Become a Homelander and a Marvel superstar

After seeing the group off, the meeting room fell silent.

Just as Azu was about to pour himself a glass of milk, Ashley pushed the door open and entered.

"Sir, Instructor Rogers and Lieutenant Barnes are back."

"Oh?" Azu chuckled. "It's faster than I expected."

"They're in the meeting room downstairs. But..." Ashley paused, "they don't look too good."

"Let them come over. Hmm... and call Tony back too, tell him an old friend is here."

Five minutes later.

Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes walked into the conference room.

Steve's expression was serious, his brows furrowed.

Bucky kept his head down, his metal arm unconsciously clenching and unclenching.

"Welcome back, Captain."

Ah Zu leaned against the table, holding a glass of milk in his hand. "Looks like this trip to find our roots has been quite fruitful?"

"Anthony."

Without exchanging pleasantries, Steve walked straight to Azu and placed a black hard drive on the table.

"We found Hydra's old base in Siberia."

"Not only are there still-unawakened super soldiers there..." Steve's expression was grave, "we also found some mission logs from back then. Including..."

"Including... a video recording from December 16, 1991."

Ah Zu glanced at the hard drive, and the smile on his face faded slightly.

"About Howard Stark?" Azu casually uttered the name.

The two centenarians looked at each other and saw the shock in each other's eyes.

"You know that?" Steve asked in surprise.

“I’m Homelander, Steve. I’ve heard more secrets on this planet than you’ve eaten bread.” Azu pointed to his ear. “Nothing can escape my notice if I want to.”

"Of course, I'm not that bored most of the time; I have my own life."

"Since you know..." Steve clenched his fist, his tone becoming urgent, "then you should know what this means."

"So, what do you want me to do?" Azu calmly took a sip of milk.

"We're here to hear your advice," Steve said, looking at Azu with a pleading look in his eyes. "Anthony, you're smarter and calmer than any of us. If you were in our shoes, what would you do?"

Ah Zu put down his cup, walked up to the two of them, and had a half-smile on his face.

My suggestion is simple.

He pointed to the doorway.

"Just tell him."

Tell him everything without reservation.

"What?" Steve asked in disbelief. "But Tony... he might kill Bucky on the spot."

"Captain," Azu suddenly asked, "Steve, what kind of person do you think Tony is?"

"He...he may be arrogant, haughty, and foul-mouthed," Steve thought for a moment, "but he's a good man, with a conscience and a sense of justice."

"Then trust him," Azu smiled and put his hand on Steve's shoulder.

"In this world, lies are the greatest harm. If you hide it from him, the real break will come when he finds out himself."

Steve looked into Azu's eyes, and the resolute gaze gradually calmed his previously panicked heart.

"Okay." Steve gritted his teeth. "I believe you."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the door was pushed open again.

"So, what exactly is this mysterious 'old friend'?"

Tony Stark strode in, holding a half-eaten cheeseburger.

"If that old bastard Fury comes looking for me, I'll let him...?"

The words came to an abrupt halt.

He saw Steve.

I also saw the long-haired man sitting next to Steve, with a gloomy expression.

"Captain Popsicle? You're back?" Tony paused for a moment, then pointed at Bucky. "I heard you went on your honeymoon? What, is this your 'partner'?"

He tried to ease the inexplicably oppressive atmosphere in the room with jokes.

"Tony, this is Lieutenant James Barnes. My friend..." Steve stood up, ignoring Tony's joke, his expression so serious it was unsettling.

Tony's gaze fell on Bucky, and he whistled.

"Cool. The workmanship on this arm is pretty good. Soviet-made? Looks like it needs some lubricant."

"Wait... Barnes? The one who fell off that mountain..." Tony searched his memory for information from his history textbook. "Wow, it seems your era had pretty good preservation techniques. He looks... quite well-preserved."

He pulled up a chair and sat down. "So? Are you guys organizing some kind of WWII veterans' reunion?"

"Tony."

Steve interrupted him.

There are some things you need to know.

As he spoke, he took a step forward, standing half a body length in front of Bucky—an instinctive protective gesture.

"We went to Siberia. The old base of Hydra."

"We discovered some files."

"Hydra has created a type of super soldier called the Winter Soldier. They use brainwashing, freezing, and mind control to turn people into killers without self-awareness."

Upon hearing the word "mind control," Tony's previously playful expression instantly froze.

That's his current sore spot.

Just a day earlier, he had been controlled by Lorelei like a puppet, and that feeling of powerlessness haunted him like a nightmare.

"Mind control..." Tony repeated in a low voice, "So what? What does this have to do with me?"

"It's related."

Bucky, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up.

He slowly stood up and pushed aside Steve, who was blocking his way.

"September 16, 1937."

Pakistan gave the date.

Long Island Highway.

"Click."

The hamburger in Tony's hand was crushed.

He stared intently at Bucky, his breathing becoming rapid.

That was the day his parents passed away, and it was also the biggest turning point in his life.

"What do you want to say?" Tony's voice turned cold, as if he was suppressing something.

That wasn't a car accident.

Steve added from the side, his voice low but his words heavy.

"It was an assassination."

"Hydra has issued orders to seize the super-soldier serum developed by your father."

Tony jumped up, knocking the chair to the ground.

"Who?" Tony stared at Steve, then looked at Bucky. "Who did this?!"

"it's me."

Bucky looked at Tony without offering any explanation.

"That night, I rammed that car to a stop."

"Howard... he was still alive then. He called my name, he recognized me."

Bucky's voice trembled, a pain brought on by memories.

"But I didn't stop."

"I killed him."

"Then... I went around the front of the car and killed Maria."

It was deathly silent, as if even breathing didn't exist.

Tony stood there, motionless.

how many years?

It started on Christmas Day in 1991.

He lived with that regret. He couldn't say goodbye to his father properly, and he couldn't say "I love you."

He always thought it was an accident, a joke of fate.

Now someone is telling him that it was murder.

And the murderer is right in front of us.

Tony instinctively reached for his wrist, the gesture to summon his armor.