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There was no doubt about this matter.
Once the future Avengers decided to collaborate with the past Avengers, it meant they had agreed to return the Tesseract. This was the premise of everything and naturally didn't need further explanation.
"Scott, I'll leave it to you," said future Captain America, nodding to future Ant-Man.
Without saying a word, future Ant-Man turned and left for a moment. When he reappeared, he brought a box with him and handed it to Captain America.
Captain America, in front of everyone, opened the box to reveal a blue-glowing cube—the Tesseract.
Phew!
Captain America couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
"So, can we start now?"
"Two Captains, two Tonys, and two Banners working together. I have to say, I'm a bit eager."
"The only regret is that there aren't two of me; otherwise, I'd have something great to boast about to Cassie."
Future Ant-Man clapped his hands in excitement, his eyes darting between the two groups of Avengers.
"Everyone, you are guests from afar," Nick Fury began. "I'm not sure how our relationship stands in your timeline, but I'm willing to provide necessary help."
He paused and added, "Of course, as long as you don't touch our Tesseract and the scepter."
As one of the diary holders, Nick Fury knew how crucial the Infinity Stones were and was firm in his stance of not letting them be taken, even by the future Avengers.
"That's the issue, but the only thing we need is the Tesseract and the scepter," future Banner said, hitting the nail on the head.
"Hey, that's why we're all here, right? To solve this problem." Tony stepped forward confidently. "Yes, it's tricky, but we've got a solid team, don't we? I believe there's nothing we can't solve."
"So, what do you think, other me?" future Tony asked, showing a maturity and calmness that contrasted with his past self's usual arrogance and confidence.
"Right now, no concrete solution, just a rough idea. But there's a key issue I need to confirm first."
Tony, being reliable, seemed to have an idea for this tough problem. His confidence brought some assurance to the future Avengers.
"What issue?" future Captain America asked eagerly.
"What was your Battle of New York like?" Tony asked seriously.
???
What did Tony mean by this?
Future Captain America and future Ant-Man exchanged confused glances.
Didn't Tony already know about their experiences? Why ask again?
However, seeing Tony's seriousness, future Captain America recounted the events of the Battle of New York.
"Loki came from Asgard using the Tesseract, then stole it to open a portal, summoning the Chitauri."
"Nick Fury assembled the Avengers, and we fought together. Though it was difficult, we closed the portal and defeated the Chitauri."
Captain America, Dr. Banner, and other non-diary holders were astounded.
Loki was such a major threat? Stealing the Tesseract was just the beginning; his real goal was to conquer Earth?
They were genuinely shocked.
For Tony, Nick Fury, and other diary holders, this was the future as the diary had described.
The events the future Avengers experienced matched the diary exactly.
Wait!
Nick Fury quickly realized a discrepancy.
Why was their future still the same as the diary? They had made changes, like capturing Loki before he opened the portal.
Unless Loki escaped again afterward?
That thought made Nick Fury's face darken as he sought more details from the future Avengers.
It turned out to be a misunderstanding. The future Avengers' Battle of New York had always been different.
In their timeline, Loki had stolen the Tesseract from SHIELD earlier, prompting the Avengers' assembly and subsequent actions, including Loki's capture in Germany, who was pretending all along, leading to Coulson's death and the Avengers' unity.
Right from the start, it was not the same universe!
This shouldn't be!
"No, that's not the case," Captain America interjected, frowning. "Loki failed at SHIELD and didn't steal the Tesseract."
"He stole it at another base."
It was strange why the future Avengers' memories differed so much from what had actually happened.
"It seems our worlds are indeed different," Tony realized. "Or rather, we're not from the same world."
Tony always had doubts: knowing so much from the diary, how did they still lose to Thanos and end up needing time travel to reverse the snap?
And if they did, what about Zhou Cheng, the mysterious diary holder?
Having a godlike being around didn't change anything? This doesn't seem right!
Adding to the confusion, when Tony met his future self, the latter intentionally hid his identity! This made things even more suspicious. Being a diary holder, future Tony should have known about time travel well before the Battle of New York, right? So how could the past Tony not know about his own future identity? Hiding it made no sense, especially since the diary mentioned the nano-suit!
Thus, Tony came to a logical conclusion: the future Tony probably never had the diary! In other words, future Tony might not be from their world but from a parallel universe. And at this moment, Tony's guess was confirmed. The Battle of New York that these future Avengers described was just like in the diary! Indeed, they came from another world.
"That's right, our worlds are different. We seem to have traveled to a parallel universe," future Banner added, bringing up a new question: "Tony, what's your point?"
"Parallel worlds!" Tony got straight to the point. "That's my solution! Since you can travel to parallel worlds, do it again—travel to another parallel world. You can't touch our world's Tesseract; this is the only way. Although it might inconvenience others in different worlds, we have no other choice."
Tony laid out his plan, and everyone was stunned.
"Wait a minute! Wait a minute!" Dr. Banner interrupted, asking, "So you're saying you're not only from the future but also from another parallel world?"
"That's correct," future Banner nodded.
"How did you do it, guys? Is time travel really possible in your future?" Dr. Banner was shocked.
Future Banner briefly explained time travel. Initially, they intended to travel back in time, but it turns out you can only travel to other parallel universes, not your own.
Got it! The Avengers understood.
"Tony is right. If you can time travel already, just do it again," Black Widow agreed, supporting Tony's idea. It was indeed the simplest and least disruptive way.
"You don't understand; if it were possible, we would've done it already. The problem is, due to technical issues, we can only make this one trip," future Captain America said, looking troubled.
"It's because of the Pym Particles, right?" Tony asked confidently since the diary had mentioned they only had one dose left.
The future Avengers looked surprised. How could they know even this?
"Pym Particles? What's that?" Captain America was puzzled.
"It's a unique substance that affects time travel," Tony answered vaguely, confident in his knowledge without explaining much more.
Captain America didn't think too much of it, thinking it was just another aspect of Tony's genius. Despite his disliking Tony's personality, he couldn't deny his talent, which was arguably better than Howard Stark's.
"Since you know about Pym Particles, you must know that no one but Hank can create them," future Ant-Man expressed his concern.
"Firstly, that's too absolute. Do you think two Starks aren't as good as one Hank? Secondly, even if we can't replicate Pym Particles, we can at least find out where to get more, right?" Tony declared confidently.
"Tony, everyone is waiting on us. We don't have much time," future Ant-Man insisted.
"No, you actually have plenty of time. You can stay here as long as you like because you haven't actually left your future. Just return at the right time," Tony pointed out, leaving the future Avengers speechless.
"So, we'll stay here and study Pym Particles?" future Ant-Man was bewildered. They came to collect Infinity Stones, not do scientific research!
"Stark, don't get me wrong. My future self already tried that. I think it's better to investigate where Pym Particles might be," future Ant-Man conceded.
In fact, searching for more Pym Particles did seem promising. Knowing Hank, there had to be some reserves left. Not to mention, even Darren Cross had Pym Particles!
There was hope! Tony's suggestion was practical.
"Guys, I think it's worth a try," future Ant-Man told his companions. The future Avengers discussed it and agreed to Tony's proposal.
Thus, both sides happily reached a consensus. The mission transitioned from collecting Infinity Stones to obtaining Pym Particles. This change significantly lowered the difficulty.
Once they secured more Pym Particles, the future Avengers' travel wouldn't be limited, enabling more trips to collect the Infinity Stones. Perfect!