The Superhero Registration Act.
This was the origin of the Marvel Civil War in the original storyline.
Of course, in the movie universe, the causes of the Civil War weren't limited to this bill alone. It also tied into the deaths of Tony Stark's parents—Howard and Maria Stark—and other underlying personal conflicts.
The emergence of the Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes, was also a decisive factor. On one hand, it intensified the fallout from the Civil War. On the other, it nearly caused Steve Rogers' entire support network to collapse.
In the world where Anton resides, Tony Stark has taken his support for the Superhero Registration Act even further than in the original timeline.
He has proposed that all individuals with extraordinary abilities across the globe be identified and registered—regardless of whether they're considered superheroes.
This goes far beyond the original scope of the bill. It reflects how Tony's character in this universe has become more extreme, more rigid than before.
To be fair, the implementation of this act does come with certain benefits—greater oversight, increased accountability—but Tony's approach is too radical.
If this law is enforced, it will undoubtedly create deep divisions.
Those who are unwilling to register will inevitably clash with those who support the act.
Conflict is not just likely—it's inevitable.
This is the fundamental reason behind the Marvel Civil War in the original plot. While the surrounding circumstances were more complex, the root cause was always the aggressive push to impose control over people with powers—ignoring personal freedoms in favor of dominance through authority and power.
And such forceful methods naturally breed resistance.
Now, as Tony Stark pushes this act forward, his greatest opposition comes from the shadows: the Justice League—an underground force with growing influence and reputation.
Tony and other top-level officials are actually aware of the identities of several League members.
Only a few, like Batman, have managed to remain completely hidden—despite the fact that their stories have already been adapted into movies, there's not a single trace of them in reality.
"Batman, Wonder Woman, Cyborg, Green Arrow, Shazam, Constantine..."
Stark Industries Building.
After the press conference, Tony Stark returned to his private penthouse. Gazing at the sunset through the balcony windows, he muttered these names to himself—his expression calm, yet determined.
…
Elsewhere — The Daily Bugle.
Eddie listened carefully as Anton explained everything. After a moment of thought, he asked,
"So... how should we respond?"
"There's no rush," Anton replied, shaking his head. "The reason I had Cyborg infiltrate Stark Industries was because Ultron poses a greater threat to us than this so-called Registration Act."
"Why do you say that?" Eddie asked, curious.
To him, it seemed like the Registration Act was clearly a bigger threat—especially to the Justice League.
If their true identities were ever exposed, the consequences could be catastrophic.
Even if their names didn't become public, could they really stay hidden from the supervillains out there?
Those who hate superheroes—or the Justice League in particular—would absolutely target their families and friends out of revenge.
If they couldn't strike at the heroes directly, it would be all too easy to turn their anger toward those closest to them.
And that was just the most obvious danger.
On a deeper level, once the Registration of Extraordinary Individuals Act is passed, superheroes would fall under the control of global governments or the World Security Council.
What happens then?
Would the "freedom" the government promised still mean anything?
There were countless other risks as well—many still unseen.
As for Ultron, although he has developed self-awareness and may pose a threat to humanity, the general consensus is that his impact on the Justice League will not be as severe as that of the Extraordinary Abilities Registration Act.
"Because this bill will never be successfully implemented," Anton said flatly.
"Trust me—Tony's blind enforcement of it will only bring him consequences."
"What are you going to do?"
Eddie leaned forward, his curiosity piqued.
"I'm going to expose the truth—and set Tony's backyard on fire," Anton said with a faint smile. "There are some things that have been buried in the past. It's time to dig them up."
"...?"
Eddie felt that familiar itch of intrigue but knew better than to press. He knew Anton's personality well—if Anton didn't want to reveal something yet, no amount of prodding would change that. So, he just shut up.
Later, while driving home, Anton got in touch with Harry Osborn of Oscorp.
Harry Osborn—member of the Illuminati, and a secret informant for the Justice League.
He was the one who informed Anton about Tony's plan to push forward the Superhero Registration Act.
This information was supposed to be a tightly guarded secret. The Justice League wasn't meant to know anything about it.
Fortunately for Anton, he had recruited Harry long ago.
Now, Harry served as the League's eyes on the inside.
As someone who had once fought alongside Tony during the Avengers era, Harry had earned his trust.
And due to the strong partnership between Oscorp and Wayne Enterprises, Tony had—unsurprisingly—launched a discreet investigation into Harry, trying to uncover any links to Batman or the Justice League.
But Tony found nothing.
Not a single clue.
Thanks to Cyborg's abilities, even when Anton and Harry met publicly, any traces that needed erasing simply disappeared. Their casual interactions were all part of the plan.
After all, Harry's friendly relations with the Justice League had always been somewhat public knowledge.
With the kind of status he and Anton held, they had the luxury of being a little reckless.
What's wrong with meeting a friend?
Can't people be friends even if they're on opposite sides?
If the characters in stories always stuck to black-and-white lines, half the drama wouldn't exist.
"Harry," Anton asked calmly as he turned onto a quiet road, "you have a good relationship with Steve Rogers, right?"
"Yeah. Rogers is a decent guy," Harry replied, though the tone of Anton's question made him pause. "Why? Something going on?"
"From your observation, has he been getting close to the military lately?" Anton asked.
"He's working as a special forces training instructor," Harry said. "So yeah, he's pretty tight with the military now. Made a lot of friends there—mostly soldiers. From what I've seen, those relationships are solid."
He paused, then added, "Oh, and there's this new ace agent the military's added to the team. Code name: White Wolf."
Harry thought for a moment.
"This White Wolf and Rogers are pretty close. From what I can tell, the military wants to use him to get closer to Rogers… maybe even win him over completely. After all, the Captain has been a symbol of the U.S. military since the very beginning."
"White Wolf?"
Anton smiled. This was exactly what he wanted to hear.
"I see," he said simply.
Then, after a moment, Anton added, "There's something I need you to handle for me."
"Name it," Harry replied without hesitation. "I'll do my best."
…
A while later.
Harry arrived at the entrance of Stark Tower.
He paused for a moment, recalling what Anton had told him over the phone. The events and circumstances described made him feel that something terrible was coming.
"Phew..."
He exhaled deeply, then walked into the building without hesitation.
Click.
The door opened automatically—even without scanning an ID card.
Ultron had already verified Harry's identity through facial recognition and various other markers, so he was granted immediate access.
It was nighttime. The Stark Industrial Building was quiet and nearly empty.
Harry made his way up to the penthouse, where he found Tony waiting.
"Harry? What are you doing here?"
Tony had already poured two glasses of bourbon and was sitting comfortably on the sofa, smiling as he faced the elevator doors.
"You've got a strange look on your face. What's going on?"
"I have something important to tell you," Harry said seriously.
He pulled out his phone, tapped a few times, and a small projector activated, casting several rows of data into the air. As the holograms loaded, he continued:
"Recently, one of Hydra's European bases was breached. A lot of classified data got leaked. I'm guessing you've seen some of it already?"
"Yeah," Tony nodded. "We've got top-level access through S.H.I.E.L.D.—I've reviewed a portion of it. What's your point? Is there something unusual in the files?"
"Unusual?"
Harry's expression turned grim. "Maybe not to me—but for you? Very."
Tony's brows furrowed, sensing the shift in Harry's tone.
"What are you trying to say?"
"I found something in Hydra's archives... a detail that may be connected to your parents' car accident."
The room went completely silent.
Tony's eyes locked on Harry's. His voice turned low and sharp.
"What did you just say?"
He paused.
"Are you sure, Harry?"
"Absolutely," Harry said, meeting his gaze. "I would never mess around about something like this."
How can the Extraordinary Abilities Registration Act be stopped?
The simplest method is this: make sure the man who proposed it doesn't even have the time to push it forward.
Delay him. Distract him.
Eventually, the bill will fizzle out on its own.
Of course, real life is rarely that simple—but as long as Tony's personal life goes up in flames, everything will play out exactly as Anton expects.
Just like in the original Civil War arc.
There was fighting, chaos, ideological conflict—and in the end, the Superhero Registration Act disappeared.
Captain America and the Winter Soldier vanished.
And Tony Stark? Left alone, holding Pepper Potts, performing heart surgery to remove the last arc reactor, deciding to retire and leave the superhero world behind.
In this world, however, Tony's bond with Steve Rogers is even stronger than in the original timeline.
As founding Avengers, their mutual trust ran deep.
They'd fought side by side through thick and thin, and with the looming pressure of the Justice League, no real rift had ever formed between them.
Their shared failures had only deepened their connection.
Steve Rogers was more than just a teammate—he had become a mentor figure to Tony. His words and values helped pull Tony out of emotional darkness more than once.
But during the Washington incident, things had changed.
The Winter Soldier had appeared.
He was captured by the Justice League, and eventually handed over to the Secretary of Defense, John Koehler.
That appearance marked a turning point.
Now, just as Tony prepares to introduce the Registration Act, the Winter Soldier has re-emerged—under a new identity: White Wolf, a decorated member of the Special Forces.
This was the moment Anton had been waiting for.
The moment he could use this turning point…
To drive a wedge between Tony and Steve.
"Winter Soldier. White Wolf..."
Anton scoffed, remembering the conversation he had with the military.
Though their cooperation had been smooth so far, with aligned interests—Anton never forgot:
They were not on the same side.
It was not unusual for the military to keep things from him.
Take Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier, for example—he had been fully rehabilitated and was now operating under the alias "White Wolf," having joined the special forces. Yet Anton had never been informed of this.
Given Bucky's complex background and sensitive affiliations, this could be considered classified information. Still, what bothered Anton wasn't just the secrecy—it was the selective secrecy.
When Tony proposed the Extraordinary Abilities Registration Act, he had met with numerous high-ranking officials. The topic had circulated in military camps, but none of them had contacted Anton—not even in secret.
What disappointed him the most was that not even John Koehler, the Secretary of Defense and someone Anton considered an ally, had said a word.
It was clear: whether it was the World Security Council or the military, many had hopes riding on the registration bill. And to ensure it went forward smoothly, some within the Justice League had even cooperated to suppress certain information.
"It seems..."
Anton sneered, muttering to himself, "...my friendliness has led you all to forget the respect due to superheroes—and the Justice League."
Revealing the identity of the White Wolf served a dual purpose:
First, to drive a wedge between Tony and Captain America.
Second, to strike back at the military—to remind them that the Justice League was not a puppet they could control.
As these thoughts simmered, Anton made a call.
John Koehler answered.
"Anton? That's a surprise. You rarely call first. What's going on?"
His tone was warm, polite—no hint that his military faction had been trying to put the entire Justice League under surveillance.
"I just wanted to ask about something," Anton said. "Not long ago, you took custody of the Winter Soldier—Bucky Barnes. He was brainwashed by Hydra. You know, Captain America's old comrade from World War II. How is he doing?"
"Oh?"
John Koehler's eyes flickered with interest, though his voice remained calm.
"He's doing fine. We're still working on reversing Hydra's brainwashing—it's a slow process, as I mentioned last time."
"That's good to hear."
Anton paused, then added, "By the way… a few days ago, some information was recovered from Hydra's European database. It concerned the death of Tony Stark's parents—the Howards."
"…What?"
John Koehler's voice cracked, unable to conceal the shock.
"What did you say? Are you implying Bucky was involved in their deaths?"
"Yes."
Anton nodded, his voice firm.
"I'm 100% certain. The so-called car accident that killed the Howards was staged by Hydra. And Bucky Barnes—the Winter Soldier—was the one who carried out the assassination."
…
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