In the year 3016 on the technologically advanced alternate Earth known as
Other-Earth, 16-year-old robotics student Nathaniel Richards was rescued from a life-threatening situation by his future-self the time-traveling despot
Kang The Conqueror. Kang, hoping to change a very painful moment in his life, outfitted his younger self with a suit of psychokinetic armor that responded to his thoughts and gave him a glimpse of his future as a conqueror. Horrified at the death and destruction caused by his future-self, young Nathaniel rejected Kang's help and used the armor to escape and hide in the modern day Earth (616 reality), hoping to find the
Avengers so they could help him take down Kang. However, once young Nathaniel reached the present day and ventured toward Avengers Mansion looking for help all he found were the ruins left behind from the
Disassembled attacks from an insane
Scarlet Witch.
Calling himself Iron Lad, Nathaniel attempted to contact some of the individual Avengers but met with no success. Realizing that he couldn't travel further back in time due to a glitch in the armor (or perhaps due to mystical interference from the Scarlet Witch) Nathaniel set out to find help wherever he thought possible. He used his armor to track down the body of the Vision (who had also been destroyed during the Disassembled attacks) at a Stark Enterprises warehouse. Nathaniel then linked his armor to the Vision's body and downloaded all of his programming, including the Avengers protocols, a series of files on the next-wave of young Avengers who were all super-powered youths with either some significance to the Avengers themselves or to Avengers history.
Iron Lad used this data to recruit three "
Young Avengers" who resided in New York City. These three were Elijah "Eli" Bradley (the
Patriot), William "Billy" Kaplan (the
Asgardian), and Theodore "Teddy" Atlman (
Hulkling). Leading the quartet of young heroes on several missions in an attempt to train them in for their impending showdown with Kang. Learning of the existence of the "Young Avengers"
Captain America and
Iron Man set out to stop them before they got themselves hurt. They also attracted the attention of Daily Bugle employees
Kat Farrell and
Jessica Jones as well as wannabe heroes Cassandra "Cassie" Lang (later
Stature) and
Kate Bishop.
After Bishop and Lang joined the quartet they wandered to Avengers Mansion to confront Captain America, Iron Man, and Jessica Jones about their futures as heroes. After being attacked by and defeating an odd version of the Growing Man, Captain America tricked the sextet into a trap, confiscating their weaponry and imprisoning the Young Avengers inside the mansion while he Iron Man and Jones figured out what to do.
Then Kang showed up. Kang demanded he be given his younger-self before more damage was inflicted to the time-stream. Escaping from their imprisonment the Young Avengers picked up some weapons and attacked Kang alongside Cap, Iron Man, and Jones. The Young Avengers also figured out how to activate the Vision’s programming inside the Iron Lad armor. During the skirmish Iron Lad stabbed Kang through the back with the sword of the
Swordsman.
Once Kang was dead, reality began to flip out even further causing the Hulkling to disappear. Deciding that he had to accept his fate, Iron Lad had the remaining Young Avengers open a portal to send him back to the time he left. Iron Lad kissed Cassie Lang goodbye and entered the portal, but left the Iron Lad armor behind. Now the Iron Lad armor has merged with the Vision's programming, creating the new Vision who has since joined the Young Avengers. Whether or not the experiences of Iron Lad as a Young Avenger will affect the memories or behavior of Kang, remain to be seen, but it does appear as if Kang has a vested interest in the activities of the Young Avengers.
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