Manhattan.
Earth United Government, Presidential Office.
The office was spacious. Sunlight streamed in through the slanted floor-to-ceiling windows, clear and bright. A round handwoven wool rug lay softly across the hall, while the huanghuali desk, twice the size of an ordinary one, faintly exuded a pleasant fragrance.
The temperature in the Presidential Office was comfortable, its dome broad and majestic, making people unable to help but feel their own insignificance.
He-El stood tall in a well-fitted suit, his broad shoulders and arms accentuating his imposing frame. His face was contemplative, and beneath the sunlight, he radiated an open, handsome, domineering, and dignified presence.
"Ring, ring, ring..." The telephone on the huanghuali desk rang.
"Nick?" He-El, whose thoughts had been absorbed in producing the Two-Dimensional Foil aboard the Manta Ray Mothership, came back to himself. He glanced at the desk phone atop the huanghuali desk, a trace of puzzlement flashing through his eyes.
Nick rarely called He-El on the desk phone. Normally, he used the brainwave communication contact lenses He-El had given him to get in touch.
He-El had not sought out Nick Fury, either.
Whether it was using the Reality Stone to study cosmic particles and devise new materials and methods of application, the tedious affairs involved in establishing the Earth United Government, or constantly researching new weapons, all of it had kept He-El extremely busy during this period.
Only recently had things finally begun to stabilize.
There was no reason for him to seek out Nick Fury.
Now that Nick was calling, a faint flicker of confusion crossed He-El's eyes.
"Nick, it's been a long time." He-El pressed the communication button on the desk phone and spoke evenly.
"It has indeed been a long time. Ever since you returned from Asgard and became president of the Earth United Government,