Changed Plot

It could grant life to inanimate objects, but it could not revive creatures that were already dead.

Those Leviathan wrecks were nothing more than wreckage, after all.

Their power systems had been destroyed, their nervous systems had collapsed. Even if life energy were forcibly injected into them, they would only become living corpses incapable of moving.

Shendu's heart sank.

This thing could not stop that living Leviathan.

"Roar!"

Deep within the tunnel, the real Leviathan had already charged right up to them. Its enormous jaws opened, blue energy gathering in its throat, ready to fire.

Shendu turned and ran.

Steve stared dumbfounded at the fleeing Shendu. Where had all that boldness from when he insisted on coming along gone? Why was he the first to run?

Shendu ignored Steve's bewilderment. What a joke. Without the Dog Talisman, he valued his life more than anyone present.

Steve came to his senses and, without hesitation, slung his shield onto his back and sprinted.

Hulk smashed two more Chitauri and ran after them.

They rushed into the main chamber of the substation. Before they could close the door, the Leviathan's head had already smashed through the wall at the tunnel entrance.

Boom!

Rubble scattered everywhere.

Half of the Leviathan's body squeezed through the doorway, but it got stuck.

Its torso was too thick, and the substation doorway was too small. Its friction against the tunnel walls had already expended nearly all of its momentum.

Now, it was forcibly wedged in place.

The Leviathan struggled wildly, its metal skeleton scraping against the concrete as the entire building shook.

"It can't get in!"

Natasha shouted, "This building can hold!"

Before she could finish, the Leviathan opened its mouth.

Blue light gathered in its throat.

"Get down!"

Steve threw himself toward the two nearest civilians, shielding them with his shield.

Shendu planted all four claws into the ground and stared intently at that ball of light.

Just then, a familiar voice came through the communicator, carrying its signature punchable tone.

"Everyone, sorry to keep you waiting."

Tony Stark dived down through a hole in the ceiling, his repulsor aimed at the Leviathan's open jaws. "This thing is mine."

An energy beam burst from his repulsor and poured directly into the Leviathan's throat.

The blue glow and golden energy exploded inside the beast's mouth. Its head jerked back, its neck rupturing from within as countless metal fragments and blue fluid sprayed out.

Tony stopped sharply in midair and turned to look at them. "You guys throwing a party here without inviting me?"

Steve climbed up from the ground, relief appearing on his face. "How did you find us?"

"Your communicator's tracking signal." Tony landed, the armor plates of his suit retracting one after another to reveal his slightly weary face.

"By the way, things are getting better outside. The portal has started shrinking. I'm guessing something happened to that big ship's mothership."

Shendu's heartbeat skipped.

The portal was starting to shrink?

That was wrong.

In the plot, the portal shrank because Tony pushed a nuclear missile through it and blew up the mothership.

The missile had not even been launched yet, so why was the portal shrinking?

He abruptly looked at Tony.

Tony was looking at him too.

"So," Tony pointed at Shendu, "what's the deal with this moving lizard?"

Shendu ignored his jab. There was only one thought left in his mind.

Why was the portal closing when the nuclear missile had clearly not been launched?!

Steve stepped in front of Shendu and repeated himself. "Relax. He's not an enemy. He saved me."

"Yes, and he nearly got you killed too," Banner added from the side, recalling how Shendu had run away without the slightest hesitation.

But Shendu's mind was nowhere near that. Why had the plot here changed?

Could the Marvel plots he had heard in the museum before have all been fake? Pirated versions?

But that did not make sense either. If they were pirated, why had everyone watched the pirated versions? Not a single person had seen the original.

Natasha looked at the stunned Shendu beside her, thinking he had been scared witless by what had just happened. "Hey, it's not your fault. Anything alive is afraid of death."

She had been stunned too when Shendu was the first to run, but it also dispelled some of her suspicion toward him.

After all, Loki would not send an extremely cowardly creature to act as a spy.

Shendu stood where he was as the portal began to shrink.

This was wrong.

He remembered it clearly. In the tourists' discussions at the museum, in the countless edited videos online, the Battle of New York had only one ending.

The council launched a nuclear missile, Iron Man pushed it through the portal, the mothership exploded, and the portal closed.

But now the missile had not arrived, yet the portal was closing by itself?

"Hey, Mr. Lizard?"

Tony's voice pulled him back to reality.

Iron Man crouched in front of him and tapped his forehead with one finger. "Anybody home?"

Shendu instinctively shrank back, his eyes wary.

Tony raised an eyebrow. "Oh, quick reaction. So you can understand human speech?"

Steve walked over to explain, "He understands both English and Chinese. Also, he's a dragon. An Eastern dragon."

"Well, that's great."

Tony stood up, hands on his hips as he looked at Shendu. "Where did you come from? What are you doing on Earth? Did you bring any dangerous alien parasites with you?"

Shendu stared at him without moving.

His mind raced. He still remembered what they had discussed earlier. The nuclear missile launch had been awaiting approval; by now, it should already have been launched.

"He's trembling," Natasha's voice came from beside him.

Shendu froze. Looking down at his claws, he found that they were indeed trembling slightly.

His demonic instincts told him that a pair of eyes was watching him.

It was the Watcher. He had changed the outcome of the Battle of New York, but the missile—who would the nuclear missile target?

A bolt of lightning exploded in Shendu's mind. There was another extraterrestrial here, or rather, a creature that did not belong to this world.

The missile's next target would be him! The Watcher would not allow him to exist!

"Hey."

A hand landed on top of his head.

Shendu looked up and saw Steve crouching in front of him. There was something inexplicably reassuring in those blue eyes.

Steve said, "Whatever you're thinking, take a breath first. We're safe for now."

Shendu was stunned. Safe for now... were they really safe?

The roar overhead was indeed weakening. Through the substation's damaged ceiling, he could see the blue portal in the sky shrinking.

Chitauri corpses lay in the streets, while those airships fell from the sky like headless flies.

They had won? The Battle of New York... had they won?

"Captain!" Hill's excited voice came through the communicator.

"The portal has completely closed! I repeat, the portal has completely closed! All enemy units have lost response!"

The substation fell silent for a second.

Then, the civilians huddled in the corner embraced each other and began to cry.

Natasha let out a long breath and holstered her pistol.

Banner's skin faded from green back to normal. He dropped onto the rubble and wiped the sweat from his face. "I hate aliens."

Tony's armor let out a release of air, its faceplate fully opening. He leaned against the wall and looked up at the ceiling, the corners of his mouth slowly lifting. "I have to say, this is my second time saving New York, and it feels a lot better than the first."

Steve stood up. Looking at the constant stream of good news coming through the communicator, he finally smiled.

Only Shendu remained where he was, gazing up at the sky that was gradually returning to calm. He was waiting, waiting for that nuclear missile to confirm his suspicions.

In the distance, a white contrail was rapidly approaching from the southwest.

That was the missile's trajectory.