"Alright, Ant-Man… what exactly are you doing here?" Sam asked.
"Uh… I'm here to borrow a piece of advanced tech for a few days," Scott said, gesturing roughly to its size. "It's been sitting here for decades. Don't worry—I'll return it."
"I need it to save the world. You know… the kind of thing you guys do all the time."
"Yeah," Sam replied dryly, stepping toward him while activating his comm. "I know exactly what you mean."
"Found the intruder. Bringing him in."
Scott immediately realized what that meant—he was about to be arrested.
He shrank instantly, dodging Sam's grab.
Then he leapt up and punched Sam square in the face.
The impact felt like getting hit by a bullet. Sam recoiled and quickly activated his wings, taking to the air.
Meanwhile, Barton had been watching everything through surveillance. He immediately grabbed his bow and left the control room.
"All units, be advised—intruder detected. Target can change size at will. Equip trackers. Repeat—equip trackers."
Within minutes, agents swarmed the building, surrounding it completely. Each of them wore specialized visors—tracking devices.
---
Scott was blown off course by the gusts from Sam's wings and crashed into the lawn below.
"Scott, what are you doing?! I told you to retreat!" Pym shouted, nearly losing his mind in the basement.
Scott hadn't just ignored orders—he'd picked a fight with an Avenger, on their home turf no less.
Sam hovered in the air, locking onto Scott through his visor. Zooming in, he could clearly see Scott scrambling through the grass with frantic little steps.
Sam descended and stomped down hard.
He wasn't trying to kill him—just force him to reveal himself.
It worked.
Scott leapt up again and threw another punch—but this time Sam was ready. He grabbed him mid-air.
A sharp pain shot through his palm, and Sam instinctively hurled Scott back to the ground.
The impact forced Scott back to full size.
In the next second, Sam swooped down, grabbed him by the throat, and shot into the sky.
Scott struggled free and tried to shrink again—
—but an arrow came flying straight at him.
Just before it hit, Scott shrank in time.
Sam landed, and Scott burst out of the grass, growing mid-motion. His legs wrapped around Sam's neck in a deadly scissor hold, slamming him to the ground.
Sam reacted instantly, taking flight again while dragging Scott upward—then diving straight down.
The ground rushed closer.
At the last second, Scott let go and tried to shrink—
—but this time, Sam flapped his wings hard, sending a powerful gust that disrupted the transformation.
Thud!
Scott hit the ground hard.
Right then, Barton arrived.
An electrified arrow struck Scott directly.
The surge of electricity paralyzed him instantly.
Within three seconds—he blacked out.
---
When Scott woke up again, he was already locked inside an interrogation room.
It was a transparent glass chamber—similar to the one designed for the Hulk on the Helicarrier during the Battle of New York.
He was still wearing the Ant-Man suit.
But his helmet was gone.
Scott quickly stood up, scanning his surroundings.
The door opened.
Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, and Clint Barton stepped in outside the chamber.
"Whoa—Captain America! Hawkeye!! I actually get to meet the Avengers!"
Scott completely forgot about his missing helmet and rushed up to the glass, practically vibrating with excitement.
"Can I get your autographs?"
"Autographs can wait, Scott," Steve said calmly. "I want to know why you're here."
Barton stepped forward with a tablet.
"Scott Lang. MIT graduate. Master's in Electrical Engineering. Ex-wife Maggie Lang. One daughter—Cassie Lang, eight years old. Former inmate. Currently… a professional thief."
He waved the tablet in front of Scott's face, filled with detailed records—practically his entire life laid bare.
"Hey! That's an invasion of privacy! I'm not here to steal anything!" Scott protested immediately. He was trying to turn his life around—he wasn't that guy anymore.
"We already know what you came here for," Steve said. "I want specifics."
He wasn't in uniform—just his old brown leather jacket. It made him seem less imposing, but no less authoritative.
"Alright… I'll tell you," Scott said after a pause. "But you have to let me go. I've got a world to save."
He looked straight at Steve.
Among the Avengers, Steve was always the leader—even Tony deferred to him in critical moments.
"If you're not a threat, and everything checks out, we'll release you," Steve replied.
Satisfied, Scott nodded.
"I'm here for a signal scrambler. It's been stored here for decades. I just need to borrow it—briefly."
He repeated what he had told Sam earlier.
"What do you need it for?" Steve asked.
Barton quickly searched the device on his tablet and found it.
Steve glanced at the image. He didn't fully understand it, but anything stored here counted as classified. How did Scott even know about it?
"It can mask and spoof signals," Scott explained. "I need it to destroy something… something that could wipe out the world."
He kept it vague, deliberately avoiding details. The mission required secrecy—too many people knowing could ruin everything.
"This device has been here for over thirty years," Steve said, eyes narrowing slightly. "How did you know about it?"
Scott hesitated.
He wanted to tell them. If they verified his story, they'd likely release him.
But that would expose Hank Pym and Hope.
And Scott wasn't the kind of person who sold out his friends.
"…I…"
"We're already tracking the signal from your helmet," Steve said evenly. "Even if you don't tell us, we'll find the source."
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