Chapter 188: War Begins!
When Steve and the others returned to H.A.M.M.E.R. exhausted, Ben had already gone to the cosmos with Tony.
To be precise, they were inside H.A.M.M.E.R.'s satellites.
"We need to speed things up."
At this moment, Tony was inside one of the satellites, not wearing his battle armor, only a signal transmitter on his head.
This device amplified the signal from the implants in his body, ensuring he could control multiple machines simultaneously.
Jarvis displayed dozens of different screens before him.
Tony's gaze shifted back and forth:
"Make31, remove the satellite's solar panels. They're in the way."
Then, in one of the screens, a battle armor clenched its fist and fired a laser from its backhand, severing the satellite's wings.
"Number 27, tighten the third screw on the left."
"Number 18, take a swimsuit photo..."
He chuckled to himself after saying that.
Outside the satellites, dozens of remotely controlled battle armors worked in unison, like bees around a hive, constantly modifying and constructing the satellites.
This was a huge mental burden for Tony, as there were too many details for a single person to manage, yet he had to control so many machines at once.
Jarvis could only help him with a small portion of the load.
On the other side, Ben was in a similar situation, except he had transformed into Brainstorm.
Brainstorm was a Cerebrocrustacean, a species with exceptionally high intelligence in the cosmos, comparable to the Galvans.
Aside from Azmuth, who was an exceptionally overpowered individual among the Galvans, other Galvans wouldn't necessarily claim to be smarter than a Brainstorm.
However, in Ben's opinion, Brainstorm's intellect was highly developed, capable of handling more computational power than Grey Matter.
The brain of a Brainstorm occupied more than half of its body volume. Where ordinary crabs had delicious roe under their shells, a Brainstorm's shell opened to reveal a pink brain.
Their brains had even evolved the ability to release electrical currents.
At this moment, Ben didn't need any AI assistance. In his vision, all objects seemed interactive, like in a game, and all the data in the world appeared to be clearly labeled.
One could say that if Grey Matter's intelligence was like a genius's inspiration, bursting with brilliant flashes, then Brainstorm's intelligence was like a strict program, an unimaginably advanced super-brain.
Under his control, hundreds of Iron Soldiers operated in space.
Since Ben had bought Hammer Industries and all its production lines, they had produced quite a number of Iron Soldiers. Some of them were deployed in Queens, directly making it the place with the lowest crime rate in America.
More were stored in warehouses.
Ben's progress was much faster than Tony's, but it would still take several days.
So, when he heard Tony telling jokes to himself over the comms, he joined in the conversation.
"Number 18 is good, but Number 21 is even better."
"Indeed!" Tony agreed with a nod, then asked curiously, "Why does your voice sound weird?"
"I caught a cold..."
Because his voice had become high-pitched after transforming into Brainstorm, Ben awkwardly poked his solid head shell with a pincer.
Tony didn't suspect anything and said, "You know, I was also planning to launch a satellite."
"To house my big guy, which I call Veronica. This is what I prepared for the big guy."
"The Hulkbuster Armor?" Ben immediately knew he was referring to the Hulkbuster Armor.
"No, no, no, it's the Four Arms Buster Armor."
Tony said proudly, "I gave it six arms. If Monster Hand Number One ever becomes a threat, Veronica will definitely be able to handle him."
"It's not just Veronica, but also the Heatblast Buster Armor, the Diamondhead Buster Armor... I've made them all."
"You think having a few more arms will win?"
After hearing Tony's words, Ben rolled his eyes: "Sometimes I think you're really childish, always thinking you can beat others at their own strengths?"
"But it's the exact opposite. Yours should be called the 'Who Gets Beaten By Whom Armor'."
After saying that, Ben added:
"I'm being polite here."
Inside H.A.M.M.E.R.
Peter and the others had learned everything from Norman.
"Honestly, I'm not sure if I can beat aliens," Peter said anxiously.
Steve patted his shoulder and said, "Believe in yourself, kid. If you can't, then none of us here can."
Hearing his words, everyone else nodded in agreement.
Having fought crime together in Hell's Kitchen recently, they had all deeply experienced how terrifying Spider-Man's strength was.
He could snap steel bars several centimeters thick as if they were twigs, and lift trucks weighing over ten tons without even breaking a sweat.
Now, the Avengers were gathered in the conference room, holding a strategy meeting.
Norman, as the public face of the operation, naturally sat at the head of the table, followed closely by the Avengers' spiritual leader, Steve Rogers.
The seat opposite Captain America was empty, reserved for Tony.
The others took their seats accordingly.
"Will the protective barrier be ready in time?" Captain America asked.
"The satellites that have already been built will be launched tomorrow. As for Hacker and Tony, we can only hope they speed things up," Norman replied.
"For a battle of this magnitude, I really don't know what we can do," Natasha said, feeling a strong urge to just give up.
"That's why we need to make a plan," Steve said.
Next, information about the Chitauri army was displayed.
The Chitauri intelligence had been provided by Loki. He hadn't lied about this, as the Galactic Plumbers Headquarters possessed such data.
"The good news is, the Chitauri don't possess weapons with extremely destructive power. Although their technology is advanced, their warfare still relies primarily on soldiers."
"However, it's worth noting that every Chitauri is a modified, semi-mechanical warrior. They are strong, but not so strong that we cannot handle them."
Hearing Steve speak with such apparent confidence, Norman asked, "Captain, do you have a good plan?"
Steve's gaze swept across the room, and then he smiled faintly.
"The old way."
"First, the ideal scenario is for the shield to completely isolate all the Chitauri."
Everyone nodded.
"Next, Tony and Primus's numerous battle armors and Iron Soldiers can serve as the vanguard, engaging the Chitauri head-on."
Steve drew a line across the tabletop.
Then he continued, "As for us, we will infiltrate the bodies of those Chitauri Beasts and eliminate the enemy leader."
It was indeed an old tactic.
This was the same strategy Steve had used when he led the Howling Commandos back in the day.
"Don't turn into a popsicle in space again this time," Natasha said with a smile.
Hearing this, Steve also chuckled.
"It's fine, I don't have a date this time."
Then he said, "If any of you have a dance you haven't danced yet, I suggest you go do it now."
Upon hearing this, Peter lowered his head, contemplating whether he should go confess to Liz.
The others didn't seem to react much.
Natasha had no attachments, Hawkeye had long accepted the possibility of sacrifice, and T'Challa had never considered his own death.
Matt planned to go arrange matters at his law firm later, and Falcon also intended to tender his resignation at the Department of Veterans Affairs after the meeting.
After retiring, he had been there, helping and counseling soldiers who struggled to move past the trauma of war.
Seeing everyone's solemn expressions, Steve smiled and reassured them, "Don't be so serious. At least this time, we're all here, and we still have Hacker."
However, Peter still felt a bit uneasy.
He fidgeted with his hands on the table, twisting them together, and then asked, "But, um, if we go to space, how will we get there?"
"Wear spacesuits?"
"We can just sneak aboard those charging Iron Armors."
With the plan settled, the Avengers dispersed to make their preparations, waiting for the war to begin.
As Norman was about to leave, Hill arrived with a few people who looked like ordinary citizens.
He was about to ask Hill why she had brought these people to H.A.M.M.E.R. when he saw Hill's expression, which was hard to describe.
"Director, these people... no, these things want to see you."
"Hmm?"
Next, Norman watched as colorful, gooey substances suddenly emerged from these individuals.
"Greetings, Earthling."
"We are Agents of the Cosmos from the Andromeda Galaxy. Two of our companions are lost, but that's not important right now."
The leading Symbiote was red, and it spoke first, introducing itself and stating its purpose.
"I deeply apologize for drawing the Chitauri to Earth, but now only the Asgardians have the ability to deal with them," the Symbiote said.
Up until now, they had thought they were the ones who brought the devils here.
"Earth has always been under the jurisdiction of the gods of Asgard. I believe you should have a way to contact Thor."
At this, Norman's face showed a strange expression.
He said, "I can indeed find Thor Odinson, it's just..."
He trailed off.
But the Symbiotes didn't notice this.
They said, "That's wonderful. Please be sure to take us to him."
Norman fulfilled their request.
Then, the scene shifted.
Several Symbiote slimes arrived outside a mobile home in New York. Multiple pairs of eyes stared into the house, and a useless Thor immediately fell into the Symbiotes' sight.
At that moment, Thor was at a female doctor's home, acting like an ordinary Earth man deeply in love.
The red Symbiote said, "It's him..."
The Symbiotes' Hive mind contained records of Thor defeating the Symbiote Dragon, and all the Symbiotes clearly remembered the God of Thunder's appearance.
But the God of Thunder had lost his Divine Power!
They all found it unbelievable.
At this moment, the sky suddenly darkened.
The Symbiotes looked up and immediately saw a colossal Chitauri Beast blotting out the sun in the distant sky!
"Damn it!"
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