The Battle of New York was just around the corner now. Admittedly, Tony didn't know for sure if it would even happen like it originally did… but he believed it would. From an unknowing Pierce and Fury, Tony knew that research into the Tesseract had been started just like last time, presenting a siren's call to the rest of the universe. And from Sif he knew that Loki had flung herself into the void after Thor destroyed the Bifrost, same as her male counterpart.
Thanos would retrieve Loki from the void and arm her for an invasion of Midgard. This, Tony fully believed. And when Loki came, Tony would be waiting for her.
But first … Tony holds out a hand and extra Vibranium Nanites pour from his gauntlet into the water below. Thanks to his Technopathy he's able to maintain a connection with them, though he ultimately does have to follow them around after a certain point. The Valkyrie is still thousands of feet under water and ice and Tony's Technopathy, while constantly growing, has only progressed to just under a thousand feet at this point.
Slipping beneath the waves, Tony continues to stare unerringly at his target. The nanites he's sent down slide under the Valkyrie like the grasping hand of a gentle god, spreading across the buried plane's surface. They cut through the ice and remove the rock and sediment that had covered and encased the bomber plane until this point, before finally settling into their places along the underside.
Once everything is in place, Tony lifts with his hand… and the nanites lift as well. Slowly, the Valkyrie is pulled up through the water. To the naked eye, if anyone where around to watch this, it might look like Tony Stark had developed Force Powers all of the sudden, since what he was doing was eerily reminiscent of a certain Jedi on Dagobah lifting his X-Wing out of the swamp. Not nearly as hard though or as much of a strain. Flying back up, Tony pulls the Valkyrie up with him until it breaches the surface. The nanites keep it afloat, even as Tony hovers down and makes himself a hole in the massive plane's side with a laser. Then, quiet as a mouse, he floats his way inside.
It doesn't take Tony long to find what he's looking for, of course. He knows exactly what he's here for after all. Or rather, who he's here for. Captain America encased in ice with his Vibranium Shield held across his chest like he 's some Norse Warrior off to Valhalla. Rogers looks almost peaceful as he is right now, with Tony regarding him silently.
Funny, originally Tony had planned to take Cap's iconic shield for himself at this moment, melting it down and using the Vibranium for his Nanites. That way he wouldn't step on Wakanda's toes. But Loki had caused him to move up his plans and in the end Klaue's Vibranium had ultimately served him much better, coming in a far greater quantity as it was. Now, Tony no longer had any need to appropriate Steve 's shield.
"… Hey Steve. Been a while. Bucky says hi. Or he would if he knew I was here or that you were alive."
"Sir."
JARVIS' voice echoes in Tony's ear but he waves the AI off.
"Just give me a moment, J."
Then, he focuses back on Steve Rogers' frozen, sleeping visage.
"Look Steve… I'm hoping you and I can work together this time. That's why I'm snatching you up before SHIELD can get their claws into you. We'll take down HYDRA together and hopefully you'll be amenable to me quietly ruling the world. Or if not, hopefully you'll never find out. But… I feel like I need to make you a promise right now. Fuck with me this time around and I'm not pulling punches, Rogers. I'll kill you myself if I have to. Just so we're on the same page."
A crooked smile spreads across his face, because obviously he and Steve are not on the same page. The man can't hear him right now and Tony isn't stupid enough to say any of that to Steve's face. If there's one thing Tony learned about the other man in the previous timeline… it was that Captain America didn't respond well to threats or intimidation.
Letting out a sigh, Tony tilts his head to the side.
"Alright J. What is it?"
"… I believe it would be better for you to see for yourself, Sir. Turn to your right."
Blinking, Tony does as he's told, letting his focus on Steve Rogers become more decentralized as he allows his senses to flow back through the sensors in his suit and what JARVIS is 'seeing' right now. Then, he freezes in place. He'd been so locked in on Steve that he hadn't been paying attention before. One might excuse his lapse in judgment for the fact that most of the Valkyrie was pitch black save for the lights of his suit… but that was no excuse in this case.
Slowly, stomping over a few steps, Tony comes to a stop in front of something impossible. Against all conventional knowledge, it would appear that Steve Rogers wasn't alone when the Valkyrie crashed. There, frozen in the ice just like Captain America… is a pristine, youthful, and altogether fit and toned Peggy Carter. Dressed in a British-Inspired version of the Captain America Uniform… and with a British Union Jack Vibranium Shield resting across her front as well.
"J?"
"She's alive, Sir." There's no doubt in Tony's mind that she had to have been dosed with the Super Soldier Serum as well to have survived under the ice all this time. However, her body type reminds him more of Natasha than Steve, with her feminine attributes still on display… if not amplified. As Tony steps closer to the young Peggy Carter, he can see that there's probably corded muscle under those curves of hers though. If Steve is a man of steel, then this Peggy is steel wrapped in velvet.
In the end, a lot of things are going through his mind right now. But the primary one is…
"… What the fuck?"
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
"Unlock the full story now—click here to download the complete novel in PDF and embark on the adventure today!"
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
ko-fi.com/abrahamsmith1b