By the time the jet touched down on the helipad of the New York branch, Fury had already made up his mind.

He was going to convince Rowan to become the leader of the Avengers Initiative.

As things stood, the kid was the best candidate.

Whether or not it would work, Fury couldn't say. But he had to try.

Stepping off the jet, Fury initially intended to head straight to Hill's apartment and speak with the trio. But after some thought, he decided against it.

Knowing Rowan's temperament, showing up this late at night was a sure way to get chewed out. Better to wait until morning.

While Fury deliberated, Rowan, Hill, and Natasha continued soaring across the night sky, enjoying their aerial game for another thirty minutes before finally calling it a night.

"Rowan, are you sure I can't learn telekinesis?" Hill asked the moment they landed back at her apartment.

She looked at him expectantly.

The ability was just too incredible not only did it allow for effortless flight and household chores, but it also offered a significant boost in combat potential and productivity at work. What wasn't to love?

"You really can't. At least, not right now. But I'll see what I can do in the future," Rowan replied, his tone softening.

Hill did need a way to protect herself. The Marvel world was only going to get more dangerous from here on out, and he didn't want her caught unprepared.

"OK." Hill smiled. If Rowan said he'd try, there was hope.

"What about me?" Natasha cut in, edging closer. "I want to learn too."

"No, you don't," Rowan smirked. "Didn't you say you wanted to spar with me tomorrow?"

He gave her forehead a gentle nudge.

Natasha scrunched up her nose and shot him a glare. "Tch, whatever. Just wait. Tomorrow I'm going to wipe the floor with you."

Tossing him a dismissive look, she spun around and stormed into the bathroom to shower.

Rowan chuckled. Clearly, Natasha was still confident in her own strength.

It made sense. The main plot of the first Avengers film hadn't started yet. For now, Natasha's understanding of high-level power was still pretty limited.

She couldn't have imagined that in just two short months, Rowan had surpassed her in combat prowess.

She was probably banking on whatever Hill had told her about his fight with Obadiah, hoping it gave her a fighting chance.

"Right... how am I going to explain this to Fury tomorrow?" Hill asked, sprawling onto the couch once Natasha disappeared into the bathroom.

"Just tell him it's part of my martial arts training," Rowan said casually.

With his current strength, he wasn't too concerned about what Fury thought.

"Still, if he pulls you aside for a one-on-one, try not to embarrass him too much," Hill added with a resigned sigh.

"Sure," Rowan nodded.

After a while, Natasha emerged from the bathroom, her hair still tied up since she'd washed it earlier. With her hair pinned up, her pale, elegant neckline looked even more graceful.

"I'm going to bed. I have to check in with Fury first thing in the morning," she said, disappearing into the guest room.

"I'm going to take a shower too," Hill added, quickly heading in after her.

It wasn't until Hill finished that Rowan finally got his turn in the bathroom. As the hot water streamed down, his mind wandered.

I need to find a way to boost Hill's strength and I need to buy a bigger place.

With that much money in his bank account, continuing to live in a tiny apartment didn't make sense.

He hadn't moved out yet mostly because he was concerned about Hill's safety.

The S.H.I.E.L.D.-issued apartment had solid security, and Hill usually went on assignments with Fury. All in all, she was relatively safe here.

But if he bought a place out in the city and Hill had to commute every day, it would open up too many vulnerabilities.

He still remembered the look Aldrich Killian gave him that day.

Killian needs to be dealt with soon too.

That reminded him of the three vials of Extremis he had obtained.

With his dual identity as a martial artist and a psychic, Rowan could now run experiments with the Extremis serum in the Devourer World.

After drying off, he lay in bed and mentally mapped out the next phase of his plans before drifting off to sleep.

The next morning, Rowan woke early and used his telekinetic powers to prepare a luxurious breakfast.

Natasha devoured hers like a soldier in a mess hall. After polishing off her plate, she headed to Fury's office with Hill, looking completely satisfied.

Before leaving, she reminded Rowan about their training session at 6 p.m., warning him she'd be "breaking him in" like the old days.

Rowan only had a light bite, then got ready to dive into training in the Devourer World.

But just before leaving, his phone buzzed with a call from Sharon.

"Boss! Ivan Vanko has successfully recreated the arc reactor!" she said breathlessly.

Rowan didn't seem particularly surprised.

Given the blueprint left by his father and his own technical genius, it wasn't shocking that Ivan had managed to reconstruct the technology within a month.

"Is he willing to share the tech with us?" Rowan asked.

"He said he will on one condition. We have to cure his father."

"What did Dr. Zhao say? Can she cure him?"

"Dr. Zhao used her nanobot tech to eliminate most of the tumors, but she couldn't completely kill off the remaining cancer cells."

"Then tell Vanko his father's been cured and get him to hand over the arc reactor tech. Make sure we get the designs before returning his father."

"Got it, boss."

Rowan hung up and immediately drove to the company headquarters.

He wanted to verify the authenticity of the arc reactor himself and see if there was a way to retain Vanko. If not, he had no qualms about making him disappear.

The arc reactor was a high-priority asset. If he could bring it into the Devourer World, it could revolutionize their martial artist program by giving everyone access to flight modules.

It would also serve as a valuable resource for the Extreme Martial Pavilion.

But just as he turned onto Iris Avenue, where the Krolon Industries building was located, something felt off.

A stream of cars was pouring from the direction of the company, as if fleeing from a disaster.

Police cruisers and fire engines blazed past him, sirens screaming.

When Rowan finally reached the area near the building, he saw a towering column of smoke rising into the sky.

His expression darkened.

The smoke was coming from the Krolon Industries headquarters.

Beep beep beep.

His phone rang.

"Sharon?" he answered.

"Boss, it's bad cough there's been a huge explosion downstairs at the company!" Sharon's voice came through, frantic and choked with smoke.

"Explosion? What happened? Speak clearly."

"I—I don't know! It happened so suddenly. There weren't any hazardous materials on the first floor. There shouldn't have been an explosion."

"Are there casualties?"

"Yes. A lot. Ahhh—!"

Sharon's scream pierced through the call, followed by the unmistakable clatter of a phone hitting the floor.

Rowan's eyes narrowed.

A moment later, the sound of something being crushed a harsh, bone-grating crack echoed faintly through the speaker.

Then… silence.

The line went dead.

Rowan lowered his phone, his gaze turning ice cold.

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