The time until Loki and the Chitauri attacked Earth was drawing closer, yet Aetheris's team remained far too weak. Remembering the events of Avengers 1, Aetheris felt that victory back then had been nothing more than a fluke.
The Chitahuri's technology was clearly several levels beyond Earth's. Their numbers alone were terrifying, an entire race bred for war. If Tony hadn't made that desperate last stand carrying the nuclear missile through the portal the outcome would have been anything but certain.
That was why the defense of the Space Stone had to be airtight. As long as Loki didn't get his hands on it, the Chitauri wouldn't be able to invade. Loki on his own wasn't much of a threat. Dr. Banner could smash him to pieces singlehandedly.
The mission was daunting, and time was running out.
Aetheris decided to call Spider-Man. It was about time to bring up the matter of his spider-suit. This wasn't the moment to hoard resources. Without more allies, resisting the crushing weight of the timeline would be impossible.
It reminded him of when the Bifrost had been destroyed. Even though Aetheris had dealt with the Destroyer, Loki and Thor's story had still played out exactly as it was meant to. Proof that without overwhelming strength, the tide of fate could not be altered.
So what then? When Thanos arrived, was he supposed to just stand by, watch his family die, and snap his fingers all over again? Absolutely not.
He didn't have that kind of self-sacrificing nobility. But if Nova, Betty Ross, Annie, or the others were among the half that perished, could he truly remain indifferent?
The truth was, Aetheris had always avoided this question. He wasn't someone with an unbreakable will. At his core, he was still a small-time nobody, a man who only wanted a peaceful life with his wife, his children, and a warm home. But this was the Marvel universe. Here were hotheaded mutants, their whereabouts still unknown. Here was Hydra, scheming to tear the world apart. Here was Thanos, the so-called Minister of Family Planning. Here were the Celestials and countless other beings who saw the universe as their playground.
If Aetheris chose to do nothing, drifting along with the current, his end would be destruction all the same. Even gods like Thor, tyrants like Thanos, and powerhouses like the Hulk could fall. He was just a human who relied on technology. Even with his unreliable system, he was always at risk of annihilation. Maybe he could survive but what about the women by his side? And what about the children he hoped to have one day? Could he ever watch them be threatened with death and do nothing?
The answer was simple. He couldn't.
He wasn't a machine. He was human, with feelings and fears. This was the world he had crossed into, not some video game. That was why Aetheris resolved to change this world in his own small way. However far he could go, at least he would be able to face himself with no regrets. Even if the day of his death came, he would meet it without fear.
Damn it. So what if it was Thanos? So what if it was Loki? So what if it was the Celestials?
Take this, my Pegasus Meteor Fist!
Wait… wrong move. Let's try that again.
"Hey, Ethan? You and Spidey at the lab? I'm coming over."
Aetheris picked up the phone from his desk.
After receiving confirmation, he called for Nova, and together they headed for Stark Industries' underground laboratory.
The lab was buried nineteen levels below ground. Aetheris had once wondered why not eighteen wouldn't that number have been more symbolic?
Ding.
The elevator doors slid open, and Aetheris and Nova stepped out gracefully. Inside, Ethan and Spider-Man were running tests on a Mark V armor. The experiment required Ethan's full attention, so he didn't greet them when they entered.
With nothing else to do, Aetheris and Nova sat on nearby stools, watching.
The Mark V Hellfire Armor used a neuromechanical interface to read brainwaves for control. Its inspiration came from Octavius's four mechanical arms. Originally, the design required a spinal implant to connect directly with the nerves for faster response. But because of the danger of catastrophic reactions between flesh and machine, Ethan had abandoned that route.
Even if they had succeeded, Aetheris would never have tried it. Being controlled by a machine was a fate worse than death.
Instead, Ethan and Spider-Man had refined the design, adding a safety system. The armor's outer layer had been replaced with crystalline iron, created through molecular reordering, reinforced by magnetic fields, and layered with titanium alloys and other metals.
The result was a shell that was flexible, highly durable, and incredibly strong.
Half an hour passed. Aetheris had already finished a full round of a MOBA game. He played a female character with simple controls, who cooed flirtatiously, "Daji loves Master. By the way, what does 'chicken stick' mean?"
He and Nova queued together, chatting through voice. Her clear, slightly mature yet charming voice earned the envy of their single teammates.
When Ethan finally wrapped up the test, Aetheris handed him a can of iced tea. Ethan sipped, found it a little too sweet, and said:"This Mark V armor passed testing. Next week, we can start man-machine integration trials."
Aetheris nodded. Since joining Stark Industries, Dr. Ethan had already developed the Mark III and Mark IV armors, making huge contributions. While Aetheris had provided the ideas and concepts, the real engineering was entirely thanks to Ethan and Spider-Man.
After all, Iron Man's suits were the crown jewels of Stark Industries. The complexity was immense. It wasn't just strapping a metal shell around some batteries.
The work spanned programming, circuits, automation, materials science, electromagnetism, and more.
Aetheris had broken down the workload into smaller tasks, distributing them across Stark Industries' specialized departments autonomous driving systems, prosthetic development, magnetic levitation cars, and so forth.
Each department had dozens, sometimes hundreds, of top-tier researchers working together. Their results were consolidated by Ethan, who, using the system's gifted Mark II suit as a foundation, studied and reconfigured until the evolution of Iron Man's armor became reality.
With a solemn expression, Aetheris said:"To be honest, I don't want to rush this. But Earth is about to face an unprecedented catastrophe. I can't predict the details yet, but I need you to push harder. At the very least, we'll need ten sets of Mark V armor."
Spider-Man went pale. He knew Aetheris never spoke lightly. If he called it an unprecedented catastrophe, then it must be something beyond imagination.
"Mr. Stark, can you tell me exactly what's going on? I promise, I won't breathe a word."
Spider-Man raised his right hand, swearing an oath beneath the lab lights.
(End of Chapter)
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