Chapter 258 The Journey of Two Across Time
In a suburban town near New York, the main house of the Agent Carter family appeared as though a great tragedy had befallen. Members of the family, young and old, had gathered, around a dozen of them, wearing mournful expressions and red-rimmed eyes. They wept as they stood in front of a dark wooden casket.
A sudden roar of motorcycle engines disturbed the solemn atmosphere, growing closer as it drew near the house.
"Did someone not arrive yet?" An older man asked, wiping away tears and looking around, puzzled.
The family members in the hall cast their tearful eyes on the front door as two tall figures approached.
"Excuse me, is this Peggy Agent Carter's home?" The young man in front asked.
"I told you, right now..." The middle-aged man began to dismiss the newcomers when his daughter intervened.
"Father, wait!"
"You... You are..." Elle Carter wiped away her tears with her sleeve and looked at the handsome and righteous blond man before her in shock.
Compared to the Symbol of Peace, Steve looked exactly the same as in the past, both in appearance and countenance. He appeared as if he had walked out of a war memorial.
Not only Elle, but many others in the room recognized the blond man. They stared in amazement.
"You must be Elle, if you're here, it means we're in the right place," Rogers said.
With a nonchalant and indifferent tone, another silver-haired young man, who had followed the blond man, walked to the front door.
"Symbol of Peace, Captain America... My goodness, this can't be real," Elle muttered to herself, awestruck.
The two war heroes who changed the course of World War II were standing together in a modern world, this is a historical moment.
"Are you conducting a funeral here?" Kyle raised an eyebrow, sensing that their timing was inappropriate.
"Yes. My grandfather, Matty Carter, passed away this morning. He's been cremated, and we're preparing for the funeral," Elle responded with sadness.
"Matty. Is he Peggy's brother?" Steve asked, sighing. He had heard Peggy mention her brother before. At that time, Matty was still a mischievous schoolboy. But suddenly, he had naturally aged and passed away.
"Yes," Elle nodded sadly.
Kyle and Steve exchanged a glance, understanding each other's thoughts.
Steve said, "We might as well see him off," and Kyle nodded in agreement.
The entire hall was in shock. The solemnity of the moment was shattered. Even the news reporter, Elle, was at a loss for words.
To have two national heroes at a funeral was an honor even greater than that given to a head of state.
Little did they know that this was a way for two old men to make amends to a certain woman and to embrace her world.
Half an hour later, Kyle and Steve, with the help of their shoulders, carried the casket. They walked with the Agent Carter family to the nearby cemetery.
After the burial ceremony, the members of the Agent Carter family stood together in front of the new grave, bowing their heads in silent mourning.
"What's that?" Kyle's keen eyes focused on a particular spot in the cemetery.
There, a grave with an ancient tombstone, yellowed with age, was surrounded by lush greenery. It seemed to have been there for quite some time.
Elle replied, "That's my grandmother Peggy's grave."
Kyle and Steve fell silent and approached the grave.
After all these years, even the stone tombstone had weathered the passage of time, bearing the marks of rain and wind. Only the smile of the woman in the black-and-white photographs remained unchanged.
Steve suppressed his emotions, tears welling up in his eyes as he began clearing away the weeds and dust from the grave.
Kyle felt no sadness. After enduring so many wars and ascending to godhood, his human sensibilities had weakened, leaving only his remarkably resilient human rationality.
However, he reached into the Card Space and produced a bouquet of fresh flowers, still brimming with life, and several bottles of vintage liquor.
"I remember when we used to drink, and Agent Carter would catch us and yell at us for drinking."
"Come on, I rarely drank. It was mainly you insisting that I drink with you."
"We promised to defeat Red Skull and celebrate together at the party when we got back, but I ended up breaking that promise."
"It's not your fault, really."
Kyle and Steve sat by Peggy's grave, reminiscing about the events of World War II, pouring liquor down their throats. The sharp taste of alcohol-soaked their collars and stung their eyes, revealing their genuine emotions.
"Peggy, she liked you!" Steve suddenly exclaimed, his voice slightly slurred from the alcohol.
Kyle's heart trembled, and he opened his mouth but could only say softly, "You're drunk."
"I'm not!" Steve laughed, reclining on the grass, guzzling down more alcohol.
"You're definitely drunk."
"I'm not!"
"Are you sure?"
"Okay, maybe I'm a little drunk..."
As the sun set, two young men sat by the grave, drinking alcohol and discussing past events that no one else could understand.
The members of the Agent Carter family had finished their mourning and began to leave the cemetery, heading back home. They dared not approach Kyle and Steve.
As they walked halfway home, Elle's father suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Do you think the man who caused Peggy's death might have been one of those two just now?"
Another older family member nodded. "It's possible, otherwise, why would they have kept it a secret back then?"
"Father, Uncle, what are you talking about?" Elle, driven by her journalistic instincts, approached curiously.
"It's about your grandmother Peggy," Her father shook his head, saying, "Your grandmother Peggy, at a young age, resigned from the military. There's no way she could have died from an illness. Back then, there was a family secret known only to the older generation of the Carter family."
"Peggy, she didn't die from an illness?" Elle whispered, feeling like she had unintentionally uncovered a family secret.
As the sun set and night fell over the cemetery, Kyle opened his eyes. He activated his divine power, dispelling the remnants of alcohol from his body.
"It's time to go back," He said, patting Steve, who was lying next to him.
"We've only just arrived at the first place; there's still a second one," Steve shook his head, gradually sobering up as he stood up.
"Then let's go to the second place," Kyle said, helping him to his feet. The two of them walked out of the pitch-black cemetery.
A while later, two motorcycles roared to life, their bright headlights piercing the darkness. Side by side, they sped down the road that stretched toward the city.
(End of this chapter)