Natasha's expression hardened. "Whatever this is, it's top priority. We have to save the President before something happens to him."
She glanced at Luke for half a second. If there was anyone who could end this mess quickly, it was him.
Luke frowned, rubbing his chin. "I mean… he's the President of the United States. Layers of security, decoys, air support. How does a plane like that even get hijacked?"
He paused, then added dryly, "It's not like he was flying on a cheap commercial flight."
He tried to dig through his memory—and came up short.
The details were hazy. The finer points of Iron Man 3 had blurred with time. What stuck were only the broad strokes: Tony Stark getting hit hard, retaliating even harder, Extremis soldiers causing chaos everywhere, and the enemy eventually being put down.
That part he remembered clearly.
But the President?
Luke exhaled. Honestly, that part was a blank.
The movie wasn't called President Man. It was Iron Man. Of course his brain had prioritized the important parts.
"I don't know," Natasha shot back. "Do you think I'm like you? I'm a normal person. I follow orders."
She exhaled, clearly irritated. "So can we just go save the President already? Fury's called me ten times. I'm getting real tired of dealing with this all day."
Luke clicked his tongue sympathetically. "Poor Natasha. See, this is exactly why you should ditch this job and retire. I can support you, you know."
Natasha turned slowly toward him. "You are absolutely shameless."
She glanced pointedly at Wanda standing beside him. "You've got company, and you're still flirting."
Luke only smiled. "You know how I am."
Natasha shook her head. "Unbelievable."
Luke stretched casually, then grinned. "Alright then. How about we go save the President of the United States?"
He snapped his fingers.
***
Inside a concealed facility,
Tony Stark was strapped upright against a vertical metal bed frame, arms locked above his shoulders, feet barely touching the floor.
Tony lifted his head and focused on the woman standing in front of him.
Maya Hansen.
"…Ah," he muttered, letting out a slow breath. "Okay."
Maya gave a thin, almost nostalgic smile. "It's just like old times, huh?"
"Oh yeah," Tony Stark replied dryly, glancing at the restraints pinning him upright to the metal frame. "Except for the zip ties. Really brings the romance together."
"It wasn't my idea," she said quickly.
Tony's eyes narrowed just a little. "Right. So you took Killian's card."
"I took his money."
"And here you are," Tony said calmly, voice sharp beneath the humor, "thirteen years later. In a dungeon."
"No," Maya corrected. "You're in a dungeon. I'm free to go."
"Yeah?" Tony tilted his head. "Funny way of showing it."
She exhaled and stepped closer. "A lot has happened, Tony. But I'm close. Extremis is practically stabilized."
Tony's restraint snapped for just a second. "I'm telling you it isn't."
Then his voice dropped, controlled but deadly serious. "I've seen the aftermath. People exploding. Bodies painted across walls. You're lying to yourself."
Maya didn't answer right away. Instead, she pulled out a small, folded note and held it up between them—the one he'd written years ago.
Tony blinked. "Did I… do that?"
"Yes."
"I remember the night," he said slowly. "Not the morning." He looked at the note again, then back at her. "This is what you've been chasing all this time?"
"You don't remember," she said quietly.
Tony shook his head. "I can't help you." His gaze hardened. "You used to have a moral compass. Ideals. You wanted to help people."
"Now you're just another person blowing people up," Tony said, lifting his head as far as the restraints allowed. "Do you even know how many people Extremis has already killed? How many more it's going to kill if this keeps going?"
Before Maya could answer, a familiar, dry voice cut through the room.
"You know, Tony, I didn't realize you were into this kind of thing."
Tony blinked.
Then smiled.
"Well, hello to you too, my friend," he said easily, recognizing the voice before even turning fully. "It's been a while. I was thinking of inviting you over for Christmas, but—" he glanced at the restraints, "—I got a little tied up."
Luke stood a few steps away, hands in his pockets, completely relaxed. Wanda was beside him,while Natasha stood slightly behind, already scanning the room.
"So," Luke said, glancing at the restraints and then at Maya, "is this some kind of experiment, or am I interrupting something personal?"
Maya stiffened. Her gaze snapped to Luke, recognition dawning.
"Wait… you're that guy?" Maya said, staring at Luke. Anyone who knew about the New York invasion knew his face—knew the stunt he'd pulled that day.
Then her confusion caught up with her shock.
"But how did you even get here?" she asked. "I didn't hear any footsteps. One second there was nothing—and the next, you just appeared."
"Oh," Luke replied casually, "that's a new trick. Mental perception plus spatial targeting. I lock onto a location, push mana and arcane energy to near-light-speed movement, and pass through matter before molecular resistance can react."
He shrugged. "Basically teleportation. Just uglier."
Tony and Maya stared at him.
That was… not science.
At all.
"Yeah," Tony muttered. "That's definitely not how physics works."
"Natasha," Tony added, turning his head slightly. "Any chance you could help a guy out and untie me?"
Natasha stepped forward without a word, already reaching for the restraints.
Luke glanced back at Maya, his expression calm—but sharp.
"And before you ask," he said, "no, this doesn't end with you walking away."
"Yeah," Tony said. "This mess also ruined my Christmas night."
Luke paused. "By the way… when is Christmas?"
He'd just returned to this world today and immediately gotten dragged into all this chaos. He hadn't even thought about the date—months and calendars didn't line up the same across different worlds.
"Today," Tony, Natasha, and Wanda said together, staring at him like he'd just asked something insane.
*****
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