The figure in the dark red suit looked like an oversized cockroach, twin batons gripped in gloved hands. But in Hell's Kitchen, there was only one person who dressed like that.
Daredevil.
Mario crouched down and checked on the mugger who'd been trying to rob him just seconds ago. The guy was out cold, breathing but completely unconscious. From the exposed jawline visible beneath Daredevil's mask, he could tell this version was young, probably early in his vigilante career.
"Thanks for the save."
No matter what else was going on, the guy had intervened to help. Basic courtesy demanded acknowledgment.
He glanced back at the unconscious mugger and sighed. "Actually, I was thinking about recruiting this guy. What a waste of talent."
It had been an idle thought, really. The mugger had shown polite patter, confident movements, and no unnecessary violence. But fate had other plans.
Daredevil seemed confused by Mario's reaction. He approached the unconscious criminal, produced rope from somewhere in his suit, and hog-tied the man. Then he picked up the dropped pistol and placed it on the guy's chest as evidence.
After calling the police, he turned back to Mario. "If you have time, you can wait here for the cops to arrive."
Gunfire cracked in the distance, business as usual for Hell's Kitchen.
"I'm heading out. And listen, don't wander around Hell's Kitchen alone at night. You're advertising yourself as a target."
Mario watched the vigilante disappear, then smiled to himself. "That's the best way to make money around here. Good thing I'm not broke anymore, or I'd be out here every single night."
He started walking toward the edge of Hell's Kitchen territory. "Spring has arrived, everything's coming back to life... and it's mating season for superheroes here. Wonder who their dance partners will be this time around."
He had done some research. Not every universe was identical. This one didn't even have Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin. Without that massive bastard causing problems, these superheroes were missing half their fun.
The moment he crossed out of Hell's Kitchen area, the number of pedestrians increased dramatically. He made his way back to his underground base and immediately began upgrading the lighting. He replaced all his torches with end rods, instantly giving his home a completely different atmosphere.
He dumped the miscellaneous junk from his inventory into nearby chests, then settled onto his couch and pulled out the Soul Stone.
The gem pulsed with faint light as he held it up.
"I want Yoda as a teacher!" he announced to the empty room.
As expected, absolutely nothing happened. The Infinity Stones in his possession were basically fancy decorations. Even the most mysterious Soul Stone didn't respond, no Jedi Grandmaster materialized out of thin air.
He pulled out the Tesseract and Loki's scepter from his inventory. Both still gleamed with power, showing no signs of losing their energy despite being in a different universe from their origin.
But he couldn't shake the feeling that the Tesseract's glow was slightly dimmer than before.
"What's going on? Could it be that having two of the same Infinity Stone in one universe weakens them? Never heard of that rule before..."
Curious, he decided to run an experiment. He stepped through his Nether portal. As expected, the Tesseract's brightness increased significantly.
"Huh. So if there are too many stones in one place, do they just turn into regular gemstones?"
Of course, Mario was overthinking it. No matter how many Infinity Stones existed in one location, they would always contain cosmic power, making them more valuable than ordinary gems.
---
The next morning, Mario went to Skye's room.
"You're up?"
"With what you were doing, if I didn't wake up that wouldn't be called sleeping, that'd be called unconscious."
Skye slapped his chest, then sat up. "My father wants me to go through the Awakening Ceremony. So when I face danger, I'll have powers to protect myself."
Mario considered this. Cal wasn't wrong. Awakening earlier would give her more time to master her abilities. "Let's go find your mother then."
"If we use the traditional Terrigenesis method, it could attract unwanted attention," Skye warned.
Her mother possessed the ability to awaken Inhumans without drawing the Kree's notice. This was a much safer alternative.
"I'll follow your lead."
Mario reached for his phone on the nightstand and dialed Coulson's number.
"Mario! What made you think of calling me? Let me guess, you need a favor?"
"This time, yeah, I do need help. I need information on the Inhuman settlement called Afterlife. And don't tell me S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't know about it."
"Uh... I'm not actually familiar with Afterlife myself," Coulson admitted, "but I'll inform Director Fury. Actually, he's been trying to reach you. Said he couldn't get through."
"Oh, that was when I was away on business. I'll get in touch with him when I have time."
After hanging up with Coulson, Mario scrolled through his contacts until he found Fury's number.
"Director Fury."
The response came immediately. "Mario, you're a difficult man to reach."
"Well, you know how it is, I'm a busy guy. Coulson mentioned you were looking for me?"
"I want to study the Tesseract," Fury said bluntly. "And use its energy to develop more advanced weapons."
Mario blinked. "Why the sudden interest?"
"The potential threats out there are far too powerful. Recent events have made me realize how inadequate S.H.I.E.L.D.'s capabilities really are. Look at Thor..."
Are you kidding me? Mario thought. The plot inertia is that strong? Fury still wants to study the Tesseract even after I opened a damn portal with it, basically announcing to the entire universe that it's on Earth?
"Fine," he said after a moment. "But I want a copy of whatever research data you extract from it."
Fury was silent for a few seconds. "Deal."
Mario glanced at Skye and added, "One more thing. Help me track down a Hydra leader, Daniel Whitehall. I want to give him as a gift to my future mother-in-law."
The mention of Hydra clearly struck a nerve. "Whitehall's still alive?"
"He stole an Inhuman's abilities and gained extended lifespan. I hope you can help me find him."
"I'll notify you once we have a location."
After hanging up, Fury sat in silence, idly turning an old pager over in his hands.
"The world is getting more chaotic by the day."
---
Three days passed without any word from S.H.I.E.L.D.
Mario and Skye waited at home for news about Afterlife, but neither Fury nor Coulson contacted them. Mario was starting to wonder if they'd simply forgotten about him entirely.
No choice. I'll have to go find Fury myself.
The main reason for the trip was actually Skye's condition, she wasn't mobile enough for interdimensional travel right now.
He contacted Kaecillius through his communicator. Once the sorcerer arrived, he dialed Fury's number.
"Director Fury, you in your office? Is now a good time to drop by?"
"I'm here. Come ahead."
Mario smiled and opened a portal. Fury was reviewing files about Inhumans when the gateway materialized in front of his desk. He hung up the phone and looked at the shimmering opening.
"I didn't expect you'd call first."
Mario stepped through with Skye and Kaecillius, glancing around the unchanged office before sitting across from Fury.
"I'm a polite guy. I don't usually appear unannounced in sensitive locations, unless we're enemies, of course."
He maintained his smile as he reached into his inventory and pulled out the Tesseract, tossing it casually onto the desk.
"There's your Tesseract. Be careful studying it. If something that shouldn't escape ends up crawling out, don't call me for help."
Fury examined the Space Stone and frowned slightly. "This Tesseract looks different from the one I gave you before."
Mario was impressed by Fury's sharp observation and memory. "You're right. This one, I grabbed from a parallel universe."
Even the unflappable Fury looked momentarily stunned. "You mean a parallel world? How did you even get there?"
"The Nick Fury in that world had the same brilliant idea as you, study the Tesseract to develop powerful weapons against alien threats. But somehow, his Tesseract resonated with mine, and I got pulled into his dimension. And as you can see, I brought his Tesseract back with me. While I was there, I also took down most of the Avengers... and a small alien army."
He pulled Captain America's shield and Thor's hammer from his inventory and set them on the desk.
"My trophies."
Standing behind Mario, Kaecillius's expression turned complicated. Everything Mario said was technically true, but the way he presented it felt deliberately misleading.
"So, if another version of me climbs out of your Space Stone portal while you're studying it... good luck. Oh, and that pager of yours? Not as reliable as you think."
It was an unmistakable threat.
Fury's single eye fixed sharply on Mario. The problem was, the evidence sat right there in front of him. He reached out and tried to lift Mjolnir, as expected, it didn't budge.
His gaze shifted back to the Tesseract as he silently calculated. Was Tesseract research worth the risk of potentially facing a hostile Mario?
Three seconds of consideration led to a firm conclusion: Not worth it.
But he didn't show his concerns. Instead of discussing the Tesseract, he changed subjects. "Regarding your request to locate the Inhuman gathering place, we haven't found anything yet. We've identified several Inhumans, but none of them know Afterlife's exact location. Only one with teleportation abilities can freely enter and exit."
"What about Whitehall? Don't tell me you haven't dealt with him either."
"His forces were stronger than anticipated. We were unprepared, and he managed to escape. He's gone completely underground, we can't locate him at all."
Mario stared at Fury, momentarily at a loss for words about S.H.I.E.L.D.'s current state. He used his pickaxe to pry Mjolnir out of the floor, tossed it into his inventory along with Cap's shield, and stood to leave.
"You should focus on your weapon research. I'll handle this myself in a parallel world. Honestly, it feels like without Hydra, S.H.I.E.L.D. has completely fallen apart."
Fury's jaw tightened. He wanted to argue, but Mario wasn't wrong. Ever since S.H.I.E.L.D. officially severed ties with Hydra, overall capabilities had dropped by more than half. If not for the World Security Council still supporting them, he would consider himself lucky if S.H.I.E.L.D. retained thirty percent of its former strength.
"Wait..." He stood suddenly. "Can I come with you to see this parallel world?"
Mario turned. "You're not going to study the Tesseract?"
Fury shook his head. "My instincts tell me I'll gain far more by following you into that world. About the Tesseract... it's better off in your hands."
That was strategy, of course. Definitely not because he was worried another hostile Mario might crawl out of a portal.
Mario smiled faintly. "Alright. I'll take you to see it. That place is two years ahead of this one. Honestly, I prefer that world, at least there aren't any disgusting vampires over there."
Parallel worlds having differences was perfectly normal.
"Let me finish some business first. I'll contact you in thirty minutes."
"Works for me. I need to prepare on my end too."
After setting the time, Mario and his companions stepped through a portal and vanished. The moment they were gone, Fury pressed the intercom on his desk.
"Hill, I need you in my office. We have things to discuss."
---
Thirty minutes later, everyone bound for the parallel world had assembled in Mario's underground base.
Mario, Skye, Kaecillius, Tony , and Fury, five people total.
It was Fury's first time visiting the place. Though he'd heard Coulson's reports, seeing it in person was different. Aside from the Time Tree and the Tree of Transformation, which looked unusual, there wasn't much that seemed particularly special.
"Alright, let's move out." Mario stood by the Nether portal, gesturing for the others to follow.
---
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50 Advance Chapters!