Maria quickly shifted her gaze to Future Tony. Her expression turned panicked as she rushed to his side.
"My little Tony, what happened to you? You've got so much white hair, and you've aged so much. Were you injured in this war? We need to see a doctor right away!"
She gently stroked the wrinkles and white strands on his face, full of maternal concern.
Future Tony stood frozen, looking at the woman who was a full head shorter than him.
That voice…
And the warmth of that hand.
"Mom?"
"What is it, Tony?"
Maria hadn't yet realized that this was a Tony from a parallel universe.
"It's nothing… I mean, I missed you. I really, really missed you."
As he spoke, Tony's emotions broke free, his voice trembling with long-suppressed sorrow and longing.
Elsewhere…
Future Captain America had reached the entrance of the Demon Tower. He peeked inside from the shadows, one hand pressed to his earpiece communicator.
"Tony, I'm here. Where are you?"
He waited for a while, but there was no response through the earpiece.
Future Steve knew he couldn't afford to wait any longer. He decisively removed his mask and calmly walked toward the main entrance.
This world's version of him was an employee of the Demon Corporation. Entering shouldn't be an issue.
His peripheral vision stayed locked on the sand dunes on either side as he made his way forward. Not a single disturbance.
He entered smoothly.
But as he stepped inside, a human face slowly emerged from the sand dunes, watched the entrance for a while, and then gradually sank back down.
Following the map, Future Steve made his way upstairs.
According to Future Tony's intel, the Demon Tower had two main sections—an upper and a lower floor. Tony had gone down to rescue Banner, while Steve's mission was to search for the Scepter on the upper floors.
He took the elevator up, shield strapped to his back.
He arrived at an office level, bustling with people. The war in New York seemed to have had no effect on their enthusiasm for work.
Steve quickly realized this wasn't the place he was looking for and prepared to go higher.
"Mr. Steve!"
A voice called out behind him just as he was pressing the elevator button again.
He turned. It was a blonde woman holding a stack of files.
"Are you here to see the director? Can you take these documents with you?"
"Of course."
Steve nodded slightly.
Refusing would only raise suspicion.
The blonde handed over the files and even kindly pressed the elevator button for him.
Fifth floor.
Steve stepped into an office and saw someone buried behind a mountain of paperwork.
"Hello, where should I put these?"
He asked politely.
The writing hand paused slightly. A cold voice replied,
"Just leave them in the corner."
Just as Steve turned around, the person behind the desk suddenly pulled out a handgun from under the table and fired at his leg. (Unbeknownst to her, he had a shield on his back.)
Bang bang bang—
Steve reacted instantly. He threw the stack of documents behind him to block the shooter's view, then swiftly dodged the bullets.
He grabbed her wrist midair and twisted it forcefully, disarming her and pinning her down onto the desk.
Papers flew everywhere, some even covering her face.
"I mean no harm. I just came here looking for something."
Steve tried to explain.
"Looking? You mean stealing. No one can steal anything from here. Impostor!"
Steve sighed internally. So much for a stealth mission. What now?
At that moment, the paper on the woman's face slipped off, revealing part of her face.
"Peggy!!!"
Steve's grip loosened in shock.
Peggy took the opportunity to break free and kicked him hard in the gut.
Carter rotated her wrist, a little annoyed with herself for slacking lately.
She picked up the handgun again and pointed it at Steve.
He didn't resist. Instead, he raised both hands in surrender, his eyes filled with longing, sadness, and pain.
Peggy frowned. That look… It was exactly the same as when Steve had first awakened from the ice and saw her again.
A bold guess formed in her mind.
Still pointing the gun, she slowly approached, her other hand reaching out to touch his cheek and jaw to check if he was wearing a mask.
"Steve from a parallel universe?"
Peggy let out a breath and lowered her gun.
"Peggy, I—"
Steve tried to move closer.
But Peggy stepped back, evading him. She raised her hand and showed him the ring on her finger, her voice calm but resolute.
"I'm not your Peggy. And you're not my Steve. Address me as Ms. Carter, sir."
Steve felt a pang in his heart at her distant tone.
His Peggy… was already gone.
"Now tell me—how did you get in here?"
Peggy crossed her arms, expression stern.
Steve told her everything—what happened in his universe, why he was here, everything.
Peggy rubbed her forehead. A world without the Demon King would be utterly desperate—half of the universe dead.
And she realized… the Demon King must've allowed Steve to come in on purpose.
She pulled out her phone.
"Steve, where are you and Bucky right now?"
"There's something going on here. Come back as soon as you can."
After she hung up, Future Steve couldn't help but ask, "You mentioned Bucky… Bucky's here too?"
"Come with me. I'll fill you in on what's been happening in our world—after the Demon King appeared."
Top Floor of the Demon Tower
Future Tony walked in, followed by Maria and Howard.
Before he could even get a good look at the people inside, a sarcastic voice chimed in:
"Well, look at you crying in your mommy's arms. Want some water to replenish what you lost?"
Tony noticed his mother's shirt was soaked from his tears. He was even more annoyed now.
Mocking him for crying?
"No thanks. But do you want me to give you a few tips on upgrading that hunk of junk behind you? Your last energy blast was laughably crude."
Future Tony didn't back down in the slightest, pointing at the three-meter-tall Apollo armor behind the other man.
Mocking his intelligence now.
"What do you know? I'm using a solar core! The energy output is hundreds of times higher than yours. Besides N-metal, there's no material that can contain it!"
"Hundreds of times? N-metal? No idea what you're talking about. But what if the material was nanotech—self-repairing, with continuous cooling and replacement?"
"You think I don't know that? I've tried nanotech. But the strength isn't enough. Adamantium can't repair itself. And if I use vibranium, it just absorbs energy and weakens the output!"
"Power? That kind of brute force design? Sounds like some Russian junk. Did I go to school there? Let's see if you can even operate it properly."
"Russian junk? You're the Russian junk! What good is weak output? You trying to hunt squirrels?"
Tony, having been influenced by Chino and aware of future enemies, had subconsciously prioritized destructive power in his designs.
"Hunting squirrels? Nah. I'm aiming for a fat pig."
For the first time, Future Tony realized how much he hated himself.
He tapped his chest.
The nanotech suit instantly enveloped his body.
"Fat pig? I'll blast you into bacon with one shot!"
Behind him, the Apollo armor opened to reveal the cockpit.
Quote of the Chapter:"Sometimes the reflection we hate most… is just ourselves in another time."
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