Chapter Twenty-Four: The Beloved of the Group, Thor the God of Thunder!

Back at Stark Tower, it took less than a day for Thor to win everyone’s affection. Even Hao Yun’s mother, Angel, and Colonel Rhodes from the military couldn’t resist requesting leave from their superiors to join Tony in throwing a welcome party for Thor.

Thus, Thor became not only the team’s darling but also its strongest hero.

That night, the party was overflowing with distinguished guests—and an array of beautiful female dogs, Alaskan Malamutes, Huskies, and Akitas, all present to Thor’s delight, sending him into a flurry of excited barking. Angel and Pepper were overjoyed, turning the whole event into a veritable pet carnival.

Meanwhile, Hao Yun and Tony retreated to a corner with their drinks, bringing Rhodes along to discuss the formation of an alliance.

“We have enough people now. It’s time to establish an alliance organization to take charge of peacekeeping,” Tony began. They already had four members—well, three people and a dog—all capable of taking on an army single-handedly. It wasn’t right to remain so scattered; it was time for their own base and organization.

“Tony, you need to think carefully. Forming an organization isn’t a joke,” Rhodes cautioned. “For now, things are fine. I’m a military colonel, you’re a government weapons supplier, and we can all get along with the authorities. But once we set up an organization, we’ll have our own agenda. Our strength will be on display, and that’s sure to attract unwanted attention.”

Rhodes didn’t say it outright, but all three of them knew: Tony’s armor was already making the government uneasy.

“Forming the organization is essential. But we could be clever about it—stay out of politics and military affairs. The alliance’s mission should only be to deal with alien invasions,” Tony said, tapping the table thoughtfully. Hao Yun had told him about the Civil War story arc, prompting him to be mindful of public sentiment from the very beginning. After all, ethical dilemmas like sacrificing a hundred to save a thousand had no place in their alliance.

“Boss, there’s another thing to consider: What if the United Nations doesn’t believe us? What if they refuse to evacuate civilians? If the war claims massive casualties, the alliance will be blamed completely. Once or twice, you can explain it away, but if it happens repeatedly, public trust in us will plummet,” Hao Yun reminded Tony.

“Then we make them issue an official call for aid! No statement, no action from us!” Tony declared.

“But that’ll only make them want to bring us under official control. I can already imagine the reasoning: ‘Only as an official department can you respond to emergencies at the earliest moment. For the sake of the people, can’t you make a little sacrifice?’” Hao Yun shrugged—the political maneuvering was all too familiar from the movies of his previous life.

For their own interests, politicians would do anything. They’d launch a nuke at New York itself, much less an alliance.

“So what do you suggest? We can’t very well propose a Superhero Registration Act ourselves, can we?” Tony huffed, setting his glass down. Nothing seemed to work, and in less than a year, the Chitauri would invade Earth. If they didn’t form the alliance soon, would they just wait for SHIELD to take over? Besides, when has any force gone uncriticized? The police and military in America get flak daily. If SHIELD ever goes public, they’ll be under constant scrutiny.

“There are two options: First, we could follow Kamar-Taj’s example—guard humanity from the shadows, never showing ourselves to ordinary people,” Hao Yun said, glancing at Tony with amusement. “But I suppose our Iron Man has already vetoed that.”

“A hero should stand in the light. What’s the fun in skulking around in secret?” Tony said, unrepentant, raising his glass in a stylish salute to Pepper across the room.

Rhodes and Hao Yun both scoffed in unison. The man was shameless.

“Second, we could cooperate with the authorities—say, with SHIELD or the military?”

“I object!” Rhodes was quick to interject. “Organizations are slow, cumbersome, and riddled with bureaucracy. That’s absolutely unsuited to our needs.”

“You mean even your military?” Tony hinted.

“Especially the military! Look at the Hulk, or Abomination!” Rhodes replied bluntly.

Well, that was the military exposing its own wounds. With Rhodes’s insight into the future, both Tony and Hao Yun lost all interest in working with the government.

“That leaves only one option,” Hao Yun mused, stroking his chin. “We become a purely civilian organization. In a crisis, we focus solely on rescue—the actual fighting is left to the authorities. If the officials can’t cope and formally request our help, then we’ll step in.”

“And what if the politicians condemn us?” Tony asked. “They’ll inevitably accuse us of having the power to end wars but refusing to act.”

“What do we care about saving the world? Among us, we have a professor, the world’s richest man, a student, and a retired soldier…” Hao Yun gestured to each of them in turn. “We pay all those taxes every year so the government can protect the people, don’t we? We’re citizens too, with the right to be protected.”

He spread his hands in an innocent gesture. Tony and Rhodes paused, realizing he had a point—they weren’t SHIELD, tasked with maintaining global peace. Why should fighting be their responsibility?

“So the nature of the alliance needs to be redefined,” Tony mused. He’d always envisioned a superhero team like the Avengers. But now, saving the world sounded grand, and there were no tax breaks—what did it have to do with them?

If the alliance steered clear of combat, then any blame wouldn’t land on them, would it?

“Hmm… How about we call it the Alien Research Institute? A civilian alliance dedicated to studying extraterrestrials?” Tony suggested, avoiding any mention of alliances, fighting, or saving the world.

“That’s not ideal. Colonel Rhodes is a retired soldier—you can’t just make him head of security,” Hao Yun pointed out. The name was too academic; realistically, only Tony and Banner would fit. The rest were agents or warriors, not exactly scholarly types.

“How about the Society for the Advancement of Bad Jokes? I’m telling you, my jokes are top-notch—”

“Shut up!” both Tony and Hao Yun barked in unison, instantly quashing Rhodes’s nonsense.

“In my opinion, let’s call ourselves the Illuminati. Let the light shine upon the world—we’ll research new energy, alien technology, and combat strategies, all for the hope that light will always shine on Earth!” Hao Yun suggested, borrowing the less popular name from Marvel comics.

“The Illuminati?” Tony stroked his chin and glanced at Rhodes.

Rhodes considered it and reluctantly agreed, “It’s not bad. But are you sure you don’t want to reconsider the bad jokes idea—?”

“It’s settled then—the organization will be called the Illuminati!”