Phoenix in The Marvel

Tony's footsteps echoed through the wide corridors of the mansion as he hurried toward the lab, groggy from sleep.

"Jarvis, give me more of that!" he yelled before the lab door opened.

"Sir, the energy output is unstable at the moment. It is fluctuating, but the overall intensity is increasing. If it continues at this rate-"

The doors opened.

And Tony's eyes widened.

The giant egg in the center of the lab was no longer an object he recognized.

The light reflecting off the ceiling and surrounding surfaces shone in shades of gold and crimson, illuminating the entire lab like the sun.

But the light was... not normal.

It didn't look like electric light or a plasma buildup.

He didn't know what it was.

And it frightened him.

He slowly stepped inside, his eyes squinting in the light emanating from the egg.

"Jarvis, give me some numbers," he said, his voice serious.

"Sir, the level of energy being emitted is far above the highest level ever recorded. We are now at approximately..."

Jarvis stopped suddenly.

Tony's brow furrowed.

"What is it, Jarvis?"

"Sir... at this point, if the energy build-up were to explode, it could wreak havoc with the force of at least two nuclear bombs."

A cold shiver ran through Tony.

Two nuclear bombs?

For a moment, the thought numbed his brain.

His mouth opened slightly and the words disappeared in his mouth.

He stared at the egg as if in a dream.

This thing... what was it?

It was a bird's egg, wasn't it? It should be.

But a normal bird's egg couldn't produce enough energy to level the city.

He took a deep breath. The shock in his brain began to give way to analysis.

"Jarvis, why doesn't this thing explode?"

"Right now the oscillation is chaotic, but it seems to be stabilizing. That means the energy is building up but not yet being released."

Tony shook his head from side to side.

That was good news... or worse.

Because if this thing wasn't exploding, it wasn't consciously exploding.

Or it continued to grow.

Inside his brain, millions of thoughts were racing at once.

Was this thing an uncontrollable energy source?

Or... a life form?

He took another step, the light hitting his skin.

This was the most powerful power source Tony Stark had ever seen.

He was witnessing the birth of something that could shake the entire world.

The light in the lab was no longer just a glow, it was like a star ready to explode.

The light hit the walls and ceiling in waves of gold and red, as if even the concrete and steel felt the pressure of the energy.

Tony's face was shadowed against the glowing energy. His entire body was tense.

"Jarvis, give me your current energy level."

His voice was completely different from his usual nonchalant tone.

It was a combination of seriousness and fear.

Jarvis' voice shook slightly.

"Sir... I can't measure it anymore."

Tony's breath caught for a moment.

What?

"You're measuring everything you see, Jarvis. How does that work?"

"My sensors indicate that the energy level has risen far beyond the prescribed limits. But the fluctuations are so fast... I can't measure it. It doesn't match any form of energy I can identify."

Tony's mind went into war alert.

This was bad.

This was very bad.

The energy waves were now beginning to interfere with the equipment in the room.

Several monitors in the corner of the lab began to turn on and off with a buzzing sound.

Some of the precision instruments suddenly started working on their own.

And then -

CRACK!

A cracking sound filled the entire lab.

Tony looked at the egg in shock.

A thin crack had formed on the surface of the shell.

As if someone had broken the glass.

But it glowed so brightly that even the crack sparkled like lava.

"Jarvis... this thing is cracking."

Jarvis' voice came: "Sir, the probability of an explosion... is increasing."

Tony's heart raced.

"How big?"

"Enough to destroy the entire structure. It would probably kill everyone in the city."

That sentence froze Tony completely.

He didn't even know what this thing was.

But there was no way to stop it.

If it was a missile, he could open it up and disable the mechanism.

If it was a reactor, he could drain the excess energy and stabilize it.

But this... what was this?

There was no way to stop it.

Tony breathed in slowly.

He stopped thinking.

For there was nothing he could do.

For the first time in his life, he felt like he was losing control.

And for the first time he really thought he was going to die.

Maybe it should have ended this way.

The mistakes he made... the weapons he built, the power he fed...

Maybe that would be the end of the Stark name.

Maybe...

THE LIGHT SUDDENLY FADED.

The intense glow that had filled the entire lab was suddenly extinguished, as if someone had pressed a button.

It was so sudden, in fact, that her eyes had no time to adjust.

The world had gone dark again.

But the egg

The egg was still there.

And now it had opened with a big crack.

And there was something inside.

The interior of the lab, which a moment ago had seemed on the verge of a catastrophic explosion, was now almost deathly quiet.

Tony's shoulders relaxed, realizing for the first time the tension that had spread through his body. He hadn't exploded.

Jarvis' voice sounded calm, but could not hide his inner confusion:

"Sir, the energy drain has reset."

Tony inhaled sharply, his body still pumping with adrenaline.

This... this was a joke, wasn't it?

One minute they were measuring an energy level that could destroy the city, and now there was nothing.

It was as if the energy had never been here.

Tony shook his head from side to side.

"Is this... is this really happening?" he muttered to himself.

But that wasn't the end of it.

He turned back to the egg.

It was still there.

But now it had split along a large crack.

And something moved inside it.

First a small tremor...

Then the bottom of the egg rose slightly.

Tony approached it as carefully as he could.

He didn't know what was coming out of it, but somehow he wasn't afraid anymore.

He bent down, not touching the cracked edge of the egg, watching the movement underneath.

And at that moment...

A small, delicate shape appeared through the shards of the egg.

Tony's eyes widened.

"Impossible..."

A tiny, feathered creature emerged from the egg. But it didn't look like a normal baby bird. Its feathers glowed as if reflecting light.

At first, Tony thought the feathers were wet.

But no...they were really shimmering.

Shades of gold, orange and crimson came together as if melted in a flame.

Her tiny body was slender and delicate.

But strangely...

The eyes.

As Tony looked into those eyes, he realized they held wonder, curiosity and... some kind of consciousness.

This wasn't just an animal.

This was something.

This something... was watching him.

Tony blinked, touched his forehead lightly, as if to check if he was dreaming.

Was this... was this real?

Jarvis' voice echoed:

"Sir... I believe we have just witnessed the birth of an unknown species."

A small smile spread across Tony's face.

How else could they explain it?

His eyes were still fixed on the tiny creature's delicate wings.

The wings were small, but...

It was hard to imagine what would happen when this thing grew up.

Tony took a deep breath and looked at this strange, bright creature, newly hatched and watching him.

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