A black landing pod pierced through Earth's atmosphere, trailing a blazing tail of fire before crashing into the dense rainforest below.
This was an Advance Reconnaissance Robot—a cutting-edge war machine from the Kree Empire, deployed when the Kree were preparing to invade or conquer an unknown planet.
This robot represented the pinnacle of Kree technology. When dealing with civilizations weaker than the Kree Empire, a single reconnaissance robot could be enough to dominate an entire planet. The Kree soldiers would then simply arrive to accept the enemy's surrender.
However, if the invaded civilization was on par with the Kree Empire or even more advanced, the robot had a hidden self-destruct bomb. If it determined that it could not win, it would detonate itself, unleashing an explosion powerful enough to erase an entire city from existence.
As soon as the reconnaissance robot entered Earth's atmosphere, S.W.O.R.D.'s satellite system detected its descent.
"Sir, we have detected another unidentified drop pod entering Earth's atmosphere."
Skynet's voice rang through Gene's neural network.
"Another one?" Gene's V-shaped goggles flashed red. "Looks like the Kree really don't know when to quit."
Suddenly, Skynet's voice carried an unexpected update.
"Sir, we have also detected Tony Stark rapidly approaching the crash site."
Gene chuckled. "Oh? Then let's sit back and let him play with it first."
An orange-red streak cut through the sky as a sleek, red-and-gold armored figure arrived at the impact site.
This was Tony Stark, encased in the latest Mark 43 Iron Man Armor.
"Alright, big guy, that's far enough." Stark raised a hand, halting the massive alien machine in its tracks.
He tilted his head. "Now, I don't know who invited you, but I definitely don't remember sending out any RSVPs to alien robots."
Inside the suit, Jarvis's voice chimed in his ear.
"Sir, this entity's shell is composed of an unknown alloy. We have no record of such material on Earth."
Stark smirked. "Oh, Jarvis, you really have a talent for stating the obvious. Alien robot, alien metal. Who would've thought?"
The reconnaissance robot stood motionless before him, its towering, humanoid form looming like a silent predator. Then, without warning, its single crimson eye flared to life.
"Target identified: Indigenous lifeform detected—EXECUTE TERMINATION."
A searing red beam shot from the robot's eye, slamming into Stark's armor without warning. The sheer force sent him hurtling dozens of meters backward.
"Okay, so it's not just a dumb tin can," Stark muttered, shaking off the impact.
His HUD flickered—20% armor integrity lost from a single hit. His expression grew grim. Not many things on Earth could put a dent in his suits like that.
Well… maybe one other person could.
His mind flashed back to the cave in Afghanistan, where he had first seen that pitch-black armor.
Since becoming Iron Man, he had hacked into multiple government databases, searching for information on that mysterious figure.
The only thing he found? A name.
And according to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s classified files, this guy had even fought Odin and lived to tell the tale.
Another red beam came straight for Stark, forcing him to engage his thrusters at full power, narrowly dodging the attack.
The beam struck the ground, erupting into a massive explosion.
Stark launched himself skyward, maneuvering behind the Kree robot. With a swift motion, he threw a punch directly at the robot's faceplate.
But the machine was no amateur.
Its dark, armored arm shot up, effortlessly blocking Stark's strike.
"Tough guy, huh? Let's see how you !"
The repulsor cannon in Stark's palm whined to life, then blasted out an orange-red beam, striking the robot's head dead-on.
For a moment, black smoke billowed out, obscuring the machine.
Stark smirked. "Hah, alien tech? Overrated."
But as the smoke cleared…
A single red eye still burned brightly.
The Kree robot was completely unharmed.
Stark's smirk vanished.
"Oh, come on—what the hell is this thing?!"
The reconnaissance robot locked onto him again, firing another blazing red energy beam.
Stark dodged left and right, but the beams came non-stop, slicing through the air like blazing hot knives.
The intense heat distorted the surrounding atmosphere. The rainforest behind them ignited instantly, consumed by the flames.
Suddenly, the robot's right arm reconfigured itself, transforming into a cannon.
"Oh, that's probably bad—"
A green energy blast erupted from the cannon.
The beam narrowly grazed Stark's shoulder, tearing through the Mark 43's armor plating. Sparks erupted as exposed wiring and internal mechanics became visible.
Inside the suit, alarms blared.
Stark looked at his damaged armor.
And then, for the first time in a long time…
A genuine feeling of unease crept into his heart.
He wasn't new to combat. He had gone toe-to-toe with terrorists, supervillains, and even gods.
This thing was different.
His repulsor cannon was powerful enough to obliterate a tank—he had personally vaporized one before.
But this Kree machine had just shrugged it off.
Its energy beam had ripped through his armor like it was paper.
If that shot had been a few inches to the left…
His grip on reality tightened.
"Alright, Stark. New plan: RUN."
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