A few minutes after Lock's call, the Governor's private line rang.
When his secretary whispered that the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. was on the line, the man nearly dropped his phone. His legs actually trembled.
Nick Fury.
The boss of the organization where King Apocalypse—the most terrifyingly powerful being on Earth—was officially employed.
Why would he be calling the governor of a midwestern state?
Was another alien invasion about to start here? Should he start evacuating his family now?
But Fury's voice was calm, almost casual.
"There's a citizen in your state. I need his visitation rights reinstated so he can see his daughter."
The governor blinked. "That's… all?"
He barely had time to process the absurdity before Fury's tone hardened.
"You have nine minutes. If the decree restoring those rights isn't on my desk by then, I'll have Congress find someone who can follow orders. Are we clear?"
The line went dead.
For a long moment, the governor just stood there. Then chaos erupted.
"Get me the mayor!"
"Contact the district court—push it through, no delays!"
"I don't care about procedure, the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. said, nine minutes!"
Paperwork flew. Phone lines lit up. Within minutes, two police cruisers were tearing down the highway with sirens blaring—one headed toward Scott's ex-wife's home, the other straight to him.
By the time Scott even began to question what Lock had meant by "a phone call," a police car came barreling through a red light and screeched to a stop beside Lewis's van.
Lewis nearly jumped out of his seat. "Oh crap! What did we do?!"
"Relax," Scott muttered, though his own pulse was racing.
A uniformed officer rushed over. "Which one of you is Scott Lang?"
Scott blinked. "Uh… me?"
The officer handed him an envelope. "Court order regarding your daughter's visitation rights. Approved and delivered. Please confirm receipt."
Scott took it numbly. "I—wait, what?"
The officer nodded briskly. "It's official. Signed and sealed. You can visit your daughter immediately." Then he was gone, lights flashing, sirens fading into the distance.
Scott just stared at the papers in his hand.
"…That's it? It's… done?"
Lock smiled. "It's done. You can go see Cassie now. Louis, drive."
Scott turned the document over in disbelief. The seals were real. The signature, too. It wasn't fake. It couldn't be.
He looked at Lock, half-stunned, half-suspicious. "This… can't be real, right?"
Lock didn't answer. But in his mind, he heard the faint tone of the system:
Ding—Trust Level (Scott Lang): 30%.
He smiled inwardly. Scott's affection for his daughter outweighed every shred of skepticism.
Scott finally exhaled. "Mr. Tang… if you can get the government to move like that, why do you even need someone like me? There must be thousands of better people out there."
Lock shook his head. "No. There are only three or four like you in the world."
Scott blinked. "What do you mean?"
"The Ant-Man suit isn't for everyone," Lock said quietly. "Only a handful of people can handle its physics and neural sync—the Wasps, and you. Dr. Pym's body can't take it anymore, and Janet is still trapped in the Quantum Realm. That leaves you."
Scott hesitated, pride and disbelief warring on his face. "You're saying I'm that special?"
Lewis jumped in immediately. "See? Told you, man! I always said you were one of a kind! Mr. Tang, sir, I think you're making a great choice hiring him. And, uh—if you ever need a driver, I'm your guy. Day or night. I can drive, deliver, spy—whatever you need! Just, you know, as long as the salary's right…"
Scott groaned. "Lewis, shut up." He turned back to Lock. "He's harmless. Just… talks too much."
Lock chuckled. "I don't need a driver. But I might be able to get you an interview for an investigation job, if you're interested."
Lewis perked up instantly. "Investigation? Like detective stuff? What company?"
"Not sure what the pay is," Lock said lightly, "but it's probably high."
Lewis blinked. "Probably?"
Lock's smile didn't waver. "S.H.I.E.L.D."
The car lurched to a halt so suddenly that Scott almost hit the windshield.
"Wha—what?!" Lewis gaped, his knuckles white on the steering wheel. "S.H.I.E.L.D.? Like—like the real S.H.I.E.L.D.? The one with spies and helicarriers and the King of Apocalypse?!"
Scott rubbed his temples. "Relax. He's joking."
Lock leaned back calmly. "I'm not joking. I am King Apocalypse. So naturally, the job offer would be through S.H.I.E.L.D."
Lewis looked like his brain had blue-screened. If Lock hadn't just conjured a legal miracle in under ten minutes, he'd have called the man crazy. Instead, he just mumbled nervously, "Haha… right… Mr. Tang sure gets into character fast."
Scott, meanwhile, didn't know what to believe anymore. But the road ahead demanded his attention.
Soon, the van rolled into a quiet, tree-lined neighborhood. The lawns were immaculate, the sidewalks freshly swept, the houses large and bright.
"This is it," Scott murmured.
The difference between rich and poor neighborhoods in America was like night and day—and his ex-wife's new life belonged firmly to the former. Marrying a police officer brought her comfort and safety.
Scott climbed out, nerves twisting in his stomach. He stood before the familiar house, his throat tight.
He hadn't seen his daughter in over a year.
He swallowed hard and called out, voice trembling. "Cassie…?"
For a moment, nothing. Then the door banged open, and a small girl in a floral dress came running out. She froze at the top of the steps, eyes wide.
"Dad?!"
Scott's eyes blurred with tears. He opened his arms. "It's me, sweetheart. I'm here."
Cassie bolted forward like a gust of wind, crashing into him.
Scott dropped to his knees, wrapping his arms around her tiny frame as tears streamed down his face.
"Dad, I missed you so much…"
"I missed you, too, peanut," he whispered, voice breaking. "So, so much."
Lock stood by the van, watching the scene in silence. For all his godlike power, moments like this still carried weight.
A father. A daughter. A promise fulfilled.
And far above them, in the shadows of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s power, invisible gears continued to turn.
---
A/N: Advanced Chapters Have Been Uploaded On My Patreon
Support: patreon.com/Narrator_San