Over the next few days, Banner kept a close eye on the three newly identified anomalies.
He adjusted the weights of the two signals suspected to be from Reed to the highest level, running the vortex on the outer edge of the Kuiper Belt and the annular remnant in the Orion direction round after round, but the matching degree remained stuck at around 60%.
Several different filtering algorithms were tried, but the results were all similar.
Banner had no choice but to lower the threshold of the adaptive module even further, and a bunch of noise immediately appeared on the curve.
He muttered a curse under his breath and adjusted the threshold back.
"This stuff is too blurry."
Banner zoomed in on the waveform, pointing to several undulating segments. "The vortex group has no obvious features, and the Orion group is locked in by the background energy field. That's all the information we can extract. Digging further down is like searching for the answer with a hidden agenda."
Tony watched for a while. "Let's put that aside for now. What about the Aquila Pulse?"
"That's much clearer."
Phastos turned on another screen. "The pulse interval is steadily decreasing; since the recording started, it has reduced by about 1.7 percent. Although it's not fast, it hasn't stopped."
"Can you calculate when he reaches the critical point?"
Phastos shook his head. "There's no reference point. We have no idea how far the launch source is from us, or how to convert the contraction speed to distance. We can only be sure it's there, but we can't calculate exactly when."
Lynn hasn't been in the lab much these past few days. He spends his days wandering around outside, and comes back at night to compare what he's sensed with Banner's monitoring data.
One night, he told Tony, "When I sense the direction of that Aquila pulse, there's something responding."
Tony asked, "What do you mean?"
"It means I can feel that it's stronger than it was a few days ago."
Lynn leaned against the edge of the table. "I can't say for sure the exact numbers, but it's definitely getting stronger."
Upon hearing this, Banner pulled up the pulse data again and checked it once more.
The monitoring network sounded an alarm the following morning.
Banner was adjusting another set of parameters when a red marker popped up on the screen, located on the edge of the universe, far from the Solar System.
He immediately pulled up the waveform, looked at it for a while, and then his hands stopped on the keyboard.
Phastos was the first to realize. "This isn't right."
"I know."
Banner projected the waveform onto the big screen, "It's not the previous three, it's new!"
The screen displays a completely new signal, an order of magnitude stronger than before, with a waveform structure so clear that it requires almost no filtering.
The periodic pulses, with intervals much shorter and stronger than the Aquila, felt like something was trying to force its way in from outside the cosmic boundary.
By the time Tony arrived after receiving the news, Banner had already completed the preliminary analysis.
"A new signal appeared last night."
Banner pointed to the screen, "High intensity, intact structure, no attenuation or distortion. It's similar to the Aquila pulse, but from a different source."
Tony looked at it for a moment. " Reed?"
"It's highly likely."
Banner adjusted his glasses. "The carrier frequency of this signal matches the Orion remnant very closely. The previous match of over 60% can be replicated to over 90% with this signal."
Phastos added from the side, "In other words, of the three anomalies mentioned earlier, the vortex in the Kuiper Belt might just be a test disturbance he made within the boundary, the one in Orion was a trace left by him probing a weak point in the boundary, and the pulse in Aquila still cannot be confirmed as his. But this new signal is almost certainly Reed himself."
Tony stared at the clear waveform on the screen. "Where is he now?"
"It is crossing the edge of the universe and entering our side."
Banner pulled up the location estimate, "The area he passed through had a relatively thin boundary, and the energy barrier was lower than the surrounding area. He must have discovered this weak point and then squeezed in from there."
Lynn came in through the door, having just finished circling around outside. He walked to the screen, glanced at the waveform, and then at the location estimate. "I sensed him. The energy field is stable, without the blurriness I felt at those anomalies before."
Tony asked, "Where's Kang?"
"Nothing was found."
Lynn leaned against the edge of the table. " The Aquila pulse is still there, the intervals are still shortening, but the speed is slower than before. He should already know Reed is coming."
Tony returned to the screen, glanced at it for a few seconds, and said, "Notify everyone, the main conference room, in half an hour."
Half an hour later, everyone had arrived. Thor had rushed back from Jupiter's orbit, his armor still carrying the chill of space. Strange was already there, sitting silently in a corner. Ivan leaned against the door, a cigarette dangling from his lips. Harley and Peter sat in the back, Harley with his laptop open, Peter scrolling through his terminal.
Tony stood in the main position and switched the screen to the waveform and location diagram of the new signal.
" Reed has crossed the edge of the universe and entered our side. The signal is strong; he's not trying to hide."
Tony pointed to the markings on the location map, "The place he passed through is a weak point on the boundary. Those anomalies were him testing these weak points. At his current speed, it should only take him a few days to reach Earth. The exact time is uncertain, but it won't be long."
Thor straightened up. "They've finally arrived. I'll take the Asgard advance team up there and intercept them right at the edge of the universe."
"We can't stop them."
Lynn said, "His spaceship has inter-universe jump capabilities, and he has a home-field advantage near the boundary. You wait outside, and he can jump to another coordinate at any time to bypass you."
"What should we do? Just watch him walk this way?"
Tony chimed in, "Let him go. But we'll decide which route he takes. Lynn, can you deduce the route he took after passing through that weak point?"
Lynn closed his eyes to sense the situation, then opened them again. "After he came through, he walked along the inner side of the boundary. There's a natural energy field channel there, relatively stable, suitable for a spaceship to enter. He'll most likely take that one."
"Then wait for him in the middle of that passage."
Tony marked a point on the map. "This place isn't far from the edge of the universe. Let's go there ahead of time and make contact with him before he enters the Milky Way."
Strange spoke up, "If it's about negotiating, you'll go?"
" Lynn and I will go. Lynn will assess his condition, and I'll handle the negotiations. Thor will stand by on the perimeter. If we can't reach an agreement, we'll proceed according to our plan."
Thor slammed his hand on the table. "Okay, I like this arrangement."
Ivan asked from the doorway, "Where's your armor? Are you going to wear that one?"
Tony glanced at him. "What do you mean?"
"All your armors are in the armory. You usually wear one set and switch to another. This time you're going out to negotiate, what if things go wrong, and the other side is someone who can chase you across the universe? Shouldn't you bring a few more sets?"
Tony thought for a moment and said, "Yes, I've got everything ready. Bring everything that can move. Can you check it for me?"
Ivan took the cigarette out of his mouth and nodded. "Okay, I'll get it."
The meeting ended quickly. Harley was stopped by Tony as he walked to the door.
"Keep an eye on the field operations. While we're away, you're in charge of ground response. If a conflict breaks out on Reed's side, the safety of Earth is in your hands. I'm authorizing you with the highest authority."
Harley nodded. "Understood."
"Besides."
Tony paused for a moment, then said, "If we don't hear from you within three days, contact Strange and have him activate the barrier. Don't wait for us."
Harley looked up at him and said, "Okay."
Tony patted him on the shoulder and walked away.
On the day of departure, a row of combat suits was laid out on the tarmac. Tony stood in front of them, looked them over, and picked three sets: one for regular combat, one for heavy defense, and one with a remote interface. Ivan, standing beside him, said, "Shouldn't we bring a couple more sets?"
Tony said, "We're just going to negotiate. If a fight really breaks out, Lynn can open a portal in time."
Tony modified the spaceship himself, and Strange added some magical protection. Lynn found a seat after boarding the spaceship.
Tony, adjusting the settings in front, didn't even turn around. "You don't know how to touch anything, right?"
Do you want me to touch you?
"I don't want to. If something goes wrong, I don't know if you'll get hurt, but I'm sure I'll get hurt."
After the spaceship took off, Tony set the course, switched to autopilot, got out of the pilot's seat, and sat down opposite Lynn.
"You said before that Reed wants to reset the metaverse? Do you think we can convince him?"
Lynn thought for a moment, "He thinks he's saving the world. If we don't subdue him and find him a satisfactory solution, this matter will be difficult to resolve."
The spaceship had been flying for over a day. During that time, Banner sent several updates from the base: Reed's signal was constantly approaching, with a stable speed and a clear direction, following the passage Lynn had mentioned. On Kang's side, things were still the same; the Aquila pulse was still there, but the intervals were continuously shortening, though the speed was getting slower.
The following afternoon, the spaceship approached its designated location. Tony slowed down and began manual control. Lynn stood up, walked to the porthole, and glanced out.
There's something ahead.
Tony leaned closer. In the distance, there was a spaceship, its outline indistinct, enveloped in a layer of silver-gray energy, slowly slowing down. The signal indicated that it was Reed's ship.
Tony stared at the screen. "He stopped. He knows we're here."
Lynn stood motionless by the porthole. "He's watching us too."
The two spaceships were suspended in the void, separated by a distance.
There were no communication requests, no proactive attacks, and the stalemate continued.
After a while, Tony spoke up, "He's not saying anything, and neither are we. Are we just going to wait it out like this?"
"Wait a little longer."
Lynn looked at the spaceship opposite him. "He's hesitating."
What are you hesitating about?
"I'm not him, how would I know?"
A few minutes later, a small hatch opened on the other ship's hull, and a miniature device popped out and floated toward Tony's ship.
Tony glanced at the detection readings. "Small communications relay. No weapon signature."
He also chose to talk first.
Should I answer or not?
"Catch."
Tony pressed the receive button. An audio signal popped up on the screen and was automatically decoded. Reed's voice came through the speaker, calm and unhurried.
" Tony Stark. I know it's you."
You probably already know why I'm here. I think we can talk first. I need the Mind Stone to establish a new order. If you're willing to cooperate, we can avoid a lot of unnecessary trouble.
Tony glanced at Lynn. Lynn nodded slightly.
Tony pressed send. "We can chat. First, explain how you plan to establish your order."
There was a few seconds of silence on the other end. Reed's voice rang out again, this time with a hint of explanation.
"The rules of this universe are too chaotic. Each parallel universe operates independently, with unequal technology and information asymmetry. A reckless experiment in one universe could easily affect others. This disorder is the greatest evil. I need the Mind Stone to unify technological standards and bring all parallel universes into an orderly framework."
Tony leaned back in his chair, listening without immediately replying. Lynn whispered beside him, "He's sincere."
"I know, you couldn't have gotten this far without genuine sincerity?"
Tony pressed the call button. "Have you thought about what to do next? How many people wouldn't want to do this?"
"They don't yet understand my grand goal. Once they see the benefits of unification, they will support it."
Tony turned off the microphone and glanced at Lynn. Lynn didn't comment, but simply shook her head slightly.
Tony turned the microphone back on. " Reed, what you said reminds me of someone. He also said he wanted to wipe out half of all life in the universe for the greater good, that others wouldn't understand, and that they would accept it once they saw the benefits. Later, we beat him up pretty badly."
There was a few seconds of silence on the other end.
"I'm not here to ask for your permission. I need the gems; if you won't give them to me, I'll take them myself."
Tony glanced at Lynn. Lynn nodded; he was finished speaking.
Tony pressed send, his tone calm. "Then there's nothing we can do."
The energy field of the opposing spaceship lit up slightly, and its engines began charging. At the same time, Tony pressed the accelerator button and sent Thor a pre-prepared text message: "Make your move."
Thor's response was quick, just one word. "I've been waiting a long time."
Lynn had already reached the rear cabin, raised his hand and made a gesture in the air, opening a portal glowing orange. He glanced back at Tony: "I've opened the portal. You proceed according to plan. I'll keep an eye on things here. Have JARVIS deploy the armor over here, to keep an eye on the TVA."
Tony put on his armor, stretched his shoulders a couple of times, walked to the portal, and stepped inside.
Before the portal closed, Thor's voice came through the communication channel. "The perimeter is ready."
Tony replied, "I'll be right there."
After the portal closed, Lynn raised his hand and swiped again, this time opening a larger door that revealed the concrete walls and ceiling lights of the SSC underground parking garage on the other side.
JARVIS.
" Mr. Lynn."
" Tony has already met up with Thor. Move all the armory pieces prepared in the armory there. Your mission is to be on guard. We can't confirm when Kang will arrive, so have the armories spread out on the perimeter and immediately engage Tony if anything unusual is detected."
"Understood. The armory always has 347 sets of combat armor. Shall we deploy them all?"
"All."
"Received. Armor is being unloaded."