DC Heroes in Marvel

Anton's words left Mr. Fantastic deeply shaken.

Although Anton had long been aware of the Skrulls' abilities, Reed had never considered such far-reaching implications until now.

A sense of urgency stirred within him.

He couldn't imagine a future where humans no longer trusted one another, where no one could even be sure if the person beside them was human or alien.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it as soon as possible," Reed assured him with a firm nod.

Beside him, the other three members of the Fantastic Four—Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm—also recognized the gravity of the situation.

It wasn't their first time studying alien corpses.

After the Battle of New York, many pieces of Chitauri technology had been left behind, along with numerous Chitauri corpses that became lifeless once the core mothership was destroyed.

The Justice League research team—consisting of Connors, Banner, and Reed—had conducted extensive studies on the Chitauri remains.

While the results weren't groundbreaking, they had gained valuable insights and, more importantly, experience. This gave them confidence in handling the task Anton had assigned them.

"Take the corpse back to the underground lab," Anton instructed.

"You know, it's not safe to keep it here at the Men in Black headquarters."

The Skrull corpse, sealed by S.H.I.E.L.D. for many years, had just been transferred.

If any Skrulls still remained on Earth, they would undoubtedly know about it.

The easiest way for them to cover their tracks would be to sabotage the research.

Keeping the corpse at the Men in Black headquarters would make it a target. To prevent that, the body had to be moved to a secure location.

Even in the worst-case scenario, if the Men in Black headquarters were attacked, it would just mean spending more money on renovations—something Anton could afford without worry.

After all, his funds were practically limitless, and he still hadn't figured out how to spend them all.

"Got it," Reed and the others agreed, then left with the Skrull corpse.

Anton was also preparing to leave when Z suddenly appeared beside him.

"Anton, we're a little short on manpower," Z said.

"Do you have any suggestions?"

"Up to you," Anton shrugged.

"I don't have anyone specific to recommend. You know, most of the people I know are superheroes—I'm not mobilizing their power for this."

He paused, then added, "But I suggest checking major police departments across the U.S. for recruits. Those elite officers are hidden gems."

"Good idea," Z nodded, realizing the potential. "I'll get started on that now."

"Wait a second," Anton called out just as he was about to leave.

He pulled a pair of sunglasses from his pocket and handed them to Z.

"These are for you."

"Uh... thanks for the gift, but... you do know it's nighttime, right?" Z asked, puzzled as he examined the sunglasses.

"These aren't ordinary sunglasses," Anton explained.

"They're the latest tech from Wayne Enterprises—equipped with recording functions, audio and video capture, GPS tracking, thermal scanning, night vision, and even communication capabilities. You can send information, make calls... all without taking them off. They won't affect your vision at night either."

"Nice," Z said, impressed, as he put on the sunglasses. His entire demeanor shifted, becoming more composed and professional.

"Come on now, the Men in Black have to have sunglasses," Anton said with a satisfied nod.

"These glasses are packed with high-end technology, which means they're expensive. At least a few hundred thousand dollars per pair. But, since Wayne and I have a good relationship, we might get a better deal... say, $300,000 per pair?"

"Wait... this isn't just for me?" Z's face froze in disbelief.

"I'm giving you this pair, but I want the Men in Black to purchase a whole batch. Sunglasses are essential. Talk to Wayne—I've already prepared a list of what we need." Anton smirked.

"We've got plenty of funds. No point letting them go to waste!"

With that, he waved his hand and left the headquarters.

Z stood there, watching Anton's back as he disappeared, feeling a little stunned.

Sure, Anton sounded logical... but something felt off.

A good relationship with Wayne?

Wasn't Wayne actually... your's?

Anton drove away from the headquarters, taking a route that bypassed most of Manhattan's blocks.

At this time, the Manhattan area was still reeling from the devastation caused by the Battle of New York. 

Buildings were undergoing reconstruction, with construction companies across the city seizing every opportunity they could, laughing all the way to the bank.

Judging by the progress of the rebuilding efforts, even at the fastest pace, it would take at least six months for Manhattan to recover even half of its former glory.

Most major companies in the area had relocated their offices to other parts of the city, with only a handful choosing to remain in Manhattan.

Among those that stayed were the Daily bugle and DC Media—both under Anton's control.

Of course, other industry giants like Wayne Enterprises, Oscorp, and Stark Industries also remained. These companies had become symbols of their respective industries, making relocation largely irrelevant to their operations.

Once Anton returned home, he found that the old man and John were still hard at work at the office, tackling the mountain of tasks that had piled up during their extended vacation.

It had been a refreshing break, but now they were paying the price.

Worried that the workload might actually cause one of them to keel over, Anton had instructed the lab in the sewers to prepare life-enhancing medicine for them to take regularly.

This "life serum" was initially developed as an antidote for the Green Goblin formula, capable of restoring sanity and curing genetic diseases.

But beyond that, it also stimulated the body's potential and extended lifespan.

Since starting the injections, the old man had been pulling all-nighters without breaking a sweat, brimming with energy every day.

John Jameson, on the other hand, seemed so rejuvenated that Anton half-jokingly suspected he was considering giving him a younger sibling.

Naturally, news of the life serum reached Norman Osborn, who wasted no time reaching out to Wayne Enterprises. 

Without hesitation, Norman offered up the majority of Oscorp's arms industry interests in exchange for exclusive rights to sell the life serum.

After careful consideration, Anton, the old man, and the rest of the team agreed to Norman's proposal.

If Wayne Enterprises wanted to continue expanding in the arms industry, it would have to carve out market share from other players. Oscorp voluntarily stepping back made for an easy win.

While the life serum was undeniably powerful, it was also costly to produce and required continuous injections to achieve its full effects over several stages.

Moreover, mass production wasn't currently feasible, making the serum a niche product for the time being. From a market perspective, it couldn't yet rival the profitability of the arms industry, making the trade-off with Oscorp all the more worthwhile.

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