DC HERO AT MARVEL

"What?"

George face darkened as he listened to his officers' report.

It sounded more like a tall tale than an actual incident.

He repeated the report back to them, suppressing his anger and gritting his teeth.

"You're telling me that while questioning him, a sudden sandstorm blew through, everyone was blinded, and when you finally opened your eyes, Justin Hammer was gone—kidnapped?"

"Yes," the officer replied, looking visibly uncomfortable as he nodded hesitantly.

George asked, "And how do you know it was a kidnapping?"

The officer answered, "The bodyguards said so. They claimed the person who took Justin Hammer is one of his enemies, someone with unusual abilities."

"Unusual abilities?"

George narrowed his eyes. Though skeptical, he couldn't entirely dismiss the claim.

"Hmph. Lock those bodyguards up in jail. I want them interrogated immediately. I need to know exactly who this supposed kidnapper with 'unusual abilities' is!

Someone who can summon a sandstorm to abduct people—this I have to see."

"... A sandstorm to abduct people!"

Standing beside George, Anton expression turned slightly odd as he overheard the conversation.

The mention of "sandstorm" brought to mind a particular individual, but he wasn't sure enough to make a connection.

"You really think it was a kidnapping?"

Anton asked curiously, looking at George.

From his perspective, as the commissioner of the NYPD, George Stacy shouldn't be so quick to jump to conclusions.

"It couldn't have been a kidnapping!"

George replied coldly.

"I've never seen such a conveniently executed kidnapping before! This has to be a staged act by Justin Hammer. He must have orchestrated this with someone to fake his own abduction!"

"I think so too," Anton agreed, adding, "but you don't have any evidence."

"That why we're locking up his bodyguards for interrogation," George said, frowning deeply.

"Though I doubt Justin Hammer would leave such an obvious trail, it our only lead for now."

Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, George turned to Anton.

"Where Batman?"

"What are you getting at?" Anton asked.

"I want Batman help in finding Justin Hammer whereabouts—and uncovering the identity of this so-called kidnapper!"

"I'll pass the message along," Anton replied noncommittally.

"But I can't guarantee anything will come of it."

"That good enough. Thanks!" George said with a nod of gratitude.

After their conversation ended, George turned his attention to managing the scene.

Anton, meanwhile, appeared calm and collected.

"Anton, you definitely know something," Eddie said as he watched George walk away.

Something about Anton expression seemed all too familiar.

"What did that mention of a sandstorm remind you of?" Eddie asked curiously.

Anton replied, "It reminded me of someone."

"Who?" Eddie pressed.

Anton paused, recalling the information he'd gathered while investigating Hammer Industries some time ago.

"Do you remember, a few months ago, when Justin was preparing to take over Osborn Company, a physics lab in New York was shut down? They said an experiment went wrong, and an expensive particle accelerator was damaged."

"Of course I remember," Eddie said, his eyes narrowing.

"I was the one who gave you that intel."

He thought for a moment, then asked, "But what does that have to do with this situation?"

Anton countered, "Do you remember how Max mutated and became Electro?"

"You're suggesting someone was affected by the particle accelerator and mutated?" Eddie eyes widened in shock.

The idea floored him.

Encountering two individuals who had undergone similar mutations in a single evening felt more improbable than witnessing a battle of high-tech armors.

Mutations like these were rare—astronomically so, a one-in-a-billion occurrence.

Armor and technology, on the other hand, were simply the result of wealth and resources.

One was a freak of nature, the other a product of science and engineering.

"You know who this person is?" Eddie asked, still trying to process it all.

"Of course," Anton replied with a small smile.

"I call him Sandman."

Anton was just about to continue speaking when—

Boom!!

In the distance, a massive explosion lit up the sky, followed by the formation of a towering mushroom cloud.

The shockwave swept across the area, its powerful ripples like waves spreading across the surface of a lake.

The fiery spectacle momentarily illuminated the night sky over New York, but it wasn't beautiful—it was chilling.

Thick gray smoke filled the atmosphere, and the acrid stench of burning material quickly permeated the air.

Boom, boom, boom!

Even after the mushroom cloud dissipated, the fiery explosions continued one after another, relentless and devastating.

It was all coming from the direction of Tony Stark and Whiplash battleground.

Clearly, the fight was over, and the villain who had started it all had met their end.

"Damn it! How much is this going to cost? If there were casualties, tonight a complete disaster!"

George Stacy stared at the massive explosion in the distance, his face grim.

He didn't need a detailed report to understand what had happened.

Beep, beep, beep!

The communicator on his chest suddenly crackled to life.

"Uh, Commissioner?"

It was Leonardo, the leader of the turtles, speaking from the other end.

"The enemy dead! But… he self-destructed."

"And it wasn't just him, was it?" George took a deep breath, already knowing the answer.

"No," another voice chimed in, this one over the police dedicated communication channel.

"All the steel soldiers were rigged by Ivan Vanko.

He detonated himself and every single steel soldier."

"We're screwed," George muttered, staring at the remaining embers of the explosion.

"There no way we're going home early tonight."

"Tony!"

He clenched his communicator tightly, his tone sharp.

"Stark Industries is going to be held accountable for this."

"Hey!"

Tony voice came through the communicator, brimming with indignation.

"The steel soldiers were Hammer Industries' product. If you want accountability, take it up with Justin Hammer.

Stark Industries has been out of the weapons business for ages. I was doing pro bono superhero work tonight.

If I don't demand a key to the city for this, it because I'm being kind to the NYPD!"

"Justin Hammer was kidnapped!" George snapped.

"What?"

Tony voice froze.

"What did you just say?"

The voices of Tony and George were heard by everyone who had managed to escape the explosion blast radius.

Harry was just as startled.

Justin Hammer was kidnapped?

Could something so convenient really happen?

On second thought, in the critical moment when Hammer Industries was facing a crisis, Justin Hammer conveniently being "kidnapped" sounded suspiciously like a calculated retreat.

"Too coincidental," Harry muttered, his eyes narrowing as he connected the dots.

If he could figure this out, Tony Stark certainly wouldn't miss it either.

"I'll keep an eye on it," Tony replied, giving the answer George had been expecting.

In truth, it was exactly what George wanted to hear.

Thump thump thump thump!

At that moment, a helicopter approached from the distance and landed at the scene.

A group of individuals stepped out—people George absolutely detested seeing.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. is here to pick up the scraps again?"

George crossed his arms and shot a cold glare at the newcomers.

"Agent Coulson, don't tell me this is yet another incident S.H.I.E.L.D. plans to take over.

If your agency is prepared to cover all the damages from this event, I might just hand over control to you."