"Honey… what happened to your stomach?"
George Stacy's voice softened as he approached Gwen. Even through her clothing, the bandaging around her abdomen was visible.
Gwen instinctively covered the area.
"I… I was hit by a car," she said, forcing her voice steady. "I blacked out. When I woke up, Mr. Carl had already helped me. I still needed bandages… and I didn't want you to worry, so I asked him to bring me home."
She hesitated, guilt tightening her chest.
"And what just happened… you really misunderstood him. Mr. Carl is a good person."
It was the first lie she had ever told her father.
Fortunately, he didn't notice.
George's expression darkened.
"Hmph. I don't trust him. My daughter is beautiful and vulnerable — men like that always have motives. Wealthy people rarely do anything without a reason."
"Dad—"
"Enough," George interrupted. "Go check on your mother. She hasn't slept waiting for you."
At the mention of her mother, Gwen immediately ran inside.
George followed more slowly.
He wasn't nearly as calm as he appeared.
He understood exactly what it meant to offend a Stark Industries shareholder — and Tony Stark's personal associate.
He had led armed officers.
They had aimed weapons.
If patrolmen understood the gravity of that mistake… how could he, the Police Commissioner, not?
But what was he supposed to do?
If he couldn't protect his own daughter…
…then the uniform meant nothing.
Outside New York City
Karl drove fast.
Very fast.
The confrontation had soured his mood, but not enough to warrant assassination. He could understand George Stacy's reaction from a father's perspective — but that didn't mean he had to tolerate it.
Understanding was not obligation.
You point a gun at me.
I spare your life.
Losing your badge is mercy.
The Lamborghini tore down the highway, its speed climbing past 280 miles per hour.
The engine screamed.
Then—
A streak of red light split the sky ahead.
Karl narrowed his eyes.
Something crashed beyond the tree line.
He accelerated again.
Impact Site
Twenty minutes later, he arrived.
The asphalt was fractured.
Trees lay flattened.
At the center of a smoking crater stood a massive figure.
A giant of pure muscle.
Energy pulsed faintly from his body — a crimson aura flickering beneath the skin like molten light.
Karl approached cautiously.
The man's eyes snapped open.
BOOM!
The giant's fist shot forward like artillery.
Karl caught it.
Shock rippled through his arms.
Despite possessing strength on par with Hulk's baseline state, the impact numbed his hands.
The giant rose fully.
And attacked again.
Karl's irritation evaporated into focus.
He met the assault head-on.
A Battle of Titans
Their clash shook the surrounding forest.
Fists collided like wrecking balls.
Each impact cracked stone and split earth.
Karl felt it immediately:
This opponent wasn't merely strong.
He was unstoppable.
The giant fought with primal brutality — no technique, no finesse — yet every strike carried catastrophic force.
Trees shattered.
Ground ruptured.
Shockwaves rippled outward.
Karl countered with precise blows and telekinetic bursts, but the giant endured everything.
Time lost meaning.
The battle stretched on.
An hour.
Two.
Three.
Karl's muscles burned.
His breathing grew heavy.
Finally, he shifted tactics.
Frost spread from his palm.
Absolute zero surged outward, locking the giant's legs and torso in layers of super-dense ice reinforced with telekinetic compression.
Only then did the titan collapse to one knee.
Karl dropped onto the ground, utterly spent, uncaring of dignity.
He pulled food from his system space and began eating to replenish energy.
To his surprise, the giant crawled toward the pile and began devouring it as well.
Up close, Karl noticed something.
The red glow in the giant's eyes had faded.
His earlier attacks had been instinctual — almost animalistic.
Yet his durability…
His endurance…
His sheer physical presence…
They rivaled the Hulk.
Karl watched him eat.
"Hey, big guy. What's your name?"
The giant swallowed an entire container of food and grinned.
"Cain Marko!" he bellowed. "You fought me to a standstill! Hahaha! I love it!"
Karl froze.
Cain Marko.
The Juggernaut.
Chosen avatar of Cyttorak, the Crimson Cosmos.
An entity whose mystical power rendered its champion nearly unstoppable.
When fully empowered, Juggernaut possessed:
limitless stamina
near-indestructible durability
momentum that, once built, could not be halted
strength rivaling top-tier powerhouses
resistance to telepathy and conventional energy attacks
In Marvel history, he had endured blows from Thor, resisted psychic assaults from Professor X, and even survived Wolverine's adamantium strikes.
And Karl had just fought him for three hours.
Juggernaut tilted his head.
"You know me?"
"A little," Karl admitted. "But you shouldn't be here. Do you know Magneto?"
In many timelines, Juggernaut had allied with Magneto's Brotherhood.
Cain frowned.
"Magneto? Never heard of him. I was in a red void… endless red stone… no food… no sky. Then suddenly I was here. Then we fought."
He grabbed another container.
"This stuff is incredible. Got more? I was starving."
Karl wordlessly produced a large stack of food.
Juggernaut tore through it with childlike enthusiasm.
Karl observed him carefully.
If Juggernaut truly emerged directly from Cyttorak's Crimson Dimension…
then this timeline had diverged even further than he suspected.
And if Cain Marko had no allegiance yet…
then recruiting him might be possible.
A being with unstoppable momentum and mystical empowerment.
A living siege engine.
Even the Hulk would struggle against the Juggernaut at full charge.
Karl leaned back, watching the giant eat.
Yes.
This encounter might change the balance of power entirely.
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