Chapter 27: A Past That Cannot Be Changed

"Why do you say that?"

Fury wiped a drop of cold sweat from his forehead. It wasn't that he was afraid—it was that he knew deep down Noah had no reason to lie. What Noah said was likely the truth.

From past events, Noah's unwavering stance and accurate predictions had been proven. This time, Fury had no reason to doubt him.

"Why did you just say that?" Fury quickly repeated, feeling like a drowning man clutching at a lifeline, only to discover it was a mere illusion of hope.

Noah's next words extinguished what little hope Fury had left:

"Let me make it clearer. Even with advanced time-travel technology, you won't achieve your goal."

Noah's calm voice sent a shiver through the room.

"Why not?" Fury pressed.

Without rushing, Noah continued, "Because every universe's timeline has its own inherent 'life force.' Attempting to alter the past is akin to taking a patient apart to remove a tumor before sewing them back together. Sure, the disease might be gone, but the person would not survive. While timelines aren't as fragile as humans, they also have their limits."

Fury froze. He had never heard it explained this way before, but it made sense. If time travel had no consequences, the universe would have long been overrun by travelers from every era. The chaos would be unimaginable.

What Fury didn't know was that Noah's explanation came from experience. The prime 616 universe had attempted time travel during the Age of Ultron crisis to save the world. While they succeeded, the timeline was severely damaged, leading to the catastrophic events of Secret Wars and a multiversal reboot years later.

As Fury began to consider Noah's logic, Thor and Tony focused intently. Seeing this, Noah nodded and continued:

"The damage to the timeline is secondary. The real issue is that we cannot change the past."

"Why not? With Allfather's power, surely it's possible!" Thor blurted out. His frustration was palpable—he had just come up with this plan, only to be told it was futile.

"Calm down and let me finish," Noah replied, taking a sip of water Tony had handed him.

"The root of this crisis doesn't originate from our universe. It comes from another universe."

"What?!"

Tony, startled, crushed the glass in his hand. He didn't even care about the shards that fell into his armor as he leaned closer to Noah.

"If a parallel universe is the cause of our destruction, then what's the point of a time machine?"

"Relax! Why are all of you so impatient? Let me explain."

With a sigh, Noah gave the group a helpless look, waiting for them to settle down.

Their reactions were understandable. This universe's technological advancements were limited, and their knowledge of parallel universes was sparse. None of them had ever ventured into another universe before.

Noah picked up two shards of glass and placed them on the table, a few centimeters apart. He drew a line of water between them and explained:

"These two shards represent our universe and the invading universe, respectively. The water is the invader—let's call it a 'virus.' Now, as for time travel…"

He picked up the shard representing their universe, rotated it slightly while keeping it in contact with the water, and said, "Rotating the shard represents time travel. Do you see? No matter where the shard makes contact with the water, contact is inevitable."

"In other words, even if we go back in time, what is meant to happen will still happen."

Fury furrowed his brow, deep in thought. He finally asked:

"I can understand why going to the future is meaningless if it's a zombie apocalypse. But what about the past? Can't we go back, regroup the Avengers, and prepare for the invader? After all, it's only one person, right?"

Fury had unknowingly moved closer to Noah. Behind him, Thor stood with two beers in hand, listening intently—though whether he understood was another question.

"I'm afraid that's not possible either," Noah said with a shrug.

Before the three could protest, he added:

"Because you wouldn't win against him."

At this point in time, Thor was merely a hammer-wielding brute, Hulk hadn't been to Sakaar, Wanda could only manage simple spells and telekinesis, and Tony's suits were primitive by otherworldly standards.

No matter how many heroes they rallied, the invader—a being with the power of a million exploding suns—could single-handedly crush their world.

"However, don't despair. There is a place where a nearly complete time machine exists."

"Where?" the three asked in unison.

Noah's lips curled into a smile.

"Latveria."

Boom!

The conference room doors suddenly burst open with a deafening crash, the impact shaking the entire room. The doors splintered apart, sending shards flying everywhere.

The group instinctively sprang into action. Thor's beer was instantly replaced by Mjolnir, Noah's hand moved to the amulet on his chest, and Fury rolled behind the table, pistol at the ready.

Peering through the dust, they saw no one at first. Then, the air distorted, and a towering figure made entirely of rock charged into the room.

It was the Thing, followed closely by the Invisible Woman, her eyes swollen from crying, and the Human Torch, flames flickering angrily around him.

The Thing's stone face was grim, and the Human Torch was equally silent. But the Invisible Woman's fury was evident. Tears streaked her face as she screamed:

"What did you do to Reed?! What did you do to my husband?!"

Noah cursed inwardly.

Great. The widow's here.

Of all times, why now? And Fury had the nerve to kill her husband without even giving her a heads-up? How rude.

Fury stepped forward, his expression unyielding.

"Susan, I don't expect your forgiveness. But I need you to calm down. Reed betrayed us. Killing him was a necessary choice."

"Calm down?!" she screamed, her voice cracking.

"You killed my husband—the man I loved most—and you want me to calm down?!"

With a violent push, the table flipped over, scattering papers and electronics everywhere. Monitors flickered and crackled as they hit the floor.

"No!"

Before Noah could react, he was thrown against the wall by Susan's telekinetic blast, wincing in pain.

At least she hadn't completely lost her mind and held back—unlike Wanda, who would've likely killed him outright.