A person's personality and character are shaped by the experiences and memories accumulated from childhood onward.
All of those past experiences and memories together form the human id.
In his childhood, Bruce Wayne's parents were gunned down, giving birth to Batman, Gotham City's most terrifying urban legend. And the accidental death of Barry Allen's mother set the Flash on a path of bearing immense responsibility as a superhero.
During his first encounter with the offspring of Trigon, Wrath, the deaths of his parents almost completely destroyed what little social connection Joey had left.
He was lonelier than most Supermen. Then that cold, ruthless world pushed him to the very limits of what ordinary moral standards could endure.
But what if all of this could be repaired?
Batman's parents would not have to die in that alley. Barry Allen's mother would not have to be murdered by the Reverse-Flash. Joey Joseph Kent's adoptive parents would not have to suffer such a cruel and merciless fate.
Perhaps certain tragedies create the heroes we see today. But honestly, no one deserves to endure such tragedy.
With a flash of yellow light, Joey arrived at the time point he had set. He chose ten minutes after Laurie had just dragged him off to repair the tractor. Raven and Wrath would not descend upon this world for another two hours.
He had enough time to reverse everything.
He had even figured out how to avoid temporal paradoxes as much as possible—he only needed to hide his adoptive parents until time reached the very moment he had originally departed from.
The version of himself back then would still believe his parents had died tragically, and in the future would make the same choice as he had now. That way there would be no Grandmother Paradox, and it would also conform to the possible Novikov self-consistency principle.
Joey looked at the lush green corn stalks around him. The tassels had just emerged, and the crop was growing beautifully. If not for the hellish visitors about to destroy the entire farm, this would undoubtedly have been a year of abundant harvest.
"Right, just like this."
Without hesitation, he stepped forward and knocked on the door of the Kent farm. It had been less than a week since that incident happened, yet to him it felt as long as half a year.
At this moment, Martha Kent should be preparing venison burgers or pumpkin pie. Jonathan Kent was either washing that used Toyota pickup he had bought from Libya, or keeping a beer company.
"Mom, Dad..."
The door was clearly unlocked. After a token knock, Joey pushed it open casually. He had countless things he wanted to say to his adoptive parents—but what greeted him was something entirely unexpected.
The dark muzzle of a hunting shotgun, pointed by Jonathan Kent.
"Put your hands where I can see them, and get out of my house, cape-boy."
"What?" Joey raised his hands and backed away step by step under the pressure of the double-barreled shotgun. "It's me—your son!"
Joey's words only made Jonathan Kent even more furious. It was bad enough that this impudent young man had broken into his house dressed like it was Halloween, but now he was even mocking his sore spot.
He and Martha Kent had tried many times. They were unable to have children. They had once considered adoption, but the procedures were complicated. With the world situation worsening and the farm's income declining, they had gradually given up the idea.
"We've never had a child, you little bastard. Get out of my house right now!"
Under the aim of the shotgun, Joey stumbled backward out of the house and away from the Kent farm.
His parents seemed much older than they had just weeks ago. And most importantly—they did not recognize him at all.
After the panic subsided, he finally remembered to use his super-vision and super-hearing to observe the situation.
Jonathan Kent's radio was broadcasting the latest news:
"Metropolis holds its annual memorial to mourn those who died on the Day of the Fall."
"After Queen Hippolyta was assassinated at the wedding ceremony between Themyscira and Atlantis, tensions between Earth's two great powers have grown increasingly strained. War is on the brink."
"Gotham City's crime rate continues to reach record highs."
"Humanity's first contact with extraterrestrials—the member of the cosmic peacekeeping force from a distant planet, the 'greatest Green Lantern,' Abin Sur, gave a public interview before departing Earth..."
"No, no, no..."
Something was wrong. This universe was not the one from before he jumped through time.
The universal constants didn't match. The speed of light alone differed by nearly 0.00034%. Even Earth's gravitational constant differed by 0.12%. The proportion of nitrogen in the atmosphere had increased by 0.97%...
He hadn't traveled through time.
He had crossed into an entirely different world.
Joey pulled out the time watch again and pressed it lightly. He intended to reverse the operation and return to his original spacetime.
Buzz—
Joey landed in a desert.
This time, he first examined the parameters of the entire universe and found that it still wasn't the one he had started from.
At the same time, a strange voice called for help nearby. "Help—somebody..."
"Fuck!"
Joey had no time to care about the life or death of some random savage who had spawned in this wild universe.
He adjusted the watch's index again, attempting to reverse his previous operation, but the watch displayed a warning: "Insufficient energy."
"Fucking Deadpool! Something this important—why don't you ever charge it!"
Only then did Joey bother to look at who exactly was calling for help beside him.
"Oh..."
He saw another 'acquaintance.'
Tony Stark was truly stuck now.
The development of events wasn't complicated. He had come to the Middle East to inspect the market and promote weapons. Everything had gone as smoothly as a performance. He exuded dominance; the military bowed in admiration and offered a flood of orders.
There was just a small problem along the way.
On the return trip to the airport, he was ambushed by local terrorists—and they were using weapons manufactured by Stark Industries.
He was the only survivor of the convoy, because the terrorists wanted him alive, to build weapons for them—weapons powerful enough to defeat the local U.S. forces.
Tony seized the opportunity. He secretly built a suit of iron armor, fought his way out, and regained his freedom—until his temporary armor stalled. Then a figure in a red cape suddenly appeared before him.
The terrorists pursuing him could catch up at any moment, and he was stuck inside the very iron suit he had built, unable to move.
Joey tore apart the metal armor covering Tony's body as if it were paper and pulled him out in one motion. "I know you."
"Naturally." Even while shocked by the other's strength—practically defying the laws of physics—Tony didn't forget to show off. "Everyone in the world knows Tony Stark."
Joey didn't respond. He grabbed Tony and quickly flew away from the scene—this man's brain and resources would save him a tremendous amount of time in recharging the watch.