Minutes Earlier, Stark Tower Perimeter
The Future Team hid in shadows, eyeing the towering structure. "Jarvis's firewall has third-gen encryption," Future Reed whispered, typing on a holographic keyboard. "But Howard's backdoor key should work."
Spider-Man crouched, suit cloaked. "Hope we don't trip alarms like at Osborn Tower."
"Quiet," Steve hissed, scanning. "Patrol in thirty seconds. One shot."
Thor gripped his axe, lightning sparking. "If spotted, we storm in."
"No, Thor," Harry said, holding a micro-disruptor. "Stealth. Our time machine's low on power."
Reed cracked the firewall. "Path open, go!" A side door slid open, the team slipping in. Cameras went dark, disabled by Reed's EMP.
"Howard's lab is 300 meters down," Steve whispered. "Three biometric gates."
Spider-Man leapt to the ceiling, dodging sensors. "Hope he kept that old fingerprint lock."
At the second gate, Reed pressed his palm to the scanner. "Access denied," a robotic voice intoned. "Unauthorized."
"Damn!" Harry drew a weapon. "They upgraded!"
Alarms screamed, red lights flashing. Ceiling panels opened, revealing autoguns. "Move!" Steve raised his vibranium shield. Thor laughed, axe sparking. "Now we're talking!"
Spider-Man webbed the turrets, Steve deflected bullets, and Thor's lightning blasted a gate. "Last door!" Reed shouted, hacking. "Three seconds!"
A massive Stark Industries armor lumbered forward, missile pods opening. "Iron Curtain!" Peter gulped.
As missiles fired, the final door opened. A metal arm yanked them inside. The door slammed shut, missiles exploding outside.
The team stumbled into the lab, ready to fight, but froze. Howard stood with four strangers, one in gold-red armor resembling Tony Stark.
Howard stepped between them. "Wait! Steve, we can talk!"
Steve, shield raised, eyed them. "Howard, who are they?"
Howard exhaled. "This is James, a super-soldier from a parallel universe. They're his allies. And this…" He looked at Tony, voice trembling, "is my son, Tony Stark, from another universe."
The Future Team exchanged glances. Spider-Man lifted his mask. "Parallel universe? Like the Creators?"
"Who are you?" Tony asked, brow raised. "You look like our universe's people, but battle-worn."
Steve lowered his shield. "We're survivors from three years from now—two and a half years after this moment."
The lab's air grew heavy. Future Reed stepped forward, face haggard. "Three years from now, the Creators' base was attacked. I, their coerced assistant, escaped during it, using Doom's secrets to revive suppressed heroes."
Steve continued, "We formed a resistance, fought the Creators. It was brutal. We lost, but they suffered too."
Thor's eye blazed. "Hela, Loki, Norman Osborn… dead. But we lost too many."
Harry added, "I turned against my father. Our numbers dwindled. Near despair, Howard found us."
Howard blinked. "Me?"
Steve nodded. "You revealed your investigation, proved the world's history was altered, and showed us this time machine. When the Creators attacked, you stayed to cover us, sending us back."
Peter sighed. "But the time node's off. We're here, not before the Creators' tampering."
Silence fell. Tony watched Howard, whose eyes swirled with shock, confusion, then resolve. "So, in my future, I fight and maybe die?" Howard asked.
Steve nodded solemnly. "You were our last hope."
James spoke, "Now you have a new choice." Eyes turned to him. "No need to go back. Destroy the Creators' time machine, fix this world."
Reed frowned. "Their defenses—"
"Not a problem for us," Tony grinned, faceplate snapping shut. "You said the Creators took losses? With us, you've got better odds."
The Future Team exchanged looks. Steve nodded. "We're in."
Tony smirked at Steve. "Nice to see you, circus act. Don't worry, James is Superman. No enemy's too big."
Steve: "???"
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