Ryuuto glanced at Maria Hill, his tone light but sharp. "It's nothing. Just… don't lose what I gave you."
Maria smiled faintly. She knew exactly what he meant — the special bullet. "Don't worry," she said softly. "I still have it."
"Good," Ryuuto replied. "Think of it as a little gift from me."
The clock ticked past midnight. The chaos had finally settled, and the Helicarrier's hum felt almost peaceful now. Ryuuto didn't plan to linger. He turned toward Tony and the others — Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, and Ant-Man — all of them staring at him like he was walking, talking dynamite.
"Alright," Ryuuto said, scanning them. "The S.H.I.E.L.D. crisis is over. I'll be heading out soon. Tony, Banner — come here. We need to talk."
They followed him to a quieter corner. Ryuuto leaned casually against a crate, arms folded.
"You two already joined the X-Men," he said. "That means you don't need to stick around the Avengers anymore. But…" He tilted his head slightly. "The X-Men are mostly mutants, and you're not. That's gonna make things messy. The public already hates mutants — having non-mutant faces in their ranks just gives people more ammo for gossip."
Tony crossed his arms. "So what's your play, Red Mirage?"
"Simple," Ryuuto said. "Stay with the Avengers. Keep the link between them and the X-Men under the table. That way, when either side's in trouble, the other can help — no politics, no press. Just trust."
Banner nodded slowly. "An off-the-record alliance. Yeah… that could work."
Ryuuto smirked. "Good. Now, about the Department of Defense…" He sighed. "Their situation's still unresolved. I was planning to take a nap, but first, we fix the Secretary of Defense. He's still messed up from Abomination's control, right?"
Banner frowned. "Before he got controlled, the Secretary was leading anti-mutant campaigns. Guy's been preaching against us for years. So even without Abomination, he still hates mutants."
"Then that's a headache," Ryuuto muttered.
Tony raised an eyebrow. "You can't just, I dunno, mind-control him with that scepter thing?"
Ryuuto blinked — then laughed. "You know what, Stark? That's actually not a bad idea."
He motioned toward Professor Erik Selvig, who was chatting with Nick Fury nearby. "Hey, Professor! You know the Secretary's coordinates?"
"Yes," Erik replied. "I've worked with him before."
"Perfect. Then send me to his house."
Ryuuto raised a hand. "Summoning: Tesseract!"
A glowing summoning array burst open above him, and the cube descended like a divine relic. Even Fury couldn't help the sigh that slipped out — at least it's safe with him, he thought bitterly. But damn… there goes our weapons program.
As the Tesseract landed, Ryuuto nodded toward Erik. "Sorry to trouble you again, Doc."
Erik crouched beside the cube, typing rapidly into his coordinate console. The GPS system projected data across the screen until a location locked in.
"Got it," he said. "Coordinates uploaded."
"Start it."
A surge of energy erupted from the cube, twisting into a brilliant blue portal. Ryuuto summoned the Scepter into his hand, its eerie light gleaming.
"Let's go have a little chat."
He stepped through.
───
The world warped, then steadied. Ryuuto found himself standing in a quiet, luxurious living room. A wall clock ticked rhythmically in the moonlight.
He moved up the staircase, silent as a shadow. The first room he checked had a sleeping girl, maybe seventeen, curled up under pale sheets. Just a kid. He closed the door quietly.
The next room was his target. The Secretary of Defense lay fast asleep, snoring faintly.
Ryuuto stepped forward and, without ceremony, yanked the sheet back. The man barely opened his eyes before Ryuuto pressed the Scepter's tip to his chest.
A flash of energy. The man convulsed violently, then gasped awake — drenched in sweat and trembling.
"W–Who are you?!"
Ryuuto's tone dripped with mockery. "That's a cruel question. You already know me."
Moonlight spilled across his face, and the Secretary froze. "Y-You're… Ryuuto! The mutant captain!"
"Bingo." Ryuuto twirled the Scepter lazily.
"What did you do to Emil?" the Secretary stammered.
"Emil…?" Ryuuto blinked, then chuckled. "Oh. You mean Abomination? He was too stupid to live. I sent him to hell."
The Secretary's jaw dropped. "I-It's impossible! His body was as strong as Hulk's!"
"Yeah," Ryuuto smirked. "But that's when he's transformed. Strip him down to human form, and he's just another idiot in flesh."
"You—you mean—he was killed that easily?"
"Easily?" Ryuuto tilted his head. "I just beat him senseless. Hulk was the one who tore him apart."
The Secretary's face turned white.
Ryuuto's gaze sharpened. "Now then… let's talk about your little hobby. You hate mutants. Want to wipe us out, right?"
The man's lips trembled. He didn't answer.
"Cat got your tongue?" Ryuuto's smile thinned. "You hated us enough to cause thousands of deaths. Or did you forget?"
The Secretary's voice shook. "You—you're a monster! I know what you did… you slaughtered over a thousand soldiers!"
For a moment, Ryuuto's expression darkened. He'd almost forgotten that blood-soaked day.
"…So that was your operation, huh?"
The Secretary's eyes widened. "N-No! I didn't plan it! I swear!"
"Then who did?"
"I—I don't know!"
Ryuuto stepped closer, the scepter glowing hotter. "You don't know? The plan came from the Department of Defense. You're the one in charge. Don't insult me."
He jabbed the scepter into the man's chest — not enough to kill, but enough to make him scream.
"Listen carefully. I wanted peace. I wanted mutants and humans to coexist. That's why I didn't kill you outright."
The Secretary sobbed. "I'll talk! I'll tell you! It—it was my subordinates' idea! I just signed off on it!"
Ryuuto's eyes went cold. "So you did approve it, then."
The scepter's light flared, bathing the room in eerie blue.