"Normal trajectory?" Bucky suddenly laughed and shook his head, saying, "How could someone with your kind of power ever have a normal life?"
Arthur was taken aback. He then furrowed his brow, gazing at the sunset, and remained silent for a long time.
After a while, he finally spoke, "The sunset... is quite beautiful, huh?"
"Mm?"
Bucky looked at Arthur with curiosity.
Arthur shrugged, "The blood-red clouds burning across half the sky, creating a big red disc. As long as those clouds aren't stained with blood, this sunset is worth seeing."
"Is something on your mind?"
"Everyone has their own troubles," Arthur smiled. "And these troubles are something only they can understand and find a way to overcome."
Bucky chuckled, "Normal people have all sorts of worries."
Arthur nodded and then asked, "What about you? How have you been lately?"
"Same as always," Bucky replied. "The base is getting bigger, and there's more work to do. Honestly, I like this feeling; at least it makes me feel like my life has meaning. I've also been thinking about a lot of things. How's Steve doing?"
"Pretty good," Arthur thought for a moment and then said, "But I haven't told him about you."
"I understand."
Bucky said, "When I was lost, I did a lot of things that can't be undone. If it were him, no matter the situation, he would definitely want to protect me. But that's actually not right, is it?"
Arthur pondered for a long time before shaking his head, "Everyone has different perspectives; there's no absolute right or wrong."
"If everyone considers things from their own perspective, what kind of world would this become?"
Bucky looked at Arthur: "When we fought on the battlefield back then, we weren't fighting for a world like this!"
Looking at Bucky's serious face, Arthur found himself momentarily speechless.
Indeed, whether it was him or Steve, their reasons for participating in the war were different from each other.
He had no choice; when he arrived in this world, he was already thrown into the battlefield, amidst gunfire and bloodshed, suddenly pulled from a stable environment into a world where death could come at any moment.
At that time, Arthur had no grand thoughts; he didn't even want to be a superhero. So even when the Super Soldier serum was presented to him, he absolutely refused to become another 'Captain America'! All he wanted was to survive.
As long as he could survive, he was willing to fight on the battlefield.
But Steve and Bucky were different.
They fought in the war with a belief in fighting for their country.
Even though times have changed and the environment has drastically shifted, their purpose has never changed.
Just like Arthur, even though he was doing things he wasn't good at but had to do... he still couldn't change his original purpose.
To live!
To live well!
"Why do people... need to live?"
Arthur didn't voice this question; it was too philosophical, and normal people probably wouldn't think about such things.
Then he gave himself an answer in his heart: "Because we fear the unknown world."
So, no matter who tries to bring us darkness, we need to let them taste the bitterness of that darkness; that's why we keep striving, right?
Arthur let out a long breath and then patted Bucky on the shoulder.
Bucky asked curiously, "Have you figured it out?"
"I did not exactly figure it out..." Arthur smiled, "I'm not worried about that; it's just after our talks, I suddenly feel like I've found my motivation again."
Bucky shrugged, "That's a good thing."
"Yes, my friend." Arthur turned his gaze back to the sunset, which was almost set, with a small part of its body still lingering outside the red clouds.
Then Arthur thought of Thanos.
He smiled and said, "Isn't it about time?"
...
After parting ways with Bucky, Arthur returned to his room.
Some things definitely needed to be resolved, but how to handle them was still uncertain.
Although Bucky was fully prepared mentally, Arthur wasn't. He really wanted to find Tony to clarify things, but he hoped he could wait a bit longer...
He didn't know when it would all come to an end.
But it shouldn't be too far off.
He couldn't go home for now; Spider-Man's crazy girlfriend was waiting there. He couldn't fight or scold her, and if they met, he would probably be bullied. It was better to avoid that trouble and stay here for a couple of days.
After all, he would have to go out again in a few days, and that crazy girlfriend's fury probably wouldn't last long. Before long, Spider-Man would bring her back, and then everything would be peaceful again. Arthur would be a good guy who could wash his underwear at home!
He was about to use the take action machine to send a message to Li Xiaomi but remembered that communication was blocked in the base.
He thought about calling Spider-Man to check on the progress, but realized that making a call would create too much noise and could expose him.
After considering his options, Arthur decided to get a good night's sleep! He had to discuss matters with Tony in the morning...
Time passed quickly, and before he knew it, it was already the next morning.
Waking up around five, Arthur didn't hesitate and went straight to Tony's room, ringing the doorbell frantically.
After a long while with no response, he was puzzled and used The Eye of Horus to take a peek, only to find that Tony wasn't in his room.
With a flash, he appeared in the lab where the Dark Elf Warship was being set up, discovering Tony and Banner both sprawled out on the table, fast asleep.
Arthur took a deep breath and approached them, glancing at the blueprints scattered across the table.
Tony's drool was carelessly dripping onto the papers...
"I have a feeling this isn't going to end well." Arthur grimaced, but just then, Banner suddenly opened his eyes, a flash of green light flickering in them.
However, upon seeing Arthur, he quickly returned to his usual self, scratching his head, "How did I wake up?"
Arthur made a 'shh' gesture, and Banner finally realized what was happening. After focusing for a moment and confirming it was Arthur, he slapped his forehead, "How long have I been asleep? Why is this guy who travels through the universe back while I'm still snoozing?"
Arthur was curious too and asked, "What time did you guys stay up until yesterday?"
"Well, to be precise, it's been almost a week. We've been getting less than three hours of sleep each day."
Banner yawned, "Tony is just a madman!"
(End of Chapter)
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