No one could oppose his master.
The Silver Surfer knew this better than anyone.
He understood exactly how powerful his master was. Earth did possess some formidable heroes, but to his master, their strength meant nothing.
At best, they were merely stronger insects.
Right now, he should simply wait.
Wait for his master to arrive on Earth. When that moment came, the entire planet would be devoured. Afterward, he would simply continue his duty as he always had.
But…
He no longer wanted to do that.
Since being separated from his board, his emotions had slowly returned.
During the countless years he served as the herald of Galactus, he had guided his master to devour world after world. Many of those planets were barren, lifeless spheres. Yet many others had been filled with living beings.
Now, even looking at his own hands filled him with guilt.
He could not keep running from that truth.
So he needed his board.
Perhaps he could not kill Galactus, but his power came from the same cosmic source. At the very least, he could wound him.
For the Silver Surfer, this was redemption.
Something he had to do.
"I need my board."
The base commander hesitated after hearing Silver Surfer, whose true name was Norrin Radd, make the request.
But he did not have to struggle with the decision for long.
A call soon came from the White House. NASA had detected a massive shadow approaching Earth from deep space. According to the Surfer, it was his master.
They urgently needed more information.
After hearing the full explanation, the commander made his choice.
"Your board was taken by Victor von Doom. We just received confirmation that he is currently in New York, surrounded by Iron Man and several other heroes."
With that, the commander released him.
The mere description of a being larger than Earth had already crushed any confidence the man had in resisting it. If the Silver Surfer believed he had a way to fight back against Galactus, then no one here would stand in his way.
Elsewhere, the battle raged on.
Inside the battlefield, Tony Stark wore a grim expression.
Victor von Doom was even stronger than he had expected.
Despite all his preparations, he was still being pushed back. If the energy cage had not been restricting Victor's movement, Tony's anti-energy armor might have already been destroyed.
Nearby, the Fantastic Four had arrived.
Ben Grimm cautiously touched the energy barrier. The violent surge of power immediately forced him back several steps.
"Iron Man locked himself in there," Johnny Storm joked.
Susan Storm shook her head.
"This is the best option. If Victor isn't restricted, there's no way we can capture him."
She was absolutely right.
Off to the side, Nolan simply shrugged.
Yes, the strategy was clever. Very clever.
Except for the small problem that Tony Stark could not actually defeat Victor on his own.
Just then, a thunderous crash shook the ground.
A massive figure slammed into the pavement, sending chunks of concrete flying.
It was Bruce Banner.
"Looks like I missed something," Banner said calmly.
After spending so much time working with Nolan at Locke Technologies, Banner had learned how to coexist with the Hulk rather than constantly fight him. They had not fully merged, but the barrier between them had finally begun to fade.
Now, Banner could control the Hulk's body far more reliably.
"No," Nolan replied. "Actually, your timing is perfect."
He glanced toward the battlefield.
"I think Tony Stark is about to lose control of this situation."
Then Nolan lifted his gaze toward the sky.
Others noticed his expression and looked up as well.
"It's daytime. Why does it suddenly feel darker?" Johnny muttered.
Everyone had noticed the change.
And it worried them.
Just how terrifying was the being behind the Silver Surfer?
A creature that devoured planets sounded too absurd to be real.
Yet the darkening sky told them something enormous was approaching.
Before anyone could say more, another explosion rang out.
Tony's anti-energy armor was hurled backward, slamming violently into the barrier.
Energy surged around him.
Thankfully, the armor had been designed specifically to operate in that kind of environment, allowing it to withstand the shock.
"Dammit!" Tony cursed.
Victor was simply too strong.
Tony glanced at the heroes outside the barrier and felt a quiet sense of relief.
If he had been fighting alone, things might have already ended badly.
He was just about to stand and continue the fight when the energy barrier suddenly began flickering.
That was bad.
Tony immediately realized what was happening.
The energy shield had reached its limit.
Victor noticed it too. Yet instead of looking pleased, his expression darkened.
The barrier had never truly trapped him. In fact, it had helped isolate him from the other heroes. But once it collapsed, he would no longer be able to stall for time.
"Damn it," Victor muttered.
Still, enough time had already passed.
Around him, the heroes waited like predators ready to strike.
The moment the barrier collapsed, Johnny grinned.
"Victor, now you're finished!"
Victor responded with a cold laugh.
"Johnny, trust me. You'll regret saying that."
Flames erupted around Johnny's body.
"Alright everyone, group beatdown time!"
Knowing he could not defeat Victor alone, Johnny launched himself forward without hesitation.
Ben followed immediately.
Today, he was going to pound Victor into the ground.
If not for Victor, none of this would have happened.
Banner smiled slightly and stepped aside.
Combat was not his specialty.
But for the Hulk, it was second nature.
The Hulk roared and leapt forward like a living missile.
Susan glanced toward Nolan.
Nolan still had not moved.
Victor was not the real problem. With so many heroes attacking at once, they should be able to handle him.
But Victor's strength once again exceeded expectations.
Johnny's speed was impressive, but the surging electric currents kept him from getting close.
Even powerhouses like Ben and the Hulk struggled to reach him.
Tony finally climbed out of the ruined anti-energy armor.
His expression darkened.
"Jarvis, call every suit I have. All of them. Even the experimental ones."
Today, he was going to settle this.
Victor laughed arrogantly, fighting multiple heroes without losing ground.
"Do you see this? This is the power of the board. With strength like this, I look forward even more to meeting my allies."
Ben shouted angrily.
"Victor! Give that damn board back! You have no idea what kind of thing you're dealing with!"
Victor ignored him.
Even when they mentioned Galactus, he remained unmoved.
His intelligence told him one thing.
Never trust your enemies.
Seeing the stalemate, Susan finally joined the fight herself.
Above them, the sky continued to darken.
"Red Queen, notify all Titan bases. Initiate Titan pre-activation. Set Emperor Titan to Level One combat readiness. Main cannon charging at maximum capacity."
"Understood, sir. All bases have been notified," Red Queen replied.
Although Nolan did not have full command authority, the White House had granted him emergency authorization for this situation.
Inside the Emperor Titan main base, alarms blared.
"Level One combat readiness activated. All personnel report to combat stations. Main cannon entering full charge sequence."
Panic spread throughout the facility.
"What happened? Why activate Level One readiness?"
"Full charge on the main cannon?"
Everyone knew what that meant.
Maximum power output.
After seeing how devastating the Titan's main cannon was during testing, many believed they would never witness it firing at full capacity.
Yet the order had just been given.
"Follow the command. Begin charging," one officer said calmly.
He began entering commands on the control panel.
"Confirm Level One readiness protocol."
"Protocol confirmed."
"Confirm main cannon full charge status."
"Confirmed."
"Confirm again."
"Confirmed. Charging sequence initiated."
With those words, he pressed a red button.
Instantly, more than a dozen massive Ark reactors flared to life. A torrent of energy surged toward the Emperor Titan.
Those watching stared with awe.
This was humanity's greatest creation.
Once the Emperor Titan moved, nothing could stop it.
"Open the base gates!"
A deafening rumble echoed as the colossal gates slowly opened.
The structure stood nearly five hundred meters tall.
Even hidden deep within the mountains, its scale was impossible to ignore.
Nearby, a young girl gazed at the base with shining eyes.
"The Titan base is amazing. I wonder if we'll ever see the doors open."
A middle-aged man beside her patted her head.
"Don't say that."
He sighed.
"If those doors ever open, it means humanity is in serious trouble."
He turned and headed toward the kitchen.
But suddenly the girl shouted excitedly.
"Dad! The doors are opening!"
The man froze.
He rushed to the window.
The gates really were opening.
Beyond them, the full form of the Emperor Titan emerged.
As the largest ground unit humanity had ever built, it looked less like a machine and more like a moving fortress. Its enormous frame was lined with massive weapon ports.
When the Titan took its first step, dozens of smaller Titan mechs flew out from the base to escort it.
Those machines had once seemed enormous.
Next to the Emperor Titan, they looked like tiny birds.
The Emperor Titan system was now fully activated.
The sky grew darker.
Across the world, people noticed something was wrong.
Police tried to maintain order, but panic spread through the streets.
Crowds fled New York in every direction.
They did not know what was happening.
But leaving the city felt like the safest option.
What they did not realize was that the darkness was not limited to New York.
The entire planet was dimming.
Meanwhile, a single car moved against the tide of fleeing vehicles.
"We're almost there," said the Silver Surfer.
Traffic finally forced the car to stop.
Without hesitation, he opened the door and leapt onto the roof of a nearby vehicle.
Even without his board, he still possessed fragments of his power.
At last, he reached Stark Tower.
He saw the battle below.
Victor von Doom, empowered by the board, fought the assembled heroes as if they were children.
The Silver Surfer's expression hardened.
He needed the board.
But Victor would never surrender it willingly.
Just then, a voice spoke.
"Mr. Norrin Radd. What are you doing here?"
It was Nolan.
He looked at the Surfer with surprise.
Shouldn't he still be confined at the base?
The Silver Surfer spoke calmly.
"I need that board. My master is unimaginably powerful. Only I can weaken him. Only then will this world have a chance."
Nolan fell silent.
He had assumed the Surfer would stay out of this fight.
Could he trust him?
After all, the Surfer had once been the servant of Galactus.
But after a moment, Nolan made his decision.
If the Surfer truly wanted to help Earth, then it was worth the risk.
Even if he betrayed them later, Nolan was confident he could deal with him.
Still, looking at the battlefield, Tony and the others were clearly struggling.
Victor showed no signs of losing.
Nolan exhaled slowly.
Then his helmet sealed into place.
The Thor-Hammer armor roared to full power.
His muscles tensed.
"If that's the case..."
"I'll help you take that board back."
The ground exploded beneath his feet.
Victor.
I'm coming.