After being shown his future as Kang, Nathaniel Richards aka Iron Lad made sure to prevent it from happening and formed the Young Avengers.

After being told by Kang the Conqueror he was destined for a similar fate as the villain, Nathaniel Richards decided to turn against his future self and forge a new path as a hero. In Young Avengers, Iron Lad went back in time to team up with the Avengers to stop Kang, but after learning they disassembled, he helped form a new generation of the superteam.

Nathaniel Richards has reincarnated throughout time with many different versions of the character existing in the Marvel Universe - including Immortus, Rama Tut, Kang the Conqueror, and most recently, the He Who Remains in the Loki Disney+ series. Iron Lad is one of the heroic takes on Richards, as he was a longtime member of the Young Avengers and appeared on different Marvel teams throughout the years. However, Iron Lad's turn as a hero was inspired by a visit by Kang, who tried to change his future and turn him into a supervillain.

In Young Avengers by Allan Heinberg, Jim Cheung, John Dell, Mark Morales, Justin Ponsor, and VC's Cory Petit, Nathaniel Richards reveals himself to the Avengers as a being from the 30th Century known as Kang - explaining he hasn't become him yet. Richards tells them the actual Kang the Conqueror intervened when he was getting bullied and prevented him from a near-death experience that bankrupted his parents. Kang told Richards he was destined for a great future, where he will command an ancient time machine and eventually become Kang the Conqueror. However, after informing Richards he will slaughter his disciples in the fortieth century and tells him to kill his bully in the present, he rejects Kang's offer and travels back in time.

Wanting to avoid becoming Kang, Richards arrives in the present-day to find the Avengers disassembled. After striking out with contacting the superteam, he broke into Stark Industries and downloaded the Vision's operating system and data files into his armor. He soon discovered the Vision had a failsafe program activated when the Avengers disbanded, which led Iron Lad to the next wave of Avengers. With that knowledge, Iron Lad brought the Young Avengers together to fight against the pending arrival of Kang.

Richards was desperate to ensure he never became Kang the Conqueror, and by forming the Young Avengers, he created a team capable of taking on the time-traveling menace. However, destiny is fickle, as stopping him from becoming Kang wasn't easy, with the hero eventually falling down the same dark path as the villain. But, for a long time, Nathaniel Richards tried everything he could think of to avoid becoming Kang the Conqueror.

Next: MCU Theory - Kang the Conqueror's Invasion Started In Spider-Man: Homecoming