Marvel: Death Knight

In the White House, the President of the United States sat uneasily. The defeat of General Stryker's forces in the assault on Westchester was a rare and severe loss, even by the standards of foreign wars. Both Stryker and Senator Kelly had perished in the engagement, leaving a void that hung heavy in the room.

Across from him, General Ross's expression was equally grim. He had allocated a significant portion of advanced weaponry and soldiers for the operation. Such a resounding defeat stung deeply.

"General Ross, what do you think we should do now?"

"The situation is unclear at the moment..." Ross began but was interrupted by a commotion outside—the unmistakable sounds of anti-aircraft guns and machine gun fire.

A Secret Service agent burst into the room without knocking. "Mr. President, we have an enemy inbound!"

"Boom!" The windows shattered under a heavy impact. Glass shards scattered as a massive mech crashed through, prompting the President and General Ross to instinctively duck and cover.

The agent drew his pistol, firing rapidly at the intruder, but the bullets only produced a series of harmless clinks.

Staring at the imposing mech, the room fell into stunned silence.

"Iron Man?" someone whispered incredulously.

Garus knew the X Academy incident was far from over. Eliminating Stryker's forces might provoke an even more reckless retaliation from the U.S. government. Meanwhile, Baron Zemo was still lurking, ready to pounce at any moment.

For now, Garus had no intention of playing the role of an outright villain. His strength wasn't sufficient to sustain such a move. The one who stands out first is often the first to fall.

That didn't mean he would swallow his anger, though. The government needed a warning, and Baron Zemo had to be dealt with.

The following morning, intelligence from Skrull infiltrators embedded within the government revealed that the President was working in the White House. Garus decided to act alone. In a concealed corner near the White House, he deployed his mana-powered mech and took to the skies, soaring toward the building.

Soldiers below spotted his approach and opened fire without hesitation. The air filled with the sound of gunfire and explosions. Garus, ignoring the onslaught, barreled straight toward the President's office.

The mech smashed through a window, and Garus found himself face-to-face with General Ross and a middle-aged man huddled on the ground.

"Bang!" A Secret Service agent at the door fired a shot, only to be obliterated by a single blast from Garus's arm-mounted mana cannon. Green fel flames consumed the remnants of the agent's body.

"Iron Man?" General Ross's voice carried a mix of confusion and recognition.

From within the mech, a deep voice responded, "I'm not Iron Man. Remember the academy you attacked? I'm the headmaster."

Whether they believed him or not wasn't his concern.

Garus turned toward the agents flooding in through the doorway. Raising his arm, he leveled the mana cannon at them. "I need to have a conversation with your President. Do not interrupt us."

The President, understanding the situation, hastily signaled the agents to leave the room. Once they were alone, Ross scowled and said, "Sir, shouldn't you step out of that armor so we can talk face-to-face?"

"Apologies, but I can't risk revealing my identity right now," Garus replied, unwilling to expose himself unnecessarily.

"Fine," Ross conceded begrudgingly. "But what exactly do you want?"

His tone was laced with anger. "You wiped out hundreds of our soldiers, including General Stryker and Senator Kelly. Are you declaring war on the United States government?"

"War?" Garus's voice was cold. "You attacked children, kids who had done nothing to deserve such brutality. Should I have handed them over instead?"

"But Stryker had already ordered a retreat. Why did you..."

Garus cut him off. "I'm not here to negotiate, General. Mr. President, I'm warning you: do not target those children again. If you do, you'll regret it. Getting into this room wasn't difficult for me."

The President, visibly uncomfortable, nodded. "I understand. I agree to your terms."

Relieved to have diffused the immediate threat, the President's shoulders slumped. The past few days had been overwhelming.

Garus, knowing the President's death wouldn't change much, pressed on. "I'm not interested in your lives. All I ask is that you leave those mutant kids alone. I don't want to come back here or escalate this further. Mutants pose no threat to you."

With that, Garus guided the mech to the window. "Remember this." Then, he vanished into the skies.

Ross turned to the President, still shaken. "Mr. President, what do we do now?"

The President wiped cold sweat from his brow. "I think I'll be stepping down soon. Let my successor handle this mess."

Ross wasn't pleased with the President's concession but said nothing further. His gaze lingered on the shattered window as the President grabbed the phone.

"Colin, make sure the press doesn't report a word about this. If they do, I'll buy their newspapers and fire every last one of them!"

After hanging up, the President muttered, "Until we're absolutely sure, don't provoke him again."

Meanwhile, a familiar green image loomed in Ross's mind. He resolved to visit his daughter. Regret bubbled to the surface—perhaps things could have been different if their relationship hadn't soured.

The President, contemplating his next steps, picked up the phone once more. "Director Fury, I need you to look into someone for me. I'll send over surveillance footage shortly. Find out who this person is, and avoid engaging with them directly."

"Understood, Mr. President."

Although S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't directly under the President's control, their budget depended heavily on government funding. Fury had little choice but to comply.

"Knock, knock," came a sound at the door. Agent Coulson entered, holding a USB drive.

"Come in," Fury said.

"Director, this is the data sent by the President. I'll leave it here."

Fury inserted the drive and replayed the footage repeatedly. A single name echoed in his thoughts: Garus. Could it be him? It seemed he'd need to arrange a meeting with Spider-Man.

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