not even close."
Andy studied me for a second. "You're not afraid of them? Or… jealous of their abilities?"
"Not at all," I said, without missing a beat. "Mutants get a bad reputation, but most of them aren't dangerous. It comes down to the individual. Yeah, there are some bad ones, but there are good ones too. Same as humans."
I shrugged lightly.
"You can't judge an entire group because of a few bad apples. That just make you the king of stupid."
He let out a small laugh, then his expression shifted. He looked at me, took a breath, like he was about to step off a ledge.
"Franklin… even if we haven't seen each other in a while, you still consider me your friend, right?" Andy asked.
"Of course I do," I said without hesitation. "We could go ten years without talking and that wouldn't change anything."
He nodded, like he needed to hear that.
"Okay… good. Because I need to tell you something. And you can't tell anyone else," he said, his voice turning serious.
I smirked a little. "You'd be surprised how many secrets people trust me with. One more won't hurt."
He hesitated for a few seconds, gathering himself.
"Franklin… I'm a mu—"
A deafening screech of metal cut him off.
We both snapped our heads up just as the ceiling above us began to tear apart, steel beams twisting and ripping like paper. The roof was peeled back, exposing the sky in seconds.
People started screaming.
Figures descended through the opening, floating, controlled.
At the center of them was Magneto, his cape drifting behind him like a shadow. Around him, the Brotherhood followed standing on large floating disc, all eyes locked on us.
"Shit…" Andy muttered under his breath.
Magneto's gaze settled, calm and absolute.
"Andy Strucker," he called out, his voice carrying across the chaos. "The power of Fenris is needed once more, for mutantkind."