"Tony, I've found them!"
Thor's voice rang out, "These guys are plotting to destroy Midgard, I..."
However, his words were cut off as the screen suddenly lit up with a burst of purple light, followed by a deafening explosion and a continuous crackling of static.
"Damn it! What the hell did you create..."
Thor's roar came from the other end of the screen: "Loki, cover for me quickly!"
Then, Loki's angry curses and various explosions could be faintly heard from the screen, but soon Thor reappeared in the video.
He looked a bit disheveled, with a trail of blood at the corner of his mouth.
"I don't even know what language to use to describe you." As Fang Mo was standing opposite Stark, Thor did not see him and spoke angrily to Stark, "Your intelligence should be put to better use, not skulking in the shadows, sleazily researching weapons against your allies. Honestly, I'm beginning to wonder if you're also secretly creating a counter-Thor armor?"
"That's just a necessary precaution, I never intended to go against anyone."
Stark said, "We've discussed this before. It's easy to take down a few Hydra terrorists, but have you thought about our last battle in New York? We all nearly died there."
"But we won in the end."
Thor immediately retorted, "With the help of me and Fang Mo."
"Yes, Fang Mo really did us a big favor."
Stark glanced inadvertently at Fang Mo across from him, but continued speaking, "I admit we all owe him a big favor, but have you considered, what if Fang Mo is not around when the next crisis hits? Or worse, what if Fang Mo is controlled by the enemy?"
"Asgard will do everything in its power."
Thor stated firmly, "This is the glory of the Norse gods. The warriors of Valhalla are not like your Midgard scientists who enjoy studying the weaknesses of their friends..."
"Can't you be a little less prejudiced against me?" Stark spread his hands and said, "Even Dr. Banner agreed to collaborate with me on developing Veronica. Why can't you understand me? And for the record, I haven't researched anti-Thor armor."
"What?"
Thor frowned upon hearing this, "You dare underestimate the power of the Prince of Asgard?"
"...Do you have a problem?"
Stark twitched the corner of his eye, complaining that building an armor was aimed against him, and not building it meant looking down on him; his brain must be missing a screw: "Alright, let's put the matter of the armor aside for now. I just heard you say they are planning to destroy the Earth, what's that about?"
"Oh, right."
Thor, reminded of the serious matter, quickly said: "That guy named Ebony Maw, he seems to be a minion of that mad Titan. He wants to slaughter half of the life on this planet to please his master."
"Slaughter half of the life on this planet?"
Hearing this, Stark quickly reacted: "The blue-skinned alien in New York earlier, the woman named Nebula, seemed to have the same goal, right? It seems they are indeed underlings of Thanos..."
Yes, since Gamora was captured during the Battle of New York, everyone knew a bit about Thanos, including his penchant for killing half of all life. So, Stark wasn't particularly surprised, but he felt very heavy-hearted, as he partly blamed himself for this situation.
"That's right, these guys claim to be the children of Thanos."
Thor nodded and said: "Currently, they are calling for new space reinforcements and plan to use the power of the Infinity Stones to destroy the entire Northern Hemisphere. I tried to stop them, but the enemy's firepower was too strong."
"Where are they?"
Stark's eyes sharpened as he quickly asked.
"Sokovia."
Thor immediately said: "I don't have contact with the other Avengers. You better get them here fast. Space reinforcements are not much, but the Infinity Stones are no joke. The enemy has one that represents 'Power'. My father told me it could destroy the world in an instant..."
"We're heading there right now."
After hearing Thor's words, Stark spoke solemnly and then cut off the communication.
After ending the call, Stark's expression also became serious. His eyes flickered with complex emotions, then he turned to Fang Mo, about to say something.
"I..."
However, before he could finish, Nick Fury placed a hand on his shoulder.
"The safety of the Earth is paramount." Nick Fury's expression was very calm: "No need for unnecessary words, we'll have plenty of time in Vanaheim. That's my home turf..."
"Pepper is going to kill me."
Stark muttered under his breath, but his demeanor seemed a bit more relaxed as he began operating the equipment.
Soon, Stark made contact with the other Avengers. Everyone was searching for the aliens' whereabouts around the world - some in Europe, some in the Americas, even in Antarctica. It was clearly too late to return to New York now.
Thus, on Nick Fury's suggestion.
The Avengers planned to meet directly in Sokovia.
Of course, those who arrived early had to think of a way to evacuate the civilians in Sokovia to minimize casualties. The casualties of the last Battle of New York were already high, and as Avengers, their mission... was to protect the unarmed civilians.
"Alright, it's time for us to head out."
After contacting the rest of the Avengers, Stark also redressed in his armor: "Are we taking a fighter jet, or flying over directly?"
"How about considering my ride?"
Fang Mo suddenly said, "My Nick will probably scare the aliens to death just by flying over, without doing anything."
"…What?"
Stark was stunned upon hearing this: "Could you repeat what you just called your spaceship?"
"The Nick," Fang Mo naturally said: "However, since this ship is a Titan-class starship, it is also known as the Tita-nick?"
"That's not a very auspicious name."
Nick Fury spoke up directly: "I think we should take the hawk fighter jet instead, I'm afraid his warship might hit an iceberg and crash."
"Hey hey, this isn't the movie, what are you afraid of..."
Fang Mo was about to explain, but suddenly his communicator rang. It was Star-Lord calling. He had finally returned to his home planet and was probably getting restless in the spaceship, urging Fang Mo.
Thinking of this, Fang Mo also picked up the communication, instructing Star-Lord and his party to come down in the Milano.
"Okay, we have a spaceship now."
After cutting off the communication, Fang Mo made an OK gesture to the two of them.
"Who was that just now?" Nick Fury curiously asked: "A friend you met in space?"
"Sort of."
Fang Mo briefly explained: "Peter Quill, from Colorado, USA. Taken away by aliens in his youth to travel the universe, now he plans to come back and see his homeland."
"He's an Earthling?"
Nick Fury was also stunned: "When did these aliens come, and how come I don't know?"
"You're asking me? Who should I ask?"
Fang Mo shrugged his shoulders, directly retorting Nick Fury.
While they were bantering, they also left the underground defense fortification. Accompanied by Fang Mo sending a coordinate, a spaceship shaped like an eagle soon descended from the sky.
The cabin door opened, and Star-Lord was the first to jump out.
"Earth! I'm finally back!" Star-Lord's expression was clearly very excited and thrilled: "I've had enough of those bizarre alien women over the years, this time I must have a proper romance! I love USA, haha... This is my home!"
"So you're here just for breeding?"
Another voice sounded, followed by Rocket Raccoon who came over while grooming his fur: "Grow some sense, will you? Don't always be like your dad Ego, always wanting to spread your insignificant 'Celestial genes'..."
"You have the nerve to talk?"
Star-Lord immediately retorted: "Didn't you also groom your fur for a long time? Are you saying you're not looking forward to your own kind?"
"I'm not, I didn't, don't talk nonsense." Rocket Raccoon threw away the comb: "I'm not like you, I can always perfectly control myself..."
"This... the raccoon can talk?"
Stark was also stunned upon seeing Rocket Raccoon.
"Huh?"
Rocket Raccoon looked up and saw Stark and Nick Fury as well, but his attention was clearly on Nick Fury: "Well, Quill, is this pitch-black guy also one of your kind?"
"Alright, alright, let me introduce everyone."
As the two groups officially met, Fang Mo also gave a brief introduction: "First, on Earth's side, Tony Stark, um... not much to introduce, mainly this guy, Nick Fury, the personified will of the Nick, one of my few black friends, likes singing, dancing, motherf**ker, spirit ball."
"Hey, I..."
Stark wanted to say something after listening, but Fang Mo completely ignored him.
"And on this side."
Fang Mo pointed to Rocket Raccoon's side: "This little raccoon is the captain of the Team Rocket, next to him is Peter Quill, the one with the antennae on his head is called Mantis; and these two saplings, the one on the left is called Groot, and the spiky one on the right is called Thornbush... Huh? Wait, where's Drax?"
"He went to the bathroom."
The Rocket Raccoon said, "We had already entered the atmosphere, and then this guy suddenly said 'Ah, I feel it now' and turned around to go to the bathroom..."
"Oh, okay."
Fang Mo nodded and then said to Stark and Nick Fury, "We also have a cosmic crap god, and you'll meet him in a moment..."
"..."
After listening to Fang Mo's introduction.
Stark and Nick Fury simultaneously rubbed their temples.
Nick Fury wanted to make a comment, but considering the urgency of the situation, he swallowed his words, exchanged pleasantries with the Team Rocket, and then boarded the spaceship.
After boarding the ship, Nick Fury briefed everyone on the situation.
Upon hearing Nick Fury's explanation, Star-Lord immediately expressed his willingness to help them. Stark then provided the specific coordinates, and as they hurried on their way, they quickly understood the whole story: aliens had stolen the Power Stone and were planning to destroy Earth.
And when everyone learned that it was Nick Fury who had taken the Orb...
They suddenly saw him in a new light.
"Damn, dude, you were the one who stole the Orb!?" Star-Lord was shocked after hearing this: "We've been around half the galaxy just to help Fang Mo find this damn thing, and you had already stolen it back!?"
"See? This is what you call professionalism."
While piloting the spaceship, Rocket Raccoon said, "Quill, next time don't boast about being some galaxy thief. Learn from him, going alone into the Void to gather information about that white-haired old man, then stealing a spaceship to get the Orb. That's what a real thief looks like!"
"Bloodline awakening."
Fang Mo also made a comment.
"I have to object, that's not stealing."
Nick Fury said directly, "I just didn't want something so dangerous to fall into the wrong hands..."
"But in the end, didn't it still end up in someone else's hands?"
Fang Mo didn't give Nick Fury any face: "If you had given that stone to Taneleer Tivan, I would have snatched it right away. You're a really sly old man..."
"Alright, we're here."
However, just as Fang Mo was criticizing Nick Fury, he suddenly stood up from his seat, looking as if nothing had happened: "Everyone, please get ready for battle."
"So soon?"
Fang Mo was also stunned for a moment, then looked outside the window, only to realize they had indeed arrived in Sokovia.
It seems the Milano was really fast; they arrived in just a few sentences.
Now that he had reached his destination, Fang Mo was no longer interested in chatting with Nick Fury. He was more concerned about the Power Stone at the moment. After all, if he could get his hands on this stone, he would have five Infinity Stones, just one step away from snapping his fingers.
Thinking of this, Fang Mo teleported away from the spaceship.
Floating above in the sky, Fang Mo looked down at Sokovia below.
Clearly, his group was not the first to arrive. Many people in the city were already evacuating, but it was a bit late. The city was already filled with a lot of ruined buildings, and the wreckage of a large troop carrier was smoking in the nearby mountains.
In the city's central area, several giant metal structures like troop cabins stood tall.
To be honest, these troop cabins, standing on the ground, were even taller than Sokovia's tallest buildings, resembling towering skyscrapers. Countless synthetic beasts poured out like a tide, attacking everything around indiscriminately.
Heroes like Thor, Captain America, Hulk, and Hawkeye were desperately trying to stop these beasts, doing their best to prevent them from harming more civilians.
Behind these synthetic beasts, a gaunt and bizarre-looking Ebony Maw was holding a purple scepter, looking down on everything before him with the smugness of a deity.
The situation on the battlefield was one-sided. Thor and Hulk, with their tough skin, were still holding up. Hawkeye, with his continuous teleportation, was constantly killing enemies. But Captain America, Steve Rogers, and Black Widow, Natasha, as mere mortals, were clearly struggling, frequently wounded. The number of synthetic beasts slipping through was increasing.
Even so, everyone was fighting tooth and nail.
But just because the Avengers could hold on, didn't mean others could. Soon, Loki, spattered with spit from the synthetic beasts, couldn't bear it any longer.
He was forcibly brought here by Thor and was already thinking of retreating.
"No, I'm done fighting!"
Loki shouted, looking up to the sky: "Heimdall! Send me back..."
"Don't go back!"
Before Loki could finish, Thor grabbed his cape: "The people here are innocent civilians. Midgard is one of the Nine Realms, and we must protect everything here with our lives!"
"If we keep protecting, we'll really die!"
Loki, clearly at his limit, shouted: "I'm still the prince of Jotunheim, which is also one of the Nine Realms. Don't you have a duty to protect the lives of the Frost Giants? Let me go back!"
"Hold on, reinforcements are coming soon."
Thor raised his hand, releasing lightning, blasting a small group of synthetic beasts into char.
"You're lying to me!" Loki didn't believe it at all: "What kind of support can Midgard, this wretched place, have? Unless someone as powerful as our father comes, it's all nonsense. Let me go back..."
With a "boom", before Loki could finish speaking, a huge white light swept across the sky from above. The troop cabins, as large as skyscrapers, were all turned into flames. Then, a figure descended from the sky, landing right in front of them.
"Dad has arrived."
Fang Mo's voice slowly rose.