"You alright?" Tony asked, coming near him as Dave shrugged. "What do you think?" he replied, and Tony nodded.
"Did you envelop your underwear in Armant Haki before the explosion?" Tony asked, chuckling.
Dave shrugged again. "That's how fast I was—only able to cover it," he admitted, and Tony nodded with a smirk.
They both looked up as the portal began to close. Monts later, they saw the nuke strike the massive ship inside, resulting in a blinding explosion. The aftermath was clear—alien forces dropped lifelessly to the ground as the connection was severed.
"Well, it's over," Dave said, sitting on the edge of a nearby building. Tony sat down next to him.
"Yeah, but the world sure has changed. This changes everything," Tony said, gazing at the sky. "People will know we're no longer the lone dominant species out there."
Dave nodded. "Well, whatever it is, we humans are still here to fight it out," he said confidently.
Tony chuckled, leaning back. "You've got a point there."
As the two sat silently, the weight of the battle lingered in the air. The city below was in ruins, yet the sense of triumph resonated as people began to erge from shelters, looking up to the skies with tentative hope.
"Still," Tony said, breaking the silence, "you're gonna need to explain how you walked through that golden barrier like it was nothing. Magic? Another one of your secrets?"
Dave smirked. "Just a little trick I picked up. You'd be surprised how much knowledge is lying around Asgard if you know where to look."
"Asgard, huh? And they call a showoff." Tony grinned. "Speaking of which, your sword—what's the deal? Infinity Stone embedded in it? That's... not sothing you see every day."
Dave's expression darkened slightly. "Loki's overconfidence was his downfall. He underestimated , but I won't underestimate the power of these stones."
"Though, I've deleted the footage of your fight with Loki. No one will know you have Infinity Stones unless soone spills the beans," Tony said.
Dave shook his head. "Do you really think no one will say anything?" he asked skeptically.
Tony nodded. "Yeah, well, SHIELD probably already knows about it," he admitted with a shrug.
Dave smirked. "Not like they're going to ask for them—unless they want to be obliterated into nothingness," he said, his tone carrying a hint of warning.
Tony chuckled. "Fair point. I doubt Fury's itching to pick that fight."
*****
The aftermath was swiftly dealt with. Now that all the aliens were dead and unmoving, SHIELD collected their bodies. The tal found on the alien equipnt, identified as non-Earth material, was taken for research to uncover its unique properties.
The following day, a world press conference was held, where the heroes gathered to answer the many questions the public had for them. However, only Black Widow, Rhodes, Captain Arica, and Hawkeye attended the event.
A reporter raised his hand and asked, "We clearly saw there were more heroes involved. Where are the rest of them?"
Rhodes exchanged a glance with the others before replying, "They're busy," keeping his answer short.
This response led to a barrage of questions:
"Who are these other heroes, and how did they get their powers?"
"How will they protect us?"
"Will there be any laws governing the use of such powers in public?"
"Or will they be isolated to prevent misuse of their abilities?"
The tension in the room was palpable as the reporters eagerly awaited answers.
"You are all lucky my friend isn't here," Tony said, entering the room in his suit. "Because if he heard the 'isolation' part, he might have obliterated you all before you could even argue."
"What do you an by that, Mr. Stark?" a reporter questioned, glaring at Tony. "Are you saying these powers are ant for personal gain, not humanity's protection?"
Tony tilted his head with a smirk. "Exactly. These powers exist to safeguard humanity, not to hoard or misuse."
The room grew quiet, but another reporter stood up. "But how can we trust that they won't turn these powers against us soday?"
Tony's expression turned serious. "Have you not seen what we've already done to help you? Without us, you would all have been alien slaves or worse. God knows what those guys would have made you do," he said, his voice firm.
The room fell silent, with so reporters visibly unsettled by his words. Rhodes stood up to speak, attempting to calm the situation, but before he could say more, Tony raised a hand, stopping him. "Let handle this," Tony said, his voice calm but commanding.
He turned back to the reporters. "Look, you want accountability? Fine. But don't sit there and act like we owe you explanations for saving the world. We risk everything so you can keep asking questions like these in peace."
Tony's words hung in the air, his confident smirk replaced with a steely gaze. The reporters shifted uneasily, a few glancing at one another as if daring soone else to ask the next question.
A bolder journalist stood up. "But what about transparency, Mr. Stark? Shouldn't the world know who has the power to change its fate? What guarantees do we have that these... heroes won't turn into tyrants?"
Tony chuckled softly, shaking his head. "Transparency? You want us to livestream every battle? Maybe take a vote on whether or not we stop the next alien invasion?" His tone dripped with sarcasm. "Look, this isn't so reality show. It's life or death, and we don't have the luxury of wasting ti on debates when the world is at stake."
Rhodes stepped in, his voice calm but firm. "What Tony's trying to say is that this isn't about power—it's about responsibility. Every single one of us is committed to protecting this planet, no strings attached."
Black Widow leaned forward, her piercing gaze silencing murmurs in the room. "Do you think we enjoy putting our lives on the line every ti sothing goes wrong? We do it because soone has to. And trust , if there were easier ways to deal with these threats, we'd take them."
Another reporter tried to interject, but Natasha cut them off. "You don't trust us? Fine. But ask yourself this: without us, who else do you have?"
*******
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