New York Sanctum, 2012
James landed silently on the Sanctum's roof, the Time Stone glowing green in his palm. He pushed open the skylight, dropping inside.
The Ancient One stood in the hall's center, back to him, as if expecting him. "You kept your word," she said calmly.
James approached, handing her the Time Stone. "Back where it belongs."
She took it, touching the Eye of Agamotto. Green light flared as the stone re-embedded. Looking at James, she probed, "You altered their future."
"Just lent a hand," James shrugged. "Thanos is gone."
Her eyebrow rose. "You killed him?"
"One snap," James said lightly.
She smiled faintly. "Fascinating. The timeline shifted, yet the universe's balance holds."
She paused. "Perhaps that's why my other self trusted you. But these changes are temporary. You'll be busy."
James didn't comment, asking, "Where's Strange?"
"Still a surgeon," she said, gazing out the window. "He's far from becoming Sorcerer Supreme."
"Good," James nodded. "He won't face that pain this time."
She studied him. "What's next?"
"Home," James smirked, tracing a golden portal to his universe's New York skyline.
"Ancient One," he said, stepping through, "visit my side sometime."
She smiled. "I will."
The portal closed.
She touched the Eye, murmuring, "Maybe we do need a Superman."
Earth-Prime Universe, New York
James materialized in Stark Tower's lab. Tony was tweaking a nano-armor, nearly dropping his tool at the sight.
"Damn it, James! How many times with the ghost act?!" Tony glared. "Three days gone—I thought some cover girl stole you."
James chuckled. "Took a multiverse stroll. Dealt with a minor pest."
Tony squinted. "What pest?"
"Thanos."
Tony blinked. "Okay, I'm lost."
James grabbed a cold coffee, sipping it. "Details don't matter. How's the armor?"
Tony opened his mouth, questions piling, but sighed, rubbing his temples. "Nano-armor's nearly done, but the core needs work."
James tossed him a vibranium chunk. "Check this."
Tony caught it, eyes lighting up. "Vibranium?! Where'd you get this?"
"Wakanda," James said casually. "Borrowed some."
"Borrowed?" Tony snorted. "You mean stole."
"They've got plenty," James shrugged innocently.
Tony rolled his eyes but dove into the vibranium's properties, excited. "This could upgrade the armor, but it's not enough."
James watched Tony's fervor, smiling, and turned to the window. New York's night sparkled, stars mirroring the city's glow. His super hearing caught sirens, chatter, subway rumbles—familiar yet boundless.
[Ding! Host's Growth Points: 10,000. Enter System Mall to redeem?]
James summoned the interface, scanning items, pausing at [Doomsday Cells]. "Still a ways off," he muttered.
No rush—he had time.
He approached Tony, who was lost in holographic data. James slapped a thick metal-bound dossier onto the table, rattling Tony's coffee.
"What's this?" Tony frowned, looking up to see James's sly grin.
"Your new toy," James tapped the dossier. "More interesting than vibranium."
Tony flipped it open, eyes scanning dense equations and 3D models. His fingers froze, pupils shrinking.
"Wait… this is…" His voice held rare shock.
The hologram auto-loaded the data, projecting a micro-star confined in a magnetic matrix, plasma burning steadily with immense energy.
"Artificial sun?" Tony's head snapped up. "Earth doesn't have this tech! A year ago, Spider-Man fought a guy messing with something like this."
He pointed at the model. "This… you stuffed a star into a reactor?!"
James shrugged. "Alien tech. A bit better than your lightbulb."
Tony flipped pages, muttering, "Magnetic confinement, plasma turbulence suppression, this energy density…"
He looked up, eyes blazing. "Where'd you get this? Don't say you made it."
"Multiverse loot," James cut him off. "Source doesn't matter. This does." He pointed to an equation at the end. "It's buildable."
Tony inhaled, forcing calm. He dropped the dossier, hands on the table, silent for seconds, then grinned.
"Jarvis, clear my schedule."
"Sir, you have dinner with Ms. Potts—"
"Cancel it," Tony said, fingers flying over the hologram. "Tell her the world's ending again. I'm saving it."
James raised an eyebrow. "That excuse?"
"Works every time," Tony said, diving into Stark Industries' energy database.
He paused, squinting. "Wait, you're not planning to use this sun to…"
"Replace your Arc Reactor?" James smiled, tapping his chest. "No, to keep me powered without a star. For you…"
Tony's eyes lit up. "Infinite energy. Clean, endless."
He stood, energized. "Jarvis, call Rhodey. Book the Alamo test site for a week!"
"No small-scale test first?" James asked.
"Small?" Tony scoffed, projecting a ten-meter sphere. "This is small—first-gen, enough to light Manhattan." He frowned. "But confinement stability's tricky. A plasma leak…"
"Wouldn't light Manhattan—it'd vaporize it," James said calmly.
Tony glared. "Not funny."
"I'm not joking." James traced golden lines in the hologram. "Upgrade the magnetic generator with vibranium and Uru's magical properties for self-repair."
"Genius!" Tony slammed the table. "Self-healing fields! I'm starting to like you too much, James. What are you, an alien?"
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