The press room buzzed with anticipation.
Cameras flashed. Reporters murmured. Every eye was locked on the man behind the podium—unshaven, pale, but alive. Tony Stark had returned. The billionaire genius who'd been missing for months was suddenly back, and the media was starving for answers.
Kai watched from the edge of the crowd, standing near a side pillar in the back. He wore a borrowed hoodie, his face partially hidden under the hood, blending in. The Omnitrix glowed softly beneath the fabric on his wrist, unnoticed.
Tony cleared his throat and leaned into the mic.
"I never got to say goodbye to my father."
The room quieted instantly.
"I would have asked him… what he thought about what we do. About the weapons we build. About the lives we take. And after everything I've seen out there—after what I went through—I know what he would've said."
He looked directly at the cameras.
"He would've said it's time for change."
Whispers rippled through the room.
"Effective immediately," Tony said, "I am shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of Stark Industries."
Gasps. Reporters burst into shouts, overlapping each other.
"What do you mean by that, Mr. Stark?"
"Is this permanent?"
"What does this mean for your shareholders?"
Tony held up a hand. "I've made my decision."
In the back of the room, Kai nodded silently.
There it is, he thought. The first domino.
This was the moment Tony Stark stopped being a merchant of death and started becoming Iron Man.
But for Kai? The day was just beginning—and he had no plan, no money, and no place to go.
---
Later That Evening – New York City
Kai stood in the shadows of a dark alley just off Times Square.
The city pulsed with energy: neon signs, honking cabs, people moving fast like time was chasing them. But for Kai, the world had slowed down. He sat on a stack of crates, his stomach rumbling painfully.
He hadn't eaten in over a day.
He'd made it to New York thanks to a ride from a National Guard medic who thought Kai was a trauma survivor from a nearby village. But now he was alone, broke, and invisible in a city that didn't care.
"Okay," he muttered. "Alien watch. Superpowers. Zero dollars."
The Omnitrix glowed faintly, as if waiting.
Kai sighed and opened the dial. He scrolled through the holograms until he found the one he'd hoped not to use: a skeletal figure with one eye, draped in writhing shadows.
Ghostfreak.
"I just need food," Kai said quietly. "I'm not robbing banks or anything."
He pressed the dial down.
The world around him dimmed as his body transformed. His skin turned pale gray and translucent, his arms stretching into eerie tendrils. A single, glowing eye opened on his chest. Cloaked in darkness, he became a silent wraith—half-ghost, half-nightmare.
He drifted from the alley, intangible, slipping through the wall of a small convenience store like smoke.
Inside, the clerk was half-asleep behind the counter, earbuds in.
Kai floated silently through the shelves, phasing his hand through a rack of candy bars, grabbing a few Snickers and energy bars. He spotted the soda fridge and reached in—two bottles of Coke hovered midair for a second before vanishing into his chest-space.
Sorry, he thought. I'll pay it back one day.
He floated back through the wall, reforming in the alley with a soft green flash as he returned to human form. He collapsed onto the crate, tearing into a chocolate bar like a starving animal, then chugged half a Coke.
Finally… something in his stomach.
As the sugar and caffeine hit his system, his thoughts started clearing.
He leaned back, breathing deeply, staring up at the stars between the rooftops.
"Okay. I'm in a different universe. I've got the Omnitrix. No way home. And Tony Stark is alive because of me."
It felt overwhelming. But also… kind of exciting.
He had power. Real power. And this world? It was full of threats. He didn't need to wait for Thanos or aliens to invade. There were dangers every day—terrorists, corrupt CEOs, unstable tech. And someone had to do something.
He looked at the Omnitrix.
"I could be a hero here," he whispered. "Or something close to one."
But he knew the risks. One wrong step and SHIELD—or worse—might come knocking. They didn't know who he was. They wouldn't trust him. Heck, he barely trusted himself yet.
Still…
"I saved Tony Stark. That means something."
Kai reached into his pocket and unfolded a piece of newspaper he had taken from the bus stop earlier. Stark's face was on the front page. "Weapons Division Shutdown Shocks Wall Street."
In the smaller column, he read a line that stuck with him:
> "Mr. Stark was vague about what he planned next, but sources say he has locked himself in his workshop, citing 'something important' to work on."
Kai smiled. "Yeah. I know what you're building."
The Mark II. Sleek. Fast. Red and gold.
The suit that would fly.
And when it was finished, the world would meet Iron Man.
Kai stood, dusting off his hoodie.
"Okay, then," he said. "If Tony's building his armor, I need to start building my path. If I'm stuck here, I'm going to make it count."
He looked toward the skyline, where the Stark Tower construction was still incomplete.
"I'll keep my distance," he muttered. "But I'll watch over him. Make sure the future doesn't get too far off track."
Kai opened the Omnitrix again, scrolling through the forms.
Jetray. Fast. Aerial.
Perfect for rooftop travel in Manhattan.
He smiled and activated the transformation.
A flash of green light flared in the alley, and in seconds, Kai's human form became Jetray—sleek red armor, wide wings, sharp tail.
With a powerful thrust, he launched into the sky, soaring over traffic and rooftops. Below him, New York sprawled like a sleeping titan. Somewhere in that maze of lights and towers, heroes were still being born. And villains were rising.
Kai was no longer just a visitor.
He was part of this world now.
And he had a mission.