Washington, 100 meters beneath the central church in the District of Columbia. This was the secret base belonging to former S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury. At the moment, the Avengers stood inside, looking around curiously.
"Hey, Nick 1023, don't you have a real name?"
Tony Stark raised an eyebrow at Nick 1023, who was busy sealing up the corpse of the elderly Captain America. His face was filled with curiosity.
"Nick 1023. That's my name. I was produced in 2012, unit number 1023."
Nick 1023 held a device resembling a cryo-freeze gun, freezing the body of the old Captain, and replied calmly.
"Produced? So what are you, a robot? An android?"
Tony frowned. Nick 1023 looked too human, but the word produced reminded him of machines.
"No, I'm a clone. I was created from Director Fury's genes."
Unlike Fury, Nick 1023 spoke smoothly, even a bit too much—almost like a chatterbox.
"Natasha, is this really our director?"
Hawkeye Barton moved closer to Natasha Romanoff, doubt flickering in his eyes.
"Agent Barton, I'm not your director. Your chief is Nick Fury, the one with Level 10 authority. This base also belongs to him," Nick 1023 corrected, before pressing a button. The old Captain America's frozen body was lowered into the depths of the base.
"Alright, 1023, your mission is over."
After wrapping up the procedures, the real Nick Fury reappeared in front of the Avengers and dismissed the clone in his usual cold tone.
"Yes, sir."
Nick 1023 nodded and walked away. Fury turned back to the Avengers, his expression unreadable, and silently led them into a chamber.
The room was high above the base, its wide floor-to-ceiling windows offering a full view of the futuristic facilities below.
"Fury, it's time you explain. What's going on with that body?"
Captain America Rogers' eyes were filled with doubt. As soon as they entered the room, he couldn't hold back his question.
"Savior, open the Level 10 clearance file."
Instead of answering Rogers, Fury walked to a table in the center of the room, removed his eyepatch, and let the biometric scanner read his left eye.
"Command received. Level 10 authority confirmed. Nick Fury—please specify the file."
A mechanical voice filled the room as metal panels rose from the walls, sealing it shut.
From the center console, a three-dimensional projection activated. The AI system of this base—named Savior—took the form of Nick Fury himself.
"Pull up files on Infinity War and Endgame," Fury ordered.
His voice was flat, but the words instantly puzzled the Avengers.
With a swish, the room erupted in data streams. Images of cosmic energy flared, and from the flow of quantum data emerged the image of a massive, purple-skinned figure.
It was Thanos.
"In 2018," the Savior AI narrated, "Thanos, the Mad Titan, launched his assault. Earth's Avengers united to resist him. Ultimately, Thanos gathered the six Infinity Stones and snapped his fingers—erasing half of all life in the universe."
The projection replayed the Infinity War. Watching their own struggle against the overwhelming Thanos left the Avengers in heavy silence.
"In 2023, to undo Thanos' destruction, the Avengers enacted the Quantum Time-Heist. They traveled into the past to retrieve the Stones and reshape the future."
The final battle played out in holographic detail—the Avengers' desperate stand, and Tony Stark's ultimate sacrifice. The sight made all eyes turn toward him again.
"Avengers, you believe this is 2014," Fury finally said. "But in truth, the timeline has already advanced to 2023."
His words struck them like thunder.
"We're… living in the past? That's impossible!"
Natasha and Barton exclaimed in disbelief. Thor and Rogers exchanged thoughtful looks, while Tony's brow furrowed in deep thought.
"According to quantum theory, overlapping timelines where past and future coexist are possible," Tony muttered, eyes flashing with realization.
"So then… who was that sudden enemy?" Rogers pressed.
"Originally, you won the final battle in 2023. Rogers was tasked with returning the Stones to their proper points in time. But in that process, something unexpected happened."
Fury's face darkened.
"In one of the old timelines, an ordinary man named Allens awakened with powers. He gained the ability to see the future, understood both past and future events, and stole a quantum suit—becoming a time traveler, a criminal across the timeline."
The secret weighed heavily on Fury's voice. The information had been provided to him by none other than the elderly Rogers himself.
"Wait a minute," Tony cut in, frowning. "According to quantum theory, even if this Allens awakened, it shouldn't affect our future."
Tony's knowledge of quantum science was deep, but he was still a man of machines first. The idea unsettled him.
"I don't know how it happened," Fury admitted, "but Captain Rogers received a message from the future. Allens has hijacked the direction of time itself. If we don't stop him, we won't even have a 2.8 in 10 million chance of survival."
Fury's face was grim as he pulled out his pager, the one he always carried.
"Now you know your target. Your mission is to stop Allens at all costs. The future depends on it."
For the first time, Fury's hardened expression softened with the faintest glimmer of hope. He looked at the team—their battered faces, their uncertain eyes—and trusted that, as always, the Avengers would rise to save the world.
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