Chapter 54: A Guilty Tony

Alan stared at the five Lizardmen charging at him. He immediately understood Lizard Connors' plan. He was trying to use the five of them to hold Alan back so he could escape.

The New York City sewer system was an intricate maze. If Lizard Connors managed to jump into the water and flee, tracking him down again would be no easy feat.

Since Alan had decided to intervene, he wouldn't give Connors any chance to escape.

As the five Lizardmen lunged toward him, and Connors prepared to leap into the water behind them, Alan smirked coldly. "You think you can run?"

He raised his Aurora Sword while pressing on the Five Elements Yin-Yang belt at his waist. A surge of soft, water-blue energy flowed out and attached itself to his Aurora Sword.

Holding the Aurora Sword, Alan positioned himself for a thrust toward the five Lizardmen charging at him. Simultaneously, a chilling wind began to swirl around his body, materializing into sharp, crystalline spikes all around him.

This miraculous display left Gwen, George, and the others utterly stunned. They had never witnessed such an extraordinary power before.

Lizard Connors suddenly felt as though something had locked onto him, and only one thought ran through his mind...

Escape! 

I have to run! 

If he didn't escape now, he'd really die here.

Without waiting for another opportunity, Lizard Connors leaped toward the nearby drainage channel.

But Alan wasn't about to let him go. "Emperor: Wind-Piercing Thrust!"

He thrust his Aurora Sword into the space ahead, and all the wind spikes around him shot out like a torrential downpour toward the Lizardmen.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! 

The sound of air being sliced echoed through the space, immediately followed by the agonized screams of the Lizardmen.

In mid-air, Lizard Connors was struck down before he could reach the water, pinned to the ground.

By the time everyone regained their senses, all six Lizardmen, including Connors, were nailed to the ground. Aside from groaning in pain, they were incapable of doing anything else.

Alan had held back his power; otherwise, these Lizardmen would have been shredded into pieces. If the force of the wind had continued, there wouldn't even be scraps left of them.

Peter reacted quickly. Seeing that the Lizardmen were immobilized, he tossed the atomizer he had prepared. The device landed in the midst of the Lizardmen, releasing a thick purple mist that rapidly spread out.

Within the fog, Connors and the others slowly reverted back to human form under the effects of the anti-gene serum.

Cough, cough, cough…

George immediately ordered his remaining team members to handle the aftermath, then walked over to Alan, extending his hand for a handshake. "Thank you for your help."

"I have only one request."

George frowned slightly. "What is it, sir?"

"Whatever you write in your report, just leave me out of it."

George nodded. It was a reasonable request and not a difficult one. "No problem. Everyone here is under my command."

"They're all trustworthy."

"However..." George shot a glance at Spider-Woman, who was clinging to the wall.

Gwen noticed George's look and leapt down, pointing her finger at him. "What, are you saying I'd spill the secret?"

Thinking back to the fate of Lizard Connors, George quickly changed the subject, glancing slyly at Alan. "I'll go handle the cleanup now."

Watching George's retreating figure, Gwen shook her small fists in mock anger. Her pouty expression made Alan smile.

"Hey, what's your name anyway? I'm Spider-Woman," Gwen introduced herself.

"Emperor!"

"Oh, cool name!"

As soon as Gwen finished speaking, she realized the Emperor, who had been standing right in front of her, had disappeared.

"How did he do that? Could it be the power of a chameleon?" she mused aloud.

Meanwhile, back at home, Alan couldn't help but cough a few times at her guess.

Chameleon powers, my foot!

From that point on, the handling of Connors was entirely the responsibility of the NYPD.

Even Peter was brought in by George. While en route to the precinct, Peter learned of the grisly remains found in the sewer.

Eventually, Connors was arrested and imprisoned, awaiting his final judgment.

Meanwhile, inside S.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury received the latest updates.

"Lizardmen created through regenerative genes... quite interesting," he mused.

Maria Hill, standing beside Fury, asked, "Should we consider him for the Avengers Initiative?"

Fury responded calmly, "No need. He's just an ordinary man now, stripped of his mutation."

"And he's missing an arm, making him completely useless."

Fury pointed to the scars on his face. "The only reason I care is because of this."

It was clear—Fury was driven by revenge. Hill didn't press further and went on with tracking down the remaining three individuals.

Fury continued to stand on the platform overlooking S.H.I.E.L.D.'s operations below. He relished the feeling of having everything firmly under his control.

What he failed to notice was an agent beneath the platform holding a tablet. The tablet was playing a video split into two screens—on one side, Peter being interrogated at the police station; on the other, Curt Connors, bound to a bed, his face filled with regret.

The agent fiddled with the tablet before sending the video out. Fury, standing above, had no clue about any of this. He was preoccupied with another matter.

Tony had just returned to New York after his journey to the Middle East. Back at his home, he stood on the armor platform.

Seeing Tony return, Yinsen walked over, adjusting his glasses as he inspected the armor.

"The armor seems to have held up well," Yinsen noted.

Tony waved dismissively. "Yeah, no big deal. I was hit by a tank, fell from the sky, and came out fine."

"Only problem now is getting it off."

Jarvis, operating the mechanical arms, was trying to help Tony out of the armor, but some parts had warped, making the process difficult.

"Sir, please remain still. It will make this easier."

"Jarvis, I recall designing this suit to be easy to put on and take off. What did you do?"

"Nothing, sir."

Yinsen, bored by their bickering, went off to do something else—like making Tony a chlorophyll drink to help alleviate his palladium poisoning. This was a secret known only to Yinsen, Tony, and Jarvis.

"This will come off, just don't move, sir," Jarvis insisted.

Moments after Yinsen left, Pepper Potts walked downstairs with some documents in hand, surprised to see Tony still in his armor.

"What's going on?" she asked, eyes wide.

Seeing her, Tony felt a pang of guilt. After a pause, he said, "Don't overreact. You've seen me in worse situations."

Pepper wasn't as concerned about the armor itself or what Tony had been up to. What caught her attention were the ominous bullet holes riddling the suit.

"Are those… bullet holes?" Her voice trembled slightly.

Tony remained silent.

"Pepper, can we talk after I get out of this suit?"

"Okay. I'll wait."

Pepper, holding back tears, turned and headed back upstairs.

Meanwhile, news of Gulmira spread quickly. Rhodey held an immediate press conference, claiming that the F-22 jet crash was purely due to technical reasons. He stressed that Gulmira had nothing to do with the U.S. government, asserting that the U.S. never interfered with other countries' affairs—a long-standing principle of their nation.

Obadiah Stane watched the news coverage of Gulmira with a frown, deep in thought. After a while, he picked up the phone.

"Kingpin, interested in joining me for a trip to visit the Ten Rings?"

On the other end of the line, Kingpin was lounging in a hot spring, enjoying the attention of a few women.

"Oh? Given the damage they've suffered, aren't you afraid they'll capture us?"

"That's exactly why I need you with me," Obadiah chuckled. "A few days ago, their leader called me. He mentioned that they've found some of Tony's designs."

"Not to mention, the armor scattered in the desert."

"If I'm not mistaken, the one who wrecked the Ten Rings today was Tony."

"And that armor is probably Tony's latest weapon."

Kingpin's interest was piqued.

"So, what's your plan?"

"I don't have a plan. Tony's designs belong to Stark Industries."

"I'm just going to reclaim what rightfully belongs to us."

Kingpin grinned, flashing his pearly white teeth. "Sometimes, I think you're more suited to be a crime boss than I am."

"Thanks for the compliment."

"When do we leave?"

"Now!"

...

Note: 2x Chapter Length From Chapter 55 Onwards!