The Man of Steel in Marvel

Chapter 33: "Jiro and Tony: Lunar Discovery."



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Jiro's eyes turned toward the distance—toward a grayish-white planet. A faint smile tugged at his lips.

"Tony, how about we take a quick trip to the moon?"

Tony was still admiring Earth's curve when he heard that. He scrunched his nose. "The moon? What's there to see? It's just a big bald rock. I've seen enough NASA pics to last a lifetime."

"Photos don't show everything." Jiro gave him a mysterious grin, then raised a hand and drew a golden circle in the air.

A portal slowly opened—and on the other side was the moon's rugged far side, full of craters and ridges.

"Wait… is that…" Tony's eyes widened. "You can open interplanetary portals?!"

"Just a little trick." Jiro gestured for him to follow. "You coming?"

Tony adjusted his suit midair. "You better not dump me in some weird alien jungle. Pepper's gonna freak if I go missing."

One after the other, the two of them stepped through the portal—and suddenly, they were on the moon.

Tony's suit automatically adapted—gravity systems, life support, all humming along smoothly. He stepped carefully, leaving a crisp footprint in the moon dust.

"Whoa…" Tony stared at it. "Total Armstrong moment."

Jiro hovered a few centimeters off the ground, scanning the area.

"What are you looking for?" Tony asked curiously.

"A hidden city." Jiro's eyes glowed faintly with golden light as he activated his super-vision, scanning below the surface for energy patterns.

"A city? On the moon?" Tony scoffed. "What, unless we're talking aliens… Wait. No way. You don't mean—"

Jiro suddenly raised his hand and opened another portal.

But this time, what appeared on the other side wasn't barren rock—it was a massive, high-tech city sealed beneath a glowing dome!

"Holy shit." Tony literally stopped breathing for a second. "This… this can't be real. How the hell is there a city on the far side of the moon?!"

"Welcome to Attilan," Jiro said as he flew through the portal first. "Capital of the Inhumans."

Tony hesitated for a second, then gritted his teeth and followed. "JARVIS, record everything!"

The moment he passed through the portal, Tony's eyes widened in shock.

Soaring spires sparkled under a faint blue energy dome, while floating vehicles glided gracefully through the sky.

People of all shapes and sizes walked the streets—some looked totally human, while others had scales, wings, or other mutant-like traits.

"This... this is..." Tony's faceplate snapped open, revealing a stunned expression.

"This defies every law of physics! How could our satellites miss a city this massive?!"

"Magical barrier plus Kree tech," Jiro explained. "The Inhumans have lived here for centuries."

Right then, a squad of guards in silver uniforms quickly surrounded them, their energy weapons glowing with a dangerous light.

"Invaders! Drop your weapons!" barked the lead guard, who had a glowing crystal embedded in his forehead.

Instinctively, Tony raised his palm cannon. "JARVIS, analyze those weapons!"

"Energy signature unknown. I suggest caution, sir."

But Jiro stayed calm, simply looking at them. "We come in peace. We just want to speak with your king."

The guards glanced at each other, clearly surprised that he spoke their language.

Suddenly, the crowd parted. A man in an elegant black robe walked forward, accompanied by a red-haired woman.

The man's eyes glowed an unnatural shade of blue, and a faint energy field pulsed around him.

"I am Black Bolt. This is my wife, Medusa. Due to certain reasons, she'll speak on my behalf," Medusa said as the man signed silently beside her.

"Why have you entered Attilan without permission?"

Jiro gave a respectful nod. "It's an honor, King Black Bolt. I'm Jiro, and this is Tony Stark. We're from Earth, and we hope to open communication with the Inhumans."

Black Bolt's gaze lingered on the two of them, especially giving Jiro's armor a long, curious look.

"Earthlings have reached this level of tech?" Medusa translated as she watched them.

"Uh, actually, most people on Earth don't even know there's a city on the far side of the Moon," Tony cut in. "Honestly, I just found out myself."

Black Bolt's expression turned serious. He signed rapidly, and Medusa translated just as quickly: "Come with us. This isn't the place to talk."

He turned and walked toward the central palace, with the guards motioning for them to follow.

Tony leaned close to Jiro and whispered, "You knew there was a secret alien city up here and didn't tell me?"

"Surprise," Jiro chuckled. "Besides, some things are better when you see them for yourself."

Tony rolled his eyes. "This whole thing blew my mind. I'm gonna need a whole bottle of whiskey to recover."

The inside of the palace was even more impressive than the outside—an elegant blend of futuristic tech and ancient architecture.

"Welcome, visitors from Earth," Medusa greeted them with a smile.

"To break through our barrier, you two clearly aren't ordinary."

Tony couldn't help but stare at her hair. "Whoa, that hairstyle is awesome. How do you even do that?"

Medusa smiled slightly. "It's a gift. An Inhuman ability."

Jiro got straight to the point. "We're here to talk about the possibility of cooperation between Earth and the Inhumans."

Black Bolt and Medusa exchanged a look.

"We live in seclusion for a reason," Medusa said. "We don't want to be dragged into Earth's conflicts."

"But if Earth falls into crisis, it could spill over to the Moon," Jiro replied calmly. "The Kree Empire is already making moves—they're very interested in the Cosmic Cube."

The moment he said "Kree Empire," Black Bolt visibly tensed up.

Medusa's face also darkened. "You know the Kree?"

"Just fended off one of their scout ships," Tony said smugly. "Though honestly, Jiro handled the whole thing on his own."

Black Bolt suddenly stood up and walked over to stand face-to-face with Jiro, studying him up close.

After a few seconds, he started signing, "You're not an ordinary human."

Jiro nodded. "You can call me Superman."

"Superman?" Medusa raised an eyebrow. "That's a pretty bold name."

"It fits though," Tony cut in. "This guy can tear a spaceship apart with his bare hands."

Black Bolt thought for a moment, then gestured for the guards to leave.

"We need to talk," he signed, his expression unusually serious.

"About the Kree Empire. About the future of the Inhumans. And... the fate of Earth."

Jiro gave a small smile. "That's exactly why we're here."

The conversation went on for several hours.

Tony was like a kid in a candy store, amazed by all the Inhuman tech—especially their Terrigen Mist system.

Meanwhile, Jiro and Black Bolt reached an initial agreement: they'd support each other in the face of global threats and gradually deepen their communication and cooperation.

Even though Jiro figured he didn't really need the backup, he still believed that having more friends was better than more enemies.

When they were about to leave, Medusa handed Jiro a crystal.

"It's a communicator. Use it if you need to reach us."

Jiro took the crystal and nodded in thanks.

Tony, on the other hand, looked longingly at the floating vehicles around them. "Hey, next time, can I bring some research gear? Your anti-gravity tech is insane!"

Medusa chuckled. "Maybe, Mr. Stark."

Just before stepping into the return portal, Tony suddenly turned around. "Wait... do you guys have WiFi?"

Black Bolt and Medusa just stared blankly at him.

"Never mind. Forget I asked," Tony muttered, rubbing his nose awkwardly.

Back on the Moon's surface, Tony was still reeling from everything they'd just seen.

"I can't believe it... There's an entire super-advanced civilization hidden on the far side of the moon! Every astronomer we have should be fired!"

Jiro laughed. "Between the magic barrier and their advanced tech, it's no surprise your telescopes couldn't detect anything."

"But it's so unscientific!" Tony waved his arms dramatically. "That massive city! All those people! What do they eat? What do they drink? Where do they get their oxygen?"

"Kree tech can handle all of that," Jiro explained. "The Inhumans were one of the Kree Empire's early genetic experiments."

Tony suddenly stopped in his tracks. "Hold up. You're saying... those people are humans modified by aliens?"

"More or less."

"Damn..." Tony let out a whistle. "That's even crazier than the top-secret S.H.I.E.L.D. files."

Jiro opened another portal to return to Earth. "You ready for more surprises? The universe is way bigger than you think."

Tony took a deep breath and stepped through. "Now I feel like my armor still has so much room for improvement."

Their silhouettes vanished from the moon's surface, leaving only two sets of footprints side by side, quietly resting in the silent lunar dust.

"....."


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