Leander Hayes stood frozen, the dying man's last words, "Ulysses Crowe," echoing in the lethal silence of the warehouse. He quickly committed the name to memory. A major illegal arms dealer and pirate, a nexus for Vibranium smuggling—this was a direct line into the deep end of the Marvel Universe.
He sighed, the sound muffled by his silver mask. The small warehouse was a horror show: seven bodies, a massive, permanently metallized statue of Kai, and a sea of disarmed, broken weaponry.
With a wave of his hand, all the scattered pistols and the fragments of the Uzi were instantly stripped of their components and broken into fine, useless pieces. Then, using larger pieces of scrap metal, he meticulously piled the seven corpses into a central heap, creating an impromptu, metallic tomb.
He paused only to look at the metallized figure of Kai—an object of pure, desperate obsession now frozen forever.
Leander turned, the iron door swinging open silently. He stepped out, and the door immediately closed. With a gentle twitch of his Control Power, the already old padlock on the door was intricately twisted and fused shut, making normal entry impossible.
He picked up his schoolbag, adjusted the silver mask (which instantly melted back into the metallic structure of his backpack), and smoothly slipped through the nearby alleyways, disappearing back into the anonymity of the city crowd.
Back home, Leander felt no desire to cultivate. The night's events had been too heavy. He sat at his desk, staring blankly at the wall.
A soft knock preceded Aunt Jenny's entrance. She carried a glass of warm milk. "Leo, I noticed you were quiet at dinner. Did something happen at school?"
A thick, rough arm wrapped around his small shoulder. Uncle George joined them, his face etched with concern. "It's okay, son. Tell us."
"No, school is fine," Leander replied, forcing a genuine smile, rubbing his still slightly stiff face. "Just some kids didn't want to play with me. They're too childish anyway, I don't mind."
"No," Aunt Jenny pulled a stool close and sat beside him, her eyes already reddening. "Leo, my little darling, you have been with us for five years, and this is the first time you've been truly unhappy. It breaks my heart."
She took his right hand, tears welling up.
George put his free hand on Jenny's shoulder and pulled both of them into a tight embrace. His deep voice was low and sincere. "Leo, from the moment we brought you home, Jenny and I have treated you like our own son. You are the most sensible, well-behaved kid we could ask for."
He continued, his voice thick with emotion. "That first birthday we celebrated together, seeing you happy, it was the best moment we'd ever experienced. I thank God every day for giving me such a wonderful son."
"We're willing to give anything for you, Leo," Jenny sniffled, wiping her eyes with a tissue. "But we've been busy this last year. I've cried several times just hearing the sound of the grinding wheel late at night in the garage. Leo, please, we don't need you to work so hard to earn money. We just want you to be a normal kid. Watch TV with us, go to the supermarket with us, instead of isolating yourself in the garage."
Leander hugged them tightly. "I'm fine, Uncle George, Aunt Jenny. Honestly. I just... saw a bad accident on the way home today. Someone got hurt. But it's over now. Aunt, let's go watch TV."
Uncle George patted his head gently. "Leo, you need to be careful outside. If you see anything bad, you run. Run as fast as you can. You are still just a child."
"Uh-huh."
Leander took their hands, leading them out of the room. He flipped off the light switch. "Aunt Jenny, is The Big Bang Theory back on? I heard Sheldon finally gets a girlfriend!"
"Oh, yes! And Leonard and Penny are back together—it's so dramatic! Let me tell you all about it!"
"No, I want to watch it myself, hehe! I haven't watched TV in forever!"
"I'm going to grab a beer. Should we order a pizza delivery?" George called from the hallway.
"I want two, the cheese sausage flavor..."
The voices faded down the stairs, replaced only by the happy sounds of a family settling in.
Moonlight streamed through the window and fell on Leander's desk. A family photo from his sixth birthday, framed in the corner, showed three people with incredibly bright smiles. Just like the moment they were sharing now.
Six months passed quickly. It was now February 2008.
Leander, who had just turned eleven, was persistent. He wanted to go to Las Vegas. Uncle George initially refused, citing the city's corrupting influences, but Leander's pleas were relentless.
"Okay," George conceded, running a hand through his hair. "But we treat this as a family vacation. No casinos, no bars, and three days maximum. Understood?"
"Yes! I just want to see the sights. I won't wander off!" Leander agreed instantly.
Aunt Jenny was thrilled. "Yay! I'm going to ask for leave, George! Hurry up and book the plane tickets, I can't wait!"
George chuckled, ruffling Leander's hair. "Your Aunt Jenny has wanted to go back for years. You're making one of her dreams come true, little man."
"Go on, pack your things. Our whole family is taking a trip!" George said, giving Leander a gentle, excited pat on the back.
Leander returned to his room and pulled out a worn, handwritten report from a drawer. The contents were a strange, Chinese-written timeline of future events:
Iron Man 1:
February 11, 2008: Las Vegas Casino.
February 13th: Afghanistan. Jericho missile test. Stark kidnapped.
October (Exact date unclear): Stark Tower. Major battle!!
November...
Below were several other MCU key dates, but the line for October was clearly highlighted. He looked at it, hesitated, and then picked up his eraser, carefully scrubbing the entries clean. He needed to avoid relying on the timeline, but he couldn't ignore the opportunity.
He checked his System Panel:
Control Points: 73 (Huge leap from 52)
Strength: 11
Defense: 17
Speed: 9
Spirit: 19
Skill: D-Rank Metal Control, D-Rank Body
Enhancement: Golden Eyes (100% COMPLETE), Copper Skin (100% COMPLETE), Steel Bars (1%), Iron Bones (0%)
Derivative Skill: Golden Eyes of Truth, Immovable Golden Body (Greatly enhances defensive power; feet firmly planted on the ground; possesses unlimited stamina; body regeneration speed is increased; cannot be moved by external forces)
He touched his still-soft skin. The difference from just a month ago was astronomical. Back when his Copper Skin hit 90%, his entire body was as rigid as iron, forcing him to wear loose clothing and a simple mask just to attend school. Now, the enhancement was internalized and refined.
He initiated the Immovable Golden Body. His body trembled, and a soft, golden light enveloped him, quickly forming a mysterious layer of energy over his clothes. Simultaneously, a potent, warm current surged up from his feet, deeply connecting him to the ground, filling him with an inexhaustible feeling of strength.
He had tested this fully in the garage: even a two-thousand-kilogram metal block or a supersonic metal projectile could barely tremble the golden field. He couldn't break it himself.
After a brief activation, the golden light dimmed and vanished with a thought. In his normal, resting state, his body surface defense was massively enhanced—a common knife would only leave a white mark.
"I can't stop a sniper bullet, but..." Leander smiled with cold confidence. "No bullet can get close enough to me to matter."
This newfound, absolute confidence finally gave him the courage to approach the main characters and major events of the MCU.
Aunt Jenny burst in, waving George's phone excitedly. "Leo! Leo! The tickets are booked! Look, we're flying out the day after tomorrow, the morning of the 9th!"
"Aunt Jenny," Leander said, smiling as he glanced at the flight information, "Uncle George mentioned you've been to Las Vegas before. Is that true?"
Jenny pulled him close, her eyes shining with nostalgia. "He didn't tell you the whole story? Oh, you must hear this! It was twelve years ago... that's where George and I first met! It was so interesting! Back then..."
Leander stayed by Jenny's side, listening intently to their charming, somewhat embarrassing, love story—a simple narrative of romance that grounded him in the beautiful, ordinary world he fought to protect.
In the next room, George packed, hearing the happy laughter next door. He shook his head and smiled.
Three days later, the Hayes family of three boarded a plane bound from New York to Las Vegas, right on the precipice of the MCU's genesis.