Chapter 59 - CH: 58 - Steve Shocked London, And It's Chaos

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{Chapter: 58 - Steve Shocked London, And It's Chaos}

Steve finally understood a bit more about the strange situation he had been pulled into. Though it was still hazy, the pieces were slowly coming together in his mind. He let out a breath—and focused his eyes on Aiden, who set across from him with calm confidence.

Aiden extended an arm, gesturing toward the people standing silently behind him. "Let me introduce you to my team," he said, his voice steady and assured. "This is Blink, Marrow, and Chan Ho."

The three figures nodded one by one. Though their numbers were small, there was a quiet intensity about them, and Steve could immediately sense that they weren't ordinary individuals. There was something different in their posture, their gaze—the same kind of awareness and tension that often came with combat experience or long exposure to danger.

Steve gave a polite nod to each of them in turn, but his focus remained firmly on Aiden. The introductions were fine, but they weren't what mattered most to him. What he really wanted to know was what Aiden was planning—why he had formed a team without notifying SHIELD, and why he was acting so independently.

Their history was limited, after all. The last time Steve had seen Aiden in person was during the Human Torch incident. That situation had been chaotic, unresolved, and left little room for actual conversation. Back then, Aiden had seemed like a wild card—unpredictable and maybe even dangerous. But when Steve looked through the SHIELD files later, he found something else entirely. The man in those reports was intelligent, methodical, and above all, calculating.

It wasn't just raw strength that had brought Johnny Storm down. Aiden had lured him in, pretended to be weak, played the victim until the Human Torch got too close—and then Aiden had turned the tables and stripped him of his powers, leaving no room for retaliation. The whole operation had been seamless, almost surgical.

That level of planning, execution, and sheer guts… It made Steve uneasy.

"You've gathered these people and formed your own team, I get that," Steve said, his tone straightforward. "But why? What's your goal here?"

Aiden leaned back slightly, as if he had expected the question. His lips curled into a faint smile. "It's simple, really. I need their strength—because I'm preparing for a future crisis."

Steve's eyes narrowed. He didn't like vague answers, especially not when they came from someone who could apparently see the future. "What kind of crisis?" he asked, his tone turning more serious. "Be specific, if you can."

Aiden shrugged, looking out toward the skyline beyond the shattered window panes. "It's difficult to explain in exact terms. Think of it as… a convergence of threats. From space, from Earth, even from time itself. Some are known. Others haven't even made their first move yet. But when they do, it will be catastrophic."

Steve absorbed those words, chewing on them like a gristle. He had fought in human wars, faced alien invasions, and more. Yet something about Aiden's tone made the hairs on his neck stand up. It wasn't just about danger—it was about inevitability.

"And what makes you think gathering a few powered individuals will be enough?" Steve said, glancing briefly at Chan Ho, who stood with eyes wide.

"The outcome doesn't change," Aiden replied calmly. "Whether I act alone or wait for someone else to take initiative, some events are unavoidable. I'm not here to prove myself to anyone, not anymore. Time will reveal who was right. Until then, I'll do what I believe is necessary."

A quiet moment passed between them, heavy with meaning. Then Aiden spoke again, his voice low and sincere.

"Captain America… Steve. I admire you—truly. Not for your strength, but for something far rarer: your unwavering spirit. That fierce sense of justice. The courage to rise when the world tries to knock you down. You stand not just for your allies, but for everyone—even those who oppose you. You see the good in people, even when no one else does.

You held that shield with nothing but heart, long before you ever had the strength to back it up. You were a hero even before the serum touched you. That kind of soul… that's something I've never been able to replicate.

I respect you deeply, even if I'll never be the man you are.

And that's why I'm saying this now—if you ever need me… no red tape, no politics, no chain of command. Just call. And I'll come."

Steve exhaled slowly, his brow furrowed as he searched Aiden's eyes. There was a flicker of something—surprise, maybe even vulnerability—as the weight of Aiden's words settled in.

"You really don't make it easy to figure out where you stand," he said, his voice tinged with a mix of awe and frustration. It wasn't anger—it was something deeper. A quiet struggle to reconcile the man in front of him with the lines that usually defined right and wrong.

For a moment, Steve looked like he'd taken a hit—not physically, but mentally, as if Aiden's sincere words had caught him off guard.

"That's because I don't stand in any one place," Aiden replied. "I move toward the future. Whether people follow me or not, that's up to them."

Realizing he wasn't going to get much more clarity today, Steve stood up. "Well, I suppose my mission here is complete. I'll report back to Nick, and you… well, you do what you need to do. Just know that SHIELD doesn't forget things easily. You're walking a fine line, Aiden."

Aiden didn't flinch. "I'm used to walking that line."

Steve gave him a dry smile. "In that case, you mind getting me back to the helicarrier? I didn't exactly bring my wallet for cab fare."

Aiden chuckled, then looked to Blink. "Send Steve to the SHIELD helicarrier first, then return him to his residence."

Just before he got up, Steve turned back to Aiden, a curious look on his face. "Tell me one thing before I go—did you see this part in the future too? Me asking you to send me back?"

Aiden's grin widened. "No. That was just basic courtesy. Nick's probably pacing a hole in the floor waiting to ask you what happened."

Steve shrugged and let out a tired breath, realizing how pointless his question had been. It wasn't like Aiden would ever reveal everything, not now, and probably not ever. The man was like fog—just when you thought you understood him, he slipped through your fingers.

Blink, who had been standing patiently nearby, stepped forward and raised her and threw a pink crystal in the air and a ripple shimmered in the air, forming a swirling oval portal that pulsed with violet energy. Without hesitation, she stepped in, and Steve followed her through.

The transition was smooth but disorienting, like being yanked forward and backward at the same time. The world bent for a fraction of a second, and then they were there—aboard the SHIELD helicarrier.

The sudden appearance of the two startled nearby agents. Coffee cups froze mid-sip. Files were dropped. Conversations stopped mid-sentence. Dozens of eyes turned in their direction, brows lifting in disbelief.

Before anyone could say anything, a pair of figures arrived—Nick Fury and Maria Hill, walking side-by-side with practiced authority. The moment Nick laid eyes on Blink, a flicker of recognition crossed his face, followed by the cool mask of curiosity.

"Clarice Ferguson," Nick said, folding his arms. "A free mutant with no known allegiance. I didn't expect you to follow someone like Aiden."

"I go by Blink now," she replied flatly, her voice calm but firm. Her tone made it clear she wasn't interested in a lengthy interrogation.

"She's supposed to send me back home afterward," Steve interjected, stepping between the two of them before the conversation could shift into something more confrontational.

Nick glanced back at the closing portal, then at Steve. He looked like he wanted to say something—maybe a warning, maybe a joke—but in the end, he said nothing.

Instead, he turned back toward the command console, watching the afterglow of the portal vanish. "Her ability… it's more refined than I expected," Nick muttered. "Powerful. Tactical. That kind of talent… in the right hands, it could change everything."

He turned to Steve. "So… how was it?"

Steve shook his head, his features tense with lingering thought. "He said there are more crises coming. Plural. And they're not just minor threats. He thinks we're standing on the edge of something big—something that even SHIELD, Avengers and X-Man can't fully stop it."

Nick gave a quiet sigh. His single eye stared at the monitor, but his mind was clearly elsewhere. "He always was five steps ahead," he murmured. "The problem is, I'm starting to wonder if we're even on the same board anymore."

---

London – Abandoned Residential Sector, Outskirts of the City

The air shimmered as a burning streak of light descended from the clouds above. It slammed into the cracked pavement with a thundering boom, sending a shockwave of heat and displaced air through the quiet ruins.

When the dust cleared, Aiden stood in the center of a blackened crater, surrounded by the skeletal remains of once-busy apartment complexes and weed-choked streets. Windows were shattered, paint has peeled from the walls, and rust gnawed at metal fences.

He scanned the area with quiet precision, his eyes flicking over details others might have missed. A toppled truck lay ahead, its cab split and rusted. Around it, old cargo containers and metallic boxes were arranged in a strange pattern—stacked too precisely to be random, yet too chaotic to be organized by any typical scavenger.

"Someone's been here," Aiden murmured to himself, stepping forward.

He reached the overturned truck and, with a motion as effortless as opening a curtain, lifted it from one end. Despite the vehicle's weight, he handled it like a suitcase. The ease with which he moved it was reminder of the power he now carried within.

Underneath the truck, partially hidden behind debris and crates, a worn staircase descended into darkness. Aiden's expression didn't change, but a glint of satisfaction flashed in his eyes.

"There you are," he said, as if greeting an old friend.

He stepped down the stairs slowly. The walls around him were damp and covered in graffiti—names, dates, desperate prayers for survival. But none of it mattered now. Aiden reached the bottom and walked through a long corridor before coming to a narrow shaft that rose upward in the dim light.

Just ahead, he saw it: a strange gap between the stairwell and wall. Curious, he paused beside it. A small stone suddenly fell from above, then vanished in midair—only to drop again seconds later, in a never-ending loop. When he reached out to catch it with telekinesis, his powers flickered and vanished the moment the energy touched the stone.

Aiden blinked, eyebrows raised. "Fascinating… spatial recursion. And it cancels out energy manipulation on contact. Someone left my gift here."

He stepped back, intrigued, and ascended the remaining stairs. The higher he climbed, the more distorted the surroundings became. The walls rippled slightly as if reality itself was uncertain of its shape. The light flickered without source, and gravity felt subtly different with each step—heavier, lighter, sideways.

At the top, he pushed open a rusted door and entered what seemed to be an abandoned apartment. Dust blanketed the floor like snow, untouched for years. But the moment Aiden stepped into the room, a sudden gust of wind erupted out of thin air, scattering the dust in a swirl that danced around him like ash in a storm.

The disturbance wasn't natural.

He froze, his senses alert. Then he saw it—hovering at the center of the room like a wound in space itself. A black void, circular and humming, its surface pulsing with a gravitational pull that warped the air around it.

Without hesitation, the pull intensified, and Aiden was dragged forward.

He didn't resist.

The moment he crossed the event horizon, everything shifted.

No sound. No light. Just a heartbeat.

*****

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