The television screen froze on the image of the Quinjet slowly descending. Seconds later, the screen shook violently, followed by screams and explosions.
The signal abruptly cut off, leaving the old television flickering with static.
"You can leave now. Call the police, go home, or follow my instructions—it's up to you," Noah said nonchalantly.
"Oh, thank you, sir!"
The newsstand owner, as if granted a pardon, scrambled out of the booth, fleeing down the street and disappearing around the corner in an instant.
Perhaps he would soon be torn apart and devoured by those zombie heroes, or maybe he'd beat the odds and become one of the lucky few survivors. Either way, it wasn't something Noah needed to concern himself with right now.
In the original timeline, Steve, Captain Marvel, and Black Widow had already been infected, turning into zombies and feasting on the very civilians they once swore to protect.
Fortunately, Noah had tricked Quicksilver into coming here, preventing him from being infected on his way to aid the Avengers. This might slightly slow the spread of the virus compared to the original events—at least enough to prevent the zombie heroes from obliterating humanity within days.
Now, it was time for the next step in his plan.
Noah scanned his surroundings, spotting a glass window on the nearby wall. Without hesitation, he raised his arm and smashed the glass with his elbow.
Crash!
The sharp sound of shattering glass filled the air as shards flew in all directions. Noah picked up a larger piece of the broken glass and approached Quicksilver, still unconscious.
Instead of using the glass as a weapon, Noah angled it carefully, letting the sunlight pass through and refract into a dazzling beam. He adjusted it repeatedly until the rays of the setting sun reflected directly into Quicksilver's eyes.
"Alright, time to wake up. We need to talk."
Quicksilver was tightly bound with silver duct tape, his arms, legs, and joints immobilized. Ropes crisscrossed his body in a web-like structure, securing him firmly in place. A trickle of almost-clotted blood seeped from a wound on his leg.
As he slowly regained consciousness, a dull pain radiated from his injured leg, clearing the fog from his mind. He struggled to open his eyes, squinting against the refracted sunlight that stung his pupils, his thoughts racing.
'Who?! Who attacked me?'
As a rookie superhero, Quicksilver typically worked with Captain America and the others to handle minor villains, never facing major threats alone. No one had any real motive to attack him.
He tried to move but found his limbs bound tightly. His mouth was sealed with tape, preventing him from making a sound. He vaguely remembered a sharp pain and then darkness. Piecing together his fragmented memory, his eyes suddenly widened.
He realized an ordinary person had managed to shoot him. Rage surged through his chest.
"Mmph! Hmph mmph!"
Watching Quicksilver's near-tantrum, Noah shrugged. "I'm going to remove the tape from your mouth now. You're not planning to bite me, are you?"
He held the shard of glass close to Quicksilver's trembling eye, stopping just a few centimeters away. Satisfied with the hint of fear in Quicksilver's gaze, Noah nodded and tore the tape off with his other hand.
"Do you even know what you just did?! You better—"
"Of course. I shot a member of the Avengers, stopping him from going to aid the others, and in doing so, saved his life by preventing him from turning into a zombie."
"What?"
"As I said, the Avengers who boarded that Quinjet to Times Square are already dead. They've been turned into zombies, just like in the movies."
"Huh?"
Quicksilver's eye twitched at Noah's matter-of-fact tone. His first thought was that this guy had a serious case of delusions. Zombies? Those were fictional creatures! How could they exist in reality?
Then it hit him: as the world's fastest man, he'd been outwitted by this nobody with a gun. The humiliation made him want to crawl into a hole.
"Hey, are you even listening? You're the one tied up, not me."
Snapping his fingers to grab Quicksilver's attention, Noah frowned at his captor's distracted look.
"I'm listening, I'm listening," Quicksilver replied, shifting slightly but finding himself unable to move. "Who sent you? Hydra? The Brotherhood? AIM?"
"Tell me, do you have Nick Fury's contact info? An emergency line?"
"No, I don't. And if you're some crazy S.H.I.E.L.D. fanboy, you're better off finding Colonel America. He's the one closest to Fury."
"I already told you, Colonel America's a zombie now. Think of another way."
Quicksilver groaned in frustration. Talking to this lunatic was exhausting.
Boom!
A sudden explosion echoed in the distance, followed by a powerful shockwave that shook the entire street. Smoke twisted upward in a dark vortex, accompanied by the wail of sirens. Quicksilver caught a glimpse of an ambulance speeding past, heading straight toward Times Square.
"Untie me! Now!"
"Wait."
Noah stood, his face serious as he observed the rising smoke.
Quicksilver's eyes burned with anger as he yelled, "What are you waiting for?! Let me go! There are civilians over there who need saving! Do you know how many lives you're risking by keeping me here?"
His body thrashed against the restraints, but the movement only caused his wound to bleed more. Exhausted, he had no choice but to stop.
Glancing at a nearby surveillance camera blinking with a red light, Noah replied calmly, "I'm waiting for someone smart enough to contact me. Someone who understands how dangerous it would be if you turned into a zombie."
"Jesus Christ!" Quicksilver muttered, rolling his eyes. He couldn't believe he'd been captured by a lunatic. Colonel America would laugh his head off, and his sister would never let him live this down. Not to mention Hawkeye, who'd tease him relentlessly.
Suddenly, every phone on the street began to ring simultaneously—the grocery store's, the newsstand's. The cacophony of ringtones echoed through the empty streets.
Quicksilver stared in shock as Noah casually picked up a receiver, placing it to his ear like he was greeting an old friend.
"Hello?"
"This is Nick Fury. Who the hell are you?"