Back in Shuri's laboratory, a shirtless Tony Stark lay out on the examination table. Lights flashed and machines beeped all around under the watchful eye of the Wakandan scientist. Finally, she received the notice of a completed scan and allowed Tony to sit up.

"I knew things were getting bad, but I didn't know they were this bad..." Shuri muttered, gazing at the lines stretching across his body from the Arc Reactor. The gray, circuit like veins had extended across his torso and were beginning to breach his collarbone.

"So what's the word?" Asked Tony. Shuri looked at the updated readings on her tablet, her face fell.

"I'm... not sure how to tell say this..." The scientist replied hesitantly.

"Give it to me straight," Tony replied.

"The deterioration has accelerated beyond the expected parameters," she said, revealing the chart on her tablet. Indeed, the graph seemed to indicate a figures taking a nosedive.

"At the rate you're going, the poison will overtake your body within a few months," Shuri finished.

Tony sighed at the revelation, "I had a feeling. And here I was hoping that job with M.A would help me keep a lid on things. But I wound up overdoing it a few times, took some damage I wasn't planning on... Look, you're my last shot. Is there anything you can do to stop it? I thought you were working on something on the DL?"

"We've been developing a nanite vaccine," Shuri brought up a hologram of a circulatory system above the table. "The idea is they enter your body and destroy the poison, but if the continued source of the poison is your Arc Reactor, it will only slow down the process, not end it completely. And we've recently hit a roadblock."

Tony looked up, "What do you mean?"

"Test after test have been failures," she explained. "The closest we've gotten is a 57% margin of success. Even with our advanced resources, nanotechnology is still a treacherous field to navigate. It would help if I had a stronger base to work off of. Is there still no way to get the Extremis formula?"

The ailing hero shook his head, "Killian won't talk, and there's no trace of his notes, digital or otherwise. And reverse engineering my blood gave us nothing when we tried that..."

Sighing, he looked down at the glowing core in his chest, "So my best option is to take this thing out completely. But if we do that, the shrapnel heading towards my heart would kill me faster than the virus."

"Unless we removed both at the same time," Shuri put in.

Tony looked up at her, "I thought you said an operation wasn't on the table?"

"Right now, it's not," she nodded. "A surgery would be extremely invasive, with no guarantee of a complete success. And in your current physical condition, with your continued use of the armor, your body wouldn't be able to handle the strain."

Tony exhaled, processing the information, "So even then, the only way to heal is to stop being Iron Man... What're my options? How do I go about this?"

"First, you must strengthen your body," Shuri began. "That means no super heroics for approximately 2 to 3 months before the procedure."

"Oh, is that all?" The veteran hero rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Hardly," replied Shuri. "After the surgery, between recovery time and physical therapy, you would still need to refrain from wearing the armor."

Tony blinked, "For how long?"

Shuri sighed, "A year, bare minimum."

"A year!?" Tony leapt up from the table, the shock hitting him like a ton of bricks. "I can't be out of action for a year!!"

"I knew you would react like this..." said the scientist. "But it's the only shot you have at prolonging your life, never mind continue being Iron Man. When last we spoke, you were more comfortable with the idea of retirement. You were focusing more on research, you were spending more time with Pepper, what's changed since then?"

Tony considered her words, the rational side of his brain understood her point. But then again, he was never the most rational of people.

"...I can't stop wearing the suit," he said, sitting back down and putting his shirt on. "Not now, when things are so close to a boiling point."

"You're referring to The League?" Asked Shuri.

Tony nodded, "That bomb I took a direct hit from had enough bang in it to flatten an entire city. Who knows where they got that much firepower? They have numbers, growing influence, and they likely have some powerful figures backing them. And if it's who I think they are, then there's no way I can step aside. It's my mess to clean up..."

"I understand," the scientist nodded, sympathizing with Tony's plight. "But that's precisely why this plan of action is the best course. You'll be out for a while, but not permanently. And the world is full of capable pro heroes who can pick up where you left off. Not to mention, the good people like us who support them."

Shuri winked at the veteran hero, making him smile slightly at her bit of self praise. "Besides, there's still hope," she assured. "You're literally training the next generation of heroes!"

Tony sighed, "Maybe... But is it wrong to want them to start on a clean slate? They've already been through a lot with the League's attacks, and they're barely halfway through their first year! They're not ready..."

"What was it you once said?" Shuri nudged him with her elbow. "'Sometimes, you need to run before you can walk'."

Tony scoffed in mock offense at her impression, "I don't sound like that."

"Yes you do," she teased, grinning. "Tell me, is it more important for you to try and solve all the world's problems, or to simply be there for your students and your family?"

Tony smiled lightly, "You know the answer to that, Little Cub."

"Exactly," Shuri nodded. "So following this Expo, I expect you to start taking my advice. I want you in the crowd when I'm announced as winning another Nobel Quirk Prize!"

"That's if I don't win it first," Tony nudged Shuri with his elbow. "With more free time, I might start messing around in my lab again. Not to mention your protégé's hot on your heels! I'd keep your eyes out for competition."

"I'm counting on it," she smiled. Standing from her seat, Shuri began to power down the equipment, as Tony looked down. The glow of his Arc Reactor pierced through the fabric of his shirt.

"Damn..." He muttered softly.

Back with the students of Class 1-A, they prepared to go their separate ways as the afternoon's events came to a close. A fun time was had by all, and they agreed to meet up later. But one stop was needed first.

Over with the hardworking Luke, Danny, and Maximoff twins, the 4 had collectively collapsed at one of the picnic tables outside the restaurant.

"Ugh," Luke groaned. "The Expo ain't even open to the public yet. If we're this slammed now, things're gonna be downright brutal once it gets underway."

"And here I thought cleaning the dojo was torture..." Danny concurred. "I don't want see another dirty dish in a sink for as long as I live..."

"At least you two didn't have to keep running orders back and forth to all the customers," Wanda muttered, her tired face pressed against the wooden table.

"I don't wanna hear you of all people talk about running!" Pietro grunted, massaging his tired feet. A pair of worn out, burned up sneakers lay on the ground under his seat.

"Hey guys! You alright?" Peter waved over. The group of workers collectively groaned. Even Wanda, the most chipper of the bunch, was too tired to fully raise her hand in greeting.

"You should be proud of your hard work today," Azari said, pulling out a handful of tickets. "I know you weren't able to enjoy the day with the rest of us, but if you're not too tired, perhaps you could tonight?"

"What're those?" Asked Danny, tiredly opening an eye.

"Invites to the big reception tonight," replied Laura.

"Aunt Shuri was able to procure a few extra tickets," put in Azari. "We'd love for you to have them," smiled Toni.

This instantly revived their spirits as they gazed at the tickets, and a golden glow of seemed to emanate behind the 4.

"T-too bright!" Complained Kei, shielding his eyes with his sketch pad.

"Oops, forgiveness!" Danny replied sheepishly. He waved his glowing hand slightly as it powered down.

"You're still here, Kei?" Asked Luke.

"What?" The young artist shrugged as he continued to draw, "I like the view!"

"But there's no sunbathers to gawk at this time of day, are there?" Asked an incredulous Pietro.

Kei sighed and turned his pad around, "For the record, I was sketching the sunset. I'm not that much of a perv!"

Indeed, on the paper was the image of a beautiful sandy beach and boardwalk. It gradually turned into the ocean and focused the perspective on the sinking sun in the background.

"Huh, that's not bad actually," Toni remarked, suitably impressed.

"I take the occasional online commission," replied the shorter boy. "It's how I could afford to come out here. I may be a hero in training, but I'm still an artist! I'm hoping to show off some of my work at the party tonight, maybe make a few higher end clients."

"That's right! There will be several pro heroes in attendance," remarked Azari, as he turned to address the rest of his classmates. "It is imperative that we maintain M.A's reputation of excellence. Let us change into formal attire and meet in lobby eight at 6:30 PM sharp. I'll contact Reyes and Cho to relay the plan. Does that work for everybody?"

The group collectively nodded, as Azari gave his country's formal gesture with the crossing of his arms. "Very well then, I shall see you all soon!" With that, he walked towards the hotel to change.

"That's our Class Prez," remarked Peter. "Always on the ball!"

"Will you be coming too, Riri?" Asked Wanda.

Riri shrugged, "I mean, it's not really my kind of scene. But I did promise Toni here I'd make an appearance, after a little more time in the lab."

Antonia nudged her new friend, "I'll make sure to introduce you to a few of the bigwigs in my field. If nothing else, you'll have some great connections once you graduate!"

The young inventor smiled nervously, "No pressure then."

"Why the hell would I wanna go to some fancy party?" Flash asked Cho, back in their hotel room. He lay back on his bed, a bored expression on his face, "It'll just be a bunch of geezers making speeches, sounds kinda lame to me."

"Well I need to go and meet potential investors," Amadeus replied. "And I figured you coming with me would be less boring than just staying here all night. There'll be a ton of gourmet food, and I know you won't pass that up!"

"I don't even have any fancy clothes," Flash replied.

"I kinda figured that would be the case," Cho reached into the closet and pulled out a blue and grey outfit on a hanger. "So I brought some stuff for ya!"

"Are you kidding!?" Flash replied angrily. "Who asked you to do that!?"

"Hey, it's my gift!" Amadeus grinned, taking out a purple and green outfit for himself. "Consider it a 'thank you' for helping me out the last few days."

Flash looked at the clothes suspiciously, "I don't usually wear crap like this, it's too tight."

"Well I'm sure Laura would think you look good in it," teased the young Hulk.

"WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING!?" Flash roared, snatching his clothes from Cho's hand.

Up in the main tower, Tony tapped his Arc Reactor, activating his armor as it skunk over his body like grains of sand. "Well, I appreciate you giving me the hard truths," he said, his face remained exposed with the visor open. "I don't like 'em, but sometimes I gotta hear them."

"At least consider what I've said, alright?" Shuri replied. "Whatever you decide, my doors are always open for you, Stark."

"...I'll keep it in mind, Little Cub," he said. "But first thing's first: I've got an opening speech to give in about an hour. So I'm gonna go rest up for a bit."

"What about your protégé?" Asked Shuri.

"Oh, that's right!" Tony smacked his forehead in mock forgetfulness, "I did come here with someone, didn't I? Sent me a text, he's heading to his hotel room to get changed. Speaking of which..." He thumbed over at a table, several devices and boxes sat on it, "Did you bring the goods?"

Shuri smirked at the older man, and activated her tablet. A compartment within the wall opened up, revealing a tubular canister of what looked like black sand. She reached in and unlatched the container from its binding.

"Knowing you, I'm sure you'll want to put your own bit of flair on it," she teased, opening the canister. "Went over everything else though, and it's not bad. Not quite as good as ours, but getting there!"

"Yeah yeah, keep rubbing salt in the wound," Tony rolled his eyes, placing an armored hand in the tube. As it made contact, the sand began to move on its own up the gauntlet and disappeared into the metalworks. The scientist, meanwhile, pressed another button that opened a skylight window.

"Why did you need this done anyways?" Asked Shuri, "The Vibranium mix in your other armor should serve well enough already, doesn't it?"

"This is something different," he said. "Think of it as a collective investment in the future." With a final wink and closing of his visor, the Iron Man rocketed out of the lab and headed towards his private jet.

Shuri powered down the last of her equipment and departed similarly, her mind still running through the conversation she'd had with the veteran hero.

"An investment, huh?" She sighed quietly, "I just hope you live long enough to see it come through..."

As she went through the door however, something large and heavy whacked her in the back of the head. Shuri fell to the floor hard, knocked out. Standing over her, an unseen figure lowered their weapon, a collapsing baton.

"She's down for the count," said the intruder, speaking into a cellphone.

"Good," replied another, much older voice. "Any security?"

"We found several guards, but they're restrained now," assured the intruder. "The plan's a go, once you give the word."

"Keep them bound," ordered the older voice. "And do not kill them. Start working on the security system."

"Yes sir," replied the intruder. "We'll begin infiltration now."

In a warehouse not far from the tower, several figures wearing matching green and black outfits made final preparations to the weapons they held. Their leader, a grey haired man in red with a purple cape, eyed them all carefully, as if scrutinizing every last detail.

Finally, he picked reached over and picked up a helmet. It was red with purple lining, and allowed his eyes, nose and mouth to be seen. He slipped it onto his head and regarded his troops.

"It's time," he said.

.

.

.

Barber's Chair

• Bit of an update on Tony's current physical condition given here. Seems the hero's on his last legs professionally speaking unless something drastic is done. While before he may have been more amiable towards the idea of a hiatus or outright retirement, Tony confirms here the with the Masters possibly being back in play, he can't sit back.

• A bit more of Riri's introvertedness is highlighted here, and could very well play a role during this arc.

• The villains are on the move, and they've already got Shuri!! Just what are they up to?