As dawn broke through the New York skyline, a golden portal landed steadily at the entrance to the top-floor laboratory of Avengers Tower.
The moment Thor stepped out the door, his immense spiritual power surged forth like a tidal wave, instantly sweeping across the entire city.
In the operating room of a private hospital in Midtown Manhattan, Strange held a scalpel, his fingers so steady they seemed welded to the ground. He didn't even have time to wipe the sweat from his brow, as one surgery after another was scheduled, leaving him no time to even drink water.
Thor raised an eyebrow, secretly pleased.
Very good, this nuclear-powered ox is finally moving.
Withdrawing his mental energy, he glanced around the empty laboratory.
The usually bustling Avengers Tower was eerily quiet at this moment. In the huge laboratory, only Tony Stark was huddled in front of the floating control panel, his fingertips flying across the holographic projection, occasionally muttering a few words to JARVIS about adjusting parameters.
" JARVIS, increase the energy transfer coefficient on the left flank by another two percentage points. I want this suit of armor to withstand a direct impact from a neutron star."
"Okay, sir. Adjusting parameters, estimated completion time is ten seconds."
The man and the AI were busy at work, not even turning around. The instant Thor's boots stepped across the lab threshold, Tony's voice rang out without looking up, carrying his usual teasing and mocking tone:
"Hey, Thor, what are you doing here in my cold, sterile lab so early in the morning? Instead of spending time with your newly won-up Sorcerer Supreme or cuddling with that red-haired beauty."
Surely they didn't come all this way just to observe my genius inventions?
Thor casually closed the portal behind him, leaned against the metal platform beside him, and shrugged.
"Don't portray me as some love-obsessed brute. I promised Odin I would help Thor of your universe get out of that mess."
He paused, looked up at Tony, and cut to the chase. "Tell me, where is your universe's Thor right now?"
Upon hearing this, Tony immediately stopped what he was doing.
He raised his hand, signaling JARVIS to pause the current data calculation. Turning around, with a strange look on his face, he glanced at Thor before slowly speaking:
"To be honest, I wouldn't recommend you go see him."
"Why?" Thor raised an eyebrow.
"Because he's exactly the same as the future scenes you showed us back then."
Tony forced a smile, his tone filled with exasperation and disappointment.
"Now I've become a round, Meatball. I can't even lift a hammer, I get out of breath after walking just a few steps."
As he spoke, he casually brought up a holographic projection displaying real-time data on global paranormal energy detection. He paused, then added:
"Honestly, even his brother Loki is much better than this brute. At least he didn't give up on himself; I just wonder where he is now."
"It's definitely not on Earth anyway." Tony tapped the control panel, proudly showing off his new technology.
"I specifically combined magic and technology to create a global detection satellite system. No supernatural activity on Earth, whether it's a scientific energy burst or a high-risk individual in the magical world, can escape my eyes."
"The moment he sets foot on Earth, I can pinpoint his location within 0.1 seconds."
Thor looked surprised and frowned. "As his teammates who risked their lives for him, didn't you try to persuade him?"
"Persuade? How? With what?" Tony rolled his eyes, slumped into a nearby chair, his voice utterly helpless.
"We've tried everything to persuade him, even his beloved Jane Foster couldn't convince him. How can we possibly persuade him?"
As he spoke, he couldn't help but chuckle softly, his eyes full of anticipation.
"You didn't see it, the first time that Old Popsicle guy saw Thor like this, he couldn't even keep his expression to himself."
I suspect he's secretly plotting to give this good-for-nothing a good beating, but he just doesn't have the nerve to do it."
Tony looked up at Thor, raised an eyebrow, and asked with a hint of probing, "What? You mean you have a way to get this fatso to cheer up?"
"I'm not exaggerating, he's completely given up now. He even willingly gave his most treasured Mjolnir to Jane, making her the Mighty Thor."
"Honestly, the Avengers lost the male Thor and gained a Mighty Thor, but they're pretty much the same. Now he's like a mascot, kept here by me. Anyway, I, Stark, don't need that little bit of beer and pizza money."
Thor's lips twitched as he listened, and he cursed inwardly.
That's a real big spender, a real big spender.
He casually pulled a hundred-dollar bill from his personal storage space, slapped it on the counter, and raised an eyebrow at Tony:
"Want to gamble? I have a way to get this fat guy back on his feet within a week."
Tony's gaze fell on the dollar bill, and he answered almost instantly, speaking at a rapid pace like a machine gun:
"Gambling is fine, I've never been afraid of anyone. But..."
He abruptly changed the subject, pointing at the US dollar bill with his fingertip, a hint of suspicion on his face.
Something about this US dollar bill of yours looks a little off to me.
Before he could finish speaking, Tony raised his hand. " JARVIS, scan him."
"Scanning, sir," JARVIS's voice rang out calmly, providing the results two seconds later.
"Scan complete. This banknote's material and printing process meet US dollar standards, but there is no corresponding serial number recorded in the Federal Reserve's issuance database, and it is not legal tender issued in this universe."
Thor's expression froze for a moment, a rare hint of embarrassment crossing his face. He touched his nose and tried to laugh it off.
"Hey, I just picked this up casually in another universe, I forgot about it."
I forgot which universe I robbed a gang of money from before, but when I got to this universe, it became nothing but a piece of waste paper.
The experiment failed completely...
Tony, seeing his expression, instantly understood, crossed his arms, and looked at him with a half-smile, "Oh? Dollars from another universe?"
"Yeah, right." Thor, in a fit of desperation, raised his chin. "So, do you want it or not? If not, I'll take it back."
Tony stared at the US dollar bill for two seconds, then his eyes lit up, and he grabbed the bill in his hand.
"Yes! Of course I want it! It's perfect for me to build a multiverse currency museum, collecting US dollars from all the universes. It would be an absolutely unique collection."
Seeing this, Thor simply pulled out a whole box of heavy US dollars from his storage space and casually tossed it to Tony.
The box landed on the ground with a dull thud; it was filled with neatly stacked hundred-dollar bills.
After throwing away the boxes, he remembered his real task and looked at Tony: "Oh right, what about the nanotech armor I asked you to make for me?"
Tony snapped his the Snap, and the mechanical arm beside him immediately pushed over a palm-sized, Arc Reactor. He caught it and casually tossed it to Thor.
"I already prepared it for you." Tony said nonchalantly.
"It activates simply by slapping it on your body, the color scheme can be adjusted to your liking, its defense is maxed out, it can easily withstand a full-force attack from Dr. Banner or Vision, and all kinds of offensive weapons are also maxed out for you. It is definitely my highest-grade product."
He glanced at Thor up and down, his face full of confusion:
"But speaking of which, what do you need this thing for? With your strength, isn't this kind of armor just like a restraint for you? It's completely useless. You can't really just keep it as a collectible, can you?"
Thor took the reactor, twirled it between his fingertips, and smiled mysteriously, "No, you don't understand. This thing might be very useful in other universes."
Seeing that he was unwilling to say more, Tony didn't press further. He stood up, dusted off his clothes, and gestured for Thor to follow.
"Alright, you want to see that fatso, right? Come with me, he's been holed up in his suite downstairs, hasn't left the house in almost a month."
The two took the elevator downstairs, and just as they reached the suite door, before they could even knock, a deafening roar erupted from inside, filled with a desperate and furious outburst:
"I am Thor! King of Asgard! I suggest you go easy on me! Otherwise, I'll take my Mjolnir, fly straight to your house, and give you a good shove in the ass!"
Thor and Tony exchanged a glance, both seeing the deep helplessness in each other's eyes.
Tony turned his face away first, lowered his voice, rolled his eyes, and muttered a sarcastic remark:
"See? I told you long ago, he was beyond saving."
" Rhodey is right. This guy's veins don't flow with blood, they flow with cream."