"Am I supposed to know you?"

Alex's tone wasn't mocking, nor was it the smug sarcasm that Tony often got from his rivals.

It was genuine curiosity.

He wasn't particularly impressed by the red-and-gold man standing before him, but the way Tony spoke—as if they had some deep, unspoken history—piqued his interest.

What was his relationship with Tony Stark in the future?

Why did this man behave as if Alex was already a known quantity—someone he had fought or even worked alongside?

"Wait—hold on."

Tony's voice sharpened, his helmet lenses narrowing as his HUD recorded every micro-expression on Alex's face.

"You just called me Iron Man. But in this era, that name doesn't even exist yet."

There was a pause—just long enough for the weight of those words to sink in.

"You know we're from the future?"

Steve's posture stiffened instantly. His grip on the vibranium shield tightened, the faint scrape of his gloves against the metal audible in the stillness. This wasn't simple suspicion anymore—Alex knew.

"Does it matter?" Alex shrugged, as if they were discussing the weather.

He had only asked out of idle curiosity, but now that the truth was out, it made little difference. To him, even the so-called genius billionaire playboy philanthropist Tony Stark was nothing more than another piece on the board—an insignificant one at that.

"Homelander," Steve said firmly, stepping forward with the weight of command in his voice, "we need the Tesseract."

Alex's eyes sharpened. "You're not leaving without it?"

"Even if it means fighting you," Steve replied without hesitation.

The air shifted—thickened. It was the kind of silence that comes right before a thunderstorm.

Alex's lips curled into a smirk.

"Then let's settle something I've always wondered."

Steve tilted his head slightly.

"And what's that?"

Alex's grin widened.

"Is the 'Captain America can fight anyone' meme real?"

Steve blinked, thrown off for a moment.

"The what?"

BOOM!

The ground exploded under Alex's foot as he blitzed forward, the sonic crack of displaced air still ringing as his fist crashed against Steve's shield.

CLANG!

The vibranium absorbed most of the impact—but not all of it.

"Guh—!"

The force rocketed Steve backward like a ragdoll, sending him hurtling through multiple brick walls as if they were made of paper. Dust and rubble cascaded around him before his body skidded to a halt.

His shield spun away with a metallic clang, bouncing across the cracked pavement.

"Huh."

Alex flexed his fingers, examining his fist with mild interest.

"Guess the meme's fake."

"Steve!"

Tony's shout was sharp with alarm. His armor fully sealed around him, and in an instant, a barrage of micro-missiles launched from his shoulders.

Alex didn't even bother to move.

A shimmering telekinetic barrier flared into existence—

KABOOM!

The explosions rolled harmlessly off the invisible shield, leaving Alex completely untouched.

Then—

WHOOSH!

Tony lunged out of the smoke, armor's fist reinforced with thrusters, delivering a strike that mirrored the Titan punch he once used against Thanos.

Alex met the blow head-on.

CRUNCH!

Tony was driven straight into the asphalt, the street spiderwebbing beneath him. The Mark LXXXV groaned under the stress, dents warping its sleek form.

"You've got to be kidding me," Tony muttered, his voice muffled inside the suit.

"He's already this strong in the 60s?!"

"Tony—no holding back!"

Steve's voice cut through the ringing in his ears as he staggered to his feet, shield back in hand. His eyes hardened.

"We end this."

Twin beams of searing repulsor energy flared from Tony's palms, scorching the air between them.

Alex yawned. Literally yawned.

With a flick of his wrist, the beams curved away, scattering harmlessly into the distance.

Steve's shield came spinning through the air, ricocheting toward Alex's head—only to bounce off the telekinetic wall with a dull thunk before clattering back to the ground.

"Alright," Alex said, brushing imaginary dust off his sleeve. "Playtime's over."

He disappeared.

THUD!

Steve was airborne before he even registered the movement, ribs compressing under the sheer force of the blow. His vision dimmed, consciousness slipping as he crashed through a nearby building in a storm of plaster and wood.

Tony barely had a second to react—

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

Alex's fists pummeled the armor in a blur, each hit denting the nanotech further until entire sections of plating shattered and fell away.

"Gah—!"

The suit collapsed in on itself, systems failing, leaving Tony's exposed and stunned face staring up at his opponent.

Alex straightened, dusting his hands.

"Welp," he said casually, as if he'd just swatted two flies.

"That was disappointing."