Being the 7th smartest person in the world wasn't so bad. Sure, he wasn't the "genius, billionaire, philanthropist, playboy" that Tony Stark claimed to be, but Amadeus Cho was on the list. And about a third the age of Stark, anyway. He knew he'd make his way up the list, if it really mattered to him (he figured he'd hit 5 by 25, and 3 by 30. Those seemed like nice numbers. If it really mattered to him). Peeling open a candy bar wrapper, Amadeus settled back in his office chair, propping his feet up on the desk. And he wasn't one of those Illuminati douche bags, either, so he was in a pretty prime position.
He'd just celebrated his 18th birthday, a small party with Herc, Banner, Jen, and himself. Biggest downside was Delphyne not returning his call, just a simple offer to reconnect. Musta been too busy to give him the time of day, he mused. Which was really a shame, after everything they'd been through, the whole Prince of Power thing, and Lolbast and what not. Shanna hadn't returned his call either. Not that it mattered.
Anyway, he was pretty sure Shanna didn't have phones in the Savage Lands, and she also maybe had a boyfriend with a saber tooth tiger as a pet. Calvin was awesome, but he was really no match for an animal that could swallow his motherboard whole. Calvin was also in retirement at the moment. It was hard to play buddy cop when your other half was basically a cybernetic voice in your head.
Amadeus pressed his lips together thoughtfully. He was happy with where he was, king of team ups, second only the Power Man and Iron Fist, but...something was missing. Sure, standing back-to-back with Wolverine had been pretty cool, but he'd already done that with Herc. And Hulk. Honestly, once you've stood toe-to-toe with the big green guy, everything else sort of lost its luster.
Except for girls. Like any hot-blooded straight dude (or bi dude, or bi woman, or gay woman, or...), girls had not lost their appeal for Amadeus. And he'd seen his share of buxom beauties (hello, he was best friends with Hercules), but the "notches" in his belt were...lacking. He had actually been in love with Delphyne, or so he figured, as his heart rate and blood flow had increased and his pupils had dilated around her. They had kissed. They had done more than kissed. But she wasn't interested in him anymore. Nor did anyone else seem to be.
He sort of dreamed of the day when he would encounter a girl who would unironically scream "rock me, Amadeus!" in the throws of passion with him. Delphyne never got that reference.
But for now, Amadeus Cho, no longer with pup in tow, was pretty satisfied. He just needed a new challenge. Something mental and tough, that really stretched his strategic skillset. He squinted one eye, running through his mental Rolodex when he stopped with a jolt, dropping his half eaten candy on the desk.
He knew just what he wanted to do.
And maybe those Illuminati dicks weren't such total douches after all. Bruce had made up with them. Heck, Hulk had made up with them.
Maybe it was time he took a few tricks from them. Maybe they were prime to pull some knowledge from. He'd learn everything he could, climb up those rating ranks, maybe knock Stark down a peg. Not that it mattered.