War Fortress.
Anton, disguised as Superman, sat in the commander chair, looking at the Orb in his hand with a smile.
So far, he had collected three Infinity Stones.
The Space Stone, the Mind Stone, the Reality Stone, and the Power Stone.
Only two Infinity Stones remained at large: the Soul Stone and the Time Stone.
The Time Stone was on Earth, under the stewardship of the Ancient One. It wasn't his place to interfere yet, although the current Anton, with the emergence of Shazam and the power of Superman, now had the capacity to challenge the Ancient One. However, he had no reason to break ties with her.
The Ancient One was not a villain.
Although she secretly drew power from the Dark Dimension to maintain her immortality, she did not succumb to darkness but was instead the greatest living force resisting other dimensions on Earth.
Moreover, by the timeline, the Ancient One was about to "commit suicide."
It would be more advantageous to take the Time Stone from Doctor Strange, Stephen Strange, after his appearance than to face the Ancient One now.
The Ancient One might also foresee this situation, but given her rigid personality, she would not refuse fate arrangement.
Although the timeline had been disturbed, making the future unpredictable, the emergence of Doctor Strange, Stephen Strange, was still inevitable thus, the death of the Ancient One was also certain.
The Ancient One understanding of life had already transcended life and death she would not care about her own demise, seeing the orderly operation of the future and infinite possibilities was what she pursued.
"After the Ancient One dies, the Time Stone can also be arranged."
Anton pondered.
"Lastly, only the Soul Stone remains."
"To obtain the Soul Stone, one must sacrifice someone important, which is actually easy to circumvent. Just find a pair of death row inmates, and sacrificing either would suffice…"
Anton was not a man of scruples after all, death row inmates were going to die anyway, so why not let them die with more value?
He thought again.
"But with Thanos eyeing the Soul Stone, and him hesitating to make a move, it difficult for me to step in before him without tearing our faces outright in public.
For now, it not urgent to openly conflict with him, as that would compress Earth advantage, and stealthily growing stronger…"
With the Soul Stone under Thanos watch, Anton found it inconvenient to act, but since he was still missing two Infinity Stones, he was not in a rush and planned to move steadily later.
Moreover, aside from the Infinity Stones, he was also short of a substantial amount of justice points within the system.
He, disguised as Batman, stopped Tony and Captain America from fighting to the death and also received a system reward of 3 million justice points, pushing his already substantial justice points to a new height of 53 million.
It worth mentioning that Superman actions in the Knowhere did not receive any justice points from the system.
Anton didn't mind.
The battle and conflicts that erupted in the Knowhere were unexpected, and indeed, they couldn't really be considered just.
Different standings, different truths.
Every combatant believed they were the righteous, especially the Ravager team represented by Star-Lord.
Is there a fault in saving people?
The thought flashed by.
Anton dismissed Star-Lord and the others from his mind they were dead, no need to dwell on it.
Currently, although Superman had left, Gamora followed Carol and Nick Fury.
After discussing, they prepared to unite and form a new team.
Both parties had a common enemy, which was a very reasonable act.
Superman made a suggestion.
Thus, the name of this new team was called the Guardians of the Galaxy.
The name was good, unanimously approved.
Anton didn't care whether this Guardians of the Galaxy team was stepping on anyone toes.
At least, this brand-new Guardians of the Galaxy, composed of Gamora, Carol, Nick Fury, and several Skrulls, was no less impressive than the original.
And yes, Superman, as an honorary member, was also considered a half-member of the Guardians of the Galaxy.
By that count, not only were they not inferior, the original couldn't even compare.
The operational goal of the Guardians of the Galaxy was to oppose and even destroy the two major superpowers in the universe.
The Kree Empire, and Thanos.
To achieve these two goals, they had a lot of work to do.
Superman had no interest in their minor skirmishes.
His appearance fee was costly, and although Anton was still quite wealthy and Superman fan points were enough for him to last a good ten days and a half month without rest, it would inevitably be exhausted over the long term.
Therefore, Superman did not belong with the flow, was not suitable for running around with the ship everywhere, only appropriate to appear at critical moments.
Therefore, Superman was merely an honorary member, a half-member of the Guardians of the Galaxy.
After storing the four Infinity Stones in the War Fortress, Superman vanished in a flash.
Inside the DC Company office.
Anton, who seemed to be napping with his eyes closed, retracted his Superman persona.
Beep beep beep!
The sounds of car horns came from the open window overlooking the busy streets below.
Anton opened his eyes and looked out at the bustling traffic and passersby, feeling somewhat reflective.
Everyone was busy with their daily lives, completely unaware that he, the behind-the-scenes leader of the Justice League, had just completed a feat that would shock the universe.
He not only repelled the Kree but also killed the soul of the original Guardians of the Galaxy, Star-Lord, and another important character, Yondu. He even managed to lure Gamora into an indirect encounter with Thanos.
Life as the leader of the Justice League was just that unpretentious.
Knock knock knock!
Suddenly, a knock came from behind.
"Anton, there an internal meeting today that you need to attend."
Betty walked in holding a folder.
Anton returned to his chair, signed the documents in front of him proficiently, and then asked, "What the topic of today meeting?"
"The company future development plans."
Betty said, "Jim has been reminding you several times. He preparing to shoot 'Justice League vs. Avengers,' and he needs your support.
He said you told him you could arrange for real superheroes to make cameos, like Spider-Man, Venom, Ghost Rider, and others,
but you haven't replied to him, so the project has been on hold, and he doesn't dare to proceed without your say."
"Oh, is that so? I haven't checked my email lately."
Anton realized.
He opened his computer email and indeed found a proposal from Jim, but he had been busy with other matters lately and had neglected the affairs at DC.
"Tell Jim, never mind, I'll talk to him at the meeting."
Anton nodded.
"Understood."
Betty said and then left the office.
"Justice League vs. Avengers..."
Anton watched Betty leave, looking at the proposal on his computer, his lips gradually curling into a smile: "Interesting, Jim got a lot more guts than I thought."
Although they had discussed this topic before, and the idea had even been disclosed by him, Jim willingness to talk about it and actually shoot it were completely different things.
The characters involved in this film were current hot topics in society.
Batman, Captain America, Iron Man!
These three popular figures, being featured in a film set against the backdrop of the Hydra-triggered battle in Washington, a real event adapted for the screen, could definitely be predicted to be a profitable project right from the start.
"Go big or go home."
Anton thought for a moment and made a call to Eddie.
Half an hour later.
The meeting commenced.
At DC internal meeting, Anton highly praised Jim idea and planned to mobilize the company resources to push forward the production of 'Justice League vs. Avengers.'
Also attending the meeting were the editor-in-chief of the Daily Bugle, Eddie Brock, and his trusted deputy editor, Phil, who were even more excited than Anton and Jim.
They stated they were using the Daily Bugle connections to contact the Justice League. It was confirmed that Venom and Ghost Rider, two superheroes, had agreed to cameo in the film.
Moreover, the Daily Bugle was also contacting Spider-Man, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Daredevil, and other members of the Justice League.
Jim was overjoyed.
Having the backing of a big tree like DC was indeed beneficial. If not for DC, even if someone else had thought of the movie concept, who would dare to shoot it? Let alone getting real superheroes to make cameos.
Additionally.
Anton revealed another idea, which was yet another very favorable situation for DC.
"I've been resting for quite some time, so I'm ready to start shooting a new movie," Anton declared. "The Flash."
"The Flash TV series has garnered considerable attention. Coupled with the push from comics, animations, and novels, it time to move on to a film adaptation."
He looked at Jim and said, "I'll leave this project in your hands."
"No problem," Jim readily agreed.
He was a producer, not a director, and though he was busy, managing work for two different crews wouldn't overwhelm him.
As a workaholic, he relished being busy every day.
"It just proves my worth even more."
"The usual rules: Browning will lead the scriptwriting, submit a first draft as soon as possible, and I will review it," Anton instructed.
With that, the meeting adjourned.
At the end of the workday.
Anton encountered an old subordinate at home, the deputy director from Men in Black, Agent Z.
Z looked at Anton with a somewhat resentful expression, as if facing a scoundrel.
"Anton, you haven't been to Men in Black for a long time."
Z said, "Have you forgotten that you are the director of the Men in Black organization? I've been managing everything, I've called you, emailed you, and you haven't responded at all."
"Uh, I've been quite busy."
Anton couldn't very well admit he'd forgotten about the Men in Black. He awkwardly smiled and asked, "What brings you here?"
"I knew it," Z responded in frustration.
"Recently, numerous aliens have started appearing on Earth. They've been contacting various governments through satellites, hoping to land on Earth.
Some even want to immigrate here. Men in Black, as the organization under the World Security Council that manages alien affairs, has been swamped. And the most powerful director pretends he doesn't exist…"
"What?" Anton was shocked. "Really?"
"If you took a good look through your email, you would definitely see my reports about it," Z said.
"Alright," Anton conceded, waving his hand. "It my fault. Let go to the headquarters and see what going on."
During their conversation, the two got into Z car and headed to the Men in Black headquarters.
"What do these aliens look like? Have you spoken to them?" Anton asked as they walked.
"Yes, we've had conversations. They speak our language," Z said, his expression turning serious.
"They are not ignorant about Earth in fact, they seem very familiar with our languages. It us who know nothing about their backgrounds."
"Where are they now?"
As Anton and Z entered the Men in Black command center, they looked at satellite images and some information about the moon, gradually understanding the situation.
"They're on the moon."
"Right," Z nodded.
"The lunar base left by the Skrulls has become their temporary residence. You know, we currently lack the means to modify the lunar base.
Although many people have visited it, compared to those aliens, we are somewhat disadvantaged in space."
"What does the World Security Council say?" Anton asked.
"They believe we can establish some contact with these aliens but don't want to get too involved."
Z explained, "Earth should belong to humans."
"That like saying nothing at all," Anton replied, frowning.
"How about this? Let allocate an area for these aliens. If they want to live on Earth, they can come. But they must follow our rules."
"What do you mean?" Z was a bit confused.
"It simple. Let them disguise themselves as humans and be constantly monitored by us," Anton said.
"Of course, to a certain extent, they are still free, but they must disguise as humans and abide by all human laws."
Anton suggestion was a principle adhered to in the Men in Black movies.
Since this world blended elements from numerous movies he was aware of, it stood to reason that certain cinematic principles were still applicable.
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, since contact with aliens was inevitable, it might as well be proactive.
As long as the risks were manageable, this was not a difficult thing to accept.
Soon.
At a meeting of the World Security Council, Anton spoke.
"We are entering a new era," Anton said.
"The interstellar era, where contact with aliens is inevitable. According to intelligence sent back by Superman, the universe contains countless civilizations and species.
Humans, while unique, are not special. We cannot be hostile to all aliens. At least, Superman, Thor—they are our allies... So, perhaps we can try to take the first step, starting here."
As his voice faded.
The council members at the meeting remained silent for a long time, but ultimately, they unanimously approved Anton proposal.
They allowed contact with aliens and passed the proposal for aliens to resettle on Earth, naturally under the condition, as Anton mentioned, that everything must proceed with manageable risks.