"Just follow me," Jack told Coulson in response to his question.
A short while later they arrived at the place Tony Stark had been attacked three months ago.
As everyone stepped out of the car, Jack looked around. They were completely out in the open, right in the centre of the desert. He took a look at the map Coulson had given him, memorised it, then handed it back.
"Natasha, give me the item with Tony's scent on it," Jack said.
She opened her bag and pulled out a fully sealed cloth — looked like a t-shirt — and handed it over.
Coulson and Clint watched, unsure what was about to happen.
Without them noticing, Jack touched the Omnitrix and transformed.
Wildmutt.
A few of the newer agents who had no idea about Jack's transformation were visibly shaken by the large orange creature that appeared where Jack had been standing.
"Stand down — he's with us," Coulson said, calm, though he too was surprised to see an alien transformation for the first time.
Even Natasha and Clint were curious how many transformations he had.
In Wildmutt form, Jack brought the t-shirt close and inhaled deeply, trying to lock onto Tony's scent. Three months of desert heat and wind had made the smell almost completely fade. Almost. In a few of the nearby rocks, there was still a faint trace — just enough to know Tony had been here — but nowhere near enough to follow clearly.
He began moving in a wide circle, nose low, scanning the area.
"Did you find anything?" Natasha walked toward him, studying him with open curiosity.
She watched him, tilting her head slightly.
"You really have no eyes. How are you even seeing right now?" She looked him over carefully, genuinely puzzled.
Jack ignored the question. He still had the map memorised, and there was one area Coulson hadn't checked — a section with a slope structure off to one side. It was worth trying. He made a quick gesture toward Natasha, tossed Tony's t-shirt back to her, and took off running in that direction.
"Does he mean follow him?" Natasha looked at the others for a second, then started moving. The rest followed with a beat of hesitation.
Following the shifting scents carried on the wind, Wildmutt eventually picked up a trail that led to a cave structure — but the people inside weren't the terrorists who had captured Tony. It was a different group entirely. Still, they were bad guys, so he took them out.
When it was done, the system chimed.
[+150 Heroic Points — civilians rescued]
Women and children, hidden further inside. He made sure they were safe before stepping back out.
Back in his suit, Jack opened a line to Red Queen while the others caught up.
"Red Queen, check for any signal or communication frequency coming from the surrounding area here to America — anything that might point to Tony's location."
"Yes, Master. I'll do my best given the limited time."
"Keep trying," he told her.
He had other methods in mind, but he had a feeling he could find Tony faster using Wildmutt.
Natasha walked toward him as the last of it settled. "I've had the agents take the civilians to the nearest village. It's just the four of us now."
"Good. Those guys weren't going to be much help out here anyway."
"So what's next? Any leads?" she asked, keeping her tone casual.
"I've got a few more things to try. Let's keep searching — if nothing turns up we'll move to the next method." Jack shifted back into Wildmutt and moved out again.
Natasha looked like she wanted to ask what the other methods were, but seeing him already gone, she let it go and followed.
The hours stretched on.
The sun dropped lower, and the desert cooled fast as night came in. Jack, still in Wildmutt form, had been sweeping in wide arcs for a while when something — more of an instinct — pulled him north. As the sky darkened further, the wind picked up and the cold grew stronger.
After a few more miles of searching, he caught the scent of humans. Mixed in with it — Tony's scent too.
Found him.
Wildmutt moved toward the area. Natasha, Clint, and Coulson were falling behind — the vehicles couldn't travel the terrain anymore so they had left them and continued on foot.
He shifted back to normal as he reached them.
"Good news. I found Tony. He's being held in a cave — that direction."
"That's the first good news I've heard all day," Clint muttered, pulling his jacket tighter against the cold.
"How many are we dealing with?" Natasha asked.
"Hard to say exactly, but based on the scent out there — above twenty."
"That complicates the rescue," Coulson said, thinking it through. "If we push in hard from the outside, they might use Tony as a hostage. That turns a difficult situation into a bad one."
"Any ideas?" Natasha looked at Jack.
Jack thought for a few seconds, then nodded. "Yeah. Here's what we do."
He laid out the plan. Natasha listened, then raised an eyebrow. "You can actually pull that off?"
"Once I'm inside and Tony's safe, I'll send a signal on this." He held up the device. "When you receive it, start the attack. I'll handle the inside."
"Alright. Good luck."
They split up.
Jack moved toward the cave under the cover of his suit's invisibility — but he already knew the flaw in that plan. Invisibility worked well at a distance, but anyone standing close enough would sense something was off about the air around them. It wasn't reliable at close range.
The better option was the Skrull form.
I just need someone to copy.
He found his opening quickly. He picked up a small metal can from the ground near the cave entrance and sent it clattering across the rocks.
The noise was loud in the desert wind.
A guard heard the sound, stepped away from his post, and walked over to investigate.
Jack came around behind him.
One clean strike to the back of the head. The man dropped without a sound.
"Easier than expected," Jack muttered.
He selected Skrull on the Omnitrix.
Katcha.
The transformation settled. Jack looked down at the unconscious man clearly, and in an instant he was standing in the exact same shape — clothes, build, voice, all matching the terrorist perfectly.
I don't have his memories. Hope no one catches me as a fake.
He straightened up, mirrored the man's posture as best he could, and walked toward the cave entrance with the same unhurried pace the guard had used.
"What was that sound out there?" another terrorist asked out in the Pashto language.
"Nothing — wind knocked over a can," Jack replied, keeping his voice flat and neutral, also in Pashto.
The man gave a short nod and went back to his post without another word.
Good. Jack let out a quiet breath.
Good thing in New York, I spent some time in Grey Matter picking up a few languages. Without that, this whole plan falls apart at the first sentence.
He moved deeper into the cave. The tunnels branched in several directions, and with no way of knowing which way led to Tony, he picked one and followed it.
It opened into what looked like a cooking area.
"Omar… why are you inside?"
A voice came behind him
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