"Kree, the device has been acquired. Hurry up!" Corvus said, returning to their temporary base. He tossed the phone to the scientist, whom he had left to study the planet.
"What's this? A local communication device?" the Kree asked, examining the strange object.
"This device grants access to all the information on this planet. Find what we need as quickly as possible."
"Understood, my lord."
Operating the small device proved simple, but a problem arose—he didn't understand the local language. The translator integrated into his systems helped with spoken language, but it couldn't interpret written characters. However, the Kree quickly adjusted the translator's settings to enable text translation from the phone.
Having finished speaking, Corvus exchanged a few words with Proxima, then, holding the scepter with the Mind Stone, sat down on the floor in the empty space.
He focused on the Mind Stone's energy, and after a strange wave passed through his body, he opened his eyes again. Now, instead of the old subway station, he found himself in a desolate, rocky landscape. Darkness obscured the starlight, but blue lanterns illuminated the area around him. There were no shadows beneath his feet, as this was merely a projection of his mind, his physical body remaining on Earth. He was utilizing one of the Mind Stone's unique functions to project himself to a pre-determined location—just as Loki had done once.
"General Corvus, how are things progressing? The Master still awaits news from you," a voice echoed, belonging to someone who had long awaited his arrival. This individual, clad in a black cloak and a metallic mask, with a hood concealing their face, was none other than the Other, the leader of the Chitauri and a devoted servant of Thanos. Despite his brief appearance in the movies, where he was swiftly eliminated by Ronan, he played a more significant role here.
"The Space Stone is in my possession. When I open the portal, we will begin the war and bring the Mad Titan's will to this world," Corvus declared, then addressed the Other, "Prepare your army."
"Don't worry, the Chitauri are eager for battle."
Having completed his brief report on the operation's progress on Earth, Corvus quickly departed this mental projection.
When his consciousness returned to his body, he found himself back in the familiar abandoned subway station. The Kree and Proxima were actively discussing something. Getting up, he approached them.
"My lord, I've gathered some information about this planet. We are currently in a place called France, Paris," the researcher began to explain, seeing Corvus approach.
"And what about the one we saw in the battle armor? Is there any information about him?" Corvus interrupted, recalling the figure who nearly defeated them.
"That individual is known as the Storm Swordsman. His technology clearly surpasses anything on this planet. He is likely a genius scientist far ahead of his time," the Kree replied with a hint of admiration. He also mentioned another figure—Iron Man, whose armor also intrigued him.
After this, Corvus learned from the Kree that although Earth's overall technological level wasn't high, from a military standpoint, the planet was still in the firearm era. The Storm Swordsman and Iron Man were exceptions.
"Find the necessary equipment. We need to open the portal as soon as possible," Corvus insisted. He understood that Earth's forces were already searching for them, and to prevent any unexpected attacks, they needed to summon the Chitauri army to Earth quickly.
"But, my lord, even if we have all the necessary equipment, I can't complete the task alone in such a short time frame."
When he was aboard the Chitauri ship, even with a team of scientists, it took them several days to create the portal device. However, the portal General Corvus demanded this time was much larger, and the computational tasks were even more complex. Completing this alone in a short time seemed impossible.
"Haha, don't worry, we have plenty of helping hands here," Corvus replied, and the scepter with the Mind Stone in his hand began to emit a faint glow.
...
After the loss of the Tesseract, Nick Fury reported the incident to the UN Security Council. Although many council members were extremely irritated by what happened, Fury reminded them that they themselves insisted on launching the research program, and this was just one of the risks associated with studying the Tesseract.
After a series of assurances from him, the Council temporarily withdrew their complaints against S.H.I.E.L.D., tasking him with resolving the problem as soon as possible.
Fury, experienced in political maneuvering, skillfully navigated the demands of his superiors. Having dealt with the Council, he focused on the threat of an alien invasion and began implementing his long-prepared Avengers plan, sending invitations to his key candidates.
Meanwhile, above New York City, outside Stark Tower, Iron Man soared through the forest of skyscrapers. During his flight, he communicated with Pepper Potts, who was on the top floor of the tower.
"Are you sure you disconnected the building's power grid?" she asked.
"Of course. Stark Tower will soon be a model of self-sufficient, clean energy."
"If only your reactor would work as intended," Pepper laughed, and Tony saw her smile through his visor's screen.
"I'm sure it will work. Turn it on!" Tony said, his mood elevated. He had recently upgraded the tower significantly, installing a giant arc reactor on its lower levels, which now powered the entire building.
As soon as Pepper executed the command, the lights in the tower began to illuminate sequentially, starting from the bottom and reaching the very top, where the Stark Industries logo finally lit up. At that moment, Tony landed on the balcony.
As soon as he stepped onto the platform, the tower's systems began removing his Mark VI armor while he walked towards the entrance.
"Sir, you have an incoming call from Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D.," Jarvis suddenly informed him.
"Tell him I'm busy."
--------
You can read up to 200+ advanced chapters and support me at patreon.com/raaaaven
Daily +2 chapters updates