Saving Earth

He-El and Bruce Banner chatted as they walked, catching up on everyone's recent circumstances before entering Stark Industries' Ark Reactor.

The moment he entered the Ark Reactor Building, He-El saw Tony Stark typing away at a computer keyboard nearby.

Several energy conduits, each as wide as a person, had been set up above the Ark Reactor, connecting to the Cosmic Cube, which was enveloped by overflowing energy in the form of a sphere.

He-El swept it with a glance and immediately understood why Loki was unafraid of being exposed.

"Nick, what's going on?" He-El strode over to Nick Fury, who stood with his hands clasped behind his back.

Nick Fury's expression was dark. His single eye watched the Cosmic Cube warily. Hearing He-El's question, he said in a deep voice:

"Half a month ago, Tony used the Cosmic Cube data left behind by S.H.I.E.L.D. to create a radar capable of specifically detecting the Cosmic Cube. It had never detected the Cube, but three days ago, it detected it at Stark Industries' Ark Reactor.

"When Pepper Potts was attacked, we came to the Ark Reactor and conducted a brief inspection. We found nothing unusual."

Nick Fury's expression grew grave as he spoke.

"He-El, Loki has improved again.

"He set up an incredibly realistic illusion here and deceived the inspectors' eyes. We only discovered the Cosmic Cube's location three days ago, when the energy leaking from it formed a sphere and triggered the radar designed to detect it. Otherwise, we would still have been kept in the dark."

Bruce Banner had already walked over to Tony, and the two began an intense exchange using scientific terminology that Nick Fury found difficult to understand.

He-El raised his head slightly and stared for a while at the Cosmic Cube above the Ark Reactor, wrapped