Clark found himself with no effective solution for dealing with these greedy official organizations. Even if he tried to intervene, he couldn't make them completely abandon their plans. In fact, if Clark were to appear, these official agencies would surely fire their weapons at him. The question then would be: Should he fight back or not?
Taking hits without retaliating was not in Clark's nature. But if he did fight back, the officials could record the incident, twist the narrative, and smear his reputation in the media. Yet, doing nothing was clearly not an option either. Clark glanced in the direction of Wakanda and sighed softly. If there were some things he couldn't prevent, then he might as well let things take their course.
War is never something one person can decide or stop, especially now that Wakanda's location has been exposed. Neither T'Chaka, the Black Panther, nor the official agencies would easily back down, unless they themselves realized this war could not be continued...
Under Clark's watchful gaze, the military and advanced weapons on the official agencies' side quickly assembled, as if they had been prepared in advance. Perhaps they had been planning to plunder Wakanda's vibranium ever since they first began to focus on its source. After all, this was something they had excelled at for many years.
Though Wakanda might lack extensive war experience, it was still their home turf, and they would naturally fight with everything they had. Especially after T'Chaka successfully mobilized the entire Wakandan population, shifting their focus to the impending threat, Wakanda's readiness for battle was no less than that of the official agencies.
"Tell us what you encountered earlier. What weapons did they have? How did they take down those two fighter jets?" Not far from Wakanda, three mercenary fighter jets were intercepted by the officials, and all the mercenaries were captured. The officials began interrogating them for information about Wakanda.
"We don't know anything…" The mercenaries looked innocent, but they truly knew nothing. The order to attack Wakanda had come from their leader. After bombarding Wakanda's energy shield, they had rushed in but were quickly downed before they could even react. Surrounded by other jets, they had no choice but to invoke Superman's name to survive.
So, in the end, these mercenaries only knew that Wakanda had an energy shield, that their jets were fast, and that their firepower was strong. Beyond that, they knew nothing.
"You don't know anything? Looks like we'll need to use some methods to get you talking. You don't seriously think we'd offer you something in exchange for your cooperation, do you?" The interrogator sneered at the mercenaries, who were trying to feign innocence. He knew from the surveillance team that these mercenaries had blood on their hands, and now they dared to play innocent in front of him.
The interrogators quickly separated the mercenaries and used various methods to extract information, ensuring they said everything they knew. Unfortunately, even after piecing together all their statements, nothing useful came to light.
The interrogation had turned out to be a waste of time, serving only to recoup some of the money spent on the mercenaries. In fact, it might have even inadvertently helped Wakanda by dealing with the intruders who had managed to escape.
However, the officials were unfazed by this. They believed they were part of the world's most powerful country and had just enhanced their technology and weapons with alien tech. Even though Wakanda had vibranium, it couldn't possibly match their strength. The interrogation had just been a formality.
Especially now that they were sure Wakanda was the country with vibranium, and knowing Wakanda was a traditional agricultural nation, the officials relaxed. They even started thinking that the previous incident where their jets were shot down might have been a fluke. The jets that retaliated must have been bought with vibranium money. If Wakanda was that powerful, those three jets wouldn't have escaped…
But soon, the officials had a change of heart. When they saw Wakanda's fully mobilized military, they were stunned, followed by shock.
"Damn it! This is Wakanda? Weren't they a backward agricultural nation? Even if they have vibranium, could they really understand it? How could they possibly develop such strong military power?" The official in charge of operations looked at the footage in disbelief and immediately began questioning it.
At that moment, the official agencies had just finished assembling their military and weapons, but they were met with a sight of Wakandan jets filling the sky—ten times more than their combined jets and mechs!
It became clear that the earlier events were no coincidence. Wakanda had indeed used vibranium to develop technology far beyond Earth's normal levels, reaching a military strength that placed them among the top powers on the planet.
What the officials didn't know was that Wakanda's massive military buildup was partly due to the earlier conflict with Clark. Back then, Clark had moved through Wakanda unimpeded, with Wakanda's weapons having no effect on him.
Although the Black Panther goddess Bast had intervened and seemingly forced Clark to leave, the incident had clearly pressured both Wakanda's citizens and T'Chaka. As a result, Princess Shuri and Wakanda's research team had subsequently developed a large number of weapons and equipment for emergencies. Now, under T'Chaka's command, these weapons were all brought out, revealing Wakanda's fangs to the world!
"Request reinforcements! Our weapons alone can't match theirs. We'll focus on a battle of attrition and wait for backup! Once the war starts, other official agencies won't be able to stay out of it. Especially since we've initiated conflict on foreign soil, if they don't join in to help us deal with Wakanda, there will be international outcry once this is exposed…" Seeing Wakanda's military might, the onsite commander immediately understood that they couldn't win alone and quickly issued new orders.
Although this would mean sharing the spoils of vibranium with others, it was better than dying at Wakanda's hands and gaining nothing…
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Even though orders were given, the casualties could not be stopped once the battle began. Wakanda, after years of researching vibranium and pushing their technological advancements to the limit, had truly powerful weapons that overwhelmed the official agencies' jets.
In terms of firepower alone, Wakanda's jets weren't much stronger than those of the official agencies. But their speed and defensive capabilities far surpassed their counterparts.
The official agencies had used Chitauri technology to upgrade their weapons, focusing heavily on firepower, but had neglected overall balance. In contrast, Wakanda's jets were like perfect all-rounders, even surpassing the officials' jets in firepower.
The officials had realized this imbalance after acquiring Chitauri technology and had set their sights on vibranium as a solution. Vibranium, despite its cost, was incredibly useful. If they could get their hands on it, it would solve their defense issues…
Unfortunately, their usual dominance faltered against Wakanda, who had the vibranium edge.
Still, if one official agency wasn't enough, then they'd bring in two. If two weren't enough, they'd mobilize all of America. While public opinion might suffer, the pursuit of vibranium justified ignoring the press and even sacrificing their reputation.
Thus, after the vanguard force was beaten back, more American troops quickly followed, arriving in Africa to engage in a war that seemed unlikely to reach a quick conclusion.
As this war began and international attention focused on Africa, initial global sentiment leaned towards the seemingly weaker Wakanda. However, as time passed and Wakanda held its own—often with the upper hand—many were shocked.
People who had initially criticized America's unjust war were now realizing they had underestimated Wakanda, who was now embarrassing America. Many realized they had been the fools all along…
As more information about Wakanda came to light, the true motive behind America's war—vibranium—was also revealed. While the general public might not understand vibranium's significance, scientists and nations around the world knew it well and desired it greatly!
Still, other countries remained restrained for now. Both America and Wakanda had displayed top-tier military power. If more nations got involved, it could spiral into a third world war…
While the world's attention was focused on the battle in Africa, things in America were far from calm. The spread of alien technology in the black market continued to have a profound impact, growing more rampant by the day.
The Avengers had not intervened in the war between America and Wakanda. They had no official mandate to do so, and while the weapons being used were formidable, this wasn't classified as a typical supernatural event, which meant it was outside the Avengers' jurisdiction.
Additionally, the Avengers, while nominally overseeing global supernatural events, primarily focused on incidents within America. They rarely intervened abroad, and their occasional ventures into Europe were due to close ties between America and Europe. Other continents simply weren't within their purview.
Furthermore, even if they were to act, would they support the invaded Wakanda or their own country, America? Supporting Wakanda would be problematic, as Wakanda might not trust the Avengers. Even if they did, could the Avengers really fight against American forces?
As for aiding America? Sorry, but no one in the Avengers suggested that. Who would want to help an invader, especially one starting a war over vibranium?
Thus, the Avengers focused their efforts on dealing with conflicts arising from the spread of alien technology. With Clark primarily occupied with the African battlefield, the Avengers found themselves even busier.
However, a particular incident soon caught their attention. A man carrying alien weapons was about to commit a crime when he was suddenly engulfed in flames, burning him alive on the spot.
Had Johnny Storm not been absent, the Avengers might have thought he was
the one who stopped the man.
"Looks like you've got some competition, someone with powers like yours?" Pietro teased Johnny Storm, patting him on the shoulder.
"A fire wielder, huh?" Johnny's eyes flickered before he chuckled, "But my flames aren't ordinary, and besides, I've already faced Saiyans. It's not surprising that others can wield fire as well…"
"Heh, if your flames are so special, why can't they burn in a vacuum?" Pietro smirked, his tone playful.
After the Battle of New York, Johnny had recalled Robert's comment that his flames wouldn't work in space, so he had tested it out. He believed his flames were different from those in nature and shouldn't need conventional burning conditions…
But unfortunately, when Johnny's flames entered a vacuum, they extinguished instantly. Not only could they not burn, but they also couldn't explode. In a vacuum, Johnny was rendered an ordinary human. Recently, he had been trying to find a way to overcome this limitation…
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