The contestant profiles scrolled across the massive screen.
Robbie Baldwin
Codename: Speedball
A young man who looked more nervous than confident jogged onto the stage. He wore a suit that looked like it had been stitched together from a modified wetsuit, decorated with strange padded spheres.
"Uh… h-hi everyone," Robbie said, rubbing his hands together nervously. "My name's Speedball. My ability is… kinetic energy absorption and release."
Tony Stark leaned back in his chair, unimpressed.
"Sounds like a human punching bag. Show us something, kid. Don't tell me you're just good at getting hit."
Robbie took a deep breath.
Backstage, a staff member rushed out holding an ordinary baseball bat—the kind you could buy at any sports store—and swung it with full force straight into Robbie's stomach.
BAM!
The audience gasped.
Robbie didn't move an inch.
A ripple of blue energy spread outward from his abdomen like waves in water.
"Hah!"
Robbie thrust his palms forward. A shockwave blasted out, hurling the staff member—now holding a broken bat—three or four meters backward, dumping him hard onto the floor.
Tony raised an eyebrow.
"Interesting."
He slapped the red button in front of him.
Thump!
The light pillar for Iron Man's team flared to life.
"Kinetic conversion efficiency looks like about sixty percent," Tony said, skimming the data JARVIS projected. "Get that up to ninety and you can double as my backup power source if my arc reactor ever fails. I want you."
"He's not a battery, Tony."
Steve Rogers pressed his own button.
Thump!
"He's a shield," Steve said calmly, looking at Robbie with approval. "You absorb damage. That means you can protect your teammates. You can stand between danger and innocent people. That saves lives. That matters."
Jessica glanced at both of them, shrugged, and didn't hit her light.
"Alright, Robbie," the host announced. "You've got two choices. Follow the billionaire and learn how to become a battery… or follow the soldier and learn how to be a shield."
Robbie's face flushed with excitement. He looked at Tony, eyes full of awe.
"I'm a huge Iron Man fan! My room is full of Iron Man figures!"
Tony smirked and shot Steve an apologetic look.
"But my mom always said… you gotta be a good person first," Robbie said, turning toward Steve. "So I choose Captain America!"
Tony rolled his eyes.
"Great. Another Boy Scout. Next!"
The host barely missed a beat.
"Next contestant! The Firestar—Angelica "Angel" Jones!"
Up-tempo music kicked in as a red-haired woman strode onto the stage.
She wore a tight, flame-red leather suit cut boldly, revealing swathes of pale skin. Her figure was explosive—impossible to ignore. The moment she stepped forward, she blew a sultry kiss, and a burst of fire blossomed in the air, forming a flaming heart.
"Woooah—!"
Tony's eyes widened. He whistled reflexively and slammed his button without thinking.
Smack!
"Now that," Tony said, "is what a superhero should look like. I mean—purely from a visual branding standpoint."
"Tony," Steve frowned. "She hasn't even shown her powers yet."
"She already did," Tony replied smoothly, pointing at Angelica. "She raised the room temperature. I can feel it. That's talent."
Angelica ignored Tony entirely. She walked to the center of the stage, smiled at the camera, and said softly:
"My name is Angelica. My power is… combustion."
She spread her arms wide.
"Maximum output!"
WHOOM!
Flames erupted, engulfing her body in blazing fire. She became a living inferno, flames spiraling around her as fiery wings formed behind her back.
Using bursts of fire, she lifted into the air, sketching a massive glowing V—Vought's logo—before condensing the flames into her palm, shaping them into a delicate rose of fire.
Heat washed over the audience; even the front rows could feel it.
Tony instinctively put on sunglasses.
Steve stared at the scene, his expression briefly distant.
Then—
Thump.
He pressed his button.
The crowd erupted.
Tony turned to him in disbelief.
"Capsicle? Seriously? I thought you only liked, y'know—agents in uniforms holding classified folders. Didn't know you were into the spicy type."
"Tony, watch your mouth," Steve said, snapping back to himself. "She just… feels familiar."
"And her ability has real tactical value," he added firmly. "Fire can suppress enemies and clear paths in combat."
"Oh please," Tony scoffed. "You just think she's hot."
"I agree with Steve," Jessica finally said, breaking her silence. "She's not just pretty. Her flame control is extremely precise."
She hit her button.
Thump!
Three lights. All lit.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" the host shouted. "Our first three-light contestant! Angelica, control reversal! The choice is yours!"
Angelica let the flames fade, returning to normal—her sponsored Vought suit completely undamaged.
"Alright, hot stuff," Tony said, spreading his hands. "Choose me. I'll build you a custom flame armor—hotter output, faster flight."
Angelica glanced at Tony—too flirty.
Then at Steve—too upright.
Finally, her gaze settled on Jessica.
"I choose Jewel's team," Angelica said, flipping her red hair. "Girls help girls."
"Well chosen," Jessica said with an appreciative smile.
Tony slumped back in his chair.
"What is wrong with kids these days? Aren't billionaires attractive anymore?"
The auditions rolled on.
The stage turned into a parade of chaos.
A guy who could plunge everyone around him into crippling sadness—the "emo boy."
A man who could liquefy his body and slide through cracks.
Someone who hardened his teeth like steel.
Another contestant claimed he could talk to fish—until Tony asked, "So… do you eat sushi?" and he fled in shame.
Then contestant number thirty-five stepped onto the stage.
A silver-haired young man in a sleek silver tracksuit.
Pietro Maximoff.
Hands in his pockets. Chewing gum. A defiant, reckless look in his eyes.
When his gaze locked onto Tony Stark, the naked hatred there made Tony's spine prickle.
Tony leaned toward Steve and muttered, "Who's that? Do I owe him money? He looks like he wants to kill me."
"You probably sold weapons that hurt someone he cared about," Steve said honestly. "You've got a lot of fans like that."
Tony sighed.
"Fantastic. Just my luck."
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