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Chapter 221: Steve, why is there a green light above your head? (2)
🕑 Added 2025-02-12 14:44:30 +0000 UTCShield-generating technology wasn't exactly rare in the Red Alert world.
The Soviet faction, for example, had the Iron Curtain and Force Shield in their power plants—they weren't all that different technologically from the Kree shields.
The main differences were power sources and control precision.
In Red Alert, the Iron Curtain's defenses were virtually invincible.
However, due to its enormous power consumption, the actual installation was much larger than the small structure seen in the games.
Its real purpose wasn’t to shield a few combat units but to protect entire cities—mainly against nuclear attacks.
Its function was actually similar to the large energy shield seen in Wakanda during Avengers: Endgame.
The only drawback was that, unlike Wakanda's, it didn't last as long or cover as large an area.
It could only protect the core regions of a city.
Even so, only a few key cities within the Soviet faction had access to it. Producing more was too expensive, and the energy consumption was unsustainable.
But now, with Wakanda destroyed and vast amounts of vibranium—an incredibly powerful energy storage material—falling into Josh’s hands, Yuri had been able to research it extensively. The major problems of power consumption and size were essentially solved.
Compared to Kree shield technology, the only thing missing was some cutting-edge refinement.
To put it in computer terms, the Iron Curtain was like a first-generation vacuum-tube computer—huge, power-hungry, unreliable, and costly to maintain.
Meanwhile, Kree technology was like a sleek, high-performance 21st century ultrabook.
The technology gap was still enormous, but at least the basic functionality was there—and having it at all made a world of difference.
Still, even with that foundation, reaching the technological level of the Kree Empire would have been a long and slow process.
But now, with a real Kree device to study, everything changed.
It would save an enormous amount of time, money, and trial and error.
In less than half a month, Yuri had already reverse-engineered the shield generator wristband Mar-Vell had given him and created several prototypes using vibranium.
Of course, mass production was still a long way off.
Additionally, vibranium was limited—it couldn’t be used everywhere. A suitable substitute material was needed for large-scale use.
He wondered how long it would take Howard Stark to complete a prototype arc reactor.
With access to vibranium, Howard shouldn’t have to wait for his son to miniaturize the reactor—it should be possible in his own time, right?
In the original timeline, Howard Stark was the one with the deepest understanding of arc reactor technology. It was only the material limitations of his time that had prevented him from miniaturizing it.
"No problem, we still have three days. You don't need to worry about us—let Carter take you around Europe for a bit!" Seeing that Mar-Vell didn't refuse, Josh nodded and signaled Jiaying to arrange things while he turned to Carter.
Carter had no reason to say no. After breakfast, she took Mar-Vell back to Vienna.
That night, in the top suite of Vienna's Continental Hotel, the two women finally met and began a whole new kind of battle! (TL/N: 👉👌)
At the same time, on a desolate wasteland of an unknown planet in the universe, a humanoid creature made entirely of stone pointed at Steve Rogers—who was busy tearing apart a wild beast—and exclaimed, "Whoa, Steve! Your head is glowing green!"
"What are you talking about? Korg, I think that rhinoceros beast must have knocked you senseless. Hurry up and get to work—I don’t want to be caught by Zodang’s patrol team. That would be a terrible experience—unless, of course, you’d like to be taken as a slave, then forget I said anything!" Steve replied impatiently.
He had been on this deserted planet for years.
Back on Earth, he had been the only super soldier in the world besides Red Skull. But here, though still powerful, he wasn't as unbeatable as he had been on Earth.
The worst part was that while this planet seemed primitive in some ways—still practicing slavery—it was actually far more advanced than Earth in terms of technology.
Because of this, Steve's individual strength didn't make much of a difference. Most of the time he had to stay hidden among the natives to avoid being discovered by the ruling powers.
This planet was much larger than Earth and had three major nations.
Steve had ended up in one of them, a country called Zodang.
Zodang had a totalitarian system, much like historical Germany, and was constantly fighting wars to conquer the entire planet. Foreigners like Steve and his stone companion, Korg, were usually captured and sent to work camps as slaves.
It was impossible to live peacefully in Zodang.
For years, Steve had been running and hiding, slowly figuring out the structure of the planet.
Now, he and Korg, who had also ended up here due to unusual circumstances, were preparing to cross an enormous desert—larger than the Sahara—to reach the neighboring kingdom of Sireim.
Unlike Zodang, Sireim was more open and tolerant. Most importantly, it didn't have slavery.
If Steve could make it there, he might finally have some stability—enough to figure out a way back home.
Peggy, I will return!
-
"Thank you, Mr. Kahn. Your efficiency is truly impressive!"
While Captain America dealt with his problems, Dracula visited Josh again that evening. When he heard he could leave in three days, he was delighted.
"It is an honor to serve you, Prince Vlad. However, there is something you must know. Because the Kree Empire has many enemies, Mar-Vell cannot send you directly into the heart of a major civilization. After discussing it with her, we have decided to drop you off in a neutral zone between the Kree and Nova Empires. You will also receive a sum of currency—about 100,000 Units. This is a widely accepted form of money in the galaxy. It should be enough to purchase a small starship and hire a crew to travel wherever you wish."
Josh flattered Dracula a bit before explaining the situation.
There's no shame in making money.
Besides, the sword Dracula gifted him yesterday—Josh had it tested during the day. It looked elegant, but its durability was no less than that of vibranium weapons. Ordinary alloy weapons couldn't even scratch it.
If that sword was real, it was incredibly valuable.
Unlike vibranium, which could store energy, Josh accidentally discovered something while testing it—when he channeled a bit of his weak magic into the blade, the sword amplified it.
This made him think of another powerful metal from the Marvel Universe—Uru, the material used by the Asgardians.
And given the legend that this sword was forged by a lake spirit, there was a good chance that it was indeed made of Uru.
Josh recalled that the Marvel universe had only two known types of elves—One was the Dark Elves from Thor: The Dark World.The other was the Light Elves of Alfheim, who never appeared in the movies.
If the sword was indeed forged by the latter, then it all made sense.
The Asgardians had the most Uru, but that didn't mean they were its sole owners—the dwarves were the main suppliers.
Since the Light Elves were allies of both the Asgard and the Dwarves, it made sense that they could get their hands on an Uru sword.
Of course, this was just Josh’s guess for now. Whether or not the sword was truly made of Uru needed further testing.
The only issue with it was its weight—it was a bit too heavy for Josh.
Still, it was reasonable for a two-handed greatsword.
If Dracula was willing to give away such a powerful sword, how many other treasures could he have?
Josh was eager to find out.
Of course, he didn't expect to get too many valuables from Dracula. The way Dracula handled things yesterday made it clear—he had some sort of storage ability, similar to his system inventory. The truly valuable items were probably kept for himself.
Still, Dracula's centuries of wealth on Earth were more than enough for Josh to profit handsomely.
