Reborn as the God-Emperor in Marvel

"Beautiful lady." Even in the midst of the crowd of Old Bridge Town residents, Luca's journalistic instincts led him straight to someone involved in the incident. Seeing that the person in question was a beautiful woman, the Frenchman's romantic nature took over. He adjusted his tie and walked over with a smile.

While making small talk with Darcy, Luca silently cursed Solomon for being unreliable. After Luca had landed, the arcanist had ordered Phoenix to take him from the airport straight to Old Bridge Town, right as S.H.I.E.L.D. was evacuating the residents. Although the timing was perfect, crossing through the Aether Dimension without any protection was tough for an ordinary person to handle.

"Hi!" Darcy turned her head and saw a tall, handsome man greeting her. The unexpected encounter startled her so much that she forgot she was wearing a red knitted hat. She nervously pushed her hair back, a futile gesture that only made it messier as static clung to the hat.

Clearly, Luca's charm had worked. Whether at a nightclub or as a reporter, Luca had a way with words. Under his careful questioning, Darcy revealed everything she knew, including how she and Jane Foster had met Thor. Just from that, Luca knew he had made the trip worthwhile. The only hitch was when Darcy, Jane Foster, and Erik Selvig were taken by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Darcy was still trying to exchange phone numbers with Luca, nearly drawing the agents' attention to him. However, using his skills, Luca managed to slip away from the agents and the gathered townspeople. He "borrowed" a car and drove in the direction Darcy had been taken.

His instincts told him there was more to find there.

Jane Foster had a nagging feeling something was off. Although Thor had broken into the S.H.I.E.L.D. research base, they had no evidence to prove his real identity. When S.H.I.E.L.D. came for them, Jane initially thought it was because they had discovered Thor stealing her notebook. She was about to argue but was stopped by her mentor.

Erik Selvig glanced at Thor, who had all his attention on Jane Foster.

By now, Erik was fairly convinced of Thor's true identity, not just because Thor could drink and fight, but because Jane Foster's analysis made logical sense. Knowing this situation was beyond them, Erik suggested they follow S.H.I.E.L.D.'s lead. His connections told him just how powerful S.H.I.E.L.D. was. Since they were offering protection, they had no choice but to comply. However, Erik was still cautious—he discreetly warned his students and Darcy not to mention Thor's identity in front of the agents. None of them knew how S.H.I.E.L.D. would treat an alien prince, and Erik didn't mind assuming the worst.

His suspicion was well-founded. In fact, even Nick Fury had considered taking action when he learned of Thor's identity. If it hadn't been for Solomon's persuasion, Fury might have made a move on Thor already. Understanding how people think, Fury had kept Thor's identity a secret. Even though some politicians knew of the Thunder God now, it was too late for them to interfere.

When the Bifrost first descended, the U.S. military stationed in the desert almost thought it was an enemy attack. But once the surveillance drones reached the heads of the Four Warriors of Asgard, Thor quickly identified them, and Agent Coulson notified the military to stand down. Coulson even arranged a vehicle to bring Volstagg, Fandral, Sif, and Hogun to the base.

After Thor introduced Jane Foster to the four warriors, they got down to business. The news they brought shocked Thor, as it was entirely different from what Loki had told him. Odin was still alive, merely in a deep sleep. The "Odin Sleep" was a restorative state that would make Odin younger and stronger. The idea of permanent exile was a lie. Thor realized this was yet another one of Loki's pranks, but the consequences of this one were far worse than usual.

Agent Coulson stood silently by, observing and analyzing the group's dynamics. Sif was his main focus, as mythology described her as Thor's wife. However, Thor seemed to have feelings for Jane Foster. Coulson discreetly reported the situation, including Sif's reaction. She clearly sensed Thor's feelings but didn't pay Jane Foster any mind, treating her as if she were invisible.

"Is Coulson some kind of soap opera agent now?" Solomon smirked while sending texts on his phone, giving Luca further instructions.

Nick Fury wasn't pleased. "It's part of the job. Observing relationships is a crucial skill for any agent. Coulson is an excellent agent; he's doing his job well."

"See? The intel Coulson provided matches everything I told you," Solomon said, eyes on his phone. "This only confirms how accurate my information is—you must be thinking that."

"Can you read minds now?" Fury sneered. "Because that would raise your threat level."

"I couldn't care less about that." Solomon sent his last text and put away his phone. Soon, the Bifrost descended again, and the surveillance drones sent real-time images to Fury's computer.

"What is this? Asgard's Iron Man?" Fury asked, pointing to the approaching Destroyer armor in the footage.

"You should start your attack now," Solomon suggested. "Don't wait for it to get close—that's not something ordinary people can handle."

The Destroyer armor was the guardian of Asgard's treasury, a relic of immense power. Odin had once used it, combined with the power of all Earth's gods, to repel the Celestials. Loki, wielding Gungnir, could barely activate it, but even so, it was beyond what human technology could combat.

Solomon didn't want to explain much to Fury, not just because of the sensitive secrets involved, but because he didn't want to waste time on endless explanations. Fury, realizing this, wisely began his military preparations.

Fury ordered Agent Coulson to hold back the Asgardian warriors. Coulson relayed the order. "Guests from Asgard," he said, "we'll protect you. Let our soldiers try first—they're brave men."

"They're my friends," Thor added, encouraging the warriors. "Though Coulson said a lot I didn't understand, I know he's a good man. They want to help us. If they fail, we can step in."

"Exactly! Let them see Volstagg's courage!" the burly warrior shouted, already devouring his third military ration, ready to start on his fourth.

Fandral agreed, eager to join the fight, while polishing his sword.

"But with this primitive technology, they'll never defeat the Destroyer," Sif said, staying more cautious. Hogun remained silent, though he clearly sided with Sif. Nevertheless, the warriors always followed Thor's orders, and this time was no different.

Fury began by testing the simpler weapons. Tank shells, guided by fire control radars, accurately hit the Destroyer, sending it tumbling. The first strike was effective, prompting cheers from the command center—the alien tech wasn't so terrifying after all!

But the Destroyer stood back up, its shining silver armor without a single dent. The chilling footage from the surveillance drones silenced the cheering officers. They could hardly believe their eyes. Fury, however, wasn't surprised—he had expected this result. He ordered multiple tanks to fire at once, using kinetic force to stall the Destroyer's advance.

Meanwhile, three F22 fighter jets took off, loaded with GBU-32 precision-guided bombs, racing toward the desert. The kinetic stalling tactic worked well. While it couldn't damage the Destroyer, it successfully slowed its progress.

Fury wasn't celebrating yet, knowing this was only a temporary fix. Before the F22s could strike, the Destroyer's faceplate opened, and the drones detected a sharp rise in thermal energy. Without waiting for orders, the Destroyer fired a beam that sliced through an M1A2 tank as if it were butter, triggering a catastrophic explosion that rattled the entire command center.

"Attack! Attack!" an officer screamed into the radio. "Don't let it get closer! All units, engage!"

Luca cursed as he yanked the steering wheel, having spotted the dust kicked up by the first shell. As he got closer, the blast wave from the explosion nearly knocked him out. Now, he fully understood the danger of the situation but also the immense value of the story. Reckless determination surged through him again as he bit his lip, steered the car back on course, and pressed on toward his target.

The intense barrage quickly showed results, with consecutive explosions making it hard for the Destroyer to stand, let alone counterattack. By the time the F22s arrived, a total of 12 GBU-32 bombs hit the Destroyer simultaneously, causing a massive explosion that whipped up a storm of dust and debris, covering the command center in a layer of sand.

"Oh, that's more like it!" Volstagg cheered, patting the shoulder of a nearby officer. "Midgard does have some nice toys! Can I have one?"

Amidst the dust, all the tanks ceased fire. Everyone (except Solomon) was anxiously awaiting the drone footage. As the dust settled, the drone captured the Destroyer armor—still intact, walking out unscathed.

The attack seemed to have angered Loki. The Destroyer's faceplate opened again, firing high-energy lasers that took down the retreating F22s. After the jets crashed, the Destroyer continued its relentless assault, slicing through anything in its path like a knife through butter.

"Damn it! This is all worthless!" an enraged officer slammed

 his fist on the table. "Attack! Throw everything we have at it!"

"What are you going to do now?" Solomon asked, bored, as Fury kept staring at the screen. "Is the World Security Council ordering you to keep experimenting? Don't tell me you're going to use nukes!"

"Of course not," Fury replied. "The experiment continues, but I have a backup plan."

"Miss me, Fury?" A voice suddenly echoed through the speakers of the Quinjet. The door opened, and a red-and-gold armored figure jumped into the cabin with a thud.

"That's my backup plan," Fury said, smugly standing up. "I'm always prepared."

"Huh," Solomon scoffed, completely ignoring Tony Stark's grand entrance. He took out his phone again to text Luca—he didn't want his tool dying out of nowhere and needed to guide him to a safe location.

"Hey! Kid! Didn't you see Iron Man's here?"

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