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"Um..."
Arthur thought for a moment and then said, "Before I answer that, can anyone tell me why this one-time teleportation array returned us here?"
He glanced around and asked, "Where's Banner?"
"Who knows?" Tony shrugged, glancing at the two figures beside Arthur.
Arthur turned back to Tony. "Why are you here? I thought you'd be swimming in the sea of Artificial Intelligence!"
"Got a little waterlogged, needed to come up for air," Tony replied. "You still haven't answered: Who are they?"
"Oh, she's Ava, and he's Foster. It's a long story," Arthur said. "If you want the full rundown, ask Natasha for the files."
"Alright, alright," Tony said, setting down his screwdriver and glancing at Ava before walking over to Arthur. He whispered, "Listen, if I were you, I'd never bring a woman here so casually. Sure, the secrecy is reliable, but... this clearly puts us at a disadvantage. And why bring an old man along? For entertainment?"
Arthur's face darkened. "Are you sure you want to repeat that? Do you realize what will happen?"
"Hmm, goodbye then." Tony took two steps back and said to Ava and Foster, "Nice meeting you."
With a clenched-fist gesture, he created a whistling sound in the air. Moments later, Iron Man materialized before Arthur.
His glowing eyes blinking, Tony waved at Arthur. "Gotta get back to my swim. Stay safe."
With that, he rocketed into the sky...
Arthur tilted his head, watching him ascend. "So what if he can fly... I can too."
"...Now I'm starting to believe everything he's said," Foster said, rubbing his eyes. "Is this the Avengers Alliance?"
"No," Arthur replied, shaking his head. "This is the Superhero Alliance. Welcome."
He turned, spreading his arms wide, and the whooshing Šumer materialized behind him.
"Šumer, scan them both, enter their data into the database, and unlock Beginner access," Arthur instructed.
[ Understood! ] Šumer responded, emitting a glowing light as it began scanning.
The two individuals' data were quickly compiled. Arthur said, "Come on, let me show you around the environment where you'll be staying for a while. As for your university affairs, I'll arrange a leave of absence for you. To be precise, from the moment you set foot here until Ava is 'fully recovered,' it will be difficult for you to leave. This isn't confinement, merely a precaution to eliminate potential risks."
"This isn't quite what we agreed on," Ava's expression darkened.
Arthur glanced at her. "Our agreement remains unchanged. Hiring Foster to treat you, everything is proceeding as planned. And remember what I said earlier: once you're fully recovered, you'll be free to leave. How does that differ from our original agreement? Once your health is restored, you can go anywhere you wish, as long as you keep our secrets safe."
"Only the dead can keep secrets," Ava retorted.
"Killing you would serve no purpose," Arthur sighed. "If you insist on conspiracy theories, at least base them on that premise."
Foster, however, was more pragmatic than Ava. "So, what's next? Are we going to witness the might of your so-called superhero alliance? Frankly, after seeing Iron Man, I have no concerns about your financial resources."
"Believe me, what you've seen is merely a fraction of what exists."
As they entered the elevator, Arthur smiled. "Look around as much as you like. See everything you can see, but remember, your current Beginner clearance won't grant you a comprehensive tour of this facility."
…
…
As the elevator doors slid open, Arthur saw Natasha and Sharon waiting for him.
"Hmm..." Arthur blinked.
"I think it's necessary to discuss the following matters with you in person," Natasha said, glancing at Ava and Foster. "I know you're entertaining guests right now, so could Sharon give them a tour temporarily?"
"No problem with that..." Arthur shrugged. "I'm just curious, what's happened?"
Natasha paused, then said, "It's about... the crossed over... incident."
…
…
The room wasn't just occupied by Arthur and Natasha; two figures in white lab coats stood beside them.
The two scientists appeared visibly nervous, especially when their gazes fell on Arthur. They wrung their hands incessantly.
Arthur frowned deeply. "Now, can you explain what's going on?"
The two exchanged a glance before one spoke up, his voice tinged with anxiety. "I understand you might find this difficult to believe, so I've had to simplify the explanation significantly, omitting much of the technical jargon. Otherwise, I fear you'd dismiss us before we could even finish our full account."
He attempted a nervous joke, but it only seemed to amplify his tension.
In truth, Arthur's own anxiety was even more tightly wound, though he masked it perfectly.
He raised a finger. "If you can manage that, it would be a good start for our conversation. So, what exactly is going on?"
"To put it simply, we developed a program whose initial purpose stemmed from global surveillance. However, a different idea caused the entire project to go off course. Of course, the global surveillance plan is still ongoing, but through various documents and data, we discovered another possibility... dimensional monitoring!"
The speaker took a deep breath. "I'm not sure if this is the most accurate way to describe it, but when we compiled this information and put it into practice, the entire process went so smoothly, it felt like an invisible hand was pushing us from behind!"
"But the results were underwhelming," the other person interjected. "In fact, ever since the device was invented, we've treated it like a mere toy... but... but just tonight, it suddenly moved!"
"The gauge clearly showed that a being from another dimension was attempting to breach the barrier and enter our world!"
Arthur's mind reeled. His first thought was... I'm going insane!
(End of Chapter)