A few minutes earlier…
Inside the temporary S.H.I.E.L.D. camp, Tony was urgently trying to contact the mages of the Ancient Order.
But the only one who answered was Wong. And the answer he gave was that Doctor Strange was off somewhere studying who knows what by himself.
In other words, Strange wouldn't get involved in anything short of Earth's total destruction. As for whether Heisenberg might destroy Earth…
Well, the mages at least didn't think he would.
And so, the Avengers had to find another way to prevent a potential fight between Heisenberg and Wanda!
They went through their contacts one by one. First, they ruled out Thor and Asgard.
Considering the beating Thor had taken, who knew if the Asgardians might be itching for revenge.
Next, they ruled out the Guardians of the Galaxy…
Let's face it. With Quill being the way he was, he'd probably just make things worse.
Quill on one side, Thor on the other. Put those two old buddies together,
and you've got music, beer, and pure, unadulterated chaos.
So after searching high and low, they stumbled upon someone who was supposed to be dead!
Natasha, after some thought, spoke up.
"I just remembered Hill and Fury, who came back after the Blip. They were planning to meet with Heisenberg yesterday, so they might be in Los Angeles!"
"Call Fury! Now!"
Within seconds, Fury picked up.
"This is Fury. Natasha, I don't have time to chat!
I'm in Los Angeles. Half a minute ago, Wanda and Heisenberg took off toward the Hollywood Hills together. I have to follow them to prevent any irreconcilable conflict!"
Before Natasha could even explain, Fury had already laid out the situation. Natasha let out a long sigh of relief.
"Fury, Wanda just vanished from right in front of us. She's after the Mind Stone in Heisenberg's possession. That's exactly what we're worried about.
Since you're already en route, please do everything you can to keep them calm. If things go south, let us know and we'll get there as fast as we can!"
After Natasha finished, Fury on the other end of the line frowned slightly and replied.
"Don't worry. I'm quite skilled at conversing with powerful individuals!"
With that, the call ended. Fury looked over at Hill, who was driving, and let out a deep sigh.
"Ah…"
He muttered.
"Those five years we were dead felt like a nap. But ever since we woke up, the trouble on Earth just keeps piling up, doesn't it?
First, a whole other universe pops up. So how many more are out there?
Like this Superman, Heisenberg. How many other beings of his caliber exist in other universes?
I'm afraid we really can't afford to keep our heads buried in the sand. We have to reach out.
I think, after today, I need to establish a new division. Specifically dedicated to handling threats originating from beyond our solar system... and from across the multiverse!"
He didn't wait for Hill's response. He simply leaned back against the headrest and stared blankly at the sky.
My old friend... how I wish I could kill him for you!
But I can't. Or rather, I know I shouldn't.
Because an Earth without you... desperately needs a powerhouse like him to protect it.
…
A few minutes later.
…
At the ruins of the Hollywood Hills, Heisenberg clutched the Mind Stone in his right hand and punched the rampaging Wanda into submission.
Watching the crimson energy dissipate completely, and looking down at the pale, soft figure on the ground…
Heisenberg shook his head in boredom.
"Another fool blinded by love.
I was actually thinking of bringing you to my universe. I could use a few genuinely strong fighters under my command.
But seeing you like this... tch. Maybe I should just raise you from childhood instead…"
As he spoke, Heisenberg rubbed his forehead in frustration.
Because now he had a problem.
What to do with Wanda, this universe's most powerful dark sorceress?
Yes, at her core, Wanda was a dark magic user. Her power was the opposite of the Ancient One's.
The Ancient One's power came from the embodiment of light in the Marvel Universe, the Oht...
Ahem.
It came from the embodiment of white magic: the Vishanti!
Of course, the Vishanti wasn't a single god but a collective of the three most powerful and ancient Sorcerer Supremes.
Those three deified Sorcerer Supremes were Oshtur, the goddess of white magic; Hoggoth, the god of order; and Agamotto, the Sorcerer Supreme born from Oshtur's tears!
Ever since the Vishanti's formation, they've essentially represented the pinnacle of white magic in the Marvel Universe.
All white magic across the cosmos is just a plaything for this holy trinity of power.
And the Ancient One was the Vishanti's most favored and watched Sorcerer Supreme.
Now that we've covered white magic, we have to talk about dark magic, the source of the Scarlet Witch's power.
Chthon, the Marvel God of Dark Magic.
How to describe this big shot's status?
Let's put it this way…
Mephisto, one of Marvel's eight great demon lords and the creator of the Ghost Rider.
Dormammu, the ruler of the Dark Dimension and the Ancient One's old nemesis.
Both of these heavy hitters have, in times of trouble, borrowed power from the true big boss, Chthon.
In other words, the moment the Scarlet Witch, Wanda Maximoff, was noticed and favored by Chthon,
her status had already reached the same tier as Mephisto and Dormammu.
And so…
Looking at Wanda lying there, Heisenberg was genuinely at a loss.
He wouldn't kill her. Subjectively, he had no desire to kill a woman so fiercely devoted to love.
Women like that were far too rare.
Besides, killing her would almost certainly draw Chthon's attention. What a colossal headache.
But just leaving her here…?
"Mr. Heisenberg!"
Just as Heisenberg was about to leave, a voice called out from a few hundred meters away. A voice that left him slightly dumbfounded.
He turned toward the sound, and sure enough!
Heisenberg rubbed his temples in annoyance. That chaos magic must have really scrambled his brain. He hadn't even noticed the sound of a car or footsteps approaching so close.
And look who it was. The one eyed boiled egg!
Surprise, surprise…
The one eyed man and Hill were striding purposefully toward Heisenberg.
As he walked, the one eyed man called out, his voice laced with forced anxiety.
"Please, don't hurt Wanda! She's just an innocent, heartbroken woman who's lost her mind!"
Hearing the one eyed man's words, Heisenberg curled his lip in disdain.
That fake nervous tone was exactly the same one this same one eyed man and Hill used back in Heisenberg's own universe.
That practiced delivery that sounded tense but was betrayed by a heartbeat that never wavered.
While Heisenberg was reminiscing, the one eyed man had already reached him.
Still approaching, the one eyed man bowed slightly, as if greeting a superior, and extended his right hand toward Heisenberg.
"Thank you for your restraint, Mr. Heisenberg. Earth welcomes your prese…!"
Before he could finish, Hill's eyes widened in shock beside him.
A brilliant red beam flashed. The one eyed man was instantly bisected at the waist by a blast of heat vision!
Even the one eyed man himself seemed caught off guard. As his upper body tumbled sideways to the ground, he still wore a smile and had his hand extended.
But as he hit the dirt, his perspective suddenly much lower, accompanied by the scent of roasted meat from his midsection…
"AAAAAAAGH… ack!"
The scream hadn't even fully formed before Heisenberg silenced him with a precise shot of heat vision to the head…
Heisenberg watched Nick Fury's corpse crumple, closed his eyes, and let out a long, slow breath.
That felt good.
It felt good, but the commotion from Fury's brief scream had woken Wanda on the ground.
The poor woman opened her eyes just in time to see her director's bisected body. A torrent of crimson energy instantly surged…
BOOM!!!
Before she could even get her bearings, Heisenberg, still clutching the Mind Stone, planted another fist into her skull and put her back down…
Watching Wanda faceplant once more, Heisenberg exhaled again, long and slow.
Now that really felt good!
Satisfied, he nodded and turned his attention to Hill nearby.
Seeing Heisenberg's gaze land on her, Hill dove sideways in a panic. She rolled twice across the hillside, then scrambled up, her eyes red rimmed as she aimed her pistol at him.
Seeing Hill on high alert, Heisenberg chuckled without any real malice.
Was his gaze really that terrifying? Did he have the "make 'em crap their pants" look down?
"Haha, Hill, right? My apologies."
Heisenberg grinned and walked toward her, completely ignoring the useless gun pointed at him.
"In the past I come from, that corpse beside you… Nick Fury…
He died a long, long time ago!
When I saw him just now, I thought for a second his ghost had come back to haunt the living. Or maybe some demon was wearing his face to cause trouble!
So you'll forgive me, won't you?
After all, you lot are always preaching about sacrificing the few for the many.
I truly admire that about you!"
With that, Heisenberg willed it, and Wanda's unconscious body floated over toward Hill.
Depositing Wanda at her feet, Heisenberg patted Hill on the shoulder.
"Take care of your Wanda. And try to forget about your director.
To be honest, in my world, his codename was Director Hydra.
But you… you were the true Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in my world. And we worked together quite well.
Especially with a figure like yours!
Goodbye!"
After his parting jab at Hill, Heisenberg grinned and shot into the sky, heading straight for Beverly Hills.
Today had been full of annoyances. After a failed attempt at a tryst, he needed to find a nice, comfortable home to rest in.
As he left, Hill stood there in stunned silence, holding Wanda.
She genuinely had no idea what to do.
Should she first check on the unconscious Wanda in her arms? Or should she start piecing the Director's body back together?
Or maybe she should ponder why Heisenberg from a parallel universe had spared her life and complimented her figure…?!
…
And so, a few more minutes later.
Back at the increasingly anxious Avengers temporary camp, the team received a call from Hill.
Tony grabbed his phone and practically yelled into the receiver.
"This is Tony Stark! Dammit, you better have some good news!!!"
As soon as he finished, the person on the other end let out a long sigh.
Then, Tony heard.
"I do have good news for you. Wanda is alive and seems perfectly healthy.
While she did have a confrontation with Heisenberg, we don't have to worry about him hanging her on the moon!"
"Ha! That's fantastic news!
But honestly, your tone sounds like there's a 'but' coming. Like you're sitting on some bad news!
So? Spill it."
Tony demanded. Hill took another deep breath.
"That's right. The bad news is… I'm not sure if Nick is qualified to be hung on the moon.
If he is, then we can get started on that now…"
Click.
The line went dead. Only the dial tone remained.
Tony stared at his phone in stunned horror, swallowing hard.
And he wasn't alone. Every Avenger who had overheard the conversation wore the same expression.
They looked at each other, their faces pale.
Tony clenched his jaw, then spun around and shouted at Banner.
"The Quantum Tunnel has to be finished tonight! We are sending this Superman home tomorrow!
Rogers, I need you to go see Hank Pym personally! I'm terrified that for every day that tunnel is delayed, we lose another city!!!"
"Okay. On it."
Rogers stood and left immediately. Tony and Banner rushed off toward the distant lab.
In the blink of an eye, only a handful of people remained in the meeting tent.
Among them, Natasha murmured to herself in a daze.
"So he was telling the truth…"
"What truth?" Barton asked, frowning.
Natasha shook her head helplessly and explained.
"He once told me that in his universe, they called him the Injustice Superman.
Looking at it now, he…
He really is an Injustice Superman."
/-\
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