Despite the logical justification and the strange comfort of seeing an elderly Steve Rogers, a heavy, cold guilt still sat in Max’s chest.
Lying in the dark of his Louisiana nursery, the baby stared at the ceiling, haunted by the brutal sounds of Howard’s skull fracturing and Maria’s breathless terror.
*”You carry a burden that is not entirely yours, Master.”*
The voice echoing in his mind startled him.
It was no longer the genderless, omnipresent hum of the dimension.
It had crystallized into a beautiful, melodic, and deeply soothing female voice—one that sounded exactly like the regal, fiercely loyal Alpha from his memories of *The Eminence in Shadow*.
*Alpha?
Your voice changed.*
*”I am an extension of your soul, Master,”* she replied softly.
*”As my consciousness solidifies, I have gained access to your memories and past life experiences to better serve you.
I took a form and voice you associate with absolute trust.”*
Max felt a wave of relief wash over him.
He wasn’t entirely alone in this.
*”Do not despair over the Starks,”* Alpha continued, her tone shifting to one of analytical comfort.
*”Based on the dimensional physics and cosmic entities in your memories, if you had commanded the Shadowkhan to intervene and save them, you would have created a massive branch in the timeline.
It is highly probable that the entity known as the Time Variance Authority—the TVA—would have immediately detected the anomaly, stepped in, and pruned this entire reality.
You chose the only path that ensured survival.”*
Max closed his eyes, exhaling a long, shaky breath.
She was right.
The TVA was a bureaucratic nightmare with the power to erase universes.
*I just…
I want to fix it.
I need to get stronger so I can actually intervene without breaking reality.*
*”And you will, Master.
As you grow, your power will allow you to reduce the tragedies of the future without alerting the cosmic scales.”*
The next morning, Max’s internal turmoil bled into his physical demeanor.
He picked at his mashed peas, refused to babble, and stared out the kitchen window with the thousand-yard stare of a seasoned war veteran.
Maria and Monica, of course, noticed instantly.
“Is he okay, Mom?” Monica asked, leaning over his highchair with a worried frown.
She dangled a plastic action figure in front of his face, but Max just let out a heavy sigh and rested his chin in his chubby hand.
“He’s not doing his superhero training today.”
Maria walked over, pressing the back of her hand against Max’s forehead.
“No fever,” she murmured.
She gently rubbed his tummy.
“Probably just a stomachache, or maybe he’s got some gas trapped in there.
Max offered her a weak, gummy smile to reassure her.
The sheer, absurd irony of his situation—a teenage soul bearing the guilt of a world-shaping assassination, being treated for a tummy ache—was almost enough to make him laugh.
He let Maria pick him up and burp him, playing the part flawlessly so as not to worry them further.
Later that afternoon, while Monica was at school and Maria was doing laundry, Max lay on his playmat and focused inward.
He needed to increase his mana.
If he could expand his reserves, he could upgrade the Shadow Dimension and gather the Karma needed to wake the Starks.
*Alpha, how do I actively grind my mana capacity?* he asked.
Before Alpha could answer, a familiar blue interface materialized in his mind’s eye.
The System had updated itself to provide the answer directly.
> **[Mana Cultivation Methods]**
> * **Physical Augmentation:** The Mana Heart is directly linked to the physical vessel.
As the Host’s body grows stronger and can endure greater strain, the Mana Heart will expand its limits explosively.
Host must begin physical exercise and *Body Modification* when the infant body is durable enough to withstand the stress.
> * **Skill Depletion:** Continuously expending and regenerating Mana through the use of skills will slowly, but permanently, increase the overall capacity.
> *Notice: Frequent use of the **Minor Healing** skill via the Shadowkhan over the past two weeks has yielded a small Mana capacity increase and a steady, significant accumulation of Karma.*
>
Max’s eyes widened.
He had actually gained both mana and Karma by having his ninjas act as secret paramedics in New York.
Healing people from the shadows wasn’t just a moral choice; it was an absolute good deed that paid massive dividends.
He could grow stronger, farm the necessary Karma, and save lives—all while remaining completely hidden.
To his teenage gamer sensibilities, it felt exactly like discovering an overpowered training bug.
However, his excitement paused as a stark red alert flashed onto the screen.
> **[SYSTEM ALERT: TARGET SOUL DEGRADATION & RESURRECTION PROTOCOL]**
> * **Targets:** Howard Stark, Maria Stark.
> * **Status:** Due to the delayed retrieval (Autopsy, Morgue, Funeral), minor spiritual dissipation has occurred.
However, the souls remain fully viable for immediate Resurrection using the targets’ own accumulated Karma.
> * **System Query:** Does the Host wish to proceed with Resurrection using Target Karma, or offset the cost entirely using Host Karma?
> * **System Advice:** For future operations, the Host must secure the bodies of the deceased **immediately** upon the moment of death.
Bringing a freshly deceased body into the time-locked Shadow Dimension instantly locks the soul to the physical vessel, preventing any dissipation.
>
Max read the prompt carefully.
He could revive them right now using their own lifetime of Karma, waking them up instantly.
But then he thought about the future.
He couldn’t let them out of the Shadow Dimension—not for years, maybe decades. This story is hosted at g.com.
Living in a time-locked, isolated void meant they would generate absolutely zero new Karma.
If he used their Karma now to pay for this resurrection, their spiritual balance would be completely depleted.
If something happened to them again down the line, they would be permanently dead with no way to pay the toll.
He wasn’t going to just revive them once and wash his hands of the situation.
They needed a permanent safety net.
*Use my Karma,* Max commanded mentally.
He would shoulder the cost himself.
He wouldn’t let their ultimate safety be compromised, no matter how much it drained his own reserves.
He would wait until he had accumulated enough of his own Karma to revive them, and expanded the dimension to make it truly livable for them.
The red alert faded, acknowledging his choice, and was replaced by his updated status.
> **Name:** Max Rambeau (James Carter)
> **Age:** 1 Year
> **Mana:** 5050 / 5050
>
*Did my mana go up by exactly fifty points?* Max wondered.
*”Indeed, Master,”* Alpha’s voice chimed in.
*”And I am pleased to report that the borders of the Shadow Dimension have expanded.
The radius is now 101 meters.”*
Max blinked, instantly doing the math.
Fifty mana points equaled one meter of dimensional expansion.
That was an incredibly generous ratio.
With his new “training bug” confirmed, Max immediately established a new protocol.
*”Alpha,”* Max commanded.
*”Keep the four guard ninjas here with Maria and Monica.
Keep one ninja stationed inside the Dimension at all times as a relay.
Send the remaining five back out into the world.
They are to continuously patrol cities with high crime rates.
I want them casting Minor Healing to stabilize fatal injuries—stopping the bleeding, anchoring the vitals, but never fully curing them to avoid suspicion.
We are going to grind this system.”*
Max clenched his tiny, chubby fists.
The guilt was still there, but now it was forged into absolute determination.
He had the rules, he had the math, and he had the time.
He was going to build an empire in the shadows, one saved life at a time.