Restart, Spider-Man! [85]
The Quinjet streaked through the night sky. With the help of his parachute, Young Steve landed smoothly.
"Click, click."
On the rooftop, Tony stood in his Mark suit, looking down at Steve, who had just arrived.
"Traffic jam, huh? Old-timer," he mocked.
Young Steve tightened his grip on the shield, determined to let out all his frustration.
"Stark, I'm going to teach you a lesson."
Tony's expression was indifferent, but suddenly his gaze shifted behind Steve, and he frowned.
"We agreed—no calling for backup."
Young Steve froze. "I didn't call anyone."
He instinctively turned around, his face paling with surprise.
Late Night, the Helicarrier.
"They're not back yet?"
In the meeting room, Nick Fury was growing more anxious.
With Barton compromised, his available heroes were limited, and he was relying heavily on these two.
If something happened to them, his entire Avengers initiative might crumble.
Coulson, sensing Fury's distress, shook his head. "I've sent a team to track them. We'll have news soon."
As he spoke, his communicator beeped, and he quickly answered.
"They've disappeared. We only found their jet nearby."
"What?!"
Fury's face turned grim.
"They must be in trouble."
"Keep an eye on Stark Tower," Old Steve suggested suddenly.
Fury frowned. "Why?"
"Because that's where Loki will open the space portal to welcome the Chitauri army," Old Steve replied.
"A portal? The magic of gods?"
Old Steve explained, "Opening a space portal requires the Tesseract. That's why Loki wants it."
"What's the Tesseract?" Fury asked.
"You don't have a Tesseract in this world?" Old Steve looked stunned.
Beside him, Xia Luo frowned. "Without a Space Stone, it's hard to say how the Chitauri army will invade Earth."
Old Steve's expression darkened. "Is this the variability of the multiverse?"
"Not every universe has Infinity Stones," Xia Luo offered, then looked back down at the handheld device in his hands.
On the screen, New York's map was marked with several red dots—places where contestants had been spotted, constantly updating.
Norman, Dr. Connors, Peter Parker, Electro, Hydra Steve, and Bucky—all had traces left behind.
But their movements were swift, staying on surveillance for no longer than three minutes at a time, making it impossible to intercept them.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s intelligence network was advanced, but it couldn't cover every inch of the city. So far, Xia Luo hadn't pinpointed Dr. Strange's whereabouts.
The Sorcerer Supreme lived up to his mysterious reputation.
With a flick of his finger, Xia Luo pulled up footage of the skirmish between Electro and Hydra Steve near the abandoned warehouse.
After he'd left, they fought, but neither gained the upper hand.
Electro was fast, but his electric output couldn't penetrate Xia Luo's defenses.
As for Hydra Steve and Bucky, their defenses were average. If not for their rapid healing, they would've been defeated by Electro long ago.
Ultimately, Electro's extended battle drained his power, allowing Hydra Steve and Bucky to escape.
Xia Luo felt a pang of regret. He should've gone back for another strike.
No—if he'd returned, they would have united against him again, turning him into the common target.
Switching to the footage from Hamlet Street, two Lokis had appeared, yet Thor remained absent.
The arrival of contestants had disrupted the original storyline, making it impossible to rely on omniscient knowledge.
But who needed omniscience when you could create your own?
For now, Xia Luo's goal was clear: secure a resurrection slot while preventing Hydra Steve and Bucky from succeeding. Otherwise, it would create another wave of problems.
With that in mind, he zeroed in on the location where Tony and Steve had planned their duel.
The Quinjet was still parked nearby, indicating that it was their last known location.
He committed the coordinates to memory.
Beside him, Old Steve quietly asked Bruce Banner, "What rank was Steve in this world's military?"
Banner thought for a moment. "I think he was a lieutenant."
Old Steve straightened up. "I was a captain."
"But you're so old now and still just a captain," Bruce remarked meekly.
Old Steve's face darkened. "That's because I retired early."
At the head of the table, Nick Fury was receiving reports of ongoing skirmishes involving the contestants throughout the city.
He turned to Xia Luo and Old Steve. "If we're truly partners, I need you to stop them. My people can't handle this alone."
"They can't be caught."
Before Old Steve could respond, Xia Luo spoke up first.
"They're also wary of being discovered by other contestants. Battles won't last more than three minutes. By the time we get there, they'll be long gone."
"So, we're just going to let them wreak havoc?" Natasha asked, frowning.
Xia Luo glanced at her. "You should be preparing for the Chitauri invasion. The other contestants are eagerly waiting for their arrival."
If the Chitauri army invaded Earth, the contestants would have an even better chance at securing a resurrection slot.
They wouldn't pass up that opportunity.
Hearing this, Nick Fury shot a deep, searching look at Xia Luo, then stood up and headed to the command center to make plans.
As Fury left, Natasha followed.
Old Steve watched them go, clearly puzzled.
"Spider-kid, what are you planning? Are you really going to let Loki open the space portal?"
"Didn't Mr. Eyepatch say there's no Space Stone in this world? It's impossible to predict what happens next." Xia Luo shrugged.
With that, he stood up and started weaving a web hammock in the meeting room, planning to take a proper rest.
"Spider-kid, I want an eco-friendly, non-polluting web hammock too," Old Steve said enviously.
Xia Luo removed the web-shooter and tossed it over.
"Do it yourself."
"Thanks. You know, old people can't stay up all night. I miss my younger days—I could go non-stop back then," Old Steve said, fiddling with the web-shooter.
"Thwip!"
A stream of white webbing shot out, and Old Steve's eyes lit up, like a kid nearing two hundred years old.
"This is fantastic!"
"It doesn't have to be that fantastic," Bruce muttered as he pulled a web strand off his face, sighing in resignation.
"Hey, I'm still here, you know."
"Sorry, I didn't see you. Please don't get angry," Old Steve said quickly, trying to soothe him.
He was well aware of how terrifying Bruce Banner could be when enraged.
Bruce waved it off, but internally, he let out a weary sigh.
In the end, nobody could joke with him as comfortably as Tony did.
Tony treated him like a normal person—and that was what he truly craved.
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