Damian appeared at his house, causing a surge of energy that took him by surprise.

Carol immediately appeared, flying in front of him, covered in golden energy.

Upon seeing him, Carol was taken aback before she turned off her cosmic energy and stopped levitating.

"What are you doing?" Carol asked, looking at him speechless. She was genuinely startled for a moment.

"I just have some trouble controlling my magic," Damian said, smiling slightly before approaching Carol and hugging her.

"You've improved your magic again and still haven't created one for me. I can only watch with envy as Ana, Ophelia, and Sophia do all sorts of things. I'm almost certain that after doing it, they look at me with a smile," Carol complained within Damian's embrace.

"I'm sorry," Damian said, smiling before kissing Carol on the forehead.

"How long was I gone?" Damian asked, breathing in the familiar scent of Carol.

"Almost two days. It was really difficult to keep those little troublemakers happy. They kept asking when their daddy was coming back," Carol said, laughing.

"Hm, that was quite some time," Damian said, nodding.

"Has anything happened while I was away?" Damian casually inquired.

"Don't you like keeping secrets? Figure it out yourself," Carol said, laughing before entering the house.

Damian chuckled lightly before following her inside to find his little princesses who were surely eager to see him.

Before he reached the living room, Emma came running followed by Alice and Ivy.

The three little ones looked like colorful missiles launching themselves at him.

"My lovely girls, did you miss me?" Damian asked, repeatedly kissing their cheeks.

The three girls looked at him with slightly teary eyes as they nodded.

"All right, I won't be gone for so long again," Damian said, caressing their little heads.

"Do you promise?" Emma asked, extending her pinky finger towards Damian. Damian's absence had been harder for Emma, as she couldn't see him as she usually did.

"I promise," Damian said, laughing as he intertwined his pinky with Emma's.

"So, what did you do while I was away?" Damian asked, walking with his daughters towards the living room.

"We slept with Mommy and watched movies," Ivy said quietly, resting one side of her face against Damian's chest.

"Hmm, so you slept without me? That's not acceptable. Tonight, we'll have to sleep together," Damian acted as if it were inconceivable.

The three little ones laughed at how he was behaving while his expression was clearly brighter than before.

"You really are incorrigible," Ana said, shaking her head slightly.

"It seems there won't be much action tonight," Ophelia joked upon hearing Damian.

Ana just rolled her eyes and went to hug Damian. After all, she had missed him too.

Ana hugged Damian from the side while also embracing the three little ones who playfully tried to compete for Damian's hug.

"All right, then tell us what kept you," Sophia said, entering the living room and looking at Damian with a smile.

Everyone's attention was now fixed on Damian, eager to know why he had taken so long.

"Sure, but let's wait for Natasha, she's on her way. In the meantime, I'll grab something to eat. I've been without food for almost two days, I can barely feel strength in my hands. I wish someone could feed me," Damian pretended to be weak while looking at his daughters with a slight smile.

"Then I'll feed Daddy," Emma said excitedly with a smile.

"No, I will," Ivy said, looking at Emma.

And so, a three-way stare-down began as they debated who would feed Damian.

"I'm quite hungry, so all three of you will feed me, or I'll eat you instead," Damian said, laughing while making a terrifying face that only elicited more laughter from his daughters.

"Hm, I think I might offer to be eaten," Carol said, hugging Damian from behind and whispering in his ear.

Damian just chuckled quietly before giving her a kiss on the cheek and heading to the kitchen with his daughters.

....

Natasha was driving home and was close to arriving when she received a message on her phone.

Quickly looking at the screen, she saw it was from Steve. She couldn't help but realize at that moment that she had brought Steve to SHIELD.

Upon checking the message, it was more or less what she expected. Steve was asking if she could give him a ride back or if he should take a taxi.

Natasha quickly told him she would take him back. She didn't want to imagine what it would be like for Steve to carry his shield and suit in a taxi.

After a while, Natasha arrived in front of the SHIELD offices where Steve was waiting with a bag and a round object inside a case.

Seeing Natasha, Steve only smiled slightly before putting his things in and sitting in the passenger seat.

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"Will you be okay tonight?" Natasha asked, assuming what Steve was going to do.

"I think so, and there will probably be SWORD agents around, right?" Steve said, smiling at Natasha.

"I think they'll be following you to catch the alien," Natasha nodded.

"Were you headed home?" Steve asked, smiling, not minding being used as bait since that was his intention.

"Yes, I'm sorry, I completely forgot about you," Natasha said, apologizing shyly.

"It's okay, habits are really something," Steve said, unfazed.

"Do you have family waiting for you at home?" Steve asked, knowing she had daughters, but none of them looked much like Natasha, so he wasn't sure.

"Yes, my... husband, uh, now that I think about it, he hasn't been back for two days. But my daughters and my... sisters? It's complicated," Natasha said, laughing as she saw Steve's expression change.

Steve was even more confused by Natasha's words.

"Someday I'll invite you to dinner at home, and you can see what it's like," Natasha laughed, wondering if Damian and Steve could be friends.

Natasha parked her car in front of Steve's apartment. He got out with his things before saying goodbye to Natasha and going inside.

Natasha quickly started her car and drove at full speed towards home. She wanted to see if Damian had arrived. She had missed him in these two days.

...

Steve looked out the window and saw that Natasha's car was no longer there. The darkness of the night seemed deeper than usual, and the street looked eerily deserted, with the streetlights casting long shadows.

Steve figured that several agents were watching his house, waiting for him to leave. So, he quickly grabbed a bite to eat before opening his bag and taking out the uniform Natasha had given him.

It was a black uniform with blue edges, excellent for stopping cuts and stabs, though he wasn't sure how effective it would be against alien weapons.

He quickly dressed before picking up his shield and lightly caressing the edges. Memories of the war and his friends briefly crossed his mind before he focused.

Placing the shield on his back, Steve left his apartment and began to walk toward the alley where he had encountered the alien. He didn't know why, but he believed he would find it there.

SWORD agents watched Steve through the cameras, not daring to spy on him directly as they feared becoming the next prey of the alien.

Several teams were ready in their vehicles, prepared to assist Steve if necessary.

Maria watched the cameras with a calm expression. She couldn't just go and dispose of the alien. She wanted to keep observing before capturing them; killing them could start a conflict with that race, something humans were definitely not prepared for.

Her job as the leader of SWORD was to prevent this from turning into an intercivilizational war.

Steve arrived at the alley and stood at the entrance, alert to any attack.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of something hitting the ground, causing his muscles to tense as he prepared to move.

The Yautja landed several meters away from Steve and deactivated its camouflage. It was clear that the human seemed prepared, but it couldn't understand why he continued to use a shield. Regardless, that was no longer important. Only one of them would leave this place alive.

"See you again," Steve said, more to himself, as it was possible the Yautja wouldn't understand.

"This time... we'll finish it," the Yautja said, surprising Steve with its raspy voice.

"Why did you kill those people?" Steve quickly asked after his surprise.

"Prey... weak... You strong," the Yautja replied before drawing its dagger and extending the wrist blades, while a small cannon on its shoulder moved.

Steve reached for his back and took his shield, assuming a defensive stance.

Tension filled the air as the two opponents locked eyes, each looking for an opening to strike.

The Yautja lunged with his sword at Steve, stabbing him repeatedly. Steve quickly blocked the attacks that seemed to come from all angles. Despite wanting to counterattack, he couldn't, as the Yautja's other hand was poised to strike him as soon as he made a move.

For the first time, he realized that his shield might not be enough for this kind of fight, or perhaps he had always been physically superior compared to his opponents.

The Yautja moved from side to side, circling Steve while attacking. However, it noticed that its strikes were easily thwarted by the human.

It stopped holding back its other hand and began to attack more intensely.

Steve noticed this change and when the Yautja attacked with its right arm, he feigned a block before withdrawing the shield at the last second, then spun, slamming his shield against the Yautja's shoulder.

The Yautja staggered and collided with the alley wall before looking at Steve and growling.

The extraterrestrial began to analyze the human, quickly detecting his most vulnerable spot. It had to admit that his opponent was very skilled, and his reflexes were incredibly fast.

Advancing towards Steve, the Yautja quickly delivered a series of attacks before feinting, causing Steve to attempt a block. Seeing that he had fallen for the feint, it quickly spun to gain momentum before sweeping Steve's legs with its heel.

Steve was taken by surprise and fell to the ground.

He quickly rolled and narrowly dodged the pair of wrist blades.

Steve quickly rolled back before striking his shield against the blades, breaking them in the process.

The Yautja quickly attempted to stab him with its short sword but was blocked by his shield.

Steve constantly defended himself from the ground, as the Yautja didn't give him a chance to get up.

He quickly retreated to the ground before freeing his arm from the shield and blocking with both hands.

Taking advantage of blocking one of the Yautja's stabs, Steve lightly released his shield before kicking it with both legs toward the small cannon on the Yautja's shoulder.

He always considered that unknown weapon the greatest threat since he didn't know what kind of attacks it could unleash, or if even his shield could withstand it.

The shield struck the cannon, causing it to break and hang uselessly, also hitting one side of its mask, interrupting the Yautja's focus.

Steve seized that interruption to stand up, raising his fists slightly and looking at the extraterrestrial.

His shield had fallen a few meters away, but one wrong move and the Yautja would make him pay.

Steve's breathing was already a bit accelerated as he stared at the alien, who was physically very similar to himself.

The Yautja looked at the short sword in its hand before lunging at Steve again, its breathing also quickened after an intense fight.

Steve dodged the stabs and cuts while counterattacking.

The two were locked in a stalemate for a moment before Steve, directing the fight towards his shield, crouched down and somersaulted to the ground, picking up his shield and placing it on his back, taking the cut that was already coming towards him.

He quickly spun back to exchange strikes with the Yautja before turning to take a cut to the back and somersaulting, delivering a powerful kick to the Yautja's head, sending it to the ground.

The Yautja quickly spun back before ending up half kneeling on the ground, looking at the human.

Steve, this time, launched into the attack, using his shield to charge and break his opponent's stance before delivering several blows to the head or torso.

Their fight lasted for several minutes as both seemed to have inexhaustible stamina.

Steve seized an opportunity when the Yautja sent a stab towards him to lightly dodge and deliver a powerful blow to the Yautja's head with his shield.

The impact of the hit caused the Yautja to spin in the air before landing face down. Due to the impact, it released its weapon, causing it to fall some distance away.

Steve looked at his fallen opponent, who was trying to get up before noticing that the helmet had split in half, and the Yautja was looking at him with green blood running down its face.

The Yautja looked at Steve and breathed heavily before extending its hand towards its wrist, clearly admitting defeat, as it would die with honor.

It quickly pressed several buttons, causing Steve to go on guard and unconsciously hide his body behind the shield, leaving only his eyes to watch.

Maria, who was observing the situation, couldn't help but have a bad feeling before quickly approaching the area from the rooftop of the building.

The Yautja's wrist began to make counting sounds, and the number of symbols seemed to be decreasing.

Maria couldn't help but feel that something dangerous was about to happen. Anxiously, she quickly used one of her familiars to create dozens of magical layers around the alien.

"Let's go quickly," Maria said with panic as she grabbed Steve's wrist and pulled him out of the alley.

There, she created several layers of barriers again, protecting the buildings.

The countdown on the device quickly reached zero.