◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews.
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones. or 500 Collections
◇ You can read 50 chapter ahead on P@treon of which 10 Chapters are free. if you're interested: patreon.com/Heroicverse
------------------------------------------------
"He'll kill you!" Steve practically roared. "Bucky! Do you know what this means?! Tony will tear you to shreds!"
"Then let him!"
Bucky yelled back.
"I owe him that! Steve! I killed his parents! I made him an orphan!"
"I did those things! That blood is on my hands! It can't be washed away!"
"Didn't you say it was about redemption? This is redemption!"
Bucky pointed to his chest.
"A life for a life. That's fair."
"No! That's not fair!"
Steve rushed over, grabbed Bucky's collar, and shoved him hard against the cryogenic chamber.
"HYDRA did that! Not you!"
Steve stared into Bucky's eyes, their faces inches apart.
"You were brainwashed! You weren't yourself then, just a tool! If you want to atone, we'll go kill HYDRA, kill them all! Not let you go to your death!"
"Steve, stop deceiving yourself."
Bucky slid to the ground, leaning against the cryogenic chamber.
"I can't escape it. As long as I'm alive, this is a dead end."
"I want to end all of this. I died seventy years ago."
Steve looked at the despondent Bucky, his heart aching.
Fate was like a malicious screenwriter, pushing them to a dead end.
If he handed Bucky over to Tony, Tony would surely seek revenge. He couldn't guarantee that Tony would listen to the 'brainwashed' explanation.
And he would lose the only past he had left in this World.
"No."
Steve walked over and extended his hand to Bucky.
"It's not over yet, Bucky. As long as I don't agree, it's not over."
"I've already lost Peggy, lost everything from that era."
"Now, there's only you."
"I can't lose you too. Even if it's for my sake, you have to live."
Bucky looked up at the outstretched hand.
"But... what about Stark?" Bucky asked. "Deceiving him would be a second injury."
Steve pulled Bucky to his feet.
"We'll find someone to help."
The image of the man in the Star-Spangled cape, always with a confident smile on his face, appeared in Steve's mind.
"Anthony."
He spoke the name.
"He always solves problems, no matter how big they are."
"We'll go find him." Steve pulled out the decoder, removed the hard drive, and put it in his pocket.
"Tell him everything, without holding anything back."
"If there's anyone in this World who can protect you in this storm..."
"It's only him."
Bucky was silent for a moment, then looked at Steve's determined eyes.
"You trust him?"
"Yes." Steve nodded. "He's the person I trust most in this era."
"Alright."
Bucky picked up the rifle from the ground.
"Then let's go."
...At the V.G.D. General Office, Natasha frowned slightly as she explained the situation to Homelander.
"...That's the situation. Lorelei has control of Tony, Banner, and Barton. The entire Avengers Tower has been completely locked down by Stark Industries' defense systems."
"All external access points have been cut off, and any unauthorized biological entity approaching will be met with indiscriminate firepower."
"And it's not just a matter of firepower."
Natasha looked up, her eyes filled with deep worry.
"Avengers Tower is located in the most bustling area of Manhattan. There are hundreds of thousands of people around."
"If we force our way in... Tony will definitely activate the Iron Legion, and the most terrifying is Banner."
Natasha paused, her voice dropping.
"I have a feeling the Hulk is in an extremely unstable state right now. Lorelei's magic hasn't completely suppressed him; instead, it's put him at... a critical point of rage."
"Once fighting breaks out, if the Hulk loses control, he'll tear down half of New York."
"We can't take that risk."
Homelander listened to Natasha's report, nodding slightly.
"Makes sense." He turned his head to Thor, who was standing nearby.
"So, Your Highness Thor."
"Since that's an old acquaintance of yours, what are your thoughts?"
Thor reached into his magical space and pulled out a golden collar.
"This is a Magic-Suppressing Collar." He held up the item. "Odin used this to seal her voice back then. As long as it's placed around Lorelei's neck, her enchantment magic will instantly fail."
"Then Tony and the others will snap out of it."
"Sounds simple, like putting a collar on a dog." Homelander calmly pointed out the flaw. "The problem is how to get it on her."
"Lorelei has the Iron Legion as guards, Hawkeye as a Sentinel, and the Hulk as a bodyguard."
Natasha sighed, "That's the problem. We need to subdue Lorelei instantly without triggering a full-scale war."
"Two options." She held up two fingers.
"First, lure her out to a deserted place. Then we can fight without restraint."
"Lure her out?" Homelander raised an eyebrow, his gaze playfully turning to Thor. "That sounds like a good plan. Thor, since she's your old flame, why don't you sacrifice your looks a bit?"
Thor's head instantly shook like a rattle-drum, his golden hair flying everywhere.
"No! Absolutely not!"
Thor's face was full of refusal, like a boar about to be taken for breeding. "I'll say it again, that was a mistake from six hundred years ago! I am a god with a family now!" He gestured wildly, speaking rapidly. "Besides, Lorelei hates me. If I show up, it will only make her more frantically order Tony and Banner to attack me!"
"I'll say it again, that was a mistake from six hundred years ago! I am a god with a family now!" He gestured wildly, speaking rapidly. "Besides, Lorelei hates me. If I show up, it will only make her more frantically order Tony and Banner to attack me!"
"Then it can only be the second option." Natasha sighed. "We need someone, someone who can rush into that palace and put that collar on that damn bitch's neck before anyone can react."
Natasha's gaze naturally fell on Homelander.
"Miss Romanoff, while I'd love to go, my entrances... are usually quite dramatic."
Homelander stood up and walked to the window.
"My speed is based on physical rules."
He ran a finger lightly across the glass.
"Yes, I have a Bio-Force Field."
Homelander turned around and gestured a silhouette.
"You know... that Superman comic. The guy with his underwear on the outside. In the comic, his Bio-Force Field could envelop people and objects he wanted to protect, allowing him to catch a falling plane without it disintegrating."
"But the reality is..."
Homelander shrugged, spreading his hands with a hint of regret.
"...My field is very small. It can only tightly envelop my head."
"Fortunately, when I break the sound barrier, that tiny Bio-Force Field can absorb and redirect most air molecules, and disperse the sonic wave energy generated by supersonic flight, transforming the violent sonic boom into a softer 'sonic puff'."
"However, in an enclosed space, that instantaneous change in air pressure is still fatal to ordinary people."
Homelander turned around and made an explosion gesture.
"If I sprint at full speed inside Avengers Tower, the glass there would shatter in an instant, and ordinary people present would suffer perforated eardrums, with severe cases even experiencing ruptured internal organs."
"So..." Homelander's gaze turned to the door, "...we need someone with another kind of talent, someone one in a million."
"That's right, it's me!"