Wakanda, this mysterious country hidden in the African continent, known as Vibranium Technology but disguised as an agricultural country, has its core - the golden city of Birnin Zana) is shrouded in an atmosphere of unprecedented tension. In the royal chamber, the current Black Panther and king T'Challa are having emergency consultations with tribal elders, military commander Princess Shuri and intelligence chief Zuri (Zuri).
On the holographic screen is the enhanced firewall log of Tony·Stark, which clearly shows an unsuccessful network intrusion attempt traced back to Wakanda.
"Our actions have been discovered." T'Challa's voice was calm, but his brows were furrowed, "Stark is more vigilant than we thought."
"Brother, I have long said that the risk of directly stealing data is too high!" Shuri, the genius princess of Wakanda, couldn't help but speak, with a hint of dissatisfaction in her tone, "Although Stark Industries's network security is lagging behind overall, the defense of its core nodes is very unique and has a strong personal style. A forced breakthrough will inevitably trigger an alarm."
Zuri, the scheming intelligence chief, said slowly, "Your Majesty, Her Royal Highness the Princess is right. But time waits for no one. The cosmic attention brought by 'Leviathan Echo' is a fait accompli. Although Kree's intrusion attempt was blocked by that being...Xiao Han..., no one can guarantee what will come next. We must assess all potential threats as soon as possible, including the biggest uncertainty itself."
Military commander Okoye (Okoye) held her spear with a serious expression. "Wakanda has been hiding for centuries, not to expose itself to cosmic threats. But if we don't even know who the enemy is and how powerful it is, how can we protect the people? Understanding that Xiao Han is a prerequisite for formulating any defense or diplomatic strategy."
T'Challa nodded. This is a dilemma. Wakanda has world-leading technology, Vibranium battle armor, energy weapons, global surveillance network... But these can Oblivion They look so pale in front of the individuals of the alien fleet. They need information, but the act of obtaining information itself may attract unnecessary attention or even hostility - whether it is from Xiao Han or from external forces such as Stark.
"Stark has been alerted. We can no longer try to obtain data in a short period of time." T'Challa decided, "Shuri, through our observatory and deep space monitoring network, how much information can we analyze about those alien snoopers?"
Shuri immediately became energetic, and his fingers moved quickly on the virtual keyboard. "We have captured the energy debris radiation residue caused by the explosion of the Kree assault ship, as well as the diffuse cosmic broadcast signal... Oh, there is also a new one that has appeared recently, from other than Kuiper Belt An extremely concealed observation source, its technical characteristics are different from any known earth or Kree technology, more like a... biological camouflage technology? There is a new signal source further away, outside the orbit of Pluto, using ultra-long-distance scanning, and the style is very... militarized and orderly."
She projects a complex series of data streams and energy spectrum diagrams into the air.
"At least three different alien forces have shown interest in the Earth in recent days and have taken action. Two of them have been eliminated or forced back by Xiao Han. The one that is still under continuous observation is the farthest one."
There was silence in the conference hall. The situation was worse than they imagined. The earth was like a piece of fat surrounded by wolves.
"That Xiao Han... how strong is he?" A tribe elder couldn't help but ask, "Is his existence a blessing or a curse for us?"
T'Challa was silent for a moment, and recalled the sporadic fragments about Xiao Han captured by all Wakanda monitoring equipment (mainly disguised as commercial or meteorological satellites): Empire State Building's levitation, the blurred image of Stark being rescued in the desert, and some energy anomaly readings.
"His power transcends understanding and his motives are confusing. What he protects is not the earth, but his personal purity. Any existence that disturbs this purity, whether it is an alien invader or a criminal on earth, will be destroyed indiscriminately." T'Challa concluded, "From the current point of view, his existence has objectively deterred those more direct alien threats. But no one can guarantee that he himself will become the biggest threat one day."
"We must be prepared on both sides." Okoye said firmly. "On the one hand, we must speed up 'Planetary Defense Initiative' (Wakanda's Planetary Defense Initiative), use Vibranium Technology to build a global energy barrier and orbital defense system. On the other hand... perhaps we need to consider limited information sharing and cooperation with Stark, or even S.H.I.E.L.D.. In the face of cosmic-level threats, Wakanda cannot be immune."
This proposal caused hushed discussions in the chamber. It was openness and cooperation, which ran counter to the isolation policy pursued by Wakanda for hundreds of years.
"Cooperating with outsiders is extremely risky." An elder objected, "Once the secret of Vibranium is disclosed on a large scale, it will lead to endless greed and war!"
"But if the earth no longer exists, what's the point of keeping secrets?" another elder retorted.
T'Challa raised his hand and stopped the argument.
"Okoye is right. Complete isolation is no longer possible." He glanced at everyone, "But we can't rush in. Shuri, continue to monitor alien signals, especially the long-distance Watchers. Zuri, trying to collect intelligence about Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s response strategies to alien threats through more covert channels. We need to know more before we can decide what to do next."
"So... what about Xiao Han?" Shuri asked.
T'Challa thought for a long time.
"Temporary observation. We will never contact him without full certainty and necessity. He is the most unstable variable." He paused and added, "But at the same time, with Bonin Zana as the center and within a radius of one hundred kilometers, all industrial experiments and military exercises that may produce 'noise' are suspended or moved deep underground. We cannot take any risk of irritating him."
A secret instruction designed to avoid disturbing Xiao Han was quietly issued from the core of Wakanda. This hidden technological power, in an extremely cautious way, began to adjust its behavior to adapt to the existence of the "neighbor" on the beach.
The laboratories of Malibu, Tony.
"Wakanda..." Tony stared at the fuzzy signal source on the screen that eventually pointed to a certain area on the African continent, muttering to himself. "What on earth do they want to do?"
Friday responded, "Insufficient information makes it impossible to judge its intentions, boss. But what is certain is that its network penetration technology far exceeds the current world average, and is almost at the same level as previous alien spies, but its implementation method is based on the earth's technology tree."
"Based on the earth's technology tree..." Tony thought thoughtfully, "Vibranium... I should have thought of it earlier. Only that kind of strange substance can develop such a unique and advanced technology."
He felt that things were getting more and more complicated. There were wolves around outside, and there were hidden bosses inside who were ready to take action. But he was like sitting in the crater of a volcano that was about to erupt, with only a water gun in his hand.
"Friday, the priority of the project has changed." Tony made up his mind, "The 'Homeworld Guardian' orbital defense platform plan is temporarily put on hold. We will focus on the development of the 'Eye of Insight' long-distance sensor network. We need to see all the players clearly before deciding how to play."
"Understood, boss. Computing resources have been reallocated."
Tony walked to the window and looked at the sparkling sea and the leisurely figure under the sunset. He knew that the existence of Xiao Han was the only and largest stabilizer at present. But as soon as he thought that this stability was based on such a fragile foundation (someone's mood), he felt deeply uneasy.
He must do something.
After much hesitation, he walked to the beach again. This time, he held two glasses of ice-cold whiskey in his hand.
"Hey," he tried to sound casual and put a glass of wine on the table next to Xiao Han, "The weather... has been nice recently."
Xiao Han opened his eyes, glanced at the glass of amber liquid, and closed them again without any interest.
Tony didn't care. He took a sip and leaned on the railing. "It's just a little... windy sometimes." He tried to use metaphors to stir up the topic.
Xiao Han did not respond.
Tony bit the bullet and continued, "I mean, sometimes, the wind blows from nowhere and carries a little... sand, which is a bit annoying, right?"
Xiao Han finally spoke in a calm tone, "What do you want to ask?"
Tony breathed a sigh of relief, at least he was willing to communicate. "It's just... those sands. The wave that came before, and the wave that I saw from a distance later... are the same thing?"
Xiao Han was silent for a few seconds, seeming to decide whether this question was worth answering.
"No." He replied simply.
"No?" Tony asked, "Can you tell the difference clearly? What's the difference... between them?"
"The taste is different." Xiao Han's answer was still abstract, "It was noisy before, but quieter later."
Taste? Tony probably understands that this refers to the difference in energy characteristics or intentions.
"Then... the quieter one, just watching? No other actions?" Tony asked cautiously.
"Currently." Xiao Han paused and added, "It knows the rules better than the previous insects."
Understand the rules? Do you mean keep a distance? Tony feels a little more at ease. At least for now, this Watchers seems to have no malicious intent.
"Then... if, I mean if, there are bugs who don't understand the rules come here in the future..." Tony asked tentatively, "How would you normally... deal with it?"
Xiao Han turned his head and glanced at Tony, his eyes seemed to be looking at a mentally retarded person.
"Shoot him to death." He uttered two words and then closed his eyes again, apparently ending the conversation.
Tony received the expected answer, feeling reassured and helpless. He drank all the wine in the glass and sighed.
"Thank you for the... information." He whispered, turned and left.
At least he knows that the distant Watchers is currently "safe". But Wakanda... seems to need to find another way to explore the truth.
In the universe, Shi'ar Empire's reconnaissance ship is still in a distant position, silently recording everything. Wakanda's decision-makers are looking for a way out in anxiety. Tony is racing against time in the laboratory. But the center of the eye of the storm is still quiet.
But no one knows how long this tranquility can last.