High above, a sonic boom cloud was left behind—courtesy of Kara.
Both Vex and Kara started their race at an equal pace, flying side by side.
"How are you flying without any sonic boom?" Kara asked curiously.
"It's a natural ability. I can't explain it," Vex replied. "You fly using your bio-field, but mine is something different. You wouldn't be able to learn it."
Kara nodded in understanding.
"The race is too short. I'm going to speed up!" Kara declared.
"Bring it on!" Vex responded.
Both pushed their limits, speeding up towards the east. But soon, a gap began to show. Kara was being left behind, no matter how hard she tried to catch up.
By the time they reached their destination, Vex had won by a single body length.
"A close win." Vex sighed. 'But my physique needs improvement. I must get stronger.'
With the Rabbit Talisman, Vex could theoretically surpass 16 times the speed of light, even gaining the ability to jump through time and space. However, his body wasn't strong enough to unleash its full potential yet.
"Hmph! I can keep absorbing sunlight to get stronger too!" Kara said defiantly. "Give me some time, and we'll race again!"
"Of course, anytime. Want to exchange numbers?"
"Sure, here's my number."
Kara gave him a string of digits, and Vex pulled out his phone from his Golden City and dialed her number to confirm.
"Maybe we can spar sometime," Vex suggested. "It'd be great to train our combat skills."
Kara's eyes lit up with excitement! As someone dedicated to being a superhero, she was always eager to spar with strong opponents.
'I'll definitely win back my pride in combat.' she thought, remembering her loss in speed.
Suddenly, a loud rumbling noise interrupted their conversation.
A massive plume of smoke rose into the sky, signaling a serious problem. Vex and Kara exchanged glances and immediately dashed toward the scene.
A building was on fire, with thick black smoke rising as cries for help echoed from within.
"We need to save them!" Kara shouted as she rushed into the building, pulling people out two at a time.
But when she looked back, Vex was nowhere to be seen.
A pang of disappointment hit her—she had hoped he was someone who shared her heroic values. Maybe she was wrong about him...
After several trips in and out of the building, she saw Vex again. This time, he stood outside with a massive golden portal behind him. A torrent of water surged from it, dousing the entire building in an instant.
The fire was extinguished, and even most of the smoke had been washed away.
Compared to her efforts of saving dozens, Vex's method was far more efficient, dealing with the crisis in a single blow.
"I thought you ran off," Kara admitted with a hint of self-deprecation.
"I went to find a nearby river," Vex shrugged. "Saving them one by one would've taken too long. Putting out the fire was faster."
"Smart move," Kara complimented. "Are you free tomorrow night? My cousin is giving me a special training session, and you could join us. He's... a bit stronger than me."
Vex was surprised. An invitation? He hadn't expected that, but it was too good of an opportunity to refuse.
"If you send me the location, I'll be there," Vex replied. "But for now, I should go. This isn't really my kind of scene."
"Alright, see you tomorrow."
After Vex left, Kara struck a few heroic poses for the cameras below before flying away. She enjoyed helping people but didn't care for the attention.
---
The Triskelion, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s headquarters, stood on a small island in the middle of the Potomac River. Vex had already noticed it when he went to fetch water earlier.
Since Natasha and the others were still far away, Vex decided to fly straight to the headquarters.
As he approached, alarms blared, and an array of weapons locked onto him.
Hovering in place, Vex waited calmly.
After a few moments, the alarms shut off, and the weapons retracted.
A voice over the intercom directed him, "Left front, 66th floor."
Scanning the building, Vex noted that there were no floor numbers marked. He wasn't going to waste time counting floors, so he simply picked one and flew in, landing in front of an elevator.
"Ding—"
The doors opened to reveal a familiar face: Brock Rumlow, aka Crossbones, and a group of agents fresh from a mission. The tension was palpable, but none of it was directed at Vex.
He stepped into the elevator, taking the central spot as the agents surrounded him. Almost instinctively, he quipped, "Anyone need to get off?"
Rumlow and the others gave him strange looks.
"Which floor are you going to?" Rumlow asked.
Before Vex could respond, the elevator's automated voice announced, "Rapid Response Team, please exit and wait for the next elevator."
Rumlow and his team, visibly annoyed, filed out without a word, but not before exchanging a tense glance with Vex.
"Elevator ascending. Please stand clear," the automated voice instructed as the elevator sped toward the 66th floor.
When the doors opened, Vex was greeted by Nick Fury and Phil Coulson.
"Welcome to S.H.I.E.L.D.," Fury said with a thin smile. "I'm Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D."
"Ah, I'm not really interested in meeting men," Vex replied, unimpressed. "Can you send someone else to give me a tour?"
Fury's smile twitched, while Coulson looked on in admiration—no one had ever spoken to Fury like that before.
"We can discuss the trade first. After that, I'll arrange for a female agent to show you around," Fury said through gritted teeth.
Vex shrugged and started walking, inspecting the headquarters.
Fury hurried to keep up, but no matter how fast he walked, he couldn't close the gap between them. The power dynamics were clear—Vex was in control here.
"As for the KW89 serum, S.H.I.E.L.D. would like to order 100,000 units for the first batch..." Fury began.
"Bruh, you serious?" Vex interrupted. "You think this stuff grows on trees? It's incredibly difficult to produce. At most, I can give you three doses."
Fury's brow furrowed in frustration. "Three doses?"
"We can assist with production. Don't underestimate Earth's technology. We've learned a lot from alien civilizations over the years," Fury countered.
Vex had to admit, he had a point.
°°°
A/N: Stones guys
20 advanced chapters at:
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