Marvel: The Awakened One

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Around 11:30 AM.

Under Gwen’s watchful eye, Hawk lifted smoothly off the ground. With a casual twist mid-air, he transformed into a streak of golden light and shot off toward the Texas border, heading for the Flint Monastery.

Ten minutes later.

Two nondescript utility vans rolled onto Palm Street.

A black Chevy SUV pulled up to 521A. Sharon Carter stepped out, looking sharp in a long, tailored black coat and a cashmere scarf, and walked up to the door.

Gwen opened it and pulled Sharon into a quick hug.

”He’s gone?”

”Yeah.”

”Don’t worry.”

Sharon followed Gwen inside and offered a reassuring smile. ”Hawk hasn’t lost a fight since the day he debuted. Even Thor admitted last month that he’s no match for him anymore.”

Gwen smiled at that.

It was true.

Since the Battle of New York, Hawk had taken on the Quantico military base, the Hulk, Wakanda, the Dark Elves, and even Mephisto...

And he’d never lost.

The worst he’d ever been was after the fight with the Hulk, and even then, he was just exhausted, not unconscious.

And Thor’s assessment carried a lot of weight.

So—

Gwen pushed her worry aside, her smile becoming more genuine. ”You’re right. That does make me feel better.”

Sharon chuckled. ”It’s not my words making you feel better. It’s the fact that you already know he won’t lose. If you really doubted him, nothing I could say would stop you from worrying, right?”

Gwen bit her lip, considering it, then nodded.

”You’re right. I believe in him.”

”There you go. Have you eaten?”

”Just finished.”

”That was fast.”

”Yeah.”

Gwen shrugged. ”I was going to wait and eat with him when he got back from Texas. But Hawk said that was ’bad luck.’ He said it’s like in the movies—if you say ’let’s get married when I get back,’ or ’we’ll talk about it when I get back,’ you never actually come back. So he insisted we eat before he left.”

Sharon nodded in understanding. ”He has a point. The ’when I get back’ trope is basically a death flag.”

”Have you eaten?”

”No.”

Sharon answered honestly. ”I figured if you hadn’t, we could grab something and then do some shopping. It’s going to take a while for the satellite feeds to go live anyway.”

Gwen frowned.

”Why is it going to take a while?”

”Expected ETA is an hour.”

Sharon explained, then looked curious herself. ”I thought the rendezvous date was November 11th. It’s only the 7th. That’s four days away. Why did Hawk head out so early?”

Gwen shook her head. ”He didn’t say. But it’s better to be early. What if it’s a trap? Besides, it’s always better to arrive rested and wait for your enemy than to rush into a fight exhausted.”

Hawk didn’t keep secrets from her.

So, after he had told her his destination, Gwen had looked up the Flint Monastery online.

The place was ancient, dating back to the Texas expansion era.

It had been discovered by a group of ascetic monks who had repaired it and used it for their harsh, isolated practices.

But because it was situated in the middle of a barren desert, miles from civilization, it had been completely abandoned shortly after that era ended. It was now nothing but a desolate ruin where not even the birds bothered to stop.

So Gwen fully supported Hawk’s decision to go early.

Arrive first, set the stage, and wait for the prey to fall into the trap.

Sharon nodded in agreement.

”What about Westview?”

”What about it?”

”Should I send a team to keep an eye on Mr. Chloe? Make sure he doesn’t try to go to Texas and interfere?”

”No need.”

Gwen laughed and shook her head.

”Wanda’s watching him. Mr. Chloe isn’t going anywhere.”

”You can’t leave, Mr. Chloe.”

Inside Amy’s house.

Wanda, who had come over from her house across the street after receiving a text from Gwen, watched Andrew Chloe. While Amy could freely walk in and out, Andrew was currently trying to force his way through the invisible barrier Hawk had placed around the property.

”And you won’t be able to break that barrier, either.”

As she spoke, Wanda placed her right hand against the wall. Crimson Chaos Magic flowed from her palm, instantly replenishing the energy Andrew had just depleted with his brute-force attempts.

The blood-red wings on Andrew’s back twitched. He watched Wanda’s display of power, a vein throbbing in his forehead.

”I have to go. He’s in danger. He needs my help.”

”No. Staying here is the best way you can help him.”

Wanda remained unmoved, calmly advising him. She then turned to Jean, who was standing beside her. ”Go on. Tell your grandpa to stay here so he doesn’t cause trouble for your daddy.”

Three-and-a-half-year-old Jean’s eyes lit up. ”Grandpa!” she cheered, trotting over to Andrew. She looked up at him, her big eyes fixed on the blood-red wings he had tucked tightly against his back to avoid hurting her. Her voice was impossibly cute. ”Grandpa, can I touch your wings?”

They looked so pretty.

Jean blinked her big eyes expectantly.

Andrew froze for a second. Then, a smile broke through the weather-beaten stiffness of his face. He crouched down, his voice softening as much as possible. ”Of course you can.”

Jean’s eyes sparkled. She reached out a small hand and gently stroked the blood-red feathers.

The next second.

She gasped.

”Wow, they’re so soft!”

”Grandpa, can you hold me?”

”Of course.”

Andrew didn’t hesitate. The smile on his face deepened, the lines around his eyes crinkling. He moved quickly but carefully, scooping Jean up into his arms.

This was his granddaughter, after all.

His own flesh and blood.

Even though he still hadn’t quite wrapped his head around the explanation his future daughter-in-law had given him last night...

One thing was absolutely certain.

The little girl in his arms, and the two toddlers sitting quietly in high chairs in the kitchen eating their mashed food... they were undeniably his grandchildren.

Jean rested comfortably in Andrew’s strong arms, her small hands continuing to stroke the blood wings, which felt as soft as cotton.

Wanda, watching from the kitchen doorway, turned her attention to Amy, who was gently feeding the twins. ”Would you like me to go with you to the menswear store in town later?”

Amy paused, a spoonful of food halfway to Billy’s mouth. She looked at Wanda, slightly confused. ”The menswear store in town? I don’t think that’s really Andrew’s style.”

There was indeed a menswear store in Westview.

But the clothes there... well, to Amy, they looked like they were custom-designed for Wanda’s brother, Pietro, who currently functioned as the town’s resident slacker.

Wanda chuckled. ”Not that one. The new one next door. It just opened this morning.”

Yes.

It had just opened this morning.

To be precise, the timeline of the town’s new clothing store went like this:

Midnight: News of Andrew Chloe’s return breaks. The Westview Menswear Preparatory Committee is mobilized ten minutes later.

12:30 AM: The logistical plan is finalized, and tasks are delegated.

4:00 AM: The sign for the new menswear store—right next door to the one that seemed tailor-made for Pietro—is hung on Main Street. Inside, crews are working at lightning speed to set up the shop.

6:00 AM: A shipping container full of men’s clothing, freshly imported from a certain Eastern country, is loaded onto a truck at the port. By the time it arrives in Westview, the inventory sorting is already complete.

7:00 AM: Racks, mannequins, and clothing are simultaneously moved into the store.

8:00 AM: The Westview Menswear store officially opens for business.

And that wasn’t all. Along with the new store, a traveling circus was currently setting up in the open field on the east side of town.

The reason for the circus was simple.

Back in the 90s, traveling circuses were the go-to date spot for New Yorkers.

More importantly.

A traveling circus had been the location of Andrew and Amy Chloe’s very first date, and the place they frequented most often.

So—

This was the kind of treatment a God walking among mortals received.

Don’t be jealous.

This was reality, not a movie. You wouldn’t see Hawk being hauled before Congress to answer for his actions like Superman.

Because Hawk wasn’t Superman.

His baseline response to a threat was wiping out the offender’s entire family.

His maximum response was genocide.

So no one was going to treat Hawk like Superman, and no one was foolish enough to think a simple subpoena would make him obediently sit through a congressional hearing.

Perhaps some individuals who knew of Hawk’s existence had entertained the idea of controlling him. But at the highest levels of power, among the core leadership of the five global superpowers, that option simply did not exist.

Once again.

S.H.I.E.L.D., acting on behalf of the world powers, currently enjoyed an excellent relationship with Hawk. And their relationship with his private security force, Demon’s Shackle, was even better.

Most importantly.

Hawk had tacitly approved of everything happening in Westview.

And that was enough.

Amy didn’t overthink Wanda’s suggestion. She glanced at Andrew, who was still wearing the same twenty-year-old clothes she had saved for him, and nodded. ”That sounds lovely.”

Wanda smiled, then looked at her daughter, who was still happily petting Andrew’s wings. ”Jean, you stay here and keep Grandpa company. Mommy is going home to change, and then we’ll all go shopping with Grandma and Grandpa.”

Jean just hummed her agreement, too engrossed in the impossibly soft feathers to look back.

Wanda turned, crossed the street, and went back to her own house.

Pietro was in the kitchen, eating a bowl of fruit cereal and reading the nutritional information on the box. When he saw Wanda, he looked up. ”I don’t get it.”

Wanda blinked.

”Don’t get what?”

”I get why Andrew Chloe can’t go to Texas. But why can’t I?”

”Because it’s dangerous.”

”I’m fast.”

”Still no.”

Are you kidding me?

Hawk was operating on a level of combat that defied comprehension. Did her brother really think that being ’fast’ qualified him to get involved in that kind of war?

Wanda shot the idea down immediately. Then, an idea struck her. Her hand glowed with red energy, and a surge of Chaos Magic shot directly into Pietro’s body.

Pietro jumped.

”What was that?”

”A magical tether. To make sure you don’t leave Westview.”

Pietro’s eyes went wide. He looked at his sister in disbelief. ”...A dog leash?”

Wanda was silent for a moment, then smiled sweetly.

”...If you want to think of it that way, I can’t stop you. But seriously, if you’ve got so much free time that you want to go watch a fight in Texas, why don’t you spend it figuring out how we’re going to get revenge on Tony Stark?”

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