Crack!
With a swift motion, Hawk twisted the Chitauri warrior's head at a sharp ninety-degree angle. The alien's fly-like compound eyes, glowing with eerie green light, widened in disbelief as it stared at the human standing before it.
How did he suddenly appear behind me?
The Chitauri soldier would never get the answer. That fleeting thought was the last to pass through its mind before an endless darkness swallowed it whole.
Its limp body collapsed to the rooftop floor with a dull thud, the energy weapon slipping from its grasp and clattering against the concrete.
"That's it?"
Hawk let out a soft chuckle.
The moment the alien died, Hawk felt it the subtle surge of warmth rushing through his body, pulsing from the core of his Microcosm. A new star had ignited within that inner universe born from the Big Bang itself.
Alongside the light of that star, a stream of information flowed into Hawk's consciousness.
Within his Microcosm, the projections of the forty-eight Bronze Constellations shimmered faintly. As the first star was lit, those celestial patterns began to emerge, hazy but unmistakable.
Hawk closed his eyes, absorbing the revelation delivered to him by the Microcosm.
"Grow through countless battles.
Ascend through endless conflict.
For the path of the Microcosm was never one of peace
It is a path forged in combat, designed for war.
The path... of the Saints."
"So…"
"If I want to awaken my own constellation within the Microcosm... I have to fight? Keep fighting?"
In the lore of the Saints, the awakening of the Microcosm is deeply intertwined with one's destined constellation. But it isn't a simple one-to-one pairing.
If the Microcosm is water, then the constellation is the vessel.
A Saint's constellation symbolizes their identity and serves as the container for their power.
Bad news: In the Marvel Universe, Saints don't exist.
Which means, if Hawk wants a constellation of his own, he'll have to awaken each one himself one star at a time.
Good news:
Since there are no Saints here, theoretically, all forty-eight Bronze Constellations are up for grabs.
Unlike in the world of his memories, where countless warriors fought and bled for a single constellation thousands competing for one spot here, Hawk stands alone.
There, the constellations were few and the Saints were many.
But here?
He is the first and only to awaken the Microcosm.
Which means…
He could claim the Pegasus Cloth.
Or the Phoenix Cloth.
As long as he can light the stars within his Microcosm, he can be any Saint he chooses to be.
Now that…
That's incredible.
There's a saying…
"Children choose; adults take everything."
And while Hawk may still technically be seventeen legally a minor his mind has long since matured.
He'll take them all.
Wait a minute...
If he could claim all forty-eight Bronze Constellations
Then what about the twenty-four Silver Constellations?
And the Twelve Gold Saints?
Hiss
Hawk suddenly sucked in a sharp breath at the thought.
Just then, a sharp gust of wind hit his face. His eyes snapped open.
Two Chitauri soldiers on flying pods spotted the corpse of their fallen comrade and immediately locked their glowing eyes on Hawk.
Without hesitation, they opened fire.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Fury twisted their alien features. The sight of their dead comrade, slain by a mere human, had enraged them.
Gunfire poured down onto the rooftop. The already unstable structure groaned under the assault.
Under the relentless barrage, the rooftop finally gave way.
With a deafening crack, the entire top floor of the apartment building crumbled.
Soon, the whole structure began to collapse, floor by floor.
The ground shook with the force of the destruction, and a towering plume of dust rose into the sky. In a matter of seconds, the once five-story building was reduced to rubble.
Some of the residents had managed to flee the building just in time, but they hadn't gone far. Now, they stood in shock, mouths agape, as they watched their home vanish into dust.
Their shock quickly turned to horror.
The two Chitauri warriors had lowered their flying pods and now hovered at street level eyeing the survivors.
Panic took over. The residents screamed and turned to run.
Too late.
The invaders had their orders: eliminate all Earthlings.
Without a shred of hesitation, they pulled their triggers again.
Blinding bursts of energy tore through the air.
People fell. One after another. Screams turned to silence.
In the blink of an eye, this poor and once-quiet neighborhood was transformed into a war-torn battlefield resembling something out of the worst parts of war-torn Earth.
After clearing the area, the two Chitauri soldiers dismounted from their vehicles and approached the ruins of the collapsed apartment.
They raised their energy rifles and aimed at the rubble.
Because…
The life signal of that human the one who killed their brother-in-arms was still there.
And not just alive it was growing stronger.
More powerful by the second.
The two Chitauri soldiers exchanged a glance.
Then
Boom!
The rubble exploded outward as a shadow shot past them.
The soldier on the right vanished from sight, and a thunderous crash echoed through the block.
Across the street, his body had become one with the wall of a nearby building, like a grotesque mural. Green blood splattered in every direction.
The remaining soldier froze, staring at the scene with wide eyes.
Unfortunately, Chitauri eyes are naturally tiny no matter how wide they opened, they still looked like green lentils.
He instinctively turned and rushed toward his fallen comrade.
He didn't get far.
In a blink, everything blurred and he was launched backward like a ragdoll.
Only after he was airborne did the sound finally reach him.
Boom!
Crack!
His chest caved in midair. The lifeless body slammed into the rubble, bounced once like a pinball, and lay still.
Motionless.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Hawk emerged from the spot where the Chitauri soldier had been moments ago, brushing dust from his shoulders as he looked around curiously.
He killed one Chitauri... and two more showed up.
Now that he's taken down two...
Will three come next?
That was the thought crossing Hawk's mind as he looked up at the sky over Manhattan
At the Leviathan beast descending from the space-time portal.
His eyes burned with excitement.
He was ready.