"You think I don't want to do that?"
With a sudden flicker, Alex's figure vanished from his original spot, only to reappear ten meters away in an instant.
Regaining his stance, Alex fixed his gaze on the massive infant in the distance, rolling his eyes in exasperation.
"You saw it yourself—this thing is just like me. It can devour all kinds of energy effortlessly. Magic, divine power, even demonic energy—it's all on its menu."
"But can't you absorb its energy too?" Shazam shouted, unable to contain himself.
After all, he had just witnessed Alex swallow a sphere of devastating energy like it was nothing—a force powerful enough to destroy Asgard and even this entire dimension. Yet, Alex had consumed it as easily as if he were enjoying a soup dumpling.
"I can absorb its energy, but that doesn't mean I can defeat it. Do you get it? This is just energy conversion. Do you want the two of us to keep fighting for eternity with no winner?"
Alex sidestepped an incoming strike from the Crowned Demon's heavy sword, using the blade as a foothold to propel himself high into the air. He landed steadily atop a frozen cliff.
"Then think of something fast!" Shazam had barely gotten the words out when a barrage of searing lasers came sweeping toward him.
Knowing just how terrifying these three creatures were, Shazam didn't dare to take the hit head-on. Instead, he took to the sky, dodging rapidly to evade the deadly beams.
"I'm thinking!"
Alex furrowed his brows, staring directly at the massive infant.
That horrifying "big baby" had to be the legendary Peregrine Child.
He hadn't expected the Three Mothers to summon it out of nowhere—especially when he had already gained full control over the situation. He had been so close to killing and absorbing them.
The Peregrine Child's power was downright bizarre.
From the moment it arrived in Asgard, Alex—highly attuned to energy fluctuations—could feel it rapidly devouring everything around it.
Every breath it took damaged the surrounding space. Every pore on its massive body absorbed magical energy from the air.
Alex had never encountered an enemy like this before.
No wonder Cyttorak fled his supposedly omnipotent Crimson Cosmos when the Three Mothers showed up. It wasn't them he feared—it was the thing behind them.
Just imagine—if the Peregrine Child were to fully manifest in the Crimson Cosmos, given its constant, insatiable hunger, it wouldn't be long before all of Cyttorak's power was drained into its stomach.
In that case, it made perfect sense for beings like Cyttorak and the Hell Lords to run for their lives.
Still, Alex couldn't help but wonder—if this magical equivalent of Galactus ever went up against the real Devourer of Worlds, how would that battle play out?
That thought made Alex pause. His eyes narrowed slightly.
Wait a minute...
Gazing at the monstrous infant, Alex suddenly felt like he had grasped something.
No wonder this thing had shown up now. He had originally assumed it had been disturbed by the actions of the Red Skull years ago. But now, it seemed far more complicated than that.
In this reality, Galactus was gone.
As a fundamental cosmic force, the World Devourer was still locked in an endless war on Apokolips, battling Darkseid and the Trigon in another universe.
With Galactus gone, the balance of energy across the cosmos had started to shift. The barriers between dimensions were weakening.
And that... that might be why the Peregrine Child is invading magical realms en masse.
It might not be alive in the traditional sense, but that didn't mean it lacked intelligence. On the contrary, the Peregrine Child was cunning. It knew exactly what it was doing.
It probably didn't understand why Galactus had vanished. But it did know that if it wanted to break into the physical universe, it needed more power.
And so, it turned its gaze toward the divine and infernal dimensions. By devouring the energies of every dimensional overlord, it could eventually erase reality itself.
"Damn it. The universe really can't function without Galactus, huh? The moment we got rid of that headache, all these freaks started crawling out of the woodwork."
Realizing this, Alex felt a rare sense of relief. At least I caught on early.
If he had ignored the problems in these distant dimensions, by the time the Peregrine Child had grown stronger, dealing with it would've been way harder.
"Alex!"
Before he could dive deeper into his thoughts, Shazam's urgent cry rang out—he was in serious trouble.
Because the Peregrine Child was constantly devouring and absorbing the surrounding energy, Shazam's divine power was slowly being drained away.
At first, he didn't notice, but as time passed, he felt his stamina depleting at an alarming rate. He was reaching his limit.
"I told you to leave with Brainstorm and Powerhouse," Alex sighed before sending a surge of energy into Shazam's body.
The energy, converted by the Timepad, could transform into any type of power response. With this quick recharge, Alex instantly replenished the energy Shazam had lost.
But they both knew this was just a temporary fix. If they dragged this out any longer, the Peregrine Child would eventually drain Shazam completely.
Alex himself had nothing to worry about, but the same couldn't be said for the others.
After a brief moment of thought, Alex smirked. An idea he had been ignoring for too long finally surfaced.
"Billy, I've got a plan."
With a flash, Alex appeared in front of Shazam, intercepting an attack from the writhing creature. With a powerful swing of his arm, the monster was sent flying backward.
Taking advantage of the moment, Alex grabbed Shazam and soared into the sky, giving them both a short breather.
"You've thought of something?" Shazam panted heavily, feeling more exhausted than after a fight with Clark.
"Something like that. If I can get close to the Peregrine Child, I can take it down for good." Alex spoke quickly. "But I need you to hold off the Three Mothers. Now that the Peregrine Child has arrived, their combat power has skyrocketed. We can't let them interfere."
After submitting to the Peregrine Child, the Three Mothers had completely linked themselves to it. Not only were their abilities enhanced, but the Peregrine Child could also lend them its energy, making them even more formidable.
It was similar to how Alex could lend his power to Tony Stark, allowing him to become a unique Echo that existed outside parallel universes.
Just like Tony could channel Alex's magical energy, the Three Mothers could wield the Peregrine Child's power, making them nearly invincible.
"Listen, Billy. We only have one shot at this. If we fail, dealing with it will be an even bigger nightmare. I know you hate trouble, and so do I—so we have to succeed. Got it?"
Alex patted Shazam's shoulder, his tone deadly serious.
"Don't worry," Shazam gave a small smile before nodding firmly. "I won't let those three anywhere near you."
The moment he finished speaking, another wave of attacks came crashing down.
Alex and Shazam split apart instantly, dodging the Three Mothers' assault while diving from two different angles toward the battlefield below.
After absorbing Alex's energy, Shazam felt an endless surge of power coursing through his body, as if he could never run out.
Like a meteor, he plummeted from the sky, then arced just before hitting the ground, using the immense impact to smash the writhing creature away.
"Come on, you two pieces of trash! Weren't you eager to devour the divine power inside me?" Shazam hovered in the air, taunting the remaining Crown and Wyrd with a beckoning gesture.
Unable to bear the provocation, Crown let out a furious roar and charged forward with a heavy sword. Meanwhile, Wyrd turned toward Alex.
The Three Mothers weren't just responsible for tracking magical energy for the Peregrine Child—they were also tasked with protecting it.
Seeing Alex closing in on the Peregrine Child, Wyrd sprang into action, swiftly intercepting his path.
Shazam wasn't about to let that happen. Stretching out both arms, he unleashed a thick bolt of lightning straight at Crown.
Mid-charge, Crown raised its massive sword to block. But to its surprise, the attack was just a feint. By the time it realized, Shazam had already soared over its head and positioned himself directly in front of Wyrd.
"And where do you think you're going?"
With a thunderous punch, Shazam struck out—only for Wyrd to raise a hand and stop the attack dead in its tracks.
""Do you seek to stand in the way of a great mother, little god?""
With an icy expression, Wyrd lashed out with four hands, seizing Shazam's limbs and holding him firmly in place.
Seeing this, Crown lifted its heavy sword and swung it straight for Shazam's head.
At that moment, Shazam's magical cloak moved on its own, streaking forward like a red blur and wrapping around Crown's head.
Though it couldn't block Crown's unnatural sight, the sudden interference disrupted its attack, causing the sword to miss its mark.
With a growl, Crown ripped the cloak off with immense strength and tossed it to the ground like a piece of discarded cloth.
""Your enchanted trinkets won't save your life.""
It grinned wickedly and raised its sword once more.
"I know."
Shazam showed no fear—only a taunting smirk.
"I also know your precious child is about to be finished."
""What did you say!?""
Both Crown and Wyrd paled at his words. Forgetting about Shazam, they immediately turned their attention toward the Peregrine Child in the distance.
There, floating before the colossal infant, was Alex.
"I heard you love devouring energy," he said.
The Peregrine Child's eyes flared with a blinding, eerie glow. Sensing the immense power radiating from Alex, it suddenly opened its mouth wide—revealing fanged jaws no infant should possess.
Its gaping maw expanded, unleashing an overwhelming suction force. Even Alex, caught off guard, nearly lost his footing and was almost pulled inside.
"You really think you can swallow me? Hope you don't break your teeth."
Steadying himself midair, Alex reached casually into his pocket.
"But I'm feeling generous today—so how about a feast?"
With a cold smirk, he suddenly flung his hand forward.
"Catch—!"
A tiny green flame shot from his palm, barely visible and flickering as if it could extinguish at any moment.
With nothing to stop it, the flame was instantly sucked into the Peregrine Child's gaping mouth.
.....
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