As for Wanda, although she was a Western girl, she was naturally shy — perhaps because of her past.
That little hint she'd given earlier had already been her boldest confession.
But compared to Helen's direct move, Wanda suddenly felt she was far too conservative.
However, Quicksilver was more anxious than anyone. He was about to speak, but Wanda quickly stopped him.
"Ahem… thank you, Helen," Lock said. "Don't worry. I won't destroy Vision's body."
Helen immediately understood that Lock was giving her a step down. She quickly said with gratitude, "Then… okay, I won't disturb you."
She let go of his hand, covered her face, and ran back.
But Pepper, with her sharp eyes, could see through the gaps between Helen's fingers — her face was bright red, yet a barely hidden smile spread under her hand.
Lock stood there, finally freed from that little misunderstanding.
He exhaled softly, then lifted his hand. A faint light began to gather, and in his palm slowly formed a glowing blue cube — the Cosmic Cube.
The Tesseract — the container of the Space Stone. Compared to the Infinity Stones themselves, it was merely a shell.
In Avengers: Infinity War, Thanos forced Loki to hand over the Cube by threatening Thor's life.
After obtaining it, he crushed it effortlessly — the Cube shattered, revealing the Space Stone within.
But a container that could hold an Infinity Stone could never be ordinary.
Even its fragments carried traces of cosmic power, infused by the energy of space itself.
Lock extended a single finger and carefully traced a few precise lines through the air.
A small prism-shaped crystal of blue light separated from the Cube.
Guided by Lock's gesture, the crystal floated slowly toward Vision's forehead.
As soon as it touched the area between his brows, it melted into his body — fusing naturally, like it had always belonged there.
Then, a wave of light blue energy spread from Vision's forehead through his entire body, circulating in endless loops.
At the same time, lightning and fire burst from his form — the thunder Lock had previously channeled now roaring back to life.
Vision's body began to rise from the medical cradle, his form glowing with the combined power of lightning and the Space Stone.
The surrounding equipment shook violently — the magnetic pull of raw energy filling the air.
Glass cracked. Tools fell. Sparks scattered across the floor.
Then suddenly—everything went still.
Vision's body straightened, rising into the air.
He hovered silently, motionless, as if floating was his natural state — like a fish swimming in water, or a human standing on the ground.
Finally, Vision opened his eyes.
He looked around, confusion flickering in his gaze.
Though consciousness had returned, his mind was blank.
Moments later, every monitor in the lab came to life. The screens flashed hundreds of times per second.
Countless streams of data appeared — surveillance footage, armor schematics, planetary energy readings, and more.
Vision was learning.
Everyone watched nervously.
This process was essential… but unpredictable.
Even Iron Man, Lock, and Helen didn't know what kind of "person" Vision would become after absorbing so much knowledge.
Ultron was the best (and worst) example.
After witnessing humanity's wars and disasters, Ultron had concluded that humans themselves were the problem — and decided to exterminate them.
In Ultron's logic, if heroes created villains, then removing heroes would erase villains as well.
Lock had no intention of seeing his Vision walk the same path.
After a while, the holographic screens stopped flashing.
Vision's eyes grew clear, awareness settling within them.
He slowly descended to the floor, stopping in front of Lock.
Under everyone's gaze, he spoke for the first time.
"Father."
"…"
Everyone froze.
Their faces darkened simultaneously.
Vision, you just learned everything about human civilization — and this is your first line?
You call Lock father right out of the gate? That's the fastest way to hug a thigh in history!
But Vision wasn't done. He turned to Helen and said, "Mother."
Helen's face turned crimson again.
She felt like she had blushed more today than in her entire life combined.
You call him father and me mother? What kind of family roleplay is this supposed to be?!
Iron Man stepped forward immediately. "Hey, hey! Vision! I'm the one who created you!"
Vision tilted his head slightly. "Your contribution is indeed equal to Mother Helen's. But not as great as Father Lock's."
"Maybe I can call you Dad No. 2?"
Tony Stark blinked, stunned. Scientists had an obsession with titles — "Father of This," "Creator of That."
The father of relativity, the father of quantum physics, the father of the atomic bomb — all those titles meant recognition, legacy, power.
Now Vision was calling Helen "Mother," which was fair enough — she had been deeply involved.
But calling Lock Father No. 1 and Tony Father No. 2? Unacceptable!
"Why am I the second dad?" Tony protested. "I'm the one who actually built you!"
"If anything, I should be Dad No. 1 — and Lock's the second!"
Vision looked between them, his expression blank.
That logic… made sense too.
For a moment, even he couldn't tell who deserved the title more.
Lock just sighed inwardly. He didn't have Tony's scientist ego.
He had only just arrived here, and already, somehow, had a "child" with a brilliant scientist calling him father.
How was he supposed to explain this to Natasha later?
He'd promised her a child after marriage.
Now imagine coming home with a fully grown man in his forties and saying, "Honey, this is our son."
Would she laugh… or stab him?
Lock cleared his throat. "Ahem. Since Tony minds it so much—Vision, there's no need to call me father. Just call me Lock."
He really couldn't get used to being called Dad by someone who looked old enough to pay taxes.
Even if someone had only been born sixty seconds ago.
Vision blinked, touched his chest, and frowned slightly.
"Strange. When you said that, I felt something painful here. But the body's repair systems detect no damage."
Lock almost choked. Really? Emotional guilt already?
Helen stepped forward quickly. Seeing Lock's discomfort, she decided to help.
"Vision, you're a new life form," she said gently. "You don't need to call us Mom and Dad like humans do."
"We created you, yes, but we didn't birth you. It's not the same relationship."
"Just call us by our names. Like Lock said."
Vision paused, processing the logic.
"Understood," he said finally. "Two of my three creators request I not call them parents. Two to one — motion passed."
"Hey, hey, hey!" Tony shouted. "Can't you consider an old man's feelings about wanting a child?"
Vision turned to him. "Mr. Stark, according to the data and recorded footage I've studied, you and Ms. Pepper Potts are a couple."
"If you want a child, you should have one with her."
He paused, tilting his head.
"As for the other two women here — Ms. Wanda and Ms. Helen — both are showing elevated hormonal activity associated with attraction toward Creator Lock. You have no chance."
Tony's face froze, then darkened completely.
This kid was definitely his creation.
And he already regretted it.
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A/N: Advanced Chapters Have Been Uploaded On My Patreon
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