Chapter 90

The stars above the canyon shimmered with timeless indifference, pinpricks of light against a velvet sea of night. Gojo Satoru stood still, aloof and quiet his white hair stirred by the breeze that whistled gently through the stone spires around him.

This place, ever since coming to this universe, had become his sanctuary.

Hands in his pockets, he tilted his head back, gazing at the boundless sky. His mind, however, was far from serene. It lingered on a memory of his fight with Magneto, the moment space around the Master of Magnetism twisted like cracked glass, warping with the weight of electromagnetic collapse and swallowing matter from all around him.

Edges of reality had frayed.

Lines in space jagged and sharp, yet oddly smooth as if the infinity itself had curled inward to whisper in his ear in that tiny little spark he had seen.

Gojo's lips moved unconsciously.

"Limitless…"

That's what it felt like.

Not just space stretching out forever but space as the very canvas of existence. Not empty and definitely not nothing. But a living fabric filled with both positive and negative energy.

He closed his eyes.

"To simulate a gravitational collapse," he murmured, "I have to imagine removing space itself at a single point… creating a void so violent it draws matter inward to fill it."

Gojo furrowed his brow.

"But space isn't empty, is it?"

He paced slowly, feet crunching against gravel.

"It's a fabric. A river. Every particle and photon swimming in quantum fields and ghost particles. If I pinch out a drop then all surrounding space should collapse to fill the vacuum. That rush… that collapse… that is Blue."

For hours, Gojo stood there thinking.

Two minds working in tandem:

One maintaining his personal telekinetic shield 'Infinity', his shield against all.

The other his original, brilliant and frustrated was focused wholly on trying to think of how to safely manifest Blue.

At one point, he made the first attempt. A subtle tug at the idea.

A sharp snap echoed out and the air before him folded in on itself like crushed paper. An unstable vortex formed, swirling hungrily. His eyes widened.

"Nope, nope, nope, nope"

He teleported instantly, leaving the canyon behind just before the collapse swallowed a chunk of the cliff he had been standing on.

He reappeared two miles away, breathing heavily.

And still he tried again.

And again.

Each attempt failed.

One time, his left fingers tore off, sucked briefly into the collapsing mini-vacuum. He winced, rejected the injury, and tried again.

Another time, his leg from the knee down vanished. He collapsed, gritting his teeth in agony.

"That one… actually hurt," he muttered, voice shaking.

By the fourth day, exhausted and irritated, he gave up. 'Am I doing it wrong??'

He went back and forth between the X-Mansion and the canyon, sleeping only when absolutely necessary. Frustration mounting, his thoughts spiraled.

The visualization was perfect. The theory was solid.

But something was still off.

Desperate for a fresh perspective, he did something no one including himself thought he'd do.

He went to Stark Tower.

---

The moment he teleported into the lobby, alarms screamed to life.

Red lights flashed. A klaxon blared through the glass-and-metal architecture.

"What the hell?"

Before Gojo could move, a panel on the wall slid open revealing a sleek silver and red Iron Man suit, repulsors glowing bright, arms raised directly at him.

Gojo raised both hands lazily.

"Okay okay, don't shoot. I'm Gojo. I'm here to see Stark. Don't vaporize me."

He eyed the suit warily. 'Of course he has bodyguard suits built into the walls...'

A voice cut through the standoff.

"So… you're Gojo?"

A tall woman with auburn hair and calm authority strode into view.

"Pepper Potts," she said, extending a hand. "Tony's assistant. Right this way."

Gojo shook her hand and smiled. "Apologies for the dramatic entrance. And the alarms."

"It's okay," Pepper said with a sigh. "We get attacked way too often. Paranoia's just part of the building plan."

They passed the suspended suit as it powered down, eyes dimming as it returned to standby.

Moments later, the elevator doors opened into Tony's private lab.

Tony Stark, billionaire genius in a tank top stained with oil, stood over a glowing holographic interface as algorithmic sequences rolled past his screen. He didn't look up right away.

"Huh. Gojo."

He turned, blinking at the sight of the white-haired sorcerer.

"I'm surprised. What brings the untouchable pretty boy to my humble tower?"

Gojo shrugged, flashing a grin. "Well, I kinda need your brain for something."

Tony raised both brows, mock-dramatic. "Oh my. A compliment? You sure you're feeling okay?"

Gojo smirked. "Don't get used to it."

Tony turned to Pepper. "It's alright, Pep. I've got this."

She nodded and left the room.

Tony leaned on the desk, arms crossed. "So. What's going on?"

Gojo's smirk dropped. "I need help understanding… space. And I don't mean astronomy."

Tony tilted his head, intrigued. "Define 'space.'"

"The fabric of existence," Gojo said. "I'm trying to forcibly collapse it and control the collapse. Not matter or energy. Space itself. I've done it before, but now I want to… focus it. Refine it. And it keeps blowing up in my face."

Tony blinked. "That is… horrifying. And brilliant."

He tapped a few keys. "Okay. Let's get started then, shall we?"

Gojo gave a relieved breath, but then Tony added with a smirk:

"But if you destroy my lab, I will bill you."

Gojo grinned. "Fair."

'I doubt I can afford a single thing in this building'.

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