New York
The moment Marcus eliminated the Chitauri commander, all invading Chitauri soldiers lost their ability to move, collapsing to the ground like puppets with severed strings.
"They all just... stopped!" Clint exclaimed.
From his elevated position with bow in hand, he was the first to notice the strange behavior of the Chitauri forces.
Tony verified through Jarvis that all Chitauri soldiers had simultaneously lost their vital signs.
"They were all killed at exactly the same time," he said in disbelief.
The situation seemed impossible. These destructive invaders were clearly living beings, yet they had fallen like robots whose power had suddenly been cut.
"Could it be...?"
Everyone looked up at the portal hovering above them. If nothing had changed on their side, the answer must lie on the other side of the gateway.
They watched as Marcus rushed back through the portal. Whatever had happened to the Chitauri forces in New York must have been caused by his actions in space.
Under their collective gaze, the energy field surrounding the portal gradually dissipated, allowing objects from the other side to fall through.
At first, only small items came through—Chitauri remains and pieces of their technological equipment.
But as time passed, more and larger objects began emerging from the portal.
Jingle... Tinkle...
Countless crystal fragments descended from the sky, glittering in the sunlight as they fell.
"Everyone take cover and clear out these falling objects!" Steve shouted.
Though the sky appeared beautiful, they all recognized the danger hidden behind this deceptively serene scene.
Unlike in space, Earth's gravity would turn these beautiful fragments into deadly projectiles upon impact.
Stark Tower faced the most immediate danger, positioned directly beneath the portal.
Following Steve's command, everyone sprang into action.
Hulk leapt powerfully upward, charging directly into the falling crystal fragments. He struck the larger pieces with devastating punches.
BANG!
The crystal fragments exploded instantly, transforming into countless sand-like particles that dispersed in the air.
After completing one rotation, Hulk swung again, shattering another large fragment.
After destroying all nearby crystal fragments, Hulk didn't stop. He slammed his massive hands together where the crystal fragments were most concentrated.
BOOM!!!
A powerful shockwave erupted from his palms, blasting toward the falling debris.
Crack-crack-crack...
The concussive force shattered all crystal fragments in its path, reducing them to fine dust scattering through the air.
While Hulk attacked the fragments, Tony directed Jarvis to control all Iron Man suits to target the falling debris.
"Thor, hit me!" Tony called out.
Hearing Tony's request, Thor didn't hesitate. A powerful lightning bolt erupted from Mjolnir, striking Tony and all his deployed armors.
Supercharged by Thor's lightning, Tony unleashed the full attack capabilities of his suits. Golden energy beams burst forth in all directions.
Like an enormous energy net, the beams enveloped the portal area, continuously vaporizing crystal fragments and various debris.
Despite their combined efforts, the material falling from the portal didn't diminish—it increased.
"Wait, what is THAT?" someone called out.
A massive crystal structure suddenly protruded from the portal. The crystal appeared completely intact, and inside, they could see lifelike Chitauri figures, perfectly preserved like insects in amber.
"Damn!" Tony swore.
Though the object was remarkable, falling from such a height it would destroy Stark Tower completely.
"Looks like I should start cleaning up here," Marcus's voice came through their communicators.
Everyone watched in astonishment as the giant crystal, instead of smashing down onto Stark Tower as expected, began moving through the air at a controlled, leisurely pace.
Tony and Thor curiously flew upward to investigate. After passing the enormous crystal, they saw six massive warships descending from the sky, surrounding the crystal.
"You did all this?" Tony asked in amazement.
He immediately understood these warships had become Marcus's spoils of war—his relaxed tone made that clear.
How had Marcus accomplished this? One person facing an entire Chitauri armada had not only prevented the invasion of Earth but also annihilated all enemy troops.
He'd even brought back a gigantic "art piece" and these enormous warships.
"Of course," Marcus replied. "Today is Bucky's wedding day after all. I had to bring some suitable presents, right?"
As he spoke, Marcus walked out onto the deck of the central battleship, spread his arms wide, and called down proudly to Tony and Thor.
"What do you think of my wedding gift?"
His words left everyone speechless. Even Fury, still arguing with the World Security Council directors aboard the helicarrier, couldn't help but twitch his lips in disbelief.
Whether considering the massive Chitauri crystal or the fleet of battleships, they were undoubtedly the most extravagant gifts imaginable.
After all, nobody on Earth had ever received a space battleship as a wedding present.
"Director Fury," a blonde woman on the Council said, her eyes gleaming with ambition, "we can overlook what happened earlier, but those warships must be seized by the Council. Immediately."
If these warships came under her country's control, their global power and influence would increase dramatically.
"I'm sorry, but that individual is not under my command," Fury replied firmly.
He might have been willing to negotiate with other parties, but he had no desire to confront Marcus.
Marcus had cooperated with Carol to force back the Kree fleet more than ten years ago—and that was before he could even fly.
Now, with Marcus's considerably improved abilities, Fury couldn't predict what enemies Earth might face if they provoked him.
Marcus's power had just been demonstrated conclusively. The enormous Chitauri crystal and captured battleships were evidence enough.
Which country on Earth could withstand Marcus's anger? As the man responsible for global security, Fury would firmly refuse the Council's demands, regardless of their position.
"You—!" the blonde director began angrily.
"Ahem," a black-haired Asian man interrupted her. "Director Fury, I understand your concerns. We should indeed exercise caution when dealing with someone of such power."
"Perhaps you could negotiate with him. We could purchase some warships—I doubt he needs all six. If negotiations succeed, China would like to reserve one."
As soon as these words were spoken, several other directors chimed in, stating that their countries had also "reserved" a warship.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Support me at [email protected]/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~