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Pietro ended up driving Hawk's Audi A8 back to Westview, with the "smart and vicious" Anya sitting beside him in the front passenger seat.
He was not thrilled about the arrangement, but one thing had become painfully obvious: Hawk and Wanda had left together, come back together, and something had definitely happened between them.
Pietro was dying to know what.
While he drove, Pietro kept glancing at Anya. She sat next to him, watching the scenery go by. The area looked familiar, but it was just different enough from Universe-616 to keep her interested.
Pietro tried to bring up Hawk and Wanda without making it obvious what he wanted.
He failed miserably.
Anya had been a top HYDRA operative in her world. After hearing a few awkward tries at small talk, she turned to him with a knowing smile.
"Pietro, are you trying to squeeze me for gossip about what happened between my brother and Wanda in the other universe?"
Pietro glanced at her, opened his mouth, then gave up with a sigh.
"Alright, yes. You really are the smart one."
"Thank you." Anya smiled and leaned back in her seat. "How about a trade? You tell me everything about my brother and his other wife, Gwen, and I'll tell you what happened between him and Wanda in my universe. Deal?"
Pietro raised an eyebrow. He kept one hand on the wheel and reached out with the other.
"Deal. Pleasure doing business with you."
"Pleasure."
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"Achoo!"
"Achoo!"
Felicia stared at Hawk and Wanda after they sneezed at the exact same time.
"God bless you both."
It was the weekend, so Felicia had been spending the day at the Osborn Estate with little Ben. She had welcomed Hawk and Wanda warmly enough, but the synchronized sneezing changed her attitude at once.
Clutching Ben against her chest, she took three large steps backward.
Hawk watched her go from a friendly host to a total germaphobe, holding his godson like he had brought home a dangerous multiversal bug.
He shook his head. "Seriously, Felicia? A multiversal virus? Are you for real?"
"I've never seen you sanitize your hands."
"I'm a literal god." Hawk raised an eyebrow. "I'm immune to every poison and disease."
Felicia shrugged. "You're Ben's godfather. You don't want him getting sick, do you?"
The way she said it gave Hawk a weird sense of déjà vu. For a second, he felt like a stranger in a badly dubbed anime.
Before he could comment, Felicia turned and led them out of the main house, still holding Ben protectively against her chest.
They walked around the estate and stopped in front of a new lab that looked like it belonged in a sci-fi movie. Felicia leaned into a retinal scanner, and the heavy doors slid open with a quiet hiss.
"Peter's inside."
Hawk and Wanda went inside. The first thing they noticed was a huge Quantum Tunneling Machine at the far end of the lab. The rest of the place was filled with advanced gear, holograms, robotic arms, and gadgets they couldn't name.
Hawk had no clue what any of it did.
He knew one thing, though.
It all looked really expensive...
Hawk clicked his tongue and looked at Felicia. "Wow. Peter must really know how to keep you happy if you're paying for all this."
Felicia turned toward him, still holding Ben, and smiled. "No. I bought it to keep him happy."
Hawk saw the warmth in her face and smiled back. "Alright. My mistake."
"Besides, keeping him busy in a laboratory is much better than letting him swing around New York as a vigilante every night. Don't you think?"
"I completely agree."
Felicia nodded, then looked at him more seriously. "Scientific research is safe, right?"
Hawk immediately understood what she wanted.
A guarantee.
He met her eyes. "You and Peter are my friends, and I'm Ben's godfather. Don't worry. The sky isn't going to fall."
Felicia relaxed and smiled.
"Thank you."
"Don't mention it."
They walked farther into the building and entered a huge silver hangar built around the Quantum Tunneling Device.
Peter stood by the main console in a spotless white lab coat, totally focused on a video call. He rattled off technical terms so fast that no one else could keep up.
The man on the screen was instantly recognizable.
Hank Pym.
"Ever since you brought Dr. Pym here," Felicia explained quietly, "Peter has been in constant contact with him. They're working on some major project together. Sometimes they stay on the call for half the day."
Hawk looked at her and laughed. "You gave him a choice. Either he stays in the lab, or he swings around New York as Spider-Man. This is what you picked."
Felicia shook her head, smiling. "I'd rather have him here. At least research doesn't usually mean people are shooting at him."
She paused, then looked at Hawk again.
"It's safe, isn't it?"
Hawk sighed. "Yes, Felicia. It's safe."
Feeling better, she carried Ben over to a row of chairs by the wall. Hawk and Wanda sat with her, deciding not to interrupt Peter's intense talk with Hank Pym.
Peter saw them come in and gave a quick wave before turning back to his argument on the screen. Whatever he and Hank were working on, it looked like they were close to a breakthrough.
The call continued for a while before Peter finally ended it.
The instant the screen went dark, he rushed across the hangar and pulled Hawk into a crushing hug.
"Oh my God, man! You're back! When did you get here? You didn't even text me!"
Hawk hugged him back. "I took a shortcut."
Unfortunately, the Kamar-Taj route had been a one-time opportunity.
It was doubtful that Kamar-Taj had broken its neutrality for Hawk's sake. More likely, Universe-616 had wanted him gone badly enough to make some cosmic deal with the Vishanti and open a path home.
That trick wouldn't work again.
Once they separated, Hawk got straight to the point. "The Celestials took Jean too."
Peter's expression immediately turned serious. "I know. Dr. Pym and I have spent the last few days trying to determine which universe that Celestial escaped into."
Hawk blinked, caught off guard.
Wanda stepped forward at once. "Peter, did you find Jean?"
Peter shook his head. "Not exactly. Come look at this."
He led them to the main console and began typing. Seconds later, a complicated topographical map of overlapping energy fields appeared in the air.
Hawk and Wanda stared at it. Then they slowly turned toward Peter.
If Gwen were there, he could have pretended to get it and waited for her to explain. But Gwen was stuck in Universe-828, and Wanda knew magic, not quantum physics.
Neither of them had the slightest idea what they were seeing.
Peter saw their blank looks and made the explanation simpler.
"After the Celestial disappeared, Dr. Pym and I analyzed the residual energy signature left behind by its jump. We isolated the frequency, then used the Quantum Realm to trace its trajectory."
He pointed toward one section of the map.
"If we open a route into the universe where that signal ended, we can find the Celestial. And if we find the Celestial, we find Jean."
No one said anything for a moment...
Hawk looked at Wanda.
Wanda looked back at him.
Then she turned toward Peter. "So this doesn't track Jean directly?"
Peter shook his head. "No. Why?"
Wanda pressed her lips together.
Hawk gave an awkward smile and put a hand on Peter's shoulder.
"I already butchered that Celestial."
Peter's eyes widened.
Hawk quickly explained what had happened. He told him how he had tracked Erebus down, confronted him near Jupiter, and killed him. Jean had never been with the Celestial at all. She had broken free during the dimensional transfer by using the Phoenix Force, only to become lost somewhere in the multiverse.
Peter stared at him.
"But..."
"Thanks anyway," Hawk said. "You and Dr. Pym put a lot of work into this, and I appreciate it."
He gave Peter's shoulder a firm pat.
"I've already seeded fragments of my consciousness across every universe connected to Kamar-Taj. Given enough time, I'll find her. For now, I need you to build three Quantum Realm suits."
Hawk didn't brush off Peter's work. He explained what had happened and what he needed now.
Peter, however, had stopped listening after one particular detail.
"Wait. You said Jean broke free on her own?"
Hawk nodded.
Peter's eyes lit up.
He spun back toward the console and began typing at high speed. A new projection appeared, showing a massive energy wave spreading through the Quantum Realm.
"This signature," Peter said. "Is it yours?"
"What do you think?" Hawk smiled.
Peter realized the question didn't make sense and pressed another key. The still image turned into a moving simulation.
As the energy wave expanded, the faint silhouette of a Fire Phoenix appeared within it.
Hawk raised an eyebrow.
Wanda gasped and grabbed Peter's arm. Hope flooded her eyes. "Peter, please tell me you tracked that energy."
Peter shook his head.
"I didn't track it."
The hope vanished from Wanda's face.
Then Peter pressed the enter key. The energy map disappeared, replaced by a computer-generated universe floating above the console.
Peter looked directly at them. "I didn't track the energy..."
He pointed toward the projection.
"I pinpointed the exact location where it exited the Quantum Realm."
"..."
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