A few years later Stark decided to probe the Artefact, again. Allison had insisted that it's vault be sealed, but Stark had made sure that that the vault could still be opened. Since she was away on maternity leave with Carter's new brat, Stark had decided to try and give The Artefact a few experimental pokes.
Everything was going well when the inside of the shielded vault was suddenly obscured by a deep red gas, "Fargo, what do you read, what the hell is that gas?" Stark shouted down the microphone.
"What gas?" Fargo shouted back. "There's nothing showing on the monitors, but there's a massive rise in the exotic particle count, a huge fluctuating emp surge and massive magnetic activity. At these levels the field fluctuations could have a serious effect on the systems. It could even interfere with our visual pigments at the quantum or nervous level". Then Fargo shouted "What the hell's that !".
Stark looked out. All he could see was the red gas swirling. Then the gas vanished. There was a man. Man? A hideous figure clad in ... crocodile leather?
The man walked forward to the vault door, and gestured. The door inexplicably opened and the man walked through into the corridor. Stark shouted to the techs to get the door closed again. By the time that they had done that the man was in the room facing Stark and the technicians. Fargo was watching from control, having had the presence of mind to call security.
"I am the Dark One. Why have I been summoned here. You'd better hope that it's worth my time". The voice was unpleasant and sinister.
Stark had a gut feeling that a call to that unpleasant, and creepy, Dr Dracos was needed.