The atmosphere within Sefirah Castle shifted. The usual grey, churning fog began to glow with a golden hued intensity that seemed to bleed from the very stones of the dimension itself, responding to the immense transaction that had just taken place.
Tony Stark stood at the edge of the mottled stone table, his hands trembling slightly as they gripped the cold surface. He had done it. He had spent one billion dollars to purchase the one time, miraculous power of Mediumship.
As the transaction was finalized, the "System" rewired his perception. Suddenly, Tony gasped, his knees buckling. His Technopathy had already made him sensitive to the digital world, but this was different. A layer of existence that had always been there, invisible and silent suddenly tore open before his eyes. It was the Afterlife, a realm of soft light and echoing peace that sat just behind the veil of the material world.
Unlike his previous assumptions, this realm was a vast stillness where time did not exist. To the souls within it, the world above had ceased to be the moment they drew their last breath.
"I can... I can see it," Tony whispered, his voice cracking with awe and terror.
The members of the Tarot Club stood in a respectful semi circle. Aryan watched with a gentle gaze, his Omega level Telepathy ensuring the mental stability of the room as the two incompatible worlds collided.
Tony closed his eyes and called out into the void.
Mom. Dad.
The golden fog in the center of the room began to coalesce. Two figures emerged, gaining weight and color with agonizing slowness. First came the unmistakable silhouette of Howard Stark, adjusting his tie as if preparing for a board meeting. Beside him was Maria Stark, her face frozen in a look of horrific alarm.
They looked exactly as they had on that rainy night in December 1991. More importantly, they felt exactly as they had.
Howard Stark blinked, his sharp blue eyes darting around the vaulted architecture of the Castle. He looked like a man who had just been in a car crash. He touched his forehead, his fingers trembling.
"Maria?" Howard's voice panicked. "The car... Bucky…"
"Howard, look at me," Maria gasped, her hands flying to her throat. She was gasping for air that she no longer needed. The memory of the cold metal hand around her neck was the last thing her brain had recorded. "Howard, where is he? Tony… Where did he go?"
Tony's heart shattered. He realized the cruel logic of the ritual now. They were coming from the moment of their trauma. They had no idea they were dead. To them, the 16th of December was now.
"Mom. Dad. Look at me," Tony stepped into their line of sight, his voice shaking.
Howard spun around, his protective instincts flaring. He saw a man in his twenties, standing in a fog filled palace, wearing clothes that looked like science fiction.
"Who are you? Where is my son? We were in the car… we were going to the airport!" Howard barked, his voice rising in that familiar tone. "Is this a kidnapping? If you want money, you have no idea the hell I will bring down on you. I have S.H.I.E.L.D. on speed dial."
"Howard, wait," Maria whispered. She looked closer at Tony. She looked past the age. She looked at the shape of his nose, the specific way he held his shoulders and the wounded brown of his eyes. "Tony...?"
"It's me, Mom," Tony said, his voice breaking into a sob. "It's been a long time. You... you were in an accident. You didn't make it. But I'm here. I brought you back for one hour."
Howard Stark didn't do "grief" in 1991 and he certainly wasn't going to start now. As the reality of his death settled into his analytical brain, he did what Starks do. He demanded a status report.
"Twenty years?" Howard looked at Tony, his eyes narrowing. "You're telling me I've been dead for two decades? And this is what you've done with the time? You've spent a fortune on a high tech seance?"
"Dad, listen to me," Tony said, stepping closer. "I took over the company. I became a weapon designer, just like you. But I saw our weapons in the hands of the enemy. I saw the rot you missed."
Tony began to explain… the Mark suits, the Arc Reactor and the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. Howard listened with a paternal frown, his mind clearly racing to catch up with a future that had outpaced him.
"Iron Man? A tin suit?" Howard paced the fog, agitated. "Anthony, I left you the keys to the future! I left you the 1974 Expo model!"
"I found it!" Tony yelled back, desperate for validation. "I discovered the new element you couldn't stabilize. I finished your work! I used it to burn Hydra out of the organization you built!"
Howard froze. "Hydra? S.H.I.E.L.D. was Hydra?"
"From the start, Dad. Bucky was a brainwashed ghost from the Cold War. They used your own life's work to execute you because you were moving the serum."
The news hit Howard like a physical strike. He stumbled back, his face pale. "I built a shield... and I sharpened the edge for my own executioners."
But Howard's critical nature wouldn't stay down for long. He looked at Tony again, his eyes narrowing. "A global government? You're rewriting the laws of physics and biology?"
Howard continued, "But what about the legacy? Are you married? Do I have grandchildren? Who carries the torch when you're gone? You're what… forty? You spend your time flying around in a suit, but you haven't secured the Stark line?"
Tony blinked, a hysterical laugh bubbling up in his chest. "Classic Howard. I literally just pulled your soul out of the void and you're asking about my dating life?"
"I'm asking about your responsibility!" Howard barked. "A man with no children is a man with no future. It's the height of arrogance to be this powerful and this alone!"
"Howard, that is quite enough."
Maria Stark stepped forward, placing a gentle hand on Howard's chest. The effect was immediate, the iron willed founder of Stark Industries fell silent. She turned to Tony, her face breaking into a smile that washed away twenty years of guilt.
"He's had a very long day, Howard," Maria said softly, her eyes never leaving Tony. "Come here, my boy."
Tony collapsed into her arms. The Mediumship power made the contact feel real… Tony sobbed into her neck, the "Invincible Iron Man" dissolving into the boy who just wanted his mother.
"I'm sorry," Tony whispered into her hair. "I'm so sorry I didn't see it. I'm sorry I was so angry at you both."
"We know, Tony," Maria whispered back, stroking his hair. "We are so, so proud of the man you've become."
Howard stood a few feet away, his stern facade finally cracking. He looked at Aryan and the other members of the club, then back at his son. He reached out, placing a heavy hand on Tony's shoulder.
"I was never good at the... emotional hardware, Tony," Howard said, his voice thick. "I put it all into the machines. But your mother is right. You've done more than I ever could. You've found allies that aren't just bureaucrats in suits. You've found a way to save the world without losing your soul."
Howard looked at Maria, then back to Tony. "And for the record... that Potts girl. She's the best thing you ever did. Don't be an idiot. Marry her. Have the kids. Give them the childhood I was too busy to give you."
In the background, the members of the club were visibly moved. Wanda was openly crying, her hand clasped over her heart as she watched the family reunion she knew she would never have for herself.
T'Challa stood with his arms crossed over his chest in a Wakandan salute, a silent mark of respect for the ancestors.
Namor looked away, his jaw tight with his own grief.
Aryan watched the scene with a knowing smile. He felt the weight of the moment… This was why the Tarot Club existed. It was about fixing the broken parts of the world, one soul at a time.
As the golden light of the Mediumship power began to flicker, indicating that the one hour window was closing, Tony pulled back to look at them both.
"I'm building a new world," Tony told them, his voice now steady and full of resolve. "I'm going to make sure the Stark name stands for something more than just weapons."
"You already have, Tony," Maria said, her form beginning to dissolve into silver mist. "Live your life. Love that girl. And remember... we never truly left you."
Howard gave Tony one last nod… the highest form of praise he was capable of. "Don't mess it up, kid. And get started on those grandkids. I'm not getting any younger in the afterlife."
With a final shimmer of silver light, they were gone.