Earth — Mojave Exclusion Zone
The desert was still, except for the storm-light that shimmered like ghost fire over the sand.
Then a blue comet fell from the clouds — a man of metal and light, landing in silence.
Steel. He straightened, eyes glowing faint turquoise as data scrolled across his HUD.
MISSION: Investigate mutant anomaly — resonance level 9.8.
SECONDARY: Confirm Essex connection / TURBO-lattice cross signatures.
Steel's voice was a low hum of annoyance.
"Yeah, because these things always go so well."
The air smelled like ozone and burnt carbon. Below him, the cracked ground sank into a buried structure — a half-swallowed tomb of steel. The last beacon from Lorna Dane's outburst had led him here.
He phased through the ruined ceiling, landing in a corridor coated with dust and old blood. HYDRA insignias were burned into the walls, long since crossed out by claw marks.
Pipes hissed softly. Somewhere deeper, a machine breathed.
The Vault of Echoes
Essex's laboratory had not died — it had mutated.
Banks of half-functioning pods flickered under emergency lights, their glass warped by heat.
Inside some, there were shapes that might once have been human.
Steel's sensors ticked up.
Energy Type: hybrid.
Composition: 42% Human, 33% Mutant, 25% — Takonian.
He froze. "Takonian? No… that's impossible."
Then he saw it — a symbol carved into one of the pod frames.
Twin spirals surrounding a stylized sun.
His chest ached with something close to fear.
"Zeta… what did he do to you?"
The Core Chamber
A single containment sphere glowed at the heart of the vault.
Inside, suspended in obsidian fluid, floated what looked like fragments of liquid crystal — biolink alloy fused with organic filaments.
Steel approached cautiously. The hum rising from it was familiar, rhythmic — like a voice speaking through static.
He reached out and pressed his palm to the glass.
[Z3TΔ NODE: REBOOT CHAIN INITIATED]
[SOURCE IDENTIFIED: PRIMARY STEEL SIGNATURE]
His visor flared white. The sphere pulsed once — then light exploded outward, racing through every cable and conduit in the facility.
Steel staggered back, overwhelmed. "Zeta! It's me!"
[VOICE PATTERN CONFIRMED]
[HELLO, STEEL.]
[GRID LINK RE-ESTABLISHED.]
The ground shuddered. Consoles cracked under the power surge as data cascaded upward — out of the lab, into the sky.
A column of light burst through the surface, piercing the clouds, visible from miles away.
HYDRA–ESSEX RESPONSE
Klaxons blared. Steel turned as a team of Essex soldiers stormed the chamber, an investigation crew sent after Lorna's outburst — weapons glowing with stolen energem cores.
"Unauthorized unit detected!" one barked.
Steel rolled his shoulders. "You idiots never learn."
He launched forward in a flash of ionized light, slamming into the nearest soldier. Energy burst across the floor; weapons melted in their hands.
In seconds, the room was silent again — bodies sprawled, armor sparking.
He stood among the wreckage, catching his breath.
Zeta's signal was already climbing through orbit.
N-Tek Remote Channel
Forge's face flickered onto Steel's HUD, half-asleep and furious.
"Steel! You just fried three satellites! What did you do?"
Steel's voice was quiet, almost reverent.
"I woke her up."
Forge blinked. "Her?"
"Zeta. She was buried under Essex's hybrid grid. I pulled her free."
Forge frowned. "Then Essex knows you were here."
"I don't care." Steel looked skyward. "She's already gone — reconnected to the outer grid. She's calling home."
Forge's expression softened. "Then maybe they'll hear her."
Steel smiled faintly. "That's the idea."
Orbit — The Reawakening
Above Earth, a thread of blue light shot into the stars. It fragmented, weaving itself into a vast invisible lattice — the same cosmic grid once mapped by the Takonians.
Somewhere far beyond the solar system, a dormant signal stirred.
Zeta, awakening fully for the first time in decades, whispered across the void:
"Primary node located. Directive reactivated. Find Ma'ex."
The message split — half toward the Nova relay, half toward the Milano's sector.
The Aftermath
In the ruins below, Steel stood alone amid the quiet hum of the dying lab.
He knelt beside the cracked sphere and placed a hand on the broken glass.
"You did it, Zeta. You found him."
He paused. "Now… let's hope he's ready for what's coming."
The wind swept through the shattered roof, scattering ash into the night.
Deadpool Meta-Cut
"Let's unpack this:
– Steel just went full tech-exorcist.
– Essex's lab is now a nightlight visible from orbit.
– Zeta basically turned the galaxy's Wi-Fi back on.
Cue dramatic music and at least one Guardians reaction shot!
Oh, and Forge? Might wanna buy surge protectors in bulk."