Rumble! Rumble!
Explosions shook the Earth continuously.
Hundreds of missiles streaked across the dark red sky, leaving bright white trails behind them. They collided midair with sharp whistles, detonating into fiery clouds that rose like blooming flowers.
Within the dense, fiery clouds, countless golden-red, white-black, and blue-white figures darted through the chaos. All wore Iron Man armor.
So fought in pairs, others focused on a single target, coordinating attacks with precise timing. Though it seed like scattered combat, their movents ford a massive battlefield reminiscent of a world war, with entire nations exchanging volleys of air-to-ground missiles.
From a distance, it looked apocalyptic, terrifying anyone who witnessed it. Legs would go weak, and flight would be tempting.
Yet, surprisingly, just a few kiloters away from the mushroom clouds, a cluster of buildings remained calm. Streets, skyscrapers, and sports fields stretched across the district. Despite the constant roar of explosions and whistling missiles, pedestrians continued walking, chatting, and laughing.
At an outdoor coffee shop near the battlefield, dust kicked up by missile impacts swirled around. When it settled, Captain Arica and Banner calmly lowered their parasols, brushing off debris. Banner moved the dust-covered coffee aside and raised a hand.
"Jarvis, bring another fresh cup, and charge the dusty one to Tony's tab."
"Certainly, Mr. Banner," a robot replied, erging from behind the counter.
Captain Arica gestured toward his own cup. "Mine as well, thank you."
"Of course, Mr. Rogers. Two coffees, ten Dollars, charged to Tony Stark of S Universe."
The robot returned the coffee, cleaning the counter with a vacuum. Banner shrugged.
"Sorry, Captain, I forgot today is Iron Man Day again. They're bound to bombard this place."
Captain Arica waved it off. "No problem. I forgot too. I just returned from a mission on a Mutant Earth last night. After agreeing to your invitation, I went to sleep with Carter and didn't check the Dinsion Calendar this morning."
He looked toward the distant red clouds. Towering mushroom clouds lood, terrifying and deadly, yet his expression remained calm, unshaken, as though watching a neighbor's elderly aunt fry eggs on a coal stove early in the morning.
"If I had known today was Iron Man Day, I would have joined the live broadcast hall to bet on Tony," he joked.
"Haha, his odds are almost nonexistent now, aren't they?" Banner laughed. "On the other hand, our odds are still worth betting on."
The robot finished cleaning, brewed two new coffees, and delivered them to the table.
"Gentlen, your fresh coffees. Should dust settle again, notify , and I will continue charging Tony's account."
"Thanks, Jarvis."
Captain Arica sipped his coffee, eyes closed, savoring the aroma. After a mont, he sighed. "Magical coffee. It relaxes the mind, restores the body, makes one feel young. Five Dollars well spent every ti."
"Indeed," Banner agreed, leaning back with a content hum.
"I heard the water used cos from Zeus Spring, placed by Malrick at the edge of the Dinsion. It spans a million kiloters but diminishes with each use. That's why it costs five Dollars."
Banner nodded. "So Superheroes from other worlds have even ford teams to search for it, though it'll be useless for them."
"Right," Captain Arica said. "Only authorized personnel can access jump points or open portals here. Even if they find the spring, they cannot take it back."
Banner shook his head. "I'm not optimistic either. The journey is long; even spaceships could spend decades searching without success. And by the ti they arrive, the water may be gone."
Captain Arica was about to ask the reason for their eting when a nearby table erupted in excitent.
"Hey, it's Hulk of S Universe!"
A familiar figure with blond hair approached, grinning. He draped an arm around Banner's shoulder.
"Thor?" Banner asked, surprised. "Uh, Party Thor, right? First ti eting you?"
"Of course! Everyone calls Party Thor. Fifty percent of the parties here are mine!" Thor laughed and winked.
"Hulk… or Banner now, right? Last Hulk Day, you took first place, and I made a nice sum!"
Lowering his voice, Party Thor added, "Day after tomorrow is Hulk Day again. I'm betting on you to win—do your best! I'll call all of Zeus's concubines; it'll be spectacular!"
"Good… good," Banner muttered, managing a polite smile. After much effort, he returned Thor to his seat.
Banner took another sip of coffee. "Betty and I attended his party before, but… she hasn't let go since."
Captain Arica smiled wryly. "These gods' parties are indeed… lively. Tony would probably enjoy them more, but Pepper keeps him in check. Still, many younger Tony variants attend."
Captain Arica finally asked, "Banner, what did you want to et about today?"
"Two days ago, Jarvis found a strange Earth and asked to take so people to investigate," Banner explained. "We're all core TVA mbers now, with heavy responsibilities. We haven't seen each other in a while. I thought this would be a good chance to go on a mission together."
"I invited Wanda, Hawkeye, Tony… Now it's just you, Captain."
"They agreed?" Captain Arica asked, pleasantly surprised. "Of course, I'm in."
"That's perfect!" Banner said with a smile, finishing his coffee. "As soon as Iron Man Day ends, we set off together."
Boom!
Just then, a pure white beam of light cut through smoke and dust, splitting the sky and Earth. Small black dots scattered, flung kiloters away. Each dot was a Tony Stark variant in Iron Man armor.
As the beam faded, Jarvis's voice rang through every Ti Tablet:
"Third Iron Man Day, final winner—Tony Stark of S Universe. Specific rankings are as follows…"
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