The more information they analyzed, the more questions arose. Their minds were filled with question marks.
"Also, Cap… do you really think I'm so unreasonable?" Tony Stark asked Steve Rogers. "Do I have to automatically side with the government and ignore any rational argument?"
Tony was referring to the video in which Cap had acknowledged Falcon's (Sam Wilson's) point. Tony didn't expect Rogers to trust him so little.
Fury naturally assumed Tony would side with the government when push came to shove.
Steve Rogers remained silent. He couldn't lie or act against his conscience—he truly believed in the American ideal of freedom. And at its core, that ideal held that the government was a collection of jerks, and capitalists were even bigger jerks.
True power lay with the people, not bureaucrats.
Rogers understood what his future self might think: if push came to shove between him and the U.S. government, Tony would likely side with the government.
"Fine, I'll show you what kind of person I am," Tony said, exasperated but determined.
This old-school stubborn guy… hard to change, but the harder the challenge, the more satisfying it was to prove oneself.
The scene shifted: in a sharp suit, now Secretary of State, Ross walked with determination toward them.
"I guess you don't know where they are?" he asked.
Bruce Banner nearly lost control of the Hulk upon seeing him—this was his father-in-law, General Ross.
Ross was the root of all his current troubles: the reason he became a monster, the reason he and his girlfriend were separated, the one who deployed troops against him for years.
"Border Team Nine is guarding the perimeter!" Tony answered.
"Recon planes are monitoring 24/7!"
"You don't understand, Stark—this isn't your business!" Ross said coldly.
"You clearly can't handle this objectively. I want the special forces to take charge!" Natasha intervened, visibly frustrated. "What if there's a firefight? Are you going to kill Steve Rogers?"
Ross shrugged. "If he hadn't been so stubborn, we could've taken out Barnes back in Romania."
"Some people didn't deserve to die," he said aggressively. "Consider the facts!"
"You can't solve this with force alone, Ross!" Tony retorted. "You want us to capture him?"
"And how will this outcome differ from last time?" Ross asked.
"This time, I won't be in plain clothes," Tony said. "Seventy-two hours, I guarantee it!"
"Thirty-six hours!" Ross issued his final ultimatum.
"Rogers!"
"Barnes!"
"Wilson!"
Chanting the names, Ross departed.
Tony exhaled. "My left arm is numb… is that normal?"
"You okay?" Natasha asked.
"No problem," Tony said. "Thirty-six hours… my God!"
"We're seriously short-handed," Natasha remarked.
"Yeah. If Hulk were here, that'd help. Any leads?" Tony asked.
"Do you think he'd side with us?" Natasha countered.
Tony considered—it was unlikely. He knew the in-law rivalry between Banner and Ross well enough.
"I have an idea!"
"So do I!"
"Why can't I find him? Could it be… Hulk?" Bruce rubbed his chin.
If it were just Banner, he'd be easy to track—he wouldn't isolate himself completely.
But Hulk? A massive green behemoth—where could he hide?
Bruce might manage to hide, but Hulk lacked the intellect and control.
It was bizarre. What had happened in the future to keep him from participating in the Avengers' Civil War?
Thor shared this concern too—he seemed absent from the events as if he had vanished entirely.
Two top-tier Avengers were missing during the Civil War.
"Time to recruit more people," Tony said gravely.
Both sides realized their forces were insufficient, so they needed reinforcements.
As expected, the Avengers had split in two, led by Rogers and Stark respectively.
Fury watched the scene. Though frustrating, he was somewhat relieved: no one was trying to outright kill each other—there was still care beneath the conflict.
The past explosion in Romania, caused by Bucky under Hydra's control, had killed many. The government was after him. Rogers sided with Bucky and opposed a mysterious doctor, angering the government. To protect them, Tony personally intervened.
This conflict was unavoidable.
Fury noticed something troubling: where was he in all this? Neither side had sought him out, not even Natasha. That wasn't normal.
A chilling thought struck him: could he already be dead by then?
It was possible—the diary had indicated many original Avengers might have died, potentially including Fury himself. Otherwise, why would these events occur while he was alive?
Before he could dwell further, the scene shifted to Queens, New York. A young figure appeared—Peter Parker, roughly thirteen or fourteen, smaller than the college-aged version previously seen.
Peter returned home and greeted Aunt May.
"Hey, May."
"Hey, Peter! How was school today?"
"Not bad," Peter replied, heading into his room.
Then he noticed a luxury car outside… and a middle-aged man standing beside May.
"Mr. Parker!" Tony Stark smiled.
"What? What are you doing here?"
Peter immediately recognized him—the famous Iron Man.
"We should meet. You got my email, right?" Tony signaled subtly.
"Got it! Got it!" Peter, quick on the uptake, understood immediately.
After some casual chatter to distract May, they entered Peter's room.
Tony glanced around. "What is this—retro tech?"
"Second-hand? Salvation Army?"
"Picked up some junk!" Peter quickly clarified.
"You a garbage man?" Tony teased.
"Yeah… I am!" Peter replied, somewhat helplessly. "And no, I never applied for your fund."
"Let me start!" Tony interjected. "Question for you—this your work?"
He projected a 3D video from his phone: Spider-Man fighting crime on the streets.
"No! What do you mean?" Peter panicked, denying it.
His secret identity had never been revealed—and now, on their first meeting, Tony had already exposed it.
"That's you!" Tony declared. "Look at your moves—wow! Caught that car at 40 mph, three thousand pounds! Impressive!"
The video showed Spider-Man catching a speeding car—truly astonishing.
Peter scrambled for an excuse. "That… that's from YouTube, right? CGI! Fake!"
Tony didn't comment. "Right… like the flying saucers over Phoenix?"
-----------------------
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(End of Chapter)