MARVEL/DC: DOCTOR IN THE MULTIVERSE

A shutter click.

Mechanical.

Sharp.

The sound of a telephoto lens.

Someone was photographing Miracle Clinic.

Lynn didn't move.

He remained lying on the folding bed upstairs, expression unchanged, breathing steady.

But his mind had already completed the first stage of analysis.

The shutter activated approximately once every forty-five seconds.

Consistent interval.

No variation.

The pattern had continued for nearly ten minutes.

Likely targets:

Clinic entrance.

Rear alley access.

Second-floor windows.

Street sightlines.

Reconnaissance photography.

Professional.

Not a reporter.

Journalists moved constantly while shooting.

Changing angles.

Adjusting positioning.

Following instinct rather than schedule.

This individual remained stationary the entire time.

Precise timing.

Structured coverage.

Trained surveillance methodology.

Not S.H.I.E.L.D..

Nick Fury's organization used far more advanced observation systems.

Optical satellites.

Remote drones.

Passive digital collection.

Not manual rooftop photography with a DSLR.

Not Batman either.

Bruce Wayne preferred autonomous reconnaissance platforms and remote-sensor mapping.

Elimination complete.

Lynn spoke softly into the darkness.

"Kingpin."

…

For the next four days—

Lynn maintained a completely ordinary routine.

Daytime—

Consultations.

Treatments.

Normal patient flow.

Night—

Observation.

The rooftop scout did not appear daily.

But the pattern emerged quickly.

Every other night.

Between 10 p.m. and midnight.

Average surveillance duration:

Approximately one hour.

Lynn never alerted him.

Instead—

He analyzed him.

The shutter signature identified the camera model.

Nikon D5 series.

Distinctive high-frequency resonance within the shutter mechanism.

Easy to isolate once recognized.

Using the rooftop angle and exact body position, Lynn reconstructed the surveillance coverage mentally.

Front entrance.

Rear exit.

Second-floor windows.

Distance between neighboring rooftops.

This wasn't random surveillance.

It was pre-infiltration reconnaissance.

…

Fourth day.

Afternoon.

A familiar black Audi A8 stopped outside Miracle Clinic.

When Tony Stark entered the clinic for the second time, he carried a paper bag in his left hand.

Inside—

Two bottles.

A bottle of Burgundy Pinot Noir.

And a bottle of Yamazaki 18-Year-Old whisky.

"Which one is mine?" Lynn asked.

"That depends on your performance."

Tony placed the bag on the counter.

He looked significantly healthier than during the first visit.

Skin tone restored from diffuse gray pallor to its normal warm complexion.

Neck discoloration greatly reduced.

Most importantly—

His right hand no longer trembled.

Universal Diagnosis activated automatically.

Current serum palladium concentration:

21 micrograms per liter.

Five-point reduction since the previous treatment.

Residual chelation effects and natural metabolic clearance remained active.

Far below dangerous thresholds.

"Good," Lynn said.

"Feels like I'm back to where I was three years ago."

Tony sat down casually and crossed one leg over the other.

"But I'm not here only for follow-up."

He removed the sunglasses.

"I've got good news."

A slight pause.

"And maybe a proposal."

"The good news first."

"The files my father left behind."

Tony leaned back slightly.

"I found them."

Something in his expression had changed.

Not excitement.

Something quieter.

More complicated.

Relief.

"The old man hid a molecular structure model inside a replica from the 1974 Stark Expo."

"I handled that thing hundreds of times as a kid."

"Never noticed anything."

"Until you reexamined it," Lynn said.

Tony nodded slowly.

"JARVIS completed the structural modeling."

"The atomic number falls outside the current periodic table."

"There's a unique resonance relationship between the 4d and 5d orbitals."

He looked directly at Lynn.

"Energy density exceeds palladium by nearly two orders of magnitude."

"Perfect biocompatibility."

"Zero toxicity."

"Have you synthesized it yet?"

"Almost."

Tony folded his arms.

"The energy requirements are insane."

"I'm modifying one of the particle accelerators downstairs."

"But the theoretical framework checks out."

"Once synthesis succeeds, I replace the palladium core."

"The poisoning problem disappears permanently."

Lynn nodded once.

"Good."

"And the proposal?" he asked.

Tony leaned forward slightly.

"Fury told me what happened in Harlem."

"You reverse-engineered Hydra's mutagenic serum in twenty minutes."

"I reviewed the molecular architecture of your reversal compound afterward."

"JARVIS spent three hours verifying how the hell you designed it."

A short pause.

"It was elegant."

"Thank you."

"I'm not complimenting you for fun."

Tony waved the statement aside.

"I'm saying your ability reminds me of someone."

"Bruce Banner."

"Captain Rogers mentioned him already."

"Then I'll skip the introduction."

Tony's expression grew more serious.

"You know Banner's situation."

"The Hulk."

"The gamma transformations."

"He's lived with it for years."

"No complete control."

"And every transformation risks catastrophic collateral damage."

Tony paused briefly before continuing.

"Honestly, before Harlem, I wasn't convinced anybody at your level could help him."

"The Hulk isn't a normal medical problem."

"Gamma mutation is closer to exotic-energy physics than biology."

"But what you did with Hydra's serum changed my mind."

"You want me to help him control the transformations."

"Not exactly."

Tony shook his head.

"I want you to give him a choice."

"Right now Banner has none."

"He transforms when emotional thresholds spike."

"And once Hulk takes over…"

A pause.

"He can't always stop it."

Lynn considered the idea for two seconds.

The Hulk.

Gamma mutation.

One of the most extreme biological anomalies in Marvel history.

And potentially—

One of the highest-value ability sources imaginable.

"It's possible," Lynn said calmly.

"But Banner's case will be far more complicated than anyone else's."

"I'll need full evaluation first."

"Complete physiological data."

"Only then can I determine whether treatment is viable."

"I'll contact him."

"No rush," Lynn replied.

"I have another matter to handle first."

"Give me one or two weeks."

Tony glanced at him.

"What matter?"

"Clinic security upgrades."

"Aren't Fury's people watching your back now?"

"Some problems shouldn't be outsourced."

Tony studied him briefly.

But did not ask further questions.

Instead, he stood and pushed the paper bag toward Lynn.

"Keep both bottles."

"Consider them a thank-you gift for helping me find my father's work."

"I'll invoice the consultation separately."

Tony laughed quietly.

"You actually charge people like me."

"I charge everyone."

Tony shook his head once and walked toward the exit.

Then stopped.

His gaze moved across the clinic interior again.

"This place changed since my last visit."

"The equipment's different."

"I modified the systems you sent."

Tony turned back immediately.

"Modified?"

"Improved."

"How much improved?"

"The quantum imaging scanner's effective resolution improved from 2.7 nanometers to approximately 1.6."

Tony stared at him for two full seconds.

The exact same expression Lynn had seen during their first meeting returned again.

Recognition.

The expression one genius gives another after realizing the gap between "talented" and "exceptional."

"You modified a twenty-seven-million-dollar Stark Industries scanner beyond factory calibration limits?"

"My engineers spent three months stabilizing that platform."

"Goodbye, Mr. Stark."

Tony laughed once under his breath as he stepped outside.

The clinic door closed behind him.

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