Loki was nowhere to be found for the moment, but the war had to go on.
The National Guard had joined the fight, yet against the ever-growing Chitauri horde it was still a drop in the bucket.
Although Rocket Raccoon of the Guardians of the Galaxy sneered at the Chitauri, the invaders still held the technological edge over Earthlings.
Luckily, the Chitauri hadn't deployed weapons of mass destruction; otherwise New York would have been leveled.
Even so, Earth's forces were struggling.
Tony was already on his third armor.
The Arc Reactor packed plenty of power, but the drain was enormous; under normal flight the suit could run for ages, yet in battle Tony kept firing the lasers, burning energy at a ferocious rate.
Thankfully, with Thor around the energy problem could be eased—when the suit was almost dry a quick jolt from the Odinson-brand power-bank bought another round. The armor's accumulating damage, however, couldn't be recharged away.
Especially after Tony dove into Leviathans' bellies to gut them from the inside, trading injuries for kills again and again.
Fortunately, he had built dozens of suits beforehand; though more than half were specialized models, enough were combat-ready to keep him in the fight.
In the original storyline the Battle of New York hadn't lasted long—once the Avengers seized Loki's scepter they shut the Tesseract down in no time.
This time the Chitauri army was far larger and Loki was missing, so the war was far grander and longer; one armor simply wasn't enough.
Naturally, the casualties were staggering.
Manhattan had practically been flattened. It happened on a workday, so the dead and wounded numbered at least a hundred-thousand—and that didn't count the other boroughs.
The toll exceeded that of Little Boy, drawing a sigh from Fang Yuan.
Who knew whether he was lamenting that New York had too many people or that Nagasaki had too few?
The battle had dragged on so long that Hawkeye's quiver was empty; like Natasha, he had to scavenge Chitauri weapons to keep firing.
But they were only human. After such high-intensity combat exhaustion was inevitable; now they could only fight and fall back by turns.
Thor truly shone as the battlefield's absolute mainstay, yet lightning that filled the sky couldn't wipe out Chitauri that filled the sky. Besides, present Thor needed to gather power—no sooner had he blasted one wave than more foes appeared while he recharged.
And Hulk smashed on without tiring. He was probably Earth's happiest warrior; normally he followed Fang Yuan's order to hold back and avoid harming people or buildings.
Hulk was obedient.
But today Fang Yuan's instruction was: see aliens—hit at will; just don't hurt innocents.
So Hulk finally had a chance to let loose.
Chitauri soldiers were nowhere near as tough as Loki; after Hulk passed, the walls and ground were planted with the invaders he had "sown."
"My God, Hulk punched down a Leviathan Cruiser with one blow!"
Vought Television was still broadcasting live, though the reporter had been replaced.
The previous one had died in the Chitauri's indiscriminate fire.
Viewers gasped; they knew Hulk was strong, but not this strong.
They had watched Leviathans tear through skyscrapers like paper, and even Iron Man had to trade suit-for-kill; yet Hulk had simply knocked one over.
"That punch had to be ten-thousand tons at least!" the public exclaimed.
But ten-thousand tons couldn't stop focused fire. Seeing Hulk unstoppable, more Chitauri cruisers converged, hammering him with continuous energy blasts. The assault didn't wound him, yet the pain and pressure were real.
Hulk's rage surged; he withstood the barrage and stopped retreating, but fresh cruisers arrived, determined to pin him down with sheer firepower.
"Boom-boom-boom!"
Sudden explosions lightened his load; looking up, he saw fighter jets attacking the cruisers, coming to his rescue.
"The Military has entered the war!" the Vought reporter shouted, giving Earth's people new hope.
Though the battle was in New York, the invaders were alien, so the whole planet shared one side. If New York fell, other countries would follow, and most viewers prayed humanity would win.
Of course, some antisocial types wanted to call the aliens "daddy" the moment they arrived.
Under Athena's watch, however, no one dared spout such nonsense online.
Military planes and tanks rolled into New York in force, immediately helping the Avengers claw back critical ground.
The Military handled Chitauri foot-soldiers and skimmers, while the Avengers tackled the Leviathans. They hadn't turned the tide, but at least the rot had stopped.
"Bang!"
"Bang-bang-bang!"
Hulk hurled several boulders skyward, smashing Chitauri fliers and rescuing a whole squadron of jets, which banked around him in grateful salute.
"Hulk… owes no favors!" the big green baby huffed.
Seizing the moment, Fang Yuan opened a portal in front of a Leviathan; the beast's poor turning radius sent it plowing head-first into another Leviathan on the far side.
Thor hurried over and gave the fallen Leviathan a thorough round of electro-therapy, successfully sending the casualty straight to the afterlife.
Then the two of them quickly relocated to the next battlefield, heading toward the location of another Leviathan.
The Chitauri are like the Zerg: the hive-mind controls the army, so they rely on sheer numbers. Even with the Military joining in, the situation can't be turned around.
On the Helicarrier, S.H.I.E.L.D. finally restored communications, and Nick Fury was immediately summoned by the World Security Council for a video conference.
"Fury, Congress has made its decision," a Councilman said.
Fury's egg-like face was so gloomy it looked ready to drip black ink; he knew exactly what those bureaucrats would decide.
"I suggest we ignore that decision. I will never allow a nuke to be dropped on New York," Fury said firmly.
But to his surprise, the big-shot Councilman Malick on the other end suddenly cursed, "What the hell are you thinking, you idiot?"
"Huh?" Fury froze. "Aren't we using nukes?"
Malick promptly explained, "Of course we're using nukes, but not on New York—"
"That's a space gate; does that mean we can shoot through it?" Hawkeye gasped, staring at the huge hole in the sky.
"Agent Barton, that's a great idea," Tony said at once, then shook his head. "Trouble is, the other side is outer space; we'd just be walking to our deaths."
Tony sighed. "Why didn't I ever think to build a suit that works in outer space?"
The egghead's voice suddenly cut into the team comm: "This is Nick Fury. A Fighter Squadron is heading toward New York; the middle jet is carrying a nuke."
"They're not planning to blow up New York, are they?" Tony muttered.
"No, their target is the far side of the gate, so they need the Avengers to provide cover," Fury explained.
"Whoa!" Tony exclaimed. "The government actually made a smart decision?"
"Did the President get swapped out?"
Fury paused a beat, then replied, "The President is also an outer disciple of Kamar-Taj."
Now everyone instantly understood why city hall, the army, and Congress were cooperating so smoothly—this efficiency was nothing like the United States. In the end, it was all thanks to Fang Yuan.
Without Fang Yuan, this war would have been lost long ago.
Just as their admiration for him soared, Fang Yuan—unmoved by praise or blame—gave orders: "Thor, Tony, Howard, Rhodes, come with me to cover the fighters!"
"Copy that!"
Thor and the others answered at once.
At the same time they thought: no wonder he's the one who formed the Avengers—when it counts, he's the one you can rely on.
Fang Yuan smiled faintly, hiding his achievements and fame.
The Chitauri clearly noticed the squadron's unusual heading; swarms of fliers rushed to intercept. Fang Yuan landed directly on the nuke-carrying fighter and cast an all-round magic shield to keep it safe.
They couldn't risk the thing detonating mid-flight—if it did, all of New York would be "acquaintances."
Thor flew ahead with his hammer clearing the way; Tony, Howard, and Rhodes provided support on the flanks.
Now not only Tony, but Howard and Rhodes had also switched into Iron Man Suits. The three zipped around the fighter, covering its advance.
The rest of the squadron didn't get such VIP treatment. As they neared the gate, Chitauri attacks intensified; except for the jet Fang Yuan protected, all were lost en route.
At this moment, every eye on Earth was fixed on the sky—and on that single nuke-laden plane.
"Target locked... fire!"
Once the pilot had adjusted position, he launched the nuke. Fang Yuan quickly equipped the Black King Template and Ancient One Template, conjuring a colossal magic shield outside the portal.
A nuclear blast would produce massive shockwaves and radiation; it had to be contained to keep New York safe.
A ball of fire blossomed inside the gate; countless Chitauri ships piled at the entrance were pulverized in an instant, while Fang Yuan's shield endured violent Impact.
"Hang in there!"
"Hold steady!"
Everyone cheered Fang Yuan on—even viewers in front of livestreams couldn't help shouting; they knew he was shielding New York from the nuke's force.
Hovering mid-air, Fang Yuan looked agonized, as if under titanic pressure, making countless hearts clench.
Of course, now that the Black King Template had absorbed Impact's ability, his endurance was vastly improved; coupled with a Sorcerer Supreme-level shield, the pressure wasn't actually that great.
But the performance had to continue—how else would the outside World know how much he'd sacrificed?
Sure enough, when Fang Yuan stably blocked the blast yet looked drained and dropped from the sky—only to be caught by Tony—his reputation on his personal panel skyrocketed.
For a long while after the nuclear explosion, no new Chitauri troops appeared, and everyone hopefully thought it had worked—only for fresh Chitauri forces to surge out ten seconds later.
"Oh my God!"
"Is Earth finished?"
"What do we do now?"
All across Earth, wailing filled the air.
But moments later, Hawkeye, keeping constant watch on the portal, shouted over the team comm, "I see Loki!"
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