The rooftop was still.
Too still.
Lena hadn't moved.
Not since the thing disappeared.
Not since Tony stopped it.
Her eyes stayed locked on him.
Not in fear.
Not exactly.
But something had changed.
"…You're not normal."
Tony exhaled quietly.
"I never said I was."
"That wasn't just… some fight."
She stepped closer, slower this time.
"That thing—whatever it was—it came for you."
Tony didn't answer.
Because she was right.
"It said nothing," Lena continued, thinking out loud now.
"But it looked at you like it knew you."
A pause.
"…It did."
That answer didn't help.
If anything—
It made things worse.
Lena frowned.
"…Tony."
He didn't look at her.
"Who are you really?"
The wind picked up again.
But this time—
It carried something else.
A shift.
Tony felt it before it happened.
"…We don't have time for that."
"What do you mean—"
"Get down."
His voice cut through everything.
Sharp.
Immediate.
She didn't argue.
Good.
Because the air twisted again—
Harder this time.
Not one.
Three.
Distortions opened across the rooftop.
Lena's breath caught.
"…No way."
Tony's eyes darkened.
"…They don't usually move in groups."
That wasn't reassuring.
The first one stepped forward.
Then the second.
Then the third.
Each one slightly different.
One was taller—its shape stretched unnaturally.
Another flickered—like it couldn't stay in one form.
The last—
Didn't move at all.
Just watched.
That one bothered Tony the most.
"…So this is escalation," he muttered.
The silent one tilted its head.
Then—
It spoke.
Not out loud.
But directly—
Inside his mind.
"You carry it."
Tony's expression didn't change.
But something inside him—
Shifted.
"…I don't know what you're talking about."
"False."
The air tightened.
Lena looked between him and the figures.
"…Tony, what is it saying?"
He didn't respond.
Because the voice wasn't for her.
"The mark… the echo… the fracture."
Tony's hand clenched slightly.
"…Stop."
The second one moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
It lunged straight for Lena.
Tony didn't think.
He moved.
Faster than before.
The space between them folded—
Not visibly.
But felt.
And suddenly—
He was there.
The impact hit him head-on.
The ground beneath his feet cracked again.
Lena stumbled back.
Heart racing.
"…You're bleeding."
Tony glanced down.
A thin line of red ran along his arm.
He hadn't noticed.
"…That's new."
The third one—the silent one—stepped forward.
Slow.
Deliberate.
"You are incomplete."
Tony's eyes narrowed.
"…Yeah? Join the list."
"You were not meant to return."
There it was again.
That phrase.
Lena's voice cut in, shaking now.
"…Return from what?"
Tony didn't answer.
Because even he didn't fully know.
The flickering one suddenly split—
Two shapes overlapping.
Lena stepped back again.
"…Okay, that's not normal. That's really not normal."
Tony shifted his stance.
"…Stay behind me."
"Like I was planning to do anything else."
Despite everything—
That almost made him smirk.
Almost.
The silent one raised a hand.
And for the first time—
The rooftop dimmed.
Not because of clouds.
Because something was pulling the light away.
"If you awaken… everything ends."
Tony's breath slowed.
"…Then I guess it's a good thing I don't know how."
"You will."
And then—
All three moved.
At once.
The world around Tony bent again—
Stronger this time.
Cracks spread—not on the ground—
But in the air itself.
Lena watched in shock.
"…What are you doing?"
Tony didn't answer.
Because something inside him—
Something deeper—
Was responding.
Not to the attack.
But to them.
"Recognized."
The word echoed—
Not from the entities—
But from within him.
Tony froze for half a second.
That was enough.
The tall one struck.
Hard.
He barely blocked it.
The force sent him sliding back.
Lena shouted—
"Tony!"
He steadied himself.
Breathing heavier now.
"…Yeah."
His voice dropped.
Different.
"…I felt that."
The air around him tightened again.
But this time—
It wasn't just defense.
It was reacting.
Answering.
"Awakening sequence… partial."
Tony's eyes widened slightly.
"…No."
Because he didn't want that.
Not here.
Not like this.
The silent one stepped closer.
"You cannot stop it."
Tony looked up.
And for the first time
There was something in his eyes.
Not fear.
Not anger.
Something else.
Recognition.
"…Then I'll slow it down."
The ground beneath him cracked again
But deeper this time.
And for a brief moment
The world felt like it was holding its breath.
Because whatever Tony was
It was starting to wake up.