Several hours had passed since Ethan's brutal confrontation with the Abomination and his forced relocation of the Hulk to this isolated island. He harbored serious doubts that the location would remain "isolated" for much longer. His final offensive against Mahoraga had bled through the boundaries of the Mirror Dimension and into the physical world; S.H.I.E.L.D.'s sensors had undoubtedly flagged the astronomical spike in temperature in the sector.
Despite the looming threat of discovery, Ethan remained composed. He had manifested two Toras, who used advanced Transmutation spells to construct a makeshift residence. It was a surreal sight: a bipedal, twelve-foot-tall tiger shikigami serving tea while Ethan and Dr. Bruce Banner sat down for a civilized discussion. Dr. Banner, of course, couldn't drink, as he was still in Astral form.
Even now, Ethan maintained his microscopic domain—a razor-thin veil of the Chimera Sovereign Garden. Far across the ocean in Myanmar, the aid efforts of his Chimera Kannon legion continued unabated in the ruins of Labutta Township.
Ethan had been candid with Banner, explaining the intricacies of Cursed Energy and the malevolent nature of Cursed Spirits. Whether it was due to the trauma he had just witnessed or the presence of bipedal tigers, the doctor had accepted the information with surprising ease. Currently, Banner and the primary Tora were sequestered in the makeshift lab, meticulously refining the prototype for "Cursed Glasses"—specialized eyewear designed to allow non-sorcerers to perceive curses.
Standing on a nearby ridge, Ethan watched the sunrise bleed across the horizon. It was a rare moment of tranquility. Then, his Motorola vibrated.
The message came from a reconnaissance operative stationed in Los Angeles. Ethan had saved the man's life years prior, and in return, the agent provided eyes and ears on the West Coast without the need for a formal commission. The text was blunt:
"Two 'Iron Men' are tearing up the middle of the city. You said report anything unusual, right? This is definitely it. Should I engage?"
"Do not engage," Ethan typed back instantly. Underestimating the lethality of a Stark-tech suit was a fast track to a shallow grave, and Ethan wasn't interested in explaining to the Ancient One why a team member had been vaporized in a human-to-human conflict.
"This day just keeps getting better," Ethan muttered, with a flicker of genuine excitement. He had heard about Tony Stark's disappearance in Afghanistan back in March, but he had been far too busy suppressing a massive outbreak of Cursed Spirits along the West Coast and Europe to investigate.
He had, however, found the time to invest a modest fortune—accumulated through high-stakes commissions—into Stark Industries stocks when the price bottomed out. He had bought just enough to secure his future without attracting the scrutiny of the SEC. He wasn't exactly swimming in wealth like a certain white-haired imbecile from Tokyo Jujutsu High, but he was comfortable.
Ethan turned back toward the house. Inside, the primary Tora and Banner, who was still in his Astral form, hovered over a workbench with surgical focus. Below them, the Hulk's massive physical body lay sprawled across the floor, an absurd cowboy hat perched atop his green head.
"This place will be crawling with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in a matter of hours," Ethan announced as he entered. "I have an isolated cabin in Colombia equipped with every tool you'll need, Doctor. Tora can transport you there immediately."
"S.H.I.E.L.D. agents?" Banner asked, his brow furrowing. At this stage in the timeline, the doctor had yet to encounter the shadow organization or the persuasive efforts of Agent Romanoff.
"It's not because of you," Ethan reassured him. "I effectively turned this island into scorched earth a few hours ago. They'll be coming to investigate the anomaly, not specifically the Hulk. Tora will explain the finer details to you."
"I will?" the Tora questioned, his tail twitching in annoyance at being relegated to a tour guide and narrator. A sharp, singular look from Ethan silenced the tiger's protest.
"I'm leaving now. Enjoy your stay in Colombia, Dr. Banner," Ethan said, turning toward the exit.
"Where... where are you going?" Bruce asked, his voice hesitant. He was still mentally grappling with the fact that the teenage boy standing before him claimed to have leveled an entire island.
Ethan stepped out into the clearing. With a sudden surge of cursed energy, the massive, feathered wings of Nue erupted from his back. He looked back over his shoulder with a mischievous smile.
"To the City of Angels, of course."
He took flight, a streak of shadow against the morning sky. As the two remaining Toras watched his silhouette vanish into the distance, one of them grumbled, "He could have just used a portal."
The Tora standing beside Banner offered a knowing smirk. "You remember what Ethan says... 'It's perfectly fine to aura farm as long as lives aren't at stake.'"
"Aura farm?" Banner asked, completely lost.
"You'll understand soon enough, Dr. Banner," Tora replied, his voice dripping with frustration. "Now, let's go. I suppose I have to explain what S.H.I.E.L.D. is now, too. Tsk." He wondered if this was his punishment for doubting Ethan's ability to tame the Divine General. He wouldn't put it past him.
On the distant horizon of the island, a shadowed silhouette detached itself from Ethan's presence. A Tora, emerging from the depths of the Chimera Sovereign Garden, traced a precise arc in the air with a Sling Ring. A circular portal of sparking orange energy tore open the fabric of reality, bridging the gap to Los Angeles—specifically, the roof of the Stark Industries headquarters.
Tony Stark, encased in his battle-scarred Mark III armor, crash-landed atop the building's reinforced roof, skidding to a halt just inches from the massive glass skylight of the Arc Reactor. The machine below hummed with a terrifying throb, powering the entire complex.
"Potts," Tony grunted into the comms, his voice strained.
Inside the facility, Pepper Potts clutched her headset, her eyes darting between the monitors. "Tony? Are you okay?"
"I'm almost out of power... I've got to get out of this thing," he replied. He had barely survived the high-altitude gambit, banking on the Iron Monger's inability to solve the icing problem. Obadiah Stane had frozen over and plummeted, but Tony knew the victory was fleeting.
As if on cue, the massive, hulking bulk of the Iron Monger suit surged up from the ledge behind him. "Destroy..." Obadiah's voice boomed through the external speakers as he swung a massive, hydraulic fist at the smaller figure.
Tony instinctively extended his left arm to unleash a repulsor blast, only to find his gauntlet missing—sheared off in the previous struggle. The Iron Monger's right hook connected with the force of a wrecking ball, hurling Tony across the rooftop like a ragdoll.
Tony scrambled back into the fray, successfully landing a punch, but the proximity was a mistake. Stane's massive mechanical hands clamped onto the Mark III's torso, squeezing with enough pressure to buckle the alloy. "Flares!" Tony screamed. The blinding magnesium bursts erupted, stunning Obadiah just long enough for the grip to slacken.
Realizing that brute force was a losing game, Tony called Pepper again. "Potts! This isn't working. We have to overload the reactor and blast the roof."
"How are you going to do that?" she cried over the sound of grinding metal.
"You're going to do it. Go to the central console and open up all the circuits. When I give you the signal, hit the master bypass button. It's going to fry everything up here."
Pepper didn't hesitate. She raced to the console, her fingers flying across the interface as she began disengaging the safety limiters. On the roof, Tony jumped onto the Iron Monger's back, desperately ripping away the critical cabling that powered Stane's targeting and visibility systems.
Infuriated, Stane grabbed Tony's helmet and tore it clean off, throwing the billionaire across the roof directly into the line of fire of the giant Arc Reactor. Obadiah slid the canopy of his suit open to get a better look, still clutching the mangled Mark III helmet.
"I never had a taste for this sort of thing," Obadiah sneered, crushing the gold-and-red helmet in his hand before tossing it at Tony. "But I must admit, I am deeply enjoying the suit. You've finally outdone yourself, Tony. You've made your father proud."
"It's ready! Tony, get off the roof!" Pepper's voice screamed through the building's PA system.
Suddenly, the Iron Monger's arm cannons opened fire, shattering the glass beneath Tony. He barely managed to snag a metal ledge, dangling precariously over the glowing core of the reactor.
"How ironic, Tony," Stane mocked, taking aim with his remaining ballistic missiles. "In your path to rid the world of weapons, you gave it its best one ever. And now, I'm going to kill you with it." He fired, but without his targeting computer, the missiles whistled past, exploding harmlessly in the distance.
"Pepper! Hit the button!" Stark shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Hold still, you little prick," Obadiah growled, aiming manually.
"Just do it!" Tony yelled.
"You'll die!" Pepper sobbed.
"Push it!"
Pepper slammed the master bypass. The Arc Reactor began to groan, a high-pitched whine escalating into a deafening roar. At that exact moment, a final missile strike rocked the ledge. The shockwave broke Tony's grip, and he began to fall backward into the eye of the impending energy storm.
"Today is not the day you die, Stark."
A new voice cut through the chaos. Ethan arrived in a blur of motion just as the final missile impacted. In a display of superspeed, he intercepted Tony mid-air, transporting him clear of the Arc Reactor's reach in the span of a heartbeat.
A second later, a colossal pillar of blue and white energy erupted into the night sky. The blast consumed the Iron Monger instantly; Ethan had nudged the suit toward the surge, the sheer output of the Arc Reactor vaporizing Obadiah Stane entirely.
Tony remained conscious throughout the ordeal. When his vision cleared, he found himself on an adjacent rooftop, safe from the explosion consuming the main building. He looked up to see a figure in a red hoodie. Floating above his head, like a spinning, golden halo, was a heavy metallic wheel.
"What... what happened?" Tony gasped, staring at the explosion.
"Your girlfriend came through in the clutch, Stark," Ethan replied, his hands in his pockets as he watched the light show.
"How did I get here? I was falling into the eye of the explosion... and she's not my girlfriend. Yet," Tony managed to quip, though his chest was heaving.
Ethan simply smiled, the Dharma Wheel above him giving one click. Mahoraga had partially adapted to the high-intensity plasma blast of the Arc Reactor.
"Heh. I have a feeling we'll meet again. Until then, farewell."
With a sudden gust of wind, he vanished, leaving only a breeze behind. Ethan finally understood why the Ancient One played the role of the mysterious sage so often; it certainly had a satisfying ring to it. Speaking of his mentor, she had seemed uncharacteristically distraught during their last communication, particularly after learning the details regarding Mahito. She was currently in Africa on a separate matter—perhaps it was time for a visit.
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