Chapter 107
"LET THERE BE LIGHT!" I said with a slight smile as I entered the portal.
I appeared right in front of Nick Fury's desk. The director's office, previously dim, was flooded with bright, pure, unearthly radiance.
Fury, who had instinctively grabbed for the pistol on his desk, slowly withdrew his hand and pinched the bridge of his nose wearily.
With a thought, the portal behind me snapped shut. I let the light fade completely.
"Hello, Nick."
"Thompson..." he growled. "Why the fuck am I not surprised?"
"Actually, you should have been," I replied, casually dropping into the chair across from him. The magical clothing I'd created felt more comfortable than anything I had ever worn.
"Speaking of which," Nick said, narrowing his eyes as he typed on a tablet. "What. Was. That?"
"Long story," I said, spreading my hands. That was the honest truth. "And our time is very limited. But... in short, I got stuck, and I've been significantly weakened."
That was the truth, no matter how paradoxical it seemed given my current appearance. [Avatar of Mana] was merely a temporary crutch. My foundation, my expertise as an engineer, spiritual constructor, conceptual enchanter, and technomage, had been 'amputated'. My System was 'neutered'. At that moment I was stronger than ever, but in nineteen hours I would be an order of magnitude weaker than I had been before Dormammu.
Five agents in sterile white suits entered the office without knocking. They wordlessly collected the corpses Fury indicated, leaving just as quietly as they had arrived. If they were surprised by the bodies that had mysteriously appeared in Fury's office, or by my presence, they didn't show it. Professionals.
"Weakened?" Fury raised a skeptical eyebrow once the door had closed. "You just appeared here and immediately took out HYDRA's leadership. And that trick of yours with portals..." He shook his head.
"Not just HYDRA," I replied with a grin. "I noticed you've been dealing with serious political pressure. You can thank Rubedo. Protocol Scorched Earth is already activated. I suspect your opponents won't have time to trouble SHIELD anymore. But as for my condition, these powers are temporary. We don't have much time, so give me the assignment. I'll finish it and return to normal."
I noticed Fury visibly relax at the mention of "Protocol Scorched Earth." The situation had clearly been weighing on him. However, my mention of "tasks" erased every trace of fatigue from his face. He was the Director once more.
"Rogers has been defrosted and has regained consciousness," Fury announced, "delighting me with information I already knew."
"Is there a problem with him?" I asked, in case Rubedo had missed something in the reports.
"No. I simply wanted to let you know the 'Avengers' will be revealed to the world soon. That means you need to find time to finish your application."
"It's been ready for a while, Nick," I reassured him. "It was finished before I disappeared. If not for these damn boots..." I grimaced.
By the way, regarding the boots. I could do it. Right now. I could "reach out" with my mind, use Observation, and find that dirty, entropic signature of Dormammu wherever it is hiding.
I crushed that thought immediately. I nearly gagged. The memory of that agony was still too raw. No. Forget it. Just forget it. Let the thief rot. It clearly wasn't Fury or anyone on my side. I certainly didn't pity the others. Suicide bombers willing to touch that filth... good riddance to them.
"We don't know who the kidnapper is," Fury said, confirming my suspicions.
"I don't give a damn," I said, waving it off to get back to business. "Let's figure out our next move. Hmm... It might be best to kill two birds with one stone."
"What are you talking about?"
Instead of answering, I started casting. I had already used Observation to verify that no one else was lurking nearby.
Intent 1: "Gwen Stacy. Her bedroom. Stable portal." Intent 2: "Peter Parker. His current location. Stable portal."
In the air next to me, much to Fury's obvious tension, two cracks in reality flashed and tore open.
The first portal led to a small bedroom. On the bed, dressed in simple, casual clothes, lay Gwen. She was just looking at the ceiling, and even [Avatar of Mana] could feel the aura of apathy emanating from her. The second portal led to the roof of a high-rise, where Peter, in his white and gold persona, monitored the situation below.
Both reacted differently to the sudden appearance of a shining window in their realities.
Gwen slowly turned her head. For a few seconds, she stared through the portal with an empty, lifeless gaze. Then her eyes abruptly widened. Realization hit her. A moment later. She jerked. She flew out of the portal like a bullet and threw her arms around my neck, clinging as if I were a ghost ready to disappear. I barely managed to stay upright, keeping Fury's chair from toppling over.
Peter, meanwhile, simply took off his mask and calmly stepped inside, looking around the office and nodding at Fury. The portals slammed shut, leaving the four of us in the office. They were people I could trust. Well, Peter and Gwen, for sure.
"Straight to the point," I began, stroking Gwen's head with one hand while she trembled, her face buried in my shoulder. "I'm back. But I'm weak. And in the next..." I glanced at the invisible timer. "...19 hours, I have too much to do. So forgive me, but as much as I'd like to, I can't spend much time with you."
"Short and sweet," Pete commented, extending his hand for a handshake. His grip was firm, and relief shone in his eyes.
"Yeah. I invited you here not only for a meeting, though that was part of it," I said, stopping the stroking to hug her tighter. "But also for a sort of brainstorm. Nick, listen carefully. We have a window. You have tasks. You give the task, and I, temporarily capable of almost anything, solve it. As quickly and painlessly as possible."
"No consequences or traces," Fury said, catching on instantly. His strategist's eyes lit up.
"Something like that, yeah," I agreed.
"The limits of your... temporary abilities?" he asked, emphasizing the word "temporary."
"Potentially limitless within the framework of this planet. But in practice, I think a number of limitations will still pop up. So don't ask me to kill a god."
"Restore the brains of the Winter Soldiers?" I don't know why Fury decided to start with this, but it was an excellent test.
I nodded. [Anti-spark] of Observation. Target: Bucky Barnes. I began to glow. [Shining Beacon] activated at the slightest use of magic. This was inconvenient, but Gwen, burying her face in my shoulder, didn't seem to notice.
So... Bucky Barnes. Right now he's sitting in a therapy session with a SHIELD enforcer. Hmm. Interesting. Can I use a spell through "Observation"?
Spontaneous Creation. Intent: "Expand 'Observation.' It must become not only a channel of perception, but also a conductor of my Will. My Magical Will." Done.
Now, Absolute Sense. Analysis of target. The subject is a human male. Physical condition is enhanced by the Super Soldier Serum. Mental condition is critically impaired, showing signs of strong external influence and personality suppression. Detection indicates foreign energy or mental programming, clearly HYDRA technology.
The conclusion is clear. Bucky is a victim of advanced technological mind control. His actions are not his own. His true essence is locked deep inside, suppressed by a killer program. Liberating him requires several options. Destruction of mental blocks, physical shock, powerful magic, or the removal of trigger words. Or perhaps...
It was a simple Healing Spell, though in his case, it would target his consciousness primarily.
Bucky's arm was a technological masterpiece and a significant combat advantage. Discarding such an asset wasn't the best option.
I nodded mentally and began the process of Spontaneous Creation. My Intent was to restore the target's mind to its ideal, initial state. For Bucky, this meant bringing the suppressed personality of James Buchanan Barnes to the surface, effectively erasing the HYDRA program.
"Nick, tell your specialist to leave Barnes alone in the room immediately," I told Fury. Better safe than sorry. Who knew how he would react after his "awakening"?
Nodding, Nick typed quickly on his tablet. Through my senses, I watched the therapist flinch at the command in his earpiece, apologize, and leave. Bucky remained alone.
I cast the spell. My Will, strengthened by [Avatar of Mana], pierced space via the [Anti-spark] of my observation.
The effect was nearly instantaneous. On my mental screen, Barnes froze. He was a massive, brutal super-soldier, a killer, and a war veteran, yet he simply froze. Then he cried. It wasn't a sob, but a single tear rolling down his cheek. He suddenly recognized himself, realized what he had done, and understood his situation. At the same time, he felt an incredible, all-consuming relief knowing he was free. James Barnes finally allowed himself to exhale.
"Thank you..." he whispered into the empty room. "Whoever you are... however you did this... just... thank you."
Barnes wiped the tear from his cheek with his metal arm.
I severed the observation link.
"Barnes was fully healthy now. Mentally, at least. I could perform the procedure on the other soldiers right now, but it would be better to gather them in one room. It would be faster," I urged Fury. Fury watched the events on his tablet in shock. Clearly, there had been a camera in the room.
"This is... How? What was that?" He looked at me in surprise, his expression betraying not only shock but also poorly concealed fear.
"Mind healing. A spell," I answered without elaborating. I released Gwen and looked him straight in the eye. "Nick. Time is limited. Remember that. Next task."
Fury did not try to pry further. He just began giving orders over the communicator, his voice once again shifting into that of the SHIELD Director.
I sank back into the chair. Gwen, still trembling, immediately sat on my lap. I hugged
her again, burying my nose in her hair. Smell. Shampoo
and... Gwen. Alive. Real. After the sterile emptiness of space and the entropic stench of the Dark
Dimension, this was the best
anchor for my consciousness.
Three minutes later, every Winter Soldier, including the recovered Barnes, stood at attention on one of the small training ranges at the base.
I didn't waste time. I activated Spontaneous Creation. Intent: Heal Minds. Erase programs. Return personalities. I cast the spell on a massive scale, covering the entire range with an invisible wave.
From there, I simply watched the array of reactions through Observation with a light, detached smile. The responses ranged from quiet, hard-earned gratitude like Barnes's, to complete, animalistic horror. One former Soviet doctor's case was particularly tragic. He had ended up on the list of test subjects for the serum because he unknowingly healed a Hydra agent. In return, other Hydra agents had 'thanked' him by kidnapping him from his program and forcing him into theirs. Now, realizing that as a Winter Soldier he had killed more people than he had saved in his entire life, the doctor simply gazed with unseeing eyes at the steel wall. His mind partially snapped, but this time it was from the truth rather than the program.
"This is absolutely surreal," muttered Fury, looking at the screen.
"I can hardly believe my luck either," I agreed. Peter watched in silence, clearly struggling to stomach the sight. "Nick, the clock is ticking. What's the next task?"
"Schwab," Fury answered instantly, his face impassive. "Klaus Schwab."
I overlooked the obvious implication that Rubedo had recently leaked compromising material on Schwab, yet Fury immediately wanted to 'check' him anyway. I grinned. He didn't trust the leak. He wanted confirmation. I pulled up the report on Schwab. A prominent European politician with massive influence and countless connections, he was also Fury's biggest headache, and Schwab was the primary candidate for Secretary of the Security Council.
"The first thing he'll do is remove me from the Council," Fury confirmed. "I cannot allow that under any circumstances. We need to find some genuine compromising material on him. And then decide what to do."
I see. So my 'leak' was just background noise, insufficient to bring down a figure like that. Fury wasn't ready for radical measures unless Schwab was truly dirty, which seemed contradictory in itself. Very well. Let's find out.
I asked Fury for a photo of Schwab and concentrated. [Anti-spark] of Observation. Found it. He sat in his Geneva office in front of a laptop. Analysis. No magical or psionic shields. Just an ordinary, vile man.
Spontaneous Creation. Intent: "Your will is mine. Think what I command. Do what I desire." This was absolute mental control. It would dissipate the moment [Avatar of Mana] ended, but I didn't need it to last. I needed an interrogation protocol.
I cast the spell through the Astral plane. On my invisible screen, Schwab froze, his fingers hovering motionless over the keyboard. Then, with an expressionless face, he opened a new text document.
"Open a text document and describe your crimes point by point, starting with the most serious," I commanded.
"Watch closely." I drew everyone's attention to me. I didn't read the text aloud. I simply used Spontaneous Creation to duplicate my Observation onto the main monitor on the wall of Fury's office.
Fury, Peter, and Gwen, who finally lifted her head from my shoulder, all watched in silence as the text appeared on the screen in real time.
There was a lot to take in. Political contract killings. Staged terrorist attacks to destabilize the situation before elections. Direct cooperation with the largest European criminal groups, including slave traders and pedophiles. At this, Peter noticeably tensed, and Gwen again buried herself in my shoulder. Corruption in the billions. Sponsoring coups in small countries. And to top it all off, he was promoting not just 'leftist' policies, but an outright destructive, anti-human agenda aimed at total control and population reduction.
The list could go on indefinitely. Schwab continued with the mechanical precision of a puppet, showing no sign of stopping as he added new names, dates, and details to the document. He was a real piece of scum, of course. Naturally, Rubedo hadn't uncovered even a tenth of his actual crimes. Fury had been right to look into the freak.
I looked at Fury. His gaze was narrowed, his face impenetrable. Peter looked like he was about to be sick. Seeing that everyone in the room agreed, I issued the final command to Schwab: "Stop. Erase the text. Close."
I turned to Fury, who silently watched Schwab's empty desk on the screen. I waited for the verdict.
"Subjugation? Like with the mental worms?" Fury suggested, predictably latching onto the most 'effective' idea.
It was a good option. On paper.
"If I could guarantee that it would be permanent," I replied slowly, shaking my head. "My powers... are temporary. I can create a mental construct that will force him to obey, but it will disappear along with my magic. And a permanent impact on the soul... this isn't just 'control.' This is a complete 'rewiring' of the core of his personality. It won't be Schwab anymore, just a willing talking doll. And they will notice."
"Why not hand him over to the police under temporary hypnosis, then?" Peter suggested. "He confesses sincerely and gets life."
"He'll be out the same day the control drops," Fury replied evenly. "His influence in Europe is greater than mine in the States. He'll 'buy' or 'kill' any judge from his cell."
"Then... let him destroy himself," I proposed. "We'll force him to leak every piece of compromising material. On himself, on his allies, on his enemies. Brutally, publicly, and irreversibly."
Yes, he would most likely be killed by his own people within a day, violently. But in Schwab's case, there was no other choice. It was the same as with Gorgon: show weakness and they'd turn it against you. Ideally, I could simply annihilate him like Davos, but that was inefficient. That could always be done later. First, I needed to squeeze every drop of value from the situation. Sow discord and chaos in the ranks of those bastards. Let them think it was internal infighting.
"Nick, call Rubedo. Order the transfer of all of Schwab's liquid assets to anonymous accounts. Our accounts."
I looked at Schwab through Observation again, then gave him the order to start leaking information. I also set a delayed-action bomb, a spell of oblivion that would activate in three hours. He would have enough time to burn his whole world down.
While Rubedo and Schwab, under my control, handled the logistics, we turned back to other tasks.
"Banner's uncontrolled anger, the Hulk," Fury remarked.
"No," I replied firmly, without hesitation. "Definitely not."
"You can't?"
"I won't. Hulk isn't just 'anger.' It's... something else. It's a Concept. It's Gamma. It's a separate, furious, primitive personality. I'm afraid that by sticking my magic in there, I wouldn't cure Banner. I'd break them both. Or worse, I'd 'free' Hulk forever. Banner has to deal with this himself."
"Good. Next. Resurrection of Yelena Belova."
I tensed up.
Observation. Woman in cryo-capsule. SHIELD base. Analysis. Condition: Dead, obviously. Cause: Traumatic brain injury incompatible with life. Soul: Absent. Complete separation from the physical body. Death is final, not temporary.
I tried to find a way to return her soul to her body. I used Absolute Sense to 'reach out' for her soul, to find her trace in the Astral plane, in that place where they go. And in that same moment, I felt her. I didn't see. I felt that cold, that presence of the gothic girl from Gorgon's room. She was watching. She was waiting. I immediately cut off the attempt.
"I won't," I said to Fury.
"You can't do it again?"
"The problem is that Concepts are involved here. Two of them: Death and Life. Right now, I might have the clout to throw my weight around on such matters. But in less than a day, I'll be 'amputated' again. And trying to steal something from the Concept of Death, who I've already disturbed today with my rudeness, is a sure way to get into trouble. Screw that."
I looked at the cryo-capsule with Observation.
"However... I can heal the body. Prepare the vessel."
Spontaneous Creation. Intent: "Absolute Healing. Restore the body to peak condition, ready for the return of the soul." I "cast" the spell. I watched the crushed brain in Belova's skull regenerate, her body filling with life force, but not life.
"So resurrection is postponed for now," I told Fury.
Perhaps the System, or perhaps this Universe, would find a way that didn't require negotiating with Concepts. Then I felt Gwen tense up on my lap. I looked down and saw the desperate hope in her eyes. She was thinking of her father.
"Sorry, beauty... but not this time," I projected into her mind. She flinched and gripped my shirt tighter.
"Next, rescuing Stark," Fury said grimly, taking in the silent exchange.
But this... this was a matter requiring careful thought.
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