[Africa, Earth]
A jet flew over an endless stretch of forest.
"Are you sure Wakanda is here?"
Banner looked doubtfully at the bearded man in front of him, Captain America.
After falling out with Iron Man over Bucky, Steve had led his own team away from the Avengers.
Not long ago, however, Captain America, Black Widow, Wanda, and the others had returned to Avengers Headquarters with the injured Vision.
Since Iron Man and Spider-Man had gone to rescue Doctor Strange and still hadn't returned, Banner, who had no idea what to do next, also went back to Avengers Headquarters.
He then accompanied Captain America and the others to Wakanda together with Colonel Rhodey, War Machine.
The reason was simple. Banner had proposed that the Mind Stone could be separated from Vision, but he lacked both the technology and the equipment to do it. Captain America believed Wakanda was capable of it.
That was why they were now in Africa.
"Of course, Dr. Banner."
"Trust me. I can't be wrong."
Captain America smiled.
After rescuing Bucky from Iron Man, Steve had settled him in Wakanda, so he naturally knew its location.
Sure enough, as the aircraft passed over a forest, the scenery ahead suddenly changed.
The endless sea of trees gave way to a landscape of rivers, mountains, and open skies.
At the end of the river, Banner saw an incredibly advanced city.
He couldn't help letting out a quiet exclamation.
Captain America said softly, "Welcome to Wakanda."
The aircraft flew past the Black Panther statue and arrived in the capital.
Looking out the window, Banner saw countless small, single-seat aircraft darting through the sky.
On the ground, he saw rows of advanced armored vehicles and large formations of robots.
Banner said in surprise, "They have an army of robots?"
Captain America glanced down, "They didn't have them a few years ago."
"Looks like their technology has made another breakthrough."
The plane landed.
As Captain America and the others got off, they saw a giant statue standing in the middle of the plaza.
It depicted a towering man with a flowing red cape behind him. He wore black vibranium armor, and the statue's eyes glowed with light.
"My God," Banner exclaimed, "It's the Conqueror."
"Why would Wakanda build a statue of the Conqueror?"
Captain America frowned as well, "I wish I knew."
Just then, King T'Challa approached with his general and the royal guard.
As Banner put on his jacket, he asked, "Should we bow?"
Colonel Rhodey laughed, "Yeah, he's a king."
By then, Steve had already stepped forward and shaken T'Challa's hand.
"Seems like I am always thanking you for something."
"It's all right. I'm used to it," T'Challa smiled in reply.
Then he noticed Banner bowing to him and quickly said, "Uh, um... um we don't do that here."
Steve looked past T'Challa and noticed several black vibranium robots that resembled Hulkbuster armor.
"You've built things like these now?"
T'Challa smiled, "A few years ago, a great man bestowed extraordinary knowledge upon us, allowing our technology to break through its bottleneck."
"So we built some new toys."
"For example, these autonomous humanoid weapons."
"What you're seeing now are Guardians. They combine overwhelming firepower with extremely high defense. They're an important part of the Black Iron Tide, led by my sister."
"Guardians are generally stationed at important locations such as the royal palace."
T'Challa then pointed into the distance, "Those are Reapers. They're the vanguard on the battlefield, with exceptional mobility and destructive power, designed to reap the lives of our enemies."
"Besides them, we also have humanoid weapons like Sentinels, Black Hawks, and Annihilators, capable of handling all kinds of situations."
Black Widow let out a "Wow."
"This is really something."
T'Challa turned and led the way, "Come with me."
As they walked, he asked, "How large is the enemy force?"
From behind him, Banner answered, "Your Majesty, I estimate this will be on an unprecedented scale."
He glanced back at the giant Guardian units, "But seeing these big guys makes me feel a lot better."
T'Challa nodded, "We have the Black Iron Tide, the Royal Guard, the Border Tribe forces, and warriors from the other tribes."
"Oh, and this troublesome hundred-year-old man."
As he spoke, Steve spotted a familiar face.
The Winter Soldier, Bucky.
The two men, whose friendship had spanned more than a century, embraced.
Patting Bucky on the shoulder, Steve asked, "How've you been?"
"Not bad. Considering the world's about to end, I'd say I'm doing all right."
Bucky shook his vibranium arm, "Especially since King T'Challa gave me this... weapon."
He gave it a shake.
The mechanical arm immediately transformed into a rifle, then switched into a hand cannon, and finally became a longsword.
"Wow. Now you're a whole arsenal."
Captain America raised an eyebrow.
———
A short while later, they arrived at the laboratory of T'Challa's sister, Shuri.
Several floating robots were conducting a full examination of Vision.
The results came back quickly.
A three-dimensional model of the Mind Stone appeared in the air.
Shuri said, "This is a polymorphic polycrystalline structure."
"That's right. We'd have to manipulate each neuron individually," Dr. Banner said, adjusting his glasses.
"Why didn't you just recode the neural junctions and manipulate them all at once?", Shuri asked.
Banner froze for a moment, "Because we never thought of doing it that way."
"You must have done your best," Shuri said with a nod.
"Can you do it?", Wanda asked hopefully.
Shuri smiled, "There are over two trillion neurons here. Before, I could have done it, but it would have taken quite a while."
"But now..."
Shuri patted her chest.
A black tide instantly surged over her body.
It wasn't actually a tide, but countless nanoparticles. They rapidly spread across her entire body before forming a black suit of armor traced with golden patterns.
As a cat-shaped helmet formed over her head, Shuri transformed into a graceful black cat.
She raised her hands.
From each fingertip extended a shining crystal-like claw, "But now, I only need five minutes."
"That's great," Wanda said.
"Once the Mind Stone is removed, I can destroy it."
"That way, Thanos will never be able to collect all the Infinity Stones."
Hearing that, Shuri and T'Challa exchanged a glance.
Just then, the alarm sounded.
The general looked at T'Challa.
"The enemy has entered the atmosphere!"