"Oh my God… is that someone traveling through space?"
"Why is he coming to Earth?"
"Who the hell is he?"
The silver figure shimmered coolly against the black canvas of space.
Countless questions flooded the minds of the Sharp Blade Squad as they stared at the live feed—who was this mysterious silver man?
Gene stood before them, eyes fixed on the rapidly updating data from Skynet.
"You've all seen the feed. This time, we've got new trouble incoming," Gene said, his tone level but grave. "He's still seven light-years out, but at his current speed, he'll reach Earth in twenty-three days."
"We don't know if this guy's coming with good intentions or bad," he continued, swiping across the holographic display. "So, we prepare for everything."
"So... that silver-white guy's our next target?" Pietro asked, an edge of excitement in his voice.
Gene's face darkened. "Not just him."
Just moments ago, Skynet had uploaded new data—and it pointed toward a much bigger problem. A shadow behind the silver figure. A threat unlike anything they'd faced before.
The Planet Devourer.
A being whose name sent shivers across galaxies.
God of world destruction. Slayer of planets. An eternal force of cosmic balance. His power exceeded that of most gods—and now, he was heading for Earth.
The silver figure detected by the S.W.O.R.D satellite was his herald: the Silver Surfer.
The Silver Surfer—once a noble being—had traded his freedom for his planet's survival. In order to save his home from being consumed, he had become the Planet Devourer's scout, traveling the cosmos to find new worlds to feed his master's hunger.
And now… he had found Earth.
"It looks like the timeline is about to accelerate," Gene murmured, his eyes scanning the glowing data streams.
To take on the Planet Devourer directly? At Gene's current power level, that was pure fantasy.
Sure, in the comics, Celestials could fight him. Sometimes, the Devourer even lost bizarrely and anticlimactically, earning the nickname "the softest cosmic villain" among fans.
But Gene knew that was just for laughs.
In reality, the Planet Devourer wielded terrifying strength—at least Celestial-level, maybe more. On Earth, only one bald-headed sorcerer in Kamar-Taj might stand a chance in direct confrontation.
Oh, and maybe Mephisto—if the Planet Devourer was reckless enough to enter Hell's dimension and fight Mephisto on his own turf.
After assigning everyone their roles and updating the mission parameters, Gene turned and left Sky Sword HQ, heading straight back to his Skynet base.
It was time to pour everything he had into upgrading the Infinity Armor.
__
Meanwhile, back on Earth, the world spun on in blissful ignorance. The nightlife roared, and people debated furiously online over the S.H.I.E.L.D. files that had recently gone public.
And the Avengers?
They were under fire too.
The exposure of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets had implicated many, and governments—never happy with these independent, unregulated superpowered individuals—had seized the opportunity.
Inside the Avengers Tower, Tony Stark sat in the lounge area, visibly irritated as JARVIS narrated headlines from the internet.
"These people are just…" He trailed off, unable to find the right insult.
"Parasites?" Dr. Bruce Banner suggested dryly.
He got it. Once, Bruce had been a brilliant physicist—an expert in astro-nuclear science. But the moment he became the Hulk, all that brilliance was forgotten. People only saw the monster.
Before Stark could respond, his phone rang.
"Hello, Mr. President… Yes… That's right… I understand… No, I wasn't informed… Of course… I'll take care of it."
He ended the call, slumping back in his chair.
"Judging by your face, that wasn't a friendly chat," said Clint Barton, raising an eyebrow.
"Nope," Stark muttered. "Congress just passed the Superhero Registration Act. Every superhero in the U.S. has to register now—or be considered a criminal."
It wasn't a request. It was an order. The president had just informed him. Stark didn't have a say.
Suddenly, JARVIS's voice cut in: "Sir, one of our satellites just picked up something unusual in deep space. I suggest you take a look immediately."
The holographic screen blinked on.
Data scrolled across the display—something was moving fast. Very fast.
More than ten light-years away, a massive energy instability had been detected.
A new object was heading for Earth.
Stark leaned forward, eyes narrowing. He didn't have Gene's Skynet tech, so the image was blurry. He couldn't make out a shape—but the energy readings were enough to raise every red flag he had.
"Looks like we're gearing up for another alien invasion," Banner muttered, glancing at the screen.
"No doubt," Stark said grimly.
__
And it wasn't just the Avengers.
High above Earth, in orbit, Reed Richards was conducting an experiment when his instruments began flashing warnings. High-energy cosmic particles—powerful enough to interrupt his systems—were sweeping toward the planet.
The same particles that followed the Silver Surfer.
Gene had already mobilized the Fantastic Four.
The countdown to the Planet Devourer had officially begun.
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